The term technology enhanced learning (TEL) is often used to describe the broad field of digital technologies used to support and mediate educational activities. The term TEL is used to describe activities that are totally digitally mediated and those that are blended or a hybrid with more traditional educational approaches. The last decade has seen considerable growth in the use of technology within higher education at undergraduate and postgraduate levels across the world.

TEL is increasingly presented as a means by which learners can be provided with enhanced or transformed educational experiences. Within undergraduate, postgraduate and continuous professional development education. The need to be able to design and deliver good quality education and training “at distance” during the pandemic has only increased the demand for NES to take a lead in the design and development of effective TEL resources, programmes and events at scale and to make best use of available and emerging technologies. The aim of the NES TEL Programme is to ensure that all NES TEL resources, programmes and events use technology to best effect to lead to enhanced experiences for all of our learners.  

The NES TEL Objectives are part of a programme of transformation aimed at supporting the whole organisation to transform the way in which we / NES designs, delivers and evaluates the education and training we deliver to ensure: 

• the whole organisation understands the role and value of technology in education 
• the whole organisation is committed to and engaged in achieving NES' TEL aims  
• all educators working for, or on behalf of, NES are confident and competent to design and deliver effective TEL education 
• have access to suitable technology to deliver effective and accessible education 
• can effectively evaluate TEL education as part of a continuous improvement cycle 
• are focused on using TEL effectively to lead to enhanced learning experiences for all learners across the health and care services. 

The NES TEL Knowledge Network (TKN) was established together with the TEL Meet Ups as a NES staff support resources at the onset of the pandemic in March 2020. In April. Initially the plan was to offer peer support from the RRHEAL team on the delivery and design of TEL resources, to colleagues within the Medical Directorate only. However, both the weekly sessions and the associated TKN proved very popular across directorates and as word has spread the Meet Ups and TKN have now been running for over a year with some 440 members. The TKN and live TEL Meet Ups provide NES staff with a friendly space in which they can share experiences, discoveries, knowledge and successes around TEL. Benefitting from functionality in Microsoft Teams this has become a very active community of practice where questions are promptly answered by colleagues.  At the regular meetings tools are introduced and experiences are shared. 

Some groups in NES already had experience of using technology to enhance learning and it has been great to use the TEL Meet Ups and TKN share knowledge and expertise to help those who are at different stages of their journeys in learning to design, deliver and evaluate NES TEL across the organisation.