As a starting point for your investigation into the use of big datasets outside education, read at least two of the online stories listed below: Duhigg, (2012), How companies learn your secrets Netflix (2009), The Netflix prize rules Mangalindan (2012), Amazon’s recommendation secret. Now extend your reading by searching for “big data” (if you use Google, double…
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Write a short blog post suggesting one additional technology that is important for open education, either from the role of a learner or a provider. The technology can be one that has been significant, or one that you feel is going to become increasingly relevant. What you include as a technology can be quite broad:…
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What is your own experience and view? When I started teaching the focus was all on the technology. Teachers were being given macbook and iPads, classes were being fitted out with new computers there was no real budget if you justified a need for it you got it. As previously mentioned however people asked for…
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Take the description of the short course on digital skills that you developed in Week 8 and recast it, so that it adopts a highly connectivist approach. Or, if you prefer, you could take this ‘Open education’ block as an example and recast it in a more connectivist model, or another course you have familiarity…
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Read Weller (2011), A pedagogy of abundance. In the conclusion two questions are posed: ‘The issue for educators is twofold I would suggest: firstly how can they best take advantage of abundance in their own teaching practice, and secondly how do we best equip learners to make use of it?’ This article discusses the different…
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Part 1: Now you have a definition of PLN, the question you need to answer is: ‘Does this offer anything new?’ In terms of innovation, can we say a PLN is truly innovative, or merely a rebadging of existing practice? As with many new terms in educational technology, some people find a PLN usefully captures…
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Compare either DS106 or Connected Courses with offerings from Udacity, FutureLearn or Coursera. Connected courses was unfortunately not working at the time of doing this so I choose to look at DS106. I chose to compare it to Coursera as this is a platform I am already familiar with. For extra practice I also added…
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Briefly consider if the MOOC approach could be adopted in your own area of education or training. Post your thoughts in your blog and then read and comment on your peers’ postings. Working in FE I have been creating online digital content since 2011 through iTunes U and took my first MOOC (Google Power searching…
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This activity required me to read or watch either of the below sources and examine the benefits and drawbacks of big and little OER approaches. I initially decided to look at the slidecast but also ended up reading the chapter. Weller (2011b), Public engagement as collateral damage (chapter). Weller (2011a), Academic output as collateral damage (slidecast)
This activity requires us to read Wiley (2007), On the Sustainability of Open Educational Resource Initiatives in Higher Education and look at the three models of sustainability and then look at 4 platforms and determine which model they use asking the questions Was the sustainability model for each initiative apparent? Did Wiley’s models cover all approaches or did…
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