gabber

inspiring mind maps

2010-11-17T06:14:00.000-08:00

I'm currently working on a workshop displaying the presentation capabilities of mindmap tools.

The three tools I've used for presentations are;

1) www.Bubbl.us - web based, collaborative, basic (free).

2) www.Mindmeister.com - a map of web 2.0 tools - web based, range of useful features even with the free version. The premium version expands the feature set.

3) Buzan's iMindmap - PC based, but does have an iPhone app. As far as I'm concerned this one has it all, and stays true to the underpinning theories of Tony Buzans mindmapping principles. It works both as a brainstorming tool, as you would expect, but also then turns a mindmap into an impressive presentation. In presentation mode it looks not too dissimilar to PREZI, zooming in and out of nodes as you traverse around your mindmap. It even exports the map to a Powerpoint version. The best I've used bar none.

As you can see from this example my techniques improved markedly after attending an approved Buzan mindmap session. If you adhere to the principles, it really does help improve memory, recall, and trigger ideas off from all areas of your grey matter.

The best I'd recommend for teaching and learning was one I reviewed a few years ago, called mindgenius. The ability to export skeleton maps to word documents allowed students to rapidly work round ideas, then export nodes as word subheadings. Ideal planning tools for both visual learners and anyone coping with dyslexia.

E-portfolios in HE

2010-11-03T04:30:00.001-07:00

Useful video by a colleague of mine discussing the benefits of e-portfolios

Totally Totara

2010-10-25T03:23:00.000-07:00

Totara is the name of a new venture between Kineo + Catalyst IT - A leading open source company based in New Zealand, Australia and the UK. Catalyst are one of the core Moodle developers and have one of the largest Moodle development teams. Joining this are the Flexible Learning Network - An innovative New Zealand based e-learning company that leads the Mahara e-portfolio project, the most popular open source e-portfolio system world-wide and often used in combination with Moodle. Full press release here.

Totara will offer bespoke flavours of Moodle customised (as they do currently) to the corporate LMS market, integrating training tracking, etc, and now add personal learning plan in the shape of Mahara. IMO, HEIs & FE Colleges could benefit from these new ideas of Moodle / Mahara integration. This new venture also reinforces the increased awareness and uptake of Open Source solutions across the globe.

ipad Vs iphone4

2010-07-27T05:44:00.000-07:00

iphone 4 image

I found these stats in the image capabilities of the new iphone. I knew they had improved since Vs 1, but was surprised to see by how much. BTW, the new iphone 4 also has a front camera as well as the back one.

iPhone 4	5.0 MegaPixel	2592x1936	1280x720	Back-Facing
iPhone 4	VGA	640x480	640x480	Front-Facing

see this site for full technical spec': http://www.edepot.com/iphone.html & more here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPhone_4#Camera

Before I mention my new iphone4, I 'd like to point you in the direction of 3 ipad reviews to bring you up-to-date on the best gadget of the century :

Now back to my new work iphone4. I took delivery of it yesterday. Out f the box, it's less curvy than my old (orginal version 1), but on first inspection the interface is much improved. The most obvious difference is the obligatory 4 digit passcode needed to accces it. Not a bad idea.

I re-instated my itunes account to begin download new apps. More about those on following posts.

I tested the camera and video functionality yesterday and was impressed by the ability to shoot video and images from the same app. Not sure of the quality yet, but I do know there's an imovie app that enables simple video editing on the move. I'll try that soon. ~ I've just downloaded the first images and; I'm very impressed at the quality (much improved - see above).The video clips I shot yesterday are also very good quality - apart from the fact that I shot them in portrait format - and I should have used landscape! I'll upload one of those videos to vimeo and embed it in this post shortly. But again the video quality looks outstanding for a mobile phone :OD

Now to add the Blackboard and Pabblepad apps. I'll update you on those and others in the near future. I'll also put up another post about the video capabilities of sed iphone, soon.

the attitude or the technology?

2010-07-21T13:35:00.000-07:00

Just noticed this short article on Wired Campus

So I've just copied it >>>

"Faculty members and information-technology staff members alike say technology is useful for teaching and learning, but professors take a narrower view of what technology belongs in today's classroom, according to a report released on Monday by the technology company CDW Government Inc.

Eighty-eight percent of the 303 faculty members surveyed said technology was essential or useful for student learning, and over 60 percent said they used electronic materials in their teaching, according to the report.

The most popular tools cited by professors were e-textbooks and online documents, with faculty members reporting far less enthusiasm for other electronic tools. Under a quarter of faculty members surveyed use wikis or blogs in their teaching, and only 31 percent of professors surveyed considered online collaboration tools "essential" to today's classroom, compared with 72 percent of over 300 IT employees surveyed.
That suggests an interesting gap between technology staff members and professors when it comes to how smart classrooms need to be. How wired should teaching spaces be?
"

It's only a short article but really resonates with the situation here in the UK education arena. i.e. some see the benefits of the technology, and strive to create environments to nurture 21st century learning expereinces. This is often hampered by differeing levels of support (both IT and senior management) .

The comments about the reluctance to grasp the significance of collaborative platforms also does not surprise me - sadly. The thread of comments posted under the article could have been penned by any UK educator - which is also quite scary. I advise you to read them - very insightful to see the interpretation of technology enhanced learning from differing perspectives. I especially like this comment :

If you're a hammer, everything looks like a nail.

My advice is to get back to basics and work from curriculum up - redesign to incorporate these (collaborative) learning methods - or they'll always be bolt-on. And also ensure the support mechanisms are in place - implementing technology is so about the people and so not about the "systems"
Use the JISC infokit to help redesign your courses - you know it makes sense !o) , it really is very good :

Transforming Curriculum Design and Curriculum Delivery through Technology

Bb merger frenzy

2010-07-09T07:35:00.000-07:00

Bb - ellumninate- Wimba - become one!

Blackboard (VLE) announced this week a pair of acquisitions in the “synchronous learning and collaboration” software business - Elluminate Inc. and Wimba Inc. - for a combined $116 million in cash.

The provider of enterprise software for the education market said the two companies combined provide services to more than 2,600 institutions in the K-12, higher education and professional education markets.

Wow, this is big news. But is it good news or bad news? That of course depends on your stance. If you have Elluminate or Wimba already, could you be facing the support debacle that transpired after Blackboard took over WebCT a few years ago. Not good, and I think Bb are stil suffering the fall out from that poorly managed merger. Let's hope they've learned their lesson?

So where does that leave Bb now? In a very strong position I'd say. My take on it is that the corporate and education sectors are using VLE's much less given the rise of web 2.0 apps and of course the rise of Moodle giant slayer. This fall in their bread and butter market and the impending explosion of live webinars would have certainly dented share dividends. Corporate training budges are being routinely decimated in this economic climate, which now makes it a neccessity to use webinars (Connect Pro, Dimdim, Wimba and Elluminate, etc) to train many staff with them leaving their home or office. Mi££ions can be saved.

Of course those just wanting Elluminate or Wimba as a stand alone product may face a price rise? Or those who need them to plug into other VLEs may be thwarted in the future - by being forced into using Bb just to get Ellumniate or Wimba? Who knows? Or will one of these tools go to leave just the best from Wimba & Elluminate, that would not be such a bad thing?

Uncertain times, but definitely a bold and visionary move by Bb to keep it's market share by investing in synchronous technology - now we (well most) have the bandwidth to exploit these tools.

BTW, if you need an alternative webinar tool like DimDim.com , visit my page on all things webinars.

Tin eye

2010-06-28T03:43:00.000-07:00

Just been told about this new "image plagiarism" tool : http://www.tineye.com/. It helps you reverse search for an image. Useful also for catching up on the results of those Friday afternoon Photoshop tennis sessions (b3ta.com)

logisphere

2010-06-25T08:15:00.000-07:00

Today I had a bit of fun "reviewing the new and; very funky logiech SPHERE webcam. Not the most technically indepth review, but as you can guess I liked it. Oh and BTW it was recorded using the simples Iflip video camrea. The face tracking function kinda works, if U don't dance around the office! Ideal for those webinars?

review of logitech sphere webcam from kevbrace on Vimeo.

Aggregated

2010-05-18T02:21:00.000-07:00

I attended a lecture by Professor Phillip Long ( one author of the 2010 Horizon report) last week. Read the full story on a new Aston blog : http://clipp.blogs.aston.ac.uk/2010/05/aggreagted/ -

Plenty of links to look at - and especially on sharing course material ( as he was one of the instigators of the MIT Open courseware initiative.

irubric & rcampus

2010-04-26T02:25:00.000-07:00

After trawling through another of my regular Google Alerts on e-portfolios this link caught my eye. It began as an interesting link to a web based tool to create a set of rubrics for assessing e-portoflios: called irubric . Very neat idea, for those just embarking on the use of assessed e-portfolios. And for those (like me) who are not exactly sure what a rubric is :
A rubric is a scoring tool that's generally used for subjective and authentic assessments. In subjective assessments, rubrics help create a certain level of objectivity. As a result, learners are more clear about the expectations prior to assessment and are clear about their areas of weakness and strength after the assessment. In authentic assessments (which are usually subjective), rubrics help educators communicate and assess levels of performance.

More on the above at URL: http://help.rcampus.com/index.php/Rubrics

Which also reminds me of the rubric wiki (for digital story telling) developed by the CEAL team in Cheltenham - again this is a proven framework you can pick up and adapt for your own cohorts.

Moving on to Rcampus - from the above irubric pages, I noted that they host e-portfolios and courses (like a VLE) all for free :OD - why pay more? Looks V good (at first glance) For more info watch the vid :

distance nursing

2010-04-21T07:26:00.000-07:00

At last, a positive report on a real success story of how distance learning can really make a difference to education. Lead by the UK's most experienced distance learning organisation. Take note all - distance learning actually works if well designed (using synchronous + asynchronous modes) and very well supported.

Read the full story.>>>>>>>>>>

"...The quality and consistency of support provided on distance-learning programmes is crucial to minimise dropout rates. On the OU nursing course, students are assigned a tutor for each module they take, while another supports individual students throughout their four-year period of study. OU-trained personal mentors, typically a registered nurse, support and assess students in the workplace.

"The workbooks direct your learning, but you got a tutorial every month by video link. We also met our tutor face-to-face once a month with the rest of the group," says O'May. "There were also phone tutorials, emails and online forums. It worked fantastically well."

From 2012, the OU will offer nursing degrees as part of the government's policy to make nursing training degree-standard. But entry criteria will remain the same so that healthcare workers seconded by their employers are still able to study for the degree."

LEAPing ahead

2010-04-19T07:59:00.000-07:00

JISC have recently (March 2010) issued a new briefing paper outlining the latest advances in the LEAP2A standards.

"Leap2A is an open specification for transferring learner-owned information between different systems. e-Portfolio tools and systems are now widely used by learners to present evidence of learning, achievements and abilities for many purposes, including application for a job or university, assessment or professional accreditation. During their studies, these learners may invest significant time and effort in collecting, selecting, reflecting on and presenting the information included in their e-portfolios, so it is vital that their work doesn’t disappear or become unusable as learners move to another college, university or into the workplace."

Two large eportfolio platforms are already on board/helping to develop; Pebblepad and Mahara.

Read more and dload the paper....

while I'm on the subject of eportfolio's, there's a neat little PLE Vs VLE blog post (with commoncraft inspired video) by Steve wheeler (Plymouth Uni)

e-safety tips

2010-04-16T03:30:00.000-07:00

I attended a very informative e-safety CPD session the other week. All based in Second Life. It was a standard type session using PPT (see below), but enhanced with some videos and peppered with live chats discussing topics in question. Thanks to Jane Edwards and Carol Rainbow for running the engaging and informative session. We advise that organisations put some guidelines and protocols (see links below) in place for staff and students, don't just ban everything as knee jerk reaction to the onslaught of web 2.0 use.

E safety-course_2010

View more presentations from kevinbrace.

Titanpad

2010-04-16T03:01:00.000-07:00

Just found out that etherpad has been finally shut down - but now replaced by Titanpad. It does exactly the same as etherpad, i.e. real time collaborative editing. Kind of like a wiki - but "live" - scary, but fun.

There's also http://ietherpad.com/ - which Iwas told is now a fully Open Source version of the now defunct etherpd? Not sure of that tho'?

So also www.wallwisher.com , which is also fun and works like post it notes in your browser - again in realtime - and shared.

Nb. Google purchased etherpad technology to make google Wave. Which is nice. And I've just been informed that the old etherpad team are working on Google doc's. Which we also like :OD

Online Learning Task Force

2010-04-16T02:27:00.000-07:00

I've just skimmed through the March 2010 update of the HEFCE Online Learning Task Force. Makes for some very interesting reading. Basically it boils down to 3 things that need to be adhered to;

Do the market research (who is doing what well, & learn from others mistakes), the OU is obviously a good model to learn from, and conversely so was the UKeU!! Often I see HE going "off on one", blissfully ignorant of the good practice that's gone before by others who've done this well (Ultraversity is a good model, as it Sheffield College Net trainers courses, so is Oxford Brookes, to name but a few). Professor Gilly Salmons 5 stage model & emoderators books are a good place to start.

