NTLTC 2011 - Gaining leverage embedding lit and numeracy
1. Gaining leverage: Multiple approaches to embedding academic literacies within a tertiary context. Nic Dunham Dulcie Brake Elizabeth Kernohan Natalie Savery
4. Four faculty academic literacies advisors in three faculties: Technology and Built Environment; Social and Health Sciences; and Creative Industries and Business
5. A range of approaches was required to address the diverse needs and understandings of academic literacies
8. A need for academic literacies within the New Zealand context (TEC/MoE).
9. There is no “one size fits all” approach to academic literacies embedding as it is contextually driven.Literature
10. Technology and Built EnvironmentBlended faculty = professions + trades Learners(can)staircase… (N)AT driver for embedding Unitec Institute of Technology
11. Social and Health Sciences Ako: Teaching & learning together Student-centered approaches Targeted literacies strategies Contextualized: Language for the workplace Literacies embedding process: 1. Gap analysis 2. Joint planning 3. Resources development 4. Team teaching delivery 5. Reflection & evaluation
23. Need to continue to be responsive to the dynamic contexts in which we live and work.Future Directions
Hinweis der Redaktion
Hi everyone, my name is Dulcie Brake and these are my colleagues NatalieSavery and Elizabeth Kernohan. Our colleague Nic Dunham is unable to be with us today. This is our presentation: gaining leverage, multiple approaches to embedding academic literacies within a tertiary context.
We are from Unitec, in Auckland and the four of us are assigned to the three faculties: Social and Health Sciences, Trades and Built Environment and Creative Industries and Business. Our roles were creates in response to a new e learning strategy in which academic literacies played a part. This strategy was rolled out across the institution at the beginning of 2010. Our work is aligned with Unitec’s Academic Literacies Policy which states that Programmes will recognise and respond to the academic literacy needs of their students.So the role is primarily to support teaching staff to embed academic literacies into their courses.
The challenge, in defining what academic literacies are, is mirrored in the challenge to actively embed literacies. Definition of academic literacies will influence/affect the practice of embedding. So there is no one size fits all approach and this is illustrated by the three models in this presentation.
Driver = NAT - Diagram - assuming familiarity Blended faculty / divisions still apparentTrades Transport Tech, P & Gasfitting, Build TechElectrotechnologyProfessions Engineering, Construction Wide range -staff PD needsWide range -attitudes to / definitions of ‘academic literacies’NAT results indicate a range of students needs – mostly READING + WRITINGNAT assessment of learners is COMPULSORY at Level 3Example of - CAME – CAT – BAT NAT reports confirmed anecdotal evidence that learners arrive with less than adequate levels of literacy to succeed at tertiary level study.Because UNITEC was involved in the NAT trials in 2010 – we knew that learners at Level3 – need step 5 literacy skills.JUMPED toKnow-what-to-do IDEALLY interventions would be developed with the subject expert…(Staff) resistance high / time poor / faculty DEAN keen to see resultsI developed READING intervention (incl. summarizing + referencing) BAT then CAT then CAMEColleague WRITING Delivered in-class to students – modelling the process to tutorsLearning environment:Practical – hands-on / skills-basedProblem-solving approachOften driven by external legislation Conclusion: < One-size fits all > approach has not worked1-1 engagement with staff (some with their own literacy needs) and may lack confidence in teaching ‘literacies’.We have yet to assess the results of <modelling interventions> - to follow-up in interviews with tutors.
Context: a level 5 Introduction to Nursing Practice paper, teaching clinical skills for work placement Purpose: to embed the language and literacies required for the professional workplace and a professional nursing role ( across all 4 competency domains, especially competencies 2: mgmt of nursing care (documentation) and 3: interpersonal and therapeutic communication – to develop students’ language competency, especially socio-pragmatic competency Academic literacies are defined as: the language and literacies competencies required for the professional workplace These language and literacies competencies are identified through a gap analysis of students literacies needs and the demands of the course. Course demands are heavily informed by the New Zealand Nursing Council competencies Key academic literacies competencies in this context are the language of nursing: a medical discourse including medical and scientific terminology as well as the interpersonal language skills required for competency as a nurse in the New Zealand workplace: including kiwi-colloquial kiwi English for effective patient communication and therapeutic communication skills (terminology and language skills) The model: Pedagogy: literacies embedding is highly contextualised to meet the demands of the professional workplace, is student-centred involving interactive teaching and learning activities and a facilitative approach. The way of working is based on “Ako” or reciprocity in teaching and learning with students and teachers learning together, and LLN advisors and nursing lecturers working and learning alongside to embed literacies. Targeted literacy strategies instruction provides students with a toolkit of reading, writing, vocabulary and numeracy strategies to make sense of language and textsThe process – what we did.... Dulcie’s bit....
Nic Dunham is the AcademicLiteracies Advisor for Creative Industries and Business. This model has come out of her work with the Department of Accounting & Finance and the Department of Marketing and Management in which there was a whole course approach to literacies embedding as opposed to individual lessons – literacies informs the whole course development, the whole driver – rather than the course being set up, and then literacies “added” in. Literacies is seen as ongoing within learning practices.The model is an acknowledgement that literacies needs to encompass all three aspects, of equal weighting. Often focus is on technical skills but really it is about how to participate, in what way, how and where – in the discourse of the profession(s). By deconstructing the profession (what does it look like to be a successful professional in this field?) can inform how academic literaciescan support the successful professional.
Much of the academic literacies literature comes out of the functional literacy/academic literacy research. In our experience, the definitions used in these contexts don’t quite fit the contexts in which we found ourselves – that of vocational or professional literacies. It became clear that there was no ‘one size fits all’ approach to literacies embedding as we needed to be responsive to the different disciplines in order to tailor targeted and effective strategies for embedding literacies in these contexts.
We acknowledgethat there are limitations to each of the models: they are reliant on the continued resourcing/funding for discipline/academic literacies expertise; identification of departmental champions and, perhaps most significantly, the challenge of ensuring that literacies written in to course documentation continues. However attention to literacies within course documentation has begun with the ongoing institution wide curriculum development process. So our roles will continue to be about supporting tertiary teacher education and professional development to model and highlight the importance of embedding literacies into courses and programmes.
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