Annotated Bibliography

Name: Tracey Dalton

Student Number: D10120799
Date: 6th December 2013
Module: Instructional Design & eAuthoring
MSc. Applied eLearning

Reference 1
Littlejohn,A. & Pegler,C. (2007). Preparing for blended e-learning. Oxon: Routledge Falmer.

In this book, the authors give a comprehensive analysis of the use of blended elearning. The book assumes the reader has no prior knowledge of the area and
begins by describing the potential and pitfalls of blending. The book looks at the
origins of e-learning and the rise of technology in the 1980s and gives definitions and
variations of blending, looking at challenges in the design process. It proceeds to
look at teaching and learning styles, focusing on ideas such as chunking and
analyses the types of media which can be used. It also assesses the effect of student
location on the success of blended learning, and the procedures required for
successful outcomes. It explains key terms which are vital for understanding of elearning, such as synchronous and asynchronous and then goes on to look at
interaction on-line, assessment and feedback. Finally, Littlejohn and Pegler discuss
the design process and introduce e-tools which can be used and what they can do.
I found this book to be very useful for my group project in the Instructional design
module as we were developing our website for blended learning for lecturers of first
years in DIT. This is the first book I read in the process as it explains what blended
learning is from the very beginning. It gives very good examples of activity design
using useful schemas which aided me greatly in the design of our learning tool. The
diagram below (p.30) is very useful in showing two ways which on-line and face to
face learning can be orchestrated using the wraparound method of activity blending.

Chapter 6 gives excellent examples of activity blends, especially example 6.2 (pp.
154-8) on Workspace wikis in engineering at University of Strathclyde, which
incorporates various resources and methods including file galleries and concept
maps. This book is a perfect introduction to the undertaking of introducing blended
learning to an existing course. In the introduction I found a very suitable quote for our
learning tool. They stated that the book gave useful and usable guidance for those at
the digital chalk face. This inspired the design of the learning tool and also marries
together the old and the new in education.
Reference 2
Gagn,R.M., Wager,W., Golas,K. & Keller,J. (2005). Principles of Instructional
Design. Belmont,CA.: Wadsworth. pp.21-38.
The second chapter of this book explains the theory of instructional systems design
and focusses on the most commonly used models, primarily on the ADDIE model.
The model is broken down into its five parts i.e. Analyze, Design, Develop,
Implement and Evaluate. It explains each step in great detail, giving a set of criteria
for each part and suggesting reasons and solutions for a particular approach at each
stage. I have used the five ADDIE model headings as the page names in our learning
tool for lecturers of first years. This will be explained to the user to give them an
overview of the model.
I found this chapter very useful for my group project, as it seems like a very suitable
model to follow as I work through the project. It poses many questions which help me
to problem solve the design for our learning tool. Some key aspects I found useful
referred to the comparison between an architect and an instructional designer (p.26)
in the design stage of the process. Being from an architecture/design background I
can relate firsthand to the design concept development stage. The text argues that
design expertise and subject matter competence are two different things and I have
found this to be the case in practice in the group project, with use of the rapid
prototyping process. I have a design background and the other group members have
had more experience and developed more expertise on specific subject matter and
learning and teaching tools. The theory has inadvertently been proven through the
group design process.
This point is reiterated in the Development stage (p.33) where it emphasizes the
importance of a team approach and that even though the instructional designer
might have excellent analysis and design skills, they may not have the writing or
media production skills. Other useful arguments refer to style over content in the
instructional design process and that there must be an emphasis on quality
instruction and motivation for learners. Lastly, the tips on how to break down the
evaluation stage are useful as this stage will be about reflection on the usefulness of
the learning tool and how it can be improved. Some recommendations which will be
useful are the material and process evaluation, as well as surveying users for
feedback. This book would be ideal as recommended reading for this topic.

Reference 3
Yang,D.F., Catterall,J. & Davis,J. (2013). Supporting new students from vocational
education and training: Finding a reusable solution to address recurring learning
difficulties in e-learning. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 2013,
29(5). pp. 640-648.
This journal article reports on a research project carried out in University of Western
Sydney on how first year students from a vocational educational background cope
with blended and e-learning in a university setting. The findings were that students
are very positive about using e-learning in their studies but they do not always have
the technological skills to cope with the process. The paper argues that it cannot be
taken for granted that students will come to university with the prerequisite skills and
that the students prior learning must always be taken into account. To deal with this
issue the paper proposes that the students should be given IT training before they
embark on the use of e-learning. This was called an (ETP) educational technology
preparation program. It also argues that adequate resources for this type of training
should be part of institutional policy.
This paper is very useful for my group project as it addresses similar issues to those
we are hoping to tackle with our learning tool. It mentions the learning challenges
students face as they enter university, moving from a pedagogical approach and
being expected to adapt to an andragogical, self-directed approach. Our website will
touch on this issue, with help for lecturers to understand the philosophies and how
they can help students in the process. The paper also emphasizes that education
should preferably not be purely web based.without any kind of human
interactions. This advocates a blended learning approach, similar to our group
project. The paper does not touch on the issue that the lecturers themselves may
need training in this area, which is what our site hopes to achieve. The lecturers
using our site will be the students and it will be vital to design the site in ways that
help them deliver their teaching in the most user friendly method for their students.
Achieving this is the challenge we set for ourselves.
The paper proposes that the ETP program should take place in induction week,
which is similar to what occurs in DIT. It also emphasizes that it is as important to
give ETP training as it is to supply information on academic writing and referencing.
One of the positive things about the design of the ETP program was that it had no
specific order of navigation. This is what we would like to achieve with our group
project learning tool. If the training occurs then the benefits of e-learning are mainly
positive and give greater flexibility of learning in a time poor world, balancing work
and study. This is documented in the paper through student surveys in focus groups
and telephone interviews. All types of learners, from high achievers to those with
learning difficulties, or lack of IT skills, gave positive feedback after the ETP training.