"Traditional" distance courses are built around a vocational model, relying heavily on adult leaning and work based motivational needs (see also Maslow). Paper behind glass would form the basis of this experiences. This model is a cost saving model. I'd guess very little moderator/facilitator interaction or even less peer2peer engagement. Good online/distance learning takes time to nurture & support and promote student centred & active learning. It is not cheap, and requires skill & time to design and support. I repeat, it it not a cheap alternative to F2F delivery.
And finally, this interim report acknowledges that effective pedagogy and the supporting organisational infrastructure is the key to successful online/distance learning.
The technology is here, now all we have to do is catch up. See also USA, North America & Australia for exemplars of effective distance learning :O)

Snippets from the report.....

Online learning: the current picture in the UK....This research suggests that:

a. More should be done to provide a simple taxonomy of the wide range of
student experiences that currently fall under the broad title of ‘online distance
learning’.

b. The vast majority of online distance learning offered by HEIs is focused on
postgraduate-level provision.

c. Most online distance learning can be identified as professional development,
or as having a strong vocational focus.

d. It can be challenging for potential students to find out about online distance
learning courses, with information often hidden in complex institutional web-sites.
Where details are available, they frequently fail to provide the full range of
information that a potential student needs to make a decision about studying
online.

e. We need to improve the market intelligence available to give a clearer picture
of the position of UK online distance learning in an international context.

and further more :

We have examined what lessons the UK HE sector can learn from previous online

learning ventures, whether successful or ones that no longer exist. ...some interesting points noted so far include:

1. It is important to clarify the purpose of the venture, including a viable, robust

business model.

2. Building on existing success tends to be most effective: in general it seems

wise to grow in, and from, subject areas and markets where institutions have an

established reputation.

3. Clear leadership and ownership is required to maintain strategic focus and

avoid an attitude that online learning is an ‘add-on’ or peripheral activity.

Finally these excerpts caught my eye:

It is also clear that technology platforms are not a barrier to success. The OLTF does not intend to dedicate significant attention to this area. We intend to pay more attention to business models to ensure sustainability and cost-effectiveness, and to pedagogical good practice to support academic quality.

...the importance of good pedagogy to the design and delivery of excellent online learning, recognising similarities and differences between on-site, blended and fully online models different organisational structures and business models that are used to support the development and expansion of online learning for the benefit of newer entrants..

E-Portfolio Watch

2010-04-09T02:18:00.000-07:00

An eportfolio offers a rich reflective tutor/student feedback loop, which promotes effective learning. The e-portfolio continues to grab the attention of many academics in HE, FE, and Work Based Learning (WBL). Our recent webinar on WBL¹, which we ran with Stanford University covers this use of eportoflios in some depth. Their community of practice offers a wealth of useful resources². Complimenting an existing VLE with an individual learning plan³ (ILP), or adding a link from VLE course to a personal e-portoflio (Mahoodle⁴), are now being recognised as effective practice. Susi Peacock’s e-portfolio page⁵ at Queen Margarets University, reinforces the need to plan, pilot, and offer a contuining suite of support mechanisms to all stakeholders. This level of support will help to ensure a healthy adoption of e-portfolios. E-portfolios offer efficient communication channels personalised to the learner needs, that no other “platform” has managed to crack. JISC continues to update the online infokit⁶ on effective practice with e-portfolios, by adding new case studies. See also our comprehensive wiki page on the subject⁷.

Useful links:

E-Learning lessons from the private sector

2010-04-09T02:15:00.000-07:00

My attendance at the biggest UK coporate e-learning event earlier this year promised to be full of pragmatic tips and inside advice from companies¹ still suffering from recessional induced cuts in training² budgets. What I discovered was a refreshing undercurrent, whereby companies are adopting new technologies, such as; Huddle³ and blogs⁴, to create internal knowledge sharing communites. These types of innovative approaches e.g.Dare2Share⁵, were spreading like a viral ad, as most in the UK are reappraising their underacheiving Learning Management Systems (LMS), or adding (free) Web 2.0 tools into the mix. Companies such as PriceWaterhouseCoopers were making significant training savings using live webinar tools⁶ such as Adobe Conenct, or Elluminate. Technolgoy is being used to save money, improve both business and training effiencies, but it’s needed a recession to literally force this! BECta⁷ in conjunction with the Towards Maturity project⁸ have released two new related reports on Work Based Learning. They both stress the importance of measuring impact⁹ and sharing effective practice¹⁰ to help us all implement and embed ILT effectively.

Useful links:

Creating an ePortfolio with Wikispaces

2010-04-08T08:12:00.000-07:00

This is how to do it. Nice & easy. Web 2.0 = PLE. Why pay more, when the web does it for free. And note this is not using any HTML/scripting, it's just editing, copy , paste, insert, link. No more difficult than using a word processor. Neat solution to creating a simple e-folio :oD..

I tried the same with my CMALT folio recently using the now defunct Google pages.

HE-dupunks

2010-04-08T06:14:00.000-07:00

The blurb of this book caught my eye, initially sounded like a rant to begin with, but looks like a useful read into the future of connected learning via the internetwork.
"The future lies in personal learning networks and paths, learning that blends experiential and digital approaches, and free and open-source educational models. Increasingly, you will decide what, when, where, and with whom you want to learn, and you will learn by doing. The university is the cathedral of modernity and rationality, and with our whole civilization in crisis, we are poised on the brink of a new Reformation."

DIY U: Edupunks, Edupreneurs, and the Coming Transformation of Higher Education

Office Add-in for Moodle

2010-04-08T05:29:00.000-07:00

Just stumbled across this... what a fab idea? Does this mean we can now author some simple (interactive) learning objects (i.e. drag & drop) in MS Office & bang them directly up to Moodle? Or is that a bad idea? Puts the terminology "rapid elearning" in a whole new light :OD

The Microsoft Education Labs team have just launched the Office Add-in for Moodle (or should it be the Moodle Add-in for Office?). This launch builds upon the success of the availability of the Microsoft Live Services Plug-in for Moodle which launched last July.

The idea behind the add-in is simple. Now, when you got to Open or Save a file in Office 2003 or 2007, you can select to ‘Open from Moodle’ or ‘Save to Moodle’ directly. This makes it easier for your users to use Moodle natively, and hopefully will encourage them to make better use of your Moodle installation. (If you have a SharePoint-based learning platform, you get similar functionality in Office 2010)

The “Office Add-in for Moodle”

Uploading files to Moodle is now much easier. The Office Add-in for Moodle (OAM) is an add-in for Microsoft Office (versions 2003 and 2007) that allows teachers to open and save Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents to a Moodle website. Today, teachers who use Office and Moodle have to switch back and forth between their web browser and Office applications. With the OAM, teachers can create, open, edit, and save Moodle documents from within the Office applications. You no longer need to use your web browser when working with Office documents stored in Moodle.
So what do you need in order to start using the add-in? OAM does not require anything to be installed on the Moodle server (note we only tested against Moodle versions 1.8-1.9). Anyone who is the teacher or owner of a Moodle course can install the add-in and access their documents. Once installed, the add-in adds two menu items to your File menu (Office 2003) or the Office Button menu: Open from Moodle and Save to Moodle. In order to browse course files on your Moodle you will need to first tell the add-in the address of your Moodle and the credentials you use to log in. Once added you can view the list of courses you are enrolled in. Naturally, students and others can access the content directly from Moodle as they normally would.
We focused on teachers and content specialists first, since we know most documents posted to Moodles come from teachers. We’ve gotten some requests already about adding support for students and assignments, but we want to hear from you. So check it out, and let the EducationLabs team know what you think and if there’s anything you want them to work on. In order to get this beta tool in your hands right away and to get feedback before this gets fully locked down, we decided to roll this out before embarking on synchronization with other add-ins and other Moodle functionality.

It’s worth browsing on the Education Labs site for other projects recently released www.educationlabs.com
Find out more about, and download, the free Moodle add-in
Read other posts on Moodle on this blog

View article...

Helen Talks to TED

2010-03-29T01:17:00.000-07:00

Helen Barrett talks about eportfolios. Geoff Rebbeck from Thanet College is quoted in this. Well done Geoff, your ideas are an inspiration to us all - even to Helen Barrett the spiritual mother of all 'folios!

Meanwhile on a vaguely related ESCalate article; Tracy Johnson, a lecturer in study skills and a qualified personal coach, asks if Personal Development Planning can fit easily into the academic curriculum or whether it resides more comfortably within the employability agenda.

Good CoP

2010-03-26T03:08:00.000-07:00

Free book :OD

In 2009 the Australian ePortfolio Project < http://www.eportfoliopractice.qut.edu.au/ > conducted a series of semi structured interviews from 14 online communities across the globe. This research project was designed to elicit a picture of the types and methods of engagement afforded to these "virtual" eportfolio communities of practice (CoP). RSC East & West Midlands very own virtual eportfolio CoP < http://groups.google.co.uk/group/rscmeg?hl=en > was discussed in terms of platform types, level of management/ facilitation, and participation engagement.

This type of facilitating and supporting subject specific "forums" either F2F, online, or both, has long been a strength of the JISC Regional Support Centres, and we were merely continuing the good work already being carried out across the UK by all RSC's. The very nature of the online domain to support embryonic CoPs presents many new challenges, in terms of maintaining a manageable balance between facilitation, engagement by its members, and choice of platform. We were influenced by local successful CoPs, specifically as the elearning Best Practice run by Helen Walmsley(former RSC member), http://learning.staffs.ac.uk/moodle/login/index.php .

This collaborative venture between myself & Ben Williams (RSC East Midlands) also prove that cross RSC projects are essential, by reaping the benefits of sharing effective practice both internally and externally. It is hoped that others may learn from our experiences when considering supporting similar CoPs in their own areas.

See also our wiki page that covers all things eportoflio , plus the excellent EPAC - USA based wiki pages - my original inspiration the http://www.jiscinfonet.ac.uk/e-portfolios

While I'm on the subject of eportfolios, I saw a demo of in-folio the other day. It's been funded by JISC Techdis and developed (by the RIX centre)with UK specialist Colleges. I was impressed at it's ease of use and straight forward interface. Two years in the making, it goes from strength to strength, and was mentioned that it will be released as Open Source.

They have even developed an innovative image based log in function to assist those who cannot type. This project alone looks like it has potential to made logins easier for many (to eliminate the bane of multiple passwords) : http://www.clippi.com/where.php

Maharan

2010-03-17T09:21:00.001-07:00

Are you a Maharan?  For those n00bs, who are wholly unaware of the parlance I've broken into, a "Maharan" is a dedicated follower/user of the Mahara eportfolio platform. Mahara is another best of breed Open Source learning platform (like Moodle), that has been developed in Australia/New Zealand.  Mahara has experienced meteoric rise to fame (again similar to Moodle) across the globe, due to its relative ease of use, ability to integrate into other systems (Mahoodle or MaGoogle), and the growing acceptance of personalised of learning.  The reason why I'm telling you this, is that I've just reviewed a very good book that's just been published by a good friend of mine Derrin Kent, and his dedicated team at UK Bewdley based TDM ltd.  Derrin is an all round good guy and is very experienced at levering ILT/e-learning solutions for Work Based Learning, Colleges and local companies using Moodle or Mahara for teaching or training.

That experience Derrin has amassed is precisely where the scenarios that support each chapter of Mahara 1.2 ePortfolios are drawn from.  Derrin and his colleagues at TDM, have really gone out of their way to make this book appeal to all levels of interest and experiences, not just with eportfolios, but ILT in general.  It is written in a relaxed, yet informative style which draws the reader into trying out the bite-sized exercises, which form the lion's share of the book. At every step each chapter builds confidence, gives clear illustrations, and positively reinforces the theory by real world scenarios. The reader is constantly encouraged to "have a go hero", buy jumping online to a Mahara sandpit, to learn by doing.  Each step is explained and the chapters check learning, fully explaining the jargon and provide good examples of exactly why and how Mahara could (and should) be used.

The first chapter, really set the scene explaining eportfolios in general, and the final chapters move into more tutor and administrator levels of Mahara deployment.  But as a mere "user" myself I found these latter chapters equally clear and informative – especially the sections on using Mahara as a very capable e-assessment tool.

What really sets this book apart from the plethora of computer manuals was the first appendix that guided the reader into the essential aspect of planning and piloting an e-learning platform, to ensure all stakeholders are consulted, and a robust evaluation plan is factored in.  The final appendix even goes as far as covering basic installation of Mahara for those brave enough to try. But by the time you've dipped in and out of this book, you will want to.  A thoroughly good read, that can be enjoyed by anyone interested in the potential of eportfolios and a must for those who have Mahara and want to exploit its suite of features.

On its own (either hosted or locally run) Mahara offers a robust set of features that pitch it up against most VLEs for shear practical teaching and learning e-solutions. But... if you do co-join Mahara and Moodle (single sign on), then Mahoodle can offer quite a powerful and flexible Open Source solution suited for most training and teaching needs.

Well done Derrin and all the TDM book authors, for a well crafted and very informative book.

Why projects go Wr0nG

2010-03-16T04:10:00.001-07:00

I recently attended a webinar run by the elearning network + ALT entitled "Why eLearning Projects Go Wrong". The recording of the ALT/ELN Why eLearning Projects Go Wrong webinar which took place on the 17th February is now available via the ALT Open Access Repository at: http://repository.alt.ac.uk/view/divisions/projectsgowrong/2010.html

Capture your screen in seconds

The above screencast was recorded by myself just to illustrate how Prezi can be used effectivly as a presentation tool during an online webinar. In this instance we were using Elluminate. Anyhoo back to the meat of the webinar.

