theory and practice in teaching for a digital age Summary of the main learning theories Educators have had to work out how to move from the theoretical position to the practical one of applying these theories within an educational experience. In other words, they have had to develop teaching methods that build on such learning theories. - See more at: http://www.tonybates.ca/2014/07/29/learning-theories-and-online-learning/#sthash.xcYNEKOe.dpuf

Good summary article that canvasses the technical and pedagogical challenges as well as the solutions.

Faculty focus special report, july 2014

There is now strong empirical evidence that active involvement in the learning process is vitally important in two areas: (a) for the mastery of skills, such as critical thinking and problem-solving and (b) for contributing to the student's likelihood of persisting to program completion (Braxton, Jones, Hirschy, & Hartkey, 2008; Prince, 2004). In the resource are a few strategies that can be used by faculty in a wide variety of courses.

Active learning is a process whereby students engage in activities, such as reading, writing, discussion, or problem solving that promote analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of class content. Cooperative learning, problem-based learning, and the use of case methods and simulations are some approaches that promote active learning. This section provides links to bibliographies, research summaries, articles, and other resources about active learning.

we offer seven principles based on research on good teaching and learning in colleges and universities. Good practice in undergraduate education: encourages contact between students and faculty, develops reciprocity and cooperation among students, encourages active learning, gives prompt feedback, emphasizes time on task, communicates high expectations, and respects diverse talents and ways of learning.

OER Integrated set of resources for technology-enabled learning design across disciplines developed by Grainne Conole and Uni of leicester. The resources have all been tried and tested.

some great resources on this website (Centre for Research on Learning and Teaching - including flipped classrooom, learning analytics, inclusive practices etc

NMC provides free, online professional development for educators. The NMC Academy offers online mini-courses on timely subjects such as mobile app design, teaching climate change, and e-book creation -- among many other subjects. Check out our catalog: http://academy.nmc.org/about-academy/courses/

The database contains details of books, articles, conference papers and reports on various aspects of distance and online education, from publishers in Australia and overseas. Material is drawn from the Australian Education Index, produced by Cunningham Library, with additional material sourced from a variety of international organisations and publishers. There are currently 10594 records in the research bank.

A great blog post by Mark Smithers offering some interesting predictions for 2014.

This second report updates proposes ten innovations that are already in currency but have not yet had a profound influence on education. You can see a summary of each innovation at the menu on the right.

Blooms digital taxonomy wheel and knowledge dimension

The lessons learned at Vanderbilt are consistent with lessons learned in other MOOCs offered elsewhere. The lessons include, briefly: Teaching online is a team effort. There's more to MOOCs than lecture videos. Open content is our friend The cognitive diversity seen in MOOCs is far greater than in closed courses MOOC students are well-motivated students Cognitive Diversity + Intrinsic Motivations = Crowdsourcing Success MOOC students can be producers as well as consumers of information Accommodating students on different time tables can be challenging Instructor presence is important, even in a MOOC Good stuff; good article.

We're seeing a huge anti-MOOC backlash now, but never saw an anti-OCW backlash. Why? Perhaps because even though to the public mind they're doing essentially the same things - publishing large collections of curated, high quality, freely available course content - OCW managed the public's expectations better.

Critical point: Manage expectations or it will fail

Decision tree using the Moodle lesson tool.

Thomas Friedman talking about the explosion of MOOCs. Like his quote: "Big breakthroughs happen when what is suddenly possible meets what is desperately necessary."

"According to the Australian Disability Clearninghouse on Education and Training (ADCET) The number of students with disability in university study has increased from 11,656 in 1995 to 42,111 in 2011 and that one in five people in Australia have one or more disabilities, which is increasing. This means that 1 in 20 students has a disability that impacts on their study. Improving student outcomes requires us to "build-in" equitable policies and practices across the organisation, as statistically as much as 20% of the student-body need it, and have a right to it."

Allows users to film and upload a video to YouTube using an iOS app

A good concise summary of the usual suspects.