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Adding the online element to pre-arrival and pre-sessional courses for international students

Adding the online element to pre-arrival and pre-sessional courses for international students. Julie Watson J.Watson@soton.ac.uk 12th November 2010. Overview. Preparing international students online before they arrive Blending online resources with a face-to-face pre-sessional course

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Adding the online element to pre-arrival and pre-sessional courses for international students

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  1. Adding the online element to pre-arrival and pre-sessional courses for international students Julie Watson J.Watson@soton.ac.uk 12th November 2010

  2. Overview • Preparing international students online before they arrive • Blending online resources with a face-to-face pre-sessional course • Creating discipline-specific materials • Developing an online pre-sessional course • What design features do these share? • Questions and discussion

  3. Prepare for Success • Web-based teaching/learning ‘transition’ tool for international students and UK institutions • Main menu of 23 learning resources ( designed as interactive multimedia ‘learning objects’) introducing students to aspects of UK academic culture and study skills • Resources available as online course ‘building blocks’ to blend with your institution's own resources - linked to from any VLE for pre- or post-arrival induction of international students • Or simply embed link to PfS in your website, emails to students, online welcome pack, agent information etc.

  4. Summary of PfS website use to date • Since July 2008: over 200,000 visits (170,000 since July 2009) • Student users representing 205 countries • c. 85 UK receiving institutions use it (HE 80%; FE 20%) • c.165 site feedback forms from student users • Use by other institutions (UK secondary schools and sixth form colleges, institutions overseas) • Traffic through referrer websites linking to PfS

  5. Comparison of monthly visits since July 2008 launch

  6. How are UK institutions using it? University of Aberdeen School of Pharmacy, University of London Dept of Computer Science, University of Warwick University of Nottingham (Pathways) University of Exeter (Insessional Independent Study Programme) University of Portsmouth (Pre-arrival Course: PrepUP) University of Reading (International Foundation Programme: Get Prep@red) University of Warwick (Institute of Education: Module support) University of Southampton (Pre-arrival Course: Arrive UK) Hoa Hoc Tro (British Council, Vietnam)

  7. EAP Toolkit • Academic study skills and language development: Learning to study; Academic writing; Reading and critical thinking; Listening and note-taking; Communication skills; Grammar for academic purposes; Vocabulary for academic purposes • For international students (c. 5.5 to 7 IELTS /equiv.) • 100+ learning objects (80+ hours learning activity) • In use since 2004 (refreshed for 2011) • Institutional VLE-hosted (Blackboard, WebCT, Moodle) or password-protected web access • Blended with pre-sessional and/or in-sessional use

  8. Integrated with a pre-sessional course Tutors • blended with classroom teaching Students • as directed by course tutor for lesson preparation / consolidation • as advised individually by tutors for remedial purposes • in timetabled independent study periods • 24/7 for self-directed learning

  9. Discipline-specific collaborative developments • Health Sciences Toolkit (study skills for students of Nursing and Midwifery) Example 2008-2009 HUM LOs resource set (study skills for students of Archaeology, Music, English Literature, Modern Languages) Example: 2009-2010 LAW LOs resource set (study skills for Law students) Example

  10. Pre-sessional online (in progress) • Discipline-specific for Management students (5.5 IELTS entry) • Hybrid approach ( 5 wks online + 10 weeks f2f) • Tutored online and assessed • 5 weeks (c.20 hrs p.w.) • Learning resources (LOs), discussion tasks, chat sessions w/tutor, reflective learning blog, learning reviews and assignments

  11. Shared design features • Separable and reusable building blocks for course/resource set creation • Activity-based approach ‘ learning by doing’ • Engage students in reflection • Enhanced with feedback, help, extra resources • Make use of different media (audio, video, text, flash) • Flexible modes of use • Consistently designed, styled and sized

  12. Thank you for listening Prepare for Success: www.prepareforsuccess.org.uk EAP Toolkit: www.elanguages.ac.uk/eaptoolkit/index.html

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