Australasian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education

12-03-2018 Bulletin

ASCILITE NEWS

TELedvisors SIG kicks-off first 2018 webinar

Date & Time

Thursday 22 March, 12pm AEST.

Topic

Exploration of the place of the student in learning design and technology. Won’t Somebody think of the students –  remembering who we ultimately work for?

Synopsis

A recurrent theme of ASCILITE 2017 and one that has also surfaced in the TELedvisor forum and twitter feed is around student feedback relating to, and involving students in, learning design. Some of the criticism TELedvisors receive from academic and teaching staff about blended and online learning designs are that  designs aren’t engaging to students, or didn’t impact student interactions or grades/assessment. This begs the questions: What do students think? What are they actually engaging with in learning design and why do they choose to engage in particular ways?

Presenters

Hear from Karin Barac around student perceptions at the technology-pedagogy nexus and Meg Colosante on teaching staff perceptions and misconceptions of blended learning, (with a possible mystery speaker) then join us for a broader discussion – What kind of tensions might exist between what staff say and do with TEL and how students perceive and engage with TEL? And what we might do in future to align tensions that might occur?

Login

You can access TELedvisor webinars at here or through the link on the TELedvisors website.

Hope to see you there!

Colin Simpson
TELedvisors SIG co-convenor

ASCILITE Live! Fika Session: Whither the LMS…Is the LMS still fit for purpose

Date & Time

Wednesday 21 March 2018 10am AEDT.  You will find other time zones for the session here.

Abstract

Learning management systems (LMS) are adopted by tertiary education providers to be the conduit through which courses are delivered. However, debates about the capacity of the LMS to meet all the required current and future needs of both students and educators have become more pronounced over the past few years, as evidenced by contributions in recent ASCILITE conferences.

This ‘fika’ webinar will provide opportunities for a group discussion on the efficiency of LMS for teaching and learning by engaging with those who have raised this issue in the ASCILITE community and beyond.

The word ‘fika’ is a Swedish word that refers to a coffee break with family, friends or colleagues and implies chatting over a break or, in this case, via the webinar capabilities. The fika webinar session may also provide an opportunity for those present to put together a collaborative submission for ASCILITE 2018 on the continuing issues around the LMS in tertiary education.

Session Format

  • 10 minutes – welcome, overview, introductions
  • 45 minutes – conversation
  • 5 minutes – forward directions

Conversation starters

  • Was the LMS ever, or is the LMS still fit for purpose?
  • From the staff perspective?
  • From the student perspective?
  • If not, what hybrid or alternative solutions are people coming up with?
  • Is the LMS forcing conformity in terms of institutional teaching & learning practices as well education-related administrative processes? In other words, do institutions find themselves adapting to the model of teaching and learning embodied in the LMS rather than vice versa?
  • Further, on the one hand, we see a desire/move towards hybrid (more flexible) solutions, while on the other, there is the drive towards learning analytics which suggests a continuing role for a large centralised system (i.e. the LMS) to collect the data required. Are these requirements incompatible with each other?
  • Students continue to use apps external to the LMS regardless, such as social media. Sometimes this use is in opposition to institutional policy when used for formal learning (as opposed to informal learning). How do we respond?

Registration

You can register for this session here.  Once registered, you will receive an email with login details for the session.  Pre-registering here will allow us to email you a reminder just prior to the session.

CMALT cMOOC Commences 19 March

We plan on launching the CMALT cMOOC again next week starting 19 March and it will run for 7 weeks until 4 May. The cMOOC is completely free and is aimed at participants sharing experiences as they explore developing CMALT eportfolios, and gaining a professional development experience. (If you’re unfamiliar with CMALT accreditation, and would like to know more, please visit the ASCILITE website at this link).

We aim to have  a G+ Hangout as an intro for anyone interested in the cMOOC 16 March Friday at 12 noon. (There will be one for UK participants Thursday 15 March 10pm NZ time).

We use a G+ Community, Twitter, and WordPress to facilitate the cMOOC:

You can find out more about the CMALT cMOOC at our ResearchGate Project page here.
Thanks.