Rob Hubbard kicked us off. Rob is a memeber of the eLN, and runs his own company http://www.learningagesolutions.com/index.htm.

Robs many years of experiences in designing and executing bespoke elearning solutions for large compaines was spot on the mark in terms of promoting a plethora of pragmatic tips to guide us through the maze of designing an e-learning "product" that satisfies a clients spec'. Rob ran through a set of pitfalls to avoid whilst running his prezi "slides";

Work closely with stakeholders, as their time to review is critical - ensure they understand the entire process,
ensure that stakeholders understand the time needed to review the project steps at critical sign-off stages. Book these review stages in their calendars, be explicit about scope and range of "agreed changes",
ensure ALL stakeholders are identified and have indepth knowledge of their required input/review at each stage of the design. Document ALL comm's with them in a central place accessible to all – Robs uses basecamp for this (web based) project management of key stages, decisions, and all project doc's,
unstuff! - use a method like Kathy More's - action mapping - identifying what needs to be acheived – which ends up at content - keeps it (planning meetings) focussed,
has the "thing"/tool/ training package/ changed behaviours - made money / increase in sales, etc? Measure the business metrics. And does it fit with marketing and other promotionals?
test on target market – it is fundamental to adopt true user centred design process – do not be tempted to shortcut this stage of the inital design process – do so at your peril!
Identify learner needs - active, real world based, skills ,etc.. put yourself in your learners shoes - identify tangible outputs - that could be measured!
Implment a multi stage (sign off) process of protoyping and final output - identify a gatekeeper at the client end, to keep everyone in the loop. Test, test, test, on a sample of target users - to feedback users comment into the final design.
Adopt a "Plain "English" approach to writing copy + screen design (rememeber less is more for the web), ie. writing for screen and for elearning efficiency & learning efficacy.

Next up was David Wilson of elearnity

David also has many years experience of managing large scale e-learning projects. Davids tips complimented Robs;
Issues emanate mainly around execution - design and delivery - but also around the output - i.e. what's in it for me.

4 main points of going wrong Alignment, outcomes, adoption, and execution. See also the Towards Maturity research which backs this up. Alignment is key - if this is wrong, everything else is skewed and will not work (backed up by Towards Maturity research).
Most elearning is built for compliance (bigger companies) - so elearning is looked at as "boring", as most peoples experiences are primairy concerend with consuming legalities/rules, etc - not interesting!! i.e. most elearning is paper behind glass / click through pages of text + the occaisional self assessment. Dull dull dull.......
Drivers and barriers for acceptance and utilisation - need to be identified and designed in - often they are just ignored. Is e-learning the answer at all, and indeed is it a learning problem in the first instance? Is it just a communication issue?
Initiative overload - end users being bombarded by new stuff - need to decide how and if to implement.
test test test on target platforms and people!! Especially when using other vendors to built the end product.
Adoption: support from line managers to actually learn whats been created! Marketing and; relevance and; currency.
Outcomes: measuring success ,how to anaylse ROI? Evalaution evaluation evaluation is key. How has the knowledge being retained and used down stream, most elearning companies shy away from this and factor ROI around design and delivery of the project - not measuring improved business performance. n.b. again the Towards Maturity report backs this up.

new research paper "e-learning authoring: the shifting landscape"

Finally I pushed for any advice on the touchy subject of useful evaluation of such projects. I suggested that we could use the Kirkpatrick Model ??: But I was somewhat rebuffed as to it's usefulness. The answer I received was "it kind of works" - but at a higher level - not useful for business metrics - ie. performance improvements. So I did not really get a satisfactory answer for this, but I guess that this two companies needed to keep somethings back, to retain a competitive edge? Unless - this is such a grey area, (read expensive) - no one really knows/can afford to correctly evaluate multimedia type projects???? Answers on a postcard please :OD

Above all a really useful webinar for those who are designing, and implementing any for of elearning into a large organsiation. It struck me how the whole process was simialr to managing any multimedia projects, including websites. From a project management perspective, effective (client) communication is key, as is robust user centred design.

From an end user perspective, desinging rich engaging material is the key. In fact we discussed adopting a much more social, collaborative, reflective, real world, type of expereince. Much like Rob Hubbards own RED course, or by adopting the http://www.connectivism.ca/ approach.

Low cost video cameras

2010-03-02T08:00:00.000-08:00

Image taken with sepia camera app for iPhone

Time to share some received wisdom from the RSC crowd about a simple question posed by Justin Spooner from RSC Wales. He asked us all ..

"We currently use the Busbi video camera with the flip-out screen and the Flip Ultra video cameras for recording and demoing low cost video cameras. Unfortunately the Busbi was discontinued some time ago and one of our learning providers would like to know of alternatives. I have no problem with the Flip Ultra but I was wondering what you all used in the £120 or less range."

The replies came thick and fast from across the UK:

There is a lovely wee case study on the recent Scottish RSCs Newsfeed posted by Hugh Dailly which highlights how Perth College have used the Creative Vado Digital Video Camera. The entry also provides a link to a you tube review on this gadget. I think they cost around £90 and seem to be quite simple to use. http://scottish-rscs.org.uk/newsfeed/?p=7662
My vote would currently go to the Kodak Zi8. HD quality. A key benefit over others in this price range is that you can use an external mic. It also has a macro mode – useful for reasonable close-ups. I realised quite early on that our Flip was useless for such things when I was going to do a video review of an iPod Touch app. It just couldn’t focus close enough. So a bit more flexible than the flip but still easy to use. The black one on amazon is about £119. Other colours are about £5 cheaper.

Here’s quite an in-depth review on youtube

Part 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4Qq5__ETI8

Part 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ro0ce5nDfS4&NR=1

We use disgos as a very cheap alternative http://tinyurl.com/disgo-amazon

We have also recently bought a Samsung Flashcam which does time lapse which can be useful for gathering digital evidence of a time consuming tak such as building a wall etc http://tinyurl.com/flashcam-amazon

Try Disgo cameras, they are the same design and price as the lower end cameras.
Yep Flips are a good choice as well, also try the XACTI. They come in a number of price brackets and will allow the user to take video and stills and allow the video playback to be paused.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=xacti&tag=googhydr-21&index=electronics&hvadid=4947908465&ref=pd_sl_6ghzgxajsf_b

I am moving more and more towards simple devices that allow you to shoot stills and video as these tend to be better value for money, more flexible. The one thing I hadn't appreciated until recently was the importance of the pause function when playing back footage.
..the Disgos and Xactis are really good, Xactis prices can get a bit steep. Another consideration is the holding format, the square of the Disgo or a pistol grip style of the Xacti. I bought my daughters the Samsung U10s for Christmas, HD and very good. One thing they commented on is having to hold it very steady, as in HD mild handshake/vibration at 30 fps is very noticable (particularly when the video is taken from the edge of a dance floor in a club after a few beers). If waterproof for outside use is a consideration then the Xacti has a model and if cheap and waterproof is a consideration Tesco have a Vivitar DVR850W for just under GBP 60 (70-80 elsewhere). Final consideration that may not be important is low light capabilities, but indoors shooting can end up grainy even under eyeball acceptable artificial light.

All I can add to this is that my iphone camera is perhaps the worst mobile camera I ever used! Don't buy an iphone if you want a 1/2 decent camera. Buy one of those new Sony Erricsson phones instead.

And think of how you are going to use the output video, if it's going to youtube then buy one with a USB port (the disgos), but be careful some of these cameras output in MP4 format (apple stuff) which is a difficult format to convert and to be embedded into Moodle,blog ,etc.

new ways for HE?

2010-03-02T01:24:00.000-08:00

Lord Mandelson’s 11th Feb Dearing speech defends the government’s record on HE funding, commits to “sustainable expansion” and urges HE to source other forms of income and consider alternative modes of provision.

Lord Mandleson, continues the debate and defends his Higher Ambitions report, by facing critics and outlining new ways that UK HE needs to respond to market trends, competition, student needs, and maintaining quality.
He said...

" For universities Lord Dearing had a clear message that the institutions needed to focus on distinctive missions, diversified sources of income, a new recognition of the value of teaching, a constant focus on the quality of the service to the student."
and in regards to improving flexible provision he said...
"along side traditional three year full time degrees, I want to see more part time study, I want to see two year Foundation Degrees and three years Honours courses delivered intensively over two years expand as part of the mix. Not creating a single blueprint in which everyone is made to conform. We’ve got to create a mix to take higher education forward"

..."And because these flexible kinds of education and training are vital for those who miss out on higher education straight after school the push for two year degrees and wider part time or work-based study should be at the core of the wider participation agenda. Those who argue against it risk painting themselves as defending an institutional inflexibility that doesn’t serve students, and doesn’t get the most out of public investment that we make in higher education."

...."All these apprenticeships will earn UCAS points so that they act as a ladder into university."

In respect of UK HEIs diversifying to attract private investment he said..

"The first is on the need to seek out alternative sources of funding. The best university systems in the world are defined by a wide range of public and private funding and British universities need the same diversity."

..."Part time degrees, shorter and more intensive courses all offer the potential to lower student support costs, use resources more intensively and improve productivity."

And finally...

"I passionately believe universities cannot stand still. Universities must adapt to new times, to new sorts of courses, to new ways of delivering and teaching. This is where I will continue to lead the debate and policy. "

All I can say is that distance and blended learning is the answer, using the VLE, eportfolios and cloud computing methods. This mix of flexible approaches and a (less resource based) curriculum rethink will give UK Higher Ed' the edge we need. My view is backed up by Dr Tony Bates in his comments on eLearning progress in HE, Dr Bates recognises the importance of e-tutoring & sound instructional design models to move online/blended delivery to a more "active" realm of student-tutor interaction. And David Lammy also throws his two 'penneth in by stating the following at a recent conference

“Students are all on Facebook, Twitter, Bebo, i-Phones and i-Pads for their social life and their university experience is still divorced from that […] Universities have to be advancing technology.”

Tho' , as we are all well aware UK HE is a slow beast to move and react to change and forcing UK HEIs to simply adopt ICT as the panacea to cure all ills is a road well trodden and resisted 'afore. Innovative teaching, improved CPD, and adoption of flexible (blended) curriculum delivery is key, so says Drew Whitworth in his insightful comments on Should e-learning change university management blog post. And, as Drew also states in his posting, not all students are demanding unfettered access to a pletohora of social networks, as we know, poor digital literacy is an issue to be addressed by generations X,Y and baby boomers alike. As we are well aware the term digital natives is a misnomer perpetuated by the media, and JISC have done quite a bit of work in this area to try and find out how a modern student studies.

Interestingly The 2010 Horizon Report also highlights some key trends facing education across Europe, which echo some of the innovative approaches UK HE need to address, as mentioned above. They are;

The abundance of resources and relationships made easily accessible via the Internet is increasingly challenging us to revisit our roles as educators in sense-making, coaching, and credentialing.
People expect to be able to work, learn, and study whenever and wherever they want to.
The technologies we use are increasingly cloud-based, and our notions of IT support are decentralized.
The work of students is increasingly seen as collaborative by nature, and there is more cross-campus collaboration between departments.

And, not so coincidently JISC have just announced a suite of resources for universities on employing technology to support their business goals.

Under the JISC and Leadership Foundation partnership, this interactive publication highlights the characteristics of an agile university and how to achieve a dynamic business environment.

Ewart Woodridge CBE, Chief Executive of the Leadership Foundation for Higher Education, says, “The ‘Agile University’ is about the capacity to innovate, particularly in new business or operating models. It requires a creativity in how an institution is structured and people are equipped to lead and manage it. It also requires a strategic and entrepreneurial approach to the use of technology.”

video toolz

2010-02-17T01:46:00.000-08:00

Just been trying out two new tools to generate screencasts and; video interviews. Both free web based tools - no need to install. Just register and go.

The first I had a play with is Screentoaster.com . Free & simple to use. An alternative is www.screenr.com - also free, but needs a twitter account to sign up with!

My screentoasted effort was upload to Youtube, which took about 45 mins! That allows you to share it & use an embed code to add it to a VLE or a blog. N.B. Screentoaster needs a JAVA VM install , and id not work with Google Chrome?

The second tool I experimented with is http://wetoku.com/, this allows you to record/interview someone, live! Use a webcam + headset. The results are very good. You could use it for assessing learning, discussions, recording ideas & conversations. An alternative to Skype, as it requires no dload of softwarezz.

The Vid below is a quick test we conducted in the office. Much fun. I used a farily expensive Logitech webcam, but it's quality is overshadowed by Jane's inbuilt webcam on her Apple mac book thingy. So, you could interview someone & post the conversation on a blog like this :OD. Simples. We love Web 2.0

Find more of these types of tools on my rapid e-learning wiki page:
http://wiki.rscwmsystems.org.uk/index.php/Rapid-elearning

future proofin'

2010-02-15T01:18:00.000-08:00

Two local Universities (BCU & WLV) have made early steps to address the employability issues outlined by Lord Mandelson last year. He stated

"Set out how and what students will learn; their own study responsibilities; what that knowledge will qualify them to do…. Students should know about the opportunities for international experience, and how new technologies are integrated into their programmes. All universities should also be expected to demonstrate how their institution prepares its students for employment." (Lord Mandelson, 2009)

So now employers and employability is set to mould the way of Undergraduate study in this era of austerity we are now in- especially in the post '92 Universities. With the recent HEFCE announcement in cuts to HE funding, Universities are now having to look at what they are offering to their local and global economies. No longer can we expect students to roll out of Uni' with a good degree in yurt weaving (or similar), they need to have some real saleable skills in this competitive market place. IMPACT will have to be measured.

