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 ==Weekly Quizzes that promote student engagement and consistent learning through the semester==
===Di Hughes, Yossi Rathner, La Trobe University===
 
CFY subject Human Biosciences A - redefined the subject after high failure rates. Key factor is 'Science anxiety' - preconceived ideas by students before they enter classroom.  Pre-workshop quizzes set in place - students preparing before class. Didn't want to overburden students so preclass exercise wasn't onerous.  LRHS survey of students to seek input as to effectiveness of changes and use of quizzes. 
Explained to students the Student workload policy in 1st lecture.  45 minute on-line quiz each week for students to do - explained to students in 1st lecture.  By week 3 students seeing quiz as a useful study guide. Two surveys conducted this year and last year.   Surveyed across all rural campuses (except one). In 2013 captured 30% of students with paper based survey. On line survey too - a further 16% students responded. In 2012 15% of students captured.
Responses - students didn't want to give up lectures; they really like workshops; quizzes help students to keep up to date with studies / a useful study tool; helpful to review topic material. Students didn't find quizzes onerous. Software used visually engaging.
Drawbacks - quizzes tied closely to textbook - not lecture material.  Having unlimited attempts at quiz was a disincentive to learn (student feedback).  Will change this for 2014.
 
Managing workload expectations by explicating Workload policy.
http://www.latrobe.edu.au/policy/documents/student-workload-policy.pdf
http://www.latrobe.edu.au/policy/documents/student-workload-guidelines.pdf
 
Using Quiz as a structural guide; students using as a study guide. 
Student identified that it assisted in how they learned.
Meta cognition in understanding different learning resources and contexts and how to consolidate learning.
Lecture the most important part of learning - survey result. 
Be explicit about constructive alignment and how learning objectives link to learning and assessment.
 
Technical:
{{Settings: Will change quiz from unlimited attempts, to having to pass with 2 or 3 attempts ... because too much guessing in the end}}
 
Change in assessment scheme in 2013 - students knew they had passed so results dropped in second part of semester; engaged and stimulated and not overwhelmed as in past. 
 
Q: Quizzes in Moodle (2012) in Mastering A&P (2013) - higher engagement, multi-media, longer and harder, feedback. 
Y: Students found quizzes valuable; have to be compulsory for them to do them. 
Q: Lectures preferred but students did not attend. 
Y: Assumed students viewing through lectopia/ Echo 360. Students on campus as against those who do not come in twice. Students find it reinforcing - "they expect to be taught".
Q: How were quizzes used in 2012 - 2013?
Y: Optional in 2012 ; In 2013 the quiz had to be completed before coming to the workshop. 
 
Q: How can students revise physiology for year 2 Paramedicine at Bendigo? 
Y: It can be tailored for specific purposes. Each student has two year access to Mastering A&P.
 
==In-class team assessment== 
===Sherrie Wentworth and Di Hughes, La Trobe University===
 
CFY subject Human Biosciences B - 2nd semester subject. These are two of the hardest subjects in first year and prerequisite for many subjects in 2nd year.  HBB does quizzes too. How we tackle team assessments is the focus of the presentation.
 
Initially, Human Biosciences B was an EBL subject with team based learning activities. Each enquiry lasts 4 weeks. There is a lot of assessment in each enquiry including a team report.  Students tended to allocate tasks and discussion in the team to ensure everyone was happy with and understood it - but this is where it didn't work.  
Compared team assessment and individual exam marks - NO CORRELATION. (1126 students analysed.) Students working well in teams and got good marks but not picking up information other team members had done, so didn't do well in individual exams.
2010 changed slightly - decrease in team marks; increased time to do teamwork in 2011 and this led to improvement. In 2012 changed again slightly - better links between what students learnt and the assessment tasks.
Now manage assessment process in the classroom which works much better,replaced team assignments with in-class activities. Introducing "fun" activities too in team based activities.
 