Dr Thomas Cochrane
BE, BD, GDHE, MTS, MComp, PHD (Monash), CMALT
Academic Advisor
Senior Lecturer in educational technology
Centre for Learning & Teaching
Auckland University of Technology

Reminder: New Digital Equity SIG is up and running

After several years of discussions, the Digital Equity SIG was officially formed at the ASCILITE2017 conference in Toowoomba, December 2017 to promote 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.  On 2 March, the SIG held an online planning session to discuss and formulate plans for the year.

The SIG now welcomes sign-ups, which you can do here or from the Digital Equity SIG webpage where you will find additional information about the SIG and its aims. Signing-up is the best way to be kept up to date on new SIG developments and activities.

SIG membership is free and is open to both ASCILITE members and non-members.

OTHER NEWS

Job Vacancies: Learning Design and Technology Specialist (2 positions), UTS

The Institute for Interactive Media and Learning, (DVC Education and Students) at UTS has a bold vision to be a world-leading university of technology. We are a dynamic and innovative university in central Sydney, consistently ranked the top young university in Australia. With a culturally diverse campus life and extensive international exchange and research programs, UTS prepares graduates for the workplaces of today and tomorrow.

The UTS model of learning facilitates the development of students’ future-focused graduate capabilities and professional identities through learning that is practice-oriented, globally-focused and research-inspired. UTS aims to engage students in a seamless blend of online and face-to-face learning experiences that realise the potential of integrating the creative use of new technologies with face-to-face learning in new campus spaces and with learning in the workplace and community.

As part of a team in the Institute for Interactive Media and Learning (IML), the Learning Design and Technology Specialist collaborates with and provides guidance, support and advice for teaching staff in developing and integrating blended learning strategies and resources into students’ learning experiences. You will also contribute to the effective operation of our newly developed learner experience lab – LX.lab. The LX.lab connects the learning and teaching community through strategic learning design projects and a diverse program of events and workshops for academic and professional staff.

You will bring to this role:

  • Demonstrated skill in the design and development of a wide variety of types of online learning resources for student learning in higher education
  • Excellent project management skills, including capacity to work within tight timeframes and budgets
  • Experience providing effective support for academics in their use of learning technologies for students in higher education, including learning management systems
  • Experience applying relevant learning theories and principles to the effective design of blended learning experiences, including assessment and feedback, in higher education (essential at HEW8; desirable at HEW7).
  • Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively in a team environment

For the full list of the selection criteria and role responsibilities please download the position description from the link on the UTS website.

Job Vacancy: Instructional Designer, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute

MCRI is seeking a full-time Instructional Designer on a 12 month contract to join the Melbourne Genomics Health Alliance located at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute.

Ideally, the experienced Instructional Designer will have a science background, who is excited by the prospect of working in the emerging field of genomics education. To incorporate genomics into routine healthcare a broad range of professionals need to learn new technologies, systems and skills through continuing professional development activities. Training of independent and highly skilled variant curators remains one of the biggest barriers to the delivery of genomics into healthcare, both here in Victoria, as well as nationally and internationally. The Alliance is a leading education provider of variant curation, currently via in-person workshops and immersion training programs targeted at medical/clinical scientists, computer scientists, health professionals, and others potentially involved in variant curation and reporting.

This role is designed to develop a series of online modules in variant curation. As the field is maturing rapidly, the role will undoubtedly provide opportunities beyond this initial period, as genomics and the breadth of skills required for variant curation grows.

Full details are available on the Murdoch website here. Applications are due 27 March 2018.

Reminder: Call for Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice (JUTLP) Special Issue Proposals

A reminder that the Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice is calling for proposals for 2019 special issues, especially on contemporary themes associated with effective and innovative teaching and learning practice in the higher education environment.

The expectation is that the special issue would be of interest to an international audience. To propose a special issue please download and complete the Special Issue Proposal template email the completed form to Associate Professor Dominique Parrish.

Special Issue Proposals are due by Monday 30 April 2018.

Extended Call for Proposals for ALT’s Annual Conference 2018

The ALT (UK) 25th annual conference will be held from 11 – 13 September 2018 in Manchester, UK and this year ALT is bringing together different critical perspectives in Learning Technology from across the community to seriously examine the challenges ahead and question the shape of things to come.

The call has now been extended from 8 March 2018 to the new date of 26 March and full details are available here.

Institutional Members