BCU have their Creating Futureproof graduates - project

..which is choc' full of useful methods, approaches, case studies and critical interventions to help prepare Undergraduates for the wider world of work, critical reflection, and autonomy.

while Wolverhampton have their Learning Works agenda

This approach is based on 3 primary student attributes;

It's all being pushed forward as apart of a re-jigging of the whole curriculum with a move to 20 credits. This also involves moving towards a more blended delivery whereby the VLE, eportfolio, and other "e" tools are being blended with F2F delivery over a range of methods (e.g. e-submission, assessment, ePDP).

I sat through a presentation about this the other day, and it seems that the underlying tenet appears to be to redesign curricula to ensure previously seemly unconnected modules are now working in harmony, to "un-stuff" current content heavy delivery, and a streamlining of learning objectives. So the course is king, made up of less , but more focussed modules. It's all good. I hope that this means an new pedagogic approach in designing student centred activities? Let's hope so.

A BCE update

2010-02-03T07:06:00.000-08:00

Business and Community Engagement encompasses four institutional strategic areas:

knowledge exchange - see also the DIUS funded knowledge transfer networks
employer engagement
public engagement
lifelong learning

Lis Parcell of RSC Wales blogged about this subject recently after attending a workshop on the topic. Well worth a read to get a first hand insight into important developments in this new arena.

This post covers the JISC agenda Business and Community Engagement (BCE), which is a relatively new agenda for JISC developed in response to the strategic aim 5¹ of the 2007-09 strategy – ‘developing and implementing a programme to support institutions' engagement with the wider community’. The BCE programme is designed to support institutions in their strategic management of relationships with commercial, public sector (including charities and trusts), cultural, social and civic organisations, in order to deliver services which benefit the economy and society.

A call for joined-up services to help businesses out of recession

Sharing business information more effectively, particularly through colleges, universities and major reference libraries, could help recession-hit companies out of crisis and stimulate innovation, according to a JISC report undertaken by the British Library Research Service.

Full story : http://www.jisc.ac.uk/news/stories/2010/01/business.aspx

There is also a BCE blog and a JISC Infonet infokit which covers this new agenda. BCE is explained succinctly in the JISC Advance pages "BCE consists of many different institutional strategic areas/services, some of which are highlighted in the diagram below".

see also video below

Findings from the infokit resource are based upon work carried out within our five partner institutions:

University of Glamorgan
Keele University
Newcastle University
Shrewsbury College of Arts and Technology
University of Strathclyde

So thats two organisations from the west mids region who have been used in this new infokit! Thie idea is that you work through a diagnostic workbook, to evaluate your organisations readiness to embark upon BCE - or apprasie existing activities. I am under the impression that JISC Infonet will provide targeted consultation type of support either directly or as part of a national events programme.

Two other local initiatives on this topic, are the embryonic Intelligent Career Development Company, and the JISC funded project of developing an eportoflio based pedagogy for workbased learners. Both are in early stages, but worth keeping an eye on.

This is very prescient considering the recently announced cuts in HE funding, as learning organisations will need to look at new and alternative streams of funding. And.... to show those funding people what IMPACT your HEI/college is having on the local community, and commerce. Times are changing, and it's time to react.

trendy tools of 2010

2010-02-02T02:09:00.000-08:00

Tools of 2010

This is my second posting covering last weeks Learning Technologies conference. The biggest UK conf' for e-learning types to sell their wares, and prospective customers to zoom around obtaining intial ideas of what's hot or interesting, in the middle of the deepest recession in our time!

This posting covers some of the tools we can use to improve distance learning/training. Whether they are platforms, authoring tools, or content. There's something here for all. I either visited these stands or watched presentations. So on with the show. Before I move on, the training zone have an excellent video that also does this, well worth a look. And I'm glad to see Clive Shepherd (elearningnetwork.org) thinks that 2010 will be the year for webinars, whether DimDim, Webex, or Elluminate, they offer VFM. and let's not forget the micro chunking of learning into mini courses. Elliot Masie also advocates this trend. I also bumped into Rob Hubbard who has created the most excellent Rapid elearning Development course (RED) - take a look, then sign up - it's bang on the quality rapid e-learning agenda.

Platforms

http://twitter.com/ - microblogging platform - good for networking and knowledge sharing and finding out what a random stranager had for lunch!
https://www.yammer.com/ - like twitter but can be just for your organisation - knowledge sharing is the key
http://www.huddle.net/ - see above
http://etherpad.com/ - real time collaborative text editing - like a wiki - but in real time. This is now Open Source. I was given an alternative by Andy Black from BECTa - i'll chase that up.
http://wetoku.com/ - record short vids for your blog - or use it to meet up online using a web cam - like OovoO or ??
Adobe Acrobat Connect Pro - when you join Macromedia with Adobe only good things can happen - and this Learning management system/authoring/live presenting doodah - has it all (for a price!)
Moodle - Kineo offer some good support solutions
www.xyleme.com/LT - collaborative authoring platform using open standards. A neat approach.

http://www.thinkingworlds.com/ - 3D engine to create immersive worlds - good for games based learnign and mor realistic scenarios/simulations
http://www.myknowledgemap.com/ - a capable assessment based eportfolio platform, that's being reworked into a PLE - expect more from me on this in the near future -as it's in alpha at present.
http://learn.gotomeeting.com - online webinar tool - like dimdim
http://www.seminar.co.uk/ - manage your training provisionfrom this platform - simple, and very effiicient.

I recently created a mind map covering some of these tools on offer - see below - click on the links in the map to visit the websites.

Authoring (rapid is the buzz word)

See also Brighton's Brightwave for their useful case studies on rapid elearning tools, and so do Kineo - check out their rapid e-learning page.

http://prezi.com/ - create engaging zoomy type flash presentations (with videos), A steep learning curve. Alternatively use Buzan's imindmap - much easier.

Adobe Acrobat Acrobat 9 Pro(extend) - a bit of a mouthful! But.. this version allows you to create PDF documents with ease, including embedded videos and assessments. If you get this version, you automatically get the PowerPoint plug-in, that gives the same functionality as Adobe Presenter. - like Articulate or Lecturnity

Content

http://www.datpresenter.com/ - synch video with slides - like viddix
http://animoto.com/ - create simple video slide shows - like MS Photo Story
http://www.xtranormal.com/ - create simple 3D movies/scenarios
http://www.comicbrush.com/ - create fun strip cartoons - like http://stripgenerator.com/
http://www.e-learningwmb.co.uk/ - green screen video production technology, creates high quality video training vignettes. Quality product at an affordable price.
http://wwww.videoarts.com - high quality video training clips/course from an industy giant - now they can be streamed into your VLE
http://www.trax-uk.co.uk/ - they scan paper based hig hstakes assignments into digital format for further analysis, storage, etc. A neat solution.
http://goodpractice.com/ - provide toolkits for work based learning - looks V useful
http://www.dtvuk.com/ - digital training videos - good quality
http://www.digitalpublishing.de/de/press-releases.html - language learning solutions
www.bitesizeltd.com - as it suggests - excellent nuggets of self paced , self contained tutorials on how to use most Microsoft products. Quality stuff.

Don't forget I have a wiki page entirely dedicated to the use of video in education. Case studies and technical aspects are all covered in some depth. Please take a look

(in)formal learning

2010-02-01T07:15:00.000-08:00

Download the Towards Maturity Impact Indicator report

The learning technologies conf' was very interesting - sponsored by Kineo. Expect a few blog posts on some of the tools I heard about.

Looks like LMS' (VLEs) are in gradual decline in the business arena as well as education! No one really "likes" them, tho' they all feel that the LMS is here to stay, but will be part of a larger collection (cloud) of e-systems (incl' plenty of Web 2.0 apps). The word free application seems to resonate with our cash strapped training/learning and development dept's. Strangly tho' not many seem to understand that eportfolios are part of the answer!! Most seem to be gravitating towards informal learning or Presonal learning Environments (PLEs ) - aggregated social networks, etc, as an anitdote to shrinking training budgets - but not really understanding far reaching implications. And no mention of underpinning pedagogies/scaffolding.

There seems to be a collective thought that, "if we find the right tools (Yammer, Huddle, etc), they will come - and all learn informally hapily ever after!! Tho' many cite internal communities of practice - and knowledge of, are needed to drive business efficiencies. Another Web 2.0 / elearning bandwagon is being jumped on, with little thought as to why - apart from most of these tools are free!

But some are more cautious tho' - citing our frivolous trends in this rapidly changing web 2.0 world, i.e. friends re-united was hot, now it's not - is that what will happen to Facebook in a couple of years time? One company blocked access to Facebook @ work and reported an immediate 11% increase in productivity . And plenty of talk about what impact e-learning is having on business upskilling and driving efficiencies. No one seems to be evaluating past e-learning successes, to their peril, as senior managers still don't "get it" - as the strong businesses cases are not being promoted. The age of BS "smoke and mirrors" selling e-learning to business is well and truley over. Strong tangible business benefits is what SMT are only (and have always been) interested in.

Laura Overton (see my doctored image above) did talk about a very revealling benchmarking research study Towards Maturity enterprises conducted recently. Analysing perceived and tangible impacts of e-learning had on business' bottom line. Unsuprisinlgy not many had really analysed these business savings as a result of implementing previous VLEs/LMS'.

IMPACT is the new mantra. Implement, anaylse, and evaluate, or die trying. If you don't do this, the bean counters are more likely to say, "why sould we pay for a new microblogging platform" when we've got email?" Unless e-learning companies or inhouse dept's can present quantitave data clearly illustrating improvement in business efficiences and cost savings, those bean counters, are quite at liberty to say.

"No thanks, we'll stick with our intranet, email, free web 2.0 tools, and less (more focussed) F2F training. "

And who could blame them? That goes for UK education as well. "Will this new web 2.0/ Open Source tool save us money ? If so how much?"

A recent report will help to convince some about potential costs savings for OS tools

Informal learning, internal knowledge transfer, eliminating travel to training, Communities of practice are "trending" - but very few have cracked it - apart from BT's "Dare2Share" social networking portal. See also the vid below:

That's the main feeling - but e-learning business is still strong - as training dept's are being forced to use e-learning due to reduced budgets and reduced personell -and they are doing it well! Blended and distance training (webinars) are looking stronger - with good reports of trainees really taking to these new methods. Pricewaterhousecoopers ran an excellent presentation on their global training stratgey - drastically revamped to use primarily webinars. So, at last, it's taken a global recession for business to start being forced to use e-learning to make significant training and devleopment savings. With the added benefit of employees actually taking to it!! There's hope for us all, maybe the education sector is next - considering cuts in funding are iminent. HFECE has announced serious cuts today - and it's splashed all across the news. Time to blend learning UK HEIs , time to give some serious thoughts to integrating "e" solutions into F2F delivery, rather than ignoring it/us, and hoping we'll go away to play with shiny ipads - we wish!

e-Portfolios and Education for the Professions

2010-01-25T06:01:00.001-08:00

Creative Commons cleared image

This is the title for an event I attended last week in Bristol. And very informative it was too. A full on day choc-a-block of informative presentations. I've attached the programme (with abstracts) at the bottom of the page. All presentation resources will be available from RSC SW at URL: http://eportfoliorscswbuevent.ning.com

I'm going to run thro' the day with some snippets & reflections I took from the sessions.

First up was Dr Cheri Logan. Dr Logan ran through their 2008/9 eportfolio research study: http://evolve-e-learning.wikidot.com/del2-archive . Very interesting stuff in regards to how both staff & students perceived the usefulness of eportfolios. There were tensions abound in terms of being given "space" (blogs and eportfolios), but not sure whether this "space was fit for purpose. The imposition of a semantic ePortfolio structure was the main gripe – and rightly so. . While others jumped at the chance to use them (pebblepad). It seems that the general consensus in art & design that the traditional portfolio is now a hybrid beast. This portfolio now contains traditional (digitised) creative pieces to display to peers (to receive crit's), but is now a place to shoe development of ideas, and receive formal tutor & peer feedback. And just as importantly, a place that can be used to show prospective employers their creative ideas. Some are seeing the eportfolio as a "bridge" between undergraduate studies & the scary world of work. This aspect of art & design students adopting a professional online status (using tools like blogs & Facebook) is very real in these difficult economic times. Eportfolios and blogs are being viewed as an important showcase medium by net savvy undergraduates. These students are acutely aware of the range of "external audiences" to their work. An ePortfolio/blog just makes it that much easier to do. Apparently http://www.formfiftyfive.com/ is the place to create an arty bloggy thingy :O)

Next up Lisa Grey (JISC) talked about latest developments and additions to the JISC ePortfolio infokit , and she also mentioned the 5 threshold concepts of understanding/exploiting eportfolios. These are:

Purpose – closely aligned to concept
Learning activity design – meaningful (= assessed or not bolt on)
Process – e.g. the technical and pedagogic support for all involved.
Ownership – is owned, portable, choice of tools/skins
Disruptive in nature – new pedagogies need to be understood.

