Apologies for cross posting.

Please find enclosed a call for chapters for a forthcoming IGI Global
Publication.

Usual apologies for cross and multiple postings.

CALL FOR CHAPTERS
Submission Deadline: June 30, 2008

Technology Supported Environment for Personalised Learning: Methods and
Case Studies
A book edited by John O'Donoghue, University of Central Lancashire, UK

Introduction

Personalised learning has the potential to refocus learning on the
individual rather than the institution and to realistically explore the
metaphor of anytime and anywhere individual learning. In its simplest
form, personalized learning is about tailoring education to the
individual’s needs, interests and aptitude, giving the learner a degree
of ownership of the learning process. Personalising learning and
defining what this might mean remains the top priority on every
educational agenda.

Part of this agenda is to explore the skills, knowledge, expertise and
experience of a variety of people which can then populate the learning
space which the learner can then access to make learning more creative,
motivational and relevant to individual needs and aspirations. We have
moved on significantly from Virtual Learning Environments - transmitting
content, or providing repositories of information for access. According
to the rhetoric, we need to create learners that are resilient, creative
and flexible, can collaborate, solve problems, and think critically.
Whilst needing a degree of support, control and guidance, the
personalisation of learning will enable the potential of a knowledge
economy to be realised.
Overall Objectives and Coverage

●	To provide a practical evidence based research document which is
grounded in actual class experience. 

●	To illustrate the issues in implementing technology within a
personalised learning context.

This book will present an edited collection of accounts, issues and case
studies written essentially by practitioners in tertiary education who
have first hand experience of attempting to define, develop, implement
or evaluate personalised learning technologies and spaces within their
practice in a vast range of scenarios. The accounts will describe, from
a variety of perspectives, what the practitioner was trying to achieve
through the use of such learning spaces and how and why they went about
trying to achieve such personalisation. The accounts will also present
reflections on what went well and what authors would do differently as
well as providing grounded guidelines. The content will also include
institutional and organisational changes and perspectives on the culture
and management changes required as a consequence of introducing and
implementing environments which are seen as counter institutional.

The content of the book will highlight the many areas in which
practitioners are attempting to implement learning technologies and
reflect themes of current topical interest. The book will have three
main sections: Technological Issues, Pedagogical Issues and
Infrastructural and Cultural Issues. The section on technological issues
will present descriptions of the “tools” which practitioners are using,
outline their strengths and weaknesses and highlight issues that need to
be considered when planning to implement new learning technologies in
the context of personal learning spaces. The section on pedagogical
issues will present descriptions of the different ways in which
practitioners have attempted to use learning technologies and give
personal examples which illustrate both the potential and dangers that
individual learning pathways provide as a consequence of
personalisation. The third section will bring sections one and two
together by considering the major infrastructural, cultural and
organisational issues if personalisation, personal spaces and spaces for
personalisation are going to effect any change in the institutional
regime. This third section will ef
fectively bring together the pedagogic
issues with the technilevel.

Key issues that will be highlighted and discussed include: widening
access and participation, student-centred and collaborative learning and
the changing role of the tutor/ pupil/ student. I would expect chapters
to have a balance of theory, practice, methods and case studies.

The Target Audience

Academics, teachers, tutors, trainers, administrators, resource
managers, learning technologists and researchers involved in or within
the field of eLearning development, implementation and delivery. This
book will be of particular value to learning technology practitioners
who wish to inform their own practice and learn from the experience of
others. It will present a “warts and all” account of the value of using
learning technologies within tertiary education and enable practitioners
to make informed decisions about how they might change or expand on
their own practice within the area which is referred to as personalised
learning space .

Submission procedure

Researchers and practitioners are invited to submit on or before June
30, 2008 a 2-5 page proposal clearly articulating and explaining the
mission, concern and ideology of the proposed chapter. Authors of
accepted proposal will be notified by July 15, 2008 about the status of
their proposals and sent chapter organisational guidelines. Full
chapters are expected to be submitted by November 1, 2008. All submitted
chapters will be reviewed on a double blind review basis. The book is
scheduled to be published by IGI Global (formerly Idea Group, Inc.),
www.igi-global.com, publisher of the Information Science Reference
(formerly Idea Group Reference) and Medical Information Science
Reference imprints.

Enquiries and Submissions can be forwarded electronically (Word
document) or by mail to:

John O’Donoghue
University of Central Lancashire
Preston
Lancashire
PR1 2HE
UK
Voice: +44 (0) 1772 894599
FAX: +44 (0) 1772 892981
Email: [log in to unmask]