Emoderating: the key to successfully teaching and learning online

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Building e-learning futures
Costruire il futuro dell' eLearning
Dr. Gilly Salmon
eLearning una sfida per luniversita Strategie,
metodi, prospectiive
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Dr. Gilly Salmon

• Centre for Innovation, Knowledge Enterprise,
  Open University Business School
• Chair Professional Certificate in Management

• Visiting Professor,
• Glasgow Caledonian Business School
• Director All Things in Moderation Ltd

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Is it all worth while?70 Nobel Laureatesimpact
of Internet over next 20 years

• 87 positive impact to improve education
• 91 improve educational opportunities
• 69 believe they could have done their work
  faster (medicine, physics, peace literature)
• www.cisco.com/nobel/survey

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Addressing the future of technology

• ...data processing is a
• fad that won't last out the year." Editor of
  business books Prentice Hall, 1957.
• Theres no reason for
• any individual to have a computer in their
  homes, Ken Olson, Chairman, Digital Corp. 1977
• 640K ought to be enough for anybody." Bill Gates,
  1981.

• this telephone has too many shortcomings to be
  seriously considered as a means of communication.
  Western Union memo 1876
• ...theres a world market for about 5 computers.
  Thomas Watson, Chairman IBM 1943.
• Computers in the future may weigh no more than
  1.5 tons." Popular Mechanics, 1949

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The 21st Century the discontinuities
body

• adoption of technology
• highly unpredictable

time
mind
real
technologies
Apples dont grow on trees Chips arent a high
fat food Gates dont open Windows dont offer a
better view
virtual
space
humans
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Whats the problem in Universities?

• Traditions of knowledge transmission
  acquisition are challenged
• neatly packaged client/customers/student needs
  do not present themselves.
• the use of technologies grows in a way that has
  little to do with demographics
• Terrific opportunities pass us by in a haze of
  commercialism..or a flash in the pan of new
  initiative exhaustion

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What technologyWhich direction?

• Commercial investment in technology likely to
  continue
• Virtual educational institutions consortiums
  in trouble
• Leaves way open for embedding technology in
  teaching

• Decisions are difficult- what technologies will
  sustain, be reliable, upgradable, adaptable,
  suitable, make a difference?

• We can be sure
• all university staff will need to be
• Flexible in their approach to teaching
• Able to work electronically with each other

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A solution ? Scenarios

• look at possibilities
• creatively explore uncertainties complexity
• undertake strategic conversations
• make choices
• prepare!

• These scenarios include role of research,
• technologies, teaching philosophies, assessment
  
• role of online teachers/trainers/academics
• relevance to higher education

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4 e-learning scenarios
Planet of Contenteous
Planet Instantia
Nomadict Planet
Planet of Cafélattia
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Planet of Contenteous
Choices based on media profiles online resource
availability league tables
Transmission model of teaching content rich Big
Brother learning Virtuality, simulations
Technology as a delivery system content
learning management systems, multi
media, Digital radio DVDs, digital cable
TV. standards
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Glamorous educational broadcasting?

• Targeting all adults
• Reach is the greatest of all technologies
• 250,000 rang for help after a single weekend of
  brief TV spots (but the educational provision
  needs to be on popular channels)
• BUT the industry faces major changes in ownership
  influence
• Media threatens traditional educational providers
• And its net-crazy

New communication bill in UK
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Contenteous
Assessment Diagnostic tests determine content
pathways reproduction critique frequent
automated testing sophisticated feedback
guidance
Technology very good navigation, multi media
capacity eye into reality simulations virtuality
asynchronicity synchronicity automatic
tracking testing extremely robust excellent
scheduling
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Planet of Contenteous
Economies of scale through reduced interaction
stand deliver
Teaching content experts build online libraries
resource pathways become e-lecturers captivate
big audiences (support of the elite few needs
high level of research)
stand deliver
content is king
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Contenteous
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Planet Instantia
Tick-tock
choice Just for me, just in time, just for
now, just enough
Computer based courses from desks learning
centres IT as tools learning objects rule! Speed
of mind absorption speed of technology
E-learning Continuous, applied, Flexible
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Learning Objects

• The technology delivered learning of tomorrow
  will be assembled, not authored from large
  reservoirs of content presented to the
  learnerand more emphasis will be on building
  knowledge bases that can be published on the
  fly Elliot Masie
• Learning objects may be constructed through
  combining several elements, such as HTML,
  graphics, audio, video, documents, Java, to
  provide interactivity
• Charles Jennings

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exchanging learning objects
Paulos students
Paulo Teaches computing
learning objects repository
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Franz Cross cultural marketing
Maria Systems analysis
learning objects repository
Report writing
Compare contrast
Compare contrast
Analysing data
Report development
Analysing data
Presenting inf
Equality diversity
Presenting inf
Understanding culture
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Planet Instantia
How sustainable?
Tick-tock
Technology available 24/7/52 sophisticated
metagged data bases easily manipulated highly
reliable and scalable quick easy customisation
assessment authenticity, tracking, links to
performance assessment submittable in different
media
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Planet Instantia
Tick-tock
Teaching support autonomous learning, available
24 hours a day, synchronously
asynchronously focus on skills development
adoption of in-house knowledge cultures
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Nomadict
Mobilised learning for the mobile society
Wearable, portable embedded
technologies PDAs, Palms tops, Tablet PCs
mobile phones with keyboards GPS, wireless
personal national international comms
networks biometrics provide security of identity
truly any time any place learning, learner
chooses style, focused learning components
interact with learners environments provide
pacing,
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About Mobile telephones A transformational
technology study 10th Nov 2002 (UK) Guardian ICM
opinion poll

