Researching eLearning for Innovation and Development
11th May 2007, Edge Hill University, UK
Professor Allison Littlejohn
Chair of Learning Technology and Director of the Caledonian Academy
Glasgow Caledonian University more info >>>
Towards e-maturity: embedding elearning with mainstream teaching and learning
Academic institutions, and all who work within them, have been in a constant state of flux for over a decade. Yet the dream of universities moving from traditional forms of teaching towards supporting students to contribute to a networked, learning society seems as distant as ever. How can universities move towards e-learning becoming mainstream? One cost effective solution is to ensure collaboration across the institution: to pool expertise that can be used to inform transformational change.
This keynote presentation outlined how this approach has been used to enhance e-learning across a number of universities, drawing largely on experiences at Glasgow Caledonian University in establishing the Caledonian Academy: an academic centre leading the development of new and innovative forms of learning through applied research and scholarship.
Profile
Professor Allison Littlejohn is Chair of Learning Technology at Glasgow Caledonian University and Director of the Caledonian Academy: an academic support centre integrating research, advanced scholarship and transformational change in learning innovation. Allison leads a range of research projects exploring learning innovation and educational development, learning design, learning technology interoperability and professional development in Higher Education. In 2003 she published the first international textbook in sustainable e-learning: Reusing Online Resources (Routledge, London). In 2007 her new book ‘Preparing for blended learning’, co authored with Chris Pegler from the UK Open University, will be published by Routledge; London. Allison is an associate scholar of the UK Higher Education Academy, where she co-chairs the UK Forum on Supporting Sustainable eLearning. In 2005 she was awarded a scholarship by the Australasian learning technology organisation ASCILITE. Allison was previously Chair of Learning Technology and Director of the International Centre for Research on Learning at the University of Dundee, Senior Lecturer in Academic Practice at the University of Strathclyde, Lecturer in Chemistry at Thurso College and has held academic positions at the Universities of Glasgow, Strathclyde and Northern Colorado.
SOLSTICE 2007 conference summary more info >>>
Lawrie Phipps
Programme Manager, Users and Innovation
Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) more info >>>
What do our Users look like? Myths and Facts
'What do the ‘digital student’ and ‘digital lecturer’ look like? Do our visions of these roles match the reality? The perception of these digital personae have become more extreme as we see the rapid development and deployment of technologies characterised as ‘Web 2.0’. Tales of students being lectured to by avatars in Second Life and lecturers blogging, vlogging and podcasting are increasingly common. In this presentation Lawrie examined some of these tales and compared them with evidence obtained through working with individuals across a range of activities in higher education in the UK, United States and Canada.
In the second half of the session Lawrie looked at scenarios that have been developed within the JISC Users and Innovation Programme in a bid to understand the pressures that may be exerted on institutions, staff and students in the next 10 - 15 years.
Profile
Lawrie Phipps is a Programme Manager working for the Joint Information Systems Committee. His programme, Users and Innovation is creating opportunities to transform practice by developing technologies and innovative processes based on the needs of individual users working within institutions across multiple domains (for example, administration and research, teaching and information systems, and research and teaching). Lawrie formerly worked for and set up the JISC TechDis service, supporting the needs of disabled students through the use of Technology; and he also worked for the LTSN Subject Centre (now HEA) for Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences.
SOLSTICE 2007 conference summary more info >>>
Mark Schofield
SOLSTICE Academic Director, Dean of Teaching and Learning Development
& Head of the Centre for Learning and Teaching Research
Edge Hill University more info >>>
The SOLSTICE Concept and Application– synergising research, evaluation and enhancement for intelligent deployment of technologies to support learning
This session presented the conceptual model underpinning the Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL) at Edge Hill University. The SOLSTICE Centre (Supported Online Learning for Students using Technology for Information and Communication in their Education) was established in 2005 as a vehicle for institutional research and development of web-enabled and other mobile technologies. Its aim is to implement an enhancement-focused infrastructure built upon a metaphor of dialogue within multi-professional ‘New Academic Teams’ engaged in ‘intelligence-informed dialogues’ aimed at maximising learning through the deployment of technologies. These teams, within SOLTICE, comprise the multiple ‘voices’ of expertise representing pedagogy and curriculum design; research; technology and instructional design. The session gave a flavour of implementation in the university and indicated how the model may influence extension of the international research agenda in this area.
- Introductory presentation video clip (wmv) view >>>
- Introductory PowerPoint presentation (pdf) view >>>
SOLSTICE 2007 conference summary more info >>>
Last updated: 16-Jul-2008