Bex Ferriday | Cardiff University (original) (raw)

Papers by Bex Ferriday

BMJ Open, 2019

IntroductionNurse and pharmacist independent prescribers manage patients with respiratory tract i... more IntroductionNurse and pharmacist independent prescribers manage patients with respiratory tract infections and are responsible for around 8% of all primary care antibiotic prescriptions. A range of factors influence the prescribing behaviour of these professionals, however, there are no interventions available specifically to support appropriate antibiotic prescribing behaviour by these groups. The aims of this paper are to describe (1) the development of an intervention to support appropriate antibiotic prescribing by nurse and pharmacist independent prescribers and (2) an acceptability and feasibility study designed to test its implementation with these prescribers.Method and analysisDevelopment of intervention: a three-stage, eight-step method was used to identify relevant determinants of behaviour change and intervention components based on the Behaviour Change Wheel. The intervention is an online resource comprising underpinning knowledge and an interactive animation with a var...

The continuing growth of ‘the cyberspace era’ has brought with it a permanent change in the way t... more The continuing growth of ‘the cyberspace era’ has brought with it a permanent change in the way that students interact and socialise (Wolfe, 2011). A major part of this change is the advent of social networking sites on the Internet, which have evolved to become virtual communities where people communicate, share information and, importantly, build and maintain ongoing relationships. Online social networking communities such as Facebook have become part of the daily life of many teenagers, with a potentially far-reaching impact on the way that they study and learn (Wolfe, 2011). In this paper, I shall be stating the case that social networking - and in this instance, Facebook - should not only be allowed in the classroom, but teachers should embrace how the social networking site can be used successfully as a part of the teaching and learning experience. I will, through research and evidence provided by my own practice, argue that not only does Facebook provide a useful setting for communication between learners and teachers, but both instils and hones a number of 21st century skills, as well as providing a powerful marketing tool for education establishments as a whole.

Inted2015 Proceedings, Mar 1, 2015

Online learning can often be a passive and somewhat 'linear' experience, with students working th... more Online learning can often be a passive and somewhat 'linear' experience, with students working through content at a pace and level predetermined by the curriculum to which they are aligned and with little or no opportunity to differentiate. The 'ripple effect' highlighted in this study adheres to the following format: a specific theme or concept is introduced to students. This theme can be likened to a pebble being dropped into water. Ripples emanate from this pebble (or theme) in concentric rings, with each ring examining the central concept at a deeper level of cognition than the level before it. Cardiff University's School of Healthcare Sciences (HCARE) has developed a number of online, selfstudy resources for physiotherapy students based upon this ripple effect. Students are introduced to a concept, and are then invited to choose their own pathway through the resource in order to learn more about this central conceit, only stopping when they feel that their desired level of understanding has been reached. Key information that students must be aware of in order to complete their course of study is presented within the first two or three 'rings' of learning-any subsequent, deeper rings contain supplementary information and activities that students are not required by the curricula to know, but may choose to access in order to gain a deeper level of understanding beyond the knowledge that is required. This allows study to become self-directed and for students to take 'ownership' of their own learning.

British Journal of Midwifery, 2014

As a result of two collective activities organised during the MUVEnation programme, we have produ... more As a result of two collective activities organised during the MUVEnation programme, we have produced a collection of educational tools for Second Life. This collection has been produced in two stages. First, back in September 2008, 33 partcipants in the introductory module worked together in groups for the identification of more than 100 tools used for teaching and learning in Second Life. Later, in March 2009, 55 education professionals (lecturers, researchers, learning technologists and teachers) have collected, tested and fully described more than 150 tools. The result of this collective work has been transformed into a book, published as an Open Educational Resource under CC licence by attribution unported, so anyone is free to distribute without restrictions: adapt, translate, re-mix and improve it

