Using Activity theory to study the factors influencing the sustained adoption of e-portfolio curricula by secondary school Visual arts educators in South Africa.

2. RESEARCH QUESTION on e-portfolio curricular adoption Prepared by Travis Noakes February 26, 2011 What are the considerations for introducing e-portfolios and social network sites into Visual Arts curricula in two South African secondary schools?

3. RESEARCH QUESTION on classroom activities Prepared by Travis Noakes February 26, 2011 Question 1: How do students ’ activities in class meet and subvert the outcomes and goals set in the educator's curricula?

4. RESEARCH QUESTION on school factors Prepared by Travis Noakes February 26, 2011 Question 2: For educators and students, what obstacles and tensions do they seem to think are likely to prevent their sustained use of e-portfolios?

5. RESEARCH QUESTION on out-of-school factors Prepared by Travis Noakes February 26, 2011 Question 3: How is student e-portfolio use influenced by the availability of out-of-class ICT resources, support and online participation in social network sites? Image from http :// muyskens.com /photo2.html Image from http :// socialter.fr / files 2010 /07/3042261105_42c4f039ff.jpg

11. QUESTION 1 Defining inter-framework factors for coding student use Prepared by Travis Noakes February 26, 2011 Tools Subject Object Outcome TRANSFORM ACTION 1 S-O O-S 2 S-T T-S 3 T-O O-T 4 SO-Out Out-SO Activity Theory (phase 1) 1 > 4 Interpsychological Rules Community of Practice Division of Labour Activity Theory (phase 2) 5 > 14 Intrapsychological 5 S-R R-S 6 R-O O-R 7 R-C C-R 11 D-C C-D 8 C-S S-C 10 C-O O-C 12 D-S S-D 13 D-O O-D 9 C-T T-C 14 CO-Out Out-CO Proposed coding; Intra-framework: i.e. framework “A” to “B” or inter-framework relationships.

12. QUESTION 1 Intra-framework challenges for the student subject Prepared by Travis Noakes February 26, 2011 1 Subject to Outcomes | Outcomes to Subject Subject ’ s activity leads to negative outcomes (i.e. student e-portfolio creation compromises privacy and safety) Outcomes undermine the subject (i.e. e-portfolio use leads to lower Visual Arts grade) 2 Subject to Object | Object to Subject Subject experiences difficulties within the object (i.e. student does not follow the e-portfolio curriculum) Object creates problems for the subject (i.e. e-portfolio curriculum takes up too many of the student ’ s Arts classes) 3 Subject to Tools | Tools to Subject Subject experience problems with tools (i.e. student cannot use e-portfolio due to ICT failure) Tool-usage poses a problem to the subject (i.e. inappropriate tool-use contributes to student distraction) 4 Subject to Community | Community to Subject Subject experiences challenges within the community (i.e. school management does not provide curricular resourcing) The community obstructs the subject (i.e. community campaigns against e-portfolio use) 5 Subject to Rules | Rules to Subject Subject has difficulty with rules (i.e. educator cannot address all e-portfolio rules in short curriculum) Rules create problems for the subject (i.e. educator is sued for enabling student copyright infringement) 6 Subject to Division of Labour | Division of Labour to Subject Subject has difficulty with the division of labour (i.e. educator needs in-class support whilst teaching ICT) The division of labour poses problems for the subject (i.e. educator ’ s inexperience with using peer-to-peer education)

13. QUESTION 1 Hierachial structure of student e-portfolio use in class Prepared by Travis Noakes February 26, 2011 Linking Activity Theory hierachy to levels of software affordance use TYPES OF SOFTWARE AFFORDANCE accumulate combine result in ACTIVITY THEORY RESULTS Positive or Negative Strategic Tactical Operational Goals Activities Actions Operations Outcomes Learners’ use Educators’ curricular aims CHALLENGES TO SUSTAINED CURRICULAR ADOPTION Negative Subverted curricular aims Unreliable & inefficient + + = Learners’ use

