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Information Technology and Staff Development: Issues and Problems Related to

New Skills and Competence Acquisition

Article · January 2001

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 1

Information Technology and Staff Development: Issues and Problems

Related to New Skills and Competence Acquisition

M.C. Pettenati1, D. Giuli1 , O. Abou Khaled2

1
Department of Electronics and Telecommunications
University of Florence
V. S. Marta, 3 50139 Florence, Italy
e-mail: pettenati@achille.die.unifi.it, giuli@diefi.die.unifi.it

2
Department of Computer Science
Engineering School of Fribourg
Bd. de Pérolles 80, CP 32 - 1705 Fribourg, Switzerland
e-mail: Omar.Aboukhaled@eif.ch

Abstract: This paper is intended to highlight the problems related to the development of

professionals involved in the field of educational technology, defining a series of new

professional roles, skills and competencies acquired to respond to the job market demand

in this field. A referential model for the staff involved in the development of networked

based courses or activities is also defined in the course of this paper in order to cover all

the necessities of a networked-based course development.

Corresponding author

Maria Chiara Pettenati

Department of Electronics and Telecommunications
Via Santa Marta, 3 50139 Firenze Italy
Tel: +39 055 4796.382
Fax: +39 055 488883
E-mail: pettenati@achille.die.unifi.it
 2

Introduction

It has become evident that there is a need to help teachers and operators of Information Technologies use

technology effectively. Not only do they need to become proficient as users and acquire new technical

skills, but they also need to learn to use the technological means efficiently as an educational tool (Giuli et

al., 1999; Pettenati et al., 1999). This means that they have to invest time and resources, in order to master

technologies and effectively accomplish instructional design. As the teachers are the main promoters of any

innovative activities in education, it is of vital importance to facilitate their efforts to integrate new

technologies into their work. The emergence of a complex electronic communications and information

environment for learning and research is bringing into focus new roles for the services and staff with

responsibility for promoting skilled use of networked information resources. Not only the delivery of

networked courses, but also the approach to the design of courses supported by the Information

Technologies (IT) is rather different to that followed in a conventional training course.

According to (Levy, 1997) of the Department of Information Study of the University of Sheffield, the

learner support in a networked learning environment requires a broad professional development framework

for information staff likely to be involved in developing on-line approaches. She adopted the term

networked learner support (NLS) (Fowell, 1995) to denote computer-mediated approaches to reference

assistance, user education and skills training for users of electronic information resources, and suggested

that the new combination of skills required for effective provision of NLS would encompass information

and IT expertise, as well as expertise in the educational uses of new information and communication

technologies. The approach followed in this paper starts from the analysis of the origins of the staff

development need and then to the description of the real market demand of new professionals, then goes on

with the analysis of the different phases and responsibilities required to design an IT-supported training

system in order to identify the roles, responsibilities and co-operation involved. Then, a model for the skills

development is given as a starting point for academic institutions and private companies, in order to train

their staff to be ready for the demands of the Information Technology society. Even if the purpose of this

work is to identify the phases tasks and roles for the Instructional Design of a Web-based course, the
 3

analysis approach of this paper is valid regardless of the technologies used, whether they involve video-

conferencing, interactive TV, World Wide Web, or other technologies.

The origins of the staff development need

Unless teachers take the time to get acquainted with the use of technologies, for the sake of all the good

reasons which have been illustrated till now (Owston, 1997), and until a rationale approach is developed,

the use of IT in classrooms will stay a spare, occasional and personal choice. Although in Europe we are

used to always being behind the level of information technology literacy of western countries, at present the

situation of the integration of computer technology in the classrooms is encountering the same obstacles all

over the world. Following debates on the Internet newsgroups, we found out that the principal issues of the

"Faculty Development" topic are well synthesized in the following quotations:

Table 1: Anne Jolly's opinion

I do know teachers who regularly attend workshops and take coursework to learn how to use computers effectively in their

classrooms. Some of these courses are good, some are hopelessly outdated, but in either case, no follow-up is provided. If the idea is

to impact teaching and learning, then one-shot courses are simply not sufficient to prepare teachers to change the way they teach,

especially as they are in the process of teaching. Keep in mind that little technology actually available in most classrooms. In only a

few schools is someone available on-site to assist with technological glitches, much less provide quality assistance into incorporating

technology in a meaningful, appropriate way into the curriculum being taught, which is, after all, he real purpose for using the

computers in school. The worst culprit to the utilization of technology in the classroom, however, is the issue of time. Teachers

generally teach all day, no time to plan or prepare.