Inted2015 Proceedings, 2015

In an era of MOOCs and flipped classrooms, lecture capture (though a popular choice with an incre... more In an era of MOOCs and flipped classrooms, lecture capture (though a popular choice with an increasing number of institutions) can often be a dull and passive experience for students who are required to watch lengthy films, often showing a static view of a lecturer speaking at a lectern, in their own time. There is no opportunity for interaction, and the length of the lecture is often detrimental to the student experience as the human brain cannot retain more than a small percentage of information relayed over such a long time span. Cardiff University's School of Healthcare Sciences (HCARE) has developed a number of online lecture capture resources for students, but using an interactive approach. Footage is broken into a series of fifteen to twenty minute chunks, with interactive elements such as quizzes, drag and drop activities and text input areas (where students can record thoughts and feedback) placed between each 'chunk'. Once students have worked through a film clip and its associated activities (thereby self-assessing what they have learnt) they can move on to the next clip, and so on. At the start of the activity students can download any presentation slides used in the lecture and at the end students are given links to relevant websites and to a lecture-based discussion forum where students can comment, ask and even answer peers' questions. Fora such as this also assist in eradicating any sense of isolation an online student may feel, as it becomes the digital backbone of an asynchronous community.

British Medical Journal, 2020

Objectives: to assess the acceptability and feasibility of using a theory-based electronic learni... more Objectives: to assess the acceptability and feasibility of using a theory-based electronic learning intervention designed to support appropriate antibiotic prescribing by nurse and pharmacist independent prescribers for patients presenting with common, acute, uncomplicated self-limiting respiratory tract infections (RTIs).

Design: Experimental with mixed methods; preintervention and postintervention online surveys and semistructured interviews.

Setting: Primary care settings across the UK.

Participants: 11 nurse and 4 pharmacist prescribers.

Intervention: A theory-based brief interactive animation electronic learning activity comprised a consultation scenario by a prescriber with an adult presenting with a common, acute, uncomplicated self-limiting RTI to support a ‘no antibiotic prescribing strategy’.

Outcome measures: Recruitment, response and attrition rates were assessed. The overall usefulness of the intervention was assessed by analysing prescribers’ self-reported confidence and knowledge in treating patients with RTIs before and after undertaking the intervention, and views on the relevance of the intervention to their work. Acceptability of the intervention was assessed in semistructured interviews. The feasibility of data collection methods was assessed by recording the number of study components completed by prescribers.

Results: 15 prescribers (maximum sample size) consented and completed all four stages of the study. Prescribers reported high to very high levels of confidence and knowledge preintervention and postintervention, with slight postintervention increases in communicating with patients and a slight reduction in building rapport. Qualitative findings supported quantitative findings; prescribers were reassured of their own practice which in turn increased their confidence and knowledge in consultations. The information in the intervention was not new to prescribers but was applicable and useful to consolidate learning and enable self-reflection. Completing the e-learning intervention was acceptable to prescribers.

Conclusions It was feasible to conduct the study. The intervention was acceptable and useful to prescribers. Future work will add complex clinical content in the intervention before conducting a full trial.

British Medical Journal, 2019

Introduction: Nurse and pharmacist independent prescribers manage patients with respiratory tract... more Introduction:
Nurse and pharmacist independent prescribers manage patients with respiratory tract infections and are responsible for around 8% of all primary care antibiotic prescriptions. A range of factors influence the prescribing behaviour of these professionals, however, there are no interventions available specifically to support appropriate antibiotic prescribing behaviour by these groups. The aims of this paper are to describe (1) the development of an intervention to support appropriate antibiotic prescribing by nurse and pharmacist independent prescribers and (2) an acceptability and feasibility study designed to test its implementation with these prescribers.

