Improving learning in the digital age
NUS hosted the second National Conference on Technology-Enhanced Learning (TEL) from 21 to 22 November at University Town. Themed “Technology, Faculty Engagement and Student Learning: Expanding Mindsets and Changing Culture in Higher Education”, the conference brought together educators and policymakers in Singapore to discuss the challenges and opportunities associated with adopting new digital technologies in the classroom.
“Institutes of Higher Learning do not operate in a vacuum; we operate in a society and world that is changing rapidly. As the world is changing faster than ever, we are going to have to adapt faster than ever too, just to keep up…I hold the view that as researchers and educators, we are intrinsically wired, albeit to different extents, to push the boundaries, whether it be of knowledge, innovation or practices. We want to reflect, discover and learn. It is what we teach, preach and do,” said Professor Tan Eng Chye, NUS Deputy President (Academic Affairs) and Provost, in his welcome remarks. He added that integration of technology should be thoughtful, selective and targeted, and help to yield holistic learning outcomes and an enriched learning experience for students.
Guest-of-Honour Mr Ong Ye Kung, Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) highlighted the transformative power of technology in education in his speech at the opening of the conference. “Technology will shape our future and our lives. But we must not conclude or assume that the richness of human life will be reduced to bits and bytes, and that technology will totally consume us. Humans, we are ultimately social creatures. Students are ultimately social creatures. There is always a duality between the virtual world versus the real world, digital versus analogue, coding versus craft, snapchatting with a hundred friends at the same time versus having coffee with just one. When one side gets stronger, the other side rises in prominence too. And that has been our experience in education,” said Mr Ong.
Prof Tan said that educators need to prepare students for an increasingly uncertain future brought about by rapid technological change
Over the two days, experts shared their perspectives on how IT innovation can help in the move towards more adaptive learning systems and new models of teaching that complement the disciplinary expertise of educators. Participants also examined the changing role of higher education institutions; the support needed to develop the knowledge and skill sets of teachers; the benefits and challenges of learning technologies; as well as new developments and trends. The inter-institutional interactions through focused panel sessions aided the discussion and propagation of new ideas.
An NUS technology showcase also allowed participants to view and interact with the University’s latest working prototypes in TEL incorporating technologies such as virtual and augmented reality.
One such prototype was MediSIM (Medical Simulated Interactive Manikin), a pilot project between NUS Associate Provost (Undergraduate Education) and NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine Associate Professor Erle Lim and Mr Scott Stevens of the Entertainment Technology Center, Carnegie Mellon University. The project incorporates augmented reality visual aids to help students learn abdominal palpation skills. Using HoloLens, a self-contained holographic computer, the team created a mixed reality patient avatar with clinical features of disease states. The avatar is superimposed over a manikin with interchangeable 3D-printed diseased organs named Abe the Tummy Dummy — jointly developed with the Design Incubation Centre at NUS — allowing the user to visualise the abdominal organs as he or she palpates its abdomen.
Other projects included ARMolVis, a mobile application that facilitates the learning of chemistry by revealing the predominant molecular makeup of products in 3D when students hover their smart devices over photographs of the products; EON iBench, a computer-aided 3D visualisation to teach dental operative skills; and ConjAR, a tool to empower educators and students to design and incorporate augmented reality scenes in their applications and projects without prior training in the technology.
See media coverage.
The engaging two-day conference drew approximately 400 participants
