#MOOC free report, event MOOC for refugees (w travel fund options) and #CfP eMOOC2019

Two interesting MOOC events coming up one focused on MOOCs for refugees, and one for all you out there involved in researching or experiencing MOOCs (the eMOOC2019 conference). 

Free MOOC report

Linked to the MOONLITE event, there is a free MOOC report (130 pages) on : “Exploiting MOOCs for Access and Progression into Higher Education Institutions and Employment Market”

The report gives an overview of the goals of the project, the methodology, and finishes with the practical recommendations for using online courses to enhance access and progression into higher education and the employment market (for refugees). 

MOONLITE multiplier event (part of a EU Erasmus+ project)

The MOONLITE event supports learning without borders, practically it harnesses the potential of MOOCs for refugees and migrants to build their language competences and entrepreneurial skills for employent, higher education, and social inclusion. 

There are bursaries to help cover your travel expenses which you can apply for at the venue!

23-24 November, UNED (Madrid, Spain).

Friday November 23

15:20. Welcome (Timothy Read & Elena Barcena, UNED, Spain)

15:30-16:30. Presentation of the MOONLITE project and its outputs (Jorge Arús-Hita, UCM, Spain & Beatriz Sedano, UNED, Spain)

16:30-17:30. Open Education Passports and Micro Credentials for refugees and migrants (Ildiko Mazar, Knowledge Innovation Centre, Malta)

17:30-18:00 Coffee

18:00-19:00 Kiron Educational Model and Quality Assurance for MOOC-based curricula (María Bloecher, Kiron, Germany)

Saturday November 24

10:00-11:00:  Inclusive by design: how MOOCs have the potential to reach people in ways other online courses do not (Kate Borthwick, University of Southampton, UK)

11:00-12:00: A tool for institutions for quantifying the costs & benefits of Open Education (Anthony Camilleri, Knowledge Innovation Centre, Malta)

12:00-12:30 Coffee

12:30-13:30: Workshop on how to design a socially inclusive MOOC (Elena Martín- Monje & Timothy Read, UNED, Spain)

13:30. Farewell (Timothy Read & Elena Barcena, UNED, Spain)

See travel details, online registration and more info here. No attendance fee. Limited places. 

➢ Sign up here: https://goo.gl/forms/RXYWS8MiQgYqfLkC2 (to obtain attendance certificate, materials, coffee).

➢ Venue: C/ Juan del Rosal, 16 - 28040 Madrid. How to get there: Metro until the stop: “Ciudad Universitaria” + Bus “U” until

the stop: UNED-Juan del Rosal: http://www.ia.uned.es/llegar-etsii

Call for papers eMOOC2019

Dates: 20 - 22 May 2019 

Venue: University of Naples, Federico II in Italy

Important Dates:
16 Jan 2017: Paper submissions for Research Track.
24 Feb 2017: Notification of acceptance/rejection
20 Mar 2017: Camera-ready versions for Springer LNCS Proceedings and copyright form.

The Higher Education landscape is changing. As the information economy progresses, demand for a more highly, and differently, qualified workforce increases, and HE Institutions face the challenge of reskilling and upskilling people throughout their lives. The corporate and NGO sectors are themselves exploring the benefits of a more qualified online approach to training, and are entering the education market in collaboration with HE Institutions, but also autonomously or via new certifying agencies. Technology is the other significant player in this scenario. It allows for new, data-driven ways of measuring learning outcomes, new curriculum structures and alternative forms of recruitment strategy via people analytics.

MOOCs represent the crossroads where the three converge. Come to EMOOCs 2019 and explore the impact and future direction of open, online education on a social, political and institutional level.

The eMOOC summit has four tracks: research, business, policy and experience track.

At the MOOC crossroads: where academia and business converge

The Higher Education landscape is changing. As the information economy progresses, demand for a more highly, and differently, qualified workforce and citizens increases, and HE Institutions face the challenge of training, reskilling and upskilling people throughout their lives, rather than providing a one-time in-depth education. The corporate and NGO sectors are themselves exploring the benefits of a more qualified online approach to training, and are entering the education market in collaboration with HE Institutions, but also autonomously or via new certifying agencies. Technology is the other significant player in this fast-changing scenario. It allows for new, data-driven ways of measuring learning outcomes, new forms of curriculum definition and compilation, and alternative forms of recruitment strategy via people analytics.

At the MOOC crossroads where the three converge, we ask ourselves whether university degrees are still the major currency in the job market, or whether a broader portfolio of qualifications and micro-credentials may be emerging as an alternative. What implications does this have for educational practice? What policy decisions are required? And as online access eliminates geographical barriers to learning, but the growing MOOC market is increasingly dominated by the big American platforms, what strategic policy do European HE Institutions wish to adopt in terms of branding, language and culture?

The EMOOCs 2019 MOOC stakeholders summit comprises the consolidated four-track format of Research and Experience, Policy and Business. And will feature keynote speakers, round table and panel sessions as well as individual presentations in each track. The aim is for decision-makers and practitioners to explore innovative and emerging trends in online education delivery, and the strategic policy that supports them. Original contributions that share knowledge and carry forward the debate around MOOCs are very welcome.The number of HE institutions involved in MOOCs, and the numbers of courses and enrolled students, has increased exponentially in recent years both in Europe and beyond. One of the results of this growing MOOC movement is an increasing body of research evidence that positions itself within the established research communities in technology enhanced learning, open education and distance learning. Key trends that are accelerating HE technology adoption are blended learning design and collaborative learning as well as a growing focus on measuring learning and redesigning learning spaces, and, in the long-term, deeper learning approaches and cultures of innovation.

This track welcomes high-level papers supported by empirical evidence to provide a rigorous theoretical backdrop to the more practical approaches described in the experience track, and particularly invites contributions in the area of these key trends.

• Learning Designs – blended learning, collaborative learning, learner-generated content, open textbooks, immersive learning, relating course and content to learning outcomes
• Defining and Measuring learning – learning analytics, educational data mining, user behaviour studies, adaptive and personalisation studies, cognitive theories and deep learning
• Technology – infrastructure and interface, tools and methods to provide learning at scale; tools and methods for assessment; tools and methods for data collection and processing; blockchain technology; AI + automated feedback

Submission of Papers
This is a one-step process, via direct submission of abstract and full paper.