Method and Analysis:
Development of intervention: a three-stage, eight-step method was used to identify relevant determinants of behaviour change and intervention components based on the Behaviour Change Wheel. The intervention is an online resource comprising underpinning knowledge and an interactive animation with a variety of open and closed questions to assess understanding. Acceptability and feasibility of intervention: nurse and pharmacist prescribers (n=12–15) will use the intervention. Evaluation includes semi-structured interviews to capture information about how the user reacts to the design, delivery and content of the intervention and influences on understanding and engagement, and a pre-post survey to assess participants’ perceptions of the impact of the intervention on knowledge, confidence and usefulness in terms of application to practice. Taking an initial inductive approach, data from interview transcripts will be coded and then analysed to derive themes. These themes will then be deductively mapped to the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation-Behaviour model. Descriptive statistics will be used to analyse the survey data, and trends identified.

Ethics and Dissemination:
Ethical approval for the study has been provided by the School of Healthcare Sciences Research Governance and Ethics Committee, Cardiff University. The findings will be disseminated via publication in peer-reviewed journals and through conference presentations.

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have played a prominent role in the Technology Enhanced Learn... more Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have played a prominent role in the Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) sector for several years, and their teaching and learning methods have attracted fans and detractors in equal numbers. Intrigued by this polarisation, I enrolled onto a MOOC two years ago: my intention to examine the process through the dual lenses of student and learning technologist. It was here that I encountered one of the simplest and most effective online learning models I have experienced. The course in question was structured around six weekly sessions, with each session comprising 12-15 bite sized 'chunks' of information. These chunks took the format of a film or audio file (of no more than 4 minutes' duration) or, more usually, one or two concise paragraphs. These bite-sized pieces of information clearly and concisely introduced concepts or ideas as no more than pedagogic 'appetisers', with further, in-depth teaching and learning carried out by the students themselves. The process by which this happened was both very simple and, from an organisation of information perspective, easy to manage. A single discussion thread was attached to each chunk of information. There was no mandatory requirement for students to comment, or read peers' comments, yet these threads immediately became the hubs for further learning. Here, the student community built a number of very specific knowledge bases constructed from a mixture of shared anecdotal experience and professional knowledge. Questions were asked and responses and opinions given, and all of this happened without the course tutor needing to be involved in any way. Over and above this, students also shared links to relevant web pages, journal articles, film clips and book recommendations with many discussion threads forming self-contained repositories of learning. As Karen Stephenson (1997) states: " Experience has long been considered the best teacher of knowledge. Since we cannot experience everything, other people's experiences, and hence other people, become the surrogate for knowledge. 'I store my knowledge in my friends' is an axiom for collecting knowledge through collecting people. " Looking at this MOOC as a whole, it seems apparent that this particular form of peer teaching and learning adheres to many of the principles of Connectivism – namely: " Learning and knowledge rests in a diversity of opinions (and) is a process of connecting specialised nodes or information sources. Nurturing and maintaining connections is needed to facilitate continual learning and the ability to see connections between fields, ideas and concepts is a core skill. " (Siemens, 2005) Students connected with and learned from one another, individually self-selecting the amount and depth of information that they felt was suitable. The process was organic and the flow of participants' contributions easily navigated. Meanwhile, discussions were enriched by occasional considerations for deeper exploration posed by the course tutor.

In an era of MOOCs and flipped classrooms, lecture capture-though a popular choice with an increa... more In an era of MOOCs and flipped classrooms, lecture capture-though a popular choice with an increasing number of institutions-can often be a dull and passive experience for students who are required to watch lengthy films, often showing a static view of a lecturer speaking at a lectern, in their own time. There is no opportunity for interaction, and the length of the lecture is often detrimental to the student experience as the human brain cannot retain more than a small percentage of information relayed over such a long time span.

Cardiff University’s School of Healthcare Sciences (HCARE) has developed a number of online lecture capture resources for students, but using an interactive approach. Footage is broken into a series of fifteen to twenty minute chunks, with interactive elements such as quizzes, drag and drop activities and text input areas (where students can record thoughts and feedback) placed between each ‘chunk’. Once students have worked through a film clip and its associated activities (thereby self-assessing what they have learnt) they can move on to the next clip, and so on.

