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Thursday 28th March 2024

Shocks and solutions: highlights from the WATLF Conference

Category: Company
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by: PebblePad
Jacqui Patten, and Robert Vick attend WATLF

Last month the PebblePad team attended the Western Australian Teaching and Learning Forum (WATLF), hosted by The University of Western Australia.

The WATLF is an annual conference held in Perth, WA, and brings together an amazing group of over 200 innovative educators from across the higher education sector to share challenges, inspire, and collaborate around teaching and learning initiatives.

The theme this year was ‘Shocks and Solutions in Higher Education’ . resonating with the challenges and opportunities the sector is currently facing through:

  • Gen AI
  • Post-pandemic effects
  • Fiscal constraints

The need to be able to absorb shocks through a holistic learner-centred curriculum ecosystem was detailed by Professor Kerri-Lee Krause, Vice-Chancellor of Avondale University, in her well-received keynote.

Forming trustworthy judgements of student learning in the age of AI

During the conference Robert Vick, Director of Business Development at PebblePad (Australia) had the privelage of co-presenting with Heather Pate, Senior Learning Designer at Edith Cowan University. Heather led the session on Forming trustworthy judgements of student learning in the age of GenAI: How PebblePad can support a course-wide assessment approach and shared several examples of how good assessment design is a critical part of student success.

Assessment design that is founded on engaging students in authentic learning experiences, and includes feedback that promotes two-way dialogue, addresses the increasing concerns over academic integrity, particularly in the age of gen AI.

Many educators find inspiration from course-wide and programmatic assessment approaches that link a backbone of course learning outcomes, with a diverse range of artefacts, evidencing learning over time and replacing a grading culture with a feedback culture.

 

Programmatic Assessment: A Solution

In addition to  Heather Pate’s presentation, Janica Jamieson, Lecturer and Placement Co-Ordinator, and also from Edith Cowan University, gave an enlightening presentation titled ‘Programmatic Assessment: a solution’, taking a deep dive into best practice and research into programmatic assessment.

Janica shared how students are engaged in multiple and varied learning activities and fit-for-purpose low-stakes assessments with feedback on their performance.

These activities produced multiple assessment data points and artefacts collated into a PebblePad eportfolio, providing a holistic view of a student’s capabilities and used to make a high-stakes assessment.

Overview

What stood out most to our team was that although shocks and disruptions to Higher Education in 2024 are many and varied, the conference demonstrates the power of a strong community coming together to collaborate, inspire and share ideas.

Educators are up to the challenge of the unknown future disruptors, and they are ready to respond with highly transformative solutions. PebblePad is proud to be part of these conversations and to collaborate with our partner universities to support these transformative initiatives.

Attended by both Robert Vick, Director of Business Development and Customer Success Manager, Jacqui Pattern.

Download our latest white-paper on AI: Redesigning Assessment  Practices in an AI World.

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Mission Possible: The DNA of a bespoke professional development program

Talk description: The diversity of students in higher education dictates that there cannot (and should not) be a single ‘silver bullet’ approach to address the complex challenge of career readiness learning. However, the reality of modern university structures is that delivering bespoke experiences for each student is a challenge in and of itself.  And yet, all things are possible with creative use of PebblePad to streamline delivery (for the university) and make it highly personalised (for the student). 

Bio: Gayle Brent is a Learning and Teaching Consultant (Employability) at Griffith University, Queensland, Australia. Gaye’s specialist area of interest is developing and implementing strategies to enhance staff and student understanding of employability in both curricular and extra-curricular contexts. She completed a Master of Education and Professional Studies Research to explore the potential barriers and challenges to embedding employability-based learning in higher education curriculum and is currently completing a Doctor of Philosophy exploring the impact of an extra-curricular employability program on the individual student experience.

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Gaining CPD with PebblePad

PebbleBash 2024, a biennial international PebblePad conference, to be held in Edinburgh, Scotland, in June 2024.  PebbleBash brings together PebblePad practitioners from around the globe to share practice and discuss the opportunities and challenges that the use of a learning and teaching platform like PebblePad presents.

As many of PebblePad’s customers are undertaking initiatives to reshape the curriculum, PebbleBash provides an opportunity to exchange insights, best practice and renew ideas for creating exceptional learning experiences, aligned with evolving student needs.

Attendees will benefit from the opportunity to:

  • Learn about methods from expert practitioners who have overcome similar challenges
  • Learn how PebblePad is being used to help education institutions tackle some of the key themes in the HE sector: Authentic assessment and feedback, Flexible learning design, Belonging, wellbeing and success, Employable and future-ready and Professional identity and capability
  • Learn about strategies for implementing PebblePad at scale, resources and processes for training and support, reporting and learning analytics, integrations and administration.
  • Network within the community and meet and speak with the PebblePad leadership, implementation and development teams.

Education is an Experience That Should Be Designed

Talk description: We have any number of problems and opportunities as universities, and universities must adapt to help students from diverse backgrounds develop the knowledge and skills they need to thrive and make a positive impact in the world. Key to those adaptations is understanding that we provide students with an experience. We ought to design them with intention and purpose. This talk with take up this argument and ground it within a large educational transformation project at the University of Leeds.

Bio: Jeff Grabill is Deputy Vice Chancellor for Student Education at the University of Leeds. Prior to joining the University of Leeds, Grabill was at Michigan State University (MSU) in the United States for nearly 20 years. He served Michigan State University as the Associate Provost for Teaching, Learning, and Technology. In that role, he was responsible for facilitating innovation in learning and educator professional development via his role as Director of the Hub for Innovation in Learning and Technology. Grabill’s research focuses on how digital writing is associated with citizenship and learning. That work has been located in community contexts, in museums, and in classrooms at both the K-12 and university levels. Grabill is also a co-founder of Drawbridge, an educational technology company.

Curriculum Transformation at the University of Edinburgh: co-creation and the relationship between local innovation and institutional change

Talk description: I will use the themes of reflection and experiential learning, skills development and assessment (including programme level assessment and changes in assessment practice) to explore this process in more detail. This includes the link between disciplinary and institutional curriculum reform, learning from local innovations and changes, and using this to inform University level changes and support.

Bio: My current position is leading the University wide Curriculum Transformation Project. This is a major and long term initiative for the University considering all areas of the University’s undergraduate and taught postgraduate curriculum. Prior to this Jon set up and led the Institute for Academic Development (IAD) at the University of Edinburgh. The IAD provides University level support for teaching, learning and researcher development, including direct support for students and staff, and support for enhancement and innovation in curriculum development, the student and researcher experience. Jon has a PhD in petroleum geology.

Dr Melissa Highton. Assistant Principal, University of Edinburgh

Talk description: A journey through the stories told by wicca data. How a neglected research data set was used by students to overturn historic injustice and shed new light on the lives of women in Scotland.

Bio: Melissa has worked for many years in higher education at some of the UK’s finest and most ancient institutions. In each place she enjoys discovering the hidden histories and less heard voices which can be surfaced in new ways using the most up to date and open technologies. She is a champion of playful and curious approaches to engagement with audiences on campus and online, and is an invited speaker at events about dangerous women.

Disclaimers

The event agenda is correct at the time of publishing. As with all events, we may need to alter or modify aspects of the agenda.

While we take every precaution to ensure the safety and security of our events, Pebble Learning Ltd recommends you review insurance policies to ensure adequate coverage, especially in the realm of business travel.

We will be recording (audio/video) the presentations during the event. A conference photographer will also be capturing moments for our highlights reel. The video and photography will be used to share insights and market PebbleBash to the wider HE community. We do not give automatic refunds, please see the cancellation policy in the FAQs.

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