El Blog - A UB blog for sharing stuff on eLearning and iLearning (innovative learning)

UBLIve Youtube Channel reaches #31 in Australia

Eammon: I just recieved this email from Jef and Rex from Performing Arts - Live Production, Theatre & Events

"Just a note that our Youtube site that archives recordings from the various performances we have worked on has registered 22,000 hits in the last 12 months. Today we find ourselves ranked as the 31st most popular Australian Music site. This follows the uploading of our latest clips from Live on Lydiard 15 which took place last week featuring 5 acts from Ballarat and 3 from Melbourne."

To access the site go to http://www.youtube.com/ublive

"The ranking is based upon the number of videos from the site that were watched in a 24 hour period. We look forward to reaching the top 20 soon!!!"

Jef Hammersley"

Well done guys! Always great to hear about your achievements happening in your dept. Will see you at #20!

Google Apps - Education Edition

Steve P: We recently signed up for Google Apps Education Edition to see what all the fuss was about.

This has great potential as a collaboration tool for students (and indeed, staff) with the ability to share documents and web sites, as well as contacts and calendars. Macquarie University became the first Australian university to give all its students customised Google email accounts in 2007, a trend which is also becoming popular overseas as administrators look to reduce their overheads and whilst increasing functionality.

We haven't gone that far yet. We're hoping to run a trial with Student & Learning Support in the coming weeks; word processed documents may be shared in real-time as staff assist distance students with writing skills. Instant Messaging, VoIP (voice over Internet) or plain old telephones will allow for the verbal communication.

We don't have our directory system integrated with Google Apps yet, so if you're wanting to try it out, you'll need to contact me to add you as a user. You can, of course, use a non-UB email address to sign yourself up instead.

Stay tuned...!

Starbak + tUBe stats

Eammon : "Starbak is finally online again after hibernating for a number of months. We'd like to contain it's use to recording H.323 calls only and focus on tUBe (particularly in the near future when we move to V2.0) as the Universities main video distribution system. Many thanks to Ian and Marcus for their help with getting it back online. Anyone requiring an account, please email me a request: e.jones@ballarat.edu.au

Speaking of which, tUBe hit one hundred uploaded videos today. Considering it was only implemented towards the end of '07, the uptake is really encouraging! Of those hundred videos, there was 2200 individual video views over the past 5 months. Very promising. Big thanks to Steve Pallete and Matthew Alvey for their continued work behind the scenes."

Update: Lecture Recording: Evaluating small technologies

Posted IW: I have now reviewed the pictured Sony Digital Notetaker and have decided we'll make it our standard. This means we'll be buying some for loan from Media Tech at Mt Helen and SMB. It has important advantages over the Olympus: MP3 native recording (no need to convert files for podcasting), the USB plug is covered by a simple cover (don't need to pull the unit apart), comes with a short USB cable for situations when it's difficult to plug a larger item directly into the computer's USB socket, little earbuds and has a trendy black cloth carry bag.

We are taking orders from staff who want to piggy back on our order. The units are $180 each ex GST.

You'll need to get to me quick though - I'll be ordering by Monday April 21.

I'm at i.wright@ballarat.edu.au

Update: Lecture Recording: Evaluating small technologies

Posted by Ian Wright: Further to the earlier piece about recording technologies, I have identified a small Sony Digital Notetaker as the most promising small recorder for lecture recording by individual staff. You can look at these on the web at:
Sony's online store.

I have ordered one for evaluation and it should be here in a few days. I have been evaluating a near identical Olympus product and that has been very impressive. I'm looking at the Sony because it does native MP3 whereas the Olympus does WMV.

We have a buy price of around $190 ex and subject to a successful evaluation, I will be ordering a number to offer for loan via MTS at Mt Helen and SMB. I'm also happy to add individual orders to our bulk purchase and already have a few extras on my list. Just let me know if you're interested.

I expect to be ordering around April 17 so you'll need to let me know prior. If the device proves unsuitable I'll let everyone know and add an entry here.

This is the Olympus. The Sony is very similar and also has the convenient snap apart USB function. You just plug into PC/Mac USB port and drag and drop the audio file onto your computer.

Document conversion - PDFs and Flash files

Steve:

I recently had a request for advice on document conversion from Word and Powerpoint to PDF. Mac users and the few of us who use the free Open Office or enhanced Oxygen Office can already export to PDF. But what about everyone else?

