Association for Learning Technology
Fortnightly news digest 233, issued on 16 September 2011
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September for the Digest to be issued on Friday 30 September 2011.
Key links
* The new ALT web site: http://www.alt.ac.uk/
* Join ALT at http://www.alt.ac.uk/get-involved/membership
* Summary of ALT membership rights and entitlements:
http://www.alt.ac.uk/docs/membership_at_a_glance_2010_v2.pdf
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* ALT Online Newsletter – http://newsletter.alt.ac.uk/
Table of Contents
1. ALT news
2. ALT events
3. News
4. Other events
5. Calls for proposals
6. Funding calls
7. Job vacancies
8. ALT Online Newsletter - links to articles from the most recent issue
9. Current issue (19.2) of the ALT Journal - Research in Learning
Technology
1. ALT News
1.1 Memorandum of Understanding between NIACE and ALT
NIACE and ALT signed a Memorandum of Understanding on 18 August. Here is
a link to the media release http://goo.gl/ZwNfF.
1.2 New Sponsoring Members of ALT
We warmly welcome Kaltura (http://www.kaltura.com/) and the University
of London Computer Centre (ULCC - http://www.ulcc.ac.uk/) as Sponsoring
Members of ALT.
1.3 Recordings now available from the ALT one day conference "Lecture
capture - doing it well and at scale"
On 16 June we ran a well-attended one day conference at Queen Mary,
University of London. Recordings of all the conference sessions are now
available at http://www.alt.ac.uk/events/lecture-capture-conference.
1.4 20% discount for ALT members of Routledge Educational
Technology/e-Learning books Routledge has set up a 20% discount to
enable ALT members to purchase its Educational Technology/e-Learning
books, which are shown at http://goo.gl/u7izX [6MB PDF]. To secure the
discount, enter the discount ALTDISC when checking out from
http://www.routledge.com/.
1.5 New account creation process for the ALT wiki
We have introduced a requirement for editors of the ALT wiki -
http://wiki.alt.ac.uk/ - to have an authorised account. This is to
reduce and hopefully eliminate the presence of bogus "stub" pages, and
save us time on "behind the scenes" weeding out of such pages. You can
apply for an account from
http://wiki.alt.ac.uk/index.php/Special:RequestAccount. (Feel free to
send feedback on the process to [log in to unmask])
1.6 Any employee of an ALT member organisation is entitled to join ALT
individually at no cost as an Associate Member. You can do this in
seconds from http://goo.gl/fOCYC
1.7 Prize winners announced at ALT-C 2011 - we've listed the winners of
the main ALT awards on the ALT web site at
http://www.alt.ac.uk/get-involved/awards
2. ALT events
2.1 What's New in Digital Learning Environments? The recording and
presentations from the 28 June 2011 ALT/ELN webinar with Michael
Feldstein and Niall Sclater are on the ALT Open Access Repository at
http://goo.gl/iR3oR.
2.2 Practical Strategies for Evaluation. The recording and presentations
from the 20 July 2011 ALT/ELN webinar with Andrew Somiah and Robert
Clarke are on the ALT Open Access Repository at http://goo.gl/e1cu1.
2.3 The ALT/ELN webinar schedule for 2011
This is as follows, with fuller details soon to appear on the ALT web site.
* 10 October - Getting started with serious games
* 16 November - Writing effective quiz and assessment questions
* 13 December - The psychology of learning
[We reserve the right to change the order and titles of these webinars]
http://www.alt.ac.uk/events
3. News
3.1 Web-hosted resources for UK institutions and their international
students
Prepare for Success is a website hosting free learning resources to help
international students prepare for UK academic culture and study skills
required for HE and FE. Developed by eLanguages at the University of
Southampton with PMI funding from the UK Council for International
Student Affairs (UKCISA), UK institutions can link to the homepage for
their students or to selected items for pre-arrival online induction, or
use resources with their students post-arrival.
