Papers by Marieke Versteijlen
John Theeuwes, responsible for sustainable transport policy at Avans, once told me. Taking commut... more John Theeuwes, responsible for sustainable transport policy at Avans, once told me. Taking commuter students into account in the organisation of education to reduce the ecological footprint seemed to be a blind spot, not only at Avans but also in the academic literature and among all the representatives of Dutch higher education I spoke to. It is probably because it touches on several disciplines: education, transport and sustainability. Balancing these three disciplines was the most challenging task during my PhD research. I experienced several 'out of scope' assessments of the editors or reviewers of academic journals. In most cases, only journals with a focus on sustainability recognised the added value of the interdisciplinary approach. I found this hard to swallow. I believe that climate urgency forces the (academic) world to consider sustainability aspects in every field and describing these aspects should not be limited to journals on sustainability. Another challenge presented itself with the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic. My research was in the stage of studying the design and implementation of a blended study programme taking account of the travel movements of students and suddenly, only online learning was Preface possible and travel was discouraged. Therefore, I had to adjust my research plan. One of the advantages was that lecturers and students underwent a steep learning curve regarding online learning and teaching possibilities. These challenges and other bumps in the road could be overcome thanks to the help and encouragement of several people. I mentioned the narrow-mindedness of several editors and reviewers but this mindset was contrary to that of my two promoters and supporting professor at Avans UAS. Their open-mindedness inspired me to be creative and follow my own path. I could never have completed this PhD without them for which I am deeply grateful. When I first met Arjen Wals, my promotor at Wageningen University & Research, I was very unsure of my academic research skills after a failed cooperation with my first promotor, but Arjen took me seriously in all my ideas, thus building up my confidence and inspiring me to dare think out of the box. He introduced me further to the world of sustainability-oriented learning. This broadened my environmental perspective of blended learning to the opportunities it can offer for developing sustainability competencies. His open-mindedness showed by immediately welcoming the idea of inviting Bert van Wee as a promotor to guide me through travel behaviour subjects. I will never forget my first conversation with Bert van Wee, my promotor at Delft University of Technology, at that point only meant for orientation purposes. It made me realise that there is far more to student commute than the carbon emissions it causes. I left the room with an introductory book about the transport system. Later on, when I approached Bert to be my second promotor, sending him my research proposal, to my surprise, after a few hours he agreed and returned my research proposal with comments. This story is typical of the guidance I got from Bert. Always on time and opening up the world of travel behaviour for me. He often encouraged me to dig deeper through his comments on my writings, also proposing new directions to take. From the start and even before, Marleen Janssen Groesbeek, my supporting professor at Avans UAS, has been the stable and crucial factor throughout my PhD research. She facilitated and supported me during the process and I wonder if I would have completed this PhD without her. We share a passion for making the world more sustainable and she was a great example for me that this cannot be limited to your own field. Being a professor in Finance and Accounting, she welcomed an ICT lecturer to her knowledge group to conduct research on sustainability, education and transport subjects. Also, after this PhD, we will continue our cooperation and I am looking forward to it. Marleen also supported me in the first difficult years of my PhD at the Open University of the Netherlands (OU). After the SURF exploration, I found Professor Paquita Perez Salgado of the OU as a kindred spirit and promotor. She introduced me to the world of science and my first published article in response to the SURF exploration (Chapter 2) is a result of this cooperation. I want to thank her and Anda Counotte for all the feedback on my writing. Still, differences of opinion forced me to look elsewhere to continue with my PhD research. This was not an easy decision and probably would not have turned out so well without the help and encouragement of my PhD intervision group. Ella, Jack and Eefje, thank you for all the intensive and eye-opening conversations we had. I already mentioned the Finance and Accounting knowledge group surrounding Marleen Janssen Groesbeek. It was a place of discussion and criticism helping me to shape my thoughts. On top of that, they taught me a lot about finance and accounting! Thank you for thinking along with me. My special thanks go to Tim Willems, Dorien de Graaff and Tom Vos. Tim and Dorien made it possible and were participants in designing and implementing a sustainable blended minor (Chapter 5). Tom helped me to promote my research. He came up with the idea to write an opinion article for a newspaper on my topic and together we made this happen. This article got published and even caught the attention of a national radio program "Dit is de dag" in which I could discuss sustainable blended learning. I already mentioned John Theeuwes, now retired, but at the time of my student travel behaviour study, he was responsible for sustainable transport policy at Avans UAS. He acted as moderator at all my focus groups with students. Thank you for this and also for all the inspiring conversations. I also want to thank Avans UAS, in particular the Academy of Technology and Design, for providing the opportunities and time to conduct this PhD research. It was not always easy to fit me into the schedule of teaching. Gratitude and everlasting love go to my family and friends. My partner Frits always emphasized the importance of my research and commented on and criticized my work. It was sometimes not what I wanted to hear but it always made me think twice. During my research, my children Tomas and Rosa were the same age and study level as the students I studied. This made it possible to mirror my ideas to their experiences and they even tested my student surveys. Thank you all! Educational review study RQ3 Pedagogical design principles for blended and sustainability-oriented learning Design and evaluation study RQ4 Evaluation of design process and implementation Implementation Curriculum design Construction Reflection Educational intervention
Frontiers in Education
IntroductionBlended learning, i.e., a mix of online and in-class education, can be deployed for e... more IntroductionBlended learning, i.e., a mix of online and in-class education, can be deployed for enhancing the educational quality and resilience in higher education (HE). It may also contribute to HE’s sustainability objectives by lowering the carbon emissions of students commuting to campus. In this study, pedagogical design principles for sustainable blended learning and teaching are developed and evaluated taking into account these opportunities.MethodsA prototype for a sustainable blended study program at a University of Applied Sciences was developed and evaluated using a form of Educational Design Research.ResultsThe design stage, carried out by a team of eight lecturers, resulted in a design based on six pedagogical design principles. This design also included an effort to reduce student travel by limiting on-campus education to two days a week. The results show the effects of students’ increased online learning skills and diminished travel movements on their satisfaction wit...
