Reflection on undergraduate students’ and teachers’ experiences of using English and digital technology in Asian higher education through a gender lens (Agnes Kukulska-Hulme, Philip Sergeant & Saraswati Dawadi, OU UK)

Education opportunities are increasingly dependent on access to digital technology along with competence in the English language. Our British Council funded research aims to explore undergraduate students’ and teachers’ access to digital technology for learning and teaching languages, and their opportunities to learn the English language, in the four most populous countries in East and South Asia – Bangladesh, China, India, and Indonesia. With a focus on higher education and equality of opportunity, the two-phase longitudinal study will track and assess predictions and trends relating to teaching, assessment and learning of English (TALE) practices and the role of digital technology. 

In this presentation, we will share our findings from the first phase of our study. In this phase, data was collected by local partners and their teams in each country through multiple sources, namely an online survey with 5695 undergraduate students and 328 teachers, focus group discussions with students (n=57), interviews with teachers (n=15), and Padlet discussions with students (n=49). Participants were first year students and their teachers from four broad discipline areas in a number of public and private universities in each country. Findings point to current trends of the use of technology for TALE, as well as students’ and teachers’ attitudes towards the role of English and technology in promoting or reducing equality, diversity and inclusion in students’ access to quality learning in higher education. We have taken a particular interest in exploring any gender differences in attitudes and experiences, as well as perceptions of whether gender plays a role in educational opportunities in higher education. In addition, the presentation will elucidate the students’ and teachers’ attitudes towards the role and value of English in the next ten years in their communities in general and higher education in particular, and it will suggest implications for policy and pedagogy. 

Enhancing Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Open Education: Insights from Africa and Latin America (Carina Bossu & Francisco Iniesto, OU UK & UNED) 

Equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) have become significant topics within the Open Education (OE) community. However, the provision of free and online resources, like Open Educational Resources (OER), does not automatically guarantee equitable, diverse, and inclusive access. A major barrier is the majority of OER being available only in English, making it challenging for learners worldwide to access them. 

The Global OER Graduate Network (GO-GN) is a community supporting PhD candidates conducting research on open education. With around 200 participants, including researchers, experts, supervisors, mentors, and other stakeholders, GO-GN has prioritized EDI since its establishment in 2013. However, it wasn’twas not until 2018 that the first EDI projects in Open Education were initiated. The initial project focused on EDI in Open Education in Africa, followed by a subsequent project in Latin America. These projects aimed to increase representation from these regions within GO-GN, as the majority of participants were from developed countries. They also aimed to reach those who would benefit most from joining the network.  

This presentation will provide an overview of these EDI projects. It will also introduce and discuss the GO-GN EDI Guidelines, which is a combined outcome of these projects, highlighting their importance in creating inclusive open education environments. The GO-GN EDI Guidelines are evidence-based principles designed to promote equitable, diverse, and inclusive open education environments. The document can be used by higher education institutions, individuals, and open communities to foster EDI practices. While the guidelines were initially contextualized for the Global South regions, they can be adapted to various EDI and open education initiatives and contexts. 

How to design inclusive museums? Insights from an online course for professionals in art and humanistic studies Francisco Iniesto & Covadonga Rodrigo, UNED)

The Inclusive Memory (IM) project, 2021-2024 funded by the European Commission, promotes social inclusion by promoting a shared social memory through a museum-based inclusive approach linking Art-Health-Wellbeing. This initiative leverages cooperation between Higher Education Institutions, Health and Social Care Institutions, and Museums, forming a strategic partnership to enhance museum education and experiences. Universities can play a key role in encouraging collaboration among the health, social care, and arts sectors. The project employs a reversed community approach to rebuild troubled communities through partnerships among academics, health and social care professionals, artists, and cultural organisations.  

Given the evolution and impact of digital technologies in society and cultural organizations, the roles and profiles of museum professionals are changing, necessitating new competencies. The IM project cocreated among partners an open online course which is based on the social model of disability and the design4all approach. In online learning, learners should be continually influenced by information, social interaction, and learning experiences, providing them with the knowledge to come up with new ideas to develop. The course was piloted at the beginning of 2024 with more than 400 active learners including professionals or learners from art and humanistic studies, museum and cultural managers, science communicators, journalists, nurses, archaeologists, designers, and psychologists, among others. The course, once has been successfully piloted, will be available for open access and all participants in the format of a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC). 