Enter PrimoPDF, which installs itself as a Windows printer, allowing you to export to PDF from Word, Excel and Powerpoint directly from the File>Print menu. It's free, and it works well (no trial period or watermarks).

Going a step further, the free AuthorPoint Lite 2 for Windows lets you convert any Powerpoint presentation into a Flash file (.swf) that can be published as a web page. Why bother? Publishing your presentations this way increases their accessibility (usually a reduced file size, and no need for Powerpoint software to be loaded on the viewer's computer) and also helps to protect your intellectual property - it's much harder to edit a published Flash file than a Powerpoint file. Flash files can also be imported into Blackboard, and viewed without having to leave the web browser environment.

LMS - old hat?

Steve:

I came across this take on LMS vs. PLE (mashups?) some of you may be interested in...

"Today�s learning management systems can be perceived as islands � islands in the vast sea of learning possibilities the World Wide Web offers. Not only content can be obtained, refined and selected; learners can also adopt those tools which are important for their purposes, create their own and individual learning portals, tag content or register RSS feeds informing about news relevant to them.

The keyword web 2.0 makes it possible: Moving away from standard learning management systems (�one for all� technique) to personalised learning environments (�one for me� technique) consisting of snips, bits and pieces, collections of tools and services which are bundled to individual and/ or shared landscapes of knowledge, experiences and contacts. It is a shift from the island paradigm of the LMS technique to understanding the web as a door, a portal to learning opportunities.

While we have already claimed individualisation of education through e-learning in the past, personalised learning environments are now truly offering it. "

Any thoughts?

Lecture Recording: Evaluating small technologies

Ian Wright: LEWS (Learning Environments and Web Services) are currently evaluating some options to enable lecturers to record their lectures for later publication on the web or via podcast. We are looking at iPods with voice recorders and a couple of small digital notetaker types of gadgets. We are looking at convenience in use, quality, robustness and affordability. When we decide on an option we'll purchase a couple of units each for Mt Helen and SMB for a more real life evaluation by making them available for loan to academic staff.

We want the recording phase to be easy and to minimise the post-processing of audio. When they become available we'll also have a set of easy instructions to accompany them.

The idea is for a lecturer to borrow the gadget from MTS for a couple of hours, take it into the lecture to record (gadget in pocket, lapel mic), dump audio to PC then return it to MTS. Once we settle on a preferred technology we can recommend a product for those wishing to purchase their own.

Welcome to Kellie Macneil - Learning Designer

Steve: A warm welcome to Kellie Macneil, our Learning Designer who joined us in the Learning Environments team last week. Kellie's expertise will allow us to further assist staff who wish to implement innovative techniques in their learning programs.

Following a 'LEWS' planning sesssion last Friday, we shall be introducing an upgraded website in March. The aim of the new site is to make information regarding learning technologies and the people that support them at UB more accessible. We're still in the planning stages at the moment, but watch this space...

Learning Technologies Diagram

Steve: I've put together a diagram on Gliffy.com that depicts the learning technologies we have at UB (well, at least the way I see them so far!). I must say that the number of applications I'm finding on the Internet is quite overwhelming - lots of potential there! I'll be trying to add them to this blog as I come across them in future...

Questions and corrections welcome > s.pallett@ballarat.edu.au or x9797.

Server applications on your laptop

Steve P: For anyone who may be interested in looking 'behind the scenes' at emerging learning applications without having to worry about installations, configurations etc. I've put together a group of latest technologies you can start and stop on your PC laptop (not for Macs, sorry!). The package doesn't install anything on your computer, but mimics the operation of a web server.

The package allows you to try out several environments:

Mahara - ePortfolio software
eLGG - social networking software, useful for podcasting, as used here.
tikiwiki - wiki and groupware software, as used here.
Moodle LMS - alternative to Blackboard, as used here.

You can download the package and instructions here.

So why bother with blogging?

I found this little 3 minute video that gives an overview of 'blogosphere'. There are also similar videos for wikis and social networking (see 'Related Link' below). Steve.

November Update

Steve Pallett:

Well, a few interesting things have been happening as 2007 draws to a close. Our Elluminate Live! trial is now officially underway, and staff have expressed considerable enthusiasm for the potential this new tool brings following the workshop held at Mt.Helen on 9 November.

I've been doing a fair bit of research into easy methods for Higher Ed. staff to conduct podcasting (and possibly 'vodcasting') and have recently installed an application named eLLG - a social networking platform similar to MySpace and Facebook that allows users to create profiles and upload audio and video files for sharing (amongst other possibilities). I'll be running a workshop on 7 December based on this podcasting process.