http://www.prepareforsuccess.org.uk
3.2 BTL Launches the Surpass e-Assessment Platform in Holland
BTL Group Ltd, the leading UK based provider of e-Assessment solutions,
will be launching their Surpass® e-Assessment Platform in Holland at the
SURF Seminar on the 13th September 2011. SURF is the collaborative
organisation for higher education institutions and research institutes
aimed at breakthrough innovations in ICT. The seminar will be taking
place at the Centraal Museum Utrecht.
http://www.btl.com/news
3.3 The Bloomsbury Colleges are moving to Moodle
ULCC is pleased to announce that The Bloomsbury Colleges are moving to
its Hosted Moodle service. The move from Blackboard means significant
cost-savings for the consortium of five Bloomsbury Colleges which
provides 5,000 courses to over 30,000 students. “In addition to the
pedagogical and technical advantages we will gain by moving to Moodle,
this switch will also mean significant cost savings for the consortium,”
said Dr Mandy Bentham, Chair of BLE. “The decision to host Moodle with
ULCC came naturally, due to its experience in supporting similar moves
for other HE institutions.” Read the full article at:
http://bit.ly/BLE2Moodle
3.4 Mobile Learning Challenge - £1000 prize
The International Association for Mobile Learning (IAMLearn,
www.iamlearn.org), in collaboration with Epic (www.epic.co.uk), is proud
to announce the Mobile Learning Challenge. The Mobile Learning Challenge
is searching for innovative and visionary solutions for learning using
mobile technologies. Practitioners, students, and young researchers are
particularly encouraged to contribute their inspiring and visionary
concepts. Specific technical skills are not required for participating!
Full details here: http://www.iamlearn.org/competition.php
3.5 Innovating e-Learning 2011: Learning in transition
Relevant to delegates from both further and higher education, the sixth
JISC online conference, Innovating e-Learning 2011, takes place on 22-25
November 2011, with pre-conference activities starting 15 November. The
theme of this year’s programme, Learning in transition, explores the
potential of technology to meet the challenge of the fast-changing
landscapes of post-16 education. Register now to join in live online
activities and presentations and asynchronous debates focused on
assessment, lifelong learning, open educational practices and the role
of students as agents of change. Further information and registration
(£50): www.jisc.ac.uk/elpconference11. Follow on Twitter: @ jiscel2011
3.6 Desire2Learn Honoured as Microsoft Public Sector Partner of the Year
Desire2Learn Incorporated ("Desire2Learn"), a leading provider of
enterprise teaching and learning platforms, proudly announces it has
been honoured with the 2011 Microsoft U.S. Public Sector Partner of the
Year Award. The company was recognized for its innovative use of
Microsoft technology in support of Desire2Learn® Learning Suite and
services. Desire2Learn works closely with Microsoft to implement the
latest technology through early adopter programs. This enables
Desire2Learn to be among the first to market with new technologies and
services that improve the user experience and save clients’ money. For
more information, read the press release at http://bit.ly/oXEpL2
4. Other events
4.1 ENCKE Virtual University Collaboration in Second Life
When: October 27 and 28 2011
Where: At a Second Life SLurl to be announced
This unique event will begin with an intensive two day Second Life
meeting that will consist of a series of plenary talks, small group
discussions and report back sessions, workshops, tutorials,
demonstrations and tours. Over the following 4 weeks some of the main
ideas and concepts for virtual teaching, learning and meeting spaces
developed by participants will be constructed on the new virtual
university island (with assistance from professional Second Life
builders). Then over the next 3 months participants will be able to book
and use these spaces for their own teaching and learning sessions, role
plays and meetings.
Registration and more information: http://adfi.usq.edu.au/encke.html
4.2 Final day(s) to enter MEDEA Awards 2011!
A final reminder to those creative minds producing educational media:
submit your entry to the MEDEA Awards 2011 before 16 September 2011
(midnight)! The two main awards this year are for the best entry in the
User Generated Category and the best entry in the Professionally
Produced Category and other awards reward the best entry resulting from
European collaboration and the best entry promoting volunteering.