At the start of the activity students can download any presentation slides used in the lecture and at the end students are given links to relevant websites and to a lecture-based discussion forum where students can comment, ask and even answer peers’ questions. Fora such as this also assist in eradicating any sense of isolation an online student may feel, as it becomes the digital backbone of an asynchronous community.

Online learning can often be a passive and somewhat ‘linear’ experience, with students working th... more Online learning can often be a passive and somewhat ‘linear’ experience, with students working through content at a pace and level pre-determined by the curriculum to which they are aligned and with little or no opportunity to differentiate.

The ‘ripple effect’ highlighted in this study adheres to the following format: a specific theme or concept is introduced to students. This theme can be likened to a pebble being dropped into water. Ripples emanate from this pebble (or theme) in concentric rings, with each ring examining the central concept at a deeper level of cognition than the level before it.

Cardiff University’s School of Healthcare Sciences (HCARE) has developed a number of online, self-study resources for physiotherapy students based upon this ripple effect.

Students are introduced to a concept, and are then invited to choose their own pathway through the resource in order to learn more about this central conceit, only stopping when they feel that their desired level of understanding has been reached.
Key information that students must be aware of in order to complete their course of study is presented within the first two or three ‘rings’ of learning – any subsequent, deeper rings contain supplementary information and activities that students are not required by the curricula to know, but may choose to access in order to gain a deeper level of understanding beyond the knowledge that is required. This allows study to become self-directed and for students to take ‘ownership’ of their own learning.

Summative Assignment: a comparative analysis of two published research papers. 1 The following as... more Summative Assignment: a comparative analysis of two published research papers. 1 The following assignment will present a comparative analysis of two published research papers. It will examine the approaches used; theoretical and philosophical assumptions and the wider socio-political context of each piece, and provide a balanced and informed judgement regarding the strengths and weaknesses of available research approaches by way of ethical analysis. As part of a wider conclusion the assignment will then examine lessons learnt from the comparison. The paper forming the first part of this comparative study: From Digitised Comic Books to Digital Hypermedia Comic Books: their use in Education (Vassilikopoulou, M, Boloudakis, M and Retalis, S, 2006) examines the concept of hypermedia comic books and their added value in education. To contextualise, the term "hypermedia" refers to: Comptuer (sic) based medium combining text, audio, video, hypertext, animation, and other devices for instruction, entertainment, or information management, typically stored on a CD or DVD. (BusinessDictionary.com, 2009)

In order to fulfil specific module requirements, a group of 19 trainee teachers based at Cornwall... more In order to fulfil specific module requirements, a group of 19 trainee teachers based at Cornwall College and enrolled on the University of Plymouth’s Diploma in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector (DTLLS) were asked to cover a set of Assessed Learning Outcomes (ALO). These ALOs highlighted the need to evaluate a range of theories of assessment, and to link these to trainees’ own practice along with issues of inclusivity and diversity. Rather than using traditional methods to deliver the underpinning knowledge trainees need in order to satisfy the module and ALO requirement, it was decided to pilot a problem-based learning approach, and to facilitate learners through coaching instead of teaching. Cohort members were asked to organise themselves into smaller working parties and to agree on a format in which to present their findings. Through the aforementioned coaching style, a member of the college’s School of Education and Training teaching team was on hand to direct the cohort, though by helping them to draw their own conclusions and solutions rather than to tell them what to do. Traditional, three hour, taught sessions were split into two definitive sections - the first half of the lesson remained generic, with didactic content contextualised via individual, small and whole group activities. The second half was then dedicated to the pilot project, with working parties continuing to research and build evidence week on week.

Teacherly instinct (if it can be called that) is to lead from the front – to give students the information necessary to enable them to complete the work set. In this instance, the member of staff heading up the project found it hard when they could see what was needed to be able to solve a problem or answer a direct question, yet could not “interfere”. An explicit example of this was the need to be able to collaborate outside of lesson time. An electronic forum on the college’s Virtual Learning Environment seemed an obvious way of allowing this asynchronous, distance collaboration to take place. However, this was something that, as a coach, the member of staff in question could not openly suggest. Instead, she planned to direct group conversation towards the possibility of using a forum, but was heartened (and not a little relieved) when one of the cohort emailed her to suggest that this may be a way of collaborating across a half term break.

