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Introduction from the conference co-chairs |
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Keynote Speech from Jeff Haywood - Designing University Education for 2025: balancing competing priorities (701) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 11:00am – 12:00pm As the hype around MOOCs settles down, but with a sense of potential disruption still in our minds, what sort of higher education future do we seek? We have a very wide, and expanding, range of digital tools at our disposal, some useful experiments under our belts, and technology is mainstreaming itself into students’ learning, perhaps provided more now by them than by us. I shall briefly review some lessons learned over the past few years and then explore options for a university roadmap for the next 10 years, hopefully remaining realistic whilst still optimistic about a richer, technology-supported HE...more |
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Riding the unstoppable WordPress wave. Further lessons learnt from our DIY ePortfolio (508) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm WordPress is an open source blogging and website creation tool which since its release in 2005 has seen a huge and unstoppable increase in popularity. The edublogs.org site now hosts over 2 million student blogs1 with 100,000 new wordpress sites being created every day2. Three years ago we presented our work ‘eFolio : A DIY ePortfolio’ which showcased a suite of open source tools, including WordPress, that we had packaged together to create a DIY ePortfolio. Since then we have continued to expand and upgrade this system to the point where use at the University is quite significant. eFolio is now...more Linking the real world to the digital world: QR Codes in non-standard teaching spaces (594) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm The difficulty of providing students with comprehensive instructions and user manuals for machinery in labs, workshops and other non-standard teaching environments has just become easier. In August 2013 we began a collaborative project with teaching staff to create Digital Learning Materials that students could access inside a non-standard teaching environment by using QR codes. The Textiles Department provides practical experience for students in their Sewing Laboratories where they can learn about and use a wide array of different and complex textile machinery to design and create their own garments and test pieces. We aimed to create a dynamic ‘user manual’...more An eLearning Transformation: Delivering a Distance Learning degree using iPads (629) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm In 2010, the Department of Exercise and Sport Science, MMU Cheshire, decided to completely revamp its existing Sport Science distance learning (DL) degree. After a lengthy investigative process, it was decided to deliver the new resources using the iPad and the iBooks app. While other institutions are also beginning to use the iPad to deliver their DL provision, to our knowledge, we are the only undergraduate programme to offer DL provision in this way. In a forward-thinking move, the Department supplied students with iPads free of charge. Development of our pedagogical vision over the time of creating the eBooks has...more Analysing the costs and benefits of providing learning in different modes: the Course Resource Appraisal Model (559) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm This session will take the form of a workshop where participants can learn more about and explore the Course Resource Appraisal Model (CRAM). CRAM is a digital design tool that helps innovators understand the costs and benefits in offering programmes of study in different formats. Increasingly, educational institutions are contemplating offering more innovative programmes aiming to recruit beyond their traditional pool of full-time, on campus students. For the most part, taking the decision to launch an online or blended programme entails taking a step into the unknown. Setting up and running an online course requires more substantial investments of time...more How small things can trigger an avalanche: Working across the transformational spectrum in the delivery of two MOOCs (621) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm Whether you are a MOOC enthusiast or a sceptic, there is no doubt that MOOCs have been a force of nature in the e-learning landscape. The e-Learning Team at the University of Bath has been harnessing this force to produce, in partnership with two academic teams, high quality learning experiences for the FutureLearn platform. Working in a transformational developmental manner with one team and in a more transactional, service-oriented approach with the other, the results which were achieved was equally impressive in spite of the approaches being at opposite ends of the transactional-transformational spectrum (Bass,1985; Bycio et al, 1995). This...more But what does it mean for ME? Students’ engagement with learning technologies (622) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm This student led project examines students’ current use and understanding of learning technologies and solicits their advice for our future development of technologically based teaching and learning tools at Abertay University. A new teaching learning and assessment strategy and major IT investment signalled the ideal time to review our past practice and plan our future implementation of learning technologies. We have chosen to collect data from our end users – students – and to make them active researchers rather than passive participants. A student research team is in the process of designing, running and reporting on this project. The team has...more Re-engaging the no longer engaged – Strategies to Increase the use of Pebblepad (647) [Cancelled] Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm There are a variety of factors that can impact the perceived affordances and ease of use of a technology and when negative perceptions develop amongst early adopters, they can spread widely (Rogers, 2003). A recent project that encountared this is described, alongside the strategies to address this. In 2011, after a significant consultation process, Pebblepad (an e-portfolio system) was introduced to the institution as a departmentally supported tool. Its primary purpose was to support the medical school with their need to capture monthly details of PhD student meetings with their supervisors. In order to ensure that Pebblepad was successfully implemented...more A Mobile Web-based Student Response System (544) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm Clickers, as part of a Student Response System, have been used to create motivation and engage students in the classroom (Blasco-Arcas et al., 2013). However, there are issues of functionality, cost and class room organisation that can cause problems (Kay & LeSage, 2009) and, from experience, use by lecturers is limited because of the overhead of preparing for a class and organising the response systems during the lesson. In addition, questions are often restricted to a multiple choice format, and there is limited (if any) facility for the input of free text. Over the past two years a web based...more The learner driven 360 to drive success in MOOCs (607) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm Whilst there is debate over whether or not MOOCs are a truly disruptive force in education, it is increasingly clear from the well recorded drop-out rates and challenges of assessment at scale, that our traditional measures of success are not suitable in the MOOC context. This presentation will share a learner driven collaborative auto-ethnographical approach to defining success within one MOOC (Bentley et al, 2014). Using personal reflections this session will explore the personal measures of success from a small number of learners that include a variety of approaches to self-directed and self-regulated learning. From these individual accounts it is...more Investigating and Enabling Video Feedback at the University of Birmingham (515) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm This presentation will explore the findings of a 2014 study at the University of Birmingham into the use of video feedback by faculty from a range of subjects. Video feedback is especially relevant in the context of two sector-wide trends: 1) the increasing use of online written feedback, and 2) students’ consistent dissatisfaction with feedback as expressed in the NSS. Video feedback is potentially a way to provide higher quality feedback to students, and may be more efficient than written feedback (Mathieson, 2012). The University of Birmingham has recently launched a new Virtual Learning Environment, Instructure’s Canvas, and also a...more Making Electronic Feedback Effective: unleashing a wave of change (534) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm Assessment and feedback has become a big focus for improvement at universities and the University of Essex has been ahead of the wave with their innovative use of an in-house online coursework submission service, originally implemented over 10 years ago. In November 2012, they started work on the Making Electronic Feedback Effective (MEFE) project which aims to build upon this service and provide an excellent educational experience for students. The project was created in response to three factors – user demand for improvement of the existing service, the institution’s focus on improving student achievement and satisfaction through assessment and feedback...more The OER Wales Cymru Project : A Collaboration to embed Open Educational Resources and Practice in the HE Sector in Wales (Paddling, getting wet and aiming to catch the good waves …) (579) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm here are a million ways to surf, and as long as you’re smiling you’re doing it right. Author Unknown This paper details the experience of bringing together all the universities across Wales to collaborate on a Higher Education Wales project to embed open educational resources (OER’s) and open educational practice (OEP) across the Welsh Higher Education Sector. The results show that we can ride the large waves in Wales but you cannot surf the wave without getting wet and you also need to paddle out away from the safety of the shore if you want to catch the good waves....more Ensuring Academic Integrity with Online Proctoring (524) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm A recent report released by the Babson Research Survey Group, entitled “Grade Change: Tracking Online Education in the United States,” found that over 7.1 millions students are now taking at least one online course [1]. As more and more students move to digital platforms, academic integrity concerns arise. A 2009 study found that 81.7 percent of surveyed college alumni admit to engaging in some form of cheating during their undergraduate career [2]. Instructors must be able to offer secure assessments that are not compromised and meet adequate academic standards. Understanding the transition that is occurring as students flock to online...more The URSS online portfolio: how we use online scaffolded portfolios to get all undergraduate research students learning through reflection (604) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm Since 2001, over 1000 undergraduates have successfully completed academically rigorous, impactful, extracurricular research projects through the Undergraduate Research Support Scheme. Since 2010, greater emphasis has been put on developing and articulating the participant’s transferrable skills in addition to their research-specific experiences. This has enhanced the employability of all, not just those wishing to pursue a career in academic research. The URSS is about developing independent capabilities, without the student becoming over-dependent on the scheme. We want them to develop a specific approach to learning, in which reflective practice has a powerful role. In the past we have found that many...more Exhibition - ULCC Mon, Sep 1 2014, 12:05pm – 1:05pm Established in 1968, as regional supercomputing centre following recommendations of the Flower report, the University of London Computer Centre (ULCC) has evolved into a highly respected and innovative brand within the academic and not-for-profit sector. ULCC’s learning technology, IT and digital preservation specialists now provide services to over 300 customers within the education and not-for-profit sector and support Moodle for over 3 million students across Further and Higher Education institutions in the UK, including Manchester Metropolitan University, King’s College and University of London International Academy. Visit the ULCC stand to find out more.more |