Anne Jolly - ITFORUM participant - http://itech1.coe.uga.edu/itforum/home.html

Table 2: John Pate's opinion

In the past 10 months I have worked with over 70 school districts throughout the state of Illinois and assuming this cross section is a

representational group, I estimate that approximately 10% of the public educators show signs of computer anxiety. If nothing else,

colleges and universities could step into the gap here, and become a real player in the drive toward higher standards. In the State of

Illinois new standards for teachers have been developed that require teachers to use technology in the classroom. We could get there

faster with cutting-edge college programs that go beyond traditional coursework, and provide ongoing support and guidance in a

systematic manner.

John Pate – ITFORUM participant - http://itech1.coe.uga.edu/itforum/home.html

 4

Table 3: Bill Bianchi's opinion

I don't believe we need a wave of comparative studies: computers vs "Typical classroom teacher", but when introducing anything new,

the advocates must explain the benefits of the new product or service. When more time and effort is given to explaining and

demonstrating how computer based learning will improve classroom instruction, then problems like computer avoidance will diminish

rapidly.

Bill Bianchi – ITFORUM participant - http://itech1.coe.uga.edu/itforum/home.html

These aspects can be summarized in two main classes of problems whose solutions, in my opinion, are

respectively the concern of teachers and institutions:

ƒ Teacher related factors:

- Lack of time

- Computer avoidance

- Lack of motivation

ƒ Institution related factors:

- Lack of knowledge of IT benefits in the classroom

- Necessity to define new "teacher standards" (required skills, related compensation etc.)

- Lack of continuous development opportunities

- Lack of ongoing support

An important issue when dealing with training faculty for the use of new technologies in their education, is

the compensation. Information Technology requires extra work for faculty, more responsibilities and a

great deal of extra time. If institutions policy stayed the same, and no support were provided, issues of

equity, measurement, quality, cost and revenue, would become preeminent. There is, in fact, no question

that on a course-to-course comparison, a course formatted to be improved by IT features, requires much

more time, thought, creativity, and effort than a similar traditional course. For this reason, the role of

faculty has then to be re-discussed, introducing new "teacher standards" as to define if the new tasks were

part of the basic teaching load, or an overload, or a form of service subject to supplemental compensation.

The natural follow up of this trend is the definition of diversified teachers roles, according to the skills and
 5

competencies developed. At present, always more and more projects all around the world are concerned

with faculty development. However, as far as we know, the majority of these projects just give a collection

of resources instead of giving the possibility to carry on real activities. We strongly believe that in the

phase of faculty development, teachers and tutors should be trained with the new technologies, with proper

cognitive activities as they would themselves develop special skills to support students in their turn. Many

programs exist, and we have collaborated in developing some of them1, as well as in delivering seminars

and "teacher' day"2 to make faculty aware of this issue, but the effectiveness of these activity, except for an

initial enthusiasm, is useless. For these reasons, the personal commitment of teachers to this theme is not

enough; universities and institutions have to support them with special competence centers and invest

resources in this direction. The investment in providing faculty with the right answers vary according to

many factors such as the expertise, the subject taught and the level of integration of IT in the curriculum.

IT-based educational project development: phases, roles and tasks

The conception of new educational systems requires a multi-phase project, starting with the conception,

and continuing to the implementation and evaluation of the same system. The scheme is similar to the one

foreseen for the IDM (Instructional Design Model) (Andrews et al., 1980; Edmonds et al. 1994), whose aim

is the realization of the individual or group training. Models for instructional design provide procedural

frameworks for the systematic production of instruction. One model can be used for an entire course of

instruction or elements of multiple models can be combined. All the instructional design models available

in literature, although simple or complex, highlight the necessity of the following phases:

ƒ Analysis (of users' needs, their learning styles, expected objectives, available material etc.),

ƒ Design (of strategies and activities),

ƒ Implementation (of instructional material, instructional strategy etc.), and

ƒ Evaluation (whether final, intermediate, formative or summative).