Full paper: up to 10 pages including references

There will be official conference proceedings for this track and submissions will be handled through EasyChair.

The use of the supplied Springer template is mandatory: https://www.springer.com/it/computer-science/lncs/conference-proceedings-guidelines

Please remember to indicate the relevant Track when you submit your paper.

Proceedings

The Proceedings of the Research Track will be published by Springer in the Lecture Notes in Computer Science (LNCS) Series.
Submission of Work-in-Progress Short Papers

Short papers (up to 6 pages) are also accepted in this track, reflecting work in progress, for publication in Online proceedings with ISBN.

The use of the Springer template is mandatory:
https://www.springer.com/it/computer-science/lncs/conference-proceedings-guidelines

When submitting your paper, please indicate type of paper and track in the submission process.

Proceedings

The Work-in-Progress proceedings will be submitted to CEUR-WS.org for online publication. Outstanding short papers may be included in the Springer Proceedings.

Important dates:
25 February 2019: Short Paper submissions for Research Track.
25 March 2019: Notification of acceptance/rejection
29 April 2019: Camera-ready versions for online Proceedings with ISBN and copyright form

(free) book Assessment strategies for online learning #education #assessment #eLearning #instructionaldesign

Assessing online learning has many challenges, but with this new book written by experts Dianne Conrad and Jason Openo, a lot of solutions can be found. The book, entitled Assessment Strategies for Online Learning - Engagement and Authenticity, can be bought for 32,99 dollars  here (if you have a budget this is the way to go as you support author and initiative), or you can have a look at the free pdf here. This book is a must read for those using assessment, as it not only gives traditional assessment, but also dives into evaluations that are linked to open learning, journals, portfolios, etc. Great and interesting read.

If you want to check out what Dianne Conrad has in mind while talking about assessment, or if you have some questions, you can join the free online CIDER session on 10th October 2018

When: Wednesday, October 10, 2018 - 11am to 12noon Mountain Time (Canada)

Where: Online through Adobe Connect at:
https://athabascau.adobeconnect.com/cider

Registration is not required; all are welcome. CIDER Sessions are recorded and archived for later viewing through the CIDER website. For more information on CIDER and our Sessions, please visit us at: http://cider.athabascau.ca
(from the book description):

For many learners, assessment conjures up visions of red pens scrawling percentages in the top right-hand corner of exams and feelings of stress, inadequacy, and failure. Although learners sometimes respond negatively to evaluation, assessments have provided educational institutions with important information about learning outcomes and the quality of education for many decades. But how accurate are these data and have they informed practice or been fully incorporated into the learning cycle? Conrad and Openo argue that the potential inherent in online learning environments to alter and improve assessment and evaluation has yet to be explored by educators and learners.
In their investigation of assessment methods and learning approaches, Conrad and Openo explore assessment that engages and authentically evaluates learning. They insist that online and distance learning environments afford educators new opportunities to embrace only the most effective face-to-face assessment methods and to realize the potential of engaged learning in the digital age. In this volume, practitioners will find not only an indispensable introduction to new forms of assessment but also a number of best practices as described by experienced educators.

1. The Big Picture: A Framework for Assessment in Online Learning

2. The Contribution of Adult Education Principles to Online Learning and Assessment

3. What Do You Believe? The Importance of Beliefs about Teaching and Learning in Online Assessment

4. Authenticity and Engagement: The Question of Quality in Assessment

5. Assessment Using E-Portfolios, Journals, Projects, and Group Work

6. The Age of “Open”: Alternative Assessments, Flexible Learning, Badges, and Accreditation

7. Planning an Assessment and Evaluation Strategy—Authentically

8. Flexible, Flipped, and Blended: Technology and New Possibilities in Learning and Assessment

9. A Few Words on Self-Assessment

10. Summing Up

Appendix • Other Voices: Reflections from the Field

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0). It may be reproduced for non-commercial purposes, provided that the original author is credited.

Assessing online learning is mostly part of formal education, but can be used to provide a formal status to self-directed learning which the learner wants to show to the public. 

Women in ICT & engineering: #Gender barriers & solutions #educon17

At Educon one of the main sessions was focusing on the gendered challenges within engineering, which fits with today's ‘girls in ICT’ day. The educon panel was sharing their own stories (being female pioneers, or lack of role models), the clear barrier related to policies stereotyping gender roles, constructed family values allocated to boys and girls, need for dedicated female networks, and the clear glass ceiling when looking at leadership roles for women in IT and engineering). As the discussion moved forward, I remembered that this is mirrored in a recent book I reviewed. If you are looking for similar stories, and want to learn how women addressed the professional challenges they faced in classically male-dominant areas, this is a good book.

Book: Women’s Voices in theField of Educational Technology: Our Journeys

This book combines the personal and professional journeys of 29 women and two men who all made a career developing and using educational technology (EdTech). The book provides an inspiring account of what the challenges were which the first EdTech women encountered and how they overcame them in order to create a professional space inside an - at that time - male dominant field. The majority of the EdTech women in this book are connected to the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT), an organisation founded in 1923 to focus on National (US) Education, division of Visual Instruction.  Each of the chapters of the book is written by the women or men who lived through the actual experience of having to secure a career in the EdTech world. These different narratives provide a rich, at times deeply personal, professional and varied account of what it takes to enter and work within the EdTech field. While reading the book I often nodded as parts of the journeys shared were recognisable and – it seems – universal to all EdTech professionals. The importance of mentorship, leadership and trust emerge clearly from all the journeys. And in many of them the act of accepting your own realities (being different, coming from a variety of backgrounds, overcoming deep personal trauma) and uplifting your own situation as well as others by investing in education, provides an inspiring read.

