Dear Members
ALT news digest #44, 30 July 2003 (extra issue)
In this issue:
1. Welcome to new members
2. ALT-C 2003
3. ALT news
4. EASA 2004
5. Other events
6. Other news
7. Vacancies
8. Courses
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1. Welcome to new members
A warm welcome to the following organisations which have joined ALT:
Colleges, universities & similar organisations:
Colchester Institute http://www.colchester.ac.uk
All new members are invited to the new members' lunch to be held at
ALT-C 2003 on Tuesday 9 September (email us if you have not received
details: [log in to unmask]).
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2. ALT-C 2003
Communities of Practice
8-10 September, Sheffield
http://www.shef.ac.uk/alt
* Pre and post-conference workshops: last chance to run a workshop
before or after the conference!
Deadline: 8 August. See the web site for details.
* Bring your old ALT-C bag to ALT-C 2003: we are giving money to a
children's education charity this year in place of buying expensive
conference bags. Bring your old bag and you could win a prize...
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3. ALT news
3.1 Annual General Meeting - reminder
The full notice of the AGM and the nomination form for the 3 trustees'
vacancies on Monday 8 September is on the ALT home page
http://www.alt.ac.uk/des/index.html
Deadline for nominations is MONDAY 18 AUGUST.
If you are interested in becoming a trustee please contact me for more
information. The trustees meet around 3 times per year. Previous
committee experience is helpful but not essential.
Nominations must be submitted to me (Rhonda Riachi) at the ALT office
by post or fax.
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4. EASA 2004
European Academic Software Awards
http://www.easa-award.net
Deadline for first round: 23 December 2003
Developing software for education or research?
Enter your work for the European Academic Software Award.
Open to students, graduates, teachers and researchers, including joint
projects with commercial organisations.
Finals will be held 25-27 September 2004 in Switzerland.
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5. Other events
5.1 ASCILITE 2003
A reminder that the closing date for submission of papers for
ASCILITE 2003 is quickly approaching.
Papers due (full, concise and workshops) July 30, 2003
Notification of acceptance (full, concise & workshops) August 31, 2003
Poster summaries due August 31, 2003
Notification of acceptance (posters only) Mid-September, 2003
Proceedings file due September 30, 2003
Registrations open 1 August 2003:
http://www.adelaide.edu.au/ascilite2003
[log in to unmask]
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5.2 FOURTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON NETWORKED
LEARNING
(a research-based conference on e-learning in Higher Education and
Lifelong Learning)
Monday 5th April - Wednesday 7th April 2004 at Lancaster University,
UK
CALL FOR PROPOSALS
We invite you to the above conference which is an opportunity to
participate in a forum for the critical examination and analysis of
research in networked learning ie learning and teaching carried out
largely via the Internet/Web which emphasises collaborative and
cooperative learning, learning through dialogue and group work
together with interaction with online materials, and collaborative
knowledge production.
MAIN THEMES
e-learning, e-tutoring
distributed communities
working across boundaries
international and cross cultural issues
relationships between research, theory, policy and practice
institutional innovation and sustainability
methodologies for researching NL
new technologies for supporting NL
designing for learning networked learning
We invite proposals of the following kind:
1. 1.5 hour symposia
2. Research paper and papers critically examining conceptual issues
3. Posters
DATE FOR SUBMITTING ABSTRACTS OF PROPOSALS
We must receive proposal abstracts (750-1000 words) by Friday 17th
October, 2003
You will be informed of acceptance of your proposal by Sunday 30th
November.
DATE FOR SUBMITTING FULL COPY OF ACCEPTED PAPERS
We must receive full copy of accepted papers by Friday 30th January
2004 in order to include them in the Conference Proceedings Book.
Full details of the Conference and the Call for Proposals may be
obtained at:
http://www.shef.ac.uk/nlc2004
email: [log in to unmask]
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6. Other news
6.1 Becta Research web site
VIRTUAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS
A literature review on Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) is
available at:
http://www.becta.org.uk/research/reports/vle.cfm
This review of the literature examines the evidence of where Managed
Learning Environments and Virtual Learning Environments (and their
constituent tools) are being used, and the potential benefits which are
being claimed. It looks across all sectors, and takes an international as
well as a UK perspective.
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6.2 ASCILITE News
Ascilite Newsletter No. 2, June-July, 2003 is now available at
http://www.ascilite.org.au/newsletter/3.02/
Our lead article is by Meg O'Reilly, Educational Designer, Teaching
and Learning Centre, Southern Cross University.