Participation is free and all finalists are invited to the MEDEA Awards
Ceremony which will take place on 24 November in Brussels, Belgium.
Visit http://www.medea-awards.com
4.3
ONLINE EDUCA BERLIN 2011 November 30 – December 2, 2011.
As part of an Association Partnership, OEB can offer members of ALT a
discount on the normal attendance fee for the conference. The discounted
rate will be 650 euros instead of the standard 790 euros. Enter code:
AC119.
http://www.online-educa.com
4.4 Media & Learning 2011 Conference programme online, registration open
Register now for the Media & Learning Conference taking place 24-25
November 2011 in Brussels, and check out the possibility to attend for
free by recommending the conference to others:
http://www.media-and-learning.eu/attend-for-free. The conference
programme, centered around the development and use of digital and media
skills in education, has an interesting line-up of keynote speakers and
includes screening sessions, presentations, discussions, practical
workshops and the MEDEA Awards Ceremony. Participants can also try out
various devices and apps in the conference play area.
Visit: http://www.media-and-learning.eu.
4.5 Ten things every learning designer should know - 23 September, Sheffield
At the first eLearning Network (eLN) event in Sheffield we will explore
the very best in instructional design techniques. We will also look at
whether the introduction of rapid tools has dumbed down the creation of
elearning and ask; is there such thing as a rapid design? Top industry
speakers will share their views and opinions and we will end the day
with an open debate. The day will be packed full of top tips, best
practices and a lot of ideas! Join us on September 23 in Sheffield to
explore the latest thinking in instructional design: http://goo.gl/b7J3n
4.6 8th International Conference on Networked Learning in HE and
Lifelong Learning, Maastricht, the Netherlands, 2 - 4 April 2012
This conference is considered a major event in the international
'technology enhanced learning' conference circuit, and provides a
friendly, collegiate context for meeting researchers and practitioners
in networked learning. All submissions are peer reviewed, and accepted
papers published in conference proceedings. Full papers must be
submitted for peer review by Monday 3rd October, 2011. Invited Speakers:
Terry Anderson, Tara Fenwick & Judi Marshall
PRE-CONFERENCE ONLINE HOT SEATS will run from October 2011 to March 2012
: For details of Hot Seat hosts and programme see conference web site.
Full Conference Details can be found at
http://www.networkedlearningconference.org.uk/
4.7 Mobile Learning Symposium
The College of North West London and the West London Lifelong Learning
Network are hosting a Mobile Learning Symposium on the 28th September
2011, focusing on mobile learning in FE and HE. Presenters from both
academia and industry will survey current practice whilst also looking
to the future of mobile learning. Keynote speakers are Professor John
Cook (Chair of the ALT Publications Committee and an ALT Trustee) and
Carl Smith of London Metropolitan University. More information at
http://www2.cnwl.ac.uk/UserFiles/File/2199_MobileLearningConference.pdf
and on Twitter @MobileLearn2011. Attendance is free, but spaces are
limited. Book by emailing [log in to unmask]
4.8 ATN Assessment Conference 20/21 Oct 2011: 'Meeting the challenges'
The ATNA2011 Conference Committee warmly invites you to participate in
the 2011 ATN Assessment Conference, to be held at Curtin University, in
Perth, Western Australia, on the 20th and 21st October 2011. This
conference provides opportunities to explore research and scholarly
practice relating to the challenges of assessment in higher education.
We are delighted to announce keynote addresses from Professor David
Nicol, Professor Beverley Oliver, and Professor Geoffrey Crisp with
conference themes relating to standards, leadership, challenges and
engagement. http://atna2011.curtin.edu.au.
4.9 Educational Technology and Related Education Conferences for June to
December 2011
The tireless Clayton R Wright has circulated an updated version of his
thorough listing of conferences and, as with previous updates, this is
now on the ALT Open Access repository at http://repository.alt.ac.uk/2106/.
