Hi - Please feel free to contact me if you have read any of my work and would like to discuss it and/or ask questions! I am a semi-retired academic working in Research and Postgraduate Support at the Durban University of Technology. I supervise PhD students, publish, run online research workshops and assist the Research Office with research guides, policies, forms and procedures. My PhD research was on systemic modelling of written communication. Phone: 824229570 Address: 24 Anerley Rd Morningside
In S. P. Schaffer and M. L. Price (eds.), Interactive convergence: critical issues in multimedia,... more In S. P. Schaffer and M. L. Price (eds.), Interactive convergence: critical issues in multimedia, Vol. 10
2022 Conference on Information Communications Technology and Society (ICTAS)
This article deals with a case study of migration from a local in-house data centre (Hyper-V Wind... more This article deals with a case study of migration from a local in-house data centre (Hyper-V Windows Server 2012) at the Durban University of Technology to Microsoft Azure. The introduction provides the context leading to the migration and the details about why crisis management became the norm during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. The background reprises the start of e-learning leading up to the present. Next, an account is given of the methodology used to migrate to Azure, which suggests that the lack of foresight or strategic planning resulted in knee-jerk responses, slow implementation and avoidable stress on project personnel. A simplified technology roadmap for e-learning at DUT is then provided, and is suggested as a starting point for a more comprehensive roadmap, using the system dynamics approach.
ABSTRACT: One of the chief difficulties in designing effective courseware for improving writing p... more ABSTRACT: One of the chief difficulties in designing effective courseware for improving writing proficiency is that composing, like other forms of human communication, is a complex social process with little or no agreement as to its precise nature or structure. Designing a versatile writing tutor program which will mimic the functions performed by a human tutor requires a systematic investigation into the complex processes involved in composing, in particular its commonalities and variables, and the ways in which it is shaped to the various contexts in which it occurs. This paper suggests that in order to translate complex social processes effectively into educational software design, it is first advisable to discover the social mechanisms which effect the process. In the case of written composition, a complex modelling procedure was followed which used a process of reverse engineering to arrive at a system of essential communicative functions. The architecture of functions thus re...
Educational software geared to literacy development is too often based on what computer programs ... more Educational software geared to literacy development is too often based on what computer programs can do rather than on any deep-level consideration of the social process involved or how social processes are learned. As social psychology suggests that young people learn social behaviour by means of social algorithms, it is suggested that designers of educational software should consider identifying the algorithm involved as a basis for effective program design. Apart from resulting in versatile courseware, following this process means that the program structure itself can be made to reinforce the algorithm to be learned. This innovative educational design process is demonstrated by showing how a writing tutor program was designed around a composing algorithm underpinned by a deep structure of communicative functions. The resulting application could then be used flexibly in a variety of different educational contexts because the commonalities and variables in composing had been establ...
While there is a growing recognition amongst information and communication technology (ICT) resea... more While there is a growing recognition amongst information and communication technology (ICT) researchers that computer systems are designed for and situated in social practices, the Internet tends to be viewed as an artefact, with the focus being on its technical and material aspects. This paper explores the notion whether the Internet is not only, as an artefact, an element in the nexus of relationships comprising the social structure in which we operate, but in itself a social system informing a social structure. This is because the Internet has all of the qualities which Margaret Archer’s theory of morphogenesis, building on Roy Bhaskar’s critical realist philosophy, attributes to social structures. However, this paper comes to the conclusion that the Internet, being a techno-system with social attributes, is not in fact a social system, but should rather be viewed as the mechanism which sets in place the communicative sub-structure provided by the World Wide Web. The “web” is a t...
This paper explores the process of transforming the social structure of the teaching/learning pro... more This paper explores the process of transforming the social structure of the teaching/learning process in a series of research capacity building workshops at a multicultural university of technology. ICT components were included in the workshop programme to help to deal with time constraints and the geographical separation of the multi-campus university staff. At a deeper conceptual level, the theory of social structure contained in Margaret Archer’s morphogenetic approach shows how the integration of ICT into the programme design has the potential to transform the system of relationships involved in research capacity building.