• High ownership- all ages groups both sexes
• 40 over 65s have mobile, as many 45-55 aas
  teenagers
• Increased time communicating (men women)
• Class and wealth influence but still 51 of low
  income take yp high

• Innovation combination
• Phones gobbling up other products
• Cameras, diaries, calculators, internet, MP3
• 20 different products

Behaviours Changed the way people
communicate Saved lives Become style icons New
sub-strata of language
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Nomadict
Technology Universities server farms Halls of
residents become satellite stations no tolerance
for old style VLEs low cost streamed learning
Assessment small bites, highly
transferable mainly outcomes, projects student
designed assessments (with helpers) biometrics
provide security of identity
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Nomadict
Mobile, portfolio teaching work with varying
cultures traditions, create tiny chunks of
learning activities, relate to students without
meeting, promote student ownership of learning
process
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gps in the service of Higher Education
E- moderator
lecture hall 2010
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Nomadict
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Planet of Cafélattia
Whos in charge?
social context for learning, acquisition,
argument application, find interact with
like-minded others, free expression, intellectual
extension by dialogue reflection, professional
communities, sharing of tacit knowledge assessment
is negotiated knowledge construction
problem solving skills,
Developed Internet (beyond the
browser!) technologies as mediating devices, as
contexts community space, asychronous
synchronous groupware, clicks mortar, hi lo
bandwidth
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Planet of Cafélattia
Technology mediating device between people free
expression through text and voice sharing of
contexual tacit knowledge reflection
creativity tools group work space sophisticated
document sharing
assessment is negotiated knowledge
construction complex problem solving
skills, will professions merge?
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Planet of Cafélattia
teaching think global, local
action, Partnerships between teachers media
developers Mentoring and expert moderating, build
online Groups communities intelligent
agents, Lead information exchange knowledge
construction processes
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can caffelattia suceed?
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Low cost-teacher led eLearningusing E-tivities

• Structured participative group work online
• Motivating,engaging purposeful
• Based on interaction between learners/students
  active contribution
• Designed led by an teacher/e-moderator
• Usually asynchronous (i.e over time)
• Based on simple text based bulletin boards
• On or offsite, blended or online only
• One-off or built into a programme

Low cost
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Key features of e-tivities
Everything needed to take part in one message!

• 1. Illustrative title
• 2. Small piece of information, stimulus or
  challenge (the spark)
• 3. Online action which includes individual
  participants posting a response (the
  invitation)
• 4. Interactive or participative element- such as
  responding to the postings of others (the Action
  Interaction)
• 5. Elapsed time allowed, posting times required
• 6. Summary, feedback or critique from e-moderator

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Janison
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spark
invitation
interaction
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FirstClass
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Example Cafélattia course in 2002first two
hundred participants
Countries UK 50 Australia 56 S. America 32 Cont.
W Europe 24 N. America 16 Asia 14
Educational Sectors Universities
68 College/vocational 56 Professional networks
38 Corporate 26 Schools 12
Completion? Full (certificate)144 good
28 dropped out (typically 2-3 weeks in) 28
English as 1st language 156 English as
2nd language 44
Reasons for participation strategic 24 Skills 178
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Making a difference
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Make a distinction- find your niche- make a
difference

• Explore the scenarios disciplines, cultures,
  traditions
• Be clear about your own (learning teaching)
  objectives) and distinctiive markets

• Choose based on fit for purpose
• Learn by doing, share, collaborate

Guide the consequences Choose a scenarios
develop online teaching skills (e-moderating)
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Changing practice for qualityin Higher Education
HE staff as the Solution (not the problem)
professionalism
Hi tolerance
organisation restructure
control
Innovators Adopters (12)
exploration how why
mindset change (2)
teaching Practice/ discipline
funding/ resources
change agents
acceptance
mindsets change (1)
Scale up
operational changes
lo tolerance
implementaion
1 understanding 2 action
Later adopters
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Skills for university teachers in the knowledge
media age
Prerequisites! Flexibility towards online
teaching learning, Empathy with online
learners, Willingness to be trained developed
Develop fast! online communication group
skills, pacing use of time online, ability to
teach e-moderate cross-culturally value
diversity relate to learners without
meeting assess online
Train online to work online
train
develop
recruit
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University teachers become autotelic!

• An autotelic is someone good at translating
  threats into challenges.
• They constantly create focus, short-term goals
• Give close attention to the group they are
  working with.
• They visualise the groups success engage it in
  achieving it

create flow
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Imagine your own scenario?
To make a difference faster focus on the human
intervention not the technology
From Built to Last J. Collins J.I.
Porras HarperBusiness 1997
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4 e-learning scenarios
What Planet are you on? Are management and
academics on different planets? What about IT
professionals and lecturers? What about teachers
and technology providers?
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4 e-learning scenarios
How will you choose?

• The Web is not good as a broadcast medium
• People use the Web for self publishing and
  interaction
• Look at what your learners use for their everyday
  lives/work use for learning

• Learning happens with others
• If working alone, learners need strong
  motivation, participation, emotions and time
  management

some clues!
All the scenarios need E-moderators
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Time for challenge Questions Comments?
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More?
Thanks for your attention

• G.K.Salmon_at_open.ac.uk
• http//oubs.open.ac.uk/gilly
• http//oubs.open.ac.uk/e-moderating
• http//www.e-tivities.com