stuff

Purpos/ed 3×5

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For the Purpos/ed campaign a couple of weeks back I wrote 500 words on the purpose of education, which you can read here.

The campaign continues with the 3×5 campaign.

For mine I took a photograph of mine (less worried then about rights) that I had taken at Blaise Castle in Bristol.

Purpos/ed

For the words I chose a quote from Kevin McLauglin. To be honest there were lots of quotes I could have chosen and though some were already “taken” by others, in the end I chose Kevin’s words as I liked the inevitability that learners will learn somehow, but with the right guidance that learning can grow, like a tree hence the picture, and enable the learner to survive the storms and challeneges thrown against them. They can thrive whether it be hot or cold, wet or dry.

100 ways, vle

100 ways to use a VLE – #18 Reading a journal

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A journal, how on earth can you read a journal or magazine on the VLE?

A printed paper thing!

Well….

Of course we are talking about electronic journals, e-journals.

e-Journals are of course easy to access through publishers platforms, online collections or library catalogues. If you know which article or issue you are looking for then you should be able to find it…

Of course if you are researching a topic or subject than that might be a little more challenging. You might not even know which journal you should start your search at.

So how do you inform learners about where they should be looking or beginning to start searching?

Signposting or linking to specific journals or articles on the VLE is about increasing access to resources for learners.

This is not to say that learners should never start searching from scratch, but is this always necessary? Isn’t the learning process also about the subject sometimes in addition to the process. Reading lists of journals and journal articles are useful support tools for learners, by linking to the electronic versions and placing those links on the VLE, you can save learners time. This is time saved in both getting hold of those links (or typing them in) and the use of e-journals allows the learners to access the articles at a time and place to suit them too. Placing them on the VLE means they can refer back to them at a later date and also saves time for the practitioner or academic as the following year they can use the same list again with a new cohort of learners.

Open Access journals can also make this whole process even simpler in terms of authentication and access.

So with the preponderance of e-journals now available, it is possible to “read” a journal on the VLE.

vle

VLE evolving – DLE, ILE, VILE, IDLE, FIDDLE and PIDDLE

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The concept of the VLE is evolving or being replaced. It makes sense to some to rename the VLE to demonstrate how the VLE is evolving and how it is been used.

The Devolved Learning Environment DLE is a way of taking a VLE and devolving it to the learners who then have more control over the environment, how they use the environment and what they use the environment for. Devolving the learning environment empowers the learner and allows them to take more control over their learning within an institutionally provided learning environment. This is of course different to a PLE, a Personal Learning Environment would not be provided by the institution, whereas the DLE would be. In a VLE such as Moodle devolving the LE to a DLE can be done easily with roles. Moodle doesn’t at a basic level differentiate between users, differentiation can be accommodated with roles.

The Individualised Learning Environment or ILE is when the VLE evolves to meet individual needs, the problem with an institutional VLE is that a common format and process is used for all learners, which assumes that learners are all the same. By designing the institutional VLE to allow for individualisation, creating an ILE, then it creates a more personalised learning environment. There is a need to avoid using the word personalised, as this could cause confusion with the accepted PLE acronym. One option might be to call it a Personalised Individualised Learning Environment, or PILE. However there is a difference between personalised and individualised, so maybe a better acronym would be a IPLE, an Institutional Personalised Learning Environment, though I think there would still be confusion with the PLE.

The Virtualised Individualised Learning Environment VILE is a variation of the ILE. The ILE is dependent on the individual having an individualised learning environment, by

The Individualised Devolved Learning Environment, or IDLE, takes elements of the devolved learning environment and adds a level of individualisation to the institutionally provided devolved learning environment. This allows learners not only to be able to have more control over their learning, but can also create an individualised learning environment. A variation of this is to add extra features for individualisation and as a result we have the Finely Individualised Devolved Delivery Learning Environment FIDDLE.

Adding a level of personalisation to the IDLE gives us the Personalised Individualised Devolved Delivery Learning Environment, or the PIDDLE is taking the concept of both the individualised and devolved institutionally learning environment and adding a layer of personalisation. This creates a very different animal to the bland and vanilla institutional Virtual Learning Environment.

So is your VLE evolving into a PIDDLE?

web 2.0

Web 2.210.07⅝ SP1

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The first incarnation of the web as was used back in the 1990s is often referred to the web, the plain web. With the increase of social networking, user generated content and the Twitter in the last years, the term Web 2.0 has been used to describe how the web has evolved.

However the web has continued to evolve and in a similar way that we describe software the time has come to add a few numbers onto the end of the 2.

You will read about Web 3.0, but this would indicate a major shift change in how we use the web and to be honest Facebook isn’t some incredible seismic shift in how we use the web, it’s basically a cleaner better looking MySpace! Even though we all use Facebook, the fact that there are still people using MySpace (and even Friends Reunited, according to the e-mails I get from them) has Web 2.0 really evolved into 3.0? I think not.

