Slow adoption of VR in education

A follow up on a blog written in 2016 on slowness of VR penetration in education with some discussion on potentialities for Vocational Education.

BBC has a good summary from the business point of view on 'What went wrong with VR?

Reasons reiterated by livemint as to difficulties with headsets, costs and availability of relevant VR content. Fortune magazine has a similar article, discussing the issues in some depth.The main challenges are costs of hardware and software development.

From the vocational education perspective, the main challenge is to provide authentic learning experiences. VR has a role, as evaluated recently through two of the sub-projects on the e-assessment project. In these projects, VR was used to support novice learners with learning welding skills and pre-trade training carpenters with acquiring 'safety' awareness.

The challenge with both sub-projects was maintaining authenticity. Even though students were new to the trade, small differences between virtual and real could be discerned. Leading to inconsistencies of 'object behaviour'  as described by Fowler. The specialised aspects of vocational learning require constant updating as equipment and contexts change, adding costs to the already expensive investment in developing VR scenarios. Trying to maintain currency is therefore a continual cost to ensuring VR does not appear to be 'dated'. Humans have learnt from birth, how to gauge authenticity in the environments they interact within. Many of the signals denoting authenticity are tacit and individualised leading to a wide range of aspects ot consider when developing authentic VR environments. With applications exampled by gaming, slight inconsistencies can be waived as the gamer accepts the 'fictional' aspect of the VR environment they have entered. Applying VR to authentic lived worlds is therefore a much more daunting challenge.

Therefore, still work to be done to bring VR into education. There are promising advances and increase in computing power can only improve authenticity of VR experiences. There is a need for VR developers to be cognisant of the human experience, with its myriad variety, to ensure VR experiences support learning outcomes.

English for vocational purposes: Language use in trades education - book overview

This book, written by Coxhead, A., Parkinson, J., Mackay, J., and McLaughlin, E. and published by Routledge in 2019, is the academic output from the Language of the Trades project funded by Ako Aotearoa as a National project.

The Ako Aotearoa project report provides the 'nuts and bolts' descriptions along with the various outputs, including word lists and guides for trades teaching practice.

The book, along with several articles, are the academic outputs, providing deeper details of the scholarly underpinnings and findings from the project. As there is very little literature on the topic of literacy pertinent to the learning of trades work, the work is of great importance. Of note, is the project's work in identifying 'key words' or most commonly used words in a range of trades - building/carpentry, automotive engineering and engineering (fabrication and tool-making). The corpus of vocabulary is also extended into Pacific languages exampled by Tongan.

First chapter summarise the rationale for undertaking the project. The rationale include the importance of understanding the complexities of the specific language, used in the trades and the specialised terms prevalent in trades work but not often recognised as being difficult to learn.

Chapter 2 provide an overview of the project as per the Ako Aotearoa report. 

Chapter 3 uses a case study of automotive technology classroom practice and the ways tutors in NZ engage students in the trades language discourse. In short, a summary of situated learning as undertaken in workshop based learning across Aotearoa. 

In the fourth chapter, the builders diary is used as the data to better understand the writing requirements of trades learners.The builders diary is often used in NZ to track the learning of carpentry students and includes diagrams and 'reflective learning' collected as work-based learning progresses through apprenticeship.

Chapter 5 surveys the visual literacies requires in trades learning. How diagrams are prevalent in trades text – manuals, brochures, textbooks – and how visual literacies are taught and learnt. The spatial awareness required to match 2D diagrams to 3D objects is important in many trades. This is an area for extensive follow up and study.

The sixth chapter discusses the technical vocabulary of trades work. The specialised terms and the learning of these, provide opportunities for learners to become part of the trades community. Learning a trade is therefore not only learning the skills and knowledge but also learning to 'be' through learning and adopting ways of speaking and communicating which include the ability to use trades language in context.

Chapter 7 explores the listening and speaking skills required in trades work. Communicating whilst engaged in trades work is again, a vocationally/occupationally specific form of language use. Not only listening and speaking, but understanding the underlying body language and 'response' are learning requirements.

The eight chapter looks into reading in trades – what is required, how this is being taught within the situated learning context of trades classrooms and how this can be improved.

Chapter 9 draws the threads together to recommend how to apply the learning from the project into actual trades teaching and learning.

The last chapter draws the book to a conclusion with reflections, implications and proposes directions for future research.

All in, a worthwhile read covering a neglected aspect of literacy research. The research team has many possible follow up and extension projects. All to add to a better understanding of 'learning a trade' as more than just learning how to do, but to also learnig bow to become and be tradespersons.

Neurogastronomy - book overview

Brief book overview of book read over the weekend to inform the writing of an article on 'learning to taste'.

The book is by G. M. Shepherd, Professor of neurobiology at Yale and published by Columbia University Press in 2012.

27 chapters in 4 parts. All chapters are short and pithy with good supporting diagrams. Short references for each chapter are provided at the end of the book for further follow up.A good introduction to the neuro foundations of human/mamalian senses. 

