Welcome to episode 12 of the Art of Learning podcast.
We’re joined by Dr Stephen Corbett, Head of School of Languages and Applied Linguistics at the University of Portsmouth, to discuss the challenges of delivering high-quality education in an ever-changing, fluid world.
We kick off by discussing Dr Corbett’s day-to-day responsibilities as a school head (0:54), the importance of recognising further education managers in the wider education ecosystem (2:27), what the consequences are of sub-par middle management in education (9:28), whether there are inadequate resources dedicated to assist education managers (12:44), the characteristics and traits that make for a successful middle manager in education, and more (16:38).
Our familiarity with artificial intelligence (AI) and the role of algorithms in our lives is increasing, but the intrigue remains around the validity and fairness of how machines are scoring online assessments—are they accurate, are they fair? The key to the success of AI and computer-based tests is to build the infrastructure from the ground up, according to Dr Rose Clesham, Director of Academic Standards & Measurement (English Assessment) at Pearson. The systems that Pearson’s English language tests are built on are highly sophisticated algorithms, and those algorithms are turning computer information back into a form of human scores, notes Dr Clesham.
“When we train our engines, the human scorers give pieces of work – lots and lots of pieces of work – and they score them in a human way and provide a human score, and that then is used to train or to start the journey of training our systems.”
As demand for English language learning grows in popularity across Asia, innovations in learning technologies are changing how educators are approaching the challenge of equipping learners with the English skills (and knowledge) required to succeed personally and professionally – in everyday life, in academia and in professional settings.
The rise of technology-assisted study – or in other words, pedagogy that is underpinned by technology – allows teachers to obtain and analyse student performance data in near real-time and it allows educators to use the gained learnings to tailor the learning experience to meet individual requirements, and it is having a profound effect on modern English language teaching (ELT).
Additionally, as a by-product of technology-driven pedagogy, educators can now leverage education data to provide invaluable insights for learners to help them shape their learning journey, for teachers to understand their cohort’s strengths and weaknesses, and for education leaders to get a clear view on their courseware infrastructure in order to make timely decisions on optimising the wider teaching and learning framework provided at their institution. This current shift is fundamentally presenting data-driven decision-making opportunities in education that simply weren’t possible in previous years.
And there are several variables that have allowed for a more data-driven approach to the modern classroom: an increase in training, coupled with the emergence of new technologies, and the implementation of new common standards, to name a few.
With globalisation, automation and advancements in technology, future skills have never been more important.
We gained exclusive access to Pearson’s Jason Gregory (International Director, UK BTEC & Apprenticeships) to gather his insights on the importance of future skills and the crucial role educators play in preparing learners for future workforce demands.
So, what’s inside the eBook?
Working together means the world can be a more resilient, capable and inclusive place: the role of all stakeholders working in unison (learners, educators, business leaders and policy makers)
Baking future skills into modern curriculum to enable an ‘always learning’ mindset
The role of educators in developing the future skills of learners
Remaining competitive with up-to-date future skills … plus more!
Beat your competitors to it — download your free copy today.
With the ever-increasing importance of English as a global language, the governments of Vietnam and Thailand have policies in place to boost the English language proficiency of their populations.
And as the Thai and Vietnamese populations embark on their English language learning journey, they will inevitably encounter the checkpoint of needing to test and prove their English skills to understand their strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement. Enter the Pearson Test of English, otherwise known as PTE.
It’s a globally recognised, computer-based English language test that measures language ability – it is the fastest and most reliable way of proving English language proficiency.
Launched in 2009, PTE was created in response to the demand for a more accurate, objective, secure and relevant test of English skill. PTE is accepted by academic institutions and governments across the globe and is the market-leading high stakes English test.
PTE stands out in the market due to its speed, flexibility, fairness and accuracy – being a computer-based test, PTE eliminates the biases of human scoring and ensures that marking is devoid of human error.
Students who want to study or migrate abroad are required to demonstrate their English skills, and like any tests your students may take, it requires adequate preparation. Students are exposed to excerpts from lectures, graphs and charts, and will hear a vast range of accents in the test, which reflects exposure to the types of accents encountered in everyday life.
