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Carlo - Cover page and inside back page

Making Further Education Sustainable in a Digital World through Collaboration

Michelle Selinger, Graham Huggins and Christopher Gleadle

Introduction

Why education needs to think about sustainability

Sustainability is much more than being green: it is about understanding the interdependence

of environmental, social and financial impacts on the long term future of the organisation

within its local, national and international setting. In education “sustainability” can mean

many things: it can be about ensuring the economic viability of the organisation or about

improving the carbon footprint, but it can also be about how students’ learning is catered for;

the availability and choice of courses, and how engagement with employers is improved.

In this first of two papers we explore the intersection of sustainability, quality in learning and

teaching, and innovative uses of digital technology. We make recommendations to further

education colleges to help them set a sustainability agenda that will also enable them to

make substantial improvements in the relevance, quality and efficacy of learning and

teaching and its management.

Further education is at a crossroads

Recent reports, including the report from the Further Education Learning and Teaching

Advisory Group (FELTAG)1 and TLRP2, make it clear that there needs to be greater

relevancy and currency with trends in the workplace towards sustainability, greater

resilience, and the use of technology to streamline processes and improve effectiveness. As

government funding for education is constantly reduced, new models are needed to ensure

both viability and financial sustainability. Innovative use of digital technology in conjunction

with well implemented solutions will increase the motivation and engagement of learners as

well as sustainability by:

• bringing employers and colleges closer together without the need for extensive travel;

• reducing the need to expand buildings by increasing remote access to learning opportunities; and

• adding new levels of authenticity to learning and teaching, as well as offering significant economies of scale.

The FELTAG report adds significant weight to the discussion about employer-college

relations stating that “it is clear from the research and sector discussions that a closer

1 FELTAG (2014) Paths forward to a digital future for Further Education and Skills. Recommendations

from the Further Education Leaning Technologies Advisory Group (FELTAG). Available at

http://feltag.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/FELTAG-REPORT-FINAL.pdf

2 Nash, I., Sue Jones, Ecclestone, K. and Brown, A, Eds (2008) Challenge and change in further

education: A Commentary by the Teaching and Learning Research Programme. TLRP, London

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relationship should be established between employers and FE and Skills providers so that

learning technology in and outside work are more effectively exploited”.

There are a number of technologies that support a sustainable education model such as

unified communications and collaboration tools that range from instant messaging,

presence, telephony, video and email to social networking, virtual learning environments,

flipped classrooms, media studio in a box, 360 degree projection domes, multimedia,

mobility, feedback, and information shared and accessible from anywhere to anyone or to

groups. A range of virtual tools such as visual collaboration software allows users to create

and capture ideas and notes on any available application and to keep meetings organised

and easily communicate their outcomes - all in a safe, secure and confidential environment.

Why sustainability matters

Building sustainability capacity in college will empower students as future employees with a

greater understanding of sustainability which, in turn, will build future capacity in business

and industry to plan for sustainability, aiding the adoption of appropriate frameworks and

tools that will improve efficiencies, cost savings, risk and economic growth. In fact, studies

have shown that successful implementation of sustainability improves morale and retention

in business3, and that students who learn in the context of sustainable education are found

to be more motivated, better behaved, and more attentive in class4.

Education can add such value by raising awareness of the implications of sustainable

practices, both internally to understand the risks and the opportunities for the college

environment to enhance the student experience and improve retention, as well as outreach

to the community and building bridges with business.

Pedagogical implications of sustainability Using technology in innovative ways can have a significant impact on both the sustainability

of the college as well as learning outcomes and teaching efficiencies and effectiveness.

Blended learning models

More and more students want to combine studies with work. Lifelong learning is becoming a

reality as increasingly people want to find ways to improve their job prospects and enjoy

greater economic rewards; and the number of apprenticeship opportunities are increasing

which also demand on the job training. Having to leave the workplace to attend college

lectures is no longer tenable for reasons of costs and time, especially when the alternative of

a blended learning solution can make the learning experience just as valuable and

meaningful, and provide learners with choices about how to best use the time freed up by

not having to travel. Reduced travel also means reduced carbon emissions.

3 Sirota Survey Intelligence (2007) Corporate Social Responsibility Contributes To Bottom Line,

Improves Worker Engagement And Customer Loyalty.

4 Barratt Hacking, E., Scott, W. and Lee, E. (2010) Evidence of Impact of Sustainable Schools.

Nottingham, United Kingdom: Department for Children, Schools and Families.

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There are so many digital tools on the market that make blended learning a collaborative

learning experience that is so far removed from the view of the distance learner as struggling

to make sense of new concepts and ideas in isolation. With social networking sites, virtual

classrooms and video and audio conferencing technologies, learners are now in a position

where the difference between the in-person experience and the online experience are

almost indistinguishable.

With many college courses demanding practical applications of theory and practice in

developing skills, time in college can be devoted to these tasks and to remedial sessions to

ensure all students can succeed, while much of the theoretical learning can take place in

other locations – the workplace, the home, or in a community learning centres, such as

libraries. Students then have choices about where, when and with whom to study. This also

negates the need for extra accommodation as a college expands.

