How to Foster Technology-Enhanced Learning in Higher Education

Introduction

Central European Universities have a long tradition of face-to-face education and it is not easy to introduce them to new technologies. For example, a nationwide study in Austria pointed out that only a few higher education institutions have installed sufficient support services for the adoption of educational technologies (Bratengeyer et al, 2016, Steinbacher & Bratengeyer, 2016). Nevertheless, it is obvious that due to the increasing influence of digital media the educational practices must change.

Our students ought to be prepared for a world where digital tools are part of their daily routine (MpFS, 2017) and face-to-face education should be just one of the many options. Taking a closer look at the students of today it is obvious that their behavior has changed dramatically because they are dealing with a larger variety of devices in comparison to a couple of years ago (Nagler et al, 2017, Nagler et al, 2018). They are using many different channels for communication – like WhatsApp, Snapchat, E-Mail, etc., and are used to accessing information systems and web platforms (for example YouTube) during their learning processes (Nagler et al, 2018). Prensky described this changing behavior in our young people in 2001, coining the term Digital Natives (Prensky, 2001). In comparison, our lecturers are best described as Digital Immigrants because for them the use of web technologies has not been part of their lives since birth. Faculty grew up in a world where teaching and learning primarily happened in classrooms with the assistance of traditional media like blackboards and books. Furthermore, the higher education institutions were not prepared for a new environment where digital and traditional media existed side by side. Therefore, a growing gap between the behaviours of the learners, the lecturers, and the educational system itself occurred. Higher education institutions are struggling to close this gap by investing money in hardware and software but often without any strategic plan. Due to the fact that the change is a holistic one and relevant to each person of the institution, Graz University of Technology (TU Graz) decided to produce a strategic plan, aiming to work out a “digitalization policy” responding to the central question: How should we deal with educational technology in the near future?

TU Graz is a typical traditional university located in Austria, the middle of Europe. About 17,000 students are currently enrolled in one of the seven programs of study – ranging from architecture to computer science. For 200 years, education at TU Graz has been based on the classical approach of teaching in huge lecture halls using rather traditional media, like blackboards and overhead projectors, which have recently been replaced by LCD projectors and presentation software. As the University is known for innovation, the Ministry of Education, Science and Research decided to task TU Graz with the development of a “digitalization policy” that would outline a master plan for meeting the challenges of the future concerning the use of digital technologies. In April 2017, a special interest group started working internally on the policy addressing four main topics: education, research, administration, and transformation.

For this research study, this group concentrated on the development of a digital policy for education for a typical central European university. Bearing in mind the history of the institution, the research question primarily addresses how to implement and permanently anchor Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) at an institution like TU Graz.

This publication describes the process utilized for the development of the digital policy – starting from the earliest discussions through to the final document.