1
FACILE EU project, http://www.cfp.upv.es/FACILE/Leaflet/, TRIO-TELEFOR Tuscany regional project
2
http://medit.epfl.ch:4444/visitors/events/meetings/index.html
 6

Clearly, there is no unique way to perform the Instructional Design process, and the "optimal solution"

depends on the specific application. In the next paragraph, I will illustrate one possible model for the

phases and corresponding roles involved in the development of a Web based educational environment. This

model is derived from the one proposed by Tim Kilby in his public site3. Of course, because of the delivery

support, the whole process is conceived to take special care of usability and design.

WBT project development

Table 4 shows the relationship between the tasks (and their aims) to be accomplished in the Instructional

Design model of the Web Based Training, with respect to the professional responsibilities involved. This

gives and overview of the complexity of skills required for the successful performing of the project

development.

Table 4: Tasks & Roles for the Web-based Instructional Design

Task Aim Responsibility

Analysis of client's need Corresponds to the identification Project Manager and Instructional

the explicit needs of the project, Designer

and the characteristics of the final

product

Analysis of the final users Users are classified on the basis of Project Manager and Instructional

their characteristics, their Designer

background, etc. in order to

choose the support, and the kind

of technology to be used

Technical analysis Definition of technical resources Project Manager, System Analyst

3
Web Based Training site, http://www.filename.com/wbt/
 7

and skills available and Programmer

Design of the Interfaces Build interfaces according to user- Project Manager, System Analyst

centered approach and Programmer

Usability testing Assess at different stages of the Usability Engineer, Human Factor

interface design and building Expert and Cognitive Psychologist

process, the quality of the

interfaces

Instructional design Presenting the content in such a Instructional Designer and Subject

way to satisfy user's needs and Content Experts

relating to teaching methods and

technologies used

Creation of the media Contents realization in the Instructional Designer, Media

different media (text, audio, Designer and Programmer

graphics, movies, etc.)

Evaluation and Updating Evaluation of the impact and the Teacher, Cognitive Psychologist,

effectiveness of the educational and Instructional Designer

system, assessment of the quality

of the product, corrections and

revisions

In this example, some professional roles which could be involved in the different development phases are

pointed out:

ƒ Project Manager

ƒ Instructional Designer

ƒ System Analyst

ƒ Programmer

ƒ Usability Engineer

ƒ Human Factor Expert

 8

ƒ Cognitive Psychologist

ƒ Subject Content Expert

ƒ Media Designer

ƒ Teacher

It appears evident that some of the defined profiles are general while others are specifically related to the

content and to the subject to be taught. What is important to highlight, in this schema is the

multidisciplinary approach used for the successful realization of an educational product, regardless of the

nature of the technology involved in the process. Since all the roles and responsibilities, change

substantially from those involved in traditional teaching, the need to create proper curricula, and to develop

new skills, becomes prominent.

New Professional Roles Involved

A common concern has been that suitable staff development and training for NLS (Network Learner

Support) is not currently available within many institutions, because of different reasons such as severe

resourcing constraints, and lack of strategic planning for NLS at organizational level. This means that CPD

(Continuing Professional Development) needs are not yet being addressed. Within this context, the

development of NLS requires new professional skills, partnerships and role-perceptions on the part of a

wide range of support and academic staff. The task is complicated by the fact that it is not a simple matter

to identify one homogeneous group of staff across the sector at whom training for NLS should be targeted.

As well as for information staff, computing staff and new "hybrids" between the two, NLS was identified

as an area of interest for staff in teaching and learning support positions related to promoting the networked

learning environment. Thus, Continuing Professional Development for NLS might be targeted at a very

wide variety of staff with different backgrounds and specializations, such as those described in table 4. The

nature of these positions varies substantially, but all have a role in Network Learner Support, even if their

responsibilities and duties can somehow overlap.