International Journal for Transformative Research, 2014
This account explores the divergent perspectives of supervisor and student interacting in self-st... more This account explores the divergent perspectives of supervisor and student interacting in self-study research, showing how both participants were transformed by the experience. Although both supervisor and student had faced similar problems as mature students engaging in doctoral study, and both possessed strong convictions about their chosen paths, their focus was very different. The student, being visually creative, was investigating the value of integrated arts as a transformational learning medium; the supervisor, from a linguistics background, was focused on exploring the nature of written communication. The supervisor/student relationship comprises a complex nexus of interconnections between persons, material objects, times and places: it is never static, but always emerging, with the relationship often ending up being more collegial than at first, as with the authors of this paper. In the counterpoint dialogue presented by student and supervisor, it can be seen that both lear...
This paper suggests a tentative answer to an old debate, namely the nature of the connection betw... more This paper suggests a tentative answer to an old debate, namely the nature of the connection between teaching/learning and research, and the extent to which they are mutually (if at all) supportive. While existing literature in the field provides inconclusive ...
… of the 3rd International Conference on e- …, 2008
Abstract: This paper addresses two key issues in Higher Degree learning at a University of Techno... more Abstract: This paper addresses two key issues in Higher Degree learning at a University of Technology, namely, how to facilitate the development of students into independent researchers, and how to harness ICT to this end. The BTech level is a critical one for ...
Proceedings of 18th International Technology, Education and Development Conference. Valencia, Spain, 4-6 March, 2024
At the Durban University of Technology (DUT), the fallout from the recommendation by the Rapid Re... more At the Durban University of Technology (DUT), the fallout from the recommendation by the Rapid Response Task Team to transition from the blended mode of teaching to pure online due to the lockdown caused by COVID-19 in 2020 is now being felt. The realisation is dawning that not all courses are created equally and, more damning, that some assessment practices are not as good as others. To remedy this deficit, DUT is currently running an "Assuring the Integrity of Assessment Practices Project", under the ambit of the Centre for Quality Promotion and Assurance (CQPA). The focus is on evaluating selected online courses. As a possible option for evaluation, this paper proposes a systemic model for evaluating online courses, whether delivered in mixed mode or completely online. The research approach used to develop the model is critical realist, based mainly on Roy Bhaskar's philosophy, but also includes Margaret Archer's morphogenetic theory, which shows how principles developed in previous temporal epochs are not always in phase with elements of present-day contexts. This is particularly relevant in the postpandemic era, where it has been observed that student grades which were skewed upward during the COVID-19 period are now plateauing in line with the period before COVID-19. While it is obvious that certain key course elements are now no longer available to both staff and students, a systemic model of course design is needed which distinguishes between the givens and the variables, so that the most urgent course deficits are identified and remedied or replaced. It will be argued that the systemic model of course design discussed in this paper provides insight into the nature of hypermedia communication. It might assist educators to distinguish between Internet communication and written (i.e., hard print) communication by showing how the functions thought essential for learning to take place effectively are carried out in different ways and with different effects in the different media. The model in fact provides a course design principle outlining 'felicity conditions' for effective course delivery. However, while it suggests the prerequisites for effective course design, the ultimate assessment of effectiveness is left up to the participants-teacher and students-to decide. As the design principle used is descriptive rather than value-laden, and can thus be adapted to suit the specific local values operating in any given learning context, it is well-suited for use in multicultural educational contexts. However, it must be noted that the model is work-in-progress, and may still be refined further in both research and use.
In S. P. Schaffer and M. L. Price (eds.), Interactive convergence: critical issues in multimedia,... more In S. P. Schaffer and M. L. Price (eds.), Interactive convergence: critical issues in multimedia, Vol. 10
2022 Conference on Information Communications Technology and Society (ICTAS)
This article deals with a case study of migration from a local in-house data centre (Hyper-V Wind... more This article deals with a case study of migration from a local in-house data centre (Hyper-V Windows Server 2012) at the Durban University of Technology to Microsoft Azure. The introduction provides the context leading to the migration and the details about why crisis management became the norm during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. The background reprises the start of e-learning leading up to the present. Next, an account is given of the methodology used to migrate to Azure, which suggests that the lack of foresight or strategic planning resulted in knee-jerk responses, slow implementation and avoidable stress on project personnel. A simplified technology roadmap for e-learning at DUT is then provided, and is suggested as a starting point for a more comprehensive roadmap, using the system dynamics approach.
