Can self-paced, online learning provide teachers with the competences needed to successfully implement learning technologies?

University managements, governments and industry are advocating the implementation of learning technologies in HE as the answer to cost cuttings, student employability, internationalisation etc. Often the overall goal seems to be to simply implement learning technologies to digitise teaching and learning. However, teachers need new competences if learning technologies are to be successfully implemented in higher education and if the potentials are to be realised. But HE teachers must fulfil many roles and have little time to attend courses or workshops to upgrade their competences. Self-paced, online courses may be the answer to this challenge; however, attendance and completion rates in such courses are often low, so it’s important to consider how to engage learners in active participation.
Studies stress that teachers must be guided in the application of new learning technologies and in the development of their own teaching practice for staff development to be successful. A further challenge is therefore, how to design self-paced, online learning that can achieve this.
In May 2017, the SDU Centre for Teaching and Learning launched the self-paced, online course, “Setting up your course in Blackboard”, aimed at teachers at the university. The course aims to support teachers in acquiring the knowledge, skills and competences needed to set up user-friendly course sites on the university’s e-learning platform, communicate effectively with students online and design engaging online activities forstudents.
This paper will explain the theoretical foundation of the learning design and report on the effect together with the participating teachers’ evaluation and experiences.