 9

The Market Demand of New Professionals

Once these competence areas are identified, it is interesting to analyze how the job market begins to look

for new skills and professionals. The following tables illustrate the responsibilities, duties and

qualifications of some professionals in Educational Technology fields. These characteristics are those

sought by universities and enterprises according to job opportunities available at the time of this writing, in

the Internet for five kinds of professionals:

ƒ Instructional Designer

ƒ Educational Technology Librarian

ƒ Web-based curriculum developer

ƒ Head of Media Services

ƒ Tutor

Table 5: Instructional Designer Profile

Instructional Designer

Responsibilities & Duties Qualifications

- To provide vision, leadership, and coordination for - Master's degree, experience in instructional design,

the design and development of technology-based the World Wide Web, distance learning, multimedia

educational products, including World Wide Web design, curriculum design, and adult and continuing

sites for courses delivered on and off campus, education.

extension and outreach educational products, and - Strong computer skills with an ability to work and

public information. design for cross-platform applications.

- To work collaboratively as part of a multimedia - Experience in the use of instructional technologies

and Web/instructional technology applications and media such as linear and nonlinear video, the

development team World Wide Web, computer-based instruction,

- To refine identified goals and instructional teleconferencing, computer graphics and animation,

strategies, select and develop appropriate curricula, presentation systems, and digital video and audio.

modules, distance learning products, and materials - Experience working in higher education advising

for the specific needs of target audiences. faculty and staff on the appropriate use of computer-
 10

- Incorporate contemporary learning styles, teaching based programs.

methods and techniques, and state-of-the-art

instructional technologies into new curricula for

credit and non-credit applications.

- Provide leadership to the Web/ID team in the

techniques and methods of developing curriculum

and instructional materials, modules, and units.

- Help prepare estimates, budgets, and costs

associated with Web/ID team projects.

- Assist in the analysis of new and emerging

technologies for instruction, distance learning, and

other institutional technology needs and potential

applications.

Table 6: Educational Technology Librarian profile

Educational Technology Librarian

Responsibilities & Duties Qualifications

- Assist faculty in integrating new strategies for Master's degree, experience in higher education.

teaching and learning using present and emerging - Evidence of highly developed communication,

information and instructional technologies organizational, and interpersonal skills and the

(integrating electronic information resources into ability to effectively convey complex technical

courses, including creating guides, tutorials, and concepts to lay persons.

bibliographies). - Educational background or experience in teaching,

- Encourage, develop, and support faculty projects training, and/or learning styles.

using multimedia and information technology in Demonstrable record of experience in using a range

classroom teaching. of instructional technologies.

- Assist curriculum development teams in

 11

identifying appropriate information resources, and

participate in the creation and ongoing development

of course and instructional Web sites

- Identify, evaluate, and recommend information

technology software and hardware based on user-

defined needs and currently available technology.

- Maintain an up-to-date knowledge of the

techniques for assessing the impact of technology

use on teaching and learning, and familiarity with

current research on the effectiveness of various uses

of technology.

Table 7: Web-based curriculum Developer profile

Web-based curriculum Developer

Responsibilities & Duties Qualifications

- Consult with faculty and academic staff on the - Strong academic background as well as technical

development of Web-based curriculum. expertise in the use of the Web.

- Assist in the development of web-based courses - Master's degree in instructional design/technology

and programs. Experience as an instructional designer, educator,

- Conduct training for faculty and staff on university instructor, trainer or combination of the

techniques and methodologies of Web-based above.

curriculum development. Review and make - Knowledge of instructional design principles,

recommendations on current off-the-shelf Web distance learning methods, Web page design and

development products. production, visual interface design, multimedia

Administer the academic web site server. authoring tools, and digital graphics, audio, and

video production.

