Tech for Learning: Groups that Learn

This is the third post in a series about moving the conversation around technology in education from Administration to Learning. You might want to read the first, Learning Pathways, second Video for Learning and maybe the initial post From Ed Tech to Learning. I’m going to raise some peoples hackles on this one because I …

My Kodak Moments

I started working on this post some time ago, and it’s sat languishing in my drafts folder. I decided I needed to finish it after reading Why Kodak Died and Fujifilm Thrived: A Tale of Two Film Companies. I loved the articles analysis which broke down the disruptive innovation narrative. At the heart of it, …

Earn or Learn, Eat or Read

Reason students leave school: time and money. For many it’s earn or learn, eat or read... today’s system is not designed for today’s students. #asugsv2018 https://twitter.com/DesieLiz/status/986281713453056000/photo/1 https://twitter.com/DesieLiz/status/986281713453056000 This tweet hit my timeline this morning as I sipped my coffee. It stuck in my craw. The debate around the education system doesn't seem particularly fruitful, instead …

Students & The Cost of Higher Education

The news of the government announcing an end to the demand driven higher education system shouldn’t come as a surprise. For one, this government’s oligarchy driven ideology likes to veil their policies in the concept of the “free-market”, but in reality they are anything but. This is a party based around favours for the rich, …

Ed-Tech as a Discipline

This post has spiralled slightly out of control. Initially it was just a couple of loosely connected ideas that I jotted down. Then I dug up an old half-written blog post. Then I went for a walk on yet another cold wet day and started to think more deeply about this and it turned into …

Leadership Outside the Hierarchy

This is the fouth year I've been invited to participate in the CSU Think Piece project. The idea here is to put forward a brief presentation on the challenges and opportunities of learning and teaching at CSU to help stimulate an ongoing and open dialogue. This years theme is "Leadership for Innovation in Learning and …

Administrivia and APIs

It was great to spend time talking with students at the #IndieEdTech/API Conversation a couple of weeks ago. Listening to their voices is something I need to make sure is a bigger part of what I do. It was both refreshing and insightful... And slightly concerning. The concerns raised by students in various groups during …

Does it Scale?

"Yeah, but does it scale?" This question seems to have become the catch cry of today's education circles. From politicians to presidents, tech pundits to tech critics, teachers to theorists1 we all seem to be concerned with scale. But what are we really talking about when we discuss scale? What does the idea of scale …

The Technopédagogue

Occasionally I like to trawl through the stats on my blog - seeing where people come from and how they find this sight. I’m still somewhat astounded by the global audience this blog gets, so am always keen to find out how people might have arrived here. It was on one of these occasions I …

Embedding Activity in Online Learning

This is the second post that shares a theme and discuss ideas that relate to agency and autonomy in education. The first was Learning On Rails. So for a long time I've been a proponent of an active approach to online learning. At the same time I’ve never really articulated what that means I suppose …