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Comparing the US Horizon Report , the NSF Report and the BECTA report with a report on education technology in Australia.

All the reports share several features in common.  Firstly they are all optimistic about the ability of education technology to improve learning outcomes and the learner experience.  The BECTA Report also suggests there are wider social benefits, developing greater social cohesion through the creation for networks for learning and communities of practice.  Secondly, they identify the driving force behind adoption of technology as primarily economic, to create a future workforce and to compete effectively in the global economy.  The Horizon Report suggests the US lacks scientists and engineers for example.  The Australian Report also identifies the needs of the workplace as driving change as does the BECTA Report for the UK.  Thirdly, the reports all argue that technology is ubiquitous in learners' lives outside of school and developments with Web 2.0 have created more tolls for use in education.  A final common feature is that the reports all recognise limitations, or barriers that need to be addressed.  The main barrier seems to be the slow adoption by teachers, though some innovative examples are given in the reports.  The BECTA report also argues there is a lack of reliable infrastructure.   The ESF Report argues that embedding digital skills is slow. 

The Australian Report is very similar in tone and intention, but also argues that integrating education technology will improve outcomes for indigenous and remote learners, which are probably particular concerns to Australia.  They also identify further barriers in their case, firstly, the fragmented nature of education policy between the states and, secondly, the inadequate bandwidth.    The Australian proposals include:  to create an agreed national future directions framework;  to develop a blended approach in the classroom; and free access to publicly funded learning materials.

The reports for the US, UK and Australia all see the further adoption of education technology as important for education, to improve learning, to develop new skills for the digital workplace and to align the experience of technology in education with learners' experience outside education. 

Australia's future using education technology  (2004) found at http://www.dest.gov.au/NR/rdonlyres/DA49B95A-DDF8-4081-B4E7-92AD14959634/4597/aust_future.pdf

Becta (2008) Harnessing Technology: Next Generation Learning 2008-14, Becta report on behalf of the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skill, Coventry, Becta; also available online at http://routes.open.ac.uk/ ixbin/ hixclient.exe?_IXDB_=routes&_IXSPFX_=g&submit-button=summary&%24+with+res_id+is+res20018

National Science Foundation (NSF) (2008) Fostering Learning in the Networked World: The Cyberlearning Opportunity and Challenge, A 21st century agenda for the National Science Foundation, report of the NSF Task Force on Cyberlearning, Arlington, VA, National Science Foundation; also available online at http://routes.open.ac.uk/ ixbin/ hixclient.exe?_IXDB_=routes&_IXSPFX_=g&submit-button=summary&%24+with+res_id+is+res20019

New Media Consortium (NMC) (2009) Horizon Report, report from the New Media Consortium and the Educause Learning Initiative, Austin, TX, The New Media Consortium; also available online at http://routes.open.ac.uk/ ixbin/ hixclient.exe?_IXDB_=routes&_IXSPFX_=g&submit-button=summary&%24+with+res_id+is+res20026

Technology and its impact on a tertiary college:

New technology has impacted on the college in two ways.  Firstly there was the adoption of a VLE, in this case Moodle, and secondly, the development of new college information systems (CIS).  Both have had an impact on the teacher’s role and increased their workloads.  Both developments have also required changes in the organisation.  An eLearning team has been created and the CIS department expanded.

Teachers have found that they have been expected to create course pages on the VLE and develop resources without being given time to do this.  Also there have been additional CPD requirements on staff to learn how to work with the VLE.  When the idea of creating a virtual learning platform was first mooted it was taken up by enthusiastic staff in the Business and IT department, together with the librarian.  Moodle was chosen and staff trained and there was a lot of focus on bidding for external grants and buying equipment such as iPod touches, PS3s, Nintendo DSs, flip cameras and equipment for podcasting and software for screen capture etc.  However, in the last year a dedicated elearning team was formed with new members, with the brief to develop the VLE into a more professionally designed site.  The VLE also grew in an uncontrolled manner meaning that it became very difficult to find resources.  The whole VLE is now being restructured and redesigned with new guidelines for standards of course pages, copyright awareness, and a simpler structure.  The equipment purchased in the initial period has gradually disappeared into department cupboards with little evidence that it has been used.  It has been gathered back in and user guides and teaching advice written for each one and they have all been put in the library to be loaned out and their usage logged.  Training courses have been put on to develop skills with these technologies, but they have been poorly attended.  Some departments, such as Science and Maths, are more enthusiastic than others.

 However, there have been severe constraints on how far the team have been able to go.  Conole (2011) argues that changes have been piecemeal when a system overhaul is required to fully embed new technology.  This appears to have happened at college where changes have been made to the team driving elearning, but there still doesn’t seem to be much support from senior management and other departments in the college that have a direct impact on elearning have not been changed at all and now present an opposition.  The main area of conflict is the IT Support department that maintains a ferocious control over all the college IT systems.

Across the college innovative practise only occurs in small pockets.  A review of the VLE recently showed that many course had little or nothing on their sites.  Teachers reported that they didn’t use ot because their students didn’t use it.  There seemed little drive to encourage students.  Yet, as Conole (2011) argues students are using their own laptops in college and some teachers are using Facebook and Youtube to upload resources, such as podcasts, which students are using. 