ABSTRACT: One of the chief difficulties in designing effective courseware for improving writing p... more ABSTRACT: One of the chief difficulties in designing effective courseware for improving writing proficiency is that composing, like other forms of human communication, is a complex social process with little or no agreement as to its precise nature or structure. Designing a versatile writing tutor program which will mimic the functions performed by a human tutor requires a systematic investigation into the complex processes involved in composing, in particular its commonalities and variables, and the ways in which it is shaped to the various contexts in which it occurs. This paper suggests that in order to translate complex social processes effectively into educational software design, it is first advisable to discover the social mechanisms which effect the process. In the case of written composition, a complex modelling procedure was followed which used a process of reverse engineering to arrive at a system of essential communicative functions. The architecture of functions thus re...
Educational software geared to literacy development is too often based on what computer programs ... more Educational software geared to literacy development is too often based on what computer programs can do rather than on any deep-level consideration of the social process involved or how social processes are learned. As social psychology suggests that young people learn social behaviour by means of social algorithms, it is suggested that designers of educational software should consider identifying the algorithm involved as a basis for effective program design. Apart from resulting in versatile courseware, following this process means that the program structure itself can be made to reinforce the algorithm to be learned. This innovative educational design process is demonstrated by showing how a writing tutor program was designed around a composing algorithm underpinned by a deep structure of communicative functions. The resulting application could then be used flexibly in a variety of different educational contexts because the commonalities and variables in composing had been establ...
While there is a growing recognition amongst information and communication technology (ICT) resea... more While there is a growing recognition amongst information and communication technology (ICT) researchers that computer systems are designed for and situated in social practices, the Internet tends to be viewed as an artefact, with the focus being on its technical and material aspects. This paper explores the notion whether the Internet is not only, as an artefact, an element in the nexus of relationships comprising the social structure in which we operate, but in itself a social system informing a social structure. This is because the Internet has all of the qualities which Margaret Archer’s theory of morphogenesis, building on Roy Bhaskar’s critical realist philosophy, attributes to social structures. However, this paper comes to the conclusion that the Internet, being a techno-system with social attributes, is not in fact a social system, but should rather be viewed as the mechanism which sets in place the communicative sub-structure provided by the World Wide Web. The “web” is a t...
This paper explores the process of transforming the social structure of the teaching/learning pro... more This paper explores the process of transforming the social structure of the teaching/learning process in a series of research capacity building workshops at a multicultural university of technology. ICT components were included in the workshop programme to help to deal with time constraints and the geographical separation of the multi-campus university staff. At a deeper conceptual level, the theory of social structure contained in Margaret Archer’s morphogenetic approach shows how the integration of ICT into the programme design has the potential to transform the system of relationships involved in research capacity building.
International Journal for Transformative Research, 2014
This account explores the divergent perspectives of supervisor and student interacting in self-st... more This account explores the divergent perspectives of supervisor and student interacting in self-study research, showing how both participants were transformed by the experience. Although both supervisor and student had faced similar problems as mature students engaging in doctoral study, and both possessed strong convictions about their chosen paths, their focus was very different. The student, being visually creative, was investigating the value of integrated arts as a transformational learning medium; the supervisor, from a linguistics background, was focused on exploring the nature of written communication. The supervisor/student relationship comprises a complex nexus of interconnections between persons, material objects, times and places: it is never static, but always emerging, with the relationship often ending up being more collegial than at first, as with the authors of this paper. In the counterpoint dialogue presented by student and supervisor, it can be seen that both lear...
This paper suggests a tentative answer to an old debate, namely the nature of the connection betw... more This paper suggests a tentative answer to an old debate, namely the nature of the connection between teaching/learning and research, and the extent to which they are mutually (if at all) supportive. While existing literature in the field provides inconclusive ...
