The project Follow a distance student followed students who took distance education during the pandemic in the spring semester 2020 and mapped their experiences and needs. The goal was to be able to develop pedagogy and technical pedagogical aids in distance education during the autumn term 2020. The students’ experiences were about loneliness, swaying technology and the distance form itself. (Video, 45 mins., Swedish language).
A survey performed by Karlstad’s student union about student experiences during the pandemic is also reported.
The project used the Följ en-method (the Follow a [student/participant]-method), which was developed within the project Rethink:Kau at Karlstad University.
The mapping began with the participants writing a digital diary for five weeks about their experiences of distance teaching. This was followed up by individual conversations to gain a better and deeper understanding of the experiences. After that, the experiences were compiled at group level and used as input to an online workshop with students and staff.
The experiences revolved around loneliness, technology and the distance form itself.
The participants in the workshop identified needs based on the compilation of experiences and ideas for development were developed to meet the needs. The ideas were finally compiled as recommendations for further development.
Activities and results from the mapping of experiences and needs, as well as the development ideas generated, are presented in the video.
From approximately 32 minutes into the presentation, a survey conducted by the student union on students’ study experiences during the pandemic is also reported.
Follow a distance student – a mapping of students’ experiences and needs in distance studies and ideas about development
Presenters: Sandra Berginge and Claes Asker (Re:Think), and Juval Pruitt, Karlstad Student Union (45 min.) (only in Swedish)
The presentation was held at UPE’s conference Från campus till online 2020 (From campus to online 2020).
References
Berginge, S., Pareigis, J., & Asker, C. (2021). Följ en distansstudent. Erfarenhetsberättelse från ett tjänstedesignprojekt för att kartlägga och utveckla stödet till distansstudenter vid Karlstads universitet. I N. Jakobsson & C. Vikström (Red.), Bidrag från universitetspedagogisk konferens 2020 (pdf) (Contribution from the University Pedagogical Conference 2020) (p. 13–32). Universitetspedagogiska enheten Karlstads universitet. (only in Swedish)
Rethink:Kau. (2020) Följ en-metoden (The Follow one-method) Karlstads universitet. (only in Swedish)
Diaz Milla, E., Björk, T., Eriksson, J., & Yilmaz, B. (2020). Resultatet av distansstudier. En sammanställning av enkätundersökningen #tycktill (pdf) (The result of distance learning. A compilation of the survey) Karlstad studentkår. (only in Swedish)