Barriers and facilitators to physical activity for transplant recipients; developing a Patient and Public Involvement and engagement framework (PA-PPI). (Leigh Martin & Bart Rienties, OU UK) 

Solid organ transplant surgery (e.g., heart, kidney, lung, liver) and hematopoietic cell transplants (e.g., bone marrow) are life-saving medical procedures. Annually around 130,000 transplant surgeries take place globally (Leddington Wright et al., 2019). Several studies have, however, reported that most transplant recipients do not meet the recommended amount and type of Physical Activity, thereby limiting their wellbeing and long-term health.  

Using Patient and Public Involvement and engagement (PPI), we aim to explore the lived experiences of transplant patients and their support environment in relation to their relationship with and experience of physical activity throughout their transplant journey. The second aim is to design, implement, and evaluate the project together with transplant patients, to build a PPI framework for appropriate Physical Activity (PA). As argued by Holmes et al. (2019) PPI is an important and expected component of health-related research activity, but there seems to be a paucity of PPI in most transplant research. Therefore, our main research question is: Using Patient and Public Involvement and engagement what are the barriers and facilitators to physical activity of transplant patients, and what social and medical support structures can encourage PA?  

Transplant recipients are surrounded by a network of relationships (e.g., family, friends, medical professional) that will influence their PA and health-related behaviours (Fernández-Peña et al., 2018). Informed by Jindal-Snape et al. (2019) and Thanawala et al. (2020), a combination of PPI, social network analysis (Fernández-Peña et al., 2018; Merminod et al., 2022), and semi-structured interviews will be used to triangulate the lived experiences of transplant recipients by also including key stakeholders identified by transplant recipients. The long-term aim is to build on the PPI findings, translating this knowledge to inform policy and practice. We are currently testing this approach at Oxford University Hospitals and The Prince Charles Hospital in Australia. 

Beyond Boundaries: The Role of Learning Types in Shaping MOOC Learner Engagement and Progression (Hannah John, John Kerr & Guillaume Andrieux, Glasgow)  

Utilising the ABC Learning Design based on the ABC curriculum design method (Young & Perović 2016) and the Conversational Framework (Laurillard 2012), specifically the six learning types that underpin that model, eight Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) from Coursera or FutureLearn were examined. These MOOCs were selected because they represented a wide range of disciplines, assessment options, and course structures. This paper will demonstrate how the application of various learning types impacts how learners engage with the material, progress through the course, and how it influences their commitment to continue learning (Martin and Bolliger 2018). Additionally, results from this research provide evidence of how the frequency and sequencing of learning types create opportunities for learners to engage with content in a meaningful way. 

By synthesising the secondary data from pre-course surveys, exit surveys, end-of-course surveys, comment sections, and several other course metrics, including but not limited to the watch-through rates and technical feedback of over 400 videos, course completion, assessment completion, and learner satisfaction, seven key areas of impactful course design were identified and will be explored throughout this paper. These key areas will focus on the following elements of course design (1) quality and duration of videos, (2) balance and distribution of acquisition learning types (3) structure of discussions, (4) effective guidance for exploration activities, (5) balance of assessment and feedback opportunities, (6) Utilisation of e-learning tools and plug-ins, and (7) Successfully leveraging the synergies between the learning types in online course design. This empirical research will present evidence on how learning types can be successfully deployed in course design and course design sequencing.  

Understanding engagement patterns of game-based learning for children in CatnClever using learning analytics (Josmario Albuquerque, Kristina Corbero, Sebastian Hahnel & Bart Rienties, OU UK)

 It is widely acknowledged that games and game-based learning (GBL) opportunities can spark engaged learning opportunities (Sun et al., 2023). Well-designed games can lead to enjoyable and engaging experiences, in particular for young people and children (Maureen et al., 2022; Plass et al., 2015). Furthermore, games can be fun, interesting, motivating, and playful. However, there is mixed evidence whether GBL has positive (e.g., knowledge, skills, attitudes) or negative impacts of playing games for young children (Guan et al., 2024). In particular, there is paucity of research in how young learners engage in GBL. In this explorative study we aimed to investigate how learners engaged in one specific game-based mobile app called CatnClever that is designed specifically for children aged between 3-6. Using principles of learning analytics and artificial intelligence (Banihashem et al., 2023), we were specifically interested in exploring whether we can use engagement data from 8,365 German preschoolers across 60,279 activities how children progressed over time in CatnClever to predict learning performance without formal assessment data. As extensive testing of young children might not be appropriate in terms of gameplay, motivation, and data collection (Kucirkova et al., 2024), in this study we wanted to explore whether we could estimate learning performance and activity difficulty of 170 Tool X activities in four subjects (i.e., mathematics, language, social and emotional learning, and sport) purely from children engagement data. Findings suggest that difficulty aligns well with effort, suggesting optimal challenge levels. Key engagement moments were also identified, potentially informing further interventions. Overall, we stress the potential of learning analytics to deepen our understanding of young learners’ interactions in GBL, paving the way for tailored educational strategies. However, ethical considerations regarding data collection and analysis in GBL environments warrant careful attention. 