Following Lisa, was Dr Sue Martin who talked about how they (Bath Uni) were using eportfolios to help develop critically reflective learners (trainee teachers). The small scale optional study gleaned some very positive results. All staff & students involved in the ePortfolio pilot extolled the virtues of sed method and platform. Tutors reported higher levels and quality of engagements in reflective assessments. It seemed that the most important aspect was that busy trainee teachers could add reflective comments up to their blogs very soon after each session. And this enabled a much more reflective & self critical/aware internal & external discourse. Fundamentally this ensured that the 'folios were being created during study/placement and not left to the end – usually handed in & forgotten about. This echoes the work Julie Hughes as done at University of Wolverhampton with her trainee teachers. The tutors also set up a simple template to ensure all recorded work could be easily mapped against the professional standards. A general consensus that an ePortfolio is more dynamic than the (boring/dull/tedious) old paper version.
Easy really – now why isn't everyone doing it this way?? Paper based portfolios should really be banished from all spheres of education and PDP.
Next up Catherine Gormley of RSC NI discussed a large scale teacher eportfolio pilot project that spanned many aspects of education right across Northern Ireland. The project was that big the proof of concept took from 2005 until now!! http://tepni.com/project-history/policy-context.html . Main findings = that a cultural change was need to fully understand and exploit the potential of such tools and processes –across the who province. A positive message was received by many participants, who took part in the proof of concept. And a reflective circular model of (Reflect & identify & develop) – similar to Kolb experiential cycle, has been developed as part of the pilot. A centralised ePortfolio system (in all schools) is being touted as the way forward, plus support & licence costs remain an issue. Much works still remains to be done from current findings.
The next two speakers Martin Leveridge (Teeside Uni) & Dr Alex Furr (Southampton Uni), both talked about projects where a bespoke "ePortfolio system" had been developed. Each was in early evaluation stages, but both were reporting very positive findings. Again the Teesside Uni project used trainees teachers to use the new PDP system to record & reflect. Piloteers were given new shiny netbooks to help them out. The Southampton Uni project took a similar bespoke route by mapping PDP / ePortfolio requirements into existing Uni systems. The resultant gap analysis revealed that there was a niche for a bespoke system that communicated directly with existing VLE + registry + other electronic learner data systems. This is really very clever work by Dr Furr, and proves that if you look closely enough at your existing systems, you'll find that in most colleges & certainly all Unis' existing systems can be utilised by building middleware app's to stitch them (read exchanging data) together.

Well it all sounds simple!! But it took them a while (last summer) to prove the concept; introduce a couple of Open Source tools , and then build a few more bespoke apps. Resulting in a "platform/ePortfolio" that uses existing Uni IT architecture + learner data, then mashes it with customised is OS apps ( wordpress + Tikiwiki), finallly chuck in a few little home grown apps. All developed using user centred design principles. Everyone is happy – well apart from the students who did not really understand the purpose of reflective writing!!! The early research data is looking positive, but they've got a long way to go. As it seems that old chestnut – expecting staff & students to RTFM did not work, coupled with little understanding or scaffolding reflective writing.

Effective, targeted support is needed – for both system (interface), and pedagogy. But it looks good, as very elegant and pragmatic solution to a problem others would have just chucked money at and purchased and off the shelf model. Perhaps Dr Furr & his team need to have a look at those 5 threshold concepts above? Anyhoo, they're definitely heading in the right direction. Dr Furr & his team are ones to watch - praps they should set up a company on the side offering these types of solutions to other learning providers, like ULCC have done with their Moodle services?

Following lunch Tricia Ellis from the NHS (Swindon) discussed the adoption of an existing NHS developed ePortfolio tool for junior doctors to help reflect upon, collate and maintain evidence during their two years of intensive training. Again very positive results have been recorded ,with comments cited upon the ability to continually record, reflect, its portability, and its application to a life time of CPD, and how it cannot be lost!
Next up, Dr David Croot from Plymouth Uni discussed the initial findings of a series of eportfolio projects covering work based learning development in local authorities (firemen, police, etc). The HE5P project: http://www.recordingachievement.org/employers-cpd/he5p/articles.html . This is a huge project covering many areas of the UK. Initial findings were again very positive from the Plymouth. End users found PebblePad to be very intuitive and easy to learn, and found to be effective for mediating learning across the sectors. Colleges are seeing the value of a PLE NOT a VLE for these types of busy professional learners. Plymouth partner colleges are now seeing the value of the projects and are purchasing ePortfolio licences. One issue seems to revolve around advocacy of the personal ePortfolio, in regards that everyone values the importance of these foundation degrees, but senior managers need hand holding to engage with the value of continual reflection. Sounds a similar issue to the Northern Ireland wide scale project above.
Alan Howe (Glos' Uni) delivered an interesting presentation on how the use of eportfolios in social sciences has been developing. Again a series of smaller pilot projects that worked on replacing the traditional paper based folios. Alan and his team have reported a tremendous amount of positive feedback from students and assessors over the old paper based system. Similar findings to the trainee teachers were uncovered, in respect of the eportfolio allowing for continual reflection, ownership, improving self critical awareness, and improved learner autonomy.

e-safety

2010-01-25T02:23:00.000-08:00

http://www.o2.com/TheCybernuts/

E-learning and E-Safety (safe-guarding)

I've been keeping half an eye on this topic for a while now. And it's getting to the point where I really cannot just keep ignoring it! Apparently most colleges are not sure how to handle the rise of web "learning/information platforms" such as Twitter, facebook and blogger! Do they ban them all, or work out a policy for acceptable use? It's a real mess out there I can assure you. And there's plenty of scaremongering going on. All this is resulting in drastic knee jerk reactions from schools, HE & FE to lock out the world of Web 2.0 until someone tells us all how to handle the torrent of Web 2.0 app's that staff & students want to use.

RSC UK are in the process of pulling together a set of resource/links/blogs, etc, that will be the definitive RSC viewpoint. In the meantime have a look at RSC Wales blog posts on the subject, whilst RSC SW have some useful links to recent presentations & webinars, and RSC East Mid's have an entire Moodle course they've loving crafted for your perusal.

As you may already be aware the government announced a 'Green Cross Code' for internet safety recently: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8398763.stm.

And it's also a good idea to keep tabs in JISC Legal as they are our definitive reference on all things legally e-learning. Their section on legal aspects of Web 2.0 covers some of this remit (blogs, wikis ,social networks, etc..).

Whilst at a conference last week there was plenty of discussion on how employers now routinely use facebook accounts to screen prospective graduate applications. So, just ensure you look at those privacy settings before you post an image of yourself dancing semi naked in the pub on Saturday night - just to impress you mates! It could cost you a job/contract?!?!?

In fact art /design graduates are now using social media like face book and blogs to build a professional profile of themselves and their work during their degree studies, to get a head start in the tough job market. It seems that the magic word "EMPLOYABILITY" is starting to become very important when applying to Uni' and studying these days?

Moodle mootings

2010-01-14T02:00:00.000-08:00

RSC WM customised Moodle theme

A few notes and resources for those Moodlers out there in e-learning land.

Firstly you will see from the image above we've been playing around with some themes for our Moodle. We've (Colleen our IT guru) managed to combine the simplicity of the custom corners theme with the snazzy icon set from the chamelon theme. Simples!? So for those of you who want a quick win to pep up you tired looking Moodle, go for a new theme. Very little "tweeking" involved. Dload free themes from http://moodle.org/mod/data/view.php?id=6552

Still on the subject of themes, we also considered the flex page theme (free) from Moodlerooms. This offers quite a significant change in the look of "course" formats. Again, useful to revamp the normal topic or weekly view. Access a useful tutorial on using Flex page here : http://michaelpenney.blogspot.com/2008/07/presenting-google-docs-inside-of.html

I was passed this from our accessibility advisor. An excellent report advising the do’s and don’ts for visual impaired and blind users, for Moodle please keep this in mind when creating style sheets or content http://randall.test.opensourcery.com/clients/cannect/
And this webinar (2nd half) covers innovate use of Moodle in the South West: link to the recording is on their website here: http://www.rsc-south-west.ac.uk/index.php?p=11
These links will be added to our Moodle wiki page which hosts many other useful Moodle resources: http://wiki.rscwmsystems.org.uk/index.php/Moodle

Finally.... the next UK Moodle Moot is April 14th - 15th in London . go to http://moodlemoot.org/ for full details. I attended one of thes a few years ago. They're well worth attending to get the lastest Moodley news.

evaluate or fail?

2010-01-07T01:24:00.001-08:00

Robin courtesty of FlickrCC

I'm embarking upon a large scale eportfolio project very soon, and as part of that I'm giving advice on evaluating an eportfolio pilot. I'd though I'd share this list &exemplar matrix with you. essentially I'm giving local learning providers a chance to "try before you buy" a selection of Open Source eportfolio tools.

Go to this wiki page to get the full skinny : http://wiki.rscwmsystems.org.uk/index.php/Eportfolio-platforms

BTW, the matrix was provided by the talented Kirstie Coolin of the very successful LEAP Ahead project in the East Midlands. Thanx for sharing the matrix Kirstie.

Typical evaluation matrix

Name of project and institution
Purpose/Context	Process	Information capture	Information retrieval	Planning	Reflection	Feedback	Collaboration	Presentation
Assessment
Personal Development Planning/ Continuing Professional Development
Work Based Learning/ Employment
Transition/ Application
Other purpose

Sources of information regarding elearning evaluation & criteria:

review of the year

2010-01-05T03:23:00.000-08:00

(dead web 2.0 companies!!)

Happy new year everyone. Whilst I'm a bit too busy to write something of my own this week, I'd though I'd share the top 125 elearning'ified blog posts of 2009 with you. I've read a few of these, and I think you should too. :OD

http://www.elearninglearning.com/wpblog/top-elearning-posts-2009/

have a pumpkin dance xmas

2009-12-21T08:22:00.000-08:00

It what the web is for! Not much more to say really, is there? Have a merry berry sherry crimbo :OD -

Here's some holiday reading to keep you occupied :

The Learnovation project is aimed at stimulating a consensus-based definition of eLearning and Technology-Enhanced Learning, in order to inspire their total exploitation in implementing lifelong learning strategies across Europe.
Plus the new futurelab publication is online at URL: http://www.futurelab.org.uk/resources/documents/vision/VISION10.pdf
- And, The New Media Consortium's Emerging Technologies Initiative focuses on expanding the boundaries of teaching, learning and creative expression by creatively applying new tools in new contexts, at URL: http://www.nmc.org/pdf/2010-Horizon-Report-Preview.pdf
- Finally-The impact of web 2.0 in Europe. In order to investigate how social computing applications can be used in organised learning settings to enhance learning activities and promote innovation and inclusion in Education and Training......, at URL: http://ftp.jrc.es/EURdoc/JRC55629.pdf

the scaling framework

2009-12-14T01:46:00.000-08:00

This MS scaling tool was passed to me recently. Could prove useful, to move use
from the samll scale "Fred in the shed" situation, we often find ourselves in when large educational organisations fail to support or invest in innovation?

go to : http://blogs.msdn.com/ukfe/archive/2009/11/19/scaling-up-innovation.aspx , to find out how to use it.

"One of the things that has been done as part of the worldwide Partners in Learning programme is The Scaling Framework – an interactive tool that helps analyse how you move an innovation from being something done by 1 or 2 people, to making it widespread.

It made me think of two specific cases where today there is a challenge of scaling innovation. The first is Virtual Learning Environments, where it is proving to be difficult to take good practice from one lecturer/department/college to the whole system. And the other is taking an innovative ICT teaching initiative and spreading it to other departments.
The Scaling Framework is a simple interactive tool that explains the five dimensions of scale, and then digs down into areas such as “Traps to Avoid” and “Next Steps to Explore.”

Game based learning

2009-12-11T03:38:00.000-08:00

Game based learning is a hybrid area of development taking the best of games technology and trying to shoehorn it into some serious educational contexts. This area of R&D is growing in popularity. See my previous posts on what Sony (PSP) are doing in this arena.

I attended a webinar the other day that was co-orgnaised by the www.elearningnetwork.org
and www.alt.ac.uk.

Access the recorded webinar on ALTs own Open access repository

I took some notes from the webinar & would like to share them with you plus some related videos that will feed into this blog post neatly.

Scott Hewitt from : http://stressmeless.org/?page_id=308, gave a first half presentation encompassing some very interesting topics and some current projects and platforms.

revising to combat revision stress - Flash based learning game. It included easter eggs + combination scorings. planning revision breaks was paramount - they scored higher if they did this.

Wii games developing book : : http://www.amazon.com/Nintendo-Flash-Game-Creators-Guide/dp/0071545255

Scott then talked about another tool Open simulator : http://opensimulator.org/wiki/Main_Page currently in alpha version - create own virtual environments - d/load onto own server - Open Source - similar to SL. Can build your own "worlds", and make it private - UK Army are experimenting with it. BCU have built Shareville as a 3D immersive world as a learning resource: http://shareville.bcu.ac.uk/

UoE are using it on various projects : http://www.vue.ed.ac.uk/openvue/

Unity : multiple platform development tool - very advanced, but need some experience to use it. A widespread community. http://unity3d.com/

Thinking worlds (Caspian) : a rapid development engine, SCORM output, scoring and links to LMS to record scoring, shallow learning curve - advantageous to elearning devleopment teams (and as a teaching + learning tools) . Using with Students - pushing the boundaries: http://www.thinkingworlds.com/

I've attended a very good course on creating learning objects run by Rob Hubbard, who is an exceptional elearning expert. He has designed a course using WEb 2.0 tools and thinking worlds. It's a very good course, and pushes the boundaries of learning platforms, social media abnd 3D/games integration.

