I presented this paper at the University of Greenwich Enhanced and Transformed E-Learning Conference, 6 July 2011. It is based on the DUCKLING project in which Masters students' learning was enhanced by use of podcasts, voice boards, ebook readers, and Second Life. The DUCKLING project website is http://www.le.ac.uk/duckling

1. Nesting in, taking flight:
Embedding innovation and inspiring
new practice with distance Masters
students in the DUCKLING project
Terese Bird, Beyond Distance Research Alliance
Enhanced and Transformed – University of Greenwich – 6 July 2011

2. DUCKLING: Delivering University Curriculum:
Knowledge, Learning and INnovation Gains
• 3 distance programmes:
– One MA in Applied Linguistics and TESOL
– Two MSc in Occupational Psychology
Podcasting Wimba Voice Board Sony E-book readers Second Life
• Challenges:
- Engagement
- Support
- Flexibility and mobility
- Reduce isolation
- Enable transfer of theory into practice

3. Second Life
Psychology – the oil rig activity
Simulation Role-play
Education – Observing English classes at languagelab
Interaction
Near-authentic
environment

4. Ebook Readers
£600 v £240 How to convert documents:

5. Ebook Readers: Students’ Comments
•“The nature of distance learning means you have to squeeze in
study whenever you have time. Having textbooks and journal
articles stored together so conveniently is much better than reams
of paper on a packed commuter train in Osaka. “
•I find that the e-book reader has become an integral part of my
day in particular situations. …I sit and start reading the material
I've loaded and take notes on what interests me. The reader,
then, has given me more study time during the day. It's nice to
have the corpus of material I am working on loaded onto a single
device…and get a kind of "big picture" from doing this. I've also
gotten into the habit of carrying my reader with me everywhere,
and if I'm in a situation where I'm waiting for 20 minutes I will
automatically open the reader.

6. Podcasts: Nesting in

7. VoiceBoards: Nesting in

8. Post-DUCKLING Taking Flight
Psychology:
Draft Dissertation Feedback Podcasts
Student: “I found the podcast useful because it was much clearer to
me what the improvements were that I could make and it gave me
more detail and specific examples than the written feedback. It
helped me to identify the most important themes in the feedback
which is also more difficult to do from the written feedback alone. “
Staff: “…not a single one of our dissertation students has needed
an extension this year (this is unheard of and a very pleasant
surprise!). All those who have not suspended have handed in their
final dissertations on time. The only difference from previous years
is that all have had access to the feedback podcasts on their draft
dissertations. “

9. Post-DUCKLING Taking Flight
Education:
VoiceBoards, VoiceThread, Wikis, Web Conferencing
Student: “In Module 1 and 2 I read quite a bit. But this
module, I read a lot more. Because I think partly I don’t want
to come across not having read material on the voice board…
I don’t know whether it’s a case of not wanting to look stupid
because your voice is on the voice board.”
Staff: “I found this very stimulating. I really enjoyed hearing
the voices of the students. Often this distance course feels
quite remote because we are just in communication by
writing. [But with the voice board] it sort of would come to
life. We could often measure the degree of emotional
involvement of some of the students.”

10. Onward and upward
Challenges in
Podcasting Second Life (SL) E-book readers Wimba Voice Board
curriculum delivery
Increase interaction   - 
Improve learner
  - 
engagement
Improve learner
 - - 
support
Need for mobility  -  -
Need for flexibility    -
Need for transferring
-  - -
theories into practice