… of the 3rd International Conference on e- …, 2008
Abstract: This paper addresses two key issues in Higher Degree learning at a University of Techno... more Abstract: This paper addresses two key issues in Higher Degree learning at a University of Technology, namely, how to facilitate the development of students into independent researchers, and how to harness ICT to this end. The BTech level is a critical one for ...
Proceedings of 18th International Technology, Education and Development Conference. Valencia, Spain, 4-6 March, 2024
At the Durban University of Technology (DUT), the fallout from the recommendation by the Rapid Re... more At the Durban University of Technology (DUT), the fallout from the recommendation by the Rapid Response Task Team to transition from the blended mode of teaching to pure online due to the lockdown caused by COVID-19 in 2020 is now being felt. The realisation is dawning that not all courses are created equally and, more damning, that some assessment practices are not as good as others. To remedy this deficit, DUT is currently running an "Assuring the Integrity of Assessment Practices Project", under the ambit of the Centre for Quality Promotion and Assurance (CQPA). The focus is on evaluating selected online courses. As a possible option for evaluation, this paper proposes a systemic model for evaluating online courses, whether delivered in mixed mode or completely online. The research approach used to develop the model is critical realist, based mainly on Roy Bhaskar's philosophy, but also includes Margaret Archer's morphogenetic theory, which shows how principles developed in previous temporal epochs are not always in phase with elements of present-day contexts. This is particularly relevant in the postpandemic era, where it has been observed that student grades which were skewed upward during the COVID-19 period are now plateauing in line with the period before COVID-19. While it is obvious that certain key course elements are now no longer available to both staff and students, a systemic model of course design is needed which distinguishes between the givens and the variables, so that the most urgent course deficits are identified and remedied or replaced. It will be argued that the systemic model of course design discussed in this paper provides insight into the nature of hypermedia communication. It might assist educators to distinguish between Internet communication and written (i.e., hard print) communication by showing how the functions thought essential for learning to take place effectively are carried out in different ways and with different effects in the different media. The model in fact provides a course design principle outlining 'felicity conditions' for effective course delivery. However, while it suggests the prerequisites for effective course design, the ultimate assessment of effectiveness is left up to the participants-teacher and students-to decide. As the design principle used is descriptive rather than value-laden, and can thus be adapted to suit the specific local values operating in any given learning context, it is well-suited for use in multicultural educational contexts. However, it must be noted that the model is work-in-progress, and may still be refined further in both research and use.
Scenarios for learning an integrated approach, 2011
The title Scenarios for learning is intentionally ambiguous, as the book includes options for lea... more The title Scenarios for learning is intentionally ambiguous, as the book includes options for learning as well as a description of a scenario approach developed by the author. The approach fosters the development of competencies in small group interaction, communication and problem solving, which are the types of higher order competencies described by Spady (1994) as being essential for effective life role functioning. A scenario-based approach was first applied in the context of teaching English at high school, and later, in that of running undergraduate courses in Business Communication. The core method of integrated learning has also been applied in staff induction to e-learning, mixed mode research methodology courses, and staff development workshops. The method is primarily - but not entirely - scenario-based, and has elements of problem-based learning and peer-teaching. It dovetails well with outcome-based learning approaches, but is not limited to such, and involves experiential learning techniques which have been in use for some time in business leadership courses, mostly involving insights from Rogerian psychology (as in Kolb 1984). It has proved very successful in motivating learners and in forming communities of practice to support learning.
Protocols and Processes A Case Book of Video Protocol Analyses in Written Composition, 2010
Protocols and processes provides an account of a video protocol
analysis method developed in mast... more Protocols and processes provides an account of a video protocol analysis method developed in masters and doctoral research into written composition over a period of 20 years. It also features a series of composing profiles drawn up in the course of developing the video protocol analysis method. These provide case studies of student composing, which, it is hoped, might be of interest not only to composition teachers and researchers, but also to academics in general, as writing is the main form of assessment of progress in universities. The video protocol method evolved together with a developing theory of written communication which went some way towards explaining the systemic nature of composing, as well as the infinite variety evident in specific instances of composing. The theoretical aspect is dealt with in some detail in Modelling written communication: a new systems approach to modelling in the social sciences, which is now in press. Protocols and processes complements the development of the theory. It does so by showing how video protocol analysis made the theoretical advances possible and in providing a case book of the video protocol analyses which not only contributed to the development of the theory but also validated it.
