ABL: are students ready?

The aim of the workshop is for staff to learn about ways to help their students prepare for ABL as part of the university’s ‘new normal’ learning and teaching approach. This workshop forms part of the ILT funded Enhancement and Innovation project ‘Increasing student understanding of Active Blended Learning’. The project involves designing and delivering a series of sessions for students to help increase their knowledge, understanding and confidence with ABL, thus improving their readiness for ABL. The sessions have been designed in such a way as to be suitable for other staff to use/adapt with their own students, and we have also gathered useful data from students along the way about their views and experiences of ABL. In the workshop, staff will get the chance to participate in core elements of the student sessions and try out the activities in the position of learners. This involves debating the nature of learning, and also evaluating different kinds of ABL examples. We will also share some of the research findings from students who have taken part in the project so far, and encourage discussion as to how this knowledge can inform ABL design more broadly. The target audience would be staff involved in design and delivery of ABL who feel their students 1) are not yet ‘Waterside ready’ 2) need to improve their knowledge and understanding of ABL and/or 3) would benefit from increased confidence with ABL. The materials and ideas from the workshop can be used and adapted by staff within and outside of the institution.