Andy Pellow and Robert Campbell discuss the ALPS (http://www.alps-cetl.ac.uk/Corework/MobileTechnologies.html) experiences of leading, developing and implementing a mobile learning and assessment programme for work-based learning. They explain what ALPS aimed to achieve and how this developed in practice. They consider the challenges of developing and implementing a mobile technology programme involving 1000 students across 5 HEIs spanning 16 different professions.

1. Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning
CETIS Bolton
15th June 2010
Andy Pellow - Leeds University
Robert Campbell - Ecommnet Ltd.

2.  to ensure that students graduating from
courses in health and social care are fully
equipped to perform confidently and
competently at the start of their professional
careers

3.  University of Bradford
 University of Huddersfield
 University of Leeds
 Leeds Metropolitan University
 York St John University
 NHS partners
 Service users & carers
 Commercial partners – MyKnowledgeMap, ecommnet

4.  Audiology  Operating
 Clinical physiology department practice
 Dentistry  Optometry
 Dietetics  Pharmacy
 Diagnostic radiography  Physiotherapy
 Medicine  Podiatry
 Midwifery  Social work
 Nursing  Speech and
 Occupational therapy language therapy

5. • By promoting inter-professional
assessment of core competences – ethical
practice, communications skills and team-
working
• By encouraging service user and carer
involvement in student feedback
• Using mobile devices to deliver assessment
and learning in the practice setting

6.  Students in wide variety of practice locations
 lightweight, portable & fit in pockets.
 Secure connection to HE networks
 Two way – deliver and collect information
 Off-line/On-line capability

7.  Nothing about mobile technology…
 No standards
 Significant capital funding (£1m+) but with
challenging expenditure deadlines
 Partner L&T systems (e.g. VLEs) important but
not mobile friendly
 Data security important
◦ Personal information in healthcare.

8.  Risks of innovation and early adoption
 Speed of change in the market
 Need for early support and structure
 Tutors need support – and tailored one-to-
one support
 Students want to know what the purpose and
benefits will be of using the technology
 Role of champions
 Speed of decision-making/consultation
process…

9.  users/students aren’t digital natives
 significance of the ethical approval process
 lack of understanding of the HE environment
by mobile operators

11.  An occupational therapy student is on
placement at Calderdale Royal Hospital.
 One of his objectives whilst on placement is
the development of his ability to gain consent
from service users using his communication
skills.
 His tutor creates an assessment that will
encourage him to provide evidence of his
ability to gain consent

12.  The assessment can be completed by:
◦ Student
◦ Practice assessor
◦ Peers
◦ Possibly service users
 Responses can include:
◦ Free text response
◦ Audio
◦ Multiple choice and other structured question types

17.  Student Guidelines
 Following your experience of gaining consent from a service user please ask a practice
assessor from your own or another profession to answer the following questions.
 Practice Assessor Assessment
 Taking into account the level of your service user’s
understanding, how did you ensure that the service user
understood the course of action?
Completely / Mostly / Adequately / Hardly at all / Not at all
 Taking into account your service user’s preferred method of
communication, how did you ensure they gave or withheld
consent?
Completely / Mostly / Adequately / Hardly at all / Not at all
 Did the student ensure that the service user had sufficient
information to give or withhold consent for the course to
action?
Completely / Mostly / Adequately / Hardly at all / Not at all
 Would you like to make any further comments on the
student's overall performance?

28.  Assessment Management Suite
◦ Webserver
◦ User and cohort management
◦ Assessment authoring
◦ Helpdesk
 Mobile Services Platform
◦ Device management
◦ Device client software
◦ Assessment distribution and communications
◦ Security, encryption, authentication

30.  Assessment authoring
◦ Build assessments
 Questionbuilder, Compendle, RLO, competency maps
 SCORM/QTI Standards based packages
 Publishes as a web service to Mobile Services Platform
 Assessment receipt
◦ Storing of assessment responses
◦ Review and comment on responses
◦ Assessment against competency Frameworks
◦ Export to e-Portfolio
 VLE, etc LEAP-2A
 User and cohort management
◦ Cohorts linked to AD / LDAP
◦ Imported from University Management Systems
◦ Roles
 Tutors
 Students
 Admin

31.  Content Distribution
 Assessment packages
◦ Assessment, learning objects, docs, links etc.
◦ Repackage for the device
 Device management
◦ Software distribution
◦ Device configuration
 Device and data security
 Communications

34.  Faculty of Medicine and Health – just under
3,500 undergraduate students in 8
professions.
 Highly devolved learning and teaching
environment
 Strong corporate support for Blackboard VLE
 Significant external professional body
involvement (GMC, NMC, GDC) in curriculum
validation
 Common uni-professional assessments in
some disciplines

35.  Evidence for change critical
 Use research to help drive L&T change
 Champions required but need good
communications skills
 Introduce technology change alongside
curriculum change
 Secure bottom-up engagement before top-
down endorsement

36.  Assessment and Learning driven
 Process improvement difficult to quantify and
prove
 Business case for significant IT investments
that save staff time but cost money difficult
to secure
 Typical Mobile provider business model (e.g.
Capital + Contract over two years)
challenging

37.  Recognise different speeds of adoption
 Prepare for long term
 Context important
 Support for students own devices still not
feasible;
 Web delivery doesn’t deliver functionality

38.  Contacts
◦ Andy Pellow
◦ Leeds University
◦ a.j.h.pellow@leeds.ac.uk
◦ Robert Campbell
◦ Ecommnet Limited
◦ robert.campbell@ecommnet.co.uk