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Development and applicability of a vision-based augmented reality App as a learning and teaching tool in health care education (658) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 2:05pm – 3:05pm Abstract Introduction:In cognitive load theory, the learner’s environment is a crucial component in using the technology to efficiently support complex knowledge acquisition (Squire and Jan, 2007). Recent developments in the field of modernising classrooms are frequently enhanced through the addition of new interactive and immersive technologies. Augmented Reality (AR) is one of these new technologies. AR is an “immersive” interface utilizing mobile, context-aware technologies (e.g., smartphones, tablets), and software that enables participants to interact with digital information superimposed on the physical object or environment (Dunleavy and Dede, 2014). “Triggers” (also referred to as “hotspots”) are placed on the physical object...more Invited speaker session: Bryan Mathers - Space to Breathe - Growing a Creative Culture around Technology (704) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 2:05pm – 3:05pm How important is it to nurture a culture of innovation in your organisation, and if so, what can you do to grow it? Is innovation stifled in your organisation? With an increasingly higher drive towards efficiency, performance and conformance, are the slightly crazy ideas quickly sunk? Possibly there’s an underlying fear of innovation which means that new ideas remain as just that? And how key is leadership to all this anyway? (and how techie do leaders actually need to be)? Small ideas can make a big difference. We’ll look at how other organisations breed a culture of innovation, and why...more Invited Speaker Session: Fiona Harvey - Watching the MOOCs go by - where we have been and where are we going? (705) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 2:05pm – 3:05pm It’s been a year since the launch of the MOOC Special Interest Group, with two conferences and regular meetings this talk will look back at where we have been and where we will go in the future as we watch Moocs for ALT. Looking back over the year helps us to reflect on our predictions and compare these to what really happened. In the past year Futurelearn has been launched as the UK platform provider, many UK Higher Education institutions are involved in creating courses that they would never have been making before. We have much more information than we...more The challenges of open data: emerging technology to support learner journeys (539) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 2:05pm – 3:05pm People make important decisions about their participation in the labour market every year. This extends from pupils in schools, to students in Further and Higher education institutions and individuals at every stage of their career and learning journeys. Whether these individuals are in transition from education and/or training, in employment and wishing to up-skill, re-skill or change their career, or whether they are outside the labour market wishing to re-enter, high quality and impartial labour market information (LMI) is crucial to effective career decision-making. LMI is at the heart of UK Government reforms of careers service provision. Linking and opening...more Catching the wave of student engagement with Facebook (507) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 2:05pm – 3:05pm This presentation will discuss the use of Facebook to engage on-campus students for continuous learning in sports conditioning, sports marketing and promotion units. Since our increased use of the online learning environment in teaching and learning, on-campus lectures are becoming less frequently attended and experience shows that students are engaging more superficially with the resources provided to support learning. On the other hand, informal learning strategies have increasingly become integral to the learning experiences within contemporary higher education environments. One study found that using Facebook may add to traditional e-learning tools, and deliver content that is integrated with technology applications...more Beach breakers or blow outs? Mapping digital residency and understandings of effective online spaces (602) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 2:05pm – 3:05pm Effective online engagement is particularly relevant to health care professionals, who are bound by professional codes of ethics. The increasing use of social media for professional and public engagement requires them to develop understanding of the interactions between professional and personal spaces. Combining conventional online learning environments and socially enabled online spaces offers the potential to provide new and potentially effective, bridges between formal and informal learning. However, how students ‘see’ these ‘spaces’ and how they use social media or professional tools for learning, is not always transparent (White, 2011). Gaining a better understanding of how students and staff interact...more Changing the Learning Landscape (708) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 2:05pm – 3:05pm The Changing the Learning Landscape programme was funded by HEFCE and involved ALT, HEA, Jisc and the NUS working under the overall guidance of the Leadership Foundation for HE. The programme has run for two years. The key principles of the scheme were that informed strategic leadership was required to change the learning landscape within an institution and that students must be involved in all such change as co-designers and co-creators. It was a first for the organisations involved working together. Over 70 English institutions took part (LFHE 2014). The session will discuss from various points of view (partner, institution,...more The impact of digital technology on design students; the changing learning journey and the emergence of a learner interface (533) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 2:05pm – 3:05pm The session reflects on the research conducted in the investigation of fashion design students’ learner journey and the pedagogical impact of digital technologies on their research behaviour. The internet has dramatically changed teaching environments and it is inconceivable to expect students to operate without it. Our observations in controlled experiments with and without internet access identify that fashion design student research pathways rely heavily on digital information and digitising physical experiences thus compromising tacit knowledge and experiential learning through the integration of multiple senses. They use digital information to validate research enquiries appearing to give secondary digitised information importance over...more ‘Education is an illusion if it simply disseminates information’: A university wide cloud-like approach to connecting in an open world (553) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 2:05pm – 3:05pm What would a university’s learning, teaching and assessment look like if connectivist principles drove them at a strategic and pedagogical level? In 2012, we developed an approach to learning innovation, predicated on the notion that social interaction and connectivity can significantly enhance learning (Downes, 2009; Siemens & Weller, 2011). New skills such as collaboration, sharing, content production and inquiry have become ‘normalised’ and form part of the daily work and personal lives of learners. Yet within higher education institutions, our ability to embrace these practices and technologies is sometimes compromised by an unwillingness to experiment and policy debates that challenge...more Using Twitter for teaching & learning: a discussion of problems & breakdowns (529) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 2:05pm – 3:05pm In recent times there has been an increasing wave of interest in the use of Social Media for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (HE). In particular, the micro-blogging platform Twitter has been experimentally used in various Universities world-wide. There are relevant publications reporting on experimentations with twitter for reaching diverse learning goals, including better engagement (Junco et al. 2011), informal learning (Ebner et al. 2009), collaboration among students (Kassens-Noor, 2012). Most advanced papers also discuss the connections between learning theories and the practical use of Twitter (Junco et al 2011). Existing research papers on the use of Twitter however...more What motivates lecturers to change their pedagogical practices? Investigating social media tools and their killer affordance (514) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 2:05pm – 3:05pm There are many barriers to the uptake of technology for teaching and learning. These have been called ‘the usual suspects’ and include lack of time and technical skills (Cooke 2008; Walker et al. 2012). However some lecturers overcome these barriers to make changes in their teaching and learning practices. This paper examines lecturers’ motivations to make use of social media tools in their teaching and learning practices based on a small scale phenomenological study of the ‘early adopters’ of these tools. The paper draws on a framework proposed by Kennedy and Lefevre (2009) for understanding the features Web 2.0 tools. The framework suggests...more How to train your giant…..or working with organisational change (649) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 2:05pm – 3:05pm Research-intensive institutions are not renowned for moving fast when it comes to technology-enhanced learning and teaching innovations. However, in the last year, many similarly minded institutions had to respond quickly and firmly to the establishment of FutureLearn, the UK’s answer to massive open online courses (MOOCs). The University of Bath found itself in a position replicated in each of the fellow FutureLearn partner institutions. It had around 6-8 months to design, develop and deliver a number of courses, to be delivered on the a platform that was still being developed, from scratch and with continuously emerging functionality, to a worldwide...more Exhibition - URKUND Mon, Sep 1 2014, 2:05pm – 3:05pm 14.05 – 14.25 URKUND will be taking a look at how plagiarism detection systems have, historically, been used to hide plagiarism rather than prevent it. URKUND’s policy of keeping plagiarism detection in the hands of professionals leads to a climate of understanding, making essays free of plagiarism at the source rather than encouraging students to write poorly initially and cleaning up afterwards. This frees up time for students as well as faculty and protects the integrity of students and institutions far better than alternatives. more |
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Panel: Leadership in TEL across the globe (709) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 3:10pm – 4:10pm Chair: from ALT, tbc Panel members: Dr Paul Gentle, Director of Programmes, Leadership Foundation for Higher Education, UK; Dr Kathleen Ives, Acting Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director, the Online Learning Consortium, USA; Prof Eeve Leinonen, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Education), University of Wollongong, Australia; Dr Larry Ragan, Co-Director for the Center for Online Innovation in Learning at Penn State University and Co-Director of the Institute for Emerging Leadership in Online Learning (IELOL), USA. This session is about exploring leadership in Learning Technology across the globe. First, panel members will present short opening statements outlining their perspective and reflecting on their experience....more Learning Analytics: seeking answers at a time of big questions? (576) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 3:10pm – 4:10pm Learning Analytics (LA) and Educational Data Mining (EDM) have attracted great interest and excitement at a time of increasing demands on the accountability, efficiency and relevance of education. Emerging evidence from research and practice suggests that learning analytics may have a direct positive impact on student retention and have the potential to improve students’ learning experiences. These possibilities have stimulated growth in the number of stakeholder groups interested in how learning analytics can support effective decision-making in HEIs. However, when translating learning into numbers, competing discourses emerge between enthusiasts and sceptics with different views about the promises and possibilities of...more Data Mining to Predict Student Success in a Large Class (578) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 3:10pm – 4:10pm New classroom technologies enable the collection of unprecedented data on student participation. This paper builds on previous data mining research (Romero & Ventura, 2007; Siemens & Baker, 2012) to consider to what degree the collection of intrinsic and extrinsic data can be related to student outcomes. This interactive session invites attendees to participate in a mock class session with tools that collect student notes, questions and answers in class to see what can be produced in real-time. The presentation will include examples of lessons learned from previous classes on how student note-taking, question responses and even emotional state can be...more Co-authorship and Colearning through Open Educational Resources at UKOU (661) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 3:10pm – 4:10pm Originally coined to describe learning resources shared openly via the Web, the expression Open Educational Resources (OER) has come to describe not only materials specifically developed for learning purposes, shared under open licenses, but a worldwide movement with advocates and collaborators across the globe, including educators, learners and institutions. In little over a decade since inception, the movement has spawned many initiatives around the world, all committed to the democratising ideals of opening up construction of and access to knowledge. OER initiatives are underway that span all educational sectors, from primary schooling to Higher Education, and all areas of knowledge,...more Removing barriers to technology-enabled learning (523) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 3:10pm – 4:10pm The workshop builds on our research, using literature review, interviews and focus groups to build a picture of barriers, enablers and current practice in Technology-Enabled Learning (TEL) in English universities. Our work is distinctive because it explores these questions from the perspectives of both the institution and the individual academic. We aim to inspire and support effective practice and influence policy within our organisations and beyond. The workshop will explore critical questions on the adoption of TEL in universities: -Is there a risk of assuming that technology enhances learning without really knowing whether it does? -What are the capabilities of...more Investigating how students learn online: Conceptual and methodological issues (555) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 3:10pm – 4:10pm This presentation addresses the theme ‘Evidence on board’ by discussing a new 3-year multi-institution mixed method study investigating how students learn online. Many students adopt ineffective approaches to learning at university. This is despite the introduction of student-centred online approaches intended to improve educational quality and access in higher education. These approaches require students to interpret open-ended tasks and independently self-regulate their learning. High quality task design and supportive teaching are critical to student-centred online learning, but are particularly challenging in an era when students entering higher education come from increasingly diverse backgrounds. Prominent conceptual models of university student learning...more Invisible barriers to the adoption of TEL (556) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 3:10pm – 4:10pm This presentation