This presentation is part of: A20-2 Active Learning Strategies in Economics

Developing Students with a Critical Economic Paradigm: Active Learning in Situated Learning Environments

Sandra Jones, Ph.D., Learning & Teaching Development, RMIT University, PO Box 2476 V, Melbourne, 3003, Australia

The discipline of Economics, with its mix of social and mathematical sciences, exists within a somewhat ambiguous environment in which the complexity of the real world is ‘controlled’ by theoretical assumptions. As knowledge, particularly tacit knowledge held in people’s heads, becomes THE competitive advantage, economists have been challenged to extend beyond discipline-specific knowledge based on ‘controlled’ assumptions of cause and effect to critical analysis of the paradigm in which traditional economics is based. Such challenging and changing environments require critical analytical skills that go beyond understanding of economic principles to a level of generic skills required for problem-solving and decision-making. This creates down-stream challenges for academic economists aiming to graduate students with work relevant skills required by business.

While acknowledging that significant theoretical discourse exists on the relative influence of up-stream and down-stream economic influencers, this paper assumes that the role of the academic economist is to provide a learning environment in which students actively engage in experiences that extends discourse into active participation in their own learning. This has led to an increasing emphasis on designing authentic learning opportunities for students through periods of work experience.  The limitation of such learning environments is that students do not have the opportunity to learning from their mistakes, nor to envisage alternative futures apart from the current reality.  What is need is learning environments that are designed as ‘authentic learning environments’ in which students gain knowledge through active participation in activities typical of real-world challenges, while enabling students to experiment with a variety of responses to real world complexity and ambiguity without fear of ‘failure’.  Brown, Collins,  and Duguid (1989)
The internet world provides a broad spectrum of possibilities and a wealth of opportunities for academics to develop such learning environments, with authenticity being designed through enabling learners to:

"move freely around the resources provided rather than move in a linear fashion that may not ape the complexities of real life.  Problems presented to students can use the full capacities of the technology to present situations and scenario’s in video clips, texts links and images to give meaning and purpose to the students’ endeavours, and to provide motivation to complete" Reeves, Herrington and Oliver (2002)

Virtual Situated Learning Environments (VSLEs) are one such innovative learning environment that encourage active student engagement in their own learning.

This paper will discuss how a VSLE, designed by the author as a real-world environment has been used to engage students in activities that develop their learning beyond discipline-specific content knowledge into generic problem-solving skills. The particular VSLE to which this paper will refer has been designed as a web-based interface in which students become ‘virtual employees’ and are presented with a variety of ill-defined open-ended real-life challenges.  Students are required to find solutions to a number of typical challenges and problems requiring solution using the on-line environment.  This enables students to experiment with, and analyse, theories against practice, in a protected and controlled ‘safe’ digital learning environment. The paper will present examples of student feedback from these learning experiences.


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