I've also been looking into the wider area of social media in education and this has thrown up some sticky issues to do with privacy, copyright, and equity of access. The educational potential is great, but right now our legal team are looking into some of the implications for UB policy. The outcome will impact upon our adoption of internal and external services, and this grey area is something that many Australian Universities are currently grappling with.

During last week's eLearning Interest Group's meeting a number of issues were raised and debated, including the future landscape of learning technology. What technologies will UB be looking at five years from now? Are Learning Management Systems old-hat? Where is 'web 2.0' going? There are no simple answers to these questions, of course. But the more we think about them, the better-prepared we'll be for the future at UB.

I look forward to seeing some of you at next week's workshop and at the next eLIG meeting. Remember you can give me a call (X9797) or email (s.pallett@ballarat.edu.au) if you'd like to discuss anything you have in mind...

Elluminate Update and other stuff

Ian Wright:
Elluminate Live
I am in the process of arranging a 12 month trial of Elluminate Live. We have the quote and I've asked Legal to look at the contract and following that, will arrange the order. The trial will run from November 2007 to end of October 2008. The licence will provide us with one virtual classroom with 25 concurrent students. We've yet to work out a booking system but that won't be needed until next year. Steve or I will handle bookings until then. In the meantime, I'll advise of when it's available and we will probably use our second Tech Workshop to introduce it and play with it. (That is scheduled for Nov 9.)

eActivity Survey
The survey we've talked about is now active at:
eLWiki and you can fill in a form about the interesting stuff you've been doing. This can be about technology, a particular project, an approach to innovative learning and so on. Don't feel reticent - often stuff you are doing is of interest to others even if you think it's a bit mundane.

Learning Environments Staffing
I have just renewed my attempts to get the Learning Designer positions through HR and am moderately optimistic. It's becoming critical with timelines so this needs to happen quite soon. I have a PD approved for a Educational Resource Developer but won't be moving to fill that until the Learning Designer positions are filled and I have an idea of how the budget looks at that point.

Turnitin responsibility coming to Learning Environments
Responsibility for the administration of the Turnitin plagiarism detection project is about to come under the auspice of the Learning Environments team. With Tom Keogh finishing in the role he has been holding for much of 2007, we'll be looking to appoint someone to pick up this role. At this stage I'm unclear what the fraction will be and what the full scope of the role will be. It is a logical function to have sitting in the LE team.

E-Learning Interest Group meeting - 12 September

Steve Pallett:

First of all, a big thank you to all those who've made me feel welcome here over the last few days. It's great to be here, and I look forward to working with you in various capacities over the coming months.

Yesterday's meeting raised a couple of interesting points. With regard to expenditure proposals, e.g. for trial software, it was agreed that a short 'business case' is required before funds may be allocated. Feel free to comment on the suggested procedure below:

1. Originator of the proposal makes an entry to a shared blog (such as this one) or an internal wiki page (such as UBWiki). This entry will give a brief two or three paragraph cost/benefit (business case) overview.
2. A time frame (e.g. three days) is given for viewers to comment on ideas, concerns etc.
3. All ELIG members are alerted to the entry via email or RSS (or similar) and invited to comment.
4. At the end of the stated time frame the refined proposal is presented to Ian Wright by the originator.
5. Ian updates the blog or wiki with progress statements.

Why don't men ask for directions?
Frank Carrucan raised the issue of gender difference in attendance at Student & Learning Support workshops. Currently, 83% of attendees are female, and there is a possibility that successful implementation of technology could overcome barriers to learning for their male colleagues. Of course, it would be easy to suggest "they're just lazy..." but maybe learning preferences have a part to play in this.
What do you think?

August Update from Ian Wright

I was intrigued to see that my last update was almost exactly a month ago. It's been a busy month and we are now starting to see some progress in the Learning Environments Project but a bit more on that later.

Learning and Teaching Conference

From my point of view the L&T Conference was a bit of a blur as I did a headless chook impersonation for most of the day. From the verbal feedback I heard people were pretty happy. We forgot to promote the feedback sheets on the day so probably don't have much in the way of written feedback. It may just be possible that we'll do an online feedback process but that depends on my load in the next month.

The audio of Matthew Allen's keynote is available at the Learning and Teaching Conference website. (It's a big file so if you only have dial-up, don't bother.)