The book argues for the due recognition of the role of smell in tasting. Hence, parts 1 and 2 are related to smelling. 

Part 1 provides the background on the evolution of smell and flavor. Uses the comparison between how dogs and humans smell to explain how smelling works. The contribution of the mouth is then summarised along with the molecular basics of flavor.

Part 2 delves into the workings of smell. How do smell receptors work? Leading on to how the brain forms sensory images of smell, which is actually difficult to describe due to its multivariate nature and the personal biases and social expectations surrounding how smells are perceived, appreciated or disliked.

Part 3 brings in the roles of taste, mouth sense, seeing, hearing and flavor. 

Part four draws the various topics together through discussions on flavor and influences through emotions, role of memory, contribution to obesity, neuroeconomics effect on flavor and nutrition, brain plasticity and the human brain flavor system, contribution of language, consciousness and human evolution.

Comprehensive review  of the book found here.

NZIST establishment board regional briefing

This morning, I attended a briefing offered by the NZIST establishment board, itself an outcome of the Reform of  Vocational Education (RoVE) in NZ. The roadshow began last week with the intention of briefing every ITP (Institute of Technolgy Polytechnic) in NZ as all will become one entity - provisionally called NZ Institute of Skills and Technology -NZIST and with a recommended name of Pukenga Aotearoa.

The briefing was presented by Murray Strong appointed as Executive Director to lead the establishment process. He provided an overview of what lead to the formation of the NZIST establishment board - being one of 7 key changes to come out of the ROVE process -, what is currently now taking place to ensure that the new institute is up and running on the 1st of April and some indication of the impact / implications following the 1st of April.

On 1st of April, it is envisaged there will be no real change to the day to day running of ITPs. All will become subsideries of NZIST / Pukenga Aotearoa. There will be one academic board, and the ITPs will have sub-committees of the NZIST academic board. The new board will take over governance with the newly appointed CE, Stephen Town, to begin in July. Business as usual with regards to marketing, finance, teaching and learning, research etc. with an emphasis on collaboration across the ITPs replacing the 30 plus model / mindset of competition.

ITOs - industry training organisations - who will morph into Workforce Development Councils (WDCs) are working on a transition plan to ensure a smooth shift of learners supported by ITOs to the ITPs. Centre of Vocational Excellence (CoVEs) have been set up in two sectors but many more will be forthcoming. NZIST / Pukenga Aotearoa will work with WDCs, CoVEs and Te Taumata Aronui to ensure the learner journey is supported and there is a seamless/ 'joint up' vocational education system for all NZers.

A positive briefing, with Q & A from the floor addressed well and respectfully. The briefing was well attended by Ara colleagues and a follow up briefing was also provided for stakeholders. The higher level strategy and management of the new entity look to have been thought through, despite the short timeframe. No major changes really for teaching and learning delivery to students. The devil will, as always, be in the implementation. Leadership and communication will be key to bringing everyone on board and working collaboratively.

40 years of teaching, scholarship, research and learning

Last week, my colleagues put on a surprise morning tea to celebrate 40 years work at my institute. How the time has flown by! I arrived from Wellington in 1980, a week before starting work, still in the process of settling into a flat, found for us by an ex-colleague of my mother. They were the only people we knew in Christchurch. Through them, we gained a ready-made community of support and for that I am eternally grateful.

I started teaching a few days after starting at the institute, at that time, probably only 1/5 or less in size. Everyone was very welcoming and supportive. My initial teaching sessions were often challenging but my students were forgiving and I could fall back on my trade expertise. So, began 25 years of teaching a trade. Apart from a couple of years off when my kids arrived, I have worked full-time. The changes over the 25 years have been immense in terms of digital technology enhanced teaching and learning, the shift in focus from teaching to student centred learning and various changes in how qualifications are structured.

From early in my teaching I found the lack of easily accessible resources to inform vocational education to be a challenge. To try attain a better understanding of how ‘learning a trade’ occurred and could be supported meant engaging with formal education in teaching and learning. Starting in the mid 80s with a Diploma in Tertiary Teaching and culminating a decade ago with a PhD, the journey into scholarship and research has been personally enriching. Of importance was not only the attainment of a qualification and title, but the application of learning to practice and the gradual transition into research.

So where to next? ROVE affords opportunities, through collaboration across the entire ITP sector in NZ, to actually truly attain the mantra of ‘the student is at the heart of learning’. Learners should have access to the combined expertise and resources across the country. Large numbers in each cohort, especially for trades apprentices, will bring economies of scale and allow for personal learning environments (PLEs) to be availed to each learner. Shared resources will also provide for well designed, pedagogically effective and engaging supporting learning resources, whether digital, virtual or f2f, to be developed and deployed. I am hopeful that the larger organisation will not be bogged down in red tape! If it is, it will be time to retire ☹ If not, the expertise, will, enthusiasm and tools are there for the taking. Let’s see what the next few years hold 😊