Flipped classrooms

The flipped classroom model has also been adopted in further and higher education to afford

more time for discussion, project-based learning and remediation. The model flips the

traditional model of lecture style teaching in the college and individual study outside the

college or in free time, to one where lectures are available online with instructions about

what to watch by when, followed by classroom and tutorial based activities in the college.

Additionally, guest lectures or resources such as documentaries available on the Internet

can also be used avoiding duplication and overstretching already busy teachers.

Learning space design

If colleges are to become places for project work, practical activity, discussion and

collaboration then the spaces provided might need to be reconfigured. Many college and

universities around the world have looked very seriously at how they design new learning

environments that support new pedagogical models and do this in a way that is cost effective

and sustains the vision and ethos being developed.

Below in figure 1 is an example of how one university in Australia, the University of

Technology, Sydney, has designed its lecture theatres to turn them into collaborative

learning spaces. In the first image students are listening to a lecture, while in the second

image, the students have turned around to engage in discussion with their peers. The use of

two rows of desks on each tier complete with swivel chairs have transformed a space that

supports turning a delivery model of learning into a collaborative one. This is a sustainable

design solution because the room now serves a dual purpose. The economies brought about

by refurbishing an existing space imaginatively are more than financial, they are also social,

because students are given the opportunity to consolidate their learning in situ through

discussion and debate.

Figure 1: Lecture theatre at University of Technology Sydney in lecture mode and in collaboration mode

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Improved relevance, motivation and engagement

Digital collaboration and communication technologies also support improved links with

employers as well as driving sustainability. Those links can take many formats including:

• Work based learning opportunities

• Inviting employers to engage remotely with students to add relevance and authenticity to learning

• Apprentices maintaining better links with the college and able to study some of their modules in situ

• Three-way mentoring sessions between students, tutors and workplace mentors

• Maintaining closer relationships between employers and the college, and so ensuring currency of curriculum

• Outreach to the community to increase enrolment

By being able to work with students remotely, employers do not have to spend time travelling

from their place of work and are more willing to offer their services to colleges, and resulting

in wider access to more students across more institutions.

Improving staff productivity – teaching within and across campuses

Many colleges have multiple campuses, some of which offer the same programmes and

courses. Teaching and learning efficiencies can be gained by teaching across campuses

remotely through a range of technology-based solutions, whilst ensuring the student

experience is not compromised. Additionally oversubscribed courses can be accommodated

by dividing students between teaching rooms or lecture theatres when there is insufficient

space available in one.

A number of experiments have been carried out using different video conferencing solutions

as well as virtual classrooms, sometimes in conjunction with one another to help ease the

problem and efficiencies. For example, in the US, the Moore School of Law has a lecturer

who sits in a dedicated video conferencing studio alone and teaches students in lecture

theatres located in three different parts of the college, thus ensuring no one group is

advantaged over the other by his physical presence.

In another situation in an Amsterdam college, LCD screens were placed around a room and

at each location a different person was seen over a video conference, and could contribute

equally. The participants who were present at the location were interspersed between the

screens so that the guest speaker felt as though he was talking to one group with little need

for consideration as to where they were located.

Cisco’s graduate training programme worked with fourteen groups located around the world.

Video conferencing units were placed at the back and front of a seminar room in each

location with the tutor’s desk situated at the side with a camera directed at him, so all

participants felt part of the same teaching environment (Figure 2 &3). A virtual classroom

was used in tandem to monitor student progress and filter questions, as well as allowing

students to work in groups across sites as well as in situ, thus modelling the world of multi-

office workplaces.

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Figure 2: Teaching across campuses using video conferencing and virtual classroom technologies

This same technology can also be used to facilitate cross campus meetings saving time and

travel costs, ensuring messages are received equitably, and enabling staff to plan together,

share teaching and maintain contact.

Video conferencing tools can also be used for practical teaching. In an experiment at the

WorldSkills event in the UK in 2012, remote teaching of motor mechanics was undertaken

successfully between students at the venue supervised by a technician and students with

the course tutor based at Norwich City College (Figure 3).

Figure 3: Remote teaching of motor mechanics

Sustainable education – an integrated approach to sustainable development through

curriculum design and organisation

As business budgets are tighter, so there is greater need to understand where the waste is

and to do more with less whilst not compromising the student experience or learning

outcomes.

Young people deserve an education that equips them to be successful students,

accomplished professionals, effective parents, and productive leaders in our competitive,

and increasingly cooperative, interconnected world. They need the knowledge, skills, and

stamina to work individually and collectively to solve current problems and to prevent new

ones. They must learn to balance the often-conflicting requirements of society, economy,

and the environment to contribute to sustainability.

Understandably, it is important to make the change to sustainable education simple as well

as practical. This can be achieved by adding to the curriculum project-based learning and

extracurricular activities, such as connecting the built environment, food services and

facilities operations to learning outcomes.

