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We’ve been waiting a long time for computers to dramatically change education, but for the most part, that promise remains unfulflled. Unlike in the business world, where the computer quickly became a fxture on every desk and transformed both day-to-day tasks and the business landscape as a whole, computers have not transformed the goals of educators, or even the methods used to achieve those goals.
Higher Education in a Web 2.0 World : JISC
Essentially, these are Web 2.0 or Social Web technologies, technologies that enable communication, collaboration, participation and sharing.
Web 2.0 – the Social Web:
‘Software that supports group interaction’
Shirky C, 2003
As we began our work, the online lifestyle of young people going into higher education was inescapable, and those working in it had sensed a clear change in their students’ pre-entry experience. The time was ripe for an informed, impartial assessment of this and what it might herald for higher education policy and strategy. This was our remit. Since they represent the future, we took young learners as our baseline. We have, however, been concerned with learners of all ages.
Using technology to improve the cost-effectiveness of the academy: Part 1 « Tony Bates
Is e-learning failing in higher education?
In previous blogs, I have discussed whether e-learning is failing in higher education. To answer the question, I have examined the expectations or goals for e-learning, and whether they are being achieved.
Finally, I come to the last goal or expectation: that e-learning will increase the cost-effectiveness of higher education. I will argue that this is the most important and valuable of all the goals for e-learning, but is the one that is furthest from being achieved.
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- Classes are organized at scheduled times in a fixed location on the assumption of full-time attendance.
- Students receive (at least within the same course) a ’standard’ or common product, in terms of curriculum (same lectures, same reading lists, etc. for each student in the course), delivered at the same time and place, irrespective of the needs of different kinds of students (full-time, part-time, working, following Henry Ford’s classic model-T car strategy: ‘you can have any colour you want, so long as it’s black’).
- To deal with large classes, another classic industrial strategy is used: hiring low-paid and less ‘qualified’ workers – adjuncts and graduate students – to take up the extra load.
- The institution is divided into departmental silos, with a hierarchical management structure of heads or directors of departments, deans and vice-presidents. Academic staff are also organized hierarchically: research student, post-doc, associate professor, full professor, departmental chair.
- The Spellings Commission in the USA (US Department of Education, 2006) even pushed (unsuccessfully) for standardized measurements of output, to allow comparison in ‘performance’ between institutions, reflecting a classic industrial mentality of ‘standardized’ products.
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Given the potential and benefits of digital learning, a radical re-thinking of the benefits and limitations of physical presence, related to the nature of the subject matter and the type of learner being targeted (e.g., high school leavers or lifelong learners, full-time or part-time students) is needed.
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Pedagogy of Online Teaching and Learning
"The resources listed below are designed to provide online RODP/ROCE instructors with principles and best practices for online teaching. "
elearnspace. Learning Management Systems: The wrong place to start elearning
Learning Management Systems (LMS) are often viewed as being the starting point (or critical component) of any elearning or blended learning program. This perspective is valid from a management and control standpoint, but antithetical to the way in which most people learn today.
LMS' like WebCT, Blackboard, and Desire2Learn offer their greatest value to the organization by providing a means to sequence content and create a manageable structure for instructors/administration staff. The "management" aspect of LMS' creates another problem: much like we used to measure "bums in seats" for program success, we now see statistics of "students enrolled in our LMS" and "number of page views by students" as an indication of success/progress. The underlying assumption is that if we just expose students to the content, learning will happen.
- Many HE institutions still think like this, while at the same time professing to be "learner-centred". - willstewart on 2009-09-16
Free Foreign Language Lessons | Open Culture
A great way to learn 37 languages for free. Spanish, French, English, Mandarin, Russian and much more. You can listen to all audio lessons on your computer and mp3 player. Download and you’re good to go.
