What does my dad do?

This is “Job Fog Blog”. A series of explanations about my work, for my kids. I attempted to explain where virtual is – where I do most of my work. Below, I attempt to explain to my poor children (and perhaps to others who care to read), what I actually do.

Every now and then, my kids have the unenviable task of explaining what their dad does for a living to their school friends. They struggle. I’m not surprised. I tell them to look on Twitter. It says I’m a pragmatic ed techie and a critical learning designer. They know I work in university settings, but that I’m not a lecturer. They know that I work with ICT, but I’m not a computer scientist, developer or technician. They also know that I use online technologies with teaching, but am rarely found in front of a class of students.

What they don’t quite understand is that the popular image of the “all-round” academic who could combine teaching, research and service together is incredibly demanding. I’m married to one. I should know. She’s juggling large classes and too many responsibilities. Academics have to make choices between lecturing, running seminars, preparing tutorials, curriculum design, evaluation, assessment, writing papers, analysing data, writing grant proposals, engaging with the public, leadership, management, students advice, peer observation etc. Neither do the kids realize that when universities make choices to “innovate” and advance education with online, blended or hybrid learning, there is also a blind spot which allows for inequalities and exclusions to be encoded into the classroom.

At times it feels as if I am at the center of my children’s two key misunderstandings. I carry on because I think that there are critical possibilities for improving the way we think, teach, work together with (or without) technology. If given the time, we can choose to design our education with (or without) digital to contribute towards a wiser and fairer world. I can offer additional time in the form of assistance and guidance to staff who want to take things forward with ICT. Whether with academics who want advice with putting their work online or to offer additional help to support staff who require additional backup and resources.

My job is to offer local acts of hope. I am at the cross roads between busy academics trying to improve flexibility and accessibility online. I explore the territory between pedagogy and technology and offer provisional and emergent thoughts about the visible and invisible ways in which technology seems to be shaping higher education practices. I wonder out loud, I try to critique and engage in dialogue. Not just for its own sake, but to improve my current and future practices, remind me that I’m still learning and work publicly towards the common good. I’m aiming to build confidence and trust between myself and the partnering institution, academic or support staff member. My job is to

• listen and hear what the staff member wants to achieve. I then see if I can work out how we can use different means and mechanisms to contribute towards reaching their goal.
• build bridges. I don’t have the knowledge and expertise in a very specific field or discipline. My job is to suggest ideas and options for scaffolding thought and content, their job is to respond and approve.
• walk the talk. I am familiar with the landscape and know the territory that we are traversing. I’m up to date on scholarly literature about teaching and learning and informed about evidence based practices. This offers me a backbone, blueprint or map, upon which I can practice what is preach and thoughtfully design a set of quality elements to combine into a course.
• look over the horizon, beyond technology hype and promises. I identify the strategy that lies behind the technology. I don’t always take apps, software of platforms at face value and also look at issues such as accessibility, justice and equity. I offer cautions about hidden agendas and second order effects associated with technology choices.
• make the process visible and clear. I suggest a project management framework for us to follow and use an instructional design methodology to ensure quality and consistency.

An enormous amount of budget has been invested in digital infrastructures over the last ten years. Much of the technology investments have been directed by these “all round academics” who have pursued scholarship. Many who have navigated throughout higher education assume that what’s best for them is best for everybody. Digitization is creating a new set of challenges for universities Universities are making investments in technology, but there isn’t a parallel investment made in academics, who remain at the core of teaching, with or without technology.

My job is to work with the values and mindsets of professionals who are offering to assist academics. Help management to see the precarious conditions wherein they work. Offer wayfinding resources to those meandering and navigating around an unfamiliar landscape with unexpected futures. Let others look in behind the curtain and see the messy digital work that other people are doing.

That’s what your dad does kids. He listens and hears, build bridges, walks the talk, peers over the horizon and makes things visible. Now do you understand what I do? Or is job fog just as hazy as it was before?