Mobile Learning The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley recently launched a new competency-based Biomedical Sciences degree program delivered via iPad. Although competency-based education is not a new concept, the University of Texas System (UTS) is taking it to a new level with its recently launched "TEx," a mobile-first application designed by UTS's Institute for Transformational Learning (ITL) to boost student engagement and retention. The Institute for Transformational Learning began in 2012, in response to the growing popularity of MOOCs. "We realized that MOOCs were not the only answer," said Amy Shackelford, director of strategic partnerships for ITL. "We asked ourselves how else we could be innovative? How do we serve the students? And, especially, how do we help more of them to be successful? We felt we could help make big improvements in that area." With a mandate to drive student success and access through the innovative use of technology, ITL launched its first all-digital degree program at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV). The competency-based Biomedical Sciences degree program uses the TEx – Total Educational Experience – platform to give students anytime, anywhere access to personalized and interactive educational content, as well as real-time support from faculty and personal coaches. Students progress through learning modules and units, building their knowledge and skills step-by-step, at a pace they can manage. "It was the right opportunity at the right time," said Shackelford. "We were looking in those areas where students struggle the most, and where there is more opportunity for careers. These students have and want a strong connection with industry. They want to connect with the world of work or, in this case, with the medical profession." Designed for Mobility and Flexibility A key component of the TEx platform is flexibility. Courses are delivered in a hybrid format — a combination of online, classroom, laboratory or clinical time — and all course content can be accessed via iPad. "We made the decision to use iPads because of the timing," said Shackelford. "We started working on the program in November of 2014, and launched in August of this year. We wanted mobile-first, and also offline capability. Many of our students have issues with connectivity; there are some students in areas where there is no cellular service. iPads were the way to go initially." A per-semester program fee covers the cost of the iPad and content for all courses. TEx provides students with online support from faculty, instructional facilitators (TAs) and student success coaches, who help monitor their progress and keep them on pace to achieve their educational and career goals. Students can communicate with both classmates and faculty online anytime. The success coach is non-academic: His or her purpose is to watch the progress of the student in the course, reach out if the student is struggling, and answer questions the students may have. "It's too late when a student fails," Shackelford asserted. "That's why we have this robust system of support." The focus on flexibility and continuous improvement extends to the TEx platform itself. "To set up the program, we brought in multiple vendors," noted Shackelford. "We created our own custom-user interface, took control of the user experience, and pulled in those parts of the technology we needed from vendors such as Salesforce and Instructure's Canvas in order to provide the experience." Next year, TEx will introduce a new version for all mobile devices, with a Web app. "This year's version of TEx is the 'crawl' version," Shackelford added, "as in 'crawl, walk, run.' TEx will always iterate and always improve. What we have now is amazing, but we'll continue to improve."
The University of Texas’s Institute for Transformational Learning has created an all-digital, biomedical sciences competency-based degree programme, designed for iPad through the Total Educational Experience, or TEx, programme. “Students will be able to take their iPads and learn about a wide range of topics in biology, chemistry, physics and engineering,” said Dr David Smith, director of the institute.