examines attribution theory in relation to the adoption of TEL (technology enhanced learning) by academic staff in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). A staff survey and focus groups at the University of Surrey was designed to establish not only what staff did, or did not do, in relation to TEL, but also their motivations and rationale for particular behaviours. As with many surveys of this type, staff reported a skills deficit as a primary reason for non-engagement with TEL; this did not tally with their experience and technological proficiency as demonstrated by their use of technology in their personal...more Evidence to Support the Adoption of Synchronous Computer Mediated Communication Technologies Online Group Work (574) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 3:10pm – 4:10pm When participating in group work and collaboration, students have the opportunity toimprove their retention of information and learning. While the benefits ofonline group work using asynchronous technology is documented, research on itseffectiveness and success in higher education courses is not conclusive,especially when compared with the consistent, positive results found in theface-to- face environment. Researchers have identified number ofchallenges in online group work. Fewer channels of communication and lack ofimmediacy when compared to face-to-face group work are a few of the noted limitations (Finegold and Cooke 2006). Thus, research is needed toimprove the online group work experience. Synchronous technologies, which enable students...more Developing online pedagogy through collaboration between academia and publishers (527) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 3:10pm – 4:10pm Universities can see a clear benefit from working collaboratively with business (Wilson, 2012) especially those involved in education, such as publishers, to innovate and improve educational resources to make them more appropriate for real-life teaching and learning contexts as well as improving scholarship overall (Fritsch and Lee, 2011). Here, we report on two universities which have worked in partnership with a major educational publisher to develop online resources to support a generic subject area, employability, and a specific discipline, accounting. The nature of digital resources allows a higher level of flexibility than traditional paper-based textbooks (Young, 2013). In pedagogical terms,...more Rapid e-learning process development for working with SMEs (624) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 3:10pm – 4:10pm In April 2013, a team of one e-learning technologist and five subject matter experts were tasked with developing a brand new suite of online resources, to be launched at the start of the next academic year. After identifying twelve key content areas, the team was left with the question of how to achieve the design and development of all these resources in such a short time frame. The newly appointed e-learning technologist had arrived after working for five years in a similar team at a different institution. In the old team, the SMEs were used to working on e-learning content...more Exhibition Mon, Sep 1 2014, 3:10pm – 4:10pm Details to follow.more |
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Reflections on a research study about the MOOC: Teaching with Moodle 2013 (532) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm Given the paradox of large enrolments with Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) across the globe (Norton et al., 2013) and the evident high drop-out rates (Clow, 2013), the inference is a need for a shared understanding about pedagogy and outcomes with regard to such large courses. It therefore follows, if MOOCs continue to contribute to the changing landscape of education then research about the purpose of MOOCs appears necessary. Drawing on constructivist methodology, this presentation will consider a recent research project, which focused on a MOOC that involved over 9,000 enrolled participants, during 2013, framed by the research question: What...more "You'll never hear surf music again" (535) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm The use of social media tools to support learning is now widespread, with even Clay Shirky now noting and commenting on the trend at UCISA2014. But less has been said about the ways that social media itself is shifting towards maximising commercial returns and vetting or filtering individual posts. From lightning-fast youtube takedowns, to the ways changes to twitter and facebook, social media networks are making it harder to use these tools for learning at precisely the moment that the idea is becoming mainstream. The social media revolution has, over the past ten years, been the last great wave driving...more Preparing for The Zone: Understanding, Defining and Sharing a University Wide Digital Future (603) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm The concept of the ‘digital university’ is being widely debated within the Higher education sector, becoming embedded in educational policy and, beginning to be explored in many institutions. Whilst there is still not commonly understood definition of how a digital university differs from current practice and long established conventions, there is an underlying assumption that the “digital” is crucial to the success of any 21st Century University. Over the past 18 months, the Digital Futures Working Group at Edinburgh Napier University has conducted a wide ranging review and intensive staff and student consultation exercise to develop a set of...more Language Learning with Machinima: A Meta-analysis of the Research (560) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm The use of immersive digital games and 3D virtual environments has led to an increasing amount of educational research over the last decade exploring constructivist approaches to teaching and learning. Developing from this researchers are now investigating how the use of recorded video productions (or machinima) can be used to stimulate task-based learning in which learners interact in authentic cultural environments (e.g., learning German in the virtual city of Berlin). Arising from the two-year EU-funded CAMELOT project (CreAting Machinima Empowers Live Online Language Teaching and Learning), this paper investigates the use of machinima through the lens of sociocultural theory, exploring the potential of...more Piloting the iPad (and other tablets) Coffee Club at the University of Huddersfield (565) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm This session will present the findings of a Higher Education Academy (HEA) funded “Changing the Learning Landscape” (CLL) project. The iPad (and other tablets) Coffee Club was piloted at the University of Huddersfield during the 2013/14 academic year to help academic staff members use their iPads and other tablet devices effectively. This initiative was based on a successful iPad coffee club scheme implemented at the University of Southampton. This session’s presenter/author conducted an iPad project, funded by the British Educational Research Association (BERA), which found that academics at the institution relied mainly on informal support systems (peers, friends and the...more Shifting teachers' thinking: Where? (645) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm The introduction of new digital technology to enhance learning needs to begin, not with the technology itself, but with enabling an ontological shift among teachers (Cochrane et al., 2014, p. 208). The ontology of most such strategies involves a shift in the locus of control of learning from teacher to student. This is a Eurocentric view of learning which may not be appropriate in settings where the cultural underpinnings of these roles are markedly different. An aid project in which mobile technology was introduced for the first time in two secondary schools in remote, rural Fiji threw this into sharp...more Using microblogging to support Practiced Based Learning and Teaching (588) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm The use of social media to support learning and teaching in Higher Education is not new. In 2008, the Open University Clusters project examined how various social media applications might be used to support students engaging in practice based learning. At that time, microblogging using the Twitter™ platform was a relatively new phenomena and the Clusters project considered it had little value, but microblogging, in particular Twitter™ is now established and being used in both higher and further education settings for a variety of purposes. In this presentation, we explore one such initiative in some detail, draw attention to others...more Using Digital Evidence to Develop Instructional Leadership Practice (613) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm This presentation will describe the evolution of leadership learning where gathering and analysing digital evidence has become an explicit strategy. Informed by Earl and Timperley’s (2009) work on knowledge building cycles and Robinson’s (2011) construct of student-centred leadership, school-based leaders in a Canadian urban school district are using digital evidence to develop their instructional leadership practice. In like-role groups, 42 principals, 45 assistant principals and 90 learning leaders have been investigating how leadership practices can improve teaching practices, student achievement and student intellectual engagement for elementary and secondary students. The key leadership learning outcomes include deepening leaders understanding about effective...more You're facing that machine but there's a human being behind it”: Affective responses to technology among online doctoral students (557) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm The recent surge of interest in online learning stimulated by the MOOC phenomenon has led many educational institutions to consider offering online courses. While advances in technology have allowed increased access to online learning environments, our understanding of how students experience such environments is far from complete. Research suggests that it can be challenging for teachers to communicate their presence within the online environment, reducing the sense of ‘immediacy’ felt by students (Russo & Benson, 2005). Nevertheless, studies also show that online students use highly emotional language to describe their experiences, indicating that learners do feel a great deal online...more Helping students to stay up, mobile and personal: Enhancing the delivery of feedback through learning analytics dashboards (612) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm The emerging field of learning analytics is presenting new ways to provide feedback to students on their academic engagement and performance. This feedback is increasingly being delivered to students via learning analytics dashboards incorporated in learning management systems. These dashboards visualise multiple sources of real-time data about students’ learning in a consolidated view. However, despite the growing popularity of this form of feedback delivery, researchers have questioned the ability of feedback delivered via dashboards to provide useful information to students (Corrin, Kennedy & Mulder, 2013; Elias, 2011). Currently there is limited research into the effectiveness of providing feedback to students...more Learning to Ride: a travelogue of the eLearning Sudan project (656) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm This session will look at collaborative approaches to innovations in education through the lens of the eLearning Sudan (ELS) programme. Drawing on research from the International Network for Education in Emergencies, UNICEF, and the Brookings Institution, it will provide an insight into an education project undertaken in a conflict-zone; a multi-disciplinary approach drawing on theory and practice from education, psychology, international development and technology; and the chance to engage in a real-time discussion on collaboration. ELS is the story of a range of people and organisations, in Sudan and internationally, learning to ride together – all in the same direction....more Equipping staff to ride the digital wave – Establishing a University-wide Training Needs Analysis (518) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm The challenge today for universities and their staff is to keep up with the constantly changing world of technology in teaching and learning in higher education. It is therefore imperative that a strong network of training is available to support and ease staff through these transitions. With a wide range of software and equipment available to use where do you start? The Regent’s University London (RUL) IT Training Needs Analysis was established in 2012/13 to investigate a key set of digital literacy requirements to help guide University staff to training and to help with future planning. Our second IT Training...more Exploring The Missing Middle (between research and policy) (597) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm The trajectory from pilots and projects to national and regional policy, to strategy and to deployment is vague and obscure. A recent UNESCO project recognised that the interface between mobile learning researchers and mobile learning policy makers, and other related communities such as donors, agencies, activists and developers in the mobile learning space, is poorly understood, possibly ineffective and potentially problematic. Furthermore, the transactions, of resources and of findings, between them may be inefficient and sometimes dysfunctional. The purpose of the project was to explore, document and analyse this interface and these transactions in order to improve them with increased...more The ups and downs of sharing knowledge in fickle waters (657) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm Innovation in learning and teaching is an ongoing process. All learning technologists and digital advocates have floods of ideas that are implemented and ride the waves of success; however some ideas sink to the bottom of the ocean. The Universities and Colleges Information Systems Association (UCISA), User Skills Group (USG) have approached challenges of disseminating innovation, sharing good practice, and discussing enabling factors and barriers of digital technology in education by establishing a ‘community of