International event by DOBA Business School: Innovative Pedagogy in Online Learning

At the international virtual event titled Innovative Pedagogy in Online Learning, which was held by DOBA Business School in November, recognised international experts presented the trends and best practices in pedagogical technology-enhanced innovation in higher education and other forms of technology-enhanced learning that can contribute to a more effective development of knowledge and the necessary competencies for the 21^st century labour market. 

335 participants from 52 countries registered for the international conference

From the event: 

Prof. Dr Mark Brown from Dublin Business University, Ireland, discussed microcredentials (the possibility of earning credits, certificates on completed short-term training) as an example of trends and best practices in pedagogical technology-enhanced innovation. By 2025, microcredentials are forecast to become a reliable alternative to formal forms of studies in the United States, while in the EU, they are to become an important supplement to formal study programmes. People are increasingly opting for short-term education and flexible ways of acquiring certain specific skills that enable them to compete on the labour market.

Dr Sandra Kučina Softič, president of the EDEN network and Assistant Director for Education and User Support at the Zagreb University Computing Centre, Croatia, spoke of digital learning in higher education and ways to improve it. She presented 12 principles of technology-enhanced teaching from 1995 which remain relevant even 30 years later, e.g. good teaching can overcome a poorly chosen technology but technology will never save poor teaching, usually only making it worse. We need to focus on shaping a learning experience and not on testing technology. She emphasised that students need to be prepared for lifelong learning, so that they are able to live, work and contribute to the world in which they live. In order to do that, we need qualified teachers who are able to design such teaching and learning.

Dr Steve Wheeler from Steve Wheeler Associates Ltd. spoke of personalisation and individualisation of learning. His message focused on the fact that fostering learning, which can be applied immediately and credibly in the workplace, will benefit everyone in the organisation. This is an investment in the most important assets of any company – human intellectual capital. A personal learning environment does not include only personal web tools (PWT) and personal learning networks (PLN) (the people we interact with on social networking sites). PLNs extend beyond than that, as they include experience and reality, but also paper based resources and broadcast media such as television and radio, and the more formal contexts.

Dr Lea Bregar presented a best practice example of introducing pedagogical innovations in the context of the experience with introducing microlearning at DOBA Business School. As an educational resource, microlearning offers students a real-life learning experience. Through an appropriate teaching design, microlearning enables the achievement of learning objectives that go beyond the basic level of memorisation. Microlearning is a highly appropriate approach to applying the principles of open pedagogy with a team of students as co-creators of open educational resources. Through teamwork, the development of microlearning enables students to improve their competencies in various fields while at the same time raising their motivation.

Ms Mariella Pugliesi, Head of the Didactic Office at Rome Business School, Italy, presented their school’s experience with adapting pedagogical approaches during the pandemic. As an example of best practices, we learned how they created a space for students, higher education teachers and expert associates to freely discuss a wide range of topics, share their experiences, and provide and receive informal feedback. It was referred to as a ‘coffee and conversation’ space, which, through a humane approach in the online environment, has proven to be successful for the attitudes of students, a positive learning pace, the development of positive discussion, for strengthening networking among students, and the perception that expert associates support and take care of the students and teachers.