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Online 18th Edition

lyledunn
For many years I have asked candidates in my 17th and 18th Edition classes if they would consider studying the subject online. The response was generally negative as they preferred the personal aspect to tutorial support and, no doubt, quite enjoyed the banter with their peers. Things have changed and the choice is no longer available. The problem seems to be that the accreditation bodies dont appear to have any facility in place that would allow candidates to sit the exam from an online station other than in an approved centre. If the industry continues to demand that operatives are up to speed with the latest regulations then things are going to have to be done smarter!
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    I have just finished an Open University course in French. No books this year, virtually all online although the text, audio, and video materials were available to download. One face to face tutorial (should have been two but for coronavirus) and a residential for 6 days, but an online alternative for those who were unable to travel. The rest of the tutorials were online in real time through Adobe Connect. All the assessments both written and audio were sent in electronically.


    So I don't think that it would be difficult to do Nth Edn online.


    I can see the sense of having approved exam centres - it prevents the use of supplementary materials, assistance, and other methods of cheating.
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    LOL never did crack it.

    https://frenchteachernet.blogspot.com/2010/06/longmans-audio-visual-french.html
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    Speaking of French. My practice nurse reffered me to a GP. I`d never met her and I was informed she was French- Canadian. As it turned out she was OK but beforehand I was a little worried that she might swear a lot! When my nurse asked why I pointed out the expression folk use after they swear "Oh excuse my French! " Anyway my worries were unfounded.


    I am not conversant with French, it`s like a foreign language to me.
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    Is the difference between being taught on a training course versus online training the difference between being taught and reading a book?


    Discuss ? 


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    Sparkingchip:

    Is the difference between being taught on a training course versus online training the difference between being taught and reading a book?


    Discuss ? 


     


    Depends how it is done. There are plenty of online training courses that are pre-prepared with automated assessment and a complete absence of tutorial support. I was thinking more of a “real time” face to face with candidates. Sure it has disadvantages but properly stitched together it could be of great benefit. One key thing would be that there would be no need to travel. I have often had lads travel the full length of Ireland to attend a 3day 18th Edition course, something which, unlike the 2391, for example, does not require a hands on approach. One tutor in the centre delivers health and safety for senior management and plays a 90 minute video for goodness sake! 


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    LOL.


    I did the BPEC Domestic Ventilation course at Vent Axia in Crawley, two electricians flew down from Aberdeen to Gatwick, walked to their hotel, then walked from there to Vent Axia and back each day, before walking back to the airport to fly back to Aberdeen.


    Over a thousand miles of travelling each to attend the course.


    Andy B.
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    Sparkingchip:

    Is the difference between being taught on a training course versus online training the difference between being taught and reading a book?


    Discuss ? 


     




    It depends on how the online course is delivered. A traditional classroom taught course has verbal and visual components, so students learn via auditory and visual channels. Furthermore, students can ask questions if something is unclear. The benefit of verbal and visual information is that some people learn best by visual stimuli whereas with others auditory. Therefore, auditory learners will probably learn more themselves through hearing the points raised by the lecturer than reading the literature from where the information came; likewise for visual learners reading it. Therefore, if the online course offers both visual and auditory information, to suit both learning styles, there's probably little difference between taught and online. However, if the online course is purely visual, that will suit the visual learners and be akin to reading a book, but dissadvantage  the auditory learners.  Likewise, purely auditory courses will disadvantage the more visual learners. It could be argued that being in class with others enhances learning but I'd argue that's true for some but not all; I prefer learning alone, being able to concentrate better. Another benefit of being taught is that the teacher picks out the main points from text, which the learner can then focus on, whereas just reading a book can lead to loads of digressions and missing the points. Essentially then, the learner is a passive recipient of the information in taught courses, reinforced by their own hearing and reading of the text.


    Taught courses, however, pale into insignificance compared to Problem Based Learning: individually or collectively actively engaging in searching for and using information to answer a set question - the problem. Having done both, imo, PBL is the superior method of learning, as it forces students to engage more with material, and better retain that information due to the greater degree of manipulation/integration with the material. Whether based online or being set the question in class, it's still e.g. reading a book, but ones mindset is different regarding engagement with material that answers the question.


    In general, being taught, in the traditional way, whether in class or online, is akin to just reading a book, and suits short courses because the relevant information can be delivered in a timely manner, but that information is less retained by the learner. The better learning approach is PBL but the time isn't there on a short course for students to go away and formulate a response, that will be retained longer. 


    Others of course may disagree.


    F


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    Good points you make F but we are talking 18th edition where lads are rammed in to a classroom and subjected to bucket loads of information after which they have to sit a multiple choice exam that determines nothing other than the candidates ability to track down information in a book. Whether they understand it or not is irrelevant, hit 60% and hey presto they have passed yet the industry seems to consider this course as an almost safety-critical requirement. Perhaps the importance of the course is more to do with just making sure operatives understand that there is a set of regulations that governs their industry and it is expected that they should all adhere to them. 

    Going online could offer an opportunity to stretch the time available so that course questions could fall into that area of problem based learning that I concur is infinitely better than the current format. 

    One consultant I used to work for quipped that we don’t need clever sparks, they only need to be smart enough to follow instruction. There might be an element of truth in that for some but I hold the guys in much higher regard and would like to see electricians increase the esteem in which they are held. That naturally flows when operatives are well-schooled in the technical matters that form the foundation of their profession.

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