References 

• Banihashem, S. K., Dehghanzadeh, H., Clark, D., Noroozi, O., & Biemans, H. J. A. (2023). Learning analytics for online game-Based learning: a systematic literature review. Behaviour & Information Technology, 1-28. https://doi.org/10.1080/0144929X.2023.2255301  
• Guan, X., Sun, C., Hwang, G.-j., Xue, K., & Wang, Z. (2024). Applying game-based learning in primary education: a systematic review of journal publications from 2010 to 2020. Interactive Learning Environments, 32(2), 534-556. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2022.2091611  
• Kucirkova, N., Livingstone, S., & Radesky, J. (2024). Advancing the understanding of children’s digital engagement: responsive methodologies and ethical considerations in psychological research [Conceptual Analysis]. Frontiers in Psychology, 15. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1285302  
• Maureen, I. Y., van der Meij, H., & de Jong, T. (2022). Evaluating storytelling activities for early literacy development. International Journal of Early Years Education, 30(4), 679-696.  
• Plass, J. L., Homer, B. D., & Kinzer, C. K. (2015). Foundations of Game-Based Learning. Educational Psychologist, 50(4), 258-283. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2015.1122533  
• Sun, L., Kangas, M., Ruokamo, H., & Siklander, S. (2023). A systematic literature review of teacher scaffolding in game-based learning in primary education. Educational Research Review, 40(August ), 100546. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2023.100546  

AI in Democratising Educational Decision Making (Anne Adams, Peter Devine, Richard Greenwood, Christothea Herodotou & Kevin Mcleod, OU UK) 

For centuries future research and horizon scanning (HS) has been used for strategic decision making (Inayatullah, 1998). Educational HS has initiated national policies like SATs and Apprenticeships.  Local horizon scanning can change an institutions educational research and scholarship objectives.  However, horizon scanning can exclude voices and is rarely evidence-based. Society requires a systematic, evidence-based horizon scanning approach that overcomes social and technical barriers to democratising decision making.   

This presentation will review the application of a new HS method applied across several different contexts, from research and scholarship strategic planning to innovation dissemination.  An analysis of what works and does not work across contexts will be given.  Part of this evidence will involve the Parliamentary Office for Science and Technology (POST) National 23/24 HS, specifically focused on education and digital innovation results.   Following parliamentary Evidence Cafes, academic experts from 61 Higher Education Institutions (HEI) across England, Scotland and Wales used nQuirePOLICY tools, building on the award-winning nQuire platform (nquire.org.uk) to identify 2,903 topics across 12 policy-led thematic areas.  Evidence underpinning expert opinions were classified by participants using the evidence typology (Clough and Adams, 2020) to capture an evidence-base from research to policy documentation, lived experiences, expert reports and media.  Clustering of the topics into 10 themed areas was completed using a set of tailored OpenAI prompts developed by aligning prior human horizon scanning decision making with AI outputs creating a 75% – 80% accuracy.  The  AI clustering missed human assumptions based upon a deeper understanding of zeitgeist, context and human perspective issues. However, it also avoided negative unconscious bias assumptions.    

Further parliamentary evidence cafes verifying AI clustering have now identified more issues around political sensitivity in policy language and challenges to policy assumptions.  Future applications will be presented, including increased citizen engagement in devolved parliaments horizon scanning.  

References 

• Clough, Gill and Adams, Anne (2020). Evidence Cafes: Overcoming conflicting motivations and timings. Research for All, 4(2) pp. 145–149.
• Inayatullah, S. (1998). Macrohistory and futures studies. Futures, 30(5), 381-394.