Meg is the co-author of two books on assessment published by Kogan
Page, London - "Assessing Open and Distance Learners" with Chris
Morgan (1999) and "The Student Assessment Handbook - New
Directions in Traditional and Open Assessment" with Chris Morgan, Lee
Dunn and Sharon Parry (2003). Meg raises some of the benefits and
issues concerning assessment in the online environment.
We welcome any suggestions from our readers. If you would like to
suggest articles, an interesting Website for us to review or a website you
would like to see included in our regular links section, please send your
suggestions to any of the editors.
Editor for this edition: Meg O'Reilly
Editorial team: Cathy Gunn([log in to unmask]), Gerry Lefoe
([log in to unmask]), Russ Pennell ([log in to unmask]), Meg O'Reilly
([log in to unmask])
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6.3 Educational Media International
Second call for papers
Special Issue: Distributed Learning Environments: the convergence of
distance and campus-based learning
Short abstracts (up to 500 words) due Friday 22nd August 2003
Journal publishing date: March 2004
Guest editors:
Geraldine Lefoe [log in to unmask]
Rebecca Albury [log in to unmask]
University of Wollongong, NSW, Australia.
Recent trends in education have produced a blurring of boundaries
between face-to-face and distance education, as teaching, delivery
methods, and resources once used only for one area are now used to
support learning in both. A Distributed Learning Environment takes the
best of both worlds and is referred to in the literature as mixed-mode,
blended or flexible learning environments. It involves the combination of
reduced face-to-face teaching with components supported by
educational technologies, such as web-based environments, CD-ROM
or print-based resources, and may include other technologies such as
videoconferencing and audio conferencing.
Sub-themes may include but are not restricted to:
Changing environments for teaching and learning
Impact of technology on teaching and learning
Institutional contexts for distributed learning
Academic and student roles
Staff development for new learning environments
Evaluation methods and models for distributed learning
New roles for support staff
Educational Media International can be viewed online at
http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/online/0952-3987.html
Instructions for authors are available:
http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/authors/r-authors/emiauth.html
Key dates:
Short abstracts (up to 500 words) due Friday 22nd August 2003
Full papers due Friday 31st October 2003
Changes based on peer reviews to be re-submitted by December 19th,
2003
Publication March 2004
Please forward abstracts to Geraldine Lefoe [log in to unmask] by
August 22nd 2003.
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7. Vacancies
7.1 UK eUniversities Worldwide (two vacancies)
A UK Government-backed initiative, our role at UKeU is to deliver online
and worldwide the best degrees and degree-level learning that UK
universities can provide. We are breaking new ground in doing this;
UKeU course content is without exception of the highest quality, created
by the UK's leading universities and our purpose-built online Learning
Environment has taken technology to new levels.
7.1.1 LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS ADVISER
Salary circa £32K plus Comprehensive Benefits Package
You will provide the principal interface between eUniversities and partner
universities' library and administration departments.
Responsibilities will include:
· Overseeing the LMS components of the eUniversities' platform
· Liasing with university library and administration staff to ensure
effective interconnection of systems
· Identifying and implementing effective methods of identification and
authentication
· Managing the security of all eUniversities data, including course
materials
· Preparation of reports on based on eUniversities usage data
This is a "hands-on" role in a fast-moving environment, and you must
therefore be a confident self-starter with a pro-active approach to your
work and a strong desire to achieve results.
You will have at least three years' experience of working with university
or college administration systems. You will be familiar with MIS and
student record systems. Experience of library digital content systems
would be an advantage. You will have a thorough working knowledge of
official and de-facto administrative computing standards.
If you are interested in applying for this position, please email a copy of
your CV with a covering letter, giving details of your current salary
package, to:
[log in to unmask]
The closing date for receipt of all applications is Monday 4th August
2003.
Please note that you must have the right to live and work in the UK to be
eligible to apply for this post.
7.1.2 LEARNING TECHNOLOGIST
Salary circa £40K plus Comprehensive Benefits Package
You will be the principal authority for eUniversities on all technical
aspects of its learning infrastructure. You will be working both with
eUniversities' own staff and with its technical and academic partners.
Responsibilities will include:
· Providing advice and support to course development teams on
technical aspects of course design
· Tracking of relevant standards (SCORM, IMS, OKI, etc) and
representation on standards bodies
· Evaluating and selecting components for incorporation into or use with
the eUniversities platform
· Developing the course developers' Website
· Writing documentation and help for eUniversities' systems
· Contributing to training activities
This is a "hands-on" role in a fast-moving environment, and you must
therefore be a confident self-starter with a pro-active approach to your
work and a strong desire to achieve results.