practice’ providing a safe haven where this can occur. To encourage the flow of good practice through the UCISA USG community, a collection of case...more Learning to Surf the (new) Quality Wave (575) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm The introduction of fees and additional pressures faced by learners and institutions brought about by the global recession means that the traditional model of higher education is coming to a time of significant change. Modern learners demand a product that delivers graduate attributes such as employability within a subject-specific context but that also provides a quality return on their investment. While notions of delivery of a quality product within the HE agenda are not new, the changing demands of students in the international HE market has concentrated institutional attention on the need to respond to learner demand for increased value...more 'Myprogress' App: Supporting and Tracking Learners Across Multiple Placements and Stakeholders (596) [Cancelled] Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm Initial Teacher Education (ITE) has seen enormous changes in recent years. One of the most fundamental is the move from university based training to school directed training. As this transition takes place, ITE is faced with supporting teacher trainees through myriad training routes with reduced resourcing and increased accountability. Monitoring and tracking through paper based systems is difficult and time consuming and e-mail/web postings have not proved effective in large institutions. Effective, efficient systems to monitor and support trainees’ progress across different training placements and with many stakeholders are vital to ensure success for both trainees and training institutions. Stakeholders...more Exhibition - ProctorU & Jisc Mon, Sep 1 2014, 4:40pm – 5:40pm 16.40 – 17.00 ProctorU provides distance proctoring services for institutions that offer examinations online. The service gives examinees the convenience of testing at home and instructors the ability to ensure exam security. A three-step process confirms that the individual who registered for and exam is the person who is taking the exam and is following the institution’s testing requirements. Test monitors can see the student, see what they are doing and know who they are monitoring using webcams and screen-sharing technology. ProctorU offers live, person-to-person, real-time monitoring to more than 500 colleges, universities and certification organizations worldwide. 17.00 – 17.20...more |
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Welcome to new members (at ALT Stand) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 5:45pm – 6:30pm New Members welcome: If you have joined ALT in the past year, come along to the ALT stand in the Exhibition Hall to meet other members and find out more about how to get involved. Lead: Elizabeth Wyatt, Trustees and Membersmore Launch of ALT Wales (710) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 5:45pm – 6:30pm Come and participate in the launch of the newly established ALT Wales Special Interest Group. ALT Wales is a national SIG for practitioners and researchers in learning technology based in Wales. Its remit is to: • further the aims of ALT in Wales; • promote the technology agenda in all sectors of Welsh education; • encourage sharing of expertise, resources and best practice in learning technology within the context of Welsh education; • influence relevant policy and strategy; • develop constructive relationships with related organisations and committees. If you are interested in getting involved, join here http://goo.gl/O6pfNJ . more ALT MOOC SIG Meeting (714) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 5:45pm – 6:30pm A meeting of the MOOC Special Interest Groupmore Games and Learning SIG Meeting (722) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 5:45pm – 6:30pm A meeting of the Games and Learning Special Interest Groupmore Video in Education SIG Meeting (718) Mon, Sep 1 2014, 5:45pm – 6:30pm A meeting of the Video in Education Special Interest Groupmore Exhibition - Brightspace by Desire2Learn Mon, Sep 1 2014, 5:45pm – 6:30pm A global leader in EdTech, D2L (Desire2Learn) is the creator of Brightspace, the world’s first integrated learning platform. We partner with thought-leading organizations to improve learning through data-driven technology that helps deliver a personalised experience to every learner, regardless of geography or ability. Turn potential into new possibilities by empowering every individual with the freedom to define and succeed on their own learning path. Visit www.brightspace.com to learn more or email us at enquiries@D2L.com to set up a meeting in advance of the conference.more |
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Spielberg Vs 21st Century Engineers – using video assessment to convey design concept process and methodology in undergraduate engineering students (605) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 9:00am – 10:00am Engineering education has conventionally been a subject taught and assessed in a traditional and structured format (Ditcher 2001). However, pressures on higher education, in terms of cost effectiveness, increase in student numbers in STEM related subjects, as well as evolving technologies and new practices, are driving profound changes in the delivery of engineering teaching (Deshpande and Huang 2011). This paper draws on preliminary work carried out with both first and final year engineering students over the course of a 4-year pilot study, using video production and creation as an alternative assessment method. Student digital skills and confidence, in relation to...more The use of learning analytics to support teaching, learning and evaluation in an online course (614) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 9:00am – 10:00am In higher education, learning analytics is playing an increasingly significant role in informing curriculum evaluation and review. This has been enabled by new developments in analytics methods and tools, as well as increasing access to real-time data on students’ learning activities (Long & Siemens, 2011). Recent research (Corrin, Kennedy & Mulder, 2013; Stephens-Martinez, Hearst & Fox, 2014) found that academics want greater and easier access to data on student engagement with learning activities and resources to inform changes to teaching approaches and curriculum structure. This is especially important for subjects/courses that are delivered online, where it is often more difficult...more Murder in a Massive Open Online Course: Storytelling, Fun & Participant Retention (619) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 9:00am – 10:00am A story “facilitates instruction directly through verbal or linguistic means and indirectly by aiding in the mental construction of a sequence of events enacted for or by the learner” (Andrews, Hull & Donahue, 2009). In January and February 2014 University of Strathclyde ran the institution’s first the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) “Introduction to Forensic Science” on the FutureLearn platform. The course had 27,000 enrolments with participants from 130 countries. This MOOC taught the fundamental principles of forensic science supported by a filmed murder-mystery “Murder on the Loch” with episodes of the case study revealed in short video segments each...more Supporting staff development in Digital Literacy: the DigiLit Leicester Project (643) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 9:00am – 10:00am The internationally acclaimed DigiLit Leicester project is a knowledge exchange between Leicester City Council’s Building Schools for the Future programme, De Montfort University and 23 of the city’s Secondary Schools. In consultation with the schools, the project team created a digital literacy framework, situated in secondary level practice, designed to support staff in reflecting on their use of technology to support teaching, learning and whole school community development. The framework focuses around six key areas of digital literacy: Finding, Evaluating and Organising; Creating and Sharing; Assessment and Feedback; Communication, Collaboration and Participation; E-Safety and Online Identity and Technology Supported Professional...more Going mobile – learning how to SMIRK (511) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 9:00am – 10:00am This presentation outlines how we have rewritten our Information Literacy package, SMILE, to make it fully compatible with mobile devices. At present it is available on our VLE, Blackboard, which has a mobile app, but the structure is not suitable for mobile use. SMILE is written on Dreamweaver and has a sequential structure of twelve units covering information literacy and communication skills. It has been available for over 5 years and lecturers have suggested a wide range of new content. This does not fit easily into the existing menu structure, making it hard for users to quickly find and use...more Discover Geology: An Augmented Reality Field Trip (566) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 9:00am – 10:00am The Discover Geology Augmented Reality Field Trip was designed to provide a flexible opportunity for distance-learning students on the MSc in Environmental Sciences to experience a field trip at their own convenience. Augmented Reality (AR) is a technique that involves superimposing virtual information over a real-life view of the world – in this case through the camera on a smartphone or tablet device. Using AR technology, the field trip application allows a mobile device to serve as a ”pocket geologist”, providing directions and a full commentary on the geology and natural history of the area – in this case, around...more The Paperless Student: The impact of an intervention addressing digital study competencies (592) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 9:00am – 10:00am Over the last three years, a number of courses have moved away from the distribution of any printed learning materials in class and instead provide digital versions in advance of teaching sessions for students to download and bring to lectures or seminars in a form they wish. With the marked increase in students’ ownership of mobile devices, in particular tablets (Chen & Denoyelles, 2013; Champagne, 2013), there is an implicit assumption that students are confident and competent in the use of digital devices and digital resources for academic activity. Yet, there is a conflict between students’ informal use of...more A helping hand for academics capturing their content on video (551) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 9:00am – 10:00am From personal feedback to documentary like productions, there is now a resurgence in interest around video which is quite strongly felt by institutions involved in Massive Open Online courses (MOOCs), but also throughout the education spectrum. The Enhanced Learning and Innovation Production team (ELIP) have been working on a range of video productions for MOOCs and typical heavy users within the university. We would like to share the challenges we faced and the techniques that have proved most effective with practitioners, technical teams and researchers alike. These have been informed by the work in both the HE sector and Broadcast....more How to turn a giant: 3 online tools, 2 years and a viewpoint. A model for major course redesign. (591) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 9:00am – 10:00am A big challenge facing learning technologists is the redevelopment of existing curricula to incorporate digital learning approaches. When whole, complex curricula are involved, this can feel like “turning a giant”. Here we present the holistic approaches adopted and lessons learnt in undertaking this process within a large, traditional, complex pre-registration nursing programme. In September 2011, we were tasked with the development of a radically new programme of which 50% of the students’ learning would occur online. We based our approach around Laurillard’s conversation framework (Laurillard, 2002). We recognised the need to develop a Community of Practice within the faculty for...more FELTAG to ETAG – time for some NEET ideas (635) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 9:00am – 10:00am The Next Gen report [1] highlighted that whilst the UK has around 100,000 tech vacancies that we are struggling to fill, we also have a million young people not in employment, education or training (NEET). European Commissioner Neelie Kroes states that there are around a million unfilled tech vacancies across Europe. Clearly there are massive opportunities in and around digital technologies, but the Next Gen report argues that a step change will be required in skills if the UK and other EU member states are to fully exploit them.Popular perception of “NEETs” is of young people whose education ceased at GCSE...more Augmented Reality: A way to engage and empower learners (571) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 9:00am – 10:00am Augmented Reality (AR) is defined as the blending of digital content with the real world, enhancing information and making the invisible visible. It is increasingly pervasive; you may not be aware of its presence, but your learners probably are. We can make use of AR to engage and empower learners providing ‘Amazing Relevance’ (Papagiannis, 2014). The workshop is relevant to teachers, lecturers, learning technologists, curriculum designers, teaching and learning managers and will show how AR is being used by other practitioners to enhance and extend learning. The session will provide an opportunity for delegates to try out educational AR...more |
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Keynote Speech from Catherine Cronin - Navigating the Marvellous: Openness in Education (702) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 10:05am – 11:05am Inspired by a Seamus Heaney poem, Catherine will explore “navigating the marvellous”, the challenge of being open in higher education. To be in higher education is to learn in two worlds: the open world of informal learning and the predominantly closed world of the institution. As higher education moves slowly, warily, and unevenly towards openness, students deal daily with the dissonance between these two worlds; developing different skills, practices and identities in different learning spaces. Both students and educators make choices about the extent to which they learn, teach, share and interact in bounded and open spaces. If, as Joi Ito...more |
