"Virtual worlds, real learning" 

Thursday, January 19, 2012 from 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM (GMT)

James Corbett, MissionV This webinar will look at the results of a virtual worlds programme involving 20 Irish primary schools and supported by the National Centre for Technology in Education.

In November 2011, MissionV ran a Science Week event in association with Discover Science & Engineering where each of the 20 schools on the programme developed chemistry themed projects and exhibited them in a massive virtual expo centre. MissionV has also partnered with Dublin City University (DCU) Centre for Talented Youth (CTYI) in Ireland to run part of its Access programme. CTYI is using the platform as a virtual school with tutors based in DCU teaching children in number of northside schools entirely through the online environment.

James Corbett graduated from University of Limerick with a degree in Computer Engineering and went on to work for the multinationals Apple, Motorola and Analog Devices. With 15 years experience in the IT industry James co-founded MissionV Education in early 2011 along with partner Margaret Keane. James acted as technical adviser to Gaelscoil O'Doghair in Co. Limerick where he introduced virtual worlds as a learning platform. 

Having received seed funding from Social Entrepreneurs Ireland and the support of the NCTE, MissionV is now running a virtual worlds learning programme for 20 primary schools around Ireland. It has also partnered with DCU CTYI to run part of its Access programme. 

Check out comments on the work at:  http://missionv.ie/archives/1387

or the Science week website: http://www.scienceweek.ie/features_2011_mission_v.asp

You can follow James and Margaret on Twitter @MissionVHQ or Facebook.com/MissionV

The recording of this event is available at: http://sligoit.adobeconnect.com/p38aus5b8um/

Feel free to use this blog to ask questions of comment before or after the event.

What's Right? An Overview of copyright and clearance guidelines

"What's Right? An Overview of copyright and clearance guidelines".

Friday December 9th, 1pm-2pm (GMT)

David Jennings, University College Dublin

This webinar provides an introduction to copyright in the area of e-learning and how one may assert their own rights. It will highlight a series of steps one may take to assure teaching materials are appropriately cleared (in respect of copyright) before use. It will conclude by presenting the creative commons licence suite and how these may be used to support an individual's rights. 

David Jennings is a lecturer in UCD Teaching and Learning. He is the local National Digital Learning Repository (NDLR) co-ordinator, and has worked on the project from its inception, in particular on the licencing programme.

The recording is now available here:
http://sligoit.adobeconnect.com/p8aupxpd2h9/

To comment before of after the event, feel free to post on the blog here.

Effective elearning Design – Catherine Kane, TCD

Webinar: Effective elearning Design – Catherine Kane, TCD

Friday, December 2nd, 1pm - 2pm (GMT)

An introduction to elearning covering principles of instructional design  - Topics: Web Based e-Learning, Problems with e-Learning, Planning e-Learning, What is Instructional Design, Delivery methods and approaches and Evaluation

 Catherine is a senior instructional designer at Trinity College Dublin where she delivers workshops on all aspects of eLearning. 

You can view the recording here.

Feel free to comment or ask questions on this event below before or after the event.

Getting Real: Making Online Learning Sustainable

"Getting Real: Making Online Learning Sustainable", Thomas Michael Power, Faculty of Education - Université Laval - CANADA

This presentation is a research-based critique of some aspects of Blended Learning as well as of Distance Education and Online Learning. It argues in favour of more effective ways and means to improve university outreach and cost-effective instruction while emphasizing quality and promoting greater core faculty participation, without increasing workload.  It proposes a completely online, combined-technology approach that connects directly with traditional faculty instructional practices and values while taking into account student and administrator priorities. This presentation thus redefines blended learning, specifically at the graduate studies level, in order to reach off-campus learners. Furthermore, it will describe past university decentralisation strategies and their successes and failures. Finally, it will present the author’s actual experience in applying a redefined blended learning model based on effective pedagogical practices that maintain faculty-perceived quality of instruction, increase accessibility for off-campus students for whom BL is not a solution and improve cost-effectiveness, which is essential to developing a sustainable outreach model.

About the presenter:

Dr. Thomas Michael Power is Associate Professor of Educational Technology at the Faculty of Education, Laval University in Quebec City, Canada.

He is:

• Founder of the www.BOLD-research.org researcher community,
• Deputy Director – Education for the GEOIDE-sponsored GeoEduc3D project http://geoeduc3d.scg.ulaval.ca/ and
• Member of the Board of Directors and of the Coordinating Committee for the Inter-university Learning & Technology Research Center (CIRTA)http://www.cirta.org/  
• Researcher with the The Centre for Research and Intervention on School Success www.crires.ulaval.ca/ 
• Expert with www.IFADEM.org (under AUF and OIT)
• Reviewer for numerous scientific journals.
• Author of A Designer’s Log published by Athabasca University Press.