14. QUESTION 1 Class: before and after e-portfolio adoption February 26, 2011 Prepared by Travis Noakes Rules Community of Practice NEW OUTCOMES IDEAL OUTCOME BENEFITS OF CURRICULAR ADOPTION LEAD TO SUSTAINED E-PORTFOLIO CURRIULAR USE BY SECONDARY SCHOOL EDUCATORS Tools Subject Visual Arts educator Students from grade 10 and 11 Support teacher Curricular adviser IT decision-maker Integration adviser Object Outcome TRANSFORM Division of Labour ACTION New Object: Secondary school visual arts’ educators’ curricular adoption of e-portfolios “ Before” and “After” Activity Theory frameworks used for research Existing, relevant tools New tools Rules before Additional rules Members before New members Roles before Roles to consider after

16. QUESTION 1 “Tool” changes in secondary school Visual Arts class All schools: Curricula and revised syllabi E-portfolio adoption guidelines for educators E-portfolio assessment and marking criteria (i.e. content analysis spreadsheets, peer review forms) Well-resourced schools: Laptop and desktop computers Scanners and digital cameras Internet access Web2.0 online portfolio site access for e-portfolio creation Under-resourced schools: Mobile phone cameras Khanya labs with internet access and/or local art center access Extra-curricular access: Home or boarding school Internet café Existing, relevant tools New tool additions after adoption Prepared by Travis Noakes February 26, 2011 All schools: Temporary studio Hardcopy artworks Well-resourced schools: Dedicated art studio (End of year, 3-D exhibition)

18. QUESTION 1 “Division of Labour” changes Prepared by Travis Noakes February 26, 2011 Teaching: Fine Arts educator Students: Learner Roles in class before Additional roles after adoption Teaching: Visual Arts/Design educator Organizing second teacher for ICT support Organizing IT support Students: Computer and e-portfolio user roles (creator, viewer, critic) Interaction with online portfolio communities of practice (COP) Social bookmarking user and related COP Peer-to-peer instruction and feedback Showcase extra-mural art and other personal interests

19. QUESTION 1 “Rules” changes February 26, 2011 Rules before Rules to consider after Outside class: Satisfy educator’s personal beliefs. Fall within school’s budget and resourcing. Curricular alignment with the National Curriculum Statement. School’s professional values. Educator’s culture of practice. Accords with school policies. Satisfies other DOE policies. Discipline norms. Fine Art literacies. Outside class: Provincial and National DOE Visual Arts Department Strategy. Division of responsibilities in the DOE (who promotes ICT proficiency, ICTL?) Defining new media literacies relevant to SA school contexts (core) Curriculum planner resourcing and policy Adherence to an ICT proficiency definition and criteria for benchmarking. Addressing DOE subject-area literacies (i.e. Visual Communication Design). Educators able to teach with technology. Visual Arts (versus Fine Arts) literacies. Youth media production patterns. Demonstrable benefits from ICT investment Educator performance (private versus public) and commitments. In the syllabus and curricula: ICT resource allocation in class and integration of external resources. Second teacher for technology support. Time allocation in the syllabus (5% of Visual Arts outcome). E-portfolio curricula and Visual Arts syllabi integration. E-portfolio service selection. E-portfolio assessment and marking criteria. Self-presentation as a creative professional. Quality digitization. Legal safety (respecting copyright and trademarks). E-safety (privacy protection). Terms of use for e-portfolios, networks and computers. Educator’s tracking of compliance and appropriate feedback levels. Using social bookmarking for e-portfolio assessment and feedback. Expectations on suitable content (extra-mural work, school exhibitions). Appropriate student focus in class. Online roles (creator, viewer, critic). Online community standards. Using the resourcing and support available for (in)formal learning at home.

20. QUESTION 2 Inter-framework factors for coding obstacles to use Prepared by Travis Noakes February 26, 2011 Tools Subject Object Outcome TRANSFORM ACTION 1 S-O O-S 2 S-T T-S 3 T-O O-T 4 SO-Out Out-SO Activity Theory (phase 1) 1 > 4 Interpsychological Rules Community of Practice Division of Labour Activity Theory (phase 2) 5 > 14 Intrapsychological 5 S-R R-S 6 R-O O-R 7 R-C C-R 11 D-C C-D 8 C-S S-C 10 C-O O-C 12 D-S S-D 13 D-O O-D 9 C-T T-C 14 CO-Out Out-CO Proposed coding; Intra-framework: i.e. framework “A” to “B” or inter-framework relationships.

