Music by Luis López-Cano & GarageBand for iPadMini.
(If you need music for your presentations, just send me an e-mail )
How open online education works |
A lightning-presentation by Cinzia Gabellini about the basics in open online education
Music by Luis López-Cano & GarageBand for iPadMini.
(If you need music for your presentations, just send me an e-mail )
Music by Luis López-Cano & GarageBand for iPadMini.
(If you need music for your presentations, just send me an e-mail )
Digital can be both tradition and the future, make your choice !
Posted by in Articles, blended learning, e-learning, identité numérique, MOOC, oer, open access, Open Learning, pédagogie numérique
Tagged #h817open
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Comparing Moocs is a bit like comparing trees, every tree is unique even though there are definitely families and shared or distinctive traits. The general comparison made most often concerning MOOCS is certainly the one between cMOOCs and xMOOCs.
This distinction is important to understand the construction and impact of seemingly similar formats, the motivation to built such courses and the impact sought and obtained.
The connectivist brand of MOOCs promoted by G.Siemens and S.Downes, amongst others, is built upon a pedagogical and communicational premise : the one that connection is key and commutation the building block of learning. In this regard this type of course is close to the logic of social networks where the number of connections is most important, moreso than the quality of connections is initially.
They often rely on openly available technology and prefer simple and robust systems to esthetically pleasing but proprietary formats.
The xMOOC variety as the courses by courser and audacity, EdX and the likes are often called reproduce the classic course format of lecturing and exams and gain from the popularity of their experts and the affiliated universities rather than from the opportunity to learn from other participants. The generally use specifically developed platforms and operate in the manner of startups, as middlemen between experts , institutions and the general public.
Both embrace the fact that their offerings can be accessed by anyone connected to the internet and able to surf (AND speaking english). This last point is not without importance since even with English as a world language the barrier towards second language education remains.
The difference between the D106 and Change-mooc and the offerings of the Mooc-sellers’ (as I want to call them) build on this general difference but also happen on a slightly different level.
One of the drawings on the DS106 website clearly expresses the difference in the approach : “We need to think differently about our culture. This is not simply augmenting our experience with technology. Claim your space, review, remix, make meaning, make art, dammit !”. The Change mood relies heavily on collaborative reflection on online interaction. Both of these MOOCs thus stress the active role of the participants, not only asking for a production to validate a learning experience but by putting the act of creating and interacting on others’ productions in the center of the learning experience, this is especially true for the DS106 MOOC.
The technology necessary to participate in both types is web navigation technology. Even though the technology is much more varied in the open (c-) formats since the ball is in the participants field, who can mobilize the technology at hand to participate and thus produce complex mashups or original creations.
Wheres as the xMOOCS certainly reflect a more traditional approach to teaching (sic!) the more open types of MOOCS explore new forms of learning (sic!) and as such represent the real pedagogical difference.
The difficulty certainly arises when it comes to accreditation (if that’s the goal !) since whereas xMOOCS often rely on traditional forms of evaluation (multiple choice, essay), the creative and open MOOCS have to be more open and flexible in their evaluation as well. But then again, new ways and means are to be developed to take into account these forms much as lifelong learning in general obliges us to rethink evaluation. The badges option, as also used in the open H817 is an interesting alternative in that sense…. to be continued ….
Mutualisation of OER : the eternal comeback of the spotless author ?
Posted by in auteurité, author, blended learning, e-learning, édition numérique, identité numérique, oer, open access, Open Learning, présence numérique
Tagged #h817open
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The H817 open education learning time has been great. After all, I engaged in this course with quite some questions and even doubts about OER. I wanted to know more and learn not only about the practical aspects of production which I had already experimented quite a bit but also about the particular nature of these resources and their life after going online. In my past 10 years of practice as a co-producer, co-author and administrator of such resources at a public university and also as a researcher into the use and communication of learning I often came across the paradox that structures the whole debate : The wide gap between available and ‘produsable’ resources and the obstacles that make (re-)using someone else’s objects apparently so unlikely as the usage surveys and interviews with practitioners show (Boyer, 2011).
The French digital thematic universities (DTU) – that have been created since 2004 (more like repositories for resources) have been a fascinating terrain to observe the evolution of this field. Largely funded in the inception phase, the project-based production developed into full-fledged online portals for higher education resources in various disciplines and various forms (video, interactive multimedia, text-based…), manifest in 7 thematic websites all accessible via http://universites-numeriques.fr/. On these websites one can find very different approaches to online learning objects, from lecture taping to interactive resources with various levels of depth (glossaries, indexes, chaptering, menus-in-video, links etc…). Few are collaborative in use although that is more of a task of the end-user and some of the digital portals offer access to forums of comments.