Overview

Ana Donaldson edited this book. She has been a past president of AECT (the Association for Educational Communications and Technology) and in that position she took the initiative to gather journeys from other women who have had an impact on educational technology anywhere from 40 years ago up until 2016. The book is divided into three parts: individual voices, historical perspective and mentoring. Where the majority of the book is taken by the part on individual voices, providing 150 pages of personal as well as professional accounts of what it takes to enter the EdTech field and becoming a renowned EdTech professional. The historical perspective comprises three additions which cover the history or AECT, some of the lesser known pioneering woman in EdTech covered through short vignettes, and a generational focus on EdTech learners and their distinct characteristics put in their technological context. The final part of the book looks at mentoring, but attention to mentoring is already prevalent in many of the individual voices. The mentoring part is different from the mentoring mentioned in the individual voices, as it zooms in on what it takes to be an effective mentor, the necessity of intentional mentorship and the importance of being a role model to new female EdTech students. Each chapter of the book consists of a personal account of life as an EdTech professional. In some cases this personal account is told chronologically, starting from early life right to current career and status, at other times the focus is more on the professional journey highlighting detailed career challenges and successes. After each account a selection of publications by the author of that chapter is offered. These publications consist of high impact journal articles, clearly emphasizing the importance of publishing in high impact journals if you – as an EdTech academic – want to make a name for yourself or get tenure. At the end of the chapter a brief biography per author is given, highlighting personal achievements and interests.

An inside look

Reading through the stories of the individual voices, the reader soon finds reoccurring themes that impacted most of the women who shared their EdTech journeys. The journeys of the women and their consecutive jobs or career titles also reveal a change in jargon, e.g. at first audiovisual education was used instead of the term educational technology, and the titles covering professional positions involving what is now known as EdTech varied depending on institutes and research programs. From those EdTech experts graduating around the late 60’s or early 70’s, it becomes clear that the audiovisual side of education was a male dominated field, including the academic posts investigating any type of technology for education. The women who got EdTech positions often point to strong female role models in their family (mothers, grandmothers) who inspired a new generation of women, as well as open minded male mentors opening doors, supporting endeavors and showing opportunities. From  those early years onward, those women who gained access to EdTech and joined forces to forge lifelong friendships and collaborations seem to have thrived. Connecting and daring to build informal connections with those who seem to have gained status and established professionalism seems to help in getting to grips with the professional, academic as well as personal challenges. More than one author mentions sisterhood as a means to keep motivated and grow stronger, and that is true for all decades covered in this book.    

The importance of getting a PhD becomes clear while reading this volume, and it is amazing how many different indirect reasons there are to take up a PhD (at the beginning of their career many of the women did want to teach in primary or high school and many of them did teach at some point). But it is clear that this is essential if you want to move forward in an academic environment, or if you want to be taken seriously as a professional. Unfortunately, it also becomes clear from the different stories that obtaining a PhD nowadays is no longer a guarantee for getting into a tenure position. When reading the book one understands the importance of getting a formal degree, but many authors also emphasize the importance of accepting yourself. One author summarised: “Know what you know and what you do not, know who you are and who you are not, embrace your young-self – and your aging self”, a message that I feel resonates for more than just the women in the EdTech field.

Taking up leadership early on also beams out as one of the common actions that will increase your chances to make it in EdTech. This includes voluntary work such as starting a minority focused community of practitioners, though a warning is mentioned that we – women – should realise that a lot of the support we offer can be seen as ‘invisible labor’, where supporting students from similar minority groups as ourselves does demand extra time and effort which other academics do not need to address. Leadership actions can result in additional expertise regarding funding skills, co-authoring papers, or creating a community of peers and all of these have a great impact on increasing career options. Taking up leadership also creates flexibility, moving from academia to corporate or visa versa, depending on the passion felt by specific EdTech jobs.    

Mentorship is without doubt crucial both to growing as a professional, as to offering new opportunities to EdTech students. Mentoring allows rapid growth to take place (learning from experts), it offers opportunities to learn from students (keeping in touch with all developments), it enables actions towards more social justice and it often results in lifelong networks.   

Strengths and weaknesses

The journeys of each of these women is astonishing, and provides such a rich texture of diverse backgrounds and opportunities. Some authors mention financial implications and having to work multiple jobs in order to pay for college or university, others mentioned different cultural backgrounds which influenced their perception of what it takes to get into EdTech, and still others had to find their way against personal hardship, or microagressions coming from what should be colleagues … Courage to keep moving forward is clearly present in all journeys.  

One non-outspoken idea is that many of the women shared that they were initially not intending to pursue an academic career, and especially not a PhD. In many cases the idea of obtaining a PhD came from a mentor, a colleague, or chance. This stands in stark contrast to the accounts of those same authors mentioning their male partners, who consciously wanted to get a PhD. A clear reminder of the intricate groups of people who have been socialised into ‘their place in society’, which forces society’s status quo onto them, even though they are well placed to burst that socialized bubble.

The rise of EdTech reaches beyond the history of EdTech women, and the situations they came across while aiming to establish themselves as professionals, nevertheless I feel that the focus on women provides an additional and rich layer of importance to getting a career going in a more male oriented, academic field. It shows additional challenges, and therefor additional strengths that not only provide insights for other women, but also to men coming from different backgrounds and trying to enter academia or a profession which is new to them or their family.

I would have liked more EdTech women of color to be taken up in this volume, their stories reveal the importance of being part of a sub-group of women to obtain mutual empowerment. Although moments of sexism are mentioned by many authors, similarly each woman of color sharing their journey in the book gave accounts of racism on top of the sexism they sometimes encountered. Though sexism, racism and general challenges are mentioned, the book is above all focusing on what helps each one of us (male or female) forward: mentorship, shared family responsibilities, having role models, being part of a network, feeling part of a community of like-minded professionals, and knowing that differences strengthen academia and as a result society as a whole.  

Although many voices can be heard, the book does consist of women and men being linked to AECT. This does limit the scope for those readers not being familiar with this US based organisation, or living in other countries with different educational systems, cultural challenges or EdTech support.  

