Co-presented 3 papers: "E-Portfolios: A Viable Capstone Activity for Graduate Programs", "Developing Community of Inquiry in a Mobile Learning Context", and "Connecting at the Point of Care: Indirect Supervision in Nursing Practice Education."

Abstract

Paper 1:E-Portfolios: A Viable Capstone Activity for Graduate Programs Abstract: A pilot study was conducted to explore the use of e-portfolios as an alternative to the standard written and oral comprehensive examination process used in the Master of Distance Education (MDE) program at Athabasca University, as well as the initial stages of the subsequent program-wide implementation. Students in the final year of the MDE program were invited to participate in the pilot study, and ultimately six students completed their program using the e-portfolio alternative. A competency-based approach was used where students reflected on their skills and knowledge in selected areas and included artifacts as evidence of their learning. Artifacts included course assignments, web sites, instructional materials, learning objects, postings in CMC discussions, and other formal, informal, and work-based experiences and products. Me2U social software was used as the platform. Once their e-portfolios were complete, students engaged in a discussion with two faculty members to examine the student’s growth in skills and knowledge as well as their ability to engage in reflective practice. All aspects of the pilot study were conducted online. Responses from students and faculty participating in the pilot study were highly positive resulting in the e-portfolio alternative being offered on a program-wide basis. Currently, students at various points in the MDE program are opting to use e-portfolios. As a capstone activity for the MDE program, the e-portfolio has proven to be a reasonable alternative, and potentially an improvement, to the current competency examination process with e-portfolios being cited as a more valid and meaningful assessment of student learning. Paper 2:Developing Community of Inquiry in a Mobile Learning Context Abstract: New technologies for learning are in a constant state of development and so is the manner in which they affect the relationships among learners and teachers. The Community of Inquiry (CoI) model (Garrison, Anderson, and Archer, 2000) and the FRAME model of mobile learning (Koole, 2008) both address the development of effective interaction among individuals and the technology they use to learn. The CoI model focuses on how individuals interact in online learning. The FRAME model addresses learning using mobile devices, highlighting the interaction of device characteristics with individual attributes and group social processes. In this presentation, we examine how communities of inquiry can develop via the use of mobile technology. We will present an enhanced framework for mobile learning based on mapping of the relationship between these two models. We will then explore its application in a real life learning context where mobile devices were used in nursing practice education (Kenny, Park, Van Neste-Kenny, Burton, P.A. & Meiers, 2008). Paper 3: Connecting at the Point of Care: Indirect Supervision in Nursing Practice Education Abstract: Nursing education practice refers to the placement of nursing students in "authentic" nursing practice situations, in hospitals, long term care, clinics, home care, community nursing etc. In these settings students are supervised directly by faculty members, or indirectly through preceptors, field guides, or members of a "collaborative learning unit". In indirect supervision, the instructor (faculty) is not present "in real time", but relates to students by coaching the students before the clinical placement, interacting with the unit representatives and students during scheduled meetings throughout the student.