SL is also being used for some games design.

Blackberry, iphone, ipod touch are all being used for innovate games design, in schools. Flash support for iphone comming soon, which will help release more applications, quicker and easier.

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/13_tools_for_building_your_own_iphone_app.php

Games salad- create UR own iphone apps : http://gamesalad.com/landing/overview

Can you develop a game in a day? Yes they did with 35 games design students, see the project @ URL:

http://www.realprojects.co.uk/gamebasedlearning/eln%20resources.php , see 1/2 way down page for brief they gave to students to deign the games. They used thinking worlds for this. Split into roles and went through the whole process, including narrative, rewards, learning outcomes, flowchart, storyboards, testing and pilot, etc. All groups (about 6 in each group) did at least 1 game each in 1/2 day. nb/. dentisry looking at the wii controller to teach techniques.

www.realprojects.co.uk/gamesbasedlearning

See also this useful video on hacking the wii:

Second half of the session was run by Steve Harris - Northumbria Uni. His talk was equally interesting, but focussed on the underpinning principles of effective games design he teaches. High level concepts about game design and how education can benefit from these high level principles. Some notes I made:

Pace of learning - using games for differentiated learning design.

Recouperation is good for this- command and conquer, ie. intense period of action, then relaxation to reflect. Don't throw a constant barrage of info' at learners. Give time to reflect.

Motivation - fallout 3 game: sense of freedom (like ps2 game) - sense of discovery (not critical to quest) like easter eggs! Player feels as if they are in more control of the narrative - like GTA. ie. medical sim game - delivering medicines - add other medicines. They can discover to use in other situations.

Conflicts : places player in a situation where they have differing situations - like mad dash racing. Developing tactics and strategies to cope with rules of games. Helps to develop thninking, by allowing them to develop specifc skills i.e. time management.

Condorcet Paradox in gaming : remove dominant strategies: few number of paramenters create larger number of possibilities. Don't allow the learner to always win. Desgin in simple strategies.
Reward systems - fundamental in games: Operant conditioning - the more you use a technique or method, the better you become. It has to be balanced with other strategies to make you follow game rules. And Xbox 360 gamer acheivements online tag, to show others your skills. Simple to bolt on to a platform.

Apply thorough testing: ie. Halo 3 heat maps : bungie has these heat maps on their web site - in relation to specific weapon use - live payer date captured to allow you to learn from others. Intelligent use of gamer data.

Player assistance: i.e. player 2 can take temporary control to help player 1. Works with young and special needs games design.

Look at existing board games for ideas for effective learning/game design.

I posed the question "are games designers utilising existing educational pedagogies to make their games educational?" The answer was a no! Which I thought was very strange indeed. It seemed like a one way street, i.e. educators are looking for games based applications/platforms/technolgoes/graphics to make learning objects or content more engaging, but why are'nt games designers looking at the many (thousands of years) of teaching and learning experiences to make their games better? Or are they? Let me know.

Links and related books:

http://www.gamasutra.com/
free book covers baisc principles : http://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/fac/peabody/game-book/Coverpage.html
http://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/fac/peabody/game-book/Coverpage.html

Understanding Video Games. Nielsen, Smith & Tosca. (2008) . Routledge. ISBN: 0415977215. Gee, P. (2007) What Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and

Game Design Workshop: designing, Prototyping and Playtesting Games Literacy. Palgrave. ISBN: 1403984530. Fullerton, Swain & Hoffman. (2004) . ISBN: 1578202221

edge magazine : http://www.edge-online.com/
games tm magazine: http://www.gamestm.co.uk/

http://wowinschool.pbworks.com/

ARGs - the work of Nicola Whitton is excellent. new book (2010) just out. http://playthinklearn.net/

+ The cube I love bees + NiN ARG (Wired article)

http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/programmes/usersandinnovation/argosi.as px - ARGOSI project funded by JISC -

http://www.realprojects.co.uk/gamebasedlearning/alt-eln.php : this link has example thinking worlds materials and game documents that you can review

http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/gadgets_and_gaming/article6934169.ece - Navy and psps - article here on this -

UK army gave personel DS Lites for eLearning: Developed by Epic (Stuart Chadwick) - won an award this year

Digital games in schools - A handbook for teachers (looks useful)

Finally have a look into the future at Project Natal

Strategy infokit out now

2009-12-04T07:28:00.000-08:00

The strategy infokit¹ produced by JISC InfoNet covers all aspects of the strategy process.

http://www.jiscinfonet.ac.uk/infokits/strategy

Not much more to say here. If it's like all the rest of the infokits, we can look forward to another top quality resource.

BTW, you might also be interested to read about JISCs support for business community engagement :

I would advise you visit the very new & very up to date JISC infonet portal that covers effective practice in this remit: http://www.jiscinfonet.ac.uk/bce
See also JISC BCE programme : http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/themes/bce.aspx
And the JISC NetSkills BCE support available : http://www.netskills.ac.uk/content/sectors/bce/

guide to funding

2009-12-04T04:15:00.000-08:00

Looks like this is worth getting hold of for all SMT & curriculum mangers. Obtained from URL: http://www.fenews.co.uk/general/the-hands-on-guide-to-post-16-funding-with-author-nick-linford

The hands-on guide to post-16 funding, written by Nick Linford, Edexcel's Special advisor on Funding and Performance. The guide explains in simple terms what is funded and how this is delivered. It looks at the funding changes for 09/10 and the current plans for funding in 10/11. Get it here : http://www.fundingguide.co.uk/

edublog awards 2009

2009-12-03T06:29:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year when we vote for our fave blogs. Here's my nominations for the http://edublogawards.com/

Best individual blog = learning visions
Best student blog = Nicolas eportfolio (blog)
Best resource sharing blog = wobble blog
Most influential blog post = google wave 101
Best educational tech support blog = mashe
Best elearning / corporate education blog = OSS Watch
Best educational use of audio = sounds good projects
Best educational wiki = Staffordshire models of best practice
Best educational use of a social networking service = Ministry of ID
Best educational use of a virtual world = SLOODLE

buzzin with mind maps

2009-12-02T06:36:00.000-08:00

The use of mind mapping can help promote creative thinking, visual learning preferences, and especially to help dyslexic learners. I've provided a list of mind mapping tools at the bottom of this post.

This blog post was inspired after attending a mind mapping course by a Tony Buzan (creator of mind mapping techniques) accredited trainer. We used imindmap, which I must admit blows all of the other mind mapping tools out the water for shear versatility, adherence to the mind map methods and its rich feature set. It's due to be released online soon ( to allow for collaboration), and as an iphone app' :OD.. But Mindmeister (above) comes close as a good free alternative.

dyslexia an overview from kevbrace on Vimeo.

By the way, I was told by our trainer, that the research of predominantly left or right brain processing is not outdated. Current research points to more of a complex trigger of neurons across both hemispehres. But there is still a great deal of research that supports the differences between left & right hemisphere differences for creative Vs logical modes of thought.

Other mind map tools to consider as alternatives to imindmap;

bubb.lus (free online) = ok, as a basic tool.
freemind (Free / Open Source) = good basic tool
Xmind (Free / Open Source) = I'm advised that this is very good
Mind genuis (buy licence) = a good all rounder - exports to Word & PPT - ideal to brainstorm projects, essays, etc.
inspiration (buy licence) =one of the market leaders, often quoted as a very versatile tool adhering to the orginal mind map principles.
Compendium (Free / Open Source)
mindomo (online)

See also my shared book marks on mind mapping

leave a comment if you know of any more tools I've missed out on

JISC online conference 2009

2009-11-24T07:16:00.000-08:00

I've just been into the first day of the conference. Very interesting keynotes, and discussions taking place. Plus there's a "have a go" area full of useful resources and demonstrations. Thought I'd share some of those with you;

The EVOLUTION project - reusable materials

The JISC funded EVOLUTION project is an Open Educational Resources project that is disaggregating existing materials so they may be re-used and re-purposedfor different contexts or pedagogies. Click here to listen to a talk about the project and the materials available. If you would like to download the materials for review than please register to use the materials on our repository at www.employability.org.uk. Open to UK HE only!

LexDis - student participation, issues and strategies

This project, with the help of students, explored successful 'e-skills' and supporting strategies, including the use of assistive technologies introduced by e-learning and Web 2.0 type services such as blogs, wikis, social networks and mobile technologies. The outcome has been the development of an online database with student strategies, explanations about the technologies used and a series of one page guides with print versions. The latter have been provided to encourage staff to develop accessible teaching and learning materials. Some link to the work of JISC TechDis Accessibility essentials and all have links to further resources.

The Design Studio: a curriculum design and delivery toolkit

The newly launched Design Studio is a developing dynamic web-based toolkit hosted by JISC infoNet which draws together a range of existing and developing resources around curriculum design and delivery and the role technology plays in supporting these processes and practices. The Studio will provide access to project outcomes and outputs from the JISC Curriculum Design and Delivery programmes as they are developed and will continue to be sustained as a community resource after the programmes end. A curriculum lifecycle concept provides a structure for this wiki-based resource and the primary portal to materials whilst tagging provides flexible entry levels to information based on e.g. themes, technologies and subject areas. This is a recorded (not live!) tour in Elluminate. Click https://sas.elluminate.com/mrtbl?suid=M.257864C26A4F22C5EE6DB9B8A536AD to view the recording. Access the curriculum change document that accompanies this resource.

JISC Digital Media videos

These are videos covering a range of topics, including those of interest to teaching and learning: http://vimeo.com/user2187259/videos

Internet for Image Searching

This is a practical tool for learning how to use the Internet to find copyright cleared images to support learning and teaching. The link below takes you to an online tutorial about the tool. http://www.vts.intute.ac.uk/tutorial/imagesearching/

The Phoebe Pedagogy Planner tool

Phoebe is a pedagogy planner tool, designed to help teachers create learning experiences that are motivating and productive for both their students and themselves. It comprises a simple authoring environment and extensive guidance on teaching and learning with digital technologies. Phoebe was developed from 2006-2008 by a team from the University of Oxford, with funding from the JISC Design for Learning programme.

About Phoebe:

Overview (2 pages, PDF format)
Introduction and demonstration by Marion Manton, given at the University of Oxford on 28th August, 2008 (23-minute video)

Exploring Phoebe:

Phoebe Pedagogy Planner
Exploring Phoebe guide (12 pages, PDF format)

You might also like to visit the website of the LDSE project, on which we are now working with colleagues from five other institutions.

e-research

2009-11-23T05:21:00.001-08:00

Richard Lambert talks to the BBC about research and innovation

This post is all about initiatives to open up the silos of traditional academic research, by taking advantage of what the web can offer. I'll cover drivers, current projects and moves towards a new open way of sharing using the Web 2.0 ethos. The Times Higher supplement called "The Data Revolution" also covers this subject.

...'Supporting the science community and maintaining our excellent research base is critical to the UK's future economic growth and prosperity. This is why the government will invest a record level of almost £6 billion in UK science and research by 2011.' ......

So says Lord Drayson in the latest JISC Inform publication which is loaded with some interesting articles on moving research firmly into the 21^st C. There is a article & podcast by Professor Robert Darnton of Harvard University discussing their move to an Open Access policy.

JISC are also spending 10 Mi££ion on a 3 year e-research programme.

For those who are ne wto this area of Open Access, there was an open access week – supported online @ URL: http://www.openaccessweek.org/ , plus this 2007 paper on THE EMERGENCE OF OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES, will help contextualise the subject.

I've collated a number of established & new Open Access / research portals and repositories to give you an idea what innovations are already in operation;

The Directory of Open Access Repositories - OpenDOAR
Welcome to WIRE - Wolverhampton Intellectual Repository and E-Theses - an open access repository
Welcome to Worcester Research and Publications
Welcome to Association of Learning Technology Open Access Repository
Pioneering collaboration between publishers, repositories and researchers – PEER (project)
The Depot is an assured gateway to make your research Open Access – EDINA project
JORUM is a free online repository service for teaching and support staff in UK Further and Higher Education Institutions
EThOS aims to enable end-users to access the full text of electronically stored UK theses, in secure format, via a single Web interface.
E-Evolve Repository. This repository is a free online service for UK Higher Education Institutions
The Academy Evidence Net - find current evidence relating to teaching and learning in Higher Education.

Methods of giving busy academics "Web 2.0" spaces to share and collaborate over research projects are gaining popularity. Here are some I've stumbled across recently;

Google knol – publish and share your research
Concept Linkage In Knowledge Repositories – C-LINK
Dr. Richard Price, post-doc, Philosophy Dept, Oxford University has started http://www.academia.edu/ - which looks very interesting
myExperiment makes it easy to find, use and share
scientific workflows and other Research Objects, and to build communities.
The Teaching and Learning Research Programme database
Participate is a large-scale research project, which explores at how we can use new and emerging technologies to encourage people to engage in environmental issues.
Science Shops are not "shops" in the traditional sense of the word. They are small entities that carry out scientific research in a wide range of disciplines – usually free of charge. The Scienceshopswales is a good examples of what can be achieved with this micro (social) research model

This 21^st century open (web 2.0) ethos of sharing and collaborating is exemplified in the real world examples in the wikinomics (free ebook), of how modern business is responding and exploiting the networking afforded by Web 2.o social tools. And, if you want to get some pointers into communities of practice collaborating online, this new (free ebook) called The Art of the Community will help.

highly ambitious?