Coming from a working family myself, without family members knowing what academic jobs are or even what you need to do in order to get one of those jobs, this book makes a difference. It strengthens some of the actions I have taken, and it shows those options I sometimes do not dare to undertake. The book empowered me, and informed me about my chosen professional field.

In a world were quick opinions seem to reign, this book offers many voices that support attention to the importance of community (in all its variance and diversity), creating a nurturing working environment, and actively working to decrease hegemony that effects most of us. Anyone wanting to know more about the professional options available in EdTech, or the challenges you might face as a woman interested in technology, or wanting to get a historical perspective of an emerging educational field, will find answers to these questions in this book.

Posthumanism & MOOC a book by Jeremy Knox #MOOC #criticalresearch

A couple of months ago, I had the pleasure of receiving a manuscript for review. Although the review was limited to the first chapters, I got all excited by what Jeremy Knox had written. The book looks at MOOC and puts the within a posthumanist framework to analyse its meaning and impact. Jeremy refers to different MOOC along the way, proving his main philosophical ideas. 

The full title of the book is Posthumanism and the Massive Open Online Course: contaminating the subject of global education, and is written by Jeremy Knox. You can have a look at the introduction, as well as the chapters here. The book is about 220 pages and provides stimulating reading for anyone passionate about education and philosophy. The paperback costs about 32 GBP. 

From the intro: "This book is about the rise to prominence of the MOOC: its high-profile marketing and emerging approaches to research; its spatial ordering of university provision and online education; and the unprecedented number and spread of its students.

However, this book is also about the human condition: a human condition that is profoundly and intimately entwined with the ideas and practices of education, of which the MOOC is merely one.

This book draws on a well-established critique of humanism from philosophy and critical theory: critical posthumanism. It is this theoretical sensitivity that will allow the ensuing analysis to look beyond the limitations of the humanist subject in the discourses and material practices of the MOOC, and work towards new understandings of this far-reaching and technology-infused form of education.

This book uses critical posthumanism as an umbrella term for a number of specific theoretical areas, each of which will inform particular aspects of analysis in the succeeding chapters: new materialism; postcolonial intersections with posthumanism; spatial and mobilities theory; sociomaterial theory; and the idea of the ‘monstrous’ as a critical examination of the humanist ideal". 

Learning, #assessments should be future, context oriented thx @jaycross

Sitting in a train heading for The Open University  on a rainy day in September (Autumn in the Northern hemisphere). Writing a progress log or Plog as Jay Cross would call it, and it took me ages as I struggled with the use and application of assessing new knowledge. In some ways this plog relates to discussions on the use of testing/assessing which is a reoccurring discussion in education everywhere and online learning in particular.

Self-assessment in the real learning realm
I suddenly wondered how intuitive assessing one’s own knowledge really is. What we do with new ideas? Do we just apply them, do we test them in safe environments first before implementing them in real life, do we Just Do It and test new stuff live as we live it … What would be my take on assessment and its place within real learning? At the end I realized that if my aim is to increase lifelong learning skills, my assessment methods should push me to point my vision towards my (wishful) future.

Read and grow
The new book on Real Learning by Jay Cross has kept parts of my brain busy over the last couple of weeks. It is essentially a book for those that want to change their lives towards new or adjusted goals through learning (professionally and/or personally).  Jay Cross kindly asked me to furnish him with feedback on a beta version of his book, and of course I gladly accepted the task. At present I go through the book at a slow pace (kid sick, working on PhD, dream, getting some rogue research planned and described, being me). But despite my slow pace (or is it because of it?) the book seems to stir my mind on subjects I found straight forward in some ways, and makes me wonder whether they are as straight forward as they should be.

The latest idea that I got questioned whether power learners (with which I would describe those people who reinvent themselves every few years, or people who read the book and put its suggestions into practice) need to self-assess their newly acquired content or whether that is taking the learning out of its organically formed or natural ecosystem: the growing, living mind. Is assessment in any way a natural phenomenon?

To consciously self-assess versus  applying intuitively
Traditionally, if you build a module for either classic, blended or online learning, you are going to fit in some self-assessments. It is generally a routine action, and build on two main premises:

1. if someone goes through some learning, they want to see whether they really understood what they learned,
2. because those who build a course want to have some kind of measurement or grading tool to see whether the new content/action/practice has been understood (or it has lead to obtain a learning objective).

This prompted me to suggest that the Real Learning book might possibly cover an overview of ways of self-assessing newly assimilated knowledge. So I posted it that suggestion to the executive group forum of the book, to add my two cents worth. As soon as I posted my remark, I could feel something was wrong with it. It felt like a dinosaur statement and I could not figure out why at first.

Assessing knowledge seems impossible within its own confinement. As I was thinking about it I got the idea that assessing knowledge is only useful when it takes that knowledge towards a new future. It does not reflect on what is learned, but where one wants to take it. Informal learning, or adult authentic learning has little use for the past, it needs to be useful in the present (for sure) and the future (possibly).

Tracing my own learning, I can honestly say I do not build external architectures of ecologies to test my own new knowledge. I just venture out into the real world and implement them. It might be an intuitive action, it might rely on previous knowledge, never the less it is moving forward.

Learning as part of a personal trait
Additionally, I feel that assessing new knowledge is part of a very personal action. The personal constructs the learning. Learning is a very personal action: what we learn, how we learn, the reasons we learn, … and how we then use what is learned. Research literature is littered with the adagio that we connect new knowledge to the old knowledge we have acquired… but this is highly personal. The way we all think, our philosophical frame, our hopes and dreams make up our thinking.

Again a central question comes up: can we really uplift people universally through the process of learning? Does it benefit the world, or is it just a simple natural process that furnishes a sense of accomplishment? Can assessment take us to a more human level of thinking? A type of assessment which fits our own goals, this means assessment should have an element of future enabling in it… which means it must be made generic, enabling contextual solutions and - no matter what - it will be implemented by the person, in her/his vision.

I do not assess consciously?
While reflecting upon my own assessment iterations, I realized I do not consciously assess anything I learn. But on an unconscious level I do implement new stuff I learn.