These over 20.000 resources are not used enough, a 2011 (Boyer) stated. Some of the readings also reflect these issues. The 2005 early UNESCO report states “fashioning OER that can be scaled up or down to adequately meet education requirements” as one of the challenges (Albright, 2005).
Terry Anderson tackled the question in a 2009 speech at the ICDE Conference in the Netherlands. His take on things suggests that authors who do not want to reuse material made by others do this by an overly personal interpretation of their role and in relative ignorance of the economic benefits of sharing. I share a number of Andersons positions, but maybe the question is a little more complex still.
What really are the barriers to using “non-personal” OERs ? Do such resources exist ? Is the author absent from her or his resource ? How does praxis transpire in OERs ? From resources found by accident on the internet to highly documented resources specifically produced for sharing (mutualisation) with metadata and learning scenarios, the common problem seems to lie less in technical abilities but mores in the symbolic realm, i.e. in the representation that those who use this type of learning object have of their task and job and of what type of information package a.k.a learning object it should be.
The recent MOOC hype is interesting in this respect : xMOOCS (the most hyped kind) allow for identifiable authorship (a Mooc by Stanford professor etc..) and introduce the author back into the playing field targeting institutions more than the individual teacher.
Is this eternal comeback of the author, which we are also witnessing in the indexing of general resources on the web (page rank vs author rank) an inevitable tendency and why is that ? I do not have the answer for this blogpost but I think the question is one of the most exiting ones, linking professional identity , culture (of teaching and learning) and intercultural (translation) aspects.
There is also an evident link to research, since research has the same problem : who is the author, who gets credited and why but that’s another blog post.
Cultural and Intercultural differences play a role that in my view needs to be studied a lot more since OER don’t know boundaries. Together with a team of German and French researchers we have submitted a research proposal in that respect, by the way, I’ll keep you posted if it goes through.
References :
Albright, P. (2005) “UNESCO (IIEP): Final forum report. ” 2008-09-01 http://learn.creativecommons.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/oerforumfinalreport.pdf
Anderson, T. (2009) “Are we ready for OER ?” 23rd ICDE conference, 7-10 june 2009, Maastricht, Netherlands.
Boyer, A. (2011) “Les Universités Numériques Thématiques : Bilan” , Rubrique de la Revue STICEF, Volume 18, 2011, ISSN : 1764-7223, mis en ligne le 14/02/2012, http://sticef.org
H817 open course 2013-05-18 09:33:00 |
Activity 10 - Sustainability
In his report for OECD in 2007, David Wiley defined sustainability as ‘an open educational resource project’s on-going ability to meet its goals’. Wiley proposed three models of sustainability, which he labelled:
· the MIT model (all courses offered by MIT, a large organisation, with a high degree of control and high cost per course offered)
· the USU model (many courses offered by USU, a medium sized organisation, with a small degree of control, and a smaller cost than MIT)
· the Rice model (many courses offered anywhere, by a small organisation, at no cost and virtually no control)
Using these criteria, the four open education initiatives compare as follows:-
Change MOOC – uses the Rice model mainly, with lots of contributors and no cost, but controlled by the instigators of the course (which is the MIT model)
Coursera – appears to use the USU model.
Jorum – uses mainly the Rice model, but it has a very large number of courses, giving the feel of a large organisation. It wasn’t obvious what degree of control there was.
OpenLearn – is the MIT model, with a high degree of control, and all courses produced by the OU
It’s not always easy to see which of Wiley’s models was used, mainly because you can’t always see the authorship of the courses straightaway. As a student of the OpenLearn (and OU) set-up, it was easier to ‘find’ the ownership of these courses, but to a non-student, the OpenLearn set-up would not have been transparent.
Personal comment - not part of the Activity :-)
This is hard work now, as the course has finished, but I'd done most of the reading for the Activity, so reckoned I might as well carry on for as long as I could - but holidays, gardening, sailing, etc get in the way. I don't know how people who work full time manage to keep up, but maybe they don't do the holidays and other stuff. Or maybe they are more driven and dedicated!!
ocTEL Week 5 – Learning Styles |
I’m currently involved in running professional development sessions for staff looking at how they can use various technologies, including our VLE (Blackboard) in their teaching and development. The aim of the sessions is to showcase what the various technologies can be used for and try to stimulate interest and enthusiasm among teaching staff, rather than ‘click-after-me’ style training sessions.
