Negotiating meaning, negotiating place: Peer learning and student participation in the learning commons
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The document summarizes a presentation about peer mentoring and student participation programs at Victoria University in Melbourne, Australia. It describes several peer mentoring programs in the university's Learning Commons, including Student Rovers, Research Ambassadors, and Peer Career Advisors. It discusses the founding principles of the Learning Commons and emphasizes peer learning, collaboration, and developing student autonomy. Contact information is provided for several staff involved in the mentoring programs.
Negotiating meaning, negotiating place: Peer learning and student participation in the learning commons
- 1. 6th Canadian Learning Commons Conference University of Calgary 7-9 May 2012 Negotiating meaning, negotiating place Peer mentoring and student participation in the Learning Commons Keith Kirkwood School of Language and Learning
- 2. Presentation outline • Victoria University, Melbourne Australia • The Learning Commons • Principles and pedagogy • A tour of peer learning places in the Learning Commons and introductions to our mentors • Future directions
- 3. Where is Victoria University? Image source: http://odt.org/Pictures/sideb.jpg
- 4. Victoria University, Melbourne Australia -- not that Canadian one ;) • Multi-campus – 11 campuses • Multi-sector university (higher ed, vocational ed, further ed) • VU students are culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD), with: • a high proportion from low socio-economic status (SES), • part-time students, • first in the family university students, • mature-age students (60% over 25), and • students who work for more than 15 hours/week. “The challenge for VU is to embrace its diversity and aim to maximise access and success for all its students.” Kent & McLennan, 2007
- 5. Victoria University’s Learning Commons 2007-present Collaborative service model established for the delivery of a range of student learning needs, consisting of a LC Peer mentoring components in the partnership between: partnership: • Library • Student assistants (after-hours) • IT Services • Students-as-staff • Career services • Peer-career advisers • Office of PG Research • Research Ambassadors • Learning Support Services • Student Rovers, Writing Mentors • Student Leadership
- 6. Founding principles for the VU Learning Commons Learning oriented Facilitates active, independent and collaborative learning Learner centred Focuses on student needs, preferences and work patterns University wide Part of university-wide development of learner autonomy Flexible Responsive to the changing needs of learners for resources and support Collaborative Based on collaboration between different learning support areas in the university. Community building Provides a hub for physical and virtual interaction for staff and students.
- 7. VU Learning Commons pedagogy Putting learning into the learning commons. “In a learner-centred environment, attention is paid to the experience, knowledge, skills, attitudes and beliefs that learners bring to the university.” (Gabb 2005 p. 1) Learning is made visible through learner-centred pedagogies. • Collaborative learning • Active and autonomous learning • Peer learning
- 9. Student Rovers “Providing opportunities for student employment on campus together with a more ‘approachable’ level of service as the human face of the Learning Commons.” Kiel, R., & Gallagher, A. (2011) Rovers: • Assist with basic student queries related to using and locating core facilities, information resources, software and hardware; • Help students to clarify and articulate basic issues related to their learning strategies.
- 10. Student Rovers Framing rovers as junior staff in a service delivery hierarchy is not the only way in which the rovers’ role can be construed. An alternative way of conceptualising rovers is to frame them as students; as student mentors who have demonstrated their practical understanding of academic institutions and practices by their good academic results. Understood in this way, rovers are students paid to be students, not students paid to be staff; they are ‘students as students’ rather than ‘students as staff ’. (McCormack, Pancini & Tout, 2010, p. 46)
- 11. Student Rovers
- 12. Student Rovers A Student Rover’s comment at the end of a shift: “At the end of that day shift when I was in the train what I … realised was that at that moment not only professional help took place but a social network between a Rover and a student, a social network between a student and the learning commons, and finally, in a broader sense a network between a learner and VICTORIA UNIVERSITY took place in a positive way.” (Kiel & Gallagher, 2011)
- 15. Research Ambassador program The Research Ambassador program is a joint initiative from the Office for Postgraduate Research (OPR), the Office for Research (OfR) and the University Library Research Ambassadors at Victoria University provide peer-to-peer research support to both research students and staff in a range of areas including: • quantitative and qualitative research design and data analysis • document formatting • EndNote • NVivo • data and file management • library research databases and other areas In addition to face-to-face support, the Research Ambassadors created a Facebook page and Skype and Twitter accounts as methods of broadening their reach for communicating with clients.
