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Since Illich's 1970 vision of learning webs, society has moved progressively closer to a networked world where content and conversations are continually at our finger tips and instruction and learning are not centered on the educator. The last decade of technological innovation - mobile phones, social media, software agents - has created new opportunities for learners. Learners are capable of forming global learning networks, creating permeable classroom walls. While networks have altered much of society, teaching, and learning, systemic change has been minimal. This presentation will explore how potential systemic responses leverage the transformative potential of connective knowledge and networked learning.

"I'm delivering the opening keynote for Edinburgh University's IT Futures Conference today and was asked to deliver an expanded version of the work I've been doing on the physical spaces of learning, and how they transgress virtual learning spaces, too. The theme of the conference is fascinating, and a conversation I'd like to see happening more regularly in more schools: It will look at both the staff and student perspective of what the working space is, and is becoming. Where does technology fit in, and how do we work and study in this increasingly mobile world?"

A review of the current and developing use of Web 2.0 technologies in higher education from an international perspective. It looks at how Web 2.0 is being used in both learning and teaching and learner support in five countries (Australia, The Netherlands, South Africa, United Kingdom and United States of America) as well as the drivers and inhibitors to use and looks at some of the ways in which we expect higher education practice to develop as a result.

Sheffield Hallam Uni have published a review of current literature regarding the application of technology to deliver and support the use of feedback as part of a project exploring impact of learning technology on students' engagement with feedback.

As a follow on to the discussion of social learning and formal learning in Long Live … great post by BJ Schone - Have LMSs Jumped The Shark? I constantly hear people (across many organizations) complain about their learning management system (LMS). They complain that their LMS has a terrible interface that is nearly unusable. Upgrades are difficult and cumbersome. Their employees' data is locked in to a proprietary system. Users hate the system. It's ugly. (Did I miss anything?) We've recently seen LMSs shift to include more functionality, such as wikis, blogs, social networking, etc. I think they're heading in the wrong direction. I don't really understand why LMS vendors are now thinking they need to build in every possible 2.0 tool. If I want a great blogging platform, I'm going to download WordPress (it's free and has a huge support community). If I want a great wiki platform, I'm going to download MediaWiki or DokuWiki (also free and they have huge support communities). And when it comes to social networking, as a co-worker put it, "Do they really think I'm going to create a 'friends' list in the LMS? Seriously?"

Resources on writing successful JISC bids (updated) Christina Smart Last modified 01 Jul, 2008 Published 01 Jul, 2008 * Send this page to somebody * Print this page It's that time of year again - bid writing time. Given the number of JISC calls for proposals that are out at the moment I thought I'd update an article I published last year with some links to resources on how to write a good bid.

James Clay's presentation at ALTC 2009.

The site is not exactly self explanatory, but you need to click on the appropriate date on the calendar on the right hand side of the screen to access the recordings. The conference dates were the 8th, 9th and 10th of September.

Composica 4.0 is a social e‑learning authoring system that offers real-time collaboration among team members and provides a powerful programming- free WYSIWYG environment to create and deliver high-quality interactive e‑learning 2.0 content with embedded social media.

The result of 12 months research by the European Commission - Institute for Prospective Technological Studies on the impact of Web 2 innovations on education and training in Europe.

Join the world's first and largest social networking site dedicated to education and educational technology. Launched in 2004 and with over 20,000 members there is something in here for everyone interested in education.

"Using technology to improve the cost-effectiveness of the academy: Part 1 By Tony Bates, on October 10th, 2009 Is e-learning failing in higher education? In previous blogs, I have discussed whether e-learning is failing in higher education. To answer the question, I have examined the expectations or goals for e-learning, and whether they are being achieved. Finally, I come to the last goal or expectation: that e-learning will increase the cost-effectiveness of higher education. I will argue that this is the most important and valuable of all the goals for e-learning, but is the one that is furthest from being achieved."

Tony Bates reckons these ideas won't 'sell' in most conventional universities... "which is why I think we need new universities that start from scratch"... I'm wondering what he actually *means* by 'start from scratch'...?! There's some interesting comments accompanying this post about what role 'traditional universities' will take in the future. George Siemens brings us back to earth a bit with his comments on Tony's vision... http://news.te-wu.eu/media-literacy-making-sense-of-new-technologies-and-media-by-george-siemens-oct-17-09-209/ I think it's great to have a vision, but we all need to identify what we personally - and others - need to do to make parts of that vision real, and go ahead and do it.

"Using technology to improve the cost-effectiveness of the academy: Part 2 By Tony Bates, on October 14th, 2009 Identifying the problem with higher education in the 21st was the easy part (Using technology to improve the cost-effectiveness of the academy: Part 1). Much more difficult is finding solutions to the problem. Summary of the problem In Part 1, I argued that the challenge for universities today is that * student numbers have increased dramatically, * students are much more varied in abilities, age, and culture, * quality of teaching, as expressed in overlarge classes, as a result has dropped and continues to drop, despite the addition of technology * the cost per graduate is increasing * the teaching and organizational models though have not changed fundamentally to adapt to these other changes."

"# Executive Summary (6) # Technologies to Watch (14) # Key Trends (13) # Critical Challenges (3) # The Horizon Project (0) # One Year or Less: Mobiles (8) # One Year or Less: Cloud Computing (9) # Two to Three Years: Geo-Everything (5) # Two to Three Years: The Personal Web (11) # Four to Five Years: Semantic-Aware Applications (5) # Four to Five Years: Smart Objects (7) # Methodology (0) # 2009 Horizon Project Advisory Board (0)"

" All Things in Moderation | E-moderating | 5 stage model The 5 stage model This model, how it was researched and developed, is explained in much more detail in chapter 2 of the book. Here's a summary: Individual access and the ability of participants to use CMC are essential prerequisites for conference participation (stage one, at the base of the flights of steps). Stage two involves individual participants establishing their online identities and then finding others with whom to interact. At stage three, participants give information relevant to the course to each other. Up to and including stage three, a form of co-operation occurs, i.e. support for each person's goals. At stage four, course-related group discussions occur and the interaction becomes more collaborative. The communication depends on the establishment of common understandings. At stage five, participants look for more benefits from the system to help them achieve personal goals, explore how to integrate CMC into other forms of learning and reflect on the learning processes. Each stage requires participants to master certain technical skills (shown in the bottom left of each step). Each stage calls for different e-moderating skills (shown on the right top of each step). The "interactivity bar" running along the right of the flight of steps suggests the intensity of interactivity that you can expect between the participants at each stage. At first, at stage one, they interact only with one or two others. After stage two, the numbers of others with whom they interact, and the frequency, gradually increases, although stage five often results in a return to more individual pursuits."

Guide for students on signing up for a group project or workshop using the sign-up tool in Blackboard.

Fantastic step-by-step guide to using the sign-up tool in Blackboard from Southampton University.