Development of technology enhanced learning in the School of Chemistry

Abstract

This project has completely changed the way that the School manages the provision of information (both teaching and administration-related) for undergraduate students. The Chemistry VLE is now at the heart of undergraduate teaching and learning. An example of the student use of the Chemistry VLE is reflected in the tracking data since the beginning of Spring term - all 325 students have used the VLE. The average time of use per student to-date is 4 hours and 7 minutes, with variation between ca. 1 hour up to a maximum of 31 hours. Staff engagement with the Chemistry VLE is also impressive – of the 25 staff involved in undergraduate teaching, 20 self-manage the uploading of their material (after appropriate training), and 2 require help in uploading material but still make use of the VLE. The Chemistry VLE is constantly evolving – each year more of the WebCT tools are used within the VLE, including online submission of assessments and assignments (where possible electronically), use of discussion tools, use of the “My Grades” tool for feedback of student marks, and the use of Questionmark Perception is being piloted as an assessment tool in the area of Spectroscopy, alongside some interactive animations. It is likely that use of Turnitin will begin next academic year, following a recent successful small-scale pilot.