Likewise though The Twitter is now five years old, the concept is still pretty much the same, make a posting of 140 characters and hope for the best that not only does it make it through to Twitter, but that The Twitter remains up long enough so that your 14 followers can read it.

If you think Twitter is a newcomer to the web, remember it is only one month younger than the other stalwart of Web 2.0 YouTube which is also only five years old.

Facebook is in fact older at seven year, but was only really open to everyone just five years ago…

So in the last five years, the key services that we have been using for social networking and user generated content haven’t really changed, so how on earth can we talk about Web 3.0 when actually very little is different now to what it was five years ago when all we talked about was Web 2.0.

Of course the key difference is the number of users using these services, but I do wonder if that should be a measure of the web? When Windows 95 became really popular, did Microsoft suddenly decide to change the name to Windows 96 or 97?

Success doesn’t define the evolvement of a numbering system.

However we have had a fair few changes in the web, so to leave it at Web 2.0 isn’t quite right. We have Foursquare for example, the stalking service that is akin to collecting Pokemon cards or Scout badges. Instagram, a way to share really bad photographs with other bad photographers. Audioboo, a way of sharing drunken conversations and ensuring you can let people know your home is empty.

So with these little improvements, I think we can say that Web 2.0 has evolved, but these are like security patches, updates, maybe even a service pack.

Web 2.0 has evolved, Web 2.0 is now Web 2.210.07⅝ SP1

app of the week, iphone

Phone – iPhone App of the Week

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Phone – iPhone App of the Week

This is a regular feature of the blog looking at various Apps available. Some of the apps will be useful for those involved in learning technologies, others will be useful in improving the way in which you work, whilst a few will be just plain fun! Some will be free, others will cost a little and one or two will be what some will think is quite expensive.

This week’s App is Phone.

To make a call on iPhone, tap a name or number. That’s it. You can tap to call from just about anywhere: a name in your contacts list, a number on a website or text message, even a phone number on a map listing.

Free

Sometimes you find an app that is both innovative and has a real impact. Though most people will get their apps from the App Store the iPhone comes with apps already installed. Some of these are useful such as the Calculator and YouTube and some which are less useful, Stocks and Weather.

One app that does come with the iPhone is quite revolutionary and enables something extraordinary to happen. That app is the Phone App.

Imagine if you can an app that allows you have a synchronous real time live conversation with another person, even when that person is not in the same room, even the same building, or even in the same country. Unlike other communication apps, this app doesn’t require the other person to have an iPhone, another mobile phone or even a computer. The app works even if you don’t have wifi or aren’t in a 3G area.

The process is that you, using a numeric keypad enter a number, this number usually identified to a person (but not always) allows you, using the Phone App, to create a unique secure connection that enables you to have a real time live conversation. These conversations can be as long as you like, as long as you have enough battery. The cost of these conversations is dependent on a plan you purchase from a service provider.

Not only that, but your iPhone has a unique number of its own, so that other people can create a connection, akin to calling across a room, to you, this calling though is not restricted by geography. It is possible to be “called” from anywhere in the world.

It’s not all good news though, I have found that the app can stop working and as a result you lose your conversation. It isn’t always possible to reconnect and continue your conversation. Interestingly the way in which you hold your iPhone can have an impact on how this app works!

As you may realise, the ability to have real time voice conversations has a lot of potential for learning, however you may think that any conversation would be restricted to just two people, but not so. It is possible to have more people in what is called a conference call, and this is provided within the App and as a result you have the ability to talk with up to five different people. The potential of discussions and seminars via the iPhone become a real possibility. Other learning ideas including talking to learners about progress on their course, attendance and other issues.

Yes, you can buy thousands of Apps in the iTunes Store, but this included free app is the only one that has the functionality to enable real time secure conversations without the constraints of geography, check it out.

100 ways, vle

100 ways to use a VLE – #101 as a PLE

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There has been a lot of discussion and debate over the years about the use of VLEs by learners in institutions. There are problems and issues in providing a standardised virtual learning environment to learners, who are all different and have a variety of needs.

The ability to create a personalised and individualised online learning environment is one of the strengths of the concept of the PLE that has been discussed at length at many different conferences (and even on this blog). One of the challenges though, for learners, in using a PLE is that it requires a level of commitment and skill by learners to create their PLE. Though many learners will have the skills and ability to do this, not all do. The institutional VLE is not a replacement for a PLE, and often will be part of a learner’s PLE.

One way that a VLE could be used as a PLE is to provide each learner with their own VLE that could form the basis of their individual PLE. Familiarity will be there if they have used the institutional VLE and the disadvantages of the standardised vanilla VLE can be avoided as each learner will be able to create an individualised, personalised virtual learning environment. The learner would be able to create areas (courses) to meet their needs and invite other learners to collaborate and share in these areas. Common content could be made available to learners to download and install in their own VLE.

Technically with virtualisation it would be very simple to provide learners with an individual VLE to be used as a PLE. In the past each individual VLE would need an individual server, virtualisation allows multiple servers to be hosted on a single server. Even cloud based services could be used removing the need to host the servers on site.