Each working party has now delivered their findings via small presentations to their peers. These were filmed and added to a “moodle” – based repository of materials gathered over the duration of the project including videos of week-by-week progress of each of the groups and copies of the materials devised for each of the presentations (PowerPoint presentations, handouts, websites and films). Summative assessment has, interestingly, resulted in a higher overall average percentage mark than past years.
In theory, problem-based learning can be implemented throughout the Initial Teacher Training (ITT) curriculum and at any stage, be it in an introductory teaching programme through to education studies at PGCE level and beyond. It must be remembered however, that some fundamental concepts are better suited than others. Areas such as learning theories and models, managing behaviour, students’ critique of learning resources and examination of models and theories of assessment lend themselves particularly well to a PBL approach: indeed, any element of any curriculum that requires students to work through a series of problems designed to be authentic and approximate the real world, or gives students an opportunity to find what they know and what they don’t know will be an ideal opportunity in which to take a PBL approach. The problem to be solved could mimic the real life context they will face as teachers (or, indeed, in any vocational area being studied) and students can discuss and analyze problems using prior knowledge and resources available. This will help the development of cognitive skills for the problem-solving process, self-monitoring skills to identify own learning needs, habitual student-initiated questioning, self-directed study, self and peer assessment and reflection – something that is becoming increasingly important in a growing range of subject areas, and has long been vital to the process of learning within ITT.

It is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore just how entrenched into 16-19 year old learners’... more It is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore just how entrenched into 16-19 year old learners’ lives the use of social networking sites has become. Both the Higher and Further Education sectors show signs that this increase in use of sites such as Facebook has divided teaching staff into two very different and definitive camps: those who champion the use of the well known social networking site, not only as a ‘reward’ for work well done in a lesson (and a workable bribe it has become too, with many teachers finding that levels of motivation increase if promised 15 minutes of Facebook time at the end of a lesson), but as one of the many teaching and learning tools they can offer to an increasingly digitally literate generation. Sitting firmly in the other camp are those who see Facebook through less positive and, arguably, less educated eyes: as, at best, something that distracts students from the work they should be completing in the classroom, and, at worst, a virtual playground for cyber bullying and inappropriate behaviour.
This paper argues that Facebook can be a force for good in education and should not only be allowed in the classroom; it goes as far as to suggest that teachers should embrace how the social networking site can be used successfully as a part of the teaching and learning experience. I will, through research and evidence provided by my own practice, argue that not only does Facebook provide a useful setting for communication between learners and teachers, but both instils and sharpens a number of 21st century core and soft skills such as literacy, Information Communication Technology (ICT), communication and collaboration skills as well as teaching learners about safe and ‘proper’ online behaviour. Facebook, via its ‘pages’ facility, can also provide a powerful marketing tool for education establishments as a whole.
I shall also argue that seeing Facebook (and, perhaps, social networking sites as a whole) as a ‘danger’ can only make the gulf between digitally savvy learners and their teachers wider than ever before. And while educators’ concerns are not to be dismissed, banning the use of Facebook in colleges across the country does halt the development of learners’ digital skills and knowledge of online identity, as well as making college or university feel like a daily trip back in time, with outdated attitudes effectively blocking students’ accepted ways of working.
As well as arguing that Facebook should be used in education, I will also explore the benefits and address the concerns of using Facebook with students aged 16-19, to look at how Facebook groups can be used safely and effectively within teaching and learning and to provide information regarding the befriending of students. Learners’ attitudes towards using Facebook will also be examined. Wider aspects which will not be covered in depth in the paper but commented on in the conclusion and made more definitive via a number of appendices include suggested rules for safe use of Facebook within educational institutions and how Facebook can assist with the delivery of both core and soft skills.