A recent project set up by a small group of innovative staff, including the elearning team if the Supported Experiments Project.  Teachers are aiming to change a small aspect of their teaching and then share experiences and results with each other and then the rest of the college.  Some are ideas are simple changes in teaching strategy, some involve new technology.   The elearning team are involved to support staff using new technology and to build a site for them to share their ideas.  One of the tools we are using is a wiki for people to bring all their ideas together.

Three innovative projects I have researched are

·         the Penntags Project (http://tags.library.upenn.edu/): which is a social bookmarking page set up by lecturers and students as Pennsylvania University. 

·         Welkers Wikinomics (http://welkerswikinomics.wetpaint.com/): a wiki edited by K12 economics students of economic concepts which also has study guides for students.  The wiki is managed by an economics teacher.

·         OU Secondlife project  (http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Case_Study:_The_Open_University):  there are 6 OU environments including Open Life, Open life Ocean, Open Life Village, FIT Island and Deep Think I and II.  OU events and conferences held in SL.  Anna Peachey, does her tutorials in SL.  This is the most radical and most interesting project.

Reference

Conole, G. (2011) ‘Stepping over the edge: the implications of new technologies for education’ in Lee, M.J.W. and McLoughlin, C. (eds) Web 2.0-based E-learning: Applying Social Informatics for Tertiary Teaching, Hershey, PA, IGI Global; also available online at http://www.igi-global.com.libezproxy.open.ac.uk/ gateway/ contentowned/ chapter.aspx?titleid=45034&accesstype=infosci

Web.2.0 has seen the introduction of a new activity, blogging.  These are online journals where individuals can write and publish their thoughts, ideas or research and open them to be read by either a select few of the whole world.  Blogs then invite comment and debate and can be tracked via RSS feeds.  So, can this technology be utilised in a formal teaching and learning context to improve skills, expand knowledge, promote collaboration or form a basis of assessment?

By 2004 the number of blogs post had was claimed to be passed 4 million (Husband as cited in Flatley, 2005, p77).   The literature highlights many benefits for blogging in an educational context.  Goh et al (2010) identify four benefits: the ability to customise and take ownership; safe environment where the blogger can be anonymous; learning through collaboration; encourages introspection and deep thinking.  Blogging also has the potential to improve students writing skills and self expression (Nedeva and Nedev, 2010).  It also helps develop critical thinking and to 'develop articulate critical voices' (Oravec, 2003, p232). 

Oravec (2003) looks at different ways educators can use blogs in learning to achieve these perceived benefits.  Firstly, students can simply post work for feedback and comment.  We have been encouraged to do this on H800 and the benefits have been, for me, a sense of progression and a chance to read ideas of others and check my understanding in the light of their posts.  Secondly, students can exchange hyperlinks.  We have not done this specifically on H800, but we have provided sources of our writing for others to explore. Thirdly, students can be encouraged to subscribe to other blogs outside the group that are specific to their field, eg educational blogs for H800.  Educational blogs we have been encouraged to visit are e4innovation.com and The ed Techie.  Other useful blogs can be found at:

• Weblogg-ed.com
• The Higher Education Blog
• Eduguru

Oravec's (2003) fourth use is to form knowledge communities.  It is argued specifically that 'weblog-based knowledge communities can also form as bloggers link to blogs with similar themes and provide critical commentary.   This is happening naturally with H800 as we have developed a community of practise based around the course content and we all are involved in some aspect of education.

 Kerawalla et al (2008)identify actual behaviours with regards blogging, suggesting there are five main types, resource network building, support network building, self sufficient blogging, anxious self sufficient blogging and blogging avoidance.  Goh et al (2010) investigate blogging behaviour in an Asian context and find four common perceptions of blogging: concerns over offending others and writing in a public space; a pragmatic approach where blogs were not customised due to lack of time; and  a tension between agreeing that collaborative learning is beneficial and a fear of being seen as incompetent.   These studies of students' behaviour and perception suggest that the potential benefits suggested above may not always be achievable and teaching strategies using blogs, as detailed above may not always be successful.

 I have really enjoyed the experience of blogging and of reading others blogs, but can understand how it may be difficult to achieve high participation rates and successful outcomes when integrating it into teaching.  The challenge is to find ways to make it relevant to the student, interesting to do and provide a safe place for students to express themselves. 

References

Flatley, M.E (2005), 'Blogging for enhanced teaching and learning', Business Communication Quarterly, 68, 1, pp. 77-80

Goh, J.W.P., Quek, C. J., & Lee, O. K. (2010). An Investigation of Students' Perceptions of Learning Benefits of Weblogs in an East Asian Context: A Rasch Analysis. Educational Technology & Society, 13 (2), 90-101.

Kerawalla, L. Minocha, S. Kirkup, G. and Conole, G. (2008) 'Characterising the different blogging behaviours of students on an online distance learning course', Learning, Media and Technology, 33: 1, pp21 - 33

Nedeva, V.,  and Nedev, D. (2010) 'A new approach of elearning education using blogging' Universităţii Petrol - Gaze din Ploieşti Vol, LXII pp162-169

Oravev, J., A. (2003) 'Blending by blogging:  Weblogs in blended learning initiatives' Journal of Educational Media, 28:2-3 pp225-233