The individual VLE would not be used in isolation and other tools and services could be plugged into the VLE to support the learner concept of the unique PLE.

There are some challenges, administering a VLE, though simple, may not be in the capabilities of all learners. In these instances, learners may want to share a single VLE for their PLE rather than each have individual VLE. Groups of learners in a single cohort might also want to share. Even all learners in a single institution may decide that a single VLE meets their needs for a PLE rather than having a VLE or PLE each. This then allows the learners to focus on their learning rather than managing a learning environment.

Providing individual VLEs for learners to use as their PLEs can be a challenging process, from a technical, administrative and learning process; but may be the answer in meeting the needs of learners.

stuff

Purpos/ed

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So what is the purpose of education?

Well it’s all about control and power of course.

Not what I think it is about, but then again most educators probably think like me, however…

Most educational institutions will control education within their walls (and on the internet). They will set the parameters by which learners can learn within their four walls. Often these parameters will be set by government departments. Othertimes these constraints will be set by the institutions and by academics.

Governments fund education to control the population. To ensure that they behave according to societal norms and don’t “rock the boat”. This doesn’t always work, but does formal education cause governments to change, generally no.

Businesses want education to be about preparing people to work for them without complaint regardless of pay or working conditions. Create a workforce that will do their bidding.

Retailers and marketers want education to be about conformity, so that when we venture out we conform to an accepted norm. Not question what we are shown or see.

Of course the purpose of education should be about freedom and choice. A freedom to learn in order to free oneself from the shackles of your environment. Freedom to better oneself. Freedom to learn about new things and old things. Freedom to think.

Even most academics and practitioners would argue they see education as a way of freeing oneself, however they do this by laying down mechanisms, processes and protocols that control whoever enters education. Placing restrictions on what can be learnt, how it can be learnt and focus on assessment of learning. This is not something that is particular to any sector, but can be found in all sectors.

Of course with freedom comes responsibility and if we give learners to freedom to make choices about education, will they make educated and informed choices, or will they choose what they perceive to be the easy path, or the path of least resistance.

So are learners able to make these informed choices, rational decisions?

Many learners do and many learners will use educational institutions for education, learners will also make decisions about their education to use more informal routes to education, some of these will be semi-formalised, such as Open University modules, Adult Education and short courses at FE Colleges,

Some will be routes completely outside formal educational and will take place in local or online communities. Clubs, societies, online forums and mailing lists are all ways in which learners can access an education. They will not be looking at these as a route to a qualification. We as a society will not define these informal routes as education and often will not value this learning

Some learners won’t make informed choices, so do we say they must take part in a formal education?

So despite our best intentions to ensure education is about freedom and choice, this is what I believe education is about, the reality is that education is about control and power.

Find out more about Purpos/ed.

app of the week, google

Google Translate – iPhone App of the Week

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Google Translate – iPhone App of the Week

This is a regular feature of the blog looking at various Apps available. Some of the apps will be useful for those involved in learning technologies, others will be useful in improving the way in which you work, whilst a few will be just plain fun! Some will be free, others will cost a little and one or two will be what some will think is quite expensive.

This week’s App is Google Translate.

Translate words and phrases between more than 50 languages using Google Translate for iOS. For most languages, you can speak your phrases and hear the corresponding translations.

With Google Translate, you can:

* Translate text between 57 languages
* Translate by voice by speaking the text instead of typing it (15 languages)
* Listen to your translations spoken aloud (23 languages)
* Display translations in full-screen mode to make it easier for others to read
* Star your favourite translations for quick access, even when you’re offline
* Access your translation history, even when you’re offline
* Spell out the translation of non-Latin script languages (e.g. Chinese, Japanese, etc.) in Latin characters to read it phonetically (e.g. Pinyin, Romaji)
* View additional dictionary results for single words or short phrases

Translation between the following languages are supported:

Afrikaans, Albanian, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Arabic, Basque, Belarusian, Bulgarian, Catalan, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Filipino, Finnish, French, Galician, Georgian, German, Greek, Haitian Creole, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Indonesian, Italian, Irish, Japanese, Korean, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Malay, Maltese, Norwegian, Persian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swahili, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese, Welsh, Yiddish

Free

I am a regular uses of Google’s translation facilities on the web, a recent example was using it to translate this webpage that linked to one of my presentations and podcasts.

It’s never perfect, but it certainly makes it possible to get a gist of what is been written.

Google now have an iPhone App that allows the power of the translation on your phone.

You do need to have an internet connection as the way the app works is to take the text upload it to the cloud, translate it and then send the translation back to the phone. So there is no actual translation happening on the phone. The advantage of this is that the power required to do this, doesn’t need to be on the phone. A similar process is used by Dragon Dictation for their voice recognition app.

Google have another feature of the app and that is the ability to talk to the phone in one language, that gets translated and you can hear the translation. This is quite cool in that you talk to the phone and the phone talks back to you in a different language.

As with all such translation services they are not perfect, but to get the gist of what is been said, for that they work very well.

Get Google Translate in the App Store.

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