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Student services and student wellbeing

Student services provides support for prospective and current students and staff. These services assist in providing a holistic student experience which takes into account students wellbeing as well as academic achievement to provide a positive experience and increase student retention. Support provided includes accessibility and assistive software, careers advice, counselling, financial advice, mentoring, tutoring. Technology has a significant role to play in making these services sustainable especially if a district/regional service is set up with appropriate accessibility to IT facilities to meet the needs of students and staff. Students and staff will need access to a dedicated, secure room where they can contact professional staff when needed via phone or video, e.g. counselling. Around the clock service would then be affordable and enable students to contact staff out of normal working hours, including weekends. Introducing technology solutions like this will become crucial in providing an economic and affordable service as policy changes such as the Disabled Student Allowance (DSA) modernisation kicks in. Colleges will see a significant reduction in funding for student support, yet will still need to meet the costs of the large number of students who will still require mentoring and study skills support. Accessibility and assistive software: Some students will require access to support in different formats, e.g. text messaging, telephone/voice, video, face to face, email. By providing an inclusive method of access to support this will enable students who are studying at a distance, on placement, on apprenticeships, or with special needs to access the support they need. For example, software that includes text to speech will ensure those students with literacy issues have better access to on-line support. Careers service: Prospective students do not always understand the requirements of a course or what career they can follow once they have successfully completed a course. On-line support on the web and also the ability to communicate with academic staff and careers advisers prior to choosing their course can help to ensure the right pathways are selected and the necessary changes are made and, as a result, increase student retention. Counselling and mentoring services: Counselling and mentoring is of great assistance to many, especially at times of stress and difficulty. Those who access this support need to be assured that it is within a safe, secure and confidential environment. Initially this may be face to face, or over video but could also be made more frequent or be replaced by other communications technologies, where appropriate. Financial advice: Students are often on very low incomes and good financial budget advice set out clearly on the college website is essential with one-to-one advice available. An associated link to talk via voice, video or text chat with a financial adviser for those students whose circumstances are more complex and when shared across a region or nationally, will improve student support at little extra cost to individual colleges. Providing advice to academic staff on individual student needs is also an important part of Student Services and can be provided by dedicated experts through a district/regional service. Additionally a whole raft of CPD opportunities can be delivered to staff across video and virtual classrooms or through blended learning, thus further reducing staff travel and saving individuals’ time.

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Summary

This first paper explored new opportunities for quality teaching and learning and student

services while at the same time improving the sustainability of an institution. In the second

paper we explore the three pillars of sustainability- environmental, social and economic and

the need for consideration of all three in relationships with employers and a college’s supply

chain; students’ understanding of the sustainability agenda; and building and facilities

management.

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How we can help

Our unique approach in which ConsultEdu, CMG Consultancy and iPorta are working closely

together can help educational organisations improve student intake, increase brand

exposure both locally in the community and further afield, and provide better

communications between students and tutors, internally in the organisation and externally to

partners, the community and business. We help educational organisations reduce costs by

increasing energy efficiency, improving the understanding of risks, improving

communications and work based learning, redesigning learning spaces, flipping the

classroom and blended learning solutions.

We work together engaging stakeholders and advising on the effective use of educational

technology, innovative online, and face to face teaching environments, sustainability advice,

coaching and training, and solutions for facilities management. Once we have understood

where technology can help, we advise on technology solutions that are right for our

customers and are easy to use, with minimum training or support by internal IT staff. We

provide solutions, that are maintained and supported throughout their life cycle, reducing the

overhead of maintenance, moves, adds and changes, and other related costs. All our

solutions are inherently secure to meet e-safety requirements, but not restrictive for the end

users.

ConsultEdu provides consultancy on bespoke solutions and strategic advice specialising in the effective use of educational technology. We offer support in the design of innovative online and face-to-face learning and teaching environments and strategies for change management, learning space design, professional development, community engagement, and institutional partnerships.

Contact: Dr Michelle Selinger Tel: +44 7826 858533 email: michelle@consultedu.co.uk Website: www.consultedu.co.uk

iPorta is a company who are also extremely passionate about the innovative technologies

and solutions we bring to market which include collaboration and communication,

infrastructure, digitally rich learning spaces, BYOD Mobile wireless, security and safety.

iPorta is accredited both technically and with the by companies such as Cisco, Microsoft and

Smart. We are always looking at next generation technology companies, and work the most

innovative who are disrupting the mainline companies for the better. We provide a highly

focused, streamlined service based on our extensive knowledge of the solutions, challenges

and opportunities for the education market.

Contact: Graham Huggins

Tel: +44 203 051 9199 email: info@iporta.co Website at www.iporta.co

CMG Consultancy As a business coach and trainer, CMG shows organisations how to

reduce costs, risks and remove barriers for growth by capturing, creating and delivering

more value. This is important to colleges because we provide the knowledge and skills to

connect students, staff and the work place, who need to be sustainably viable in an

increasingly competitive world. And, to create a sustainable life style for you, your students

and give security for your family, it is vital your college is sustainably viable.

Contact: Christopher Gleadle

Tel: +44 7980 087543 email: Christopher@thecmgconsultancy.com

Website at www.thecmgconsultancy.com