You must be a graduate with at least three years' experience of working
with learning technologies. You will have a thorough working knowledge
of all relevant technologies such as HTML, XML, Unix, Java, SQL, etc,
and will be a competent Web developer. Familiarity with VLEs and MLEs
(eg. Blackboard) will be highly desirable. Your communications skills
should extend to enable you to interpret difficult technical issues to non-
specialists.
If you are interested in applying for this position, please email a copy of
your CV with a covering letter, giving details of your current salary
package, to:
[log in to unmask]
The closing date for receipt of all applications is Monday 4th August
2003.
Please note that you must have the right to live and work in the UK to be
eligible to apply for this post.
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8. Courses
8.1 Courses at UCL
8.1.1 Modules available from the MA in Learning Technology Research
Two modules on the MA LTR at UCL will be running in the near future
that are designed to be suitable both as one-off CPD courses or as an
entry point to the programme. A full list of modules on offer this year is
available from
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/epd/ltr/
The programme encourages participants to take a questioning,
inquisitive perspective towards the introduction of new technologies
within post-compulsory education, and is designed so that participants
can consider issues of personal or professional significance. The focus
is on learning and teaching, but topics such as information management,
staff and student attitudes towards technology, changes in role or work
practice and issues of access, literacy and equity would all be suitable
for study. As a result, the modules may be of interest to academics,
administrators and librarians, as well as to learning technologists. We
are keen to take participants from each of these areas of work, as we
believe that having different perspectives represented within the group
greatly adds to the quality of discussions.
8.1.2 Researching Learning Technology Summer School
Workshop dates: 21st August, 22nd August, 21st October, 9th
December
Cost: £480
The focus for this module is a project, on a topic of the participants'
choice. We encourage participants to select a topic that is relevant to
their day-to-day work. The first two days introduce project-based
research and provide support whilst participants plan and refine their
ideas. The third day introduces participants to the process of writing
about their research, particularly in a format suitable for conferences or
journals. The fourth day involves presentations about the project.
Throughout the process, participants are provided with support for the
research process by a named tutor.
8.1.3 An Introduction to Research in Learning Technology
6th October, 27th October (pm), 17th November (pm) 12th January
(pm), 2nd February (pm), 1st March
Cost: £480
This taught module introduces themes and methods in learning
technology research. It provides an overview of research within the
field, an opportunity to discuss current research in selected areas
and both discussion and experience of approaches to doing research.
The module concludes with participants reviewing policies and
published studies, becoming critical readers of research in this
field.
Contact: Dr. Martin Oliver,
Education and Professional Development,
University College London,
1-19 Torrington Place, London, WC1E 6BT
Email: [log in to unmask]
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8.2 Two Online Courses on E-moderating and E-tivities
8.2.1 E-moderating: The Key to Teaching and Learning Online, a
five week course taught and facilitated by Dr. Gilly Salmon and her
colleagues. The course is based on Dr. Salmons' best selling book:
E-moderating: The Key to Teaching and Learning Online.
Two different start dates for E-moderating are available: 8 September,
2003 and 3 November, 2003. The cost of the 5 week course is $395 US
and requires about 5 hours per week of time.
For a course outline and online registration go to:
http://www.learningnetworks.net/emoderating.shtml
In addition we are offering the E-moderating course in Spanish
starting on 22 September 2003.
www.learningnetworks.net/emodspan.shtml
8.2.2 E-tivities: The Key to Online Teaching, Training, and Learning, is a
five week course. The 'E-tivities' course builds on the "E-moderating"
course and is for those who have completed the E-moderating course or
who have substantial experience of teaching online. E-tivities engage
and mobilize participants into active participative online learning. The 'E-
tivities' course enables you to build on your e-moderating skills and
introduces an essential component of online teaching: creating,
constructing and running successful online activities for groups. The
course is based on Dr. Gilly Salmon's new book "E-tivities: The Key to
Active Online learning" and facilitated by Dr. Salmon and her colleagues.
The start dates for this course are 15 September and 10 November,
2003. The cost of the 5 week course is US$395 US and requires about 5
hours per week of time.
For a course outline and online registration go to:
http://www.learningnetworks.net/etivities.shtml
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The digest returns on 6 August.
All notices, jobs, news to [log in to unmask] by 5 August, please.
Best wishes
Rhonda
Rhonda Riachi, Director
Association for Learning Technology
Oxford Brookes University, Headington, Oxford OX3 0BP, UK.
Tel: +44 (0)1865 484125 Fax: +44 (0)1865 484165
Email: [log in to unmask] URL: http://www.alt.ac.uk/
Registered Charity Number: 1063519
ALT-C 2003: Communities of practice, 8-10 Sept 2003
Tenth anniversary conference: www.shef.ac.uk/alt/
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