But then again I also do not stumble upon integrating new knowledge into my own context. First of all I shape the new knowledge that I am acquiring. Pretty much like a combination of steps put forward by Jay Cross: reflecting, tracking progress of my own work/interest by sharing it, discussing content by Working Out Loud within my own personal learning network, and of course the very personal yet inevitable characteristic of anyone wanting to grow: critical thinking as an organic barometer for learning

Assessing should be future oriented
So suddenly, while racing ahead within the Virgin express train I realized that from now on, the only assessments I will make or take would be those that take me to the next level. Because that is the only real life situation. It also prepares for lifelong learning.
There is no use in assessing only what is seen, it is much more useful to see whether one can apply new knowledge in a personal, as such contextualized setting. Every course or training I took that demanded contextualized responses always pushed me forward. In a way I guess that what I will do from now is use assessment purposes to ask learners to build their own advanced organizers for the next bit of content they want to assimilate and turn into authentically useful knowledge. 

An intro to ExtraTerristrial Literature? YES ! #MOOC #SciFi

This is just up my alley! A MOOC on spacebooks! Is it Art, is it Sci-Fi, is it History, is it Literature?....
It is all of the above!!

The full title of this MOOC organised by the Zurich University is: Spacebooks. An Introduction To Extraterrestrial Literature: Learn about how our imagination of the universe and its inhabitants was shaped by literature throughout the last 400 years.

And all the lectures are designed to be self-contained. The essential excerpts of the main sources will be provided, if not available on the internet. So I can just pick and choose, wonderful.

Course description:

Since the invention of the telescope in 1608, outer space has been turned into an abode, a place scientific speculation and literary imagination could thrive on simultaneously. The human mind was sent on a journey to visit other planets – and time after time it returned from there with breathtaking news, disturbing images or philosophical insight. And, of course, with a lot of questions: Why funeral customs on the Moon include cannibalism and orgies? Is it true that the people of Mars do live according to higher moral standards than we do? And where does this weird alien obsession with terrestrial paper actually come from?These are some of the questions we will be addressing within this course. Moreover, we will watch the birth of the alien reader, we will explore the logics of space invasion and the history of space colonies well. We will examine the inventory of extraterrestrial libraries and survey the competing projects of galactic encyclopedias. Next to well-known authors as Kepler, Cyrano de Bergerac, Stapledon or Lem, you will also be introduced to neglected and forgotten texts. Finally, we might even understand how literature itself was transformed by this journey throughout the universe – and how it finally became a true interstellar medium.

And... there is a special soundtrack! The soundtrack to this ET-MOOC will be provided by Swiss artists Bit-Tuner and Darkspace. Oh, how I love Art and Innovation!

Some free reading from @RoutledgeBooks: chapters

With Routledge sharing some free chapters, it is easier (and more tempting) to choose some of their book titles. So gladly sharing the free online chapters Routledge is offering at this moment, or as they promote it:

We are pleased to bring you a selection of chapter compilations from our key book series.
Each compilation features a number of chapters from different titles within the series. The compilations give you an idea of the content and scope of the book series.
All of these compilations are free for you to view online.

Where to find these free chapters? Here.

The chapters can be easily read and shared , as the screen tool allows zooming in and out and a quick sharing option as well.

I am reading " The 'Turn to Gramski' in the English language" and one I really look forward to is a chapter from the book "New directions in the philosophy of education" series: chapter entitled: "the poeticization of culture", under the umbrella of 'truth and freedom'... intriguing. 

#aha_project discovering the Grit Scale #plog

Give Jay Cross some time and surely he will come up with something new and exciting, e.g. informal learning, and now an ebook on DIY-learning. It is a mental joy to read! The book offers an array of actions (evidence-based) that a knowledge worker - or any power learner - can undertake in order to improve their own learning. Later on these actions offer a great set of tools to implement in your own corporate learning environment.

As Jay sent out a twitter a couple of days ago, I could not keep myself from asking for a copy of his new book. In beta-release of course (version 0.8 when I got it). The book offers insight into learning, and more specifically increasing learning efficiency to a point of a long-lasting AHA-moment, hence the title: "AHA! 75 ways to work smarter". 

The book only costs 2.99 dollars and you get your moneys worth. I am only 75 pages in and I already marked several passages to reflect, act upon, and use later on in my own contexts. One of the actions Jay refers to is writing daily. Short passages (15 min is enough), reflecting on your day, but on a daily basis (something my mom has been doing for over 20 years or more, talking about a role model!). A proven action to increase your mental health, while also adding to your focus, patience, planning and personal growth (research by Teresa Amabile , nice name). Jay calls it: writing a Plog - or progress blog. Plog will be my label or meta-tag for those posts.  I will add them to my 'I am going to figure out where to go next' set of writings as well, making them easy to retrieve later on. But for now, my first plog is on: discovering my Grit. 

My Grit Scale: 4.13

This research study into Grit consists of only 12 questions you can take voluntarily to calculate your true 'grit'. Grit (paper here) is defined as "perseverance and passion for long-term goals. Grit entails working strenuously toward challenges, maintaining effort and interest over years despite failure, adversity, and plateaus in progress. The gritty individual approaches achievement as a marathon; his or her advantage is stamina". 

And apparently your own Gritty nature relates to evolution's in your future income, but also - and to me important - all-round happiness. It seems I am part of the happy one's and that in it's own makes me ... happy. To be honest, my score was higher then I had expected, as I can be lazy at times... just plain lazy. But apparently setting your teeth into something counts for a lot. (conversation with mom: "I really filled in the survey according to the truth - honestly mom!", "then why aren't you making more money?", "...Because I am more the happy gritty person, then the money greedy person", she looks at me and pats me on the back "well, that's alright then, well done"). 

So upward and onward! Now that I learned this bit about myself, I will go back to proceed with my thesis... hey, I have a grit score... I can and will do it, now I am sure!

A free book on changing #education in challenging settings #ICT4D

This lively report - well it is a free book consisting of 318 pages - on Designing and Implementing an ICT for Development initiative in a resource constraint environment is one of the most amazing mobile learning and technology projects I have read. This is a book that can be used in any challenging setting, as it combines participatory design, teachers professional development, open badges as milestones in the learning process, earn-as-you-learn incentives, strategies from the known reality to a wishful future, and scaling up from one school to 26 schools! ... and all evidence-based in approach. The report is edited by Marlien Herselman and Adele Botha.