- 16. Research Ambassadors http://guides.library.vu.edu.au/seekRA
- 17. Research Ambassador “Being a RA enables me to expose myself to the other disciplines colleagues are working on, which broadens my vision and enables me to approach my own research assignment from multiple angles. I wish I could spare more time learning from other RAs, as a process toward my professional development.”
- 18. Peer Career Advisors (PCA) area at Footscray Park campus
- 19. PCA video: http://youtu.be/M_t9mx4P2HA STUDENT CAREER DEVELOPMENT
- 24. Writing Space entrances at two campuses
- 25. Writing Space – Footscray Park campus
- 27. Writing mentor video: http://youtu.be/qlB2z_vDus8
- 28. Where to from here? • Increased development of the mentoring learning community as the Learning Commons positions itself at the centre. • Increased cross-referrals of the mentoring programs. • Increased resource development by the mentoring groups. • Increased student governance in the Learning Commons and student participation in curriculum renewal. • Senior mentor roles provide increased leadership in T&L opportunities
- 29. References Keating, S., & Gabb, R. (2005). Putting learning into the learning commons: a literature review. Retrieved March, 2010 from http://eprints.Victoria University.edu.au/94/ Keating, S., Kent, P.G. & McLennan, B. (2008). 'Putting learners at the centre: the Learning Commons journey at Victoria University', in B. Schader (ed.), Learning Commons: evolution and collaborative essentials. Oxford: Chandos, pp. 297-324. Kent, P. G., & McLennan, B. (2007, 10-11 December). Developing a sustainable staffing model for the learning commons: The Victoria University experience. Paper presented at the International Conference on Information and Learning Commons: Enhancing its Role in Academic Learning and Collaboration, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Kiel, R., & Gallagher, A. (2011, 30-31 March). Developing buildings, services and 'partnerships in learning’ at the Victoria University learning Commons. Paper presented at the 2nd Annual Learning Commons Development and Design Forum, Brisbane. Kirkwood, K., Best, G., McCormack, R., & Tout, D. (2012). Student mentors in physical and virtual learning spaces. In M. Keppel, K. Souter & M. Riddle (Eds.), Physical and Virtual Learning Spaces in Higher Education: Concepts for the Modern Learning Environment (pp. 278-294). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. McCormack, R., Pancini, G. & Tout D. (2010), Learningful work: Learning to work and learning to learn. In International Journal of Training Research 8: 40–52.
- 30. CONTACT DETAILS Keith Kirkwood Frances ONeil Adrian Gallagher The Writing Space Associate Librarian Learning Commons Manager School of Language and Learning Information Services Victoria University Victoria University Victoria University Melbourne Australia Melbourne Australia Melbourne Australia PHONE +61 3 9199 4015 PHONE +61 3 9199 4065 PHONE +61 3 9199 4503 EMAIL keith.kirkwood@vu.edu.au EMAIL frances.oneil@vu.edu.au EMAIL adrian.gallagher@vu.edu.au http://www.snap.vu.edu.au Garry Potter Rob Vague Manager, Library Staff Resources Peer Career Advisors Victoria University Team Leader Careers Education Melbourne Australia Victoria University Melbourne Australia PHONE +61 3 9199 5932 PHONE +61 3 9199 4944 EMAIL garry.potter@vu.edu.au EMAIL rob.vague@vu.edu.au
Editor's Notes
- #6: Peer mentoring and student participation in the learning commons Kirkwood - Victoria University, Melbourne Australia
- #7: Founding principles Peer mentoring and student participation in the learning commons Kirkwood - Victoria University, Melbourne Australia
- #17: Link to LibGuide link Peer mentoring and student participation in the learning commons Kirkwood - Victoria University, Melbourne Australia
- #20: PCA from UTEP – good to mention int’l exchange Peer mentoring and student participation in the learning commons Kirkwood - Victoria University, Melbourne Australia
- #29: Further involve faculty, break down divisions Leadership in T&L: in PCAs, Rovers, Peer programs have senior mentors VU encourages mentoring from the senior mentors – but they are still students Peer mentoring and student participation in the learning commons Kirkwood - Victoria University, Melbourne Australia
- #31: Peer mentoring and student participation in the learning commons Kirkwood - Victoria University, Melbourne Australia