He was formerly

• Director of Communication and Associate Researcher with the SAGE for Learning Research Network, Simon Fraser University/Télé-université;
• Adjunct Faculty and Instructional Designer at University of Moncton;
• Visiting Scholar at Simon Fraser University
• Field Director for the CIDA-funded, Canada-Gabon Technical and Scientific Project, Gabon, Central Africa.

Website: http://www.fse.ulaval.ca/Michael.Power

You can view the recording here: http://sligoit.adobeconnect.com/p9dhn3furrr/

Correction on last slide: Power, M. & Morven-Gould, A. (2011). Head of gold, feet of clay: The online learning paradox. 12 (2) IRRODL. http://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/view/916 

If you have any comments or questions on this webinar, before or after the event, please post them below.


Some of the chat during the event:

Chrys Ngwa: http://jolt.merlot.org/vol4no4/power_1208.htm

Brian Mulligan 2: Thanks Chrys for Mike's paper.

Brian Mulligan 2: Peason just announced free LMS

Brian Mulligan 2: Peter Shea?

Sean Conlan: Is the revolution really taking place in informal online edn?

Sue Leather: Good question, Sean. I'm interested in that too .

Sean Conlan: What about peer to peer?

Brian Mulligan 2: Peer to peer is very importand in the University of the People

Sean Conlan: Where is the 'faculty' in the university of the people?

Brian Mulligan 2: They design, but I'd like to find out more: http://www.uopeople.org/

Sean Conlan: and also the role of the faculty is to be the catalyst in the learners' use of the new tools

Sean Rattigan AIT: I had a class of lecturers earlier today... some were worried that recordings of lectures and more interactive online learning might endanger their jobs.... I'll be directing them to this recording.

Sean Rattigan AIT: I agree- but change brings resistance...

Marie Heraughty: I have taught a MA this year using blended learning as Mike outlined and it has worked very well.  Great discussions on blended learning on www.hetl.org and HETL on LinkedIn.  Unfortunately have to depart this interesting sessions now.

Sean Conlan: What about all the free courses now available...Stanford etc...?

Chrys Ngwa: I don’t think one can get away from “Blended” when dealing with modules that require lab/practical work...unless labs are replaced with simulations...any comments?

Darina Slattery: As someone who gives live lectures to on-campus students, and records them for distance students, I can testify that there is still PLENTY for lecturers to do (with a blended approach).  In UL, our on-campus and distance students participate in the same online discussions and the engagement and quality of interaction is much greater than it would typically be in a live F2F tutorial, for example.

Sue Leather: I think one of the biggest issues might be the re-training/development of teachers to cope with the new demands. of online learning.

Sean Rattigan AIT: Great point Sue!  But if we build it will they come?

John McGarrigle: Does inequality in educaton move to internet accesss area/

Tom Farrelly: Unless administrators acknowledge that online equates to teaching hours it is very difficult in the IOT sector when you're teaching 18 and 20 hours per week

Sean Conlan: and we also greatly encourage peer to peer!

Ewa Adam: Agree with Sue, teachers need to learn how to adopt new technology to learning and change thinking about a relationship with students and a way of teaching

Sean Rattigan AIT: Tom, that's true, but I look at developing online resources as an investment that can save me time in the long run... but time is certainly an important factor

Niall Watts (UCD): Is the BOLD model suitable for undergrads as well as worinh professionals

Tom Farrelly: I agree that there is a long term benefit, but to be honest, with the extra two hours this year I'm reaching a tipping point

Sue Leather: Thanks Sean and Ewa. Somehow, this is the last issue that's thought of.

Shawn Read: Most faculty are digital immigrants that speak a different language than the digital natives we teach.  Many faculty do not understand the benfits of on-line learning and  how a blended approach with F2F  Learning can meet the needs of the students.  The point that we should be focusing on is on the students and how the face of education is changing. To maintain educational silos is a mistake that is largely based on fear.

Sean Rattigan AIT: Ewa, I agree.  It's more about the application and creative use of the toolsto compliment learning and appeal to students.... just because I have a hammer I dont have to hit everything.... there are some great ideas out tere about ways to use technology

Sean Rattigan AIT: I wish there was a "Like" button for some of the comments in this chat :)

Sean Conlan: OK would like to ...but I am more optimistic about all the 'free' stuff out there. Like Shawn we are behind the times compared to our students.