21. QUESTION 2 Educators’ perceptions of challenges undermining curricular compliance Prepared by Travis Noakes February 26, 2011 1 Subject to Outcomes | Outcomes to Subject Subject ’ s activity leads to negative outcomes (i.e. educator ’ s e-portfolio creation compromises student safety) Outcomes undermine the subject (i.e. e-portfolio use leads to lower student grades and risk of job-loss) 2 Subject to Object | Object to Subject Subject experiences difficulties within the object (i.e. educator ’ s ICT pedagogy contributes to low e-portfolio compliance) Object creates problems for the subject (i.e. e-portfolio curriculum takes up a lot of the educator ’ s home time) 3 Subject to Tools | Tools to Subject Subject experience problems with tools (i.e. educator has insufficient ICT resources to run curriculum in class) Tool-usage poses a problem to the subject (i.e. tool failures disrupts educators ’ class) 4 Subject to Community | Community to Subject Subject experiences challenges within the community (i.e. educator does not receive sufficient curricular resourcing) The community obstructs the subject (i.e. community campaigns against e-portfolio use) 5 Subject to Rules | Rules to Subject Subject has difficulty with rules (i.e. educator cannot address all e-portfolio rules in short curriculum) Rules create problems for the subject (i.e. educator is sued for enabling student copyright infringement) 6 Subject to Division of Labour | Division of Labour to Subject Subject has difficulty with the division of labour (i.e. educator does not have in-class support to teach ICT optimally) The division of labour poses problems for the subject (i.e. students ’ peer-to-peer education undermines educator ’ s role in class)

22. QUESTION 2 Community inter-framework challenges to adoption Prepared by Travis Noakes February 26, 2011 7 Community to Outcomes | Outcomes to Community Community ’ s activity leads to negative outcomes (i.e. e-portfolio adoption contributes to lower grades) Outcomes undermine the community (i.e. e-portfolio costs and hazards outweigh benefits to community) 8 Community to Object | Object to Community Community experiences difficulties within the object (i.e. cost of e-portfolio use raises conflict levels between staff ) Object creates problems for the community (i.e. student e-portfolio misuse leads to legal and PR problems) 9 Community to Tools | Tools to Community Community experience problems with tools (i.e. not sufficient bandwidth to support user-friendly e-portfolio access) Tool-usage poses a problem to the community (i.e. out-of-class tool access unfairly advantages well-resourced students) 10 Community to Subject | Subject to Community Community experiences challenges with the subject (i.e. the community education The subject obstructs the community (i.e. the educator ’ s ICT pedagogy does not address community concerns) 11 Community to Rules | Rules to Community Community has difficulty with rules (i.e. community is unable to apply important rules) Rules create problems for the community (i.e. following 20 new rule sets causes tensions) 12 Community to Division of Labour | Division of Labour to Community Community has difficulty with the division of labour (i.e. community cannot provide two educators for optimal ICT teaching) The division of labour poses problems for the community (i.e. parents are not happy with students showcasing graffiti)

23. QUESTION 2 Understanding intra-framework conflict and tension School Mx Perspective Pedagogical Perspective February 26, 2011 Prepared by Travis Noakes Pedagogical benefits of e-portfolio adoption Justify educational costs to parents or guardians Technological Perspective Keep costs low Keep costs low Keep costs of e-portfolio adoption low Be a sustainable business through profit Be a sustainable business through profit Online portfolio Web2.0 business Help show the value of the school’s ICT investment In 1 laptop per child Create an online Visual Arts history using the school’s learners Become a pedagogical authority on using new media for Visual Arts education Multiple objectives Deliver the syllabus in line with the National Curricular Statement (NCS) Justify employment through good enrolment and good results Subjects to interview: Educator Curricular manager IT Department head Curricular adviser Software developer Develop a reputation for pedagogical leadership in ICT

30. Trav’s takeaway question on coding… Prepared by Travis Noakes February 26, 2011 Can I use Activity Theory frameworks for dual coding that: 1. Defines the relationship level: inter- or intra-framework; 2. Defines the relationship: construct to construct.

31. THANKS to this project’s supporters National Research Foundation Research funding www.nrf.ac.za University of Cape Town, Department of Film and Media Studies. Dr Marion Walton www.marionwalton.com Digimobs research group colleagues http :// digimobsa.wordpress.com Centre for Educational Technology www.cet.uct.ac.za Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Department of Informatics and Design. Prof Johannes Cronje http:// johannescronje.blogspot.com & Educational Technology MA & PhD colleagues February 26, 2011 Prepared by Travis Noakes