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Learning Technologist of the Year showcase (730) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm This session will showcase the short-listed entries for this year’s Learning Technologist of the Year award. Come along to find out more about who the winner could be – which will be announced later today at the Gala evening.more Learning to Ride: Putting the pieces together (564) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm At ALT-C 2013, FELTAG opened a conversation about the future of learning technology in FE. Their report, published in February, recommends several key points which relate to the ALT-C 2014 ‘Learning to Ride’ theme; starting with the need for staff to be taught the skills needed to innovate and meet the digital challenges of putting courses online (FELTAG recommends 10% by 2016, p. 23). Additionally, funding bodies have to recognise the additional skills that students need to enter employment in the 21st century and all sectors need to acknowledge that learners should not be expected to ‘catch’ what they need...more Does institutional lecture capture improve student learning? (639) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm Lectures are now routinely recorded in many institutions, but the approach remains controversial and is often branded as ‘bad’ educational technology. The argument of this session, developed from projects and experience in a range of universities that lecture capture is a genuinely transformative technology in higher education, benefitting our students, our staff and our institutions. The session will draw together user experiences from Imperial, UCL and the ViTAL (video in teaching and learning) community. We will also explore evidence from the literature and the recently-finished REC:all project which UCL led. REC:all tried to identify some concrete educational benefits, starting with...more Teaching by Twitter a different view of mLearning (503) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm The Cisco Networking module team at the Open University has been experimenting with the inclusion of social media tools as a method of extending learning beyond VLE content. The rationale for the experiment was to leverage the free resources available within the social media domain. With the intention of adding a ‘knowledge nugget’ and ‘aide memoir’ dimension to the teaching content; to enhance retention as well as use the interactive resources of social media to bring our teaching team closer to the student experience in an otherwise traditional large scale blended distance-learning community. The project ran with the internal moniker...more Where did they get that idea from? – Incoming expectations of the digital environment. (521) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm If as a sector we are to successfully respond to incoming students’ expectations of the digital environment in higher education it is important to gain a clear understanding of how and why these expectations are formed. This is not simply so that we can meet these expectations but also so that where appropriate we can challenge them with confidence. Students entering higher education from secondary school have formed vague notions of what the next stage of their education will be like . This includes expectations of the digital environment provided by HE and FE institutions. As identified by phase 1...more Engage and Enhance Student Learning by Using Multimedia Content Production in the Syllabus (549) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm Student-centered teaching and learning has gained tremendous popularity among faculty and students during the last two decades. Furthermore, the emergence of new and very innovative learning technologies has also contributed to this process with a plethora of academic courses that make use of such technologies in the teaching process. Finally, Higher Education is also acutely cognizant of the importance of the various new skills required by students in order for them to secure rewarding employment after graduation. Thus, along with the conventional skills of literacy and disciplinary knowledge, communication, skills such as digital literacies, digital design and familiarity with WEB 2.0...more Effective practice in setting up and implementing staff-student partnerships: lesson learnt from the Change Agents’ Network support for students and staff working collaboratively on curriculum enhancement and innovation. (530) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm The Change Agent’s Network (CAN – http://changeagentsnetwork.co.uk/), funded by Jisc and supported by the HEA, HEFCE, QAA and NUS, is a network of students and staff working on curriculum enhancement and innovation projects. Key CAN activities include facilitation of networking and peer support; development of an accreditation framework for students as change agents; formation of a new Journal of Educational Innovation, Partnership and Change and reviewing and evaluating current and past institutional projects relating to student-staff partnerships and students as change agents. This has led to the formation of a range of resources and effective practice guides for institutions wishing to set up...more Diverse futures: varieties of digital university in the UK and beyond (552) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm The ‘digital university’ can no longer be considered a breed apart, perhaps serving particular markets such as home- or work-based learners. In fact the term ‘digital university’ is almost a tautology: how could any university serve the needs of students, meet the expectations of society, or function as an institution unless it was thoroughly engaged with digital technologies? Technologies are revolutionising the traditional academic activities of learning and teaching, of scholarship and public engagement. Digital media are being harnessed to new knowledge practices in publishing, new research methods, new approaches to data visualisation and management. Digital tools are transforming subjects...more Are we there yet? A report on the findings of the review of the learning environment following the merger of two HE institutions. (585) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm The merger of the University of Glamorgan and the University of Wales, Newport in April 2013, to form the University of South Wales created a series of challenges and opportunities in relation to the use of the technology for learning and teaching across the newly formed institution. While both institutions had previously actively promoted the use of technology to enhance learning, providing a wide range of online tools to support and enhance learning, teaching and assessment, there was inevitably some discrepancy in use. This led to an inconsistent experience for users and increased pressure on training and support resources. Most...more Mrs King et al.: How We facilitated and evaluated 155 blended learning experiences (587) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm Significance and relevance This presentation will share our experience of collaborating across institutions and disciplines to produce a specialist blended learning activity. It will chart the development of the project from planning through delivery to evaluation, identifying those hurdles we anticipated and cleared with ease, and those which surprised or challenged us. We have collected evaluative evidence at a reasonable sample size (n155) from the students across the participating institutions. Analysing this alongside the team’s reflections on the process, we have knowledge to share about the creation of similar, inter-professional learning activities. The Presentation Two neighbouring universities collaborated on the...more Understanding Patterns in OER Impact: the role of mapping and curation (562) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm The OER Research Hub (OERRH) project works collaboratively with open education initiatives around the world to examine the impact of open educational resources or OER (Atkins, Seely Brown & Hammond, 2007). In this presentation I will outline methods for organizing and disseminating open research into OER. In particular, I focus on the value of curation when combined with strategies for the visual presentation of evidence (especially mapping). The discussion is framed by a presentation of the OER Impact Map, an asset of OERRH. In part one I argue there is a widely recognized need for a shared evidence base for...more Increasing FE Practitioner involvement in research and scholarly publication (660) Exhibition - ULCC, Open data: LMI for All & Desire2Learn Tue, Sep 2 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm 11.35 – 11.55 Established in 1968, as regional supercomputing centre following recommendations of the Flower report, the University of London Computer Centre (ULCC) has evolved into a highly respected and innovative brand within the academic and not-for-profit sector. ULCC’s learning technology, IT and digital preservation specialists now provide services to over 300 customers within the education and not-for-profit sector and support Moodle for over 3 million students across Further and Higher Education institutions in the UK, including Manchester Metropolitan University, King’s College and University of London International Academy. 11.55 – 12.15 A major project, funded by the UK Commission for...more |
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Ground swells and breaking waves: findings from the 2014 UCISA TEL survey on learning technology trends, developments and fads (586) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm This short paper will report on the headline findings from the UCISA 2014 Survey of Technology Enhanced Learning, which tracks developments in the use of learning technologies across the UK higher education sector. This is the seventh survey of its kind, and offers a longitudinal perspective of TEL developments over a 13-year period within UK higher education, focusing on the provision already in place within institutions and the current, emerging and planned patterns of learning technology use across the HE community. The 2014 Survey incorporated the core set of questions from the previous surveys, thereby enabling a sector-wide longitudinal analysis...more Grasping the nettle: promoting institution-wide take-up of online assessment at Goldsmiths College (513) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm This paper is focused on the roll-out of electronic management of assessment (EMA) at Goldsmiths, University of London. Online assessment has for a number of years been quite well embedded in Goldsmiths, with near universal adoption in some departments. However, in one or two, it has yet to make a significant impact. This paper will provide an outline of the experiences of the TEL team over the last year in building upon these early successes to promote institution-wide take-up of EMA in accordance with the current Learning, Teaching and Assessment Strategy. Specifically, it will touch on the following: The use...more Catching the wave and taking off: Embracing FELTAG at Loughborough College - moving from recommendations to reality (570) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm The publication of the FELTAG (Further Education LearningTechnology Action Group) report in March 2014, was a clear indicator of thehigh level importance given to the development of digital technology in the areas of learning, teaching and assessment in Further Education (FE). The challenges and key messages that this report brings are extremely exciting but also very complex: eAssessment, eActivities, digital pedagogies, staff development, student engagement and digital literacy to name a few.Loughborough College welcomed the report and immediately recognised the positive impact the recommendations would have on wideninglearning opportunities and subsequent student experience, a viewpoint supported by Harris et al...more Developing digital practices through small-scale, subject-specific, student–staff partnerships (617) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm Research into the learner experience of using technology for learning in UK Higher Education suggests that although students may be comfortable with digital technologies and devices, particularly in their everyday social applications, they are often less well-versed in the critical, social and personal knowledge practices which lie at the heart of any discussion of ‘literacies’, and tend to take their lead from teachers or other academic staff. (e.g. Benfield, G. & Sharpe, R., 2011) This idea is supported by preliminary research undertaken with students at our institution. At the same time, staff digital literacies are often portrayed in terms of...more Enabling health care students to lead patient care (577) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm In 2008 the Department of Health stated that sophisticated information management and technology were crucial to improving the quality of patient care and patient safety (DH 2008). The General Medical Council then specified that doctors should make effective use of computers and information systems and apply the principles, method and knowledge of health informatics to medical practice (GMC 2009). Clinical Information Systems (CIS) are now firmly embedded in clinical practice: essential for facilitating communication between multidisciplinary teams and enabling coherent long term care for patients. However, Cave et al (2009) found that 42% of newly-qualified UK doctors felt that their...more Learning to ride by accident. Or, the Learning Technologists who went in as podcast creators and came out as collaborators. (580) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm This paper outlines the experiences of our Learning Technology team as we discovered that accidental engagements can create better relationships and learning experiences than formal training. It shows how the creation of a podcast about digitally enhanced learning revealed the need for collaboration with staff from across the institution and improved engagement with the technology agenda demonstrating that creative and collaborative activities provide the best opportunities for progressing