Unit 5_Activity 5.4

What do Learning Technologists (LTs) do?
LTs work with academic department personnel to understand the subject matter in question and devise suitable learning strategies for this content using appropriate technology. Their focus is, however, firmly on the pedagogy and they simply view technology as the tools to aid this focus. They consider the appropriate context to help the decide on a solution. For example, projects may come as a request from an academic or from a management policy initiative and both may require different solution approaches.
LTs describe themselves as undertaking activities in a number of areas. They try to keep up-to-date on current developments in learning technologies and most of their activities are educational, developmental, interpersonal or strategic rather than technical. Their key skills are pedagogical and an ability to operate effectively within an academic culture.
This key collaborative activity happens in three phases ; (a) Focus on the type of technology required (b) 'Proof of principle' - looking at how an approach or tool works in a certain situation and (c) Introduction of general issues from educational research. These activities allow LTs to provide a service to support new projects but also to participate in the department with which they are collaborating.I think Learning Technology is an emerging profession because (a) while it collaborates with academics directly it has a different focus to them; (b) It is clearly not just a technical role. The three phases above highlight a unique grouping of activities for a specific group of people. One of the most interesting and relevant lines in Oliver's article was that their "success is determined by the way in which the learning technologist is viewed. If they cannot establish their credentials with the academics, then it is unlikely that fruitful dialog will follow". I tend to see this statement in a positive light and helps to legitimise their expertise - for me this is a key part of a profession. It may just take more time and direction to develop and refine and promote this expertise.

Unit 5_2

"The Third Social Revolution" was the first article of the week. It was written by Perkins and describes how the third revolution is that society today is characterised by the rise of the professionals, the first two being Neolithic revolution (move to agriculture from hunter/gatherer) and the Industrial revolution in the last two centuries. My initial reaction to the 'article' is that is was like listening to a man on a soap-box giving out about what is wrong in the world and how we got there. But then if you consider it is actually a chapter of his own book, then he is entitled to his over-opinionated ideas.
That said, it was interesting and I think he is justified in some of the things he says. However, it is only part of the picture. Different cultures and histories will inevitably produce different ways of running a society and 'professionals' will mean different things as a result. So yes, he is justified in parts. It is only part of the picture, however, because he does not consider other aspects such as information technology and risk. Different cultures have very different approaches to these which have spawned additional variations in societies. For example, Japan is the mobile technology capital of the world. The way that government policy (e.g education policy) and industry is focused on these things drives specific cultures. Similarly, Japan is culturally risk-averse, so professionals in banking and finance, government and media will influence society in a different way than in the US, which is a much more risk-taking society.

Unit 5_1

Activity 5.2
My attempt at some definitions for this activity;
Profession - "A profession is an occupation which has a degree of skill, based on a body of knowledge, the members of which have achieved a specified level of training and/or education and have had their competence in this area suitably tested.

eLearning - eLearning is a specific type of education fundamentally driven by provision of material and assessment by electronic means.

eLearning Professional (eLP) - An eLP is an individual who has specific skills in relation to eLearning, has suitable experience, training and qualifications in their chosen areaa and is committed to continuous development of their knowledge and competence.

H808_Unit 3

We're a few weeks into

H808 now and the one thing I am finding difficult is the pace of the course. Compared to the previous course it's like going from Formula 1 to Formula 5. The amount of content we cover in a two week period would not have covered even one week on H800. Not sure if that's because H800 did not have the pace right, but either way this is a big change. So I've had to slow down a bit.....which actually is fine as I have work coming up with my students' ECAs to be corrected before the end of October. Ironically I think it's the fact that this course is so much more practically based and the last one was, more academic in many ways, that I find interesting. I actually miss the challenge of the volume and content of academic articles....nerdy boy that I am......the next course on my radar in February is 'Practice-based research in educational technology' so that should contain loads of papers to sift through.

This course is fine though. Most of the detail so far has been around ePortfolios and Reflection and Learning. The former I had no experience of before I started the course, the latter I think I've been doing in some form since I was 12, but this is allowing it to be more focused. The current topic is Personal & Professional Development planning, something I am doing so much of at work on right now, so it's good to get a different perspective.

I'm still not entirely sure where the course is taking me yet. A few more weeks will probably make that clear.

H808_Unit2_Activity 2.4

Reflection in Learning and the usefulness of blogging

For me reflection means asking the question "So what - what does this mean?". It is a translation or distillation of content into a few key points. In many previous courses, as preparation for exams, I would write two page summaries of lengthy articles and, like Moon suggested in one of this week's texts, it was with this "reprocessing" where the value lay for me. The main thing that has changed over time for me is the form of representation - it is not only text now. I like to use diagrams, particularly process flows and mind maps, as this helps me shape my understanding.

I started blogging early this year as part of the H800 course. I mainly use it as a learning diary but it does have some inherent reflection built in. I'm not sure I would use blogging for every learning activity, but it certainly relevant for the big learning points when they do happen. It is like a blank canvas to think and, for want of a better phrase, ramble on, in an attempt to refine the idea and put it in context. As mentioned above some of my preferred ways of learning are quite visual and while I could produce maps in powerpoint or equivalent and put them on a blog, that seems overkill. In some cases, paper and pen will still suffice. So the "learning" here for me, or rather a confirmation, is that blogging can be used with other forms of reflection to help enhance learning over time.

B808_Unit 2

ePortfolios

This week I have had an introduction to ePortfolios, which are basically an electronic version of storing learning over time, whether that be for academic or professional purposes. The articles we read included a large number of case studies from different countries mainly focusing around both schools and universities.

Last night I attended a talk by a member of the Irish Department of education's National Council for Curriculum and Assessment in one of my children's schools. It was a fantastic idea to give parents an understanding of the importance and value of assessment in national schools in Ireland. Much to my amazement, Portfolios were actually part of the discussion. When I asked about whether there were guidelines for teachers or parents I was directed to the website where it does actually mention it, and ePortfolios in particular, in a number of places. It seems they are aware of its value but my reading is that, unlike the case studies we say from Norway and Italy, unless there is clear government policy and funding driving the concept of ePortfolios, it will only ever remain a concept here. In Italy 50% of primary teachers were recently trained on ePortfolios after specific eLearning training and while it is not compulsory for them to use them, the fact that ordinary portfolios are already so pervasive and teachers have been trained on ePortfolios means it is a lot more likely the latter will get utilised. The feedback from the Italian study from teachers was that portfolios improved dialog between teachers and parents, something which was specifically mentioned as being very important by a teacher at the talk I attended. It is probably worth investigating what I, as a parent, can do on ePortfolios for my own children.

Page 29 and 30 of this article looks like a good place to start.

H800 Complete

I have now officially completed H800. The course finished at the end of August but the last few weeks has been about completing the end of course assessment. I must say it was hard work to finish it. The actual work was fine but in the last month it has been virtually impossible to get more than an hour at a time on it due to work, family pressures and the small fact that the next course has already started. So eventually I just submitted it. I could spend a week editing it and refining but at this point I just have to move on. Hey, I'm growing......I no longer feel the need to kill myself to get to the point where I am convinced I have done the best I could. What I submitted was adequate. I figure I'll save the best work for the doctorate.....ha!
Now...onwards to H808. Need to keep the motivation going.