Reference 4
Masterman, E. & Craft, B. (2013). Designing and evaluating representations to model
pedgagogy. Research in Learning Technology, 2013, 21:20205 pp.1-14.
This article looks at how representations used in digital learning tools can affect how
the learner experiences it. It assesses how effective the tool is, cognitively, which is
linked to the learning outcomes. Five dimensions of fit are assessed:
Domain-fit: the topic, students numbers, level of study, intended learning outcomes,
learning activities, required resources and methods of assessment.
Task-fit: how useful the representation of the tool is for the task which it is being
used.
Process-fit: this assesses how well the representation aids/impedes the learner in
problem solving through static/interactive elements of the tool.
User fit: how well the representation of the tool fits the users needs. This depends
on the individual needs of a user and is therefore, hardest to assess.
Circumstance fit: This looks at how useful the tool is for its purpose i.e. particular
subject matter and whether the representation is most appropriate for this.
The tool assessed is called the Learning Designer. The purpose and goal of the tool
is to help teachers develop their practice within a knowledge-building community of
educators (p. 5). It should be used as a tool which fulfils the learning objectives of
their teaching and can be shared with others. Various representations are used in the
tool such as tables, pie charts, bar charts and timelines. It also looks at the cognitive
activities used by the learner. These are acquisition, inquiry, discussion, practice
and production.
At evaluation stage the following questions were asked:
1. Do lecturers understand the concepts and terminology?
2. Do the representations make sense to them?
3. Do they find the ability to model these aspects of their pedagogy useful?
The responses to these questions were varied, with many responding positively, but
there were negative responses to whether some of the fits worked for their case, or
should be amalgamated. Some queried the separation of, for example, inquiry and
discussion, in the analysis of cognitive activities. The positive and negative
responses helped the researchers to reflect on the epistemic efficacy of the
Learning Designer and improve on it in the future.
I found this article useful for my group project because the representation of our
learning tool plays a vital part in its success. The sequencing of the site pages and
the variation in representations are linked to cognitive processes. The tool will not be
successful if these aspects do not work together. The research carried out in this
paper gives examples of how these aspects are perceived by the learner. The
learner in this research is a teacher, which is also the case in my group project and
4

the responses given at analysis stage are useful. They are something to bear in mind
for our Analysis page.
Reference 5
Hardy, J. & Jefferies, A. (2010) How Learners Change. Critical Moments, Changing
Minds. Sharpe, R., Beetham, H. & De Freitas, S.(Eds.) Rethinking learning for a
digital age. How learners are shaping their own experiences.
The eighth chapter of this book combines research from the universities of Edinburgh
and Hertfordshire on transition into third level education. It focusses on learners
experiences with the role of technology in their chosen field of study. The findings
show that even when learners have prior experience of technology, they still express
a preference for a blend of online and face-to-face learning. As their first year
progresses they gain confidence and new skills and can see the benefits that
technology can offer to enhance their learning. The learners differing opinions on the
use of technology is monitored through this transitional period and the results are
analysed for further development.
The research was student centred, with learners giving their own views and opinions.
The method used for this involved self-reflective student diaries, in text or video,
questionnaires and focus groups. Technology was widely used in both universities
through VLEs, discussion forums, wikis and blogs and the students experiences of
using these tools was monitored through the diary reflections. The qualitative data
obtained showed the progress students made throughout their first year and the
majority embraced technologies as an aid to their learning. They see the benefits of
using technology strategically to support their personal learning requirements along
with face-to-face learning.
This chapter is useful because it focusses on areas which will be covered in my
group project. I can also compare it with Reference 3, which looked at introducing a
training course prior to the commencement of first year. This text looks at the use of
reflective diaries during and after the experience of using technology in first year
learning. Also, the student profile is different, with this text having a younger student
demographic, with more prior knowledge of technology use. In the context of our site
for teachers of first years, the use of reflective diaries or an e-Portfolio could be
something that is proposed. Instruction on use and design of this could be covered in
our develop and implement pages.
An important result from this chapter is that research proves that students prefer a
blended approach to learning and that the term e-learning does not hold a great
deal of weight with students. In their view, there is simply learning, in whatever mode
it is transmitted.