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Soft Skills for IT People: initial experiences with putting theory into practice

Soft Skills for IT People: initial experiences with putting theory into practice. Prof. Dr. Renate Motschnig Research Lab for Educational Technologies University of Vienna, Faculty of Computer Science renate.motschnig@univie.ac.at. ... in the context of technology enhanced learning.

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Soft Skills for IT People: initial experiences with putting theory into practice

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  1. Soft Skills for IT People:initial experiences with putting theory into practice Prof. Dr. Renate Motschnig Research Lab for Educational Technologies University of Vienna, Faculty of Computer Science renate.motschnig@univie.ac.at

  2. ... in the context of technology enhanced learning

  3. Goals • Development towards significant learning:betterqualifications and relationships for all participants;more successful projects in the longer run. • Support through new media (Internet) • effectiveness • actuality, in particular for new generation

  4. Overview on research context

  5. Overview • Why soft skills? getProfile • Soft skills and e-learning: complement or contradiction? • Web Services and Person Centered Learning: our partners in the marriage • 3 scenarios for developing soft skills in courses of the computer science and BI curriculum • evaluation and students‘ reaction • further practice and research • call for cooperation

  6. G O A L S Soft-Sciences Technology Research Knowledge- management Significant Learning Industry/practice Development

  7. getProfile: Top Ten requirements from Industry

  8. stimmt vollkommen 55 % stimmt eher 40 % neutral 1 % stimmt eher nicht 3 % stimmt sicher nicht 1 % getProfile on Communication • Wie stehen Sie zu folgenden Aussagen? • Erfolgreiche IT-Arbeit ist mindestens zu 50% erfolgreiche Kommunikationsarbeit. (119)

  9. Bücher 15 % Internet: Tutorials, Foren, etc. 22 % Kurse, Workshops 20 % Kollegen, Teamarbeit 39 % Sonstiges 4 % getProfile on Learning Wodurch lernen Sie persönlich am meisten? Wählen Sie 0 bis 2 Begriffe aus. (208)

  10. Goal: Improve (learning) processes by employing techology

  11. Didactic Baseline: Action-focused, Person-Centered

  12. Significant Learning • “Significant learning combines the logical and the intuitive, the intellect and the feelings, the concept and the experience, the idea and the meaning. When we learn in that way, we are whole .“ (Rogers, 1983) S. 20. • Ganzheitliches, bedeutsames Lernen, auch: Aspy, Barrett-Lennard, Tausch, Teml,..

  13. Person-Centered Learning • Basis: Actualizing tendency (Rogers): • Can unfold itself best, if facilitator provides a working climate based on: • openness, transparency, realness • acceptance, respect • understanding, empathy

  14. Expressions of PC core conditions (Motschnig) • Realness • authentic problems • open, shared reflection, multiple perspectives • transparent communication and processes • Acceptance • learner participation in all aspects of course • self-initiated learning goals and processes • blended evaluation of students‘ projects • Understanding • course design takes whole situation into account • among all participants; of novel situations

  15. Blended Learing System Structure (BLESS)

  16. Course Information The course/container ist filled with components from different locations, scattered over the organisation. For the students and the facilitator the system behaves transparent. Team Building Surveys, Questionaires CEWebS: Sample architecture at the Universtiy of Vienna XML Tools Business Process Visualizer DKE RPD/SSM Modelling BIS Sematic Web Tutor QA Practical Example Common Repository SMILE + SVG Playground Administration & Reports MIS LOM Editor

  17. Some learnings from practice • From a technical point of view: • First: Web Computing infrastructure • Now: elements of Grid Computing(Blackboard Messaging System) • The services cooperate transparently(exchange pieces of information) Blackboard Messaging Service Service Service Platform Platform • From a users point of view – KISS: • Simplification of the activities involved in certain tasks • One step to submit a contribution – the contribution is placed automatically in the correct container • Focus on the workflow of a course – aggregated views of the progress • Efficient UI – only relevant parts visible • Reports - qualitative and quantitative analysis

  18. Current CEWebS Architecture:

  19. CEWebS Applicationssome numbers • In use for the 4th term • Prooven design – scalable and stable • handled courses with 300 Students with high loads (upload of contributions) • Avg. of 500 students per semester • > 1 GB of Data accumulated > 20 GB transfered • 18 functional components (WS‘s) • Parts distributed over 3 OS‘s • Interoperable parts in Java/.NET/C++/Ruby

  20. Blended Learning in Action: • Web Engineering • Project Management Soft Skills (PM/SS) • Person-Centered Communication and New Media

