1. Engaging practice-based learners: Yorkshire and Humberside Circles of Support and Accountability Volunteers Andrew Fowler Aileen Watson and Jacky Burrows
2. context Penal Voluntary Organisations are charitable, self- defined voluntary agencies working with prisoners and offenders in custody and the community (Corcoran 2011: 33) Offender Management Act (2007) opened up criminal justice market for service providers from voluntary, commercial and statutory sectors Transforming Rehabilitation: A Strategy for Reform (MoJ, 2010) increasing role for penal voluntary organisations
3. The project Joint project between SHU and YHCOSA Stand alone academic module Aimed at volunteers working with sex offenders in the community Heavy focus on 'practice', skills, and reflection 30 credits, level 4 Blended learning delivered jointly
4. The students 11 started, 8 finished 1 withdrew for serious health reasons 2 withdrew for personal reasons Completers were all female All students had previous experience undergraduate level All had completed at least one 'circle'
5. The module MODULE AIM To enable COSA volunteers to develop skills and knowledge that will underpin their professional development and enhance their practice in working with offenders within the community. MODULE LEARNING OUTCOMES By engaging successfully with this module a student will be able to: articulate, discuss and apply conceptual and theoretical frameworks that underpin community based support, rehabilitation and re-integration of sex offenders develop and demonstrate core skills that support the community reintegration of sex offenders recognise and apply the multi-agency context of volunteering within COSA, taking account of diverse roles, responsibilities, partnerships and accountabilities discuss and respond appropriately to issues of diversity and difference within the context of voluntary work within COSA
6. Blended learning Blended learning Volunteering with sex offenders module 1 SHU face to face session 12 SHU online lectures 4 face to face COSA sessions (more skills based) interim and final assignment
7. Online component Three blocks of four sessions: Effective engagement Risks, rights and responsibilities Rehabilitation and reintegration Mixture of written information, exercises, video excerpts, case studies and prompts for reflection.
8. Andragogy Knowles (1980 (cited in Chametzky (2014) Volunteering with sex offenders module Models of assumptions: 1) self management of learning 2) empowerment of learners to increase motivation 3) reliance on learners own life experience to aid learning 4) objectives of learners for taking the course 5) the practical real-world solutions to problem encountered on the course 1) in on-line environment more active in knowledge acquisition 2) by being self directed learners feel empowered - learn anytime anywhere - flexible learners 3) In Circles - this experience provides the figurative hooks 4) Our brief - learners ideas 5) opportunity to address real- world situations in andragogic learning environment
9. Social Constructivism learning theory Volunteering with sex offenders module Constructed by learners as they attempt to make sense of their experiences. Learners, therefore, are not empty vessels waiting to be filled, but rather active organisms seeking meaning (Driscoll, 2005, p. 387) students question existing knowledge, beliefs to problem solve in highly fluid situations (Cooner 2005) emails with tutor BB for debate simulation - real world problems Using existing experience as a basis for learning Critically reflective practice - course identity reflection - lectures - assessment
11. Meaningfulness and engagement needs to be worthwhile - working more independently - needs to enhance their own practice when meaningful - engaged with course materials / peers - stronger vested interest in learning more likely to attain skills in upper levels of Bloom's taxonomy (Tsai 2009) resolution of real-life problems than memorizing information (Pollock 2013)
12. Student perspective Initial evaluation Final evaluation High levels of confidence Highly motivated Key areas for learning: Sex offender rehabilitation Academic research around COSA Challenging offending behaviour Understanding risk Diversity Mixed response Generally positive about quality of materials but less of a 'professional' focus More connection between online and face to face input More face to face contact with tutors
13. What did we learn? Blended learning needed to be more unified - not two separate components We needed greater clarity of purpose and course identity We needed to make more effective use of VLE to provide clearer hooks and increase motivation We could have incorporated student experience into the learning materials more creatively to enhance engagement and make the module as a whole more meaningful to the students.
14. Conclusions and recommendations Use of multi-media, for example, podcast, skype Enquiry-based Blended Learning - Community of Enquiry Framework for Enquiry based learning Continuing the action learning sets in the VLE Developing sense of course identity
15. References Driscoll, M. P. (2005) Psychology of learning for instruction (3rd Ed.) Boston: Allyn and Bacon Chametzky, B. (2014) Andragogy and Engagement in Online Learning: Tenets and Solutions. Creative Education, 5, 813-821. http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/ce.2014.510095 Cooner, Tarsem Singh (2011). Learning to Create Enquiry-based Blended Learning Designs: Resources to Develop Interdisciplinary Education. [online]. Social work education, 30 (3), 312-330 Corcoran, M. (2011) Dilemmas of institutionalization in the penal voluntary sector. Critical Social Policy 31 (1): 30-52. Higher Education Academy (2015). Flexible Learning [online]. https://www.heacademy.ac.uk/workstreams-research/themes/flexible-learning Ministry of Justice (2007) Offender Management Act. http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2007/21/pdfs/ukpga_20070021_en.pdf Ministry of Justice (2010) Transforming Rehabilitation: A Strategy for Reform. https://consult.justice.gov.uk/digital-communications/transforming- rehabilitation/results/transforming-rehabilitation-response.pdf Pollock, D. (2013) Designing and Teaching Online Courses http://fsweb.bainbridge.edu/QEP/Docs/DesigningandTeachingOnlineCourses.pdf Tsai, M. J. (2009) The Model of Strategic E-Learning: Understanding and Evaluating Student E-Learning from Metacognitive perspectives. Journal of Educational Technology & Society, 12, 34-48. http://www.ifets.info