It is simply amazing how this talented and inspired group of people turned a really challenging situation in deep rural South Africa (Eastern Cape province) into a fruitful, inspiring educational surplus in only 3 years time! It combines mobile learning, literacy,

From the forword: "The book aims to provide an overview of the design and implementation of an Information and Communication Technology for rural education development initiative in a resource constrained environment. Various frameworks, models, guidelines and tools were developed by adopting Design Science Research as the chosen methodology. Certain specific case study phases were applied within the Design Science Research process and lessons were learnt in each phase which was documented as the initiative moved from one phase to the other. Certain steps were followed during each phase. The book provides an overview of how each of the components, within the ICT4RED Implementation Framework (Section 2), were managed and how they were operationalised to provide specific deliverables or to reach certain aims.
What became evident from this initiative was that it was NOT about the technology, but about the PEOPLE who are empowered to use the technology in order to improve their lives and that of their learners!This book will guide readers through the journey of this initiative and it is hoped that it will inspire all new prospective students, teachers and academia to realise that the value of using technology does not lie in that it can ever replace the teacher, but that it can enhance teaching and learning and transform traditional teaching methods in a classroom. This transformation can only be successfully done where technology is earned and not just given away or provided free of charge."

Free eBook on #mobile learning in context

The eLearning Guild keeps distributing relevant and updated eLearning information with an amazingly high frequency. They keep providing me with information that helps me keep an eye on corporate training based regularly on academic evidence-based findings and I love it.

The wonderful freely available eBook "Mobile in context" combines contemporary mobile learning insights from experts around the world, engaged in formal, informal, academic and corporate mobile learning. The contributing editor Janet Clarey assembled a 23 page booklet with 7 chapters all dedicated to mLearning:

• mobile learning: getting started (Brenda Enders)
• mobile learning: creating a shift in what we teach (Helen Crompton)
• mobile learning in a European context (John Traxler) - with a focus on rural communities and overcoming technological challenges
• using augmented reality for contextual mobile learning (Jason Haag)
• motivating learners to complete training (Phil Cowcill &Krista Hildner)
• mMOOC design: providing ubiquitous learning (Inge de Waard)
• micro-video for mobile learning (Sean Bengry)

The eBook is available in pdf, epub and mobi, making it an easy read no matter which device you have available. You do not to provide your contact details to get to the download page of the eBook.

The book is an introduction to the upcoming mLearnCon 2015 which will be held in Austin Texas, and Oh-my! How I wished I could be there! But writing on my thesis ... hoping to get more travel miles under my belt once the PhD is written. 

Launch of the Really Useful #EdTechBook #elearning enthusiasts

Today the Really Useful #EdTechBook was launched. This book has took only 6 months to gather 16 educational technologists, and all-round eLearning practitioners (both in online education, mobile learning, and any sub-section in technology enhanced learning). The formidable, and project superman David Hopkins pulled this astonishing work off with an energy and motivation that is purely magical (and courageous, as he needed to keep 16 volunteering writers on a very tight schedule).

So what is the book about? 
‘The Really Useful #EdTechBook‘ is about experiences, reflections, hopes, passions, expectations, and professionalism of those working with, in, and for the use of technology in education. Not only is it an insight into how, or why, we work with these technologies, it’s about how we as learning professionals got to where we are and how we go forward with our own development.

Technology has invaded our working and recreational lives to an extent that few envisaged 20 or 30 years ago. We’d be fools to avoid the developments in personal, mobile, and wearable technology. Even if we tried we’d still have to deal with other developments and distractions in classroom and learning technology like smart boards, blogs, video, games, students-led learning, virtual learning environments, social media, etc. More than this, however, is how the advances in technology, the economic and physical miniaturisation of computing devices, have impacted education: the students, the teachers, the classrooms, the spaces, the connections, the aspirations, etc.

In this book you will find chapters on the subjects mentioned above, in written in a more informal, transparent way (David gave all of us carte blanche, and emphasized the importance of the personal experience, or personal preferred viewpoints on Educational Technology.
The book has got wonderfully written chapters, and to be honest I have enjoyed every chapter, for all of the chapters offered new ideas or intimate stories of what it is, and what it took to become an educational technologist. So the only indulgence I dare, is to provide a link to my chapter on 'Tech Dandy, and the Art of Leisure Learning', that I have added to my list of Academia-papers just to keep track of what I am writing.

I can only assure you, that the other chapters will blow your mind in usefulness. And I am not alone in saying this, as multiple eLearning experts already gave the book good reviews prior to the launch (e.g. Steve Wheeler, Associate Professor of Learning Technology, Plymouth University, Maren Deepwell, Chief Executive, Association for Learning Technology (ALT), Chrissi Nerantzi, Principal Lecturer in Academic CPD, Manchester Metropolitan University, Helen Blunden, Activate Learning Solutions, Australia.

Offering the book at multiple prices 
After some serious discussions, the consensus of all the authors was that the book should be open to all, yet offer people who want to support us the opportunity to pay for the book, and as such give us some monetary gift. So, here are the details on the book offers:

For those interested in taking a peek at the book before purchasing it, you can find the PDF-download link in David's blogpost here. http://bit.ly/EdTechBook

Title: The Really Useful #EdTechBook
Editor: David Hopkins
Word count: 61,000
Price eBook: $6.99 / £4.50 / €5.80
Price Paperback: $29.99 / £19.99 / €24.99
Publish date: 28 January 2015
Available: Paper and eBook editions are available from the following online stores.

• Amazon.com (print & eBook)
• Amazon.co.uk (print eBook)
• iTunes (eBook)
• Kobo (eBook)
• Createspace (print)

(Note: Tax will be applied to the eBook by the online store, based on your location).

Join our Google+ community for information on the book, the chapter authors, the launch details, the world of learning and educational technology, Or have a look at the geographic interest in the book on this map here. 

