Welcome to ELTT!
3 June 2014
Hello all! We’re using our first post to introduce ourselves. We’re ELTT, the new Enhanced Learning Technology Team at Cardiff. We’re learning technology officers based in the Education Team in Registry & Academic Services, and we also work very closely with IT Services.
What is learning technology?
If you haven’t heard the term ‘learning technology’ before, it can be best described as any use of technology which can help facilitate learning and teaching practice and assessment for staff and students. Some tools are already well understood by lecturing/teaching staff in the University, for example PowerPoint and data projectors are two of the most widely used technologies, and even post-its and whiteboards can be considered tools for teaching. But whilst some learning technologies are straightforward to use, others often require advice and support.
What is a learning technology officer?
We’re asked this fairly often. In a nutshell, you could think of us as a bridge linking pedagogy (the art and science of education) and technology. Our motto is: it’s about the learner, not the technology.
Our role is to work with Colleges/Schools around the university to provide pedagogical and technical consultancy and support in relation to learning technologies, helping staff make effective use of these technologies for their students. We work directly with lecturing/teaching staff and liaise with learning technologists in Schools to provide one-to-one advice, offer group support via staff development workshops and collaborative activities. The list could go on!
On a practical level, we must first understand what learning is about in a particular context and what the intended aims and outcomes are. That means we have to keep up to date with current and emerging learning and teaching theory and practice (and a bit of educational psychology!). The last factor in our deliberations is the technology itself. We have to know all about our centrally supported learning technologies, and other commonly used and emerging learning technologies, and what they can do, so that where possible (and appropriate) we can then discuss suitable technology tools or methodologies.
Contact us
If you’re interested in talking to us on anything to do with learning technologies, please do get in touch!
Mailbox: eltt@cardiff.ac.uk
Website: http://blogs.cardiff.ac.uk/eltt/
Allan, Catherine and Dewi.