such outcomes. Engaging academics with learning technologies is a key issue in Higher Education. Student expectations of their learning environment include access to relevant hardware, software and networks, and support for personal...more Tweeting during lectures/tutorials: Reshaping the learning journey (510) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm Background Feedback from students at the end of the previous academic year suggested the use of social media to help them engage more during lectures and tutorials. This feedback, along with research by both Chris Evans1 and Daniel Fusch2 regarding the use of social media, became the focus of this project. The Project University students were encouraged to tweet during lectures and tutorials in two particular courses throughout the academic year in order to determine if this would impact on their engagement and learning. The students in the study were first and second year undergraduate students on the four-year MA Primary Education...more Growing Communities of Instructional Innovation through Blended Learning (638) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm It has become cliché to point out that our world and even our culture is transforming due to constant connectivity and information access. Yet many universities are only now organizing a response. Some have responded by either simply increasing the amount and availability of online tools, hoping faculty will choose to adopt on their own; others have enlisting a small proportion of the university to offer fully online modules and even courses. Broad-based, loosely-organized approaches as well as small-scale, top-down initiatives are both attractive to innovative, tech-savvy faculty, and each approach can provide direct benefit to students and the institution,...more Harnessing community knowledge to guide teaching with technology: an introduction to the Learning Designer (558) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm Advancements in learning technology have provided teachers with an ever expanding toolkit to construct innovative learning experiences for students. However, often working in isolation, teachers may struggle to deploy technology in ways that are most effective for learning. As Laurillard et al. (2013: 2) observed: “[t]here is as yet no well-structured body of knowledge about how to exploit fully the use of all the different kinds of learning technologies now available”. This session will raise and respond to what we consider to be the next big questions for learning and technology: How can we effectively harness the potential of technology...more Preventing shallow waters and sharp coral reefs: Using learning analytics to inform effective learning design (543) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm In blended and online education, educators have an almost infinite number of decisions to make when designing a course. Furthermore, given the inherently complex and dynamic nature of learning processes, educators find they have to continuously fine-tune these learning designs while riding the waves of learning. Over the last twenty years, a range of pedagogical approaches and learning designs have been suggested (Beetham, 2012). Nonetheless, few such learning approaches have been robustly analysed to ascertain whether they indeed lead to consistent learning designs that enrich and improve learning performance (Kirschner et al., 2006). In a review of 118 learning designs...more Tracking a student’s assessment journey (546) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm The problem: Assessment is often viewed as a series of one-off events. This means that learners do not benefit from feedback; they lack a sense of longitudinal progress and do not develop self-reliance in managing assessment. Interestingly, although Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) provide tools to manage submissions and feedback, they tend to be organised in module silos. Moodle, for example, does not have a straightforward default solution for tracking a learner’s complete assessment history, despite holding all information required, provided an institution is committed to online submission and feedback. The idea: The JISC Assessment Careers project aimed to reconceptualise assessment...more A Honeypot of rich ideas – Building online communities to promote knowledge exchange and collaboration between creative arts and engineering (554) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm A project case-study is presented which uses an innovative platform to promote the development of entrepreneurial activity between engineering and design students at the University of Huddersfield. The principle of the networking-platform is formed on the open-innovation principles: increase capacity, research engagement, entrepreneurship, knowledge, understanding, employability and impact on learning (JISC, 2009). It provides a network for potential collaboration between second-year students across 8 subject areas and the opportunity to co-develop knowledge and skills. The open aspect of the platform is that it is situated outside the curriculum and provides the opportunity for UG programmes with no formal engagement to...more MOOC and SPOC: a tale of two courses (528) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm The Centre for Achievement and Performance (CfAP) at the University of Northampton is a student-facing unit that provides personalised academic support, at all levels. The diversification of types of study modes, the need for flexibility and the implications that such requirements will increase in the future, have led to the development of a 100% online course entitled Study Skills for Academic Success. This course, developed in partnership with the Institute of Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, is based on an earlier version, delivered in face-to-face mode. As part of the development of the online programme, the learning outcomes were thoroughly reviewed...more Taming the waves: understanding digital practice at scale (590) [Updated] Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm How do you create a digitally literate university? How do you move lone instances of good practice into the mainstream or understand at scale what is happening within your virtual learning environment? How do you look ‘beyond functional IT skills to describe a richer set of digital behaviours, practices and identities’ (JISC, 2014). This presentation showcases an approach to understand digital practice across an institution and the subsequent work to connect the findings to notions of digital literacy, based on the Beetham and Sharpe’s (2010) Digital Literacy Framework. It discusses the scalable methodology used during the academic year 2012/13 and...more Exhibition - MyKnowledgeMap, Turning Technologies & Blackboard Tue, Sep 2 2014, 1:35pm – 2:35pm 13.35 – 13.55 MyKnowledgeMap is one of the UK’s leading e-assessment software and solution specialists, offering fantastic quality systems with numerous awards to our (and our customers’) credit. Whatever area of education you work in, we know how to work with you to ensure you get the right product delivered or system built for your needs – because we’ve been doing exactly that since we started in 2000, with a mission to be a “trusted provider of the best customer and user experience in learning technology for improvement of skills and knowledge.” Our products include ReallyManaging® Assessment, which enables you to author,...more |
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ALT Annual General Meeting Tue, Sep 2 2014, 2:45pm – 3:30pm Information related to the AGM Agenda Minutes from the last AGM 2014 ALT AGM Proxy Voting Arrangements and Form Travel and directions The AGM is open to all, however only voting members are entitled to vote (refer to the FAQs below for further details). If you wish to attend and are not a conference participant, please contact us to arrange for an AGM pass (selecting “AGM enquiry” as the subject). Safeguarding ALT’s future Trustees have written to all members about proposed changes to the legal structure of ALT which have the aim of strengthening the Association’s ability to deliver its...more Exhibition - Canvas by Instructure Tue, Sep 2 2014, 2:45pm – 3:30pm Instructure, Inc. developed the Canvas learning management system to make teaching and learning easier for everyone, everywhere. Canvas empowers learning in every context with open, usable SaaS technologies. And through Canvas Network, Instructure provides a cloud platform where teachers, learners, and institutions worldwide can connect and chart their own course for personal growth, professional development, and academic inquiry. Learn more at www.instructure.com.more |
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Find out about CMALT (729) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 4:00pm – 5:00pm ALT’s Certified Membership scheme: This session will enable participants to find out about CMALT, ALT’s Certified Membership scheme and to meet members who have completed the scheme.more Policy debate: FELTAG and ETAG (711) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 4:00pm – 5:00pm Chaired by Diana Laurillard, this session will bring together members of FELTAG and ETAG with other experts from across sectors for an open exchange about recent technology in education policy developments. One of the questions we will be discussing is the proposed 10% online learning provision, practical recommendations from FELTAG and the results of a recent ALT member survey on current use of Learning Technology across sectors. Further reading: ?FELTAG report http://feltag.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/FELTAG-REPORT-FINAL.pdf ?FELTAG Horizon Scanning Report http://feltag.org.uk/links/further-education-and-learning-technology-final-draft/ ?ETAG http://etag.support/ ?Government response to FELTAG https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/320242/bis-14-841-government-response-to-recommendations-from-the-FELTAG-action-plan.pdf ?Contribution to the ETAG, report of findings from the ALT survey on the effective use of...more ALT Scotland meeting (719) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 4:00pm – 5:00pm A meeting of the ALT Scotland Regional Interest Groupmore Inclusive Learning SIG – Enable Paper and Award for Developer of Software for Disabled Learners (600) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 4:00pm – 5:00pm This session will include a short paper ICT to support learning by disabled people: recommendations for the future research agenda (600).This will be followed by a presentation on behalf of the winner of the Enable Award for Developer of new ICT to support disabled adult learners. The prize for this award is a conference place at ALT-C 2014 sponsored by ALT Inclusive Learning SIG. The winner of the award is Agnieszka Rynkiewicz of the ASC-Inclusion Project, Gdansk, Poland. The award was made in recognition of her work on the ASC-Inclusion project – SPECTRUM ASC-MED, which is developing software to help people with Autism Spectrum Conditions understand emotions through...more M25 and East Midlands SIG meeting (720) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 4:00pm – 5:00pm A meeting of the M25 and East Midlands Regional Interest Groups more Open Education SIG meeting (721) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 4:00pm – 5:00pm A meeting of the Open Education Special Interest Groupmore North West England SIG Meeting (715) Tue, Sep 2 2014, 4:00pm – 5:00pm A meeting of the North West England Special Interest Groupmore Exhibition - City & Guilds Tue, Sep 2 2014, 4:00pm – 5:00pm As the UK’s leading vocational education organisation, City & Guilds’ purpose is to help people and organisations develop their skills for personal and economic growth. Established in 1878, today we work with over 8500 centres and training providers, offering more than 500 qualifications across 28 industries. Many employers recognise the City & Guilds name as a mark of quality and exceptional training. We already work with the likes of London Underground, Tesco, McDonald’s, Microsoft and Starbucks, designing tailored solutions for their skills needs. In the future, we hope to show even more companies the benefits of a vocationally trained workforce.more |
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Keynote speech from Audrey Watters - Ed-Tech, Frankenstein's Monster, and Teacher Machines (703) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 9:30am – 10:30am What does it mean to create intelligent machines? What does it mean to create intelligent teaching machines? What does this mean in turn when we talk about using these technologies to create intelligent humans? A romp through literature and the cultural history of ed-tech to talk about teaching machines and monsters. Author Audrey Watters Hack Educationmore |
