Next Generation Environments Conference 2008 - Staff User Panel
Questions to staff during Staff User Experience Panel:
Q: do you see a difference between yourselves and a younger/older user:
A1: I use the same social technology as my son.
A2: Rather general question. was 1 of 2 members of staff invited to after handing in dissertation party via Facebook. But not really part of that group.
Commment: Even though using the same technology still not part of same social groups.
A3: 85 yr old student who fully uses all social technology as well as 60 yr old so it’s down to experience.
A4: I have colleauges and friends on Facebook and we talk about social stuff not work. Special interest group created on Facebook which I wanted to join but created a dialemma that do I do this with my current slightly silly photograph?
Q: your presence on facebook has given you opportunity to engage with students that you wouldn’ normally engage with. your institution would be pleased with that. so are we saying that all academics should have a facebook account?
A: some attempts to set up a facebook presence would be half-hearted perhaps. although some Uni libraries are setting up facilities in libraries for example.
Q: did you have any problems with engaging with any of the students on the facebook group?
A: I came across it by looking for the alumni group so accidental that I became involved with students online.
A2: I find Facebook good on a more informal level to liaise with some students.
A3: Some students find it easier to engage with me online than they do face to face.
A4: In my masters module none of them want to go on facebook as they are quite anti.
Q: do you feel joining social networks improves your quality of teaching and if so how?
A: yes. becuase students send me messages that they don’t understand and why.
Q: what is the difference between emails and Facebook?
A: emails created barriers. regarded as disturbing recipient. some staff ignore email for example. students realise that with some academics therefore no point using this method. social networking sites give the social touch.
A; social networking offers whole range of teaching opportunities that other normal methods of teaching wouldn’t. getting continous stream of feedback is very useful. they discuss their dissertation supervisors on their walls for example. has improved communications with students and in turn some of our teaching.
A2: I haven’t really used it to teach with. used it to bring it to the table to put it there and re-examine it and look at it with an open mind.
A3: staff can come across as a bit more human and so can the students by interacting using social software! gives staff a window into what life is like for a student these days.
How much are staff responsible for supporing students using this software?
All students should have the same experience of VLEs but their experience is not consistent. Always a small group of staff that are using new technologies and a large group that don’t. Need to move things forward and make it consistent for everyone. Consistency is key.
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