Upcoming the Really Useful #EdTechbook and chapter

What a great start of a new year, to be able to work with wonderful people and get a chapter out as well. The ever working David Hopkins (I think he did not have one single day off during the past holidays), has been editing a book entitled "The Really Useful #EdTechbook" which will be on sale from 28 January 2015.

The book consists of 16 chapters from different authors, all devoted to ... really useful EdTech stuff in a non-academic, simple language. And I am very grateful to David that he allowed me to be one of the co-authors as well, together with the creme of the crop of EdTech experts.

Contributory authors: 

• Catherine Cronin: Foreword 
• David Hopkins: Introduction 
• Wayne Barry: “…and what do you do?”: Can we explain the unexplainable? 
• Zak Mensah: “Why do we do what we do?” 
• Peter Reed: “The structure and roles of Learning Technologists within Higher Education Institutions” 
• Rachel Challen: “Learning Technologists as magicians? Balancing policy and creativity” 
• Julie Wedgwood: “Developing the skills and knowledge of a Learning Technologist” 
• Dr David Walker and Sheila MacNeill: “Learning Technologist as Digital Pedagogue” 
• Lesley Price: “Times they are a changing …or not?” 
• Sue Beckingham: “The Blended Professional: Jack of all Trades and Master of Some?” 
• Julian Stodd: “How gadgets help us learn in the Social Age” 
• Terese Bird: “Students Leading the Way in Mobile Learning Innovation” 
• Inge de Waard: “Tech Dandy, and the Art of Leisure Learning” 
• Sharon Flynn: “Learning Technologists: changing the culture or preaching to the converted?” 
• Mike McSharry: “This is your five-minute warning!” 

Book description:
Technology has invaded our working and recreational lives to an extent that few envisaged 20 or 30 years ago. We’d be fools to avoid the developments in personal, mobile, and wearable technology. Even if we tried we’d still have to deal with other developments and distractions in classroom and learning technology like smart boards, blogs, video, games, students-led learning, virtual learning environments, social media, etc. More than this, however, is how the advances in technology, the economic and physical miniaturisation of computing devices, have impacted education: the students, the teachers, the classrooms, the spaces, the connections, the aspirations, etc.

‘The Really Useful #EdTechBook‘ is about experiences, reflections, hopes, passions, expectations, and professionalism of those working with, in, and for the use of technology in education. Not only is it an insight into how, or why, we work with these technologies, it’s about how we as learning professionals got to where we are and how we go forward with our own development.

Practical:
Title: The Really Useful #EdTechBook
Editor: David Hopkins
Word count: 61,000
Price eBook: $6.99 / £4.50 / €5.80
Price Paperback: $29.99 / £19.99 / €24.99

VAT will be added on the above eBook prices based on where you are located.
Publish date: 28 January 2015 (eBook)
Available: Paper and eBook editions will be available from the following online stores.

Pre-orders for the eBook are being taken through Amazon, links below:
Amazon.com (print and eBook)
Amazon.co.uk (print and eBook)
iTunes (eBook)
Kobo (eBook)
Createspace (print)

Free download
As well as buying and downloading from the above suppliers you will also be able to download a PDF version of the book directly here, once launched. We are providing this option in order to promote openness and collaborative learning practices. I hope you will join me in thanking the contributory authors and, if you like the free version, consider purchasing the book in the format of your choice.

Google+ Community
Join our Google+ community for information on the book, the chapter authors, the launch details, the world of learning and educational technology, and other aspects of The Really Useful #EdTechBook.

See more at: http://www.dontwasteyourtime.co.uk/books/the-really-useful-edtechbook/#sthash.bc9LSXNP.dpuf

#Phd update: interest for older employees learning research niche

The quest to provide research based evidence to upgrade or at least hold on to older employees, and build a rationale to keep them in corporations based on their expertise and knowledge. EU, US, Canadian statistics are clear, we have an aging population and there is a need to keep employees at work, in meaningful work based on their expertise and knowledge.
It is a marginal option that I can chose to work on after my PhD is finalized (yes, still a lot to do, but ... reflection is a nice pastime). It feels like an interesting professional research and knowledge niche. So this subject is just something that sits in the back of my mind as I work on my heutagogy-MOOC-online learning based PhD topic, for I see a future in MOOCs or by that time enhanced, global online learning - for older, lifelong learners, including employees.

While looking for a solid research definition of 'learning episode' I came across a FREE, online book from 1971 by Allen Tough entitled 'The Adult's Learning Projects: a fresh approach to theory and practice in adult learning'. The book is freely available online (per chapter) and chapter 2 provides a really handy definition of learning episodes, which comprises learning actions, and relates it to personal learning goals of the learner. I am still filtering out a transparent, useful definition that I can converge to my research participants, but getting there and will hopefully be able to share soon.

The weird - and nice - thing about this book and follow-up research done by Hiemstra (1976), based on Tough is that all of a sudden I realized it resembled the learning factors I was looking at: learning happens based on networked connections (I admit the term networked learning or anything closely resembling it did not come up in 1971, but grouped learning - either by experts, family/friends, ... - is mentioned). Hiemstra, based on ideas of Tough (1971) seemingly also looked at learning via non-human objects (check), and individual learning (call it self-determined learning - check), and offers the similar drivers for learning: professional, recreational,  ... (check) but also offers one that I had not contemplated, although very important: social/civil. So, I am adding that last term to my research as well. The sources of information have been changing over the last forty years, but again they resemble each other: written, multimedia, ...

So all of a sudden I find a short overview of what I look at, in a brief learning project dating from 1976, done by Roger Hiemstra (a very Fries/Dutch name at that - I am 25% Fries, so it feels familiar even though the researcher worked for Iowa State University), and where adult learning is connected to learning happening in older learners (older defined as 55-64, and older then 65 years). At present a nice paper that emerges from my pilot study findings, and relates to this over 40 year old research begins to crystallize in my head. And I like it.