The latest session I ran was about Developing a Personal Learning Network, so I'll look at that in relation to learning styles. As staff are so time-poor, we're currently experimenting with giving a one-hour session which is largely aimed at showcasing examples, giving the rationale for using certain technologies and discussion of the issues, followed by a 'free practice' practical session which staff can choose to stay on for if they want to try things out and get support while they do so. The session is also supported by a website and a Blackboard module which contains examples of the technology tools covered in the session, links to further information (both theoretical and practical), a Discussion Forum and so on, which allows staff to catch up, fill in the gaps as and when they have time.
For the learning styles task, I tried to breakdown the four types of learning style (diverging, assimilating, converging, accommodating) outlined by Kolb into the types of learning approach/activity related to it, then thought about how I try to include these in my sessions.
(I’m uneasy about pigeon-holing individuals into one of these specific learning styles. In my view, many learners display different traits which could belong to any of these styles, depending on what they’re learning, who they’re learning with, their level of motivation etc. I also notice that Kolb has recently expanded these 4 learning styles to 9 (Initiating, Experiencing, Imagining, Reflecting, Analyzing, Thinking, Deciding, Acting and Balancing) which makes me wonder what happened to the original 4 mentioned below…
Having said that, despite my suspicion of learning styles generally, I do think there's some merit in thinking about learning styles, and trying to identify learners who have more of one kind of style than another, even if only to remind ourselves that when it comes to learning, one size doesn't fit all.
Developing a Personal Academic Network
| Diverging Look at things from different perspectives Watch rather than do Gather information Brainstorm Work in groups Personal feedback | · Start session with brief discussion in pairs / small groups to find out what they know and their ideas on the subject · Find out who uses which types of Social Media and what they use them for · Demonstrate my own Personal Learning Network |
| Assimilating Logical approach Clear explanation Abstract concepts Models/diagrams | · Small section devoted to how to use a particular technology – e.g. Twitter, Diigo etc (followed up after initial one hour session) · Explain rationale behind building your own PLN and how it can help expand access to research and expertise · Provide links to further reading/theory in module and on website · Diagram of my PLN |
| Converging Problem-solving Technical tasks Work with practical applications | · Set up a tool during the session, or, if short of time, set aside time after session for questions/hands-on working with tools · Allow participants to try setting up instance of tools themselves and provide support where necessary |
| Accomodating Practical approach New challenges Gut instinct Work in teams Set targets | · Discussion Forum and Groups set up in Blackboard module to support session · Allow time after session for hands-on practice setting up/using tools (they might need less help) · Ask participants which tools they aim to use and to report back in next session |
Could it be that I have finished a MOOC?
Tagged #h817open
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I was a bit concerned that by adding my end of MOOC video to an old blog post may have caused confusion, so here it is again for good measure. A lot has passed since I had to leave prematurely, 3000 words on H817 and a busy week of group projects. (Both of these encourage me more even more on my journey towards MOOC enthusiasm.)
The Final Week7 Activity gave us the option to create a video ”Your experience of studying an open course versus traditional, formal education”. Here’s mine:
This is based on a prior post Outed as a fan of MOOCs
Connectivism ???
Tagged #h817open
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Connectivism – George Siemens
In the world of Higher Education and among well-motivated and intelligent students there is probably a case for seeing Connectivism as one theory of learning but not the only one and Siemens conclusion that “The pipe is more important than the content within the pipe” seems almost absurd . . . I doubt whether many oil companies would concur that the oil pipe is more important than the oil that it contains . . . the oil pipe will not per se bring in revenue. The water pipe network in my house will not keep me warm in winter . . . it is, of course, one of the essential elements in my heating system but there are others equally essential, viz. boiler, pump, water, electricity and gas. Take out any of these and I will feel very cold.
“When knowledge, however, is needed, but not known, the ability to plug into sources to meet the requirements becomes a vital skill”. This statement is undoubtedly true, but this “ability” is often a skill learned much earlier in life . . . mostly, the necessary skill has been taught by a skilled tutor, e.g. learning to swim, to play a musical instrument well, etc.
Connectivism cannot be regarded as an all-embracing, universal learning theory; it is more a reminder that we have many more learning tools available to us, living in the Digital Age, and a reminder, too, that technology is changing fast.
