Technical Innovation in Blended Learning – Concepts for the

Creation of High Quality Continuous Vocational Education Courses

using Multiple Devices

Peter Mazohl

, Ebba Ossiannilsson

and Harald Makl

University of Technology Vienna, Wiedner Hauptstraße 8-10, 1040 Wien, Austria

Swedish Association for Distance Education, Sweden

Pädagogische Hochschule Niederösterreich, Mühlgasse 67, 2500 Baden, Austria

Keywords: Blended Learning, C-VET, Innovation, Multiple Devices, MOOCs, OER, Technology, TIBL, Quality.

Abstract: The project Technical Innovations in Blended Learning (TIBL) aims to increase the training success (and

outcomes) of C-VET trainees using “multiple devices” (computers, laptops, notebooks, tablets and

smartphones) and with a blended learning approach. The tasks foreseen are: i) the development of blended

learning training modules that will hopefully close expectation gaps between trainees and companies; ii) the

creation of an easy-to-use toolbox delivered in open access aiming to support trainers to implement these

modules or similar ones successfully; and iii) the implementation of a blended learning course “Train the

Trainers” supplied as a MOOC course, based on Moodle as an OER, also using multiple devices. This

contribution presents the project as well as the pedagogical principles underlying the courses. The project will

focus on the delivering of content by multimedia material which can be used on all mentioned devices, and

specific pedagogical techniques, like micro learning and flipped learning approach. The developed methods

will be evaluated in real courses undertaken in formal education and in non-formal education within real

enterprises.

1 INTRODUCTION

This ERASMUS+ project Technology Innovations in

Blended Learning (TIBL) aims to develop continuous

vocational education and training (C-VET) courses

for training performed in formal and in non-formal C-

VET education. These courses use blended learning

as a technology enhanced method and focus on the

use of multiple devices (used by the trainees in their

everyday life) to develop professional competencies

that will close the expectation gap between trainees

and companies. The innovation in this project

embraces the implementation of a trainee-focused

pedagogical framework based on heutagogy, the

development of an all-encompassing quality

enhancement framework (including also the

pedagogy approach) and the exploitation of various

technical equipment (the multiple devices). The

project is complementary to a Grundtvig Multilateral

project by transferring the theoretical developed

outputs to a practical implementation in a different

(but similar) educational sector.

The partners of the project combine knowledge

and experience from Vocational Education and

Training (VET) institutions with the research and

innovation potential of universities. In addition, a

national organization for distance education is a

partner. The partners in the project are:

The Fundación Escuelas Profesionales Sagrada

Familia (SAFA), who also is the coordinator. SAFA

is an important Spanish school foundation focusing

on school and vocational education; the European

Foundation for Quality in Blended Learning

(EFQBL) is a VET and trainers’ education

organization; the Universita Degli Studi Di Roma La

Sapienza, DigiLab, that is specialized in multi

devices; the University of Aveiro that is specialized

in innovation in technology enhanced training and the

related pedagogy; and the Swedish Association for

Distance Education (SADE), who are experts in

distance learning and quality enhancement

frameworks.

The outline of the project roadmap was agreed on

the kick-off partner meeting in Wiener Neustadt,

Austria (October 2017). The initial research phase

548

Mazohl, P., Ossiannilsson, E. and Makl, H.

Technical Innovation in Blended Learning – Concepts for the Creation of High Quality Continuous Vocational Education Courses using Multiple Devices.

DOI: 10.5220/0006817405480554

In Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Computer Supported Education (CSEDU 2018), pages 548-554

ISBN: 978-989-758-291-2

will focus on the theoretical frameworks mentioned

above, which then further on will be developed.

These frameworks will underline the implementation

of an innovative pedagogical approach to C-VET

courses. In a teaching event (in Seville, May 2017)

the knowledge and necessary competences created in

the previous phase will be presented and discussed

with all partner institutions. Based on current existing

frameworks for quality enhancement (Ossiannilsson,

Williams, Camilleri & Brown, 2015), a suitable

framework for TIBL will be developed in addition.

Furthermore, the planning of the pilot courses will be

created. In 2018, the pilot courses will be

implemented, evaluated and amended. The results

will be the impact to the creation of the trainers’

toolbox. The coding (with Hypertext Preprocessor,

PHP programming language) of the foreseen PHP

programs will start in spring 2019, as well as the

development of the transferability and quality

evaluation guide. The project’s results will be

disseminated and published in several national

multiplier events, in September 2019 as well as

scientific conferences in these areas.