  21. Blended Learning in Action: Web Eng • Course context and objectives • Previous cycles, stepwise evolution • Course Scenario • Patterns applied • Platforms used • Evaluation and students‘ reactions • Consequences

  22. Web Engineering - General • Goal: competence in WB-systems design • technically - soft skills • Development regarding platform usage:LN on homepage, Student‘s projects on homepage, TeleWIFI, dayta, CEWebs • CHANGING !!! • Didactic approach: PCeL – stepwise development towards more freedom within well-defined, flexible process. • CONSTANT, yet ripening

  23. Web Engineering – Practice (320 students) • Self-chosen projects in teams • predefined project milestones • Presentations and partner teams • Phase reflection online • Consulting time in lab-courses • tutorials, tutor-presence and forum • Project demo‘s and oral discussions • Interactive lectures • written exam OR learning contract

  24. Observations • Lot of extra effort in design and coordination in the first year • Lot of reuse of design and experience in second year, due to platform! • Conclusion: The enormous extra effort for “rich didactics“ in the context of many students is significantly reduced in second year due to platform!

  25. Web Engineering Scenario

  26. Web Engineering Scenario

  27. Project-based Learning

  28. WELL Patterns

  29. WELL-contract • about 84% (of about 330 students) • topic to suit the theme and the interest of the team as well as group of learners • blended evaluation • knowledge based via topic maps

  30. WELL Contract Structure

  31. Top 15 WELL Contracts

  32. Web Templates 1) Provide administration, user, and report views for pattern application  Platform-independent specification

  33. Web Templates 2) Instantiation on a particular learning platform  Platform-dependent implementation Peer-Evaluation submission form

  34. Evaluation WELL Current term: about 75% expected WELL participants

  35. Evaluation of WE module ...correlate with students' motivations to participate comprehensive evaluations are available at http://elearn.pri.univie.ac.at/pca/research

  36. Motivation in WE: top factors

  37. „Die Übung war wieder einmal sehr anders als alle anderen. Das freut mich immer wieder und ich sehe, dass es meinen Kollegen genauso zusagt (die Übungen sind auch immer voll). Sie haben bewiesen, dass sie auch ein konservatives Übungsthema wie Programmieren in einem neuen Stil halten können. Es liegt also nicht am Fachgebiet, sondern nur an der Einstellung. Anfangs war ich der Meinung, es geht nur mit Kommunikativen und diffusen Themen, aber man sieht, es ist auch bei ziemlich exakten Anforderungen möglich, einen Freiraum zu lassen (der nicht nur aus freier Projektwahl besteht). Man konnte ja auch selbst wählen, wie man die Meilensteine gestaltet. Die angeschlossenen WELL-Verträge haben natürlich dazu beigetragen, mehr Kontakt (aber sicher auch mehr Arbeit) zu den Studenten zu haben. (…) “ „Unsere Übungsgruppe war zeitweise chaotisch. Eine bessere Koordination wäre sehr wünschenswert.“ „Persönlich gesehen war es eine ausgesprochen positive Übung mit guter Stimmung und Arbeitsklima. (…) Aus technischer Sichtweise wäre eine bessere Unterstützung bei der Verwirklichung der Projekte wünschenswert gewesen.

  38. Conclusions from the WE experience: • In Blended Learning, the platform is used primarily for information transfer, administration, and various forms of reflection • Personal dispositions make the difference, if the blended learning scenario relies heavily on cooperative, interactive processes • Added value • learning on three levels, professional action, • increased motivation is feasible, but doesn‘t come for free!!!

  39. Project Management- Soft Skills • Moderation and selected soft skills depending on students‘ interest • Szenario • Learning on three levels • students‘ rating and reactions

  40. PM/SSScenario

  41. Person-Centered Communication • 3 Workshops (a 4h) for Theory and structured tasks/exercises, then 3 encounter groups (a 11h). • Szenario • Learning on three levels • students‘ rating and reactions

  42. PCCScenario

  43. Learning on 3 levels

  44. Contribution vs. Profit Scale:0 = not at all ... 10 = very much Winter term 2003/04 Winter term 2004/05

  45. Challenges for Organizational Development • Strategies on how to achieve and assess added value and how to convince others. • How to capture Blended Learning wisdom? • Staff development strategies. • First step towards international cooperation; virtual community: PCA/HE: http://elearn.pri.univie.ac.at/pca

  46. Finally ... • Every viewpoint is welcome • ... as is international cooperation

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