An investigation into Informed Learning and postgraduate study: the SPIDER case study

  • Lee Webster

Student thesis: Doctor of Education

Abstract

The proliferation of information in society has highlighted the need for individuals and communities to be information literate, and Higher Education Institutions within the UK (and beyond) are devising strategies to develop information literacy within their students. The research project reported in this thesis investigates a specific pedagogic construct called Informed Learning (Bruce 2008) that addresses the different ways that students learn with and from information. In order to do so, I examined a specific postgraduate taught course (denoted PGT) as part of a case study entitled Stewarding and Power in Digital Education Resources (SPIDER) that was developed using principles from Informed Learning pedagogy and Radical Information Literacy (RIL) theory. Specific attention was given to understanding how the design of PGT facilitated Informed Learning, and how issues of power impact upon information literacy teaching in general and Informed Learning pedagogy specifically. The research was driven by claims that Informed Learning is an inclusive pedagogy; increasingly, Higher Education Institutions are sites where there is significant cultural diversity amongst the student body and while it is recognised that harnessing such diversity brings benefits to learners, there are challenges associated with it. In seeking to gain understandings from SPIDER about the inclusive nature of Informed Learning, the thesis addresses issues of power that impact upon Informed Learning pedagogy and have particular ramifications for the development of inclusive Informed Learning pedagogy. I report on my fieldwork according to the University of Manchester’s Journal Format structure where I present three journal articles and one book chapter. The first output, Distance learning as alterity: facilitating the experience of variation and professional information practice argues that distance learning facilitates Informed Learning by drawing upon the alterity that exists within communities of learners. The second output, How power relations affect the distribution of authority: implications for information literacy pedagogy indicates how and why the distribution of authority over information practices in a course unit is a complex matter; firstly because the liberatory intentions of the Programme Director typically contain repressive dimensions in practice and secondly because students are subjected to techniques of disciplinary power, including surveillance and normalisation, which affect their learning. The third output, Power and Resistance in Informed Learning contributes to the development of Informed Learning pedagogy by examining its innately political character. Through examining issues of power that arise in a particular educational setting, the authors illuminate how power (and resistance to it) needs to be carefully considered by practitioners who engage with Informed Learning pedagogy. The fourth output, Cross-Cultural Inclusivity in Informed Learning Pedagogy examines claims that Informed Learning pedagogy is an inclusive pedagogy, and recommends online discussion board activities as a suitable mechanism for enabling cross-cultural inclusive teaching. Based on these outputs, I finish with a critical review of the findings, in order to address my thesis research questions. I provide a summary of the contributions that the thesis work makes with respect to Inclusive Informed Learning pedagogy and I conclude that educators must pay attention to the repressive dimensions of liberatory practices that occur when designing courses.
Date of Award31 Dec 2019
Original languageEnglish
Awarding Institution
  • The University of Manchester
SupervisorHelen Gunter (Supervisor) & Erica Burman (Supervisor)

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