Weekly Learning Technology Digest... 26

Image from Nomadic Lass, under a
CC BY-SA 2.0 license

Is that the new year I can see on the horizon?  Why, yes it is!  Which means that our new students will be coming through the doors imminently and getting into their learning lives here... and it's going to be busy!!

Very busy.

Which is why it's important to take a bit of a break and catch up with some learning technology bits.

Let's go...

• Is MOOC more than just a buzzword from The Guardian - well, apparently it is.  But, it's not perhaps buzzing in the context in which you might have thought it was.  It's not so much about university education as global / open learning.  And that's where and why it's so interesting.
• This reminds me, there was a great podcast from JISC on this too - Delivering free online courses how open can we be - and if you have a few minutes, this is worth a listen.  Openness = lack of hurdles to jump over = freedom = innovation was one of the messages that I picked up.
• Game on: using computer games to captivate your class also from The Guardian appeared.  and I really rather liked this article.  A lot.  Not least because it shares real experience but gives some resources and pointers for other educators.  And I really do like something which goes beyond just 'telling' about something and helps you move towards real use instead!
• Google releases Course Builder, takes online learning down an open-source road is a really really interesting development and is indicative of the power being the trend towards openness.  I did the PowerSearching MOOC from Google and the simplicity of the format worked for me.  Will be good to have a play with Google's course building tool and see what's what with that too!
• The Times Higher Education wrote that the wired campus is the key to student recruitment and one quote which really stood out from the article was this, "About half the students questioned (45 per cent) point to increased fees when asked to justify their desire for the latest technology, while 51 per cent say it will help them develop the "essential skills" they need for the workplace" - as a driver for change meeting increasing student expectations is increasingly cited and this reinforces that perspective.
• I also spotted an interesting little history (if you can call a couple of years a real 'history'!) on the use of the iPad in learning which is worth a trawl through, not least because it goes beyond the past and looks to the future which, if you've spotted all the stuff floating around about 'bring your own devices' makes this a useful one to read through.
• A little thing called the iPhone 5 was released... which inevitably got geeky hearts a-flutter.  What it means for education isn't clear, but the response ranged from luke warm to enthusiasm,  Plus ça change!  In fact, it reminds me of a quote I heard from a keynote at ALT-C last week, 'the knowledge that powers the world is less and less visible' - and I think the changes in tech are less and less visible, but their impact increasingly significant.
• You know I like to include a video if I can find something worthwhile... well... how about people's reactions to the 'iPhone 5'?  Excuse the language of the intro to this video... but the average punter's reaction is brilliant...
  
  

Right.  Think that's me done!

Enjoy the forthcoming week and I'll see you next Friday!

Sarah