- Experience in Web site/Web server administration

 12

Table 8: Head of Media Services profile

Head of Media Services

Responsibilities & Duties Qualifications

- Responsible for library and university instructional - Bachelor's degree and an advanced degree in a

technology relevant field

- Management of staff in working with university - Experience in a highly automated, technically

automated information resources, the campus advanced academic environment

Interactive Video Network and university-wide - Extensive technical background in computers and

instructional media equipment delivery, set-up, media.

training and use. - Practical experience with Audio Video, multimedia

- Assist faculty in identifying appropriate uses of and computers in instruction.

technology in their instruction. Knowledge of technical issues in

- Plan, formulate and publicize media policies telecommunications, library automation, digital

Evaluate current and emerging information and media, video and general audiovisual operations.

media technologies in order to make sound

recommendations to campus units on upgrading and

adding media equipment.

Table 9: Tutor's profile

Tutor

Responsibilities & Duties Qualifications

- Provide advice to end users for the optimal use of - Master's degree and experience in education

the system and to aid the user to select optimal - Knowledge in learning process and style

individual curricula. - Extensive technical background (creation of media,

- Support for curriculum development and delivery; Web searching and publishing capabilities, use of

liaison and advice to academics in the information distance learning technologies)

and communication resource aspects of curriculum - Patience

design (available resources, etc.) - A sense of humor

 13

- User education and information/publishing skills

training; information skills training to all categories

of end-user

- Reference enquiry work; online assistance to users

in searching available curricula, courses,

bibliography and other resources

Guide choices for training employees and

entrepreneurs.

The result of this quick and incomplete overview, is that the market itself is adapting to the integration of

IT in education, and the profiles required are more and more qualified and skilled in interdisciplinary

domains, from technical, to pedagogical, to managerial. For these reasons the necessity to separate the

roles, to affect tasks and functionalities and to provide efficient development has arisen. An approach will

be thus proposed in the following paragraphs.

Required Skills and Competencies

The mix of competencies required for networked learner support indicates that the functions need to be

shared among a team with complementary skills which cross current boundaries between libraries and

computing services, and between libraries and academic departments. Bringing these functions together is

essentially a matter of redefining and reorganizing expertise to support learning and research through

collaborative relationships working in the new and flexible educational space (Levy, 1996). It is clear,

therefore, that learner support-roles are changing in response to network user needs, and new roles are

emerging in many parts of institutions to support both staff and students. While information support for

networked teaching and learning is central to the library's role, it is clear that information support-issues,

including Continuing Professional Development, need to be seen within the wider, multi-disciplinary and

converging context of institutional support for networked learning. According to what has been presented

in paragraph 4, and on wider studies and interviews in the educational technology domain, the skills to be

acquired for the NLS support can be grouped in four categories:

 14

ƒ Information Technology expertise: to enable development of open learning materials

ƒ Information expertise: corresponds to the specialization in the use and evaluation of networked

information resources

ƒ Educational skills for the networked learning environment: is related to the pedagogical skills relevant

to the facilitation of open learning communication skills, instructional design and tutoring, curriculum

design skills.

ƒ Team-work and change-management: corresponds to particular understanding and skills required for

multy-diciplinary team working.

Development Model for Professionals

The main idea is to conceive a modular training tool (Giuli et al., 1999; Pettenati et al., 1999), open and

accessible also at a distance, to train the staff in the activities of conception, realization, delivery and

evaluation of information technology-based courses. The model proposed here4 envisages two kinds of

access to the training programs: one in which the knowledge is accessible through a thematic organization,

adaptable to the individual progress and variations. The second type consist of a "job" organization, in

order to let trainees explore the knowledge through a professional on-the-field practice (Weidenfeld &

Leclet, 1998). Among all the professionalities mentioned, this schema of modular training foresees the

development of five kinds of professional specialized in the use of IT:

ƒ Teachers and Tutors

ƒ Programmers

ƒ Technicians

ƒ Managers

4
This training program will be implemented from January 2000 to April 2001 in the framework of TRIO-

TELEFOR Tuscany project, and it has been developed in collaboration with the University of Educational

Sciences in Firenze, Italy

 15

As is shown in figure 1, the access to the formative modules is in a sequential way as is shown in by the

arrows in figure. When the competencies acquired with a module are already possessed and certified, the

access to the following modules is allowed. This program has been conceived to offer the acquisition of

competencies both in an isolated domain (technical, pedagogical or management), or in a multidisciplinary

domain. The modules accessible to all participants are organized so as to "equalize" the knowledge level in

the educational technology field, in order to let trainees easily cooperate in the following "on the field"

stages.
 16

Figure 1: TELEFOR training modules model

 17

As is shown in figure 1, the formative modules give professionals the opportunity to acquire new skills to

perform the design and delivery of network based instructional material. In this sense, they will become

respectively:

ƒ IT Faculty and Tutors

ƒ Instructional Designers

ƒ IT System Technicians

ƒ IT Project Managers

The persons involved in the courses can follow a personalized path, depending on their knowledge. The

modules will cover the following aspects:

ƒ Computer Science Technology Background: this module is accessible by teachers in order to give them

a basic technology knowledge and to free them from the "computer avoidance" feeling

ƒ Networked Learner Support: this module offers to teachers the required skill to support the learner

through the phases of curricula design and course access according to the competencies described in

table 6

ƒ Techniques for Media Development: this module is normally foreseen for programmers in order to let

them develop the required skills to create media suitable for the instructional program as described in

table 7

ƒ Educational Technologies: this is a module for Technicians encompassing the knowledge in

telecommunication and technologies which can be used for education. The content can aim at the

acquisition of some of the competence described in table 5

ƒ Instructional Design: addresses all professionals in order to give them some of the competencies

described in table 5, basic concepts of pedagogy and elements on evaluation and tutoring without

focusing on the use of technology

ƒ Information Technologies for Education: this is a collective module, addressed to all participants, to

equalize the level of IT knowledge, to set the basis for a uniform, collaborative team working

ƒ Teaching Methods and Techniques: this module addresses mainly teachers and trainers and gives the

required skills for the delivery of the IT based courses

 18

ƒ IT-Instructional Design: addresses those who will become the Instructional Designers, (table 5),

focusing on the use of the available technologies

ƒ System Techniques and Methodology: this is addressed to system managers, to train them for the

technical competence concerning the use of the whole technical educational system

ƒ IT-System Management: this is addressed to those who will become the IT-project managers, to train

them for the competence described in table 8

ƒ Interdisciplinary Team Working: this is a module addressed to all the team, for real projects

development in a multidisciplinary context.

It is necessary to point out that this process of skills development is just a schema which can be further

modified or adapted to match the specific requirement of the academic institutions or of private companies.

The module contents themselves are then to be defined in a collaborative environment, encompassing

technical, pedagogical and management aspects and basing on users' background level. Not only the

techniques to be used are to be taught, but also the aspects of cognitive processes and methodologies are to

be accounted for a successful program.

Conclusion

Preparing faculty for teaching in a variety of technology settings with a variety of communication media

requires both common and unique methods. While traditional faculty roles have included course

conceptualization, course delivery, course management and evaluation, it is not necessary that all faculty

perform all these tasks. Collaborative effort, focused on differentiated staffing emphasizing individual

strengths may indeed be one advantage of technology-facilitated education. Moreover, too many

expectations for faculty, without appropriate training and support, can create a significant barrier to faculty

use of technology. From the review of some available faculty development systems, it clearly stands out

that there is still a need for well organized, living, interactive environment, where teachers are encouraged

and supported in becoming technology-used, in being able to retrieve pertinent information, in being able to

set up and organize effective instructional activities and resources. So faculty should participate as learners,

observers and active practitioners in setting the educational strategies, then contribute with information or

lessons, in order to go through all the steps involved in the instructional design. However, such a system
 19

cannot be the result of private initiatives; institution should provide convenient and supportive faculty

development opportunities aimed at high quality educational experiences. The discussion of this paper has

led to identify some new skills and roles required to perform effective activity in educational technology.

These new roles have already found their professional opportunities in the new emerging job market, as is

seen by the presence of the job opportunities in IT field already available on the Internet. In this paper, we

also treated the issues of staff development for the use of Information Technologies in education, which has

proved to be an essential starting point, for the educational technology applications. The argumentation has

led to a referential model for the staff involved in the development of networked based courses or activities.

This model highlights a schema of potential modules, to train the team following a schedule time-line. The

aim of this training is to cover all the necessities of a networked-based course development, including real

team working and on-the-field experiences.

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