Activate Learning

Like every UK institution, Activate Learning has been significantly affected by the recent Coronavirus pandemic. In March 2020, the further education (FE) college group closed its doors to everyone except vulnerable students, instead delivering learning online in order to stem the tide of Covid-19 infections.

Positively, using technology to power distance learning was already routine for Activate Learning. Using Canvas, its Virtual Learning Environment, the college group oers online modules for many students and blended learning experiences for more.

Canvas has been embedded in the college group for three years, and has become the first stop for all students to submit coursework, receive feedback and monitor progress. It has helped teachers give feedback in different formats including video and audio - making learning more engaging and collaborative. Indeed, since implementing Canvas, student and sta access and participation activity has increased by more than 300 per cent, reaching more than two million hits to the platform at the end of 2019.

In fact, the biggest challenge for Activate Learning in recent weeks hasn’t been getting the technology up and running or persuading students that their learning is protected during campus closures, but instead is in training all staff on how to get the most out of the VLE, especially for remote delivery.

For Activate Learning, the training process started several weeks before the announcement was made to close campuses - making sure that every staff member was prepared for the shifting learning landscape. Important too has been accessibility. The college’s digital accessibility expert Kim Blanchard worked through every module and course against an accessibility checklist to make sure that all of the students can make the most of their learning experience, whatever their needs. Kim has been leading a tight ship through her development team in ensuring the college group’s online provision is enriched with in-house developed resources especially for vocational areas such as 360 and VR video experiences.

For all colleges, this is clearly a challenging time, but the team at Activate Learning believes that it presents an opportunity for all of its staff and students to experience the potential benefits of online learning. “For us, ‘online’ doesn’t just mean a video to watch or a portal on which to submit work - virtual learning can be as diverse and as engaging as face to face tutelage,” explains Sharmen Ibrahim, Digital Education Services Manager. “For example, we use conferences for live lessons - with breakout ‘rooms’ where students can work together in groups (Big Blue Button is a great resource here). Interactive whiteboards, polls and discussions help keep students engaged - and access to our entire library of resources online through ebooks help students extend their learning independently. Data capture is invaluable too in helping teachers and students track progress.”

Of course, the first priority for Activate Learning right now is to help look after the health of its community - and there’s a lot of work for us to do for everyone in education to protect learning. But Sharmen Ibrahim believes that the immediate need is setting the sector up for a more positive learning experience in the long run. She says: “We know students want to learn on demand (just look at their viewing habits for evidence here - with Netflix and Amazon Prime now much more popular than live TV amongst a younger audience) and we know that learners respond if they’re empowered to set their own agenda and take charge of their learning. It will be really interesting to look at progress and attainment during this time - I suspect that students may not suffer in the way the public fears, but are able to continue to thrive.”

And for the college group, the ways in which Canvas is being used is continuing to expand above and beyond the immediate need. “This year, we are taking our use of Canvas to a different level” continues Sharmen. “Our online portal will nudge students with wellness activities, tips and events - as well as acting as a one-stop-shop for students to find information on all the support we offer. It will also enable learners to improve their digital skills with the use of Mastery Paths, supporting our vision to enhance staff and student digital capabilities in line with Jisc recommendations.”