Transforming Public Health Education in Aotearoa New Zealand: Using 21st Century Learning in the Time of COVID-19

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aut.relation.conferenceSoTEL Symposiumen_NZ
aut.relation.endpage26
aut.relation.issue1en_NZ
aut.relation.startpage25
aut.relation.volume3en_NZ
aut.researcherDrabsch, Julie
dc.contributor.authorConn, Cen_NZ
dc.contributor.authorNayar, Sen_NZ
dc.contributor.authorWilliams, MHen_NZ
dc.contributor.authorCammock, Ren_NZ
dc.date.accessioned2021-03-04T20:59:46Z
dc.date.available2021-03-04T20:59:46Z
dc.date.copyright2021en_NZ
dc.date.issued2021en_NZ
dc.description.abstractThe face of public health is changing in response to local and global trends of rapid technological development, worsening inequities, and the prominent role of the COVID-19 pandemic (Mays et al., 2012; Dahlgren et al., 2015; Schleicher, 2020). Public health jobs reflect these shifts, emphasizing a need for greater online collaboration and project design, complex problem-solving, and more fluid work patterns. Concurrently, education globally is in a process of transformation reflecting similar concerns to that of the public health industry. This change is paradigmatic and evolving from that of factory model education (traditional Campus 101 in the university or higher education setting) to something which must now reflect 21st century employability (Trilling & Fadel, 2009; Bolstad et al, 2012; Robinson, 2020).
 In 2020, COVID-19 brought rapid and significant change to the teaching of public health education in the Aotearoa New Zealand university setting. In this presentation we reflect on the short-term change that took place across higher education as delivery of existing curricula shifted from classroom to online; including in our own practice of public health education. Moreover, we consider the greater agenda of a transformative educational paradigm, broadly conceptualized as a shift from a factory model education to one of 21st century learning, with an emphasis on fostering creativity; heutagogical (student-driven) models underpinned by technology (Bolstad et al., 2012; Robinson, 2020); and real-world application of this involving problem and project-based learning in a changing health industry (Topol, 2015; Mesko, 2015). Such change has stemmed both from the impact of COVID-19 on the education system, and in response to a momentous transformation in public health careers and societal expectations of a public health workforce.
 Prior to COVID-19, public health education primarily consisted of classroom based learning, online resources, and standardized assessment. These methods fulfilled the criteria of giving students much needed ‘knowledge’. However, the standardized nature of delivery and assessments (and indeed the non-digital nature of public health education) was also reflective of graduates being trained to enter an industrial workforce, which has complied with uniform 20th century organizational processes and norms. COVID-19 has demanded a complete change to delivery of education to encompass online methods. It also offers opportunities for the move towards creative, flexible and personalized learning that emphasizes student choice, personal identity and strengths, in a time where the nature of organisation and work is transforming. It is not yet clear whether Aotearoa New Zealand higher education will make the most of such opportunities. As society becomes more diffuse and complex with many different players joining in a complex multisectoral and interdisciplinary workforce that is bounded by the digital era; public health higher education, in partnership with community and industry, must undergo change to respond accordingly.en_NZ
dc.identifier.citationPacific Journal of Technology Enhanced Learning, 3(1), 25-26. https://doi.org/10.24135/pjtel.v3i1.96
dc.identifier.doi10.24135/pjtel.v3i1.96en_NZ
dc.identifier.issn2624-4705en_NZ
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10292/14034
dc.publisherCentre for Learning and Teaching (CfLAT), AUT Universityen_NZ
dc.relation.urihttps://ojs.aut.ac.nz/pjtel/article/view/96
dc.rightsThe journal provides open access to all of its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge. Such access is associated with increased readership and increased citation of an author's work. All articles are made available using a Creative Commons (CC-BY-NC 4.0) internationally shareable licence, meaning that content may be shared worldwide but the source must be acknowledged appropriately. However, the licence excludes the right to create derivatives (for more details please see https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).
dc.rights.accessrightsOpenAccessen_NZ
dc.subjectPublic health; Heutagogy; Higher education; 21st century learning; Workforce development; COVID-19; New Zealand
dc.titleTransforming Public Health Education in Aotearoa New Zealand: Using 21st Century Learning in the Time of COVID-19en_NZ
dc.typeConference Contribution
pubs.elements-id398327
pubs.organisational-data/AUT
pubs.organisational-data/AUT/Health & Environmental Science
pubs.organisational-data/AUT/PBRF
pubs.organisational-data/AUT/PBRF/PBRF Health and Environmental Sciences
pubs.organisational-data/AUT/PBRF/PBRF Health and Environmental Sciences/HY Public Health & Psychosocial Studies 2018 PBRF
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