Whenever we undertake any research within education, particularly Further & Higher Education, we always refer to “the Student” or “the Student Body” as our target research group. “We know this is what our students want.” “The Student Body tell us that this needs to change.” “We need to listen to the students.”. The sentiment is not wrong, but we all too often overlook a key detail on this – there is no such thing as “the Student Body” or “the average student” as far as educational research is concerned.
I was recently at a technology user group around a particular lecture capture solution (Echo360), and we had the opportunity to talk with a panel of students about their thoughts around the use of the system. There were a lot of really interesting comments, but one in particular stood out for me (thanks Karoline!), and I tweeted about it during the day:
Interesting comment from @knanfeldt that it can be a dangerous discourse to refer to students as a single unit, rather than as a diverse group of individuals with very different needs. I think we do this far too often. #echo360
— Duncan MacIver (@duncanmaciver) December 6, 2017
This is a critical distinction, particularly when you consider the 21st Century approach to education, where widening participation has become a critical element in most University recruitment strategies. There is a huge amount of variation in skills, approaches to learning, levels of engagement and understanding, age, background, ability, and so many other areas. How can we consider that a broad generalisation of “what the student wants” can ever really apply to all, or even most, of our students?
My institution is currently undertaking a survey of student opinion around the digital experience (of which we have had a fantastic response rate, so thank you to the 1000+ CCCU students who have taken the time to do so!). While I can’t comment on specific data here, what I can say is that the range of responses on almost every topic have varied from the strongly positive to the strongly negative. And yet the one area where (so far, at least) we have only seen comments around one side of the argument is that of Digital Learning Capture (or “DLC”, our term for lecture capture and associated techniques). “The student” tells us that they want classes recorded. No comments as yet saying “please don’t record classes”. At time of writing it has been an overwhelmingly one-sided request. Why is that, do you think?
My reasoning is that the recording of classes (and other content) speaks to a diverse group of students – each student with their own learning style can benefit from those recordings in different ways, and even those who can’t (or won’t) are not generally disadvantaged by the recording taking place. As I’ve previously mentioned this is what my dissertation topic is aiming to approach – looking at how these recordings are benefitting our students.
Currently on our Research Methods module, we have been looking at the methodology around data gathering, and this is the area I’ve been dreading probably more than any other bit of the process. The topic videos that our tutor recorded for us make comment a couple of times about the fact that the data gathering element is the enjoyable part of this process, the fun bit. Not for me. This whole course (amongst other changes in my life over its duration) has really led me down a road of distinct self-reflection, and there are certain things I’ve come to know about myself. Firstly, I’m not quick on my feet during discussions, unless I’m well within my comfort zone. Talk to me about Moodle, or Panopto, or Doctor Who, and I’ll give you a run for your money. Talk to me about the ethical implications of a particular research method, and I’ll need to come back to you in a few hours, days, weeks once I’ve had time to really think it through. I’m a smart guy, overall, it just sometimes takes me time to get to the best answer. Secondly, I’m socially awkward in groups of people I don’t know. Get me in a room of friends or close colleagues, and I’ll talk your arm off, but if I’m in a room of strangers, I’ll cocoon myself in my comfortable little shell and it’ll take an effort for me to step out of it. Thirdly, I’m much more comfortable talking from behind a computer than in person, and particularly if I can do it in text form. Ask my parents – I don’t ever respond to voicemails, which they love to leave me, and they keep having to remember to text me after leaving me lengthy voicemails! I have time to think about what I want to say, which you don’t get in face-to-face modes of conversation.
What does this have to do with the Student Body issue? Well, when it comes to researching my dissertation, I’m going to need to understand the individual student voice, not the collective, so the obvious approach is going to be to run individual interviews or, more usefully, group discussions with students over their similar (or differing) study habits and how DLC has impacted it. It’s just the only way to really be able to drill down to get the detail that I am going to need. Which means I’m going to have to organise to sit in multiple rooms with groups of strangers, asking them questions face-to-face, and reacting quickly to their responses to be able to get to the detail I really need to capture.
*gulp*
The only plus side to this is that DLC is one of those “run-for-your-money” topics for me – I’m really interested, really invested in this technology and can talk about it quite extensively, but who knows what curveballs our students are likely to throw me. I’m going to need to be prepared, to be able to pre-empt what a lot of the comments are likely to be, and know how to follow up, and then, just maybe, I’ll look like I know what I’m doing.
Until then, I’ll be over here in the corner, under the blanket, with a good book and a cup of cocoa. Someone text me when it’s time to begin…