Nil correlation between team project result, and final (individual) exam result. (Now there's a scatter plot for you!). Decrease in team marks (and later, time) led to an improvement in this correlation. Improving links between their (new) assessment and what they already know ... Then, assessment done in class, rather than @ home ... 
 
Threshold concepts in 2nd year: a 'window' where this particular knowledge needs to be gathered before the clinical subjects. 
 
"Cohort size limits creativity in assessment" 
 
 
 
==Inquiry-based learning in the Open==
 ===John Hannon, CTLC, La Trobe University.===
Contextual Locations for John's talk 
1. FHS - origins in influences and models from Manchester university
2. FBEL - influences Philipa Levy, University of Sheffield 
3. Study leave - University in Denmark that uses EBL across whole university.
 
Origins - different versions of doing things that moved away from individual transmission of content; student engagement in construction of learning.
Cluster of approaches  - umbrella term for case study, project based, problem based learning.
Open ended - multiple solutions - fit for purpose - divergent approach.
Dealing with real world problems , complex problems
wikipedia entry for Inquiry based learning : Meta literature review - claim that it does not make any difference to learning - disputed.
Bring in experts - make the university 'more porous'
Participants - Learning Spaces - artefacts - self organisation - shared spaces for collaboration.
Peer assessment not a given with EBL.
In some universities EBL drives whole courses. 
Some do hybrid models so students work between more traditional approaches 
 
Q: Traditional science model to have prac classes - is it EBL by another name?
J: Yes 
Q: Phasing out of prac classes on economic basis - is it reinventing the wheel?
J: Whether convergent or divergent meaning making the approaches have similarities.  
K: PBL in the faculty since the 1980s, embraced across the faculty; EBL allows for greater diversity of interactions - learning through doing. Integrated into the community with real case studies. 
M: Students using Mobile learning devices - survey about what they did. Facebook for group discussions, using them in class 30%. Drop box used. 
 
 
==Mixed-media assessment for student learning and community engagement==
 ===Ruth Ford. HUSS, La Trobe University===
Community History - stories of communities and place.
Taught across campuses - taught in EBL mode with ongoing digital presence and presentation at an annual conference for Victorian History Week in week 12.
Focus on own communities and choice of topic engaged learners - Numurkah hospital, Gold mining, Aboriginal communities, POW camps, Prison.
Within two hours of first class several topics already chosen! 
Studying what is part of their lives is important to them and motivating.  
Conceptual thread about communities - despite diversity of topics. 
Powerful stories that had not been told before. Learning and critiquing community history and how it is told. New histories being told in their communities. 
Display and presentations - range of formats to demonstrate different approaches and provide models. 
Deadlines - pressure but all met demands to convey their historical research in a non-essay form. Excitement and opportunity to work in different formats, in groups, pairs or solo. Many chose solo as they were passionate about topic and found it hard to juggle group dynamic. 
Workload high - assessment variations - podcast outside comfort zone. 
Peer feedback = 5% , wiki - history documentation had own life beyond semester; wordpress format
http://wordpress.org/
 
EBL with outcomes embedded in communities. 
Student activities that benefit public knowledge
 
Q: No LTU logo on student work?
R: Website acknowledges that students are from La Trobe. Discussions will be had regarding branding, however often easier to do separately. 
Q: Permissions - issues around use of images 
R: Visual images pre 1955 no copyright needed. Tight timelines to get permissions so students tended to take their own images. Students at exhibition images - need release forms. Build in to learning outcomes - use of images and consent, ethics.
Q: Visual anthropology - did you deal with that? 
Sian Bayne, Edinburgh University - all assessment available online. http://www.dice.education.ed.ac.uk/?cat=3
R: One week of semester spent on how to analyse images, copyright - most used images unproblematically.
Q: Need to do more in the realm of visual literacy across the uni.
R: May try to do more on visual analysis and what other platforms can be added - next year.