5. Calls for proposals
5.1 Call for Proposals for an International Roundtable
The STELLAR (The European Network of Excellence in TEL) Theme Team on
“Social Mobile Networking for Informal Learning” (SoMobNet,
http://www.somobnet.eu) invites proposals for an International
Roundtable which will take place at the Institute of Education in London
on 21st November 2011. Participation at the event is by invitation only
and free of charge. Places are limited (max 35). Confirmed speakers
include Aleks Krotoski (Guardian), Gunther Kress (IoE), Sonia
Livingstone (LSE), Ben Bachmair (Kassel/IoE), Beat Doebeli (Goldau),
Klaus Bredl (Augsburg) and Christoph Pimmer (Basel).
Deadline: Friday 30th September.
http://www.somobnet.eu/roundtable
5.2 Case studies in digital game-based learning
Chapter proposals are invited for an edited book on Cases on Digital
Game-Based Learning: Methods, Models and Strategies, to be published by
IGI Global (http://www.igi-global.com) in 2012. The book's scope will
encompass the use of digital games in teaching at all levels.
Expressions of interest are invited before 17 September 2011. The full
call for papers can be found at: http://goo.gl/KW6LQ
5.3 Call for the first European Immersive Education Summit (iED Summit),
29th November 2011 in Madrid, Spain.
Call for papers for the 1st European Immersive Education Summit to be
held on the 28th and 29th November 2011 at Leganes (Madrid, Spain). This
summit will address core topics on the use of virtual and mixed-reality
environments for online education and training applications. This is the
first summit organised by the newly formed European Chapter of the
Immersive Education Initiative (http://europe.immersiveeducation.org),
and builds on the success of previous iED summits held in Boston and
London (http://mediagrid.org/summit/). The paper submission deadline is
30th September 2011. See http://goo.gl/7T5pk for further information.
6. Funding calls
6.1 JISC Grant Funding 14/11: Access to Resources and Open Innovation
JISC invites institutions to submit expressions of interest in
undertaking projects that will proliferate good practice in Access to
Resources and Open Innovation, building on JISC’s investment in this
area. Funding for Access to Resources projects will help institutions
develop and demonstrate the provision-in-partnership of integrated
online service models, offering access to information, knowledge and
expertise to business and community organisations and individuals,
especially SMEs. The deadline for Stage 1 expressions of interest is 19
October 2011. The full text of the call is available at: http://goo.gl/xXsYG
6.1 Analysis of the Value and Benefits of Text Mining
The JISC invites tenders to conduct an analysis of the value and
benefits of text mining and text analytics in UK FE/HE. The objectives
of the work are:
*To collect evidence of the value and benefits of the development and
exploitation of technologies, good practice in text mining and text
analytics.
*To analyse and present this evidence to support the adoption of
particular positions with respect to the technical, economic, legal and
policy contexts that are relevant to them.
A full version of the ITT can be found at: http://goo.gl/iJJwO
Deadline for bids is 12 noon 26 September 2011.
7. Jobs
7.1 The Open Knowledge Foundation is hiring
We are currently seeking:
1. A python web developer
2. Community Coordinators
3. A foundation administrator
4. Graphics/ UX designers
Full details of all the positions & information on how to apply can be
found here:
http://okfn.org/jobs/
7.2 Epigeum Ltd
Learning and Development
Senior Learning Consultant
£35-£45,000 depending on experience
Full time
Closing date: 14 October 2011
Informal enquiries to David Lefevre [log in to unmask]
7.3 There is a regular supply of mainly US jobs in the learning
technology field at http://www.salt.org/salt.asp?ss=l&pn=joblistall,
with a helpful RSS feed at http://www.salt.org/Weblink/SaltJobs.rss.