2009-11-20T07:56:00.000-08:00

Lord Mandelson's Q&A session at AoC conference

The most interesting comment is the reference to ensuring a rich IT infrastructure can help to provide a collaborative and quality provision in these tough times. Hurrah for e-learning?

Recently Peter Mandleson released the Higher Ambitions framework . As it states

"The higher education blueprint, Higher Ambitions, sets out a course for how universities can remain world class, providing the nation with the high level skills needed to remain competitive, while continuing to attract the brightest students and researchers."

The QAA has added its support by stating

"The framework challenges QAA to develop further its work in three key areas: the student experience of higher education; public assurance of quality and standards; and robust arrangements for dealing with complaints."

‘Aiming Higher’: Read the digested report on the Edexcel policy Watch site
And a recent comment by Peter Mandelson refers to the new policies as a cohesive "single higher skills system"
All looks rosy? Not so, says the new LSC chief. He warns of a rough ride ahead:

"In my view, before very long, the cost effectiveness bar will rise so that only colleges with strong leadership and management will thrive. The incentive for those that do will be more autonomy - for those that do not, we will act decisively to encourage better performance and if necessary, to insist on new governance and management."

Tho' not all of academia share Lord Mandelson's views! recent letters by highly regarded academics to the Guardian, responding to the new framework, are less than complimentary.

This is my favourite:

"In my experience, the two main obstacles to good teaching are bureaucracy and research. Maybe the government should require universities to release figures of how much time their staff spend filling forms, attending meetings, compiling reports and responding to initiatives. As for research, the situation is quite simple. Since the inception of the research assessment exercise, the majority of academics in the UK are obsessed with publications on which academic careers are built at the expense of teaching. There has been a proliferation of academic journals making profits for publishers on the back of "free" academic time. A large part of this published work goes entirely unread and unnoticed. If the government wants to enhance the quality of teaching in universities, there is a simple way: scrap the research assessment exercise."

Professor Yiannis Gabriel
School of management, University of Bath

my opinion>>> Is it not time we spent some money on conducting a series meta analysis of the vast swathes of research done so far?

ILT research & bids

2009-11-20T05:49:00.000-08:00

Technological innovation in universities in the UK has been supported by
the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC). In its role as a university think-tank, million+ has investigated the impact of funding awards from JISC to 28 UK universities over a six-year period. Published October 2009. Download the report from
www.millionplus.ac.uk/research/index

To overcome barriers in achieving JISC funding, it was suggested that a single named
person in each HEI be identified to ensure effective communications between the HEI
and JISC, thus offering the potential for more constructive feedback to be given over a
period of time, which could be assimilated and disseminated within that institution. For the future, it is clear from our research that collaborative working between universities
is likely to be crucial, to maximise co-learning and to ensure cost-effectiveness.

http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/publications/research/2009/millionplusfundingimpact.pdf

Many of the project teams were successful in obtaining further funding or generated associated projects (36% of the case studies).

• those HEIs which have a formal or co-ordinated approach to responding to calls for bids, with appropriate facilities and staff, tended to have a higher likelihood of obtaining JISC funding.

My observations : what about those who have problems in obtaining funds!! I have often been on the receiving end of comments hinting at a "closed shop", and "the same old faces"! But as one very successful JISC project bidder pointed out to me, "it's (the bid calls) not a secret - all you have to do is keep an eye on the JISC funding road map."

And more importantly he said "bid for projects to ensure that they align with existing internal project proposals. So in effect you are getting money for what was part of your ILT strategy anyway."

Often organisations fall down by not placing enough emphasis on the planning and management of sed plans , etc. i.e they either underestimate or under resource the project in hand.

nb : Just got note of a new JISC report relevant to this this posting : Understanding Global Activity in Higher Education and Research: Primary, desk and web-based research. Report of Findings (abridged version)- it says

" Although this study did not set out to „benchmark‟ the UK against the other study countries, it is nevertheless impossible not to consider in very broad terms the UK‟s position on the world stage. Clearly the UK enjoys several key advantages: its compact size; the English language; and the UK‟s system of powerful central government to name but three. JISC is seen by other countries as a strong centralizing force and, largely as a result of JISC‟s role, the UK is viewed as being a leading player in most areas of e-Learning and e-Infrastructure development. Various reviews of specific areas of e-Learning and e-Infrastructure identify the UK as amongst the leaders in areas such as digitisation, data repositories and co-ordinated Web 2.0 enablement strategies, paving the way for the opportunities it opens up to be successfully and consistently introduced into learning and teaching practices."

Useful bidding resources

jisc guide to bids :http://www.jisc.ac.uk/fundingopportunities/bidguide.aspx

http://www.fundingguide.co.uk/

http://www.planningandfunding.co.uk/training.asp
Our workshop bidding & planning resources we ran last year: http://wiki.rscwmsystems.org.uk/index.php/Bid_writing_for_e-Learning_projects,_2nd_December_2008
RSC Easterns 2006 workshop resources : http://info.rsc-eastern.ac.uk/events/event_details.asp?eid=293
Subscribe to this JSIC funding RSS feed, and you'll never miss a bid call again

second lifers

2009-11-16T01:25:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago two RSC staff held an "in-house" Second life training/awareness session for UK RSc staff. The event was very well organised, as you can see from the event images.

A whole range of basic SL skills and uses of SL were demonstrated and experienced by delegates. If you are thinking of running your own CPD sessions, contact Jane Edwards of JISC RSC West Midlands for some advice.

Jane is also responsible for a new SL project that allows our new SL island to be experimented with by local learning providers. The list of local learning providers particpating in the project is currently full, but if you need to know more please contact Jane (contact details on above wiki page).

If you want to know more about SL in the Midlands, book onto our free event on 02/12/09

Virtual Worlds In Education Forum

You can keep an eye on all things virtual in education, by heading over to the virtual world watch website.

RSC South East also ran an event to launch awareness of their new ISland. This island is also open to educators to use for various teaching & learning projects. Contact Harold Fricker (HE coordinator) to find out more about how you can get involved in their SL project.
Did you know that : As part of its Transforming Undergraduate Education Program, the University of Texas SYSTEM has initiated a statewide virtual learning community of students, faculty, researchers and administrators, that offers a creative approach to undergraduate instruction through the innovative use of a 21st century low-cost online virtual world technology.

eportfolio book review

2009-11-10T07:21:00.000-08:00

Electronic Portfolios: Personal Information, Personal Development and Personal Values.

Electronic Portfolios: Personal Information, Personal Development and Personal Values.

This book was written by Simon Grant of JISC CETIS fame, covers all things eportfolio. It’s a very easy book to digest for senior managers, and practitioners alike who need to know, “just what is an eportfolio, and why and what would we need it for”? Dip into the bits you need and pass it onto others.
The book begins with an overview of current thinking; by identify 4 primary areas of use;

Supporting the overall learning process ing

Supporting transitions between learning experiences or learning organisations

Assessing the learning process

Presenting the outcomes of the learning processes

Ref: http://wiki.rscwmsystems.org.uk/index.php/Eportfolios (see BECTA video which also explains these areas – link on above page).
Simon then complements the above areas of eportfolio “use” with 3 primary principles, namely;

1. Purpose – usually very specific (assessment, reflection, CPD, PDP, etc);

2. Information – personalised – which is the underlying message of the book. The eportfolio owner chooses to share the contents with whomever and whenever they choose;

3. Functionality – what bells and whistles can the platforms offer? Or indeed what kind of learning approach is afforded by its interface + feature set.

Simon argues that if we remove any of these 3 pillars, our ability to understand eportfolio based learning and try and implement or support it becomes implausible.

The book is fronted by a chapter on typical scenarios which help to contextualise all of the possible uses of an eportfolio that are currently being implemented in academic, work, and professional (CPD) areas. These scenarios help to set the scene and guide readers through this daunting subject area.

The book does not purport to give you the answer to which platform to choose, but it does give a well thought out set of guides, underlying principles, and current practice, that will help inform all interested stakeholders.
See also:

‘Study on the role of e-portfolios in formative and summative assessment practices’ by a team led by the Centre of Recording Achievement, is now available from: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/programmes/elearning/eportfolios/studyontheroleofeportfolios.aspx

http://kev-brace.blogspot.com/2009/10/eportoflio-evaluation-survey.html (current evaluation of popular eportfolio platforms)

http://www.jiscinfonet.ac.uk/infokits/e-portfolios (a very comprehensive guide)

http://www.qaa.ac.uk/scotland/PDP/PDP.asp (Effective PDP planning)

http://delaney.typepad.com/files/e-portfolios.pdf (the state of play in the USA)

http://www.wlecentre.ac.uk/cms/files/occasionalpapers/op5_eportfolios_models_and_implementation.pdf

(this paper explores the use of ePortfolio tools to support teaching, learning and the personal and professional development of postgraduate students at the Institute of Education (IOE). The needs of tutors and students are considered alongside the affordances and limitations of specific tools in relation to these needs.)

sound of the cloud

2009-11-02T04:10:00.000-08:00

heupdateoct09 by mhawksey]

This post covers a new experiment of ours with soundcloud audio web site.

You can see by the above embedded audio waveform, we've added our monthly podcast to www.soundcloud.com. This allows registered users to add comments onto an audio podcast at specific points.

kineo-interview by mhawksey

As well as our usual e-learning musings I had the chance to speak to Mr Stuart Chadwick who is a solutions architect for the award winning e-learning company Kineo. Stuart discusses their rapid e-learning ethos and tools, plus Kineo services to customise Open Source applicatons such as Moodle. Click here for the full interview.

p.s. We have been trying to keep our monthly musing below 30 mins - but have lasped back to a brain bursting 39 mins'! My fault. Must try harder next month. Even 30 min's is considered too long in some circumstances! I've just read a paper from the ALT-J called "The value of using short-format podcasts to enhance learning and teaching", in which the study looked at podcasts at varying lengths - anywhere between 3 - to a mammoth 8 minutes! Interesting paper covering the pedagogy and perceived advantages of podcasts for learning.

creative tinkering

2009-10-28T02:35:00.000-07:00

Steampunk Aural Enhancer, from instrucatbles.com

A few ideas to get those creative juices flowing;

I stumbled across the latest flip animation festival (5th Nov 09) offering all sorts of events around the subject of animation.

Flip is an eclectic mix of all things animation. Based in the heart of the Midlands the festival provides a wide range of experiences from educational workshops for young people to experimental animation for grown ups; from industry led panels to feature film screenings and from international showcases and retrospectives of short films to spotlights on animation studios. The event is located mainly in the Lighthouse media centre who also provide low cost training courses covering animation and video production, including HD.

One session that stuck out was a Game Design Workshop for only 5 quids!! This one day workshop, run in conjunction with Wolverhampton University’s Institute of Gaming and Animation, is a great opportunity to get introduced to the X-Box XNA game platform which allows users to begin developing their own games with the free downloadable tools from Microsoft. You can download and tinker with the X-Box XNA developers kit to create your own games.

Whilst following links around the Lighthouse media centre I discovered "Mediabox", the fund that offers 13-19 year olds the chance to create their own media projects and get their voices heard, has opened its Mix Mediabox strand. Mix Mediabox enables organisations working within the community to apply for grants of between £5,000 - £20,000 for youth-led media projects that explore the theme of community cohesion.

So essentially you bid for funds to create fun and interesting productions using film, animation, etc. The videos already produced are inspriing stuff. Mix Mediabox is open to registered charities, trusts, local authorities and unincorporated associations.

On the subject of tinkering I also came across a website called tinker.it , which is a design studio that builds interactive products, spaces and events that bridge the physical and the digital. They've got some excellent ideas and event running. Including the Arduino workshops. I was intrigued to discover that Arduino is an open-source electronics prototyping platform based on flexible, easy-to-use hardware and software. It's intended for artists, designers, hobbyists, and anyone interested in creating interactive objects or environments.

So it could be used to teach product design engineering, electronics, etc, in schools, colleges & Universities? So you've got free games developers kits and free eletcronics prototyping gubbins :O)... In fact this Wired artcle lists some of the more popular (and) free programming and games platforms.

To further inspire you take a look at one of my favourite sites : instructables. It's what the web is for !O). See top image

self e-generating

2009-10-23T07:03:00.000-07:00

Are you a learning provider who wants to implement a ICT across your organisation? If so, a number of toolkits and services exist that can be used to help benchmark you, and move your (ILT) strategy forward. We also run an engaging free change management workshop to help bring all staff along the e-learning journey with you.

The JSIC RSCs have been running these services for a number of years now for various areas including ACL, WBL, and FE in general. A typical list of services that "we" use can be located on our strategy and management pages, and more specifically the eprogrees review link lists our range of services (pdf).

All JISC Regional Support Centres are running Generator workshops currently, as part of the big BECTa push to get learning proividers engaged in the self evaluation process.

ACL and WBL have had the eLPS and WeLPS tools out for a while now, which are specifically aimed at those sectors - see also the pdf link above.

