Converged learning environment to support all learners

Universities face an uncertain future unless they significantly alter their teaching and learning approaches and become more client focused. They need to reach more and more students who do not fit the standard residential degree. This has meant that lecturers have had to facilitate learning for on-campus students on local and overseas campuses as well as for off-campus students based locally and globally. Given the context, flexibility has been recognised as a key idea making it imperative to explore innovative models for flexibility that bring together and accommodate and support all learner groups.

This paper describes a project to support students of an undergraduate Business Law unit via the development of such a converged learning environment. It attempts to draw together the different communities of students (on-campus and off-campus based locally and overseas) enrolled in that unit. In order to assist others interested in supporting flexible learning in a similar way, the paper shares details of formative evaluation and planned summative evaluation, together with reflections on lessons learned by the teaching academic and educational designer during its development process.