Meta Ed Tech Journal

An important element of open educational resources (OER) is the permission to use the materials in new ways, including revising and remixing them. Prior research has shown that the revision and remix rates for OER are relatively low. In this study we examined the extent to which the openly licensed Flat World Knowledge textbooks were being revised and remixed. We found that the levels of revision and remix were similar to those of other OER collections. We discuss the possible significance and implication of these findings.

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This article examines the rhetoric around copyright and the regulation of digital rights management (DRM) from 2003 to 2006 in congressional hearings, in major newspapers, and on the most prominent relevant websites. The article describes a new combination of methods for identifying a set of online documents to compare with offline documents via content analysis. These three media present very different views of the copyright debate. Hearings present a rough balance of both coalitions’ messages. Newspapers lean slightly toward stronger fair use but have little coverage. The online debate features a deluge of strong fair use arguments. These findings highlight different communication strategies and suggest broader lessons about the changing nature of policy advocacy and the policymaking process.

At Aalborg University (AAU) we are known to work with problem-based learning (PBL) in a particular way designated “The Aalborg PBL model”. In PBL the focus is on participant control, knowledge sharing, collaboration among participants, which makes it interesting to consider the integration of social media in the learning that takes place. In this article I would like to depart from the use of this pedagogical model, which integrates social media. The article will look at a learning design model, which could be a spring-board scaffolding teachers at AAU in their pedagogical approach to learning design when combining the PBL approach with social media or web 2.0 activities or/and technologies. With regard to the discussions about PBL, three important characteristics of PBL can be extracted; the problem, the work process, and the solution, which can be used to distinguish between various theoretical and practical constructions of PBL – regardless initially of whether it is collaborative or cooperative. The three dimensions can then be thought of as stretched between two ends of a continuum between teacher and participant control. These fundamental questions of ownership and control seem also to be more generally applicable in relation to wider debates about social media and learning. The learning design model is based on the collaborative eLearning design (CoED) method. The CoED-workshop methodology aims to support the design of targeted networked learning. The method scaffolds the design work of practitioners and has been developed and tried out in a number of different settings. Drawing on knowledge and theoretical concepts within the fields of design, systems development and collaborative learning, emphasis is on bringing focus and structure to the early stages of the design process. The method aims to develop design specifications and/or early prototypes within a few hours of starting work. In order to achieve one of the objectives of my PhD, I aim to further developing and elaborate on this method, which hopefully will lead to a pedagogical design method scaffolding teachers in their learning designs, taking into account the PBL approach and integration of social media and web 2.0 technologies. This article will be based on theoretical and methodological considerations within PBL, social media and web 2.0 technologies, together with learning designs trying to illustrate a pedagogical design model scaffolding teachers in their learning design when integrating social media and web 2.0 technologies into the PBL approach at AAU. The method has been tried out at the Faculty of Social Science, AAU during Spring 2011 and the article will present some of the preliminary findings in this.

Athabasca University (AU) is reinventing itself as a 21st century e-university. Its road to transformation involves not only integration of technology into classrooms but also a cultural shift requiring the wholesale integration of systems, skill sets, and processes across the entire organization. This transformation was greatly accelerated by two recent externally funded university programs (video 3:26 minutes): one to increase systems capacity and currency for research, collaboration, learning, content management, and student support; the other to digitize all AU course content. The programs, which had a total budget of $14 million, were part of two separate national economic stimulus initiatives under Canada’s 2009 Economic Action Plan.

The sheer size, complexity, and deep institutional implications of this undertaking — coupled with the short time frame (24 months) — represented an unprecedented challenge for AU. Although these programs and their technologies are major characters in the central plot, focuses on how to effectively lead and manage large-scale change initiatives. Accordingly, here we analyze how the start-up and operation of these two major programs affected AU, focusing on project management, organizational change, acceptance by the academy, and the absorption of additional work. We also offer lessons learned for successful systematic integration of information and communication technologies (ICTs) within a large educational organization.

This paper provides a brief introduction to the domain of ‘learning analytics’. We first explain the background and idea behind the concept. Then we give a brief overview of current research issues. We briefly list some more controversial issues before concluding.