Catherine Cronin (NUIG): I am interested in communicating with you, Michael. We run a completely online MSc programme www.it.nuigalway.ie.mscsed 

Sean Rattigan AIT: Lower ivestment costs could be lowered even ore by creating a sharing community of learners

Sean Conlan: I think the current digital generation are much more inclined to share ...

John McGarrigle: thanks bye

Shawn Read: Sean you are right but faculty less so

Sean Conlan: Thanks a lot to all Bye...

Sue Leather: Thanks everyone.  Bye.

Tom Farrelly: The hour has flown, a great session!!!!

Michael Power: thanks to you all for coming

Shawn Read: Thank you for the session

Catherine Cronin (NUIG): Great, thanks!

Sean Rattigan AIT: Thank for the presentation- enjoyed it but will have to watch it again to absorb it... and will be directing more people to it as well

Darina Slattery: Thank you and bye.

Lisa: Thankyou all too

Ewa Adam: great idea Brian! thank you for the session, looking forward to the online follow up!

Patrick Kiely University College Cork: Thank you for the session.

Diane: Thank you for the session, bye

Mary Ellen Bornak, Newtown, PA: Interesting to put research and financial motivation together.

Deirdre McClay: Thank you all, very interesting. Bye

Eoghan Bailey DkIT: thought provoking indeed - thankyou to all

Catherine Baumgardner: Very interesting!  Thank you so much!

Chrys Ngwa: thanks mike and all

marie-jeanne carrière: très intéressant !

What Neuroscience can Teach us about Teaching!

Professor William T. (Billy) O’Connor is an internationally recognised leader in both research and education in neuroscience. He has been recognized by the award of the Conway Silver Medal for Achievement in the Biosciences and has secured over 3 million Euro in research funding. He is skilled and experienced in making neuroscience accessible to the public.  Professor O’Connor has  a keen interest in the application of neuroscience – the scientific study of the nervous system - to more effective education and training methods including such questions as - are good teachers born that way or can they be made?  His blog ‘Inside the brain’  http://Inside-the-brain.com/  which was a finalist in this year's Irish Blog Awards reports on the latest from the world of brain research including recent neuroscience findings to get the best from your brain.

Workshop Details

Recent brain research shows that different circuits are called upon in the brain for different activities such as math, music and reading. In addition, learning and practicing particular skills can cause corresponding areas in the brain to grow or change by adding a tiny fraction of the brain’s neural circuitry and eliminating old ones. Imaging technologies are helping map the circuits and study variability among children with learning difficulties. Moreover, recent research is providing insight into attention systems in the brain and is shedding light on how we plan, initiate, organize, and most importantly, inhibit certain behaviours. This workshop contributes to this dialogue by summarising what we already know about the learning process in the brain and suggests how it might inform the teaching/learning process in the classroom using approaches such as problem-based learning.

Particular areas of interest to staff may include:

1. An overview of how problem-based learning is implemented and assessed in University of Limerick on the Graduate Medical School programme.

2. A review of how the brain learns and memorises new information

3. An examination of the different brain circuits involved in processing science and maths concepts, music and reading or laboratory skills

4. Recommendations on how we can facilitate and support appropriate learning environments.

Please feel free to comment or ask questions before or after this event here on the blog.

Click here to access a recording of this event.  This was about two hours long but was extremely engaging with almost all the online participants staying on until the end.

How to run a webinar series!

Are you interested in running a webinar series?  As part of the NDLR Fest 2011, Brian Mulligan will be webcasting a short 10 minute presentation into the venue in Trinity College Dublin, entitled "Teaching and Learning Webinar Series", in which he will describe how the It Sligo/NDLR series was organised and the technology that was used.  If you'd like to listen in, just register and you will be sent access instructions.

If you are planning to be at the NDLR Fest in Trinity, feel free to register and get the access instructions so that you can join the "back channel" during the presentation.

Recording available here

Comments welcome here on the blog.

Mobile Apps for Education

Mark Campbell, Pocket Anatomy
Wednesday, March 16, 2011 from 1:10 PM - 2:00 PM (GMT)

Are you old enough to remember that Gray's Anatomy was a textbook for medical students?  How times have changed.  Students can now lighten up their schoolbags with phone apps instead.

Mark Campbell, founder and CEO of Galway based Pocket Anatomy who were winners of the 2010 European Media in Education Awards for their mobile apps, Pocket Heart and Pocket Body, will give a presentation on the development of these products and the market for mobile educational apps. 

Recording is now available here.

If you have any comments or questions on this webinar, feel free to post them on this blog.