ASCILITE NEWS
Important Reminder: Provide Feedback to ASCILITE through the 2018 Member Survey
Members are invited to provide feedback on ASCILITE through the 2018 ASCILITE Member Survey. The purpose of our member survey is to obtain feedback from members on the value of ASCILITE services, initiatives and related activities.
If you have not already done so, please complete the survey here.
The data collected from the survey is used to inform the next cycle of strategic planning (2018 – 2021) for the society and in 2015 this feedback and the suggestions made by members was critical in helping the Executive to determine the focus and direction of the society. For example,
- Conference registration fees have remained steady since 2015.
- There have been no member fee increases since 2014, despite significant increases in operating costs.
- New member services have been implemented such as the Spring into Excellence Research School, a new Student Bursary award and a TELall blog. Several other services have been extended such as the number of Special interest groups going from two in 2015 to seven in 2018.
- The AJET editorial team have worked tirelessly to improve AJET’s impact factor with AJET now listed in the top 10 educational technology journals globally.
- Conference organizers have continued to increase the rigour of the peer review process with initiatives such as the introduction of reviewer mentoring.
- The ASCILITE website, bulletin, blog and various social media platforms have increasingly been used to promote networking.
In 2018, survey results will again be reported to members through the fortnightly bulletin, website and other means. Members will also be informed about what ASCILITE is doing in response to the feedback it receives.
Members who complete the survey may choose to enter a draw to win one of 10 x $20 gift vouchers. The survey should take approximately 15 – 25 minutes of your time with only 25 key questions.
We greatly value your feedback and contribution to the future of ASCILITE and invite you to complete the survey via the anonymous link here.
The survey link will remain open until 28 September 2018.
2018 ASCILITE Awards Open for Nominations
Each year, ASCILITE members are invited to apply or nominate for the ASCILITE awards and to consider nominations that they believe meet the criteria set for each award. Nominations for the 2018 award opened on 13 August. The three award categories available to members are as follows:
- Innovation Award
- Student Bursaries
- Life Member Award
Innovation Award
The ASCILITE Innovation Award, first introduced in 2011, celebrates work undertaken by an individual or team of people in support of the exemplary and research informed use of technologies for teaching and learning in tertiary education. Innovation is defined as a new idea, device or process. It is something original that “breaks into” teaching and learning in the tertiary sector. Applications for this award are likely to include:
- Innovative solutions which promote the exemplary and research informed use of technologies for teaching and learning in tertiary education.
- Product development projects which promote the exemplary and research informed use of technologies for teaching and learning in tertiary education.
- Large-scale implementation initiatives which promote the innovative, exemplary and research informed use of technologies for teaching and learning in tertiary education.
- Major professional development initiatives which promotes the exemplary and research informed use of technologies for teaching and learning in tertiary education.
Student Bursaries
Up to three Student Bursaries in the amount of $1,000 each are available to full-time PhD/EdD or equivalent students. Winners receive a $1,000 bursary to attend the ASCILITE conference and a one year student membership in ASCILITE along with the remaining funds to be put towards accommodation or travel assistance to attend the ASCILITE conference. Winners are included in the ASCILITE conference awards ceremony and their submissions are displayed on the ASCILITE website.
Further Information
For further information on each award, including the Life Member Award, refer to the specific award criteria and nomination form on the ASCILITE website
Applications are open until 8 October 2018.
New TELall Blog Post – ASCILITE Special Interest Groups through the lens of their members
The latest blog post has been contributed by Hazel Jones (Griffith University) who is a co-facilitator of the ASCILITE Learning Analytics SIG and an ASCILITE Executive Committee member. In this post, Hazel presents some of the key findings from the 2017 survey of SIG members.
ASCILITE now has 7 SIGs and this post will be of interest to current SIG members and to anyone interested in joining one or more SIGs. Membership is free and is also open to non-members.
For those interested in joining one of the SIGs, you will find a brief summary of each one below. You can find-out more about any of these SIGs on the ASCILITE website under “Get Involved” along with information on how to join.
TELedvisors SIG is aimed at educational designers, developers and consultants, learning technologists, and academic developers, among other things. Collectively, referred to as “TELedvisors”. TEL includes all aspects of teaching and learning practice because in the 21st century, there is little that isn’t in some way inextricably intertwined with technology (cf. Selwyn 2017).
The Transforming Assessment SIG is for those interested in online assessment for both formative and summative purposes. This SIG is about staying in touch with the latest happenings in e-Assessment across Australasia and around the world. It runs a monthly webinar series and has its own website with archived session recordings and e-Assessment examples. The group is also served by its own mailing list and a social media presence on Linkedin, Facebook and Google+.