IntechOpen eBooks, Apr 18, 2024
Following COVID-19, higher education (HE) has recognised the importance of educational technology... more Following COVID-19, higher education (HE) has recognised the importance of educational technology (EdTech). With its growing influence on educational design, awareness of its role and impact on the sustainability transition in HE from an economic, environmental and social perspective is needed. Taking a holistic view, this chapter shows the opportunities and drawbacks of using EdTech in HE aiming at developing suggestions for responsible application. Economically, there are concerns because the earnings models of for-profit EdTech companies are focused on obtaining user data and benefit from a lack of transparency in data use, privacy and intellectual property. Environmentally, the use of EdTech can reduce the carbon footprint of HE institutions by opening a virtual space where students can learn and faculty can attend international conferences without commuting or travelling (by plane). However, device disposal and the energy consumption of hardware and data storage must be considered. Socially, using EdTech can foster the development of sustainability competencies if thoughtfully designed by applying pedagogical design principles for sustainabilityoriented blended learning. Higher education can take control of a balanced use of EdTech in educational practice by focusing on ethical and human values and adopting a whole-institution approach to sustainability as included in the proposed framework.
Dutch institutions of Higher Education have to meet stringent requirements for energy efficiency ... more Dutch institutions of Higher Education have to meet stringent requirements for energy efficiency andreducing carbon emissions imposed by the national government. The commute of students and staffgreatly contributes to the carbon footprint of a Higher Education Institution. International students inDutch Higher Education also have a substantial impact on the environment due to air travel. Theirnumber increases every year. The deployment and use of ICT can contribute substantially to thereduction of energy use and carbon emissions through decreasing mobility of students and staff byincreasing virtualization and digitalization of educational processes.This exploratory study examines the opportunities of online learning as a means to reduce the impactof students’ traveling on the carbon footprint. The research methodology consists of a systematicreview of literature and a series of interviews with experts of online learning and managers of energy,ICT and/or sustainability.An obstacle fo...
Online education may be an instrument to substantially decrease the carbon footprint of a higher ... more Online education may be an instrument to substantially decrease the carbon footprint of a higher education institute (HEI) through its potential to reduce education-related student travel. International research identifies this travel behaviour as one of the largest emitters of greenhouse gases of a HEI. The presented study explores the carbon emissions associated with student (and staff) travel of Dutch HEIs and the (dis)advantages of online education in higher education (HE). The travel-related emission data are derived from reports, published by Dutch HEIs, containing the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol calculations of the HEI’s carbon footprint. These data are analysed and compared with international findings. In-depth interviews with Dutch HE professionals specialized in online education/ICT/sustainability, followed by a grounded theory analysis, yield results on their attitude towards online education. The results show that the contribution of travel-related emissions to the car...
Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 2017
Proceedings of ICT for Sustainability 2016, 2016
Sustainability
Climate change forces higher educational institutions (HEI) to reconsider their traditional ways ... more Climate change forces higher educational institutions (HEI) to reconsider their traditional ways of teaching and organising education. This implies that they should reduce their impact on the environment and provide sustainability-oriented education. Blended learning (fusion of on-campus and online learning) may provide an appealing solution to achieve both objectives. It may reduce HEI’s climate impact by reducing student travel to and from campus and support the development of students’ sustainability competencies. In this paper, pedagogical design principles and recommendations are developed to design such a sustainability-oriented blended learning configuration. A realist review methodology is used to distil and develop pedagogical principles for blended learning. These principles were mirrored against pedagogical approaches that have been identified as suitable for developing sustainability competencies. This mirroring revealed some overlap but also some notable differences. Co...
International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education
Purpose Daily commuting trips of higher education (HE) students account for a large proportion of... more Purpose Daily commuting trips of higher education (HE) students account for a large proportion of the carbon footprint of a HE institution. Considerations of students underlying their choice of travel mode and their decision to make the trip to campus or to study online are explored as a necessary first step for finding an optimal balance between online and on-campus learning from both a sustainability and an educational perspective. Design/methodology/approach Focus group conversations were held with student groups from different study programmes of a university of applied sciences in the Netherlands. Findings Dutch students’ travel mode choices seem to depend on measures regulating travel demand such as a free public transport card and high parking costs. The findings indicate that students make reasoned choices about making a trip to campus. These choices depend on considerations about their schedule, type, lecturer and content of a course, social norms and their own perceived be...
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Papers by Marieke Versteijlen