Maren Deepwell

Category: FE

  • Reflections from the Bett show 2015 on the future of technology for learners

    …”At the Bett show we heard from two Ministers, who each shared their vision for the future of technology in education. In my work for the Association I have been involved in Education Technology Action Group (ETAG), as well as the Further Education Learning Technology Action Group (FELTAG), and I listened with interest to find out which ideas and recommendations would be included in their speeches.

    Both Ministers duly acknowledged the role of Learning Technology, its potential and its impact. They both spoke about the future, about preparing learners for it, and how technology could help. Ministers were followed by senior speakers from Google and Wikipedia on the first day, and Apple on the second day, who in different ways also spoke about the future and the role that technology has, does, or will play in education. Meanwhile, across the exhibition at the Technology in Higher Education Summit, I also listened to Dave Cormier from the University of Prince Edward Island in Canada, who spoke about a different way of learning. Rhizomatic is the term he used (and if you are interested in challenging your concept of learning and teaching I certainly recommend you seek out his work). But he started his talk with a backwards glance to the late 19th century and the role of school education in preparing young people for work – life in the factories that were fuelling the industrial revolution.”…

    You can assess my full article via FE News here.  Published 5 February 2015.

     

  • How are you meeting the FELTAG challenge?

    …”In recent months there has been much talk of the implications of FELTAG, the Further Education Learning Technology Action Group. Much of this has been focused on understanding what constitutes online delivery and what the implications of having to achieve a certain percentage of online delivery are.

    One clear implication is that more teachers, technicians, managers and support staff will be using technology for learning, teaching and assessment. This means that more of us will need to know how to use Learning Technology effectively and engage in continued professional development in order to build a sustainable, cost-effective approach to using Learning Technology within our colleges and other learning providers.”…

    You can read my full article in FE News here. Published 17 November 2014.

  • Big data? Learning analytics? Do you know enough about your learners’ data and what you do with it?

    …”With policy and commercial developments firmly focused on ‘big data’ and all that entails, I was interested to come across quite a few sessions and speakers talking about how we use data in learning, particularly formal education at ALT’s Annual Conference earlier this month.

    Earlier in the year, as part of ALT’s work for ETAG, the Education Technology Action Group, we had invited contributions from a range of individuals and organisations and received what I think is a really helpful contribution from Simon Buckingham Shum & Simon Knight, from the Knowledge Media Institute, Open University, UK (you can read their submission in full in this blog post from 5 June 2014). Personally, I found the way in which some of the terminology is explained helpful, for example, the way in which the concept of learning analytics was visualised”…

    You can read my full article in FE News here. Published 24 September 2014.

  • Curiosity, badges, new stuff… running and participating in ALT’s open course, ocTEL

    ocTEL week 1 badge
    ocTEL badge

    For the past week I have been involved in running ocTEL, the open course in Technology Enhanced Learning – version 2.0. As well as helping with running the course, I have also done my bit to participate and now that the first few days are behind me, I want to reflect on my expectations of the course as a participant/organiser hybrid… .

    So, first up, what am I hoping to achieve by participating? Like everyone else, this has to fit around all the other things I am doing and there are certainly limits to how much time I can spend on it. Still, participating is important to me and in an ideal scenario I would like to:

    • explore how the open badges impact on my approach to the course and interacting with it;
    • read a few posts each day to gain insight into what other participants are doing and thinking about;
    • reflect on how this kind of course and its activities can share my own learning habits.

    Thus far, and week 1 has only just started, I have some thoughts on each of these three areas:

    First, in regards to the badges, I am finding that I want them! I like looking at who else has earned the same badge and I like the way in which getting a badge or trying to at least makes me more concious about what I am achieving. From a personal point of view then, they work for me – for what I want from the course thus far.

    Secondly, reading through the posts of what others have contributed gives me a whole new perspective on what others are up to in regards to using technology for learning, teaching or assessment. It’s inspirational to see how many resources there are that are being shared openly and in particular I enjoy reading contributions from outside the UK and getting a glimpse of the global learning landscape.

    Last, but not least, even during this first, at times slightly chaotic week, participating in the course has given me a renewed sense of enthusiasm for learning new things. Exploring random links via Twitter #ocTEL or finding something interesting in a post gives me a sense of shared curiosity. I am enjoying seeing how questions come up and get answered.

    So, that’s my thoughts after a week of ocTEL 2.0. For this week, week 1 of the course, I am taking on a tutor role alongside Phil Tubman and others, but I shall still try and get a bit of the participant experience. After that – let the badge quest begin.

  • Learning Technology in FE

    Throughout January you can participate in the online conversation about Learning Technology in FE either on Twitter using the hastag #FELTAG or by visiting the online conversation.

    You can also still read my article in FE News on how institutions are taking on learning on a massive scale, or browse any of my other recent columns on technology and basic maths, building new cultures of learning and celebrating suceess.

     

  • Rounding up 2013, ready for 2014

    At the end of 2013 I participated in the Online Educa Berlin conference, amongst other things contribution to a session on Open Educational Resources with a presentation about Professional Development in the Open: Collaborative MOOC on Technology Enhanced Learning (ocTEL).

    With the new year now underway, I am looking forward to getting back to work, including

    • the FELTAG online conversation, consulting the community about Learning Technology in FE #FELTAG;
    • attending this year’s Bett Show and seeing what’s new;
    • preparing for the next running of the ocTEL course in Technology Enhanced Learning.