Intelligent Video: The Top Cultural & Educational Video Sites | Open Culture
Looking for great cultural and educational video? Then you’ve come to the right place. Below, we have compiled a list of 46 sites that feature intelligent videos. This list was produced with the help of our faithful readers, and it will grow over time. If you find it useful, please share it as widely as you can. And if we’re missing good sites, please list them in the comments below.
Digital Ethnography
Here is the video from my recent talk at the Personal Democracy Forum at Jazz at Lincoln Center. About 10 minutes of it is a minor update (rehash) of An Anthropological Introduction to YouTube, but the rest is new. The gathering may have been the highest concentration of amazingly creative and concerned global citizens I have ever been around. Hallway conversations were different than your typical conversations. Instead of lots of people saying, “You know, somebody should … ” there were lots of people saying, “So I did this, this, and this, and now I’m working on doing this, this, and this and we should collaborate … ”
Handbook of Emerging Technologies for Learning - Emerging Technologies for Learning
This Handbook of Emerging Technologies for Learning (HETL) has been designed as a resource for educators planning to incorporate technologies in their teaching and learning activities.
A. S. Neill's Summerhill School
A.S Neill's Summerhill School, a co-educational boarding school in Suffolk, England, is the original alternative 'free' school. Founded in 1921, it continues to be an influential model for progressive, democratic education around the world. Enjoy the site.
Demos | Publications
British universities have world-class reputations and
they are vital to our social and economic future. But they
are in a tight spot. The huge public investment that
sustained much of the sector is in jeopardy and the
current way of working is not sustainable. Some are
predicting the end of the university as we have known it.
Apprehending the Future: Emerging Technologies, from Science Fiction to Campus Reality (EDUCAUSE Review) | EDUCAUSE
How can those of us in higher education best understand new technologies? The phrases "emerging technologies" and "evolving technologies" remind us that the digital world is largely in flux. New devices, altered applications, and shifting practices keep crossing over the horizon—or quietly appearing in our midst.
eLearn: Feature Article
George Siemens is the author of Knowing Knowledge and the recently released Handbook of Emerging Technologies for Learning. He is also associate director of research and development with the Learning Technologies Centre at the University of Manitoba and is the founder and president of Complexive Systems Inc., a learning lab focused on helping organizations develop integrated learning structures to meet the needs of global strategy execution.
Video Paper Builder - Welcome
VideoPaper Builder 3 is a multimedia creation tool for users of any level of technology skills. The java-based software is cross-platform and runs natively in OSX or on Windows machines. VPB3 imports text, image, and video files, and assists the user in synchronizing these files as a single user-navigated multimedia web document. VideoPaper Builder 3 generates HTML, video captioning, menus, links, framesets and slide shows, and organizes the imported files as an HTML coded document viewable in a web browser. Videopapers can be published on CD-ROM or uploaded to the Internet.
Technology Integration Matrix
What is the Technology Integration Matrix?
The Technology Integration Matrix (TIM) illustrates how teachers can use technology to enhance learning for K-12 students. The TIM incorporates five interdependent characteristics of meaningful learning environments: active, constructive, goal directed (i.e., reflective), authentic, and collaborative (Jonassen, Howland, Moore, & Marra, 2003). The TIM associates five levels of technology integration (i.e., entry, adoption, adaptation, infusion, and transformation) with each of the five characteristics of meaningful learning environments. Together, the five levels of technology integration and the five characteristics of meaningful learning environments create a matrix of 25 cells as illustrated below.
Meeting the Top Challenges in Teaching and Learning with Technology (Notes from March 24th discussion session) | EDUCAUSE CONNECT
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Five topics were presented and voted upon, to drill down to two for discussion
1. Creating learning environment that promote active learning, critical thinking, collaborative learning, and knowledge creation. (winner)
2. Developing 21st century literacies
3. Reaching and engaging today’s learners
4. Encouraging faculty adoption and innovation in teaching and learning with IT. (winner)
5.Advancing innovation in teaching and learning in an era of budget cuts
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