Webinar: GO-GN Member Research Special IX (Tuesday 1 October 2024)

Join us on Tuesday 1 October 2024 at 15.00-16.30BST for our next awesome GO-GN member research special!

For the ninth edition of our showcase, we’re thrilled to host GO-GN members Jess Mitchell (Thomas Jefferson), Giacomo Vincenzi (Bologna) and Gelareh Keshavarz (Athabasca). Find out more about their research below.

Join the call on 1 October at 15.00BST via Zoom!

Schedule (all times are in BST, GMT +1)

• 15.05: Designing an Inclusive Pedagogy That Prioritizes Individual Voice (Jess Mitchell, Thomas Jefferson)
• 15.30: Context, affordances and epistemology of OERs (Giacomo Vincenzi, Bologna)
• 15.55: Short comfort break
• 16.00: Integrating AI into the Expert-Novice Relationship (Gelareh Keshavarz, Athabasca)
• 16.25: Close

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Abstracts

Designing an Inclusive Pedagogy That Prioritizes Individual Voice (Jess Mitchell, Thomas Jefferson)

The literature about how to reach students in inclusive and equitable ways focuses on either the tactical end of satisfying access through methods like Universal Design for Learning (UDL), or it speaks of a socially just way to teach (e.g., Critical Pedagogy, Pedagogy of Care, etc.). Similarly, the literature about how to design for inclusion focuses on ways to programmatically make content inclusive using techniques like the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), or it generates principled manifestos that speak in generalities and rarely describe how to operationalize those values (e.g., Design Justice).

I believe there is something missed by both: something that bridges the polarity of false dichotomous choices. Instead of bifurcating content and justice, I articulate a pedagogy of ‘both/and’ that addresses the tactical and socio-emotional needs of the individual, allowing her to have the opportunity for deep, transformational educational experiences.

In this thesis, I want to explore how pedagogues can use what privilege they have to design the space and incorporate the pedagogical approaches that can create the conditions where students can have individual, transformational experiences: to learn, grow, be vulnerable, and change. I present use cases, a framework for actioning inclusive pedagogy, and an invitation to continue the work evermore.

Context, affordances and epistemology of OERs (Giacomo Vincenzi, Bologna)

The literature about OERs deals extensively with the production and the nature of the resources, within the scope of the definition of what should be considered open and why. Part of the research studies the impact of OERs on the performance of students in the learning process and defines how resources are to be designed and employed for learning purposes at school in a useful way.

The findings of the research are very relevant to the design of learning activities and help the work of teachers and curriculum designers. This applies whenever we take into account formal learning and structured teaching units. Yet, we may need a broader and for some respects deeper view on the relationship between OERs and their users, being them students in a process of development of competence or people engaged in activities of informal learning.

Through a semiotic approach we can analyse how OERs relate to – and have different nature because of – the different actions, actors and context in which they are. The aim of my research, in particular, is to try to answer these questions: How do we learn through open educational resources? How do their interactive features allow and shape the development of knowledge and skills of students? In this speech, I am going to present the field research that is going to take place in some secondary schools in Italy, the methodology I intend to use and the tools I have selected and why. 

Integrating AI into the Expert-Novice Relationship (Gelareh Keshavarz, Athabasca)

This doctoral work explores the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools on the professional capital and capabilities of non-native English-speaking higher education faculty. It examines how AI tools can enhance faculty members’ instructional design, pedagogical techniques, and collaboration, aligning with Hargreaves and Fullan’s (2012) professional capital framework. This inquiry also looks into how integrating AI within Vygotsky’s (1979) Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) can serve as a scaffold, providing motivational support, personalized feedback, and adaptive learning experiences that enhance learning efficacy. By drawing on AI metaphors and frameworks such as UNESCO’s AI Competency Framework for Teachers, the presentation will highlight the role of AI in strengthening the expert-novice relationship, providing reassurance about the support AI can provide in education and leading to more dynamic and effective skill development.

References:

• Beane, M. (2023). The skill code: How to save human ability in the age of intelligent machines. [Publisher Name].
• Furze, L. (2022). AI Metaphors We Live By: The Language of Artificial Intelligence. Retrieved from https://leonfurze.com
• Hargreaves, A., & Fullan, M. (2012). Professional capital: Transforming teaching in every school. Teachers College Press.
• Simon, J. (Ed.). (2019). The ethics of artificial intelligence: Digital metaphors, real responsibilities. Rowman & Littlefield International.
• UNESCO. (2024). AI competency framework for teachers. UNESCO.
• Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press.

Join the call on 1 October at 15.00BST via Zoom!

This post was updated on Monday 16 September 2024.