Search

Post-graduate students are so-called digital native and usual users of numeric tools (web, social networks,software applications) on computers, smartphones, and touch tablets. They have free access anywhere andanytime to a variety of information. Their expectations as students have quickly changed with the numericinnovations in technologies. To match this new generation, learning approaches have to be playful, interactive,and based on visual resources rather than long texts. There is also a need to develop long-life skills. Thedevelopment of e-learning courses is an adaptive response of teachers to the changes in learning processes.An educational project was proposed to a group of 8 master students in animal science. The objective wasto make students actors of the computational development of e-learning resources to make them aware ofnumeric technologies in addition to knowledge and skills related to animal and livestock production. Theproject was based on the creation of an e-course linked to the FP7 EU-PLF program. It was expected that theinvolvement of motivated students in the design of the e-course might result in a creative tool correspondingto their needs. Based on basic knowledge in animal production, students proposed four different learningresources after a period of 60 h working in autonomy with minimal supervision of the teachers. Their resourcesconsisted of texts on livestock farming systems, sketches for dynamic schemes on physiological stages ofpig, self-assessment questionnaire, and theoretical growth curve. After validation of the resources by theteacher, the self-assessment questionnaire was tested with other students. The resources were also modifiedtoward a graphic design well adapted to on-line viewing. In a short time this student project management wasinstructive for them to select and write informative contents, using specific English vocabulary. Backgroundand skills in computational development and design were however a limitation and prevented direct on-linepublication. Development of such skills in animal science curriculum is a must.

Precision Livestock Farming (PLF) technologies in farms offer a lot of new opportunities to improve animalwelfare, health and efficiency and reduce the environmental impact of animal production. Continuousmonitoring of animals throughout the use of cameras, microphones and sensors, generates data that needto be analysed to transform data into valuable information, helping farmers to take a better care of theiranimals. The EU-PLF e-course has been created to disseminate the main outputs of the FP7 Smart Farmingfor Europe project (EU-PLF) which aims to bring PLF tools from the lab to end-users in dairy, pig andpoultry farms in order to create value for the farmers and other stakeholders. The animal science team inAGROCAMPUS OUEST used results created by the EU-PLF project and contents of the advanced courseprovided by CIHEAM to design educational on-line resources. Three learning pathways were defined (animalscience students, suppliers of PLF technologies, professionals in animal production) to answer the specificneed of the various categories of stakeholders. The e-course contains basic knowledge, including examplesand methods required to analyse a study case. Seven units were generated for an equivalent of a two-day long training (16 h) but learners may spend more time depending on their needs. Dynamic schemes, self-assessment and videos of farmers, scientists and professionals make the course user-friendly. The course will be available at the following address: http://plf.agrocampus-ouest.fr. Its free accessibility will allow a wide appropriation by individual learners but it can also be used as a teaching tool for educational and professional trainers. Quick changes and innovations in PLF technologies will require a regular update of the e-course content via continuous interaction with end-users, scientists, teachers, informatics engineers and PLF providers.