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Invited Speaker Session: Andrew Law - Into the Open? (706) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 10:30am – 11:30am What has the OU UK learned from its open (free) educational provision in the last five years? What’s available now, what’s happening next and how might the broader community exploit this? The free offer clearly contributes to The OU social mission but how does it contribute to its business mission (does ‘free’ really make business sense)? Andrew helps co-ordinate and develop The OU UK open (free) media strategy. This includes national and international TV and radio broadcasts with the BBC, as well as YouTube, AudioBoo, Google Play, iTunes U, OpenLearn and OU FutureLearn activities. Author Andrew Law The Open University...more Invited Speaker Session: Jim Fanning - Mobile Technologies: Getting it Right for Every Child (707) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 10:30am – 11:30am The past five years has witnessed a phenomenal growth in the ownership and use of personal mobile technologies. Within education the development of such devices to support learning has taken place in a piecemeal way, depending very much upon local contexts. Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) is very often promoted as a way of approaching gaps in school provision. This session will describe current use of mobile technologies in Scottish schools, assess where gaps exist and explore strategies to support adoption. Getting it right for every child (GIRFEC) is a key policy driver in Scottish education. Author James Fanning...more Riding the Wave of BYOD: Developing a Framework for Creative Pedagogies (724) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 10:30am – 11:30am Download the full paper. Read the Editorial for the Special Issue of Research in Learning Technology (conference research proceedings). Moving innovation in teaching and learning beyond isolated short-term projects is one of the holy grails of educational technology research, which is littered with the debris of a constant stream of comparative studies demonstrating no significant difference between innovative technologies and traditional pedagogical approaches (Reeves, 2005; Rushby, 2012). Meanwhile the approaching giant wave of the bring your own device movement threatens to overwhelm education practitioners and researchers preoccupied with replicating current practice on mobile devices (Parsons, 2014; Santos, 2013). There are...more Addressing the Challenges of a New Digital Technologies Curriculum: MOOCs as a Scalable Solution for Teacher Professional Development (725) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 10:30am – 11:30am Download the full paper. Read the Editorial for the Special Issue of Research in Learning Technology (conference research proceedings). England and Australia, have introduced new curricula, teaching the computer science to children from the first year of school. This is a significant milestone that also raises a number of big challenges: the preparation of teachers and development of resources at a national scale. Curricula change is not easy for teachers, in any context, and to ensure teachers are supported to implement new curricula, scaled solutions are required. One emerging technology that has gained traction for delivering content to large-scale audiences...more Who manages e-learning now? (637) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 10:30am – 11:30am As e-learning has moved to the mainstream in universities and colleges the online environment has become central to the student experience but the systems to support and sustain this are underdeveloped. Although the academic remains central to the design of the learning experience it now requires diverse teams to deliver and maintain it. Who ‘owns’, develops and monitors the assessment and feedback process, maintains and develops online resources, manages online communications, processes data analytics, engagement monitoring and so on? These roles are ill-defined and emergent, sometimes uncoordinated, and spread across academic and admin staff who vary in their skills. UCL’s...more Are we really transforming teaching and learning? (712) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 10:30am – 11:30am Analytics, by its very nature, is a disruptive technology. A deeper understanding of data can impact the way we think and act while informing decisions in our everyday lives. Our learning life is no different. By tapping into the data already available in enterprise information systems across your institution, analytics—and more importantly, predictive and adaptive analytics—has the potential to transform not only the way we learn, but also the way in which educators engage in their community of practice. This session will delve into why analytics matters in education and help you understand its potential to reshape how learning is...more A pedagogical model to facilitate undergraduate students' progress from an individual to a collaborative culture of online learning (541) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 10:30am – 11:30am This paper presents evidence following an analysis of data collected in relation to online learning behaviours of a group of undergraduate students at Leeds College of Music (LCoM) as they progress from level 5 to level 6 learning on the BA Music degree course, which demands a shift from a learning culture that requires independent online engagement to one in which collaborative online engagement essential. This paper shares information relating to a pedagogical model that has been developed as a result of the critical assessment of the data collected, along with information for purposeful deployment of the model across the...more Voyages to new horizons. (526) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 10:30am – 11:30am As explained in the recent HEA report (2013) “Using e-tools to facilitate international collaborations and enhance language teaching” there is much to be gained from increasing the use of Online Intercultural Exchange (OIE) as part of the language learning experiences of the UK undergraduate. This activity, sometimes referred to as virtual exchange, involves connecting learners internationally using computer-mediated communication (CMC) in order to carry out collaborative tasks, practice language skills and learn more about each other’s worlds. Activity includes the synchronous or asynchronous, the spontaneous or planned, the formal or informal. Many examples of existing activity can be explored on...more Keeping pace with change: Understanding Students’ Evolving Approaches to Learning (620) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 10:30am – 11:30am Today’s students have a rich choice of technologies, applications and social media at their disposal. Inevitably, these broader experiences influence their approaches to learning. This presentation will describe and analyse a number of evidence-driven curriculum interventions alongside the rationale for, and findings of, a large-scale study of students’ approaches to learning. The study incorporates specific evaluation of the background and approaches of students who are experiencing the transition to Higher Education from non-UK backgrounds. UK analyses of students’ approaches to learning in a digital context are well established e.g. the influential JISC funded LLIDA project (Beetham et al., 2009), work on...more Engaging MOOC learners with digital badges (561) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 10:30am – 11:30am Digital badges have emerged as a new tool for engaging and motivating online learners. These badges have been adapted from online games into online learning spaces and are being used both as a representation of achievements and as an incentive to guide learner behaviour (Anderson et al., 2014). Educators have found that awarding badges has become a key ingredient in motivating online learners and as a means of engaging learners in the course (Anderson et al., 2014). It can also provide an alternative form of assessment to increase learner motivation (Abramovich et. al, 2011). However, it appears that badges have...more Herding Cats: Crafting an homogeneous MOOC with heterogeneous content (632) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 10:30am – 11:30am Creating a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) is a team endeavour (Scopeo 2013). Scanning MOOC directories reveals large numbers of finely focused subject offerings, and the literature documenting production suggests a predominance of small production teams, often closely linked to the content authors and presenters. Coordinating all of the individual team members towards producing a homogeneous end product is a challenging task due to both the variety of roles involved and the wide range of backgrounds and areas of expertise. Typically, MOOCs have been created with either one or two key academics within a single subject area. This challenge gains even...more Open Northampton – Open Educational Practice from Northampton (517) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 10:30am – 11:30am There has been a major push and significant investment in the direction of Open Educational Resource (OER) and Open Educational Practice (OEP) over the last decade in the UK. As expanding educational markets has become more pressing, OER activities are becoming widely used by many UK institutions as a means of marketing – to increase institutional recognition and attract students to specific courses of study through ‘tasters’ (McGill et al., 2013). Against this backdrop, the University of Northampton funded the Open Northampton project (http://www.northamptonilt.com/open-northampton), which aims to release high quality, properly licensed learning and teaching content into open repositories to enhance Northampton’s...more |
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ocTEL 2014: Open Badges in Open Education (723) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm This session, led by Martin Hawksey and ocTEL tutors, will tell the story of ocTEL 2014, the second run of the open course in Technology Enhanced Learning with a focus on use of Open Badges. The latest iteration of ocTEL implemented Mozilla Open Badges as a way to accredit learning. Badges were awarded on a weekly basis for a range of tasks from simply ‘checking-in’ to completing predefined learning activities. Given the range of criteria this presentation explores the general question ‘do open badges count?’. As part of this we explore the motivations behind badges and secondary effects created by...more Reinventing Work with Predictive Analytics (731) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm Reinventing Work with Predictive Analytics – IBM as the largest global technology and business services provider invests over $1bn a year of research and development in Big Data and Analytics forging innovations across many different sector challenges. In this short presentation we will share insight into how we are preventing crime, identifying the onset of disease and indeed anticipating student failure or dropout before it happens with the power of predictive. Together with our education sector partner, Tectrade we will demonstrate our view of best practice that we hope will inspire with different models and approaches to tackling the growing...more Riding tandem: an organic and collaborative approach to research in vocational education and training (726) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm Download the full paper. Read the Editorial for the Special Issue of Research in Learning Technology (conference research proceedings). The study at the centre of this project set out to explore the use of the Internet within Self-Organised Learning Environments (SOLEs) in vocational education and training and to investigate whether it could replace traditional teaching and learning. A mixed methods design, including classroom observations, design experiments, interviews and questionnaires was adopted. To date 5 curriculum areas across 3 colleges (2 in England and 1 in India) and a total of 150 students have taken part in the experiment cycle and...more The Academic Journey of University Students on Facebook: An Analysis of Informal Academic-Related Activity Over a Semester (727) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm Download the full paper. Read the Editorial for the Special Issue of Research in Learning Technology (conference research proceedings). This paper reports on an observation of 70 university students’ use of their personal social network site, Facebook, over a 22-week university semester. The study sought to determine the extent that university students use their personal social network sites to support learning by exploring frequencies of academic-related content and topics being discussed. Students used their personal social network sites to discuss academic-related topics, particularly to share experiences about doing work or procrastinating, course content and grades. Mapping academic-related activity frequencies over...more How to create a problem based learning scenario using the interactive video creation platform wireWAX (581) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm A number of online interactive video platforms have been developed in the last few years that utilize a new way of encoding videos, allowing users to add hypertext-links and interactivity as layers to online videos. These new online interactive video platforms can integrate high quality online videos with layers of text, images, social media feeds and even navigation systems allowing users to have some level of non-linear navigation and interaction with the videos and its’ layers. These platforms potentially can enable learners to immerse themselves in an interactive and audio-visual rich environment, revisit the same information from multiple perspectives, explore...more Postcards from 2020: scoping students' future digital needs (516) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm Students already expect their learning experiences to be as instantly accessible, as interconnected and as media-rich as their social lives. Universities are struggling to keep pace with their demands for data and information services, and for access to learning resources (Gabriel et. al 2012). No wonder, then, that there is interest in horizon scanning. How will students want to access learning and information in the near future? What devices and services will they have at their fingertips and what will they expect universities to provide? Yet at the same time there is evidence that students are fairly conservative in their...more Adopting learning technologies: a collaborative exploration of staff needs and perceptions (648) [Updated] Wed, Sep 3 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm Educational institutions continue to be enthusiastic about the potential of technology to support teaching and learning, but to date few have been able to provide evidence around successful implementation (Blin & Munro, 2008). Institutional initiatives often provide visionary profiles for the use of technology enhanced learning but these exist in tension with staff attitudes and perceptions. This can result in innovative practice remaining in the domain of the individual (Russell, 2009) and never being realised beyond a few early adopters. Successful implementation of technology enhanced learning needs to incorporate a combination of bottom-up and top-down approaches (Cook et al., 2007). ...more Learning from others: maximising effectiveness in the electronic management of assessment (626) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm There is clear evidence of a growing interest in, and engagement with, the electronic management of assessment (EMA). UK universities and colleges are increasingly using technology to support the whole assessment and feedback