Computer games are purported to be effective instructional tools that enhance motivation and improve engagement. The aim of this study was to investigate how tertiary student experiences change when instruction was computer game based compared to lecture based, and whether experiences differed between high and low achieving students. Participants consisted two cohorts enrolled in a first year university course (Cohort 1, traditional: male=42, female=17; Cohort 2, computer game: male=42, female=7). Cohort 1 experienced course content as traditional lectures, Cohort 2 experienced course content embedded within a computer game. Csikszentmihalyi’s experience sampling method was used to sample experiences of students for each cohort during instruction. Results showed that the computer game group were more challenged and valued the activity more than the traditional group, but were inclined to wish they were doing something else. High achieving students during game mode showed greater concentration but found it harder to concentrate and found game mode more sociable and lecture mode more boring. High achievers perceived greater success for lecture mode and found lectures more satisfying. Individual profiles of high and low achieving students for each mode indicated that games afforded better experiences for low achieving students but poorer experiences for high achieving students.

Present trends in the mainstream adoption of educational technology coupled
to the increased acceptance and adoption of openness in terms of sharing
resources and open access force higher education into a radical rethink of
its structures and educational strategies. This article examines the current
shift in focus from the simple production and sharing of open educational
resources (OER) towards wider concepts such as open educational practices
(OEP) and cultures (OEC). OER involves mostly educators whereas OEP
and OEC demand the commitment of management, administrators and
politicians.
This openness is already spawning alternative types of peer-based
collaborative learning both inside and outside the formal education system.
In particular the increased awareness of the importance of informal learning has raised a clear need for
some kind of certification model and the current open badges initiative lead by Mozilla and several US
authorities is examined and discussed. In 2011 the OER university partnership announced an innovative
approach to combining formal and informal learning by planning to offer credible credentials for students
who have acquired the necessary skills through their own learning paths. The road to future higher
education may not be entirely behind the campus walls

This paper examines Koreans’ protests against U.S. beef imports by deconstructing online dynamics of news diffusion using data comprised of widely read blog entries created by Daum blog reporters between May and June 2008. The results indicate that Korean bloggers’ political positions on U.S. beef imports were polarized, which ultimately influenced their network positions and the way news was diffused to them. Using a qualitative examination of bloggers’ profiles, we found that bloggers who formed an independent group in order to run a collective blog, and journalists who worked in smaller media organizations contributed to enhancing citizen engagement with the issues at stake. Furthermore, we observed that there was a structural change in the online network between May and June.

Networking is a key skill in professional careers, supporting the individual’s growth and learning. However, little is known about how professionals intentionally manage the connections in their personal networks and which factors influence their decisions in connecting with others for the purpose of learning. In this article, we present a model of personal professional networking for creating a personal learning network, based on an investigation through a literature study, semi–structured interviews and a survey.

In a previous EDUCAUSE Quarterly article,1 we reported the results of quasi-experimental research on the University of Minnesota’s new, technology-enhanced learning spaces called Active Learning Classrooms (ALCs). That investigation found — after controlling for potentially confounding factors such as instructor, instructional methods, assessments, and student demographics — that teaching in an ALC contributed significantly to student learning outcomes. In addition, our findings indicated that the type of space in which a class is taught influences instructor and student behavior in ways that likely moderate the effects of space on learning. Finally, we found significant cross-sectional differences between different subsets of our student sample in terms of how they perceived the ALC’s contribution to their learning experience.

Here, we report on the next phase of learning-spaces research at the University of Minnesota (UMN), which had two components. First, to ensure that our earlier results were not simply fortuitous, we replicated the original investigation with a different instructor, student sample, and subject matter. Second, having shown that the type of learning space matters, we turned our attention to the pedagogy employed within the room. Using another quasi-experimental design, we investigated whether or not having our instructor adapt her instructional approach to fit the space would influence student learning outcomes and student perceptions of their learning experience.

Two specific research questions guided this phase of our research:

Holding the pedagogical approach constant, what is the relationship between the type of learning space and (1) student learning outcomes, (2) instructor and student behavior, and (3) student perceptions of the learning experience?
Holding the learning space constant, what is the relationship between the type of pedagogical approach and (1) student learning outcomes and (2) student perceptions of the learning experience?

Meta Ed Tech Journal

Examining the Reuse of Open Textbooks

Taking the copyfight online: Comparing the copyright debate in congressional hearings, in newspapers, and on the web

Scaffolding Teachers Integrate Social Media Into a Problem-Based Learning Approach?

Building the E-University: Transforming Athabasca University

Learning Analytics

Comparing computer game and traditional lecture using experience ratings from high and low achieving students

From proprietary to personalized higher education – how OER takes universities outside the comfort zone

The Network Structure of the Korean Blogosphere

Understanding personal learning networks: Their structure, content and the networking skills needed to optimally use them

Pedagogy and Space: Empirical Research on New Learning Environments