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On 06/24/2010,
in PLNs, learning ecosystem,
by Daniel Christian
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On 03/04/2010,
in PLNs, VLE, disruption, education technology, information overload, innovation, learning ecosystem,
by Daniel Christian
three pressing challenges – 2/26/10 posting from D’Arcy Norman dot net
Three pressing challenges for learners in creating and using technology in an educational context.
2. overwhelming options
3. literacy
4. Solution?
The only solution I can think of is to just dive in. To live with a whole bunch of technologies. To not see them as separate, distinct, or extra, but rather as just the way things work. Write a blog. Publish a newsletter. Manage a wiki. Shoot some video. Post photos. Just spend time doing it. Manage your own personal cyberinfrastructure. Build your personal learning environment. Engage your personal learning network(s). They are there already, you just need to tap into them (emphasis DSC as this describes a Learning Ecosystem).
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On 02/09/2010,
in IT in HE, Mobile learning, Using teams, Walmart of Education, budgets, business side of he, cloud-based computing / apps, cost of getting a degree, dangers of the status quo, disruption, future of higher education, game-changing environment, global / globalization, higher education, informal learning, innovation, internet, learning ecosystem, more choice more control, network based learning, new media literacies, online learning, online media, open courseware and systems, pace of change, personalized/customized learning, teaching & learning, traditional / tradition, trends,
by Daniel Christian
From DSC:
The following article got me to thinking of the future again…
Thousands to lose jobs as universities prepare to cope with cuts – from guardian.co.uk (original posting from Stephen Downes)
Post-graduates to replace professors | Staff poised to strike over proposals of cuts
I post this here because I believe that we are at the embryonic stages of some massive changes that will take place within the world of higher education. The timeframe for these changes, as always, is a bit uncertain. However, I would expect to see some of the following changes to occur (or continue to occur) yet this year:
- Cost cutting
- The cutting of programs
- Laying off of staff and faculty
- Not filling open positions
- More outsourcing
- The move towards using more cloud-based-computing models
- The movement of students to lower-cost alternatives
- Greater utilization of informal learning
- The rise of online-exchange oriented offerings (i.e. the matching up of those who teach a subject and those who want to learn that subject)
- The threat to traditional ways of doing things and to traditional organizations — including accreditation agencies — will cause people within those agencies to be open to thinking differently (though this one will take longer to materialize)
- The continued growth of online learning — albeit at a greatly-reduced price
- …and more.
This isn’t just about a recession. The Internet is changing the game on yet another industry — this time, it’s affecting those of us in the world of higher education. When the recession’s over, we won’t be going back to the way higher education was set up previous to the year 2010.
What did those us of in higher education learn from what happened to the music industry? What did we learn from what happened to the video distribution/entertainment business? To the journalism industry? To the brokerage business? To the travel and hospitality industries? To the bookstores of the world?
Along these lines…back at the end of 2008, I posted a vision entitled, The Forthcoming Walmart of Education. So, where are we on that vision? Well…so far we have:
- Straighterline.com
- A significant open courseware movement, including MIT Open Courseware, the Open Courseware Consortium, Connexions, Open Content Alliance, OpenLearn, Intute, Globe, Open Yale Courses, Open Education, The Internet Archive and many others
- University of the People
- YouTube.edu
- iTunes U
- Academic Earth
- and more…
I realize that several of these items were in place before or during 2008…however, at that time, there was no dominant, inexpensive alternative. And there still isn’t one that has jumped into the lead (the University of Phoenix with their 150,000+ students doesn’t qualify, as their pricing is not yet nearly aggressive enough as what I’m predicting will occur).
Though we aren’t there yet, there has been significant change that has already taken place. So…if I were an administrator right now, I’d be asking myself the following key questions:
- Can we reduce tuition and fees by at least 50%? If not, how can some of our offerings be delivered at half the price (or more)?
- How are we going to differentiate ourselves?
- How are we going to deliver value?
- How are we going to keep from becoming a commodity?
- Are we using teams to create and deliver our courses? If not, why not? What’s our plans for staying competitive if we don’t use teams?
Most likely, further massive changes are forthcoming. So fasten your seatbelts and try to stay marketable!
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Trends in Personal Learning — from Stephen Downes
From Stephen:
February 4, 2010 — [Slides][Audio] Audio and slides from my presentation last night, Trends in Personal Learning [presentation delivered to Canberra, Australia, online via Wimba]. Review of major trends in technology – personal access, content creation, presentation and conferencing, networking and community, immersion and simulation, augmented reality – and discussion of how these define and inform personal learning.
From DSC:
One of the slides is seen below — another good example that we are talking about an ever-changing range of tools, techniques, and methods of teaching and learning:
As Stephen mentions, this graphic is from: http://cognitivedesignsolutions.com/ELearning/BlendedLearning.htm
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Digital Tools Expand Options for Personalized Learning — from EdWeek.org by Kathleen Kennedy Manzo
Digital tools for defining and targeting students’ strengths and weaknesses could help build a kind of individualized education plan for every student.
Teachers have always known that a typical class of two dozen or more students can include vastly different skill levels and learning styles. But meeting those varied academic needs with a defined curriculum, time limitations, and traditional instructional tools can be daunting for even the most skilled instructor.
Some of the latest technology tools for the classroom, however, promise to ease the challenges of differentiating instruction more creatively and effectively, ed-tech experts say, even in an era of high-stakes federal and state testing mandates. New applications for defining and targeting students’ academic strengths and weaknesses can help teachers create a personal playlist of lessons, tools, and activities that deliver content in ways that align with individual needs and optimal learning methods.
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David Hopkins’ PLE — as seen on dontwasteyourtime.co.uk
Also see the others at:
PLE / Personal Learning Environment: What’s yours like? | eLearning Blog Dont Waste Your Time
From DSC:
This is yet another valuable part of the learning ecosystem it seems to me — one’s PLE / VLE.
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My Personal Learning Environment — from Mark Wigan [UK]
” Personal Learning Environments are systems that help learners take control of and manage their own learning. This includes providing support for learners to
- set their own learning goals(review)
- manage their learning; managing both content and process
- communicate with others in the process of learning
- and thereby achieve learning goals.”
…
(see Mark’s posting for further details)
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On 01/20/2010,
in Daniel S. Christian, learning ecosystem,
by Daniel Christian
My objective with this blog is to provide you with a broad-range of insights and resources regarding educational technology. Although the focus will be on integrating technology within institutions of higher education, K-12 teachers, administrators, and parents of students within K-12 will also benefit from these resources. I hope to address the quickly-changing landscapes out there, helping folks keep a pulse check on such items as:
- 1:1 computing, AI, personalized learning
- “The Forthcoming Walmart of Education”; changing business models, opportunities, and threats within the world of higher education
- The disruptive power of technology
- What elements should be in your learning ecosystem
- Keeping students engaged
- Digital storytelling
- Multimedia (tools, techniques, trends, other)
- Mobile learning
- Building your global network
- Instructional design
- Web design and production
- …as well as other educationally-related topics.
To get an idea of my views on the above topics — along with some of the other topics I’ve covered in the last 3 years — please feel free to review my personal site at Calvin College. Here’s an example archives page covering all of 2009: http://www.calvin.edu/~dsc8/announcement_archives_2009.htm
I look forward to our future discussions as we try to make our individual and corporate contributions to the worlds of education…thereby making the entire world a better place.
Sincerely,
Daniel S. Christian
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