Dear all,
Here's a brief summary of the meeting we held last Tuesday 23 at
Surrey. Many thanks to Vicky Simpson and her team for hosting it and
to all of you who agreed to present and/or lead a session. We all
enjoyed and learnt from them!
More detailed info on each session will be made available shortly from the meeting's web page <http://www.surrey.ac.uk/CLD/> and the list homepage <http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/tlt-officers.html>
Institutional Support Structures
Vicky Simpson explained how the new Centre for Learning Developments was formed and how it works with other units within the Library (Learning Systems), and with other central services such as Computing Services and Staff Development. Discussion followed on different ways to structure, locate and fund support services and the effects this has on their operation. The JISC study on LT support http://sh.plym.ac.uk/eds/effects/jcalt-project/ was mentioned as a useful resource to guide anybody interested in analysing their own institutional structures and processes in relation to LT support.
Southern Learning Technologies Network
After a brief overview of the background and activities of the Educational Development Centre at the Southampton Institute, Mike Weaver introduced the Southern Learning Technologies Network. An overview of the aims and activities of the group is available from their website <http://www.blackboard.com/courses/SLTN/> (guest login available)
National news
The national update brings news from ILT, LTSN, the Generic Centre and the Technology Centre, as well as the new Accessibility Centre that will soon be launched to work alongside the other centres to support Universities and Colleges deal with the both legal and practical issues arising from the Disabilities Act and the new QAA regulations. The LTSN will pilot a database interoperability initiative to link all their resources using metadata, whilst the Generic Centre is setting up a joint competition with the THES in order to promote the dissemination of good practice in using VLEs and MLEs effectively to support student learning.
The Subject Portal for Learning Technology is bringing together JISC, LTSN and ALT to provide a comprehensive resource for LT practitioners and support staff. A document is available suggesting content, functionality and structure of the site and we are all encouraged to read it and send any comments to [log in to unmask] or [log in to unmask], leading the project.
Also linked to this project, ALT is looking at developing an accreditation path for LT practitioners, both for academic and support staff, leading to SEDA/ILT accreditation. The program will build on work by the EFFECTS project, mapping learning outcomes to existing ALT workshops and adding a system for building a portfolio with the support of people with expertise in relevant areas around the use and support of LTs. An early draft of this proposal is also available for comments, but bear in mind that the document is slightly outdated and further developments on this scheme will be circulated shortly.
ALT is also planning a consultation event for institutional members
in the south. Further details on this will be circulated on the list
shortly.
LT and Research
Martin Oliver lead a useful and fun session where we discussed what we understand by research and LT research (see summary document from website). The offer by the TELRI project to run a workshop for TLT Officers on using LT to support research-like approaches to learning was welcome and will be taken forward for the coming term.
Training on-line teachers
Surrey and Kent have both been involved in training academics to teach and support student learning on-line, both for their respective Business Schools embarking on on-line courses. Rhiannon Williams presented Surrey's training programme, partly face-to-face, partly on-line, whilst I explained the kind of exercises Kent runs for academic staff on a workshop basis. There was interest to exchange materials and exercises for similar sessions and an outline of both is also available from the site.
Again, the OTIS project <http://otis.scotcit.ac.uk/> has offered to contribute to an event on this topic, and this will be taken forward with Carol Higgison, OTiS Project Manager for the near future.
There'll be more on the list on these and other issues, but if you
want more details on any of the above, do get in touch!
Regards to all,
Merce
----------------------
Institutional Project Officer
Teaching And LEarning with Network Technologies (TALENT)
Education Support Services Tel. 01227 823314
The Octagon Fax. 01227 827169
University of Kent at Canterbury http://www.ukc.ac.uk/ess/
Canterbury, Kent CT2 7NF http://www.le.ac.uk/TALENT/
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