Abstract:

This paper reports the results of a teaching experiment on a Moodle based course conceived as a Blended Learning support for students studying English on a postgraduate degree course in Document Management. The project was entitled “Task: Your Company Profile Project” and the main aim was to engage students with project-based learning materials that offered precise objectives across a series of study activities and tasks. The reasoning behind this stems from positive outcomes in previous initiatives undertaken using Moodle with other course groups in Educational Sciences. Here, the project-based format serves as a vehicle for teaching the linguistic knowledge and digital skills that the students need to acquire in the accomplishment of a specific personal task. In this sense, the project is student centred, with a strong emphasis on peer collaboration and with the additional participatory incentive of peer evaluation.

The activity stages were styled according to a format typical of MOOCs in common use in order to guarantee clarity of presentation and procedure. Support was available to students in the form of dedicated tutor assistance, the tutor’s role being to respond directly to questions posed or to direct the query to the teacher responsible or to a technician according to the nature of the problem. In linguistic terms, the aim was to acquaint students with the language associated with company profiles in order to facilitate personal production of a company profile brochure, thus uniting digital and linguistic skills. Language input consisted of a series of readings and video viewings on company profile and company brochures, with comprehension checking exercises. Resources and templates for making a brochure were provided. An important feature of the project was the evaluation stage, in which students who had completed the digital hand-in for their brochure participated in peer evaluation. The system proposed three brochures for evaluation using a Likert-style questionnaire on First Impact, Design and Graphics, Layout, Lexis and Logos, and Content. Students also responded to a Satisfaction Survey, the results of which indicate a high degree of involvement with and enthusiasm for this type of project-based learning in digital form, provided the necessary forms of support are available.

Keywords:

Project-based learning, blended learning, Moodle, tutor support, peer evaluation, satisfaction survey.