A couple of similar tools I recently located my also help embed your e-learning endeavours and change cultures are;

On a related note, if you have implemented an e-learning tool/platform/pilot project, etc, into your organisation, you should always evaluate its effectiveness. This could also be true for any training undertaken. There are some frameworks that exist to help you convince SMT that the ROI is /was worthy?

One of the most respected is the Donald L Kirkpatrick's training evaluation model - the four levels of learning evaluation
This Educase article covers the subject well in terms of ensuring quality of curriculum delivery.
The elearning Maturity Model is designed to support the assessment of institutional e-learning capability
The Radial method - measures impact, or lack of.
Phillips ROI Methodology - for trainers and companies assessing VFM for training,etc.

we have an issuu

2009-10-22T02:28:00.000-07:00

Today I was experimenting with a free online publishing tool - issuu. It's was a (free) snip to sign up. I uploaded a Word 2003 doc ( no *.docx allowed!) and chose a few options , added keyword searches and voila- an online "e-zine" in literally minutes. The only others I've bookmarked are YUDU & blurb, do you know of any similar? I've been aware of these tools for a while, but not really tried any, until today.

knol is king

2009-10-16T04:39:00.000-07:00

Whilst wandering around the research information network website (RIN)+ associated blogs today I noticed Google knol! More about that later, first the RIN portal.

The is an invaulable resource for those whishing to build up their research skills by by ensuring their CPD is research informed. We call it "scholary activity" for HE or HE in FE tutors. The RIN (supported by JISC) website and publications cover the entire specturm of communicating knowledge for UK researchers. Articles cover publishing platfroms, and collaborative papers to name but a few. A linked web portal VITAE also promotes CPD and research across the HE landscape. VITAE, has plenty of resource to download.

Now, back to Google Knol ... As Branwen states " the site enables one to post deﬁned units of information on any topic you wish. One of the interesting things the site enables you to do is state if you trust the individual to be an expert on the topic or agree that the document cite adequate and reliable references to support its claims. These ratings get converted to a rating system, which helps you ﬁgure out if the information is accurate and worth reading. As with all things Web 2.0 one can leave comments and discussions ensue."

So this is a neat attempt to utilise web 2.0 ethos and collaborative platforms to enable a trusted system of peer reviewing knowledge. Nice idea. I'm sure there are others around?

Soundcloud

This idea is not too disimilar to the web 2.0 ethic of user participation of a new music site I stumbled across yesterday. http://soundcloud.com/ . This allows budding DJ's or artists to upoad tunes or full mixes, that can be commented upon (see image above). Now if we uploaded a lecture podcast, our students could then make comments :OD... or visa versa. Students could submit an assessment in audio firmat & it could be commented upon by peers or tutors. Neat eh?

eportfolio evaluation survey

2009-10-15T02:22:00.000-07:00

A two year exercise evaluating eportfolios have produced a report (see below). It makes for interesting results in terms of Mahara & PebblePad as equals.

"Mahara and PebblePad represent the most balanced
products, which can be used for portfolio work without
huge time expenditure for installation. Both systems
require some acclimatization effort but – once their logic
is clear – they are easy to handle."

Also, I think the other interesting fact is that the traditional blogging platforms; Wordpress, elgg,and moveable type, each come out quite favourably compared to the platforms specifically built for eportfolio type activities (e.g. Exabis). See original website (German)

I have recently been introduced to Taskstream, which is well worth a look for CPD, PDP types of activities.

"In the opinion of the authors, there turn out to be three
groups in regard to the criteria of supporting portfolio
processes. PebblePad, Mahara and Taskstream represent a
top-quality trio with a high assessment; they show
weaknesses in only very few categories. These three
products have especially been developed as E-Portfolio
software and, according to our evaluation, they really
meet the requirements."

The most comprehensive list I've seen of current eportfolio platforms has been compiled by the EPAC Community of Practice. You can join this vibrant & infomative CoP, by visintg the home page and contacting the group

There is now eportfolio support for Sharepoint LMS.

webinar protocols

2009-10-12T03:38:00.000-07:00

Creative commons cleated image (click to follow originator)

Just stumbled across a neat set of webinar (live wecasting) protocols from our local Institute for Learning Enhancement

These echo the protocols we've developed and shared on our synchronous webcasting tools wiki page, for all to use.

Any presentation needs to be short – 10 minutes – focused with clear points for consideration set up at the beginning so that you are listening with a purpose.
If you want to present for longer then there needs to be gaps between major talking points.
Twitter type text needs to be set up so that it is about the presentation and not whether it is sunny.
If there are breaks between key points then when the new point begins the text messaging is relevant to the new point.
There should be a facilitator who can summarise points and act as a conduit between the presenter and listeners.
Animation does not translate to the conference therefore powerpoint slides need to take this into consideration.
Slides should not be too text based and should enhance the presentation not provide subtitles to it.
The conference should have a ‘master of ceremonies’ who calls the conference to order, introduces the speaker and makes sure that communication is as effective as possible.
Each presenter could have a blog set up for further discussion – the posts being the key points in their presentation.
With large audiences keep the conference for transmission with online follow up rather than expecting large numbers to contribute.
When taking part in a conference, either as organiser or participant, enlist a colleague to maintain a check on twitter-type chat and conversations to note key points of use and/or interest.

See protocols in original JISC blog

See also this useful paper evaluating web conferencing systems (using the new Apture widget builder gizmo - simples)

access the grid

2009-10-08T04:48:00.000-07:00

ja.net services are offering Access Grid Nodes allow people to communicate through visual images and sound exchanged between different computers. There is no theoretical limit to how many nodes can be linked, and the number of people at each site is limited only by room size and hardware present.

Access Grid (AG) in simple terms is an advanced videoconferencing application that uses audio and video tools allowing people in different locations worldwide to meet in a virtual venue (virtual meeting room). In these virtual venues participants can see and speak to each other in realtime, use online chat and share applications simultaneously.

The image above typifies this application in action. It looks impressive.

This service complements their existing JANET Video Technology Advisory Service (VTAS)

ja.net also offer an extensive list of training events across the UK

Excellent case studies

2009-10-08T03:36:00.000-07:00

Here are the latest case studies from the rest of the RSCs that have gone live during the past month: http://www.excellencegateway.org.uk/page.aspx?o=case-studies-all

Gateshead College's Hair and Beauty department uses IT for both effective course management and teaching and learning. Technologies such as interactive whiteboards, video, electronic individual learning plans (e-ILPs) and online course files have improved teaching and learning, as well as simplified course administration.

Blackpool and The Fylde College: Feeling secure with an award-winning campus-wide wireless network. Blackpool and The Fylde College has implemented a campus-wide wireless network that allows secure connectivity to College systems and services for learners and staff using their own laptops. The development has won a Cisco 'Secure Campus' award. Via a future development, the College hopes to provide learners with access to the College systems and services when out and about in Blackpool town centre.

Northampton College has introduced a commercial system (ClickView) for recording and then digitally distributing TV programmes within the classroom. This has allowed greater integration of video into traditional teaching methods than was previously happening via DVD-based resources.

The Adult Education Services from six local authorities in the North East joined forces to set-up a shared virtual learning environment (VLE) called TeesLearn. It provides their learners with new and inspiring learning opportunities, and supports them across a rural and wide geographical area.

The staff responsible for the employability programme at Hillcroft have developed the College's use of blended learning in response to the needs and requirements of learners and their specialist tutors, some of whom live some distance away.

Bromley College offers a diverse range of learning opportunities from A-levels, BTECs and NVQs through to work-based learning and Train to Gain programmes. This diversity presents a major challenge in how to monitor the performance of its learners to ensure they achieve their potential. eTracker is an electronic individual learning plan (eILP) solution that enables lecturers to take a highly personalised approach to the individual needs of their learners. It enables them to identify issues early and intervene quickly – not just academic issues but also pastoral and behavioural. eTracker has been a motivating force for the learners at Bromley College and it facilitates good communication across the College.

Southport College has been improving audibility in classrooms by installing a ceiling-mounted microphone at the front of the room above the interactive whiteboard. Linked to an amplifier and ceiling-mounted speakers, this distributes sound clearly and evenly across the classroom.

Southport College has installed 24 centrally-controlled digital information display screens across the College to display a wide range of information. A user-friendly touch-screen facility has been developed and implemented on two of these screens, enabling students, visitors and staff to select college information they would like to view such as course details, news, events and videos. This information is presented to users in a virtual panel that automatically appears at a height suited to their needs.

Calderdale College is creating a radically different learning culture and environment, based on using the most appropriate space for each "learning event".

This case study examines how one EFL (English as a foriegn language) lecturer at Southampton City College decided to ‘raise his ILT game' by making full use of the Moodle virtual learning environment (VLE) to create blog-style resources and interactive forums to increase the levels of engagement, motivation and collaboration for four of his student classes. As a result, his courses have received a Gold Award under the College's Gold, Silver and Bronze Moodle benchmarking initiative.

Southampton City College: Southampton City College strives for Gold with Moodle benchmarking scheme. How do you answer the question: “How well is your VLE being used?” Southampton City College rose to the challenge with the creation, development and implementation of a highly motivational ‘Gold, Silver and Bronze' benchmarking system to evaluate and recognise quality of content and activity on its College Moodle system. The results are impressive.

South East Derbyshire College: Media server – one college's approach to providing video resources. Getting video resources to staff and learners at South East Derbyshire College was a relatively costly and time-consuming process until the College adopted a new piece of cheap software and created their own media server. This has allowed far greater use of video resources and improved the quality of the picture.

RNIB College Loughborough: Visually-impaired learners benefit from audio and synchronised text on their mobile phones. Using DAISY Player software on a mobile has allowed visually-impaired learners at RNIB College Loughborough to copy e-books to their mobile phones and to listen at their convenience.

new universities

2009-10-07T11:43:00.001-07:00

A total of 23 statements of intent were submitted (to HEFCE) by the end-of-June deadline. These have been assessed against the criteria in the consultation.
The HEFCE Board, at its meeting on 25 September, considered the 23 statements of intent it had received. It concluded that six could be developed further. These are:

Somerset (various locations) (lead HEI – Bournemouth University)
Crawley (lead HEI – University of Brighton)
Milton Keynes (lead HEI – University of Bedfordshire)
Swindon (lead HEI – University of the West of England, Bristol)
Thurrock (lead HEI – University of Essex)
The Wirral (lead HEI – University of Chester)

Read full HEFCE announcement

I guess it seemed like a good idea at the time? But what about all the existing Universities dilemma who face caps on numbers, resulting in potential students being turned away? Time to give flexible/distance/blended learning a go, me thinks :O)

Mind you, if this article about UK Unversities investment into the U21Global distancel learning portal is anything to go by, we should exercise some caution. Smells similar to the £50 million loss UKeU in the making? But we live in hope that a longer term perspective can be deployed. Again, the great potential of e-learning/distance learning has been oversold.

videos for educators

2009-10-05T02:14:00.000-07:00

The EduTubePlus project aims to develop a European hybrid, multilingual video-based service for schools, integrating thousands of curriculum-related video clips. The EduTubePlus service will enable users to develop, translate and share video-based learning scenarios and lessons, to search resources using terms related to their national curriculum and to use video pedagogically in the classrooms.

See the

EduTubePlus Show-Reel with Samples of Videos Suitable for European Schools

The sister site http://edutubeplus.atit.ie/ also contains extensive resources.

Also YouTube EDU, the Web site for video channels from universities, has recently added content from institutions in Europe and Israel. Forty-five colleges and universities from those areas, including the University of Cambridge and distance-learning institutions like the Open University of Catalonia, now have channels on the site.

Teachers TV hosts a wide rnage of informative streaming videos to watch via the web.

Edina are developing a new "portal" that lists all educational catalogues of digital film and images for use in HE & FE.

BlipTV also hosts some interesting vids, see below>>

Server Hosting options

2009-09-24T02:55:00.001-07:00

Data centres.

Whilst trying to find externally hosted solutions for a new eportfolio project I'm scoping out, I've been given two "eudcational" options to invesitgate. The first is from the ULCC whom provides a fully managed service @ http://www.ulcc.ac.uk/services/hosting/the-ulcc-data-centre.html

And the second is "Eduserv's data centers, who offer state-of-the-art facilities which are maintained round the clock by highly trained staff, with hosting services on offer ranging from fully managed application hosting through to co-location services.

Eduserv's data centers are designed and equipped to the highest industry standards - automatic fire extinguishing equipment, AC and DC power distribution, uninterruptible power supplies (UPS), backup generators and multiple redundant fiber connections."

This has been going since the summer of 2009.

http://www.eduserv.org.uk/websolutions/hosting

The 3rd party option is not as cheap as buying & managing your own server & data, but could provide medium/long term solutions to projects?

collaborativ(e)PDP

2009-09-21T02:38:00.000-07:00

A colleague of mine has just completed research on voting sets centred around collaborative Personal development planning (PDP). Looks an interesting prespective on PDP, including this critique on the HE progress file development>>

http://sites.google.com/site/palandvoting/home/critiqueofpdp

INTRODUCTION TO THE SITE

This site is centred around collaborative reflection using voting technology. The application discussed here is Collaborative Student PDP (parts including transition, induction, development, employability, study etc). The design is by no means restricted or intended solely for applications to PDP. A much wider set of applications are already implied and under consideration.

http://sites.google.com/site/palandvoting/