The activity and focus of the conference meant I didn't organise an eLearning Interest Group meeting for July (and there won't be one in August but read on).

Learning Environments

I've been flat out with the recruiting process and we've just now selected a Learning Management System Support Officer, (the support role to Lloyd) who will start with us on September 10 and a Flexible Learning Technology Officer (FLTO) who will start with us on September 3. Many of you will know the LMSSO who is Clair McCready, currently with the myIT@UB Servicedesk. The other role will be taken by Steve Pallett, who has an interesting career path from Mechanical Engineer through computer related stuff to working on a Masters in Educational Technology. He's a real find and has come to us from Britain via NZ.

The Learning Designers are the next cabs off the rank and when I come back to work at the end of August I'll be attacking HR again over those roles.

Coming Back? From where?

For the week of Aug 20 to 24, I'll be participating in the ACODE Learning Technologies Leadership Institute on the Gold Coast.
ACODE Website
Really looking forward to this and will report back in the near future.

Whatever happened to the Interest Group meetings?

Well, the business of getting the Learning Environments up and running has consumed me recently. The good news is that when our FLTO starts in early September I'm going to get him onto a number of jobs around the eLIG as well as introducing him at the September meeting. Projects include the benchmarking/audit of who's doing what at UB and the technology workshops for indepth looks at some of the new technologies. These will be half or full day sessions for people who want to dig more deeply into some of the new technologies. A complement to the tasters at the L&T conference. Please send me your suggestions for themes for these workshops.

Money!

I spoke to the Learning and Teaching Committee and received approval for the plan to spend the $50K allocated last year. This means there's money for experimental activity such as setting up an Elluminate trial, for purchasing bits and pieces of software and hardware to explore and the technical workshops and forums. At the next meeting we'll discuss a process for managing this so there's sufficient but not oppressive governance.

So, that's it from me for now from here.

Report on Social Networking in Schools

"The National School Boards Association has released a new report on student use of social media tools. The report contains a multitude of findings that have already started an online debate about the role of social networking in the classroom."

Link to article

Rose Grozdanic

Wiki now available for your use

Hello All

We now have a wiki available for you to play with. It's there for you to trial and not the latest version (owing to the environment available on our corporate webserver). I don't know much about wikis so look forward to seeing how it evolves. Please feel free to do what you want with it. (It's externally accessible too.)

UB's Trial Wiki available from this link.

The direct URL is www.ballarat.edu.au/projects/wiki/

Ian Wright

Blended Learning

I found the following discussion on blended learning interesting and thought it worth sharing. The statement "One of the major threats for blended learning is the lack of knowledge of blended learning authors about their learners" is really important for UB international programs in particular, where there are failure rates sometimes as high as 80%. I also found the following report on ePortfolios (2.5MB Word Doc.) really interesting. IK

What's going on? An update

With all that's currently going on around my area, I'm using this blog to provide a catch up for people.

Learning and Teaching Conference

The annual UB Learning and Teaching Conference is on this Friday. It's looking like a very stimulating program with an emphasis on flexible learning. There will be plenty of technology around but we're trying to strike a balance between talking about the social elements as well as the tech toys. I'm quite involved so that's been taking a bit of focus.

Learning Environments

We have now advertised two of the positions in the new Learning Environments project. The Flexible Learning Technology Officer (to explore, implement and support a range of technologies, from server level applications like Sakai, LAMS etc to standalone technologies) and the Learning Management Systems Support Officer, the support position for Lloyd Stinton managing Blackboard administration.

I still need to finalise the PDs for the Learning Designer(s) and advertise those. This has been very difficult with HR and I fundamentally disagreeing on the appropriate levels for these positions.

Funds for eLearning Interest Group

The Learning and Teaching Committee agreed broadly with our proposal for the expenditure of the $50K. We have $20K for an audit/knowledgebase of flexible activity at UB (to be web accessible, flexible and updateable online to keep it current), $20K for exploring and evaluating technologies, both hard and soft, and $10K for some intensive workshops on technologies. I'll be keeping an ear out for burning interest areas from the conference and suggesting those as themes for these workshops. There is also a bit of money for staff to visit other institutions to explore specific technologies/approaches/practices.

We will have some sort of low impact submission and evaluation process for any funded activities/purchases. As an early initiative, I'll be following up a trial of Elluminate, a virtual classroom system.

That's about it for now. Just give me a call on X9585 if you'd like to know more.

Ian Wright
Manager, Web Services and Learning Environments