lifecycle, from the e-submission of assignments, to e-marking and e-feedback (see for example Ellis and Reynolds (2013) and Newland et al (2013)). The strong drivers for seeking to move to electronic management of assessment, include: process improvement for reduced duplication and efficiency savings; enabling flexibility of provision and environmental considerations. Most important however is student demand for EMA and the evidence that EMA can help improve the...more Whose Text is it Anyway? An Aesthetic Response Theory Applied to Online Learning and Teaching Spaces (628) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm In the interests of exploring an interdisciplinary approach to TEL research and advancing this through the application of theory existing in the fields of aesthetics and literature, this paper examines the application of a literary and aesthetic response theory applied to virtual spaces. Literary response theory derives largely from the work of Wolfgang Iser and Stanley Fish – in particular, Iser’s The Implied Reader (1974) and The Act of Reading (1976) and Fish’s Surprised by Sin: the Reader in Paradise Lost (1967) and Is There a Text in This Class? (1980). Iser states, for example, that meaning is not an...more Size matters and matters of size: understanding massive online teaching (634) [CANCELLED] Wed, Sep 3 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm How does an academic effectively teach more students in a single online cohort than the total number of students they would teach face to face in their entire career? With an ideal ratio of one tutor to 25 students in an online classroom, how do they establish presence and demonstrate all the qualities we value in a good teacher (empathy, enthusiasm and personalisation)? Whether you are a believer or a sceptic about the value of massive open online courses (MOOCs), it is undeniable that they raise questions for which we cannot easily provide definitive answers. Years of experience and research...more Developing and Implementing An Archiving Policy for Blended Learning (641) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm What Lies Beneath! It is now commonplace for the majority of HE coursework to be delivered via a VLE either through desktop or mobile versions. Despite the relative maturity of VLE systems, staff users in particular, face the problem of being able to easily view and access older courses via their VLE interface. There is also the issue of frustration caused by from users not being able to quickly and easily enter their most recent modules from a computer or mobile device owing to the clutter of courses facing them. At the institutional level, many universities do not actively manage...more Exhibition - Blackboard/Moodlerooms Wed, Sep 3 2014, 11:35am – 12:35pm 11.35 – 11.55 Further Education is looking towards a digital future. With the Government responding and supporting the FELTAG recommendations proposing that FE should aim to deliver a 10% wholly online component, from 2015/16 with incentives to increase this to 50% by 2017/2018, we will explore what it will really mean for institutions to become more digital. We identify the challenges that College’s may face in order to fully embrace technology and explore the impact that this will have on their IT Systems, the VLE, students and teaching staff.more |
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Technology Enhanced Learning @ Warwick (728) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm The session will offer an overview of how technology is being implemented at Warwick to support teaching, learning and research including examples of current practice and the importance of a collaborative approach. The session will include an exploration of the recent adoption of Moodle and Mahara across the institution followed by a whistle-stop tour of the specific developments designed to facilitate interaction in Languages@Warwick.Collaboration with colleagues is key to facing the changing contexts in education. Therefore the latter half of the session will be more interactive, providing the opportunity for discussion and for participants to share their thoughts and insights, with a view to identifying key next steps as we...more How to get published with ALT (713) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm Come to this session organised by the Committee for Communication and Publications and find out how you can publish with ALTmore Open access and Open Educational Resources: exploring issues of ease of access, quality and visibility in distance learning (659) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm The presentation explores the role of Open Access (in licensing and publishing) and Open Educational Resources (OERs) within Distance Education, focusing on the context of the University of London International Programmes. We report on an investigation, where data were gathered via an online survey from librarians (including information specialists) and Programmes directors, in relation to existing practices around Open Access and the use of Open EducationalResources.We will report on the case study data and the focus group/workshop that took place two months after the dissemination of the initial online survey. Our investigation resulted into some clear recommendations both for practitioners and for students in this area.There seems to be...more Google, Facebook, WhatsApp and other giants. Supporting collaboration through technology; implications of student use and perceptions (538) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm Team work, collaboration and relationship building are highly valued graduate attributes amongst Management students and proficient use of IT skills is also identified as a key employability requirement (CBI, 2011). Students on a large 2nd year UG Business Planning module work in teams to collaboratively produce a business plan as a major part of their sumative assessment. While effective communication and collaboration methods between teams on campus has been an issue in the past, this becomes more challenging over vacation periods before submission deadlines, particularly when team members are frequently in different countries. This short presentation will report on the transferrable...more Mobile Technologies to Support the Delivery of the RRAPID (Recognising and Responding to Acute Patient Illness and Deterioration) Course to Medical Student (615) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm Medical teaching at the University of Leeds (UoL) is both academic and practical. We have developed e-resources (an eBook and iPhone app) which facilitate the use of a blended learning approach to bridge the perceived gap between the two. A specialist team of consultant physicians, clinical educators and the Technology Enhanced Learning team have developed the RRAPID resources to underpin and support the delivery of RRAPID (Recognising and Responding to Acute Patient Illness and Deterioration) teaching delivered to all undergraduate medical students at Leeds. The RRAPID curriculum strand is designed to equip undergraduate medical trainees with skills to appropriately manage...more Preparing to ride giant waves: developing procedural decision-making processes to support massive online facilitation (633) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm In 2013, we launched our first Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) in a joint venture with Futurelearn. This was our first experience of riding the large waves of providing online support for a course with literally thousands of online learners. Afterwards we evaluated this provision and applied the lessons learned in the second iteration of the course in Spring 2014. As MOOCs continue to gain popularity and course registration numbers in the UK continue to increase we realised that we need to be gearing up to be able to ride giants. Our session is important to the field of online...more Putting MOOCs into their place (640) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm In this presentation, we explore a way of thinking about and responding to MOOCs from the point of view of a campus-based institution located in a developing country. Some of these ideas about how to assess the challenges and opportunities posed by MOOCs may have relevance for other higher education institutions, especially for those who have not been early adopters. South African universities face context-specific pressures and are reflecting on how MOOCs and online education (amongst other strategies) can contribute to addressing the challenges they face. This perceived need to respond may be acute for the more established research universities...more A Conceptual Framework for Theorising Learning with Mobiles in the Global South - big questions and big challenges (598) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm This presentation will outline a conceptual environment for theorising learning with mobiles in the global South. The conceptual environment of such theorising must comprise a critical appraisal of the theorising around mobile learning in the global North, (Ally, 2009; Herrington et al 2009; Pachler et al, 2010; Sharples et al, 2009; Traxler 2009; Vavoula et al, 2009) the theorising of development studies, (Manzo 1991; Pieterse, 2010; Robeyns, 2005) the growth of the ICTD and m4d research communities (Gomez et al, 2012; Toyama & Dias 2008; Chepken et al 2012; Donner 2010) alongside a changing policy and commercial environment, reflected in...more Should openness be the default approach in higher education? (636) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm The belief that the world’s knowledge is a public good is widely accepted as the philosophical underpinning for openness in education and research (Geser, 2012). An additional, pragmatic, underpinning lies in the need to ‘[optimise] the possibilities for the advancement of knowledge … to tackle the increasing complexity and scale of the world’s questions for research’ (Van der Vaart et al., n.d., p. 5). Together, these standpoints can be seen as a compelling case for openness to be the ‘default approach’ (ibid.) of universities in both education and research. This paper investigates the ‘big question’ whether openness should be the...more A surfing safari from Ireland to Africa - A first dip in the elearning ocean (545) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm The Community Systems Strengthening for Equitable Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (COSYST-MNCH) project is funded by Irish Aid/ Higher Education Authority (of Ireland). It involves a collaboration between higher education institutions and non-governmental (NGO) partners in in Ireland and Malawi to undertake research as well as develop a blended learning M.Sc in Community Systems Health Research. This abstract outlines our approach as we dive into the development and implementation of our first blended learning programme. The challenges of collaboratively crafting a post graduate degree to take account of the needs and capacities of multiple stakeholders and the technology-enhanced learning (TEL)...more Learning to Create and Communicate Collaboratively Online: One Year On (618) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm Overview In 2013 a culture of flexible learning from both a departmental, learner and institutional perspective was cultivated in order to deliver an enhanced ‘Welcome to the University’ orientation for staff and build capacity for future developments at the University of Leeds. One year on this paper looks to see how the wider aims of the ‘Welcome to The University’ original project to “create a space where staff can collaboratively and individually create online resources for colleagues and students to access” (Little, 2013) have developed. This has been a process of ‘learning to ride’ (ALT, 2014) and a journey across...more Students’ Perceptions of Online MCQs: gathering evidence and learning to swim with it (601) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm Online assessment was among the first forms of educational technology to be used widely in schools and universities, mainly in the form of multiple choice questions. The potential learning benefits and challenges of using MCQ for learning has been long demonstrated, but little evidence has been gathered on students’ perceptions of online assessment (Imtiaz and Mirhashemi, 2013). To get a sense of the effectiveness of these quizzes, we surveyed a sample of our students to get some key indicators – how did they feel the quizzes benefitted their learning? How did it affect their learning journey? Which assessment types proved the...more Bridging the ‘missing middle’: a design based approach to scaling (595) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm This paper addresses an area of concern documented by the ALT 2014 conference call for a critical assessment of the ‘missing middle’ between research experiment and full scale deployment. This is an under theorised area of study, falling between business models of scaling innovation, education models of scaling innovation and efforts in ‘health/biological’ to scale innovation. The EU’s 7th Framework Programme project LearningLayers (www.learninglayers.eu) has as a goal the ‘scaling up technologies for informal learning in SME Clusters’. For example, the ‘Help Seeking Tool’ scaffolds the construction of Personal Learning Networks and is currently being embedded within GP practices in...more Hygiene Factors: using VLE minimum standards to avoid student dissatisfaction (537) Wed, Sep 3 2014, 1:35pm – 2:45pm Despite the range of innovations taking place related to the use of technology to support and enhance learning, teaching and assessment, we are still battling with more basic issues related to supporting students in their studies. In particular, the introduction of minimum standards to the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) is a topic of particular interest across higher education ( Ahmed & Morley, 2010), and has been raised locally by the Liverpool Guild of Students (Bee, 2013). A pre-research exercise, supported by the ALT-Members Jiscmail list, provided data to demonstrate the importance placed on minimum standards across the higher education sector...more |
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Closing Speech and preview of the 2015 Annual Conference |
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