As economies in Asia-Pacific continue to flourish and develop, countries like Thailand and Vietnam find themselves in need of a larger cohort of competent, qualified professionals. According to global recruiter ManpowerGroup, Thailand lacks enough skilled workers to meet growing demand in the sales, information technology, engineering, business administration, accounting and manufacturing sectors.
Through its alignment with the expanding knowledge economy, Pearson is primed to offer educators and policymakers in the region the right tools to innovate their pedagogy and, for their learners, the skills required to thrive in today’s world.
The key is developing its Global Scale of English and professional qualifications: Pearson “really understands what the needs of the learner are, particularly in terms of the progression in their careers,” says Phil Myers, Pearson’s Head of International Product.
“It's incumbent on us to be absolutely clear in terms of what that progression and opportunity are, what the skills, knowledge and understanding are, and to make sure that we're really embedded with the employers in understanding what the elements of that progression route, so that we can make sure the courses are fully purposed.”
Tapping industry experts for insights
Pearson works with a pool of pedagogic and industry experts who are trained to understand course design and be responsive to their own research on a continuous basis. Alongside this specialist input, “a key priority for us is working in partnership with employers,” Phil says. Employers are, almost by definition, crucial to how vocational courses are structured, given that the skills learned are dictated by what they are looking for.
For this reason, Pearson has cultivated strong industry relationships to enhance the way its courses and qualifications are crafted, says Phil. “I think that partnership approach to designing courses is absolutely essential and it means that we can work very deeply with an employer and really make sure that employer needs are being met in course design.”
Jason Gregory, Pearson’s International Director, UK BTEC & Apprenticeships, agrees with that approach and underscores the role of education experts in bringing vocational training to the classroom and online. “We take all the information from the employer and interpret it and convert it into a course. That's an important part of what Pearson does with its partnership with employers.”
Practical, hands-on and career oriented
One of the main factors that sets Pearson’s qualifications apart is the emphasis on preparing learners for the world of work. As Phil explains, when designing coursework, the creators draw on their understanding of occupational standards from a range of international jurisdictions to better evaluate where best practices happen.
“We can help, advise and support employability from understanding that best practice and bringing best practice to bear in our courses. That's something which gives us a real advantage and they [learners] like that it’s available to them. It’s one of our core strengths,” he notes.
Welcome to episode 7 of the Art of Learning podcast.
We’re joined by Dr Tran Huong Quynh to discuss the state of English language teaching in Vietnam, the approach to blended learning, and the benefits of modern teaching methods. Dr Quynh is the Head of the English Linguistics Division (Faculty of English) at the Hanoi National University of Education.
We discuss Dr Quynh’s background as an educator and the impact Pearson’s curriculum has had on her teaching (1:03), the emerging status of English language learning in Vietnam (2:34), the motivations for learning English in Vietnam (4:28), how Pearson’s approach to English teaching sets learners up for a successful future (6:05), the benefits of blended learning (8:22), the value of having fun while learning English (10:18), the challenges with the online and blended learning model (10:48), the partners Dr Quynh works with to enhance her blended teaching approach (11:57), the impact of COVID-19 on education in Vietnam (13:34), the role of technology in a post-COVID world (15:33), and more.
Welcome to episode 8 of the Art of Learning podcast.
We’re joined by Dr Rose Clesham, Director of Academic Standards & Measurement (English Assessment) at Pearson, to explore the intricacies of eAssessment and the fairness of algorithms, as well as the efficacy of computer-based testing.
We discuss Dr Clesham’s experience developing national curriculum tests, as well as diagnostic and formative assessment materials (0:57), the foundations of understanding the validity of assessments (3:46), the latest developments of artificial intelligence in eAssessment (8:11), the cross-cultural challenges of developing and implementing standardised, unified assessments (14:43), the challenges of ensuring that algorithms don’t entrench the biases of human programmers (17:07), reducing learner fears among computer-based testing (23:11), and more.
While the idea of using ‘big data’ can seem daunting, it is increasingly asserting itself in the classroom as one of the best ways for teachers and their students to get the most out of course materials, and to customise the learning process like never before. This is especially so in the fast-growing knowledge economies of Thailand and Vietnam, where students are “success-driven and have the goal of better professional opportunities,” Kayo Taguchi, Pearson Asia’s ELT Portfolio Manager, said on a recent episode of Pearson’s Art of Learning podcast.