1.1 Blended Learning

Blended learning has become a mainstream approach

to learning in higher education. Teachers are

commonly drawing upon a mix of digital

technologies and face to face approaches to enhance

the learning outcomes of their students. The term

itself blended learning has many definitions which

are varied in the explanations. On behalf of ICDE

Ossiannilsson (2017) wrote an insight paper on

blended learning, its terminology, definitions, history

etymology, implementation, and quality

enhancement. She emphasized from the research

study that blended learning designs have headed the

list of trends in higher education the most recent five

editions of the NMC Horizon Report (Adams et.al.,

2017), partly because of their role in increasing the

flexibility and convenience of students

(Ossiannilsson, 2017).

Briefly, blended learning is the fusion of online

and face‐to‐face contact between teachers and

students. Blended learning environments include not

only the physical presence of teachers and students

but also the students’ ownership and control of time,

place, setting, path, and pace at which their learning

takes place (Banditvilai, 2016). Blended learning

concerns mindset and pedagogy more than it does

technology. In educational programs, both formal and

informal, the use of the blended learning model is

accepted as the mainstream approach to learning in

schools, colleges, and universities across the globe

inline with technological development and increased

digitization.Thus, the ecosystem of blended learning

must be embraced to ensure the quality of a culture of

blended learning (Ossiannilsson, 2017).

The two most often cited definitions are provided

by the Christiansen Institute and Wikipedia.The

former defined blended learning as:

Blended learning is a formal education

program in which a student learns; at least in part

through online delivery of content and instruction,

with some element of student control over time,

place, path, and/or pace; at least in part in a

supervised brick-and-mortar location away from

home, and the modalities along each student’s

learning path within a course orsubject are

connected to providean integrated learning

experience

(Christiansen, Horn&Staker, 2013 p.8).

The latter definition is as follows:

Blended learning is a formal education

program in which a student learns at least in part

through the delivery of content and instruction via

digital and online media with some element of

student control over time, place, path, or pace.

(Wikipedia, 2017).

From the research study by Ossiannilsson (2017)

it becomes also clear that the concept is culture and

time dependent, and thus vary.

1.2 Innovation in the Project

There are three innovative columns carrying the

project. The first addresses expectation gaps between

trainees and the companies. Geetika (2017)

mentiones different expectations of these two groups

which leads to unsatisfaction in both.

The second pillar is a partly missing support of

small and media enterprises (SMEs) in the fields of

trainer education and an appropriate training aproach.

The third column reprsents the tools. In Higher

Education (HE) or School Education (SE) there exist

numerous tools for blended learning, most of them

well researched and published. Obviously the transfer

to C-VET (or VET in general) is not working

properly. This is the reason of the structure of the

consortium to build a kind of knowledge alliance and

to enable the transfer ef the experiences from the

various institutions to the others.

Technical Innovation in Blended Learning – Concepts for the Creation of High Quality Continuous Vocational Education Courses using

Multiple Devices

549

1.2.1 Closing Gaps between Trainees and

Companies

There exists an information and expectation gap

between the trainees and the supplying companies.

This phenomenon is well-known and can be found in

literature (Geetika, 2017). This problem targets both

trainees and enterprises and is discussed within the

last ten years in Higher ducation (Beetham, 2014).

One of the problems is that modern training using

multiple devices needs digital competences and a

pedagogical model – but this is missing (in most

cases). As an innovation the development and

implementation of a trainee-focused pedagogical

framework (including the strengthening of digital

competences) is developed in the project as well as

the delivering of the training by blended learning (this

enables the easy clearing of problems and obstacles

in the face-to-face sections).

1.2.2 Supplement of Small and Media

Enterprises in the Training

This addresses the main target group of trainees and

enterprises. The project addresses the problem that

modern training of employees is often to complicated

for little artcrafts or the smallest (tiny) enterprises.

As an innovation the training organisations get a

proven training environment based on blended

learning using multiple devices and can offer special

courses (on a well-priced and time-saving base) for

the various art crafts and “tiny enterprises”.

1.2.3 Development of Tools

The development and implementation of an easy-to-

use toolbox for trainers is a major outcome of the

project. This web-based toolbox will support trainers

in the course creation using a varity of multiple

devices. It assists them to use the developed

frameworks of pedagogy and quality enhancement,

but also the form of microlearning. This all will allow

just in time and personal learning. The main target

group for this toolbox are trainers and training

organisations.

The identified problem are trainers (and the

training departments of bigger companies) fixed on

traditional methods. An example of this traditional

approach can be mentioned the replaccement of a

printed book by an eBook. The toolbox is a strong

support for trainers building a sustainable investment

in quality and efficiency of training systems (ET

2020). It will be developed and implemented by using

the EQAVET Quality Assurance reference

framework.

