Cross-campus teaching
The University is committed to developing flexible and accessible courses and approaches to delivery, particularly in light of the dispersed nature of the Tasmanian population and the need to provide access to a number of isolated communities. As part of the 2004–2006 Teaching and Learning Development Plan, the University targeted growth across flexible learning options in appropriate courses/units at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
The multi-campus nature of the institution provides opportunities for enhancing access to units and courses through cross-campus teaching arrangements.
Cross-campus teaching relies heavily on flexible delivery strategies. For further information about flexible delivery at UTAS, see the Flexible teaching & learning pages.
Considering delivery options
A range of delivery options for cross-campus teaching are available – from 'face-to-face' to virtual, web-based strategies. However, decisions about delivery methods and systems should only be made following a careful analysis of the teaching/learning situation – the desired learning objectives and outcomes, how such outcomes are to be assessed, and the nature and backgrounds of the learners.
In other words, learning decisions should precede delivery decisions.
Learning and delivery decisions [PDF] illustrates how learning considerations feed into teaching and delivery strategies decisions, and hence into delivery systems decisions.
For a synopsis of different delivery systems and their capabilities, see Delivery systems capability considerations [PDF].
Integrate, not duplicate
We often think of cross-campus delivery as the separate teaching of two or more campus-bound student cohorts. This leads to a duplicate model of cross-campus delivery and raises the issue of 'equivalence' of delivery quality..
It is useful to conceive of two student cohorts as a single cohort, diverse not only in terms of geography, but also in terms of the times at which they can be on campus, their particular learning preferences and so on. This perspective leads to a more holistic model of delivery, incorporating a suite of teaching & learning strategies to cater for the differing needs and situations of students. It suggests a mix of teaching & learning methods that is less time-and-place-dependent for all students, irrespective of the campus in which they are enrolled.
Consistency and standards
A multi-campus university needs to address the issues of standards and consistency. These issues are discussed in Teaching and Learning Quality Issues Related to the Multi-Campus Nature of the University of Tasmania [WORD].
In summary, cross-campus teaching is generally not about using one set of teaching strategies for one campus, and another for the other campus(es); nor is it about duplicating mirror strategies at all campuses. Rather, it is about using an inclusive suite of flexible teaching/learning strategies for all students.