The wonderful comic is part of: "Piled Higher and Deeper" by Jorge Cham - www.phdcomics.com

free book #OER integration in #k12 for #ict4d regions

While exploring OER with an edge options, I came across this free book published by the Common Wealth of Learning, edited by Ferreira and Gaultier, entitled Perspectives on Open and Distance Learning: Open Schooling with Open Educational Resources (OER): opening doors, creating opportunities. A great read which features OER cases from six countries — Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, Seychelles, Trinidad and Tobago and Zambia — participating in this ambitious, ground-breaking project to train educators to create a bank of OER that could be used in both conventional and open schools by both school-age children and adult learners. Each country based its OER on its country curricula, but built in enough cultural and pedagogical flexibility to allow the OER to be used and adapted by other countries — epitomising the essence of OER. In addition, the training equipped the participants with the knowledge and skills to train current and future colleagues, thus contributing to the sustainability of the OER.

The project presented many challenges — technical, personal and logistical — for the participants and these are discussed openly and honestly in the country reports. It also brought a real sense of professional and personal achievement, and those who participated can be proud of their contribution to the development of OER for open and distance education. If we can continue to develop and maintain OER, we can continue to educate and to open doors.

The great part of this is the collaboration to get OER centralized across nations, and using it inside of a curriculum based system (which makes the OER open to qualitative evaluation, redistribution, cross-cultural affinity...). Just looking at the table provided by the Namibian OER team got me excited: a clear timeline of what has been done, how and what the main focus was.

#Diabetes, Sue Townsend, Easter a personal mix

This morning sad news was announced as the author Sue Townsend died (well known for her Adrian Mole books, but all round prolific and wonderful writer). Two days ago I finished her book “The woman who went to bed for a year”, a book that compelled me to laugh out loud, reflect upon the spirits of people, and of whom at the end cares the most for each one of us. I really enjoyed the book. As I read the back end of the book two facts sparked an extra, personal interest: blind, kidney transplant. Linking those two together I immediately thought of diabetes complications. After a quick search I found Sue Townsend was just like me a diabetes type 1 person since the 80’s. After reading it, I tucked my feelings on these two facts away to the back of my head.

This morning those feelings stormed to the front again as I read that Sue Townsend was dead. That fact scared the hell out of me. I saw the upcoming years: loosing eye sight, reduced – stopped - kidney function, stroke. I am scared of endings, I am scared of death, scared for me, for my loved ones, for the unknown, for the reducing of my own autonomy.

A letter came a month ago, that I needed to get my eye screening appointment set, I had ignored it. Why? Because I am scared of my own disease at times, and I have the tendency to flee from personal topics of anxiety. I know fleeing never helps on such occasions, but it is clinging on to the utopia of life and how I imagine it: ideal, healthy.

So, an hour ago I got up, picked up the phone and made the dreaded appointment. I need to stay in optimal condition for as long as possible, I owe it to my mum, my son, my partner and myself.

We must all live our own life, with whatever life has in store for us. Being scared only helps in extreme situations where caution is needed, in all other occasions we must face fear, and tackle it by either learning on how to overcome it, or reflecting on what the real basis of this fear is. It also means one must understand and look for that which makes us tick. For me understanding the learning process, looking for solutions that involve technology is a pleasure. Research, talking, thinking. To me learning, either face-to-face, online, any type of blended, is necessary to direct all of us towards trust, life, joining hands. Learning from people we like, support us, whom we support. Professionally I am on a good track.

Personally it is about connecting to people I care about. Partners, friends, colleagues (virtual and IRL), sharing, caring, supporting, dreaming.

Easter is coming, the flowers are out, spring is shining, and at this point in time I live, I love and I am thankful for all the wonderful people and opportunities that surround me. Life is in the living. 

@HJarche on Mastering #Social #Media for collaboration and book

Since the dawn of my professional life, I have been following Harold Jarche. He is a constant inspiration, as he shares what he knows relentlessly, and advises companies on how to organize training in a more human, collaborative way. So good news for those residing close to The Hague in the Netherlands, as Harold is giving a masterclass (the page is in Dutch, but the masterclass will be in English) on Friday 31 January in the Haagse Toren in Den Haag, next to Den Haag Hollands spoor train station. The masterclass does cost 350 EUR, but if you look for real experiences in setting up succesful collaborative networks in your company... joining this class will be worth it. 

On another note, Harold wrote a chapter on social learning for the newly released social learning handbook 2014 written for the most part by Jane Hart. This 178 page book offers a great set of options to embed social collaboration at the workplace. 

And if you are wondering what Harold might talk about, here is a link to one of his latest slideshares

sense-making and knowledge-sharing from Harold Jarche

Great book for #academic vocabulary learning the jargon #phd

My PhD journey is well on its way and nearing the end of year one (started in February 2013). One of my reoccurring challenges is using distinct academic vocabulary that gives stamina and rigor to my reports and papers. In all honesty as a Dutch speaking person I learned English by looking at Children BBC, documentaries and ... American action movies. Not surprisingly my PhD notes sometimes reflect these linguistic prior experiences. I write phrases like "I reshuffled my data until it triggered my curiosity and opened my eyes with a blast! In order to get the right answers, more action is necessary.", where my supervisors relentlessly tell me I could (read should) be using more scientifically accepted jargon. So giving it  try here and transforming the above sentence into: "While closely examining the data, new evidence emerged. However, additional research is necessary in order to examine these findings before a conclusion can be reached." ... well not sure if this is getting at the ultimate academic phrasing, but it simply sounds more like what one would expect in an academic paper (or so I am told, it would be nice to write a paper using action hero lingo though).
It takes me hours to find the right words and phrases to carefully describe what I want to say in such a way that the verbs and nouns used add to the 'seriousness' of the paper. So I work at it. The only problem is, that I need to find a way to internalize this vocabulary in order to save time while writing my papers. Reading is one option, but just today I found an online book called "Academic vocabulary in Use" from Cambridge press, providing 50 units of vocabulary reference and practice. Nice, an exercise book was just what I was looking for. It is freely available if you press the link, but I have the distinct feeling that the book is normally for sale. So be quick if you want to have a look at the free copy as provided by the link.