In “Brave New World: Decolonising Shakespeare in the Drama Education Curriculum”, which dealt wit... more In “Brave New World: Decolonising Shakespeare in the Drama Education Curriculum”, which dealt with curriculum pre-COVID-19, we gave an account of an extra-curricular drama education project using interactive workshopping and syncretic theatre, and recommended teacher agency as a powerful mechanism for transforming university curricula from within. It is our view that curriculum is a lived experience for both lecturers teachers and students, and involves the community as well as the university; we have personally experienced, in curricular research and practice, the fact that the context determines the form which will be taken for instruction, assessment and eventual real-world application of the competences learned. The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the context overnight, and we now have two years’ experience of the shock and dismay with which university educators have greeted and addressed the changed circumstances. Not only Drama Education, but the real-world phenomenon of drama itself has been affected, with many theatres closing down. We critique the approach described in our earlier chapter from the point of view of its feasibility in the virtual landscape to which we have been forcibly exiled by the exigencies of the pandemic. It is a landscape, we believe, which is devoid of the very characteristics which make Drama Education viable, in particular, a sense of personal presence and care, as well as the intense group bonding which characterises amateur and professional dramatic productions. We then look at the drama curriculum situation as reflected in the experiences of those drama educators who have lived through the last two years in order to ascertain what, if any, strategies they have found to work in practice, and what implications these have for Drama Education curricula as well as curriculum theory in general. These strategies are critiqued with reference to curriculum studies dealing with interactive teaching and learning, as well as studies on virtual learning. A framework for the discussion in this chapter is provided by a systemic model of teaching and learning which suggests how input in the form of contextual factors can materially affect the carrying out of various activities, as well as the overall effectiveness of the teaching/learning process. It is hoped that an explication of the model will provide insight into how curriculum theory and practice are related in Drama Education, the difference between theory and practice, and the main points of difference in curriculum theories and models of virtual learning currently available.
The title "Scenarios for learning" is intentionally ambiguous, as the book includes options for l... more The title "Scenarios for learning" is intentionally ambiguous, as the book includes options for learning as well as a description of a scenario approach developed by the author. The approach fosters the development of competencies in small group interaction, communication and problem solving, which are the types of higher order competencies described by Spady (1994) as being essential for effective life role functioning. A scenario-based approach was first applied in the context of teaching English at high school, and later, in that of running undergraduate courses in Business Communication. The core method of integrated learning has also been applied in staff induction to e-learning, mixed mode research methodology courses, and staff development workshops. The method is primarily - but not entirely - scenario-based, and has elements of problem-based learning and peer-teaching. It dovetails well with outcome-based learning approaches, but is not limited to such, and involves experiential learning techniques which have been in use for some time in business leadership courses, mostly involving insights from Rogerian psychology (as in Kolb 1984). It has proved very successful in motivating learners and in forming communities of practice to support learning.
An in-depth investigation into the nature of composing was carried out to provide the theoretical... more An in-depth investigation into the nature of composing was carried out to provide the theoretical basis for a computer mediated learning application, an interactive writing tutor computer program which might be customised by users to fit different educational contexts. The investigation was carried out within a critical realist perspective, from which viewpoint composing can be seen to have an external reality in common with other social phenomena. The intended outcome was to arrive at a description of writing which more closely approximated the reality so as to design more effective learning interactions, in particular, the writing tutor program itself. In order to arrive at the deep structure underpinning composing, a theoretical model of written composition was developed as follows.
