1. +
Bridging the gap between policy &
practice: a reflective review & looking
forward to the future
Gráinne Conole, Open University, UK
VI Congresso Nazionale della SIe-L:
E-learning,creatività ed innovazione
Salerno University, 17/09/09
More info, slides and references:
http://cloudworks.ac.uk/cloud/view/2295
2. + Outline
Scrutinising the e-learning history line
lessons from the past
a glimpse into the future
Emergent themes and challenges
A framework for making policy work
Illustrative case studies
Reflections and questions for the future
3. +Key focus
Is there a gap between e-learning policy and
actual practice?
How can we bridge the gap?
Does e-learning policy adequate reflect current
technological advances
If not how can we ensure it does?
4. +Scrutinising the e-learning timeline
Context
Globalisation, networked society, changing societal norms, ICT advances
UK: Dearing review of ICT TLTP projects, CTI, HE Academy, JISC
US: Fragmented policy,
driven by individuals and
commercial imperative
Education/Industry partnerships,
spin offs, Open Educational
Movement
Impact
Local culture vs global hegemony, changing
roles & structures, commercial vs.
government supported, dissemination and
impact evaluation
Policy Practice
Drivers
Widening participation, personalization, lifelong
learning, quality assurance, developing the
work force, commercial imperative
Conole, (2007) in Andrews & Haythornwaite
6. 1
2 3
b
a
c+
Inspire by Pea &Wallis, 2008
We can
now interact
at a distance,
accessing complex
& useful resources
in ways unimaginable
in early eras
What’s the
next stage
of the co-
evolution?
Phases of development
Tool-user co-evolution
Internet
Mobile devices
T
V
Radio
Smart tools
Phone
7. + Converging practices
Modern technologies Modern pedagogy
Web 2.0 practices
Location aware technologies
Adaptation & customisation
Second life/immersive worlds
Google it!
“Expert badges”,World of warcraft
User-generated content
Blogging, peer critiquing
Cloud computing
From individual to social
Contextualised and situated learning
Personalised learning
Experiential learning
Inquiry learning
Peer learning
Open Educational Resources
Reflection
Distributed cognition
8. + Loosely coupled tools
Integrated IT systems
Personalised
tools
Institutional
tools
Student
controlled
Institutional
controlled
Tensions & implications
The VLE/LMS is dead debate
http://cloudworks.ac.uk/index.php/cloud/view/2162
10. +Avoiding failures of the past
Common reactions:
“I haven’t got time”
“My research is more important”
“What’s in it for me?”
“Where is my reward?”
“I don’t have the skills to do this”
“I don’t believe in this, it won’t work”
Common resistance strategies:
I’ll say yes (and do nothing)
Undermine the initiative
Undermine the person involved
Classic mistake:
Emphasis on the technologies, not the people and processes
Funding for technology developments but not use and support
Great policy initiatives often fail – why?
12. +
Clouds:
Learning & teaching ideas
Design or case studies
Tools or resources
Questions or problems
Cloudscapes:
Conferences
Workshops
Course team
Student cohort
Research theme
Key concepts
15. +
Features
Dynamic list of clouds + new comments
Comments on clouds + cloudscapes
Can “follow” people + cloudscapes
RSS feeds of cloudscapes + people
Embedding: pictures, video, presentations
Twitter feeds for people +cloudscapes
Email alerts
Activity streams
16. +Emergent patterns of use
Events: conferences and workshops
ALT-C conference, 8-11th
September 2009
http://cloudworks.ac.uk/index.php/cloudscape/view/1870
Discussions: Flash debates
Is Twitter killing blogging?
http://cloudworks.ac.uk/index.php/cloud/view/2266
Eliciting expertise
Literature review of educational technologist
http://cloudworks.ac.uk/index.php/cloudscape/view/1872
Aggregating resources
En Rumbo Spanish course
http://cloudworks.ac.uk/index.php/cloudscape/view/776
18. +
A definition
The open provision of educational
resources, enabled by information and
communication technologies, for
consultation, use and adaptation by a
community of users for non-commercial
purposes
(UNESCO 2002)
19. +
A broader definition of OER
Learning resources
Courseware, content modules, learning objects, learner support
& assessment tools, online learning communities
Resources to support teachers
Tools for teachers and support materials to enable them to
create, adapt and use OER; training materials for teachers
Resources to assure the quality of education and educational
practices
(UNESCO 2004)
20. +
“Open Design”
Characteristics of
good pedagogy
Affordances of new
technologies
Bridging the gap
Personalised
Situative
Social
Experiential
Reflective
Adaptive
Contextual
Networked
Immersive
Collective
21. + A mediating layer
Designer DesignHas an
inherent
OER
Creates
Mediating
artifacts
Mediating artifacts
1.Design visualisation tools -
CompendiumLD
2.Design methods
3.Pedagogical patterns
4.Cloudworks
Can we develop new innovative mediating artifacts?
How can we make the design more explicit and sharable?
User – can now repurpose
23. +Questions and reflections
What is the relationship between Government rhetoric and
actual practice?
How can technologies support new forms of pedagogy?
What is the relationship between technologies, physical and
virtual spaces and pedagogy?
How do we take account of a digital divide that is ever
narrower but deeper?
What new digital literacy skills will learners and teachers
need ?
E-learning innovation will require a radical rethinking of the
curriculum,
E-learning challenges existing norms about assessment
24. +
Bridging the gap between policy &
practice: a reflective review & looking
forward to the future
Gráinne Conole, Open University, UK
VI Congresso Nazionale della SIe-L:
E-learning,creatività ed innovazione
Salerno University, 17/09/09
More info, slides and references:
http://cloudworks.ac.uk/cloud/view/2295