The toolbox is a completely new developed and

coded web-based tool and developed to assist trainers

in course creation. The toolbox is based on the

developed pilot courses but offers the necessary

flexibility to create aids and basic material to assist

the trainers (with a special focus on the pedagogical

approach).

At the date of the submission of this paper, such a

tool open for public use did not exist.

2 AIMS OF THE PROJECT

The project aims to develop C-VET training courses

for training performed in formal and in non-formal C-

VET education. C-VET in this context means

continuous (or further) education of people working

in a specific profession. These courses use blended

learning as a technology enhanced method and focus

on the use of multiple devices, provide two

frameworks (for the pedagogical training approach

and the necessary quality enhancement) and supply

trainers and training organisations in course creation

by a special web-based tool.

Three main aims will be addressed in the TIBL

project: the access to training and the qualification of

both trainees and trainers, open praxis in a digital

area, and the equity for trainers and trainees. These

principles are defined in the call of the European

Commission 2017 (European Commission, 2016)

2.1 Enhancing Access to Training and

Qualifications for All

The TIBL project addresses the chances for trainees

to get better training supplying them with relevant

and high-quality competencies (skills, knowledge)

for their professional life, especially to keep the

employability, and to keep track with innovations in

their fields. The project develops modern technology

enhanced training which can be work-place based as

well as traditional self-paced training as described by

Nq, Lam et. Alt. (2017).

The project implements courses using the

potential of innovative and active pedagogies such as

collaborative methods with a heutagogical approach

(Blaschke, 2016; Ossiannilsson, 2017) where the

learner is in the center of the learning. This will

enable synergies between education, research and

innovation activities, like the cooperation of a VET

school with a VET training organization supported by

two European Universities and the involvement of the

partner with its association specialized in distance

BLQE 2018 - Special Session on Blended Learning and Quality Enhancement

550

learning and quality assurance and quality

enhancement.

2.2 Open and Innovative Practices in a

Digital Era

Blended learning and open, online, and distance

education are typical for learning in the digital era,

and the 21 centuries (Ossiannilsson, 2015;

Ossiannilsson, 2017). The use of the complete variety

of available devices as described above mirror the

current digital oriented society, and how people live,

work, and learn, and promotes a promising approach

to modern digital based training. The project will

promote the use of Information and Communication

Technology (ICT) with a view to increasing the

quality and relevance of education at all levels is

always in the background of all project’s activities.

The project is a response to the digital revolution

(Schwab, K., 2016) by increasing (and using) digital

competences at all levels of learning, including non-

formal and informal VET education. This also gives

the project an enormous transfer potential to other

educational fields. The providing of the project’s

outputs as open educational resources (OER) is a

contribution to Open Education movement

UNESCO. (2015a 2015b)

2.3 Equality for Trainers and Trainees

Equality for trainers and trainees is a requirement

from the European Commission and means

introducing systematic approaches to, and

opportunities for, the initial and continuous

professional development of VET teachers, trainers

and mentors in both school and work-based settings.

The project develops innovative and technology-

based training methods which are also an innovation

for trainers (and all kinds of organizations involved in

education and training).

The project addresses mainly the continuous

professional development of VET teachers and

trainers (as mentioned in school as well as in work-

based settings in SMEs). The developed software

(Trainer’s Toolbox) and the Massive Open Online

Course (MOOC) enable trainers easily to use the tools

and practices developed through the TIBL project in

their training and to supply best the trainees.

Multiple devices are a fact in our daily use

(Kabali, 2014). To use them for successful training,

the user must be educated, must get motivated in the

learning, and the appropriate environment must be

available. An heutagogical approach enables the

learner to control the learning and to adapt it to the

personal needs. The training developed in this project

takes the viewpoint of the learner to

 Supply the trainees best

 Ensure optimized training results

 Taking in account the necessary user

education and a well-defined developed

training environment

The pilot courses in the field of further vocational

education and training will be performed with

trainees not so well educated in ICT and will be

evaluated with a special focus on the trainees’

development in ICT.

3 MATERIALS AND METHODS

The literature review showed clearly the mentioned

problems in various context. In the project the

consortium creates the necessary quality and

pedagogical frameworks and uses them to implement

pilot courses both in formal C-VET (in the Vocational

schools of SAFA, Spain) and in non-formal C-VET

(in the continuous courses of the Sakralenergetiker in

Austria) environments.

The method to create the pedagogical training

framework follows tree steps. As a first step, areas are

defined that influence the framework itself, the

second step defines the training approaches with a

special focus on heutagogy and multimedia based

individual training and finally targets the quality

assessment techniques. Additionally, trainer trainings

are foreseen in the frame of the project and will enable

successful online trainings of the trainees.

The quality enhancement framework will be

developed in an analogous way by identifying the

quality fields occurring in the training and developing

the necessary guidelines, tools, and measurements.