The starting point in the modelling process was an empirical model, formulated in a previous study, and based on the close observations and generalisations of educationists and researchers who had studied composing. As the empirical model was already supported by extensive data of composing, a theoretical model was developed through a process of classical induction, with regular reference to data collected over a long-term period to support inferences arrived at inductively. The resulting theoretical model of written composition comprises an architecture of essential communicative functions, the property of which is communication in written mode. Written communication manifests as a complex process in stages, as observed by researchers and teachers, and as confirmed in a series of video protocol analyses. The system of functions without which effective written communication cannot take place revealed the empirical model to be in the nature of a stochastic algorithm which, while it could not guarantee effective written communication, would satisfy the preconditions for it to occur. The system of functions provided a perspective which made it possible to identify the complex mechanism whereby written communication is effected, as well as the causal factors which can be seen to give rise to the infinitely variable forms composing takes in specific instances (i.e. as input into the composing system). The system of functions is thought to be a generalisable principle applying not only to other communication modes, but with possible applicability in other fields, namely, educational design, art and music. It also facilitated the formulation of a second more analytical empirical model which was used to validate the theoretical model.
The study concludes with an account of the design and production of a working prototype of a writing tutor program, based on the first empirical model. This model was considered more suitable for pedagogical purposes as it offers learners a practical means of carrying out the essential communicative functions in real-life contexts: in effect, it is a type of social algorithm. The writing tutor program is easily customisable by the user, not only so as to reflect local academic requirements, but also to cater for individual learning needs.
Modelling writing as the basis for a writing tutor computer program, 2005
To provide the basis for a writing tutor program which could be used in a variety of contexts, a ... more To provide the basis for a writing tutor program which could be used in a variety of contexts, a modelling process was followed which produced both a practical and a theoretical model of writing. While the practical model provided learner writers with metacognitive strategies to carry out composing processes, the theoretical model underpinning it consisted of a system of communicative functions necessary for effective communication. Having been validated empirically, the practical model formed the basis for a writing tutor program, which was produced in the form of a help menu designed around the five stages of composing shown in the model. The program can be loaded onto the learner writer's home computer and consulted while the writer is composing on computer, and was designed to allow for input by both teacher and student, which means that it can be customised to suit different educational contexts and purposes.
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Papers by Dee Pratt
analysis method developed in masters and doctoral research into
written composition over a period of 20 years. It also features a
series of composing profiles drawn up in the course of developing
the video protocol analysis method. These provide case studies of
student composing, which, it is hoped, might be of interest not only
to composition teachers and researchers, but also to academics in
general, as writing is the main form of assessment of progress in
universities. The video protocol method evolved together with a
developing theory of written communication which went some way
towards explaining the systemic nature of composing, as well as the
infinite variety evident in specific instances of composing. The
theoretical aspect is dealt with in some detail in Modelling written
communication: a new systems approach to modelling in the social
sciences, which is now in press. Protocols and processes
complements the development of the theory. It does so by showing
how video protocol analysis made the theoretical advances possible
and in providing a case book of the video protocol analyses which
not only contributed to the development of the theory but also
validated it.
The starting point in the modelling process was an empirical model, formulated in a previous study, and based on the close observations and generalisations of educationists and researchers who had studied composing. As the empirical model was already supported by extensive data of composing, a theoretical model was developed through a process of classical induction, with regular reference to data collected over a long-term period to support inferences arrived at inductively. The resulting theoretical model of written composition comprises an architecture of essential communicative functions, the property of which is communication in written mode. Written communication manifests as a complex process in stages, as observed by researchers and teachers, and as confirmed in a series of video protocol analyses. The system of functions without which effective written communication cannot take place revealed the empirical model to be in the nature of a stochastic algorithm which, while it could not guarantee effective written communication, would satisfy the preconditions for it to occur. The system of functions provided a perspective which made it possible to identify the complex mechanism whereby written communication is effected, as well as the causal factors which can be seen to give rise to the infinitely variable forms composing takes in specific instances (i.e. as input into the composing system). The system of functions is thought to be a generalisable principle applying not only to other communication modes, but with possible applicability in other fields, namely, educational design, art and music. It also facilitated the formulation of a second more analytical empirical model which was used to validate the theoretical model.
The study concludes with an account of the design and production of a working prototype of a writing tutor program, based on the first empirical model. This model was considered more suitable for pedagogical purposes as it offers learners a practical means of carrying out the essential communicative functions in real-life contexts: in effect, it is a type of social algorithm. The writing tutor program is easily customisable by the user, not only so as to reflect local academic requirements, but also to cater for individual learning needs.