Our five-year old children are not likely to pick up an IPad and form a social network so that they can learn to read and write – they are taught to read and write.
Furthermore, Connectivism is mostly, mediated through language and culture, and, in a universal world that is so disparate in many ways, both of these factors can impede successful learning.
Moreover, for a learning process to be successful, students need to be told (or learn) how to discriminate between worthwhile knowledge and that which is worthless or misleading – peer-group networks are not sufficient
Activity 25. Reflection on openness |
To activity 25 I had to create a video, in which I had to reflect on what I learned in h817open, covering one of three elements. I chose
I wanted to create the video by remixing common licence ressources with my own stuff (photos, screen casts from my former h817open blog posts etc). By purpose I made it a little messy to illustrate the diversity, that powers the networks and learning processes.
Please have a look below :)
- What aspect of openness in education interests you most (and why)?
I wanted to create the video by remixing common licence ressources with my own stuff (photos, screen casts from my former h817open blog posts etc). By purpose I made it a little messy to illustrate the diversity, that powers the networks and learning processes.
Please have a look below :)
Tech I used to make the video:
- Screencast-O-Matic
- Pixlr.com
- iMovie
- FLV Spider Pro
- Jaksta
Remixed / revised video clips:
Remixed / revised photos:
- bluebell, by Dominic's pics on Flickr
- Network, by Dan Zen
- Road, by Moyan Brenn
- Class, by Trondheim Byarkiv
- Dave Cormier, by cogdogblog
- Stephen Downes, by Stephen Downes
- OER, by Martin Weller
- Smiley, by Glitter Graphics
Remixed / revised music:
Getting together to get it all together
Tagged #h817open
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I am loving the first week of collaborating on digital diaries project #h817... as there has been a lot of activity and energy generated in getting the tasks up and running...this has dissolved a lot of my anxieties about the group project... I started to think about Carl Jung's idea of the collective unconsciousness where the individual mind merges with that of others, but this does not represent what is happening here with our individuality, diverse interests and knowledge, we are remaining individual but working together... so my image of the concentric circles represents this collective circling where without hierarchy we are all responsible for and have equal stake in the project ... in theory ... although many collectives become the place of the most dominant power struggles I have ever been witness to so hopefully this won't happen!!! ... I am mindful of those team members who may be finding it harder to take part at present and want to ensure I am able to support them into the process as there is nothing worse than being a bit behind at the start and feeling like everyone has left you at the starting blocks...image courtesy of http://www.dragonartz.net under a creative commons attribution license which I did not know anything about until the last couple of months thank you h817
Open Learning Experience: H817 |
I thought it was going to be like a house party and it was!
Activity 25: Reflecting on openness
In March, I published a post about my expectations concerning the open section of the H817 module. I compared it to a house party where different groups assemble and reassemble in various parts of a house: free to talk about what interests them and to come and go as they please. It's all very seamless, relaxed and without apparent effort.
Despite having had years of experience with distance learning and working with digital tools in formal learning environments, I also needed a week to two before I felt comfortable with this form of open learning. It wasn't so much the numerous communications channels that disturbed me, but the fact that I couldn't decide where I wanted to be and with whom I wanted to communicate. So I took a moment to step back and reflect on the whole situation. Then I jumped right back into the house party loaded with energy and motivation.
What have I learnt from this experience?
Being selective is the key. Follow paths that are of interest, communicate with diverse groups and don't let yourself drown in the sea of information. Let it lap at your toes, walk in knee deep or swim in it, but make sure you're in control. It's about making conscious decisions and remaining focussed. I found that the content acted as a catalyst for discussions which often branched off into other directions and this is where it became interesting.
It's certainly not a form of education that will suit everyone, but that's not the intention of the developers of such courses. I'm in favour of alternative educational methods. If we don't experiment we won't have models to learn from and improve on.
This type of learning suits me and I'll definitely take part in other courses that are designed in the same manner when I have time. It's been an exceptional learning experience. I've created a short video here to illustrate visually how I experienced this course overall.
Source You Tube: H817 Open Learn (Patricia Daniels 2013)
Music courtesy of Tim Terry: Party
Tools used in the creation process:
- iMovie
- iPhoto
- Realtime Board
- Quicktime Player
Sound:
Party- courtesy of Tim Terry
iLife sound effects
iMovie sound effects
Settings:
Second Life