Title: Developing a New Scholarship of Educational Enquiry in Higher Education through ICT

Maggie Farren

This paper focuses on the growth of my educational knowledge as higher education educator as I develop my 'pedagogy of the unique' in the context of the MSc in ICT in Education and Training Management at Dublin City University. Participants on the course come from different educational and training contexts: primary, post-primary, further, adult and higher education, industry and community work.

'Pedagogy of the unique' refers to the unique contribution that I claim to make to the development of a knowledge base of practice in higher education through use of ICT. This practice involves me in developing educational knowledge through dialogic-collaboration with participants and using ICT to support the process. This process involves me in using a living educational theory approach to action research as I ask, research and answer the questions: 'how can I improve my practice? how can I improve participant learning? how can I contribute to social formations?' Therefore, my practice also involves encouraging and supporting participants to question their own practice and to provide evidence of how they are living their educational values in practice using ICT to improve student learning. I have contributed to social formations by having this form of practitioner-based research being awarded at Masters degree level within the Academy.

A 'living educational theory' approach involves acknowledging contradictions in one's practice and working to live one's own educational values more fully. The educational values that emerge in practice become epistemological standards of judgement that can be used to test the validity of claims to educational knowledge. I have shown how I have influenced my learning, the learning of others and the development of social formations in the context of the MSc in ICT in Education and Training Management.

Title: Voicing Diversity in the Curriculum Through the use of ICT

(DCU) Dublin City University

Fiona Williams

Abstract: Contemporary educational discourse quite properly emphasises the importance of affirming diversity within the school system. Much rhetorical support is also given to the potential role of web-based learning in education. The purpose of this paper is to give practical expression to these aspirations by demonstrating how Moodle can be used to voice religious diversity in the classroom and to enable young people to engage with and learn from representatives of different faith traditions. In this way it is hoped to show how, by giving students access to authentic voices from different religious traditions, Religious Education can be made more inclusive. The project examined in this paper involved the design of WebQuest entitled Faith in Ireland followed by a Moodle discussion forum. The impact of the project is appraised via an action research methodology.

M Fitzpatrick (DCU) Dublin City University

Title: Creating Living Eductional Theory through ICT

Abstract: In this enquiry, I explore how I support enhanced learning through use of multimedia authoring in a class of thirty-three six to eight year olds. As a primary school teacher completing my dissertation in partial fulfillment for the award of M.Sc. in Educational and Training Management (ICT) my personal interest in Gardner's theory of Multiple Intelligences influences my enquiry which I conduct through a living educational theory approach to action research. I give a mixed gender, mixed ability group the opportunity to storyboard, author and publish their own multimedia packages using HyperStudio 4.0. Through this creative use of software, I aim to create my own 'living educational theory' and to contribute to a knowledge base of teaching using ICT.