3.1 Addressed Target Groups

The project addresses several defined direct and

indirect target groups, which are

 Trainees involved in continuous vocational

education (C-VET) both in formal education

and non-formal)

 Trainers responsible for courses in C-VET

 Training organizations developing courses

for C-VET

 Small and media enterprises (SMEs)

interested in innovating their internal further

education

 Decision makers, involved in training, and

companies, which care for continuous

Technical Innovation in Blended Learning – Concepts for the Creation of High Quality Continuous Vocational Education Courses using

Multiple Devices

551

professional development (CPD) for their

staff.

3.2 Trainers’ Education

Gundar (2011) mentions that in the today’s teaching

skilled teachers are lacking digital skills. He

addresses especially the skills of the use of mobile

devices to be incorporated in the learning

environments and activities. In VET training the

situation is the same. Trainers must be well educated

and supported to use not only mobile devices in the

training but also all the other devices which are

common for the typical VET trainee - often at the

workplace.

The consortium is using the new developed digital

competence frame of the European Commission

(DigiComp, 2017) and will focus on the described

key competences from tree different areas, which are

Communication and collaboration, Digital content

creation, and problem solving.

To address the trainees in the best ways, trainers

must learn not just the properly use of the technical

tools but must be able to use these within a framework

of pedagogical methods. The project develops a

pedagogical framework which can easily be used by

the trainers. The toolbox is an appropriate web-based

tool to support trainers with the tools, which are one

results of the findings of this project. The use of the

toolbox (and the related background of the toolbox)

is available through a MOOC developed within the

project and by the project team, which will be

launched during the project period.

3.3 Multiple Devices

The use of multiple devices is a fact in VET training

(Peters, 2007).

The innovation of the project is closely connected

with the results of international studies claiming

problems in currently used training and the feedback

of companies (SME as well as bigger companies)

concerning the difference between the expected

outcomes of training and the real and final results.

4 FINDINGS

The first findings of the project are in context with the

technical issues, the development of a pedagogical

framework best fitting to employed C-VET learners,

and the creation of the quality enhancement

framework.

The pedagogical framework includes as a new

pedagogical approach the trainees view. The project

team focuses on the real needs, based from the current

state of the art of literature, and proved by the

feedback of the trainees of the pilot courses.

The framework will combine active learning,

micro learning, especially in the distance learning,

and the use of multimedia, especially interactive

videos. This approach is even described by Bergmann

(2017).

Sung (2016) mentioned that qualitative analyses

of the use of multiple devices are still missing. Within

the project currently used devices were analysed, and

a list of features, mainly technic-based, were

identified. This study is the bases of the development

of multimedia-based material which will be able to be

used on all multiple devices during the training. The

study impacts as well into the implemented features

of the Moodle (Moodle, 2018) platform which is used

for the distance learning. The pre-decision has been

made to use HTML5 as a page description language

which is delivered by Moodle as a standard (Moodle,

2016)

The project is expected to gain feedback of real

VET learners involved in blended learning courses

using multiple devices. This feedback is used as an

outcome to the development of the trainers’ toolbox.

This toolbox will hopefully merge practical use and

inhomogeneous technical devises (Sung, 2016) as

well as the expectation gap (mentioned in the

beginning). The specific proposal for training

methods like the use of multimedia content,

interactive videos based on microlearning will bring

a better training environment and motivate the

trainees in their working life and conditions.

5 DISCUSSION

The first results point out that the use of technical

devices is standard in VET learning and humans

expect to use it for their learning. For the course as

such, it is difficult to estimate in an inhomogeneous

group which devices to be used. The course creator

must care for an overlapping average of the provided

material covering all used multiple devices.

The research pointed out that the technical

features are due to both the devices, as such but also

to the used operating system. The used learning

platform Moodle basically delivers content in a

HTML 5 format which is displayed at all devices

offering standard tools to display the content. Further

research and tests are thus necessary to define

precisely which material can be delivered and used by

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all devices. Other findings are the time factor in the

learning process.

Time must be used efficiently by VET learners.

The use of multimedia in combination of workplace

based microlearning seems to be a promising

approach. Following the approach of flipped learning

for vocational and professional education and training

(VPET) some considerations of Bergman (2017) will

impact to the project, for example the use of

multimedia based microlearning or interactive

videos.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors would like to express acknowledgements

and thanks to the European Commission, who is

funding the TILBL project (2017-1-ES01-KA202-

038256), under the ERASMUS + KA2-Cooperation

for Innovation and the exchange of good practice, and

KA202 Strategic Partnership for vocational education

and training

The authors would like to express

acknowledgements and thanks to all partners in the

project

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