International benchmarking 2009

Dear colleagues interested in developing authentic online learning! Welcome to join in The International Virtual Benchmarking Project. Our aim is to improve authentic online learning and teaching.

Project objective

The objective of the 2009 project is to support teachers of Universities of Applied Sciences to develop more authentic online teaching and learning and consider elements of authentic learning from a multi-cultural perspective. It is important to utilise national and international virtual benchmarking opportunities in the development of web-based education.

In Finland the project will call for English language cases/implementations from universities of applied sciences, for which we will find a corresponding international case. We kindly request an online learning and teaching case from your organisation to be included in our benchmarking project. The case can be an entire virtual course, or part or module of a course.

Authentic online learning as the subject of evaluation

The nine elements of authentic learning proposed by Herrington and Oliver (2000) will be applied in authentic learning benchmarking (see also Herrington & Herrington, 2006 and www.uow.edu.au/~janh/Kokkola/ ):

1. Provide authentic context that reflects the way the knowledge will be used in real-life
2. Provide authentic activities and tasks
3. Provide access to expert performances and the modelling of processes
4. Provide multiple roles and perspectives
5. Support collaborative construction of knowledge
6. Promote reflection
7. Promote articulation
8. Provide coaching and scaffolding
9. Provide for authentic assessment of learning within the tasks.

The evaluation tool of authentic online learning: Elements of authentic learning as evaluation criteria (based on Herrington & Oliver 2000), please see an appendix:

Evaluation criteria

Benchmarking as a working method

In this project, benchmarking is applied to develop authentic online learning. Online teaching practices undergo peer evaluation in this benchmarking process. The benchmarking method is three-phased, including asynchronous and synchronic interaction:

1. Benchmarking pairs familiarise themselves with the comparative evaluation material in advance in the Ning environment. There ought to be an opportunity to become familiar with each other’s course implementation in the Internet (or virtually).
2. The virtual benchmarking session is implemented in Acrobat Connect Pro. One teacher/teachers present her/his course, her/his pair comment using the criteria, and the case is then discussed by all participants.
3. A ‘post mortem’ discussion continues in Ning (http://ibenchmarking.ning.com/)
   Concurrently a benchmarking process implemented as virtual sessions and applying social media will be developed in this project.

An opportunity for peer learning and development

In Finland we hope that all 27 of our universities of applied sciences will actively participate in the virtual benchmarking sessions. A team of 3-4 persons will be formed from each institution, this team participating in the benchmarking sessions as observers and also participating in discussions in Ning and then disseminating their experiences throughout their own institution.

We ask for your assistance in the compilation of online education practices that support authentic learning (cases) by 6.2.2009. Please fill in the form and send it by e-mail for Irja, irja.leppisaari[at]cou.fi, or to Ning by 6.2.2009 (If you have problems with Ning you can send the form by e-mail: irja.leppisaari[at]cou.fi):

Case description form

Your proposed implementation (case description of an English language implementation) should be sent as an email attachment by 6.2.2009 to irja.leppisaari[cou.fi] or the Ning environment http://ibenchmarking.ning.com/

Do not hesitate to contact project leaders Irja Leppisaari and Leena Vainio. You can send emails (irja.leppisaari[at]cou.fi) and (leena.vainio[at]hamk.fi). Ning environment is also used for communication.