The Learning Analytics SIG aims to develop awareness and resources about Learning Analytics (LA) and its application to learning and teaching. It focuses on facilitating networks and sharing practices among the LA community across Australasia and New Zealand. The focus of this group is on enabling practitioners to use Learning Analytics to inform their teaching practice with reference to Learning Design. It will complement the work being undertaken through the Society of Learning Analytics Research (SoLAR) and associated groups such as the Australian Learning Analytics Summer Institute (ALASI) and various State Learning Analytics Working Groups.
The Learning Design SIG aims to develop a supportive environment for learning design researchers and learning designers in Australia and beyond who are engaged in, or wish to engage with the emerging field of Learning Design. It aims to foster collegial exchange and collaborative LD research and sharing of practice in order to improve technology-enhanced learning and teaching in higher education, K-12 and vocational education. Members may include those with interests in LD and allied fields, such as Learning Analytics.
The Mobile Learning SIG aims to explore the intersection of mobile learning, new pedagogies, the Scholarship of Technology Enhanced Learning (SOTEL), Design-Based Research (DBR), and authentic learning. The ML-SIG will explicitly explore the boundaries of current knowledge and approaches to mobile learning, and develop a global collaborative network of mobile learning researchers interested in exploring and implementing the frontiers of mobile learning. It will also explore the unique affordances of mobile devices for student-generated content and student-generated contexts via such technologies as collaborative media production and sharing, VR, AR, geolocative and contextual sensors, drones and wearable technologies.
The Open Educational Practices SIG will attempt to further engage the sector in discussions around the issues related to OEP at the individual, institutional and national levels, including the realisation of opportunities and how to overcome potential barriers. In recent years, there have been some important Open Educational Practices (OEP) developments in Australia, but unfortunately the potential of OEP to meet some of the national and institutional targets has yet to be fully realized and acknowledged. The OEP-SIG aims to provide practitioners, researchers and advocates a platform for collaboration, support and development at both the individual and institutional levels and create a strong community of practice and representation for OEP in Australasia.
The Digital Equity SIG promotes the scholarship of digital equity as a core, continuing and ethical stream for ASCILITE as an association and to disseminate research findings and best practice. Digital equity is a vital consideration in higher education. The SIG aligns with the Bradley Report (2008), in which higher education institutions are aiming to widen participation for certain equity groups including those from low socio-economic backgrounds, Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander Australians among others.
ASCILITE Welcomes CQUniversity as new Institutional Member
ASCILITE is pleased to announce that Central Queensland University has taken out an institutional membership for 15 staff members. ASCILITE now has 19 institutional members. Institutional membership covers a designated list (quota) of individuals which member institutions can update at any time.
OTHER NEWS
Job Vacancy: Virtual Learning Environment Migration Support Officer, Griffith University
- Job ID: 109830
- Salary Range: $74,972 – $80,042 per annum. Salary package including 17% employer superannuation contribution
- Employment Type: Full-time, Fixed Term for 2 years
- Location: Griffith University, Mt Gravatt campus
The opportunity
The Virtual Learning Environment Migration Support Officer is a member of the AEL Dean (Learning and Teaching) team. A key purpose of the position is to implement the AEL L&T strategy, which is a subset of Griffith 2020 strategy. One of the main projects in this area and a key role for this position is the migration of AEL courses into the new virtual learning environment, with an emphasis on strategic improvement of course and program designs.
About you
To be successful within this role, you will be able to demonstrate an ability to manage and meet conflicting deadlines. A strong client focus and attention to detail will ensure you are able to build effective working relationships in this engaging role. You will have evidence of previous experience successfully utilising leaning management systems.
A full copy of the position description and the online application is available via the Griffith Job Portal.
The closing date for applications is Wednesday 12 September 2019.
Call for Papers: INTED2019 (13th annual Technology, Education and Development Conference)
INTED2019 will be held on the 11 – 13 March 2019 in Valencia, Spain and abstract submissions are now invited with a deadline of 29 November 2019. Abstracts should be submitted online here.
After 13 years, INTED has become an annual meeting point for lecturers, researchers, education professionals and technologists. Every year, INTED brings together over 700 delegates from 80 different countries. It will provide the ideal opportunity to present your projects and experiences to an international audience. Also, it will offer participants an overview of the current situation of education and new learning technologies.
INTED2019 Proceedings will be reviewed for their inclusion in the ISI CPCI (Web of Science). Previous editions are already indexed. Also, a DOI number will be assigned to each accepted paper.
We are sure that it will be very interesting for professionals in the area of Education, Development, Innovation and New Learning Technologies.
Thank you in advance for your cooperation.
Yours sincerely,
INTED2019 Organising Committee
Email: inted2019@iated.org
Website: http://iated.org/inted/