The two countries’ governments and educational institutions are also highly receptive to technology-assisted study, especially in the field of English Language Teaching (ELT). This allows the collection of pedagogical data on each individual student – while considering the genuine privacy concerns that surround the collection of personal data in any field – through an ongoing teach-and-test environment. This, in turn, produces learners who are highly motivated and open to constantly evolving teaching methodologies.
By combining Pearson’s unique offerings, such as Global Scale of English, educators can use technology to create a holistic program that connects infrastructure, instruction and assessment, innovates the way they teach, and provides a measurable impact on student learning and success.
Building on a tried and tested approach
Numerous studies have pointed to the efficacy of providing both learners and educators with data that can be collated and analysed to enable individualised learning.
According to a study on using big data to enhance learning, data can produce intelligence that can be useful for self-regulating learners and for teachers to adapt instructional designs. Further, advances in data analytics technology allow information to be marked and evaluated in real-time, giving educators the opportunity to customise the experience for each student – and ensure that the learning process is smooth and effective by tracking development and success rates.
Pearson has pioneered an efficient and holistic approach that prioritises:
identification of issues
constant monitoring through testing
sharing of the data, while ensuring privacy, to identify and further refine a learner’s progress
Enabling access to granular, actionable intelligence
The data provided by tests help educators to understand students’ strengths and weaknesses, and other behaviour patterns. This is because tests present the data in ways that teachers can immediately put to use by adjusting their teaching styles, classroom environments and approach to individuals.
Experts typically categorise measuring student learning into two buckets: Summative assessments, which include a range of graded activities such as tests, provide a shared and consistent understanding of students’ achievements. Formative assessments include day-to-day classroom practices that help teachers and pupils understand what has and has not been learnt, and implement actions to address this on an ongoing basis.
“What has evolved is the concept of why you are testing and what purpose is the test serving,” says Stuart Connor, Pearson Asia’s Qualifications & Assessment Director. “The best assessments help teachers focus their testing, manage mixed ability classes, and identify and correct student mistakes more easily.”
There are a number of factors that have allowed this more data-driven approach to the classroom – an increase in training, coupled with the advent of new technologies which allow educators and administrators to move seamlessly between resources and tests, and the implementation of common standards.
This allows them to connect the dots between “assessment-of-learning” and “assessment-for-learning” – essentially the difference between learning for the purpose of testing, and testing for the purposes of improving the learning process.
For instance, tools such as in-classroom online polls enable teachers to gauge in real time students' engagement levels and their grasp of the concepts being taught. And as remote learning applications have taken off in the age of the coronavirus, these apps are incorporating such polling features to allow instructors to continue gathering data on student performance despite the lack of physical interactions.
The “game changer” is that by using technology, teachers and students are able to “do something with the results,” says Kayo. “We’re able to answer the question: ‘What steps should I take next, what should I do?’” This can be explicit, she says, pointing to a specific skill, or more subtle, such as a change in teaching style. “Learning becomes a bit more focused when you link the courseware and assessment together.”
Educators are also acquiring the ability to impart training, gather data and analyse performance remotely, something that is increasingly becoming important. “We're having to completely change our teaching methodologies due to the coronavirus pandemic, as we move at unprecedented speeds towards remote and online learning,” says Stuart.
Monitoring success at all levels
The gathering and assessment of data happens at multiple levels. “Data analytics become very important to drive quality,” says Stuart. “From a learner’s perspective…just to see where you are, how you’re performing, against the KPIs, the goals you set yourself – how much additional work you’d need to do and what specific activities you’d need to carry out to reach your goals, to be able to click a button and see that, in number form or in graphs, is really impactful.”
Similarly, it allows teachers to understand whether they’re on track compared with their lesson or semester planning. At a macro level, a department head can see how different classes are performing, giving more control and ability to measure quality and drive improvements, ensuring no individual, class or even educator falls behind.
“For an institution, if they’re looking to make an investment in technology, in resources or assessments, this tells them if there’s a return on that investment because they can measure how well their learners are improving their English, so the data is extremely powerful,” says Stuart.
Harnessing data for the power of learning, to make sure that every student is given the chance to capitalise on their strengths and have their limitations acknowledged and addressed, is a key development in the way teachers teach, and can have lasting impact on how ELT classrooms are designed and implemented.