8. ALT Online Newsletter - links to articles from Issue 24, published in
August 2011
Table of contents for Issue 24 - http://newsletter.alt.ac.uk/tag/issue-24/
Article – ‘DIVERSE 2011’ by Mark Childs
http://goo.gl/Tv1oU
Article – ‘Virtual Experiments Team launch new website and virtual
experiments’ by Paolo Memoli
http://goo.gl/aTBkK
Article – ‘Why Distribute Documents in MS Word or OpenOffice for an
International Audience?’ by Clayton R. Wright
http://goo.gl/XIDxZ
Article – ‘Highlights from ‘Lecture Capture – Doing it well and at
scale’’ by Caroline Dobson-Davies, Gill Ritchie and Mimi Weiss Johnson
http://goo.gl/sgM4n
Article – ‘Tips and Suggestions from a Software Training Veteran’ by
Gena Taylor http://goo.gl/cTSOQ
Article – ‘A week in the life of Graham McElearney, University of
Sheffield’ by Graham McElearney
http://goo.gl/mDHEq
9. Most recent issue of Research in Learning Technology, the Journal of
the Association for Learning Technology (previously ALT-J) – published
online on 21 July
Volume 19 Issue 2. If your organisation is a member of ALT, or if it has
an online subscription to the Journal, *and* if its network is
appropriately configured, then you should be able to click straight
through to the individual articles. Note that all organisational and
sponsoring members of ALT are entitled to online access to the Journal
for all their employees when logged into the network.
* Note 1.* If you cannot access the Journal online, this is something we
may be able to help you fix.
*Note 2.* Research in Learning Technology will be fully Open Access from
1 January 2012, published by Co-Action Publishing.
*Note 3.* The DOI resolver that supports the links below sometimes works
inordinately slowly.
Table of contents http://goo.gl/eg1it
Editorial – “The role of people and organisations in learning technology
practice”
Frances Bell
http://goo.gl/X4E7Y
DOI:10.1080/21567069.2011.586809
Article – “Undergraduate paramedic students’ attitudes to e-learning:
findings from five university programs”
Brett Williams, Malcolm Boyle, Andrew Molloy, Richard Brightwell, Graham
Munro, Melinda Service and Ted Brown
http://goo.gl/Hf1XO
DOI:10.1080/21567069.2011.586679
Article – “Learners’ perceived information overload in online learning
via computer-mediated communication”
Chun-Ying Chen, Susan Pedersen & Karen L. Murphy
Note – there appear to be two other versions of this paper published
elsewhere. We are in discussions with Taylor and Francis about this.
http://goo.gl/68xBb
DOI:10.1080/21567069.2011.586678
Article – “Using technology to encourage student engagement with
feedback: a literature review”
Stuart Hepplestone, Graham Holden, Brian Irwin, Helen J. Parkin & Louise
Thorpe
http://goo.gl/BHPpj
DOI:10.1080/21567069.2011.586677
Article – “Peer mentoring – is a virtual form of support a viable
alternative?”
Joanne Smailes & Pat Gannon-Leary
http://goo.gl/6N93Q
DOI:10.1080/21567069.2011.586675
Article – “Educators’ perceptions, attitudes and practices: blended
learning in business and management education”
Vladlena Benson, Deborah Anderson & Ann Ooms
http://goo.gl/0GvW9
DOI:10.1080/21567069.2011.586676
Article – “The chicken or the egg? Investigating the transformational
impact of learning technology”
Janet F. Buchan
http://goo.gl/3kUhe
DOI:10.1080/21567069.2011.586674
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The digest returns on 30 September 2011. All news, jobs, events, etc, to
the form at
http://www.alt.ac.uk/publications-and-resources/publications/alt-news-digest
by 12.00 noon on Wednesday 28 September. This issue was compiled by
those who submitted content for it, and very lightly edited by Anna Davidge.
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Disclaimer. Reasonable care is taken to ensure that the ALT Digest is
accurate. But ALT does not vouch for the accuracy of information
provided on web sites to which the digest links, and opinions expressed
on those sites should not be construed to be those of ALT.
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