The course is fully online and hosted on Pebblepad, a personal learning space for learners and teachers customised for the SHOOC. The pedagogy is organised around 5 workbooks. Each workbook includes these e-learning activities (e-tivities):
- Readings – a Core Text (2000 words approx.) outlining the workbook’s topic and optional further reading
- Webinars* – Recorded online talks (1 hour) by course tutors on aspects of mentoring
- Videos* – Presentations by tutors and guest speakers on key topics
- Discussion – Explore your own and others’ mentoring practice
- Case Studies – Accounts of professional practice in mentoring (videos)
- Quizzes – Check your understanding and identify gaps in your skills
* Recorded for playback at any time
Each of the five workbooks (see Curriculum) follows a programme of activities (roughly equivalent to 4 to 5 hours in total per workbook). Typically this involves:
- Introductory video (5 minutes) by the workbook’s leader outlining the topic and activities to be carried out, including: Core Text (a 2000 word ‘reader’ outlining the main areas of the topic): Case Study videos and prompts; Discussion Topic on matters arising from the case study; Self-evaluation of mentor competences; Quiz to check understanding; Top Tips on mentoring practice; Further Reading (optional); and a Reflective Task related to the workbook’s topic.
- Recorded online webinar presenting and discussing issues arising from the workbook’s topic (note these are recordings of the webinars that ran in SHOOC1, January 2017).
- Tweet Chat session (see here for more information about Tweet Chats) discussing specific questions relating to the workbook’s topic (particiants need a Twitter account for this) and summarised using Storify.
- Answer Garden for the workbook’s topics (see example in this posting)
Notes: All webinars are recorded for playback at any time. The activities and materials for each workbook are released at the start of the course and then remain available. Participants are free to plan to engage with the materials and activities at a time to suit themselves. To achieve the Badge for a workbook (see Achievement) participants must complete the weekly E-tivities (roughly 400 words or equivalent).