Generative AI as your course materials writing assistant: Is it useful? (Thomas Daniel Ullmann, Duygu Bektik, Chris Edwards, Christothea Herodotou & Denise Whitelock, OU UK) 

Generative AI, now widely available, is expected to make a significant impact across various sectors, including education. Its core feature, the ability to rapidly produce plausible text on a wide range of topics, and its chat-like interface for content refinement suggest that it may have a role to play in the course content production process. In this presentation, we share insights from our recent investigation. We experimented with the use of generative AI for tasks such as outlining the big questions, creating learning activities, and enhancing inclusivity in materials. We will showcase prompts and discuss the analysis of the responses. Across all tasks, the generative AI produced content that could effectively aid in brainstorming, creating outlines, and adhering to specific writing guidelines. However, it’s important to emphasise that the generated content always required adjustments and expert review. 

Leveraging Generative AI for Enhanced Writing Instruction: A Case Study (Aysegul Liman-Kaban, Bahcesehir) 

Providing formative feedback on student writing is a crucial component of writing instruction, but it poses a significant time burden on educators. This study investigates the potential of generative AI, specifically ChatGPT, to serve as an automated writing evaluation tool that can alleviate this burden. We compared the quality of feedback provided by ChatGPT to that of human evaluators on 350 undergraduate student essays. The feedback was assessed based on five criteria: criteria-based guidance, clarity of improvement directions, accuracy, prioritization of essential features, and supportive tone. Our findings indicate that human evaluators generally provided higher quality feedback across most categories, except for criteria-based guidance where ChatGPT performed comparably. Differences in feedback quality were also observed based on the initial quality of the essays, but not on the language status of the students. While well-trained human feedback remains superior, the ease and timeliness of AI-generated feedback suggest that tools like ChatGPT could be valuable in specific educational contexts, particularly for early drafts or in situations lacking sufficient human resources. Given the infrequency of substantial student revisions before submitting draft texts, we anticipate that formative feedback from AI could inspire greater revision compared to the current dearth of such feedback. Additionally, it might reduce the lengthy interval between initial drafting and subsequent revisions, as time-constrained secondary teachers often wait until extended breaks to address stacks of student papers. Moreover, ChatGPT’s capacity to provide feedback without requiring a training set, unlike other Automated Writing Evaluation (AWE) applications, and its ability to offer feedback on specific genres (such as argument writing in history) suggest its potential applicability across various genres and contexts. However, further research or educator testing is necessary to validate these potential applications. We argue that realizing the value of AI entails recognizing both its strengths and limitations and utilizing it in a manner that maximizes its strengths while mitigating its weaknesses. This involves educating teachers and students about AI’s functionalities and promoting critical and reflective usage, alongside integrating more social aspects into writing and assessment practices (Tate, Doroudi, Ritchie, & Xu, 2023). Similar positive outcomes for student learning have been observed in studies on other AI interventions for language development, such as visual-syntactic text formatting (Tate et al., 2019) and conversational agents (Xu et al., 2022). Thus, we draw insights on how to approach large language models from this existing research, aiming, as Grimes & Warschauer (2010) articulated, for “utility in a fallible tool. 

Keywords: Formative feedback, Writing instruction, Generative AI, ChatGPT, Higher education, Writing development 

Towards an EDIA-based and AI-enabled pedagogy across the curriculum (Mirjam Hauck, Rachele deFelice, Clare Horackova, Deirdre Dunlevy, Tracie Farell & Venetia Brown, OU UK) 

This contribution is inspired by Tracie Farell’s “Shifting Powers” project that proposes that rather than asking whether AI is good or fair, we have to look at how it “shifts power”. Power relationships, we are reminded, preserve inequality within our society in real and material terms. How will AI contribute to those inequalities? Is there any chance AI can help to foster new balances of power and if so, what will this look like in practice?  

Our work is a first attempt at mapping out an agenda for learning and teaching with GenAI guided by EDIA principles. It is underpinned by a critical approach to the use of gen AI and wants to equip learners – including teachers as learners – with the skills that enable them to work with gen AI in equitable and inclusive ways and thus contribute to shifting powers in education contexts.  

We will be using the learning and teaching of languages and cultures as a case in point and present and discuss the tenets of educator training informed by Sharples’ (2023) framework for an AI-enabled pedagogy across the curriculum with an added focus on social justice and inclusion.  

Our insights stem from our collaboration with two AL colleagues who are – like many others – new to GenAI and have been trialling the so-called “protégé effect” whereby we learn best when we have to teach it to others. We will present the outline of the educator training which will be available as a short course later this year in the OU’s Open Centre for Languages and Cultures. In doing so we will pay particular attention to the tension educators are experiencing who find themselves balancing anxieties regarding the shortcomings and challenges of GenAI and a perceived lack of technological expertise on the one hand, and expectations to harness and promote the innovative potential of GenAI on the other.