Category: Events and Awards

   CCBY 2.0 Luke Wrobelwski

Parallel session 1:  and University supported mobile apps and Civil Engineering case study

This strand considered University supported apps as well as a case study from Henny Mills in Civil Engineering. Henny explained how Civil Engineering students are provided with an android tablets and the resulting opportunities and challenges this presents.

NUTELA-Mobile (presentation as pdf)

Parallel session 2: App swap

In this session, we shared apps used by participants in learning and teaching. See separate App Swap blog

We also saw the VEO (Video Enhanced Observation) app created in the School of ECLS aiming to facilitate better peer review of teaching and potentially other collaborative and group activity. Many thanks to Jon Haines and Paul Miller for this demonstration.

We were very lucky to receive a presentation form Audrey Waters. On her blog, Audrey describes herself as “… an education writer, a recovering academic, a serial dropout, a rabble-rouser, and ed-tech’s Cassandra”.

The presentation focused on the role of virtual learning environments in shaping pedagogy, and the need to break down and open up the walls that such environments have built up.

Link to slides and audio of the talk (Recap)

Audrey’s web pages

This practice based workshop was the first of four that is focused on helping you improve your teaching practice with hands on support.

We aimed to help attendees develop skills in the following three areas:

Pre-production: idea generation, storyboarding, resources and time planning

Pre-production and storyboard slides (pdf)

 Storyboard template (PDF)

See also: JISC Digital Media InfoKit on pre-production

Production: camera work and techniques (indoor and location shooting)

Many thanks to  Hugh Kelly of Swingbridge Media for stepping in at the last minute and expertly facilitating this session with really good feedback!

See also: JISC Digital Media InfoKit on production

Post-production: editing techniques, software and titles.

See JISC Digital Media Guide: Free software 

We are very lucky to have an excellent video production team at the University. see Digital Media Team: who we are and what we do (pdf file) and their web pages for more information.

Feedback from the session:

I feel a bit more confident using video. Plus, it will allow me to make more informed decisions about how to use video in teaching. I would NEVER have been brave enough to even open the video editing software- wouldn’t have know where to look. I now plan on giving both the shooting and editing of video a try.

 

…the fact that the Uni is supporting an initiative like this is phenomenal. This is one of the few times I have felt that what I need as an academic is being listened to and addressed. Great session and I look forward to more of them.

The presentations made by the three speakers during the UNITE ‘What are MOOCs?’ Day are now available to watch online:  Suzanne Hardy’s presentation is open for anyone to view. Sian Bayne and Sheila MacNeill’s presentations are only available to Newcastle Staff and when prompted, staff should choose ‘Campus’ from the drop down list and then use their usual University user ‘id’ and ‘password’ to log in.

Sheila MacNeill – “So what are MOOCs? Histories, Pedagogies, Myths and the Media”

Sian Bayne – “Why should we consider MOOCs? A University Perspective”

Suzanne Hardy – “What is it actually like to do a MOOC? A Student Perspective“

Venue: Bamburgh Room, King’s Road Centre: Newcastle University

Massive Open Online Courses are an exciting recent development with great potential to change Higher Education. Staff with an interest in Distance and eLearning are invited to this UNITE event. The keynote speaker will be Sian Bayne, Associate Dean for Digital Scholarship at Edinburgh University.

To reserve your place, please complete our booking form.
Contact for queries:
Mike Cameron
Carol Summerside

Event Outline

10.00 – 10.15 Tea/ Coffee

10.15 – 10.30 Introduction – The Digital Campus, MOOCs and the current ‘state of play‘ Professor Tony Stevenson and – Pro-Vice Chancellor – Planning and Resources

10.30 – 11.15 So what are MOOCs? Histories, Pedagogies, Myths & the Media – Sheila MacNeill, Assistant Director, JISC CETIS, University of Strathclyde

11.15 – 12.00 Why should we consider MOOCs: A University Perspective?
Sian Bayne: Edinburgh University: E-Learning & Digital Cultures

 12.00 – 12.45 –  LUNCH BREAK During which the attendees can post questions for the panel session at 1:45

12.45 – 1.30 What is it actually like to do a MOOC: A Student Perspective?
Suzanne Hardy (student on E-Learning & Digital Cultures at Edinburgh University)

1.30 – 1.45 Refreshments

1.45 – 2.30   The future of MOOCS/ E-Learning Panel Discussion
‘Where do we go next?’  Participants:  Tony Stevenson, Dave Wolfendale, Sian Bayne, Suzanne Hardy & Shelia MacNeill. Chaired by Iain Wheeldon

2.30-2.45 What Next: Wrap Up

Sir Michael Barber, chief education adviser for Pearson, says online courses will be a “threat and opportunity” for the UK’s universities. Barber’s recent report ‘An Avalanche is coming’ is now available on line:

An avalanche is coming: Higher education and the revolution ahead Report (Michael Barber);

http://www.ippr.org/publication/55/10432/an-avalanche-is-coming-higher-education-and-the-revolution-ahead

BBC report on Barber’s Report;

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-21670959

Below are a few links to interesting blogs and relevant current articles for those attending The MOOCs event this Friday.

If you would like me to add any links/ promote interesting articles etc. then email me.

*Audrey Watters: The Year of The MOOC blog post
http://hackeducation.com/2012/12/03/top-ed-tech-trends-of-2012-moocs/

*Shelia MacNeill: Utopia, Dystopia, Technology Education & MOOCs
http://blogs.cetis.ac.uk/sheilamacneill/2013/02/01/utopia-dystopia-technology-education-and-moocs/

*Prime Minister welcomes Futurelearn expansion as British Library and five universities join http://futurelearn.com/news/prime-minister-welcomes-futurelearn-expansion-as-british-library-and-five-universities-join/

*Online University Giant Gets Bigger:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-21519876

• Sian Bayne Senior Lecturer Education, Community and Society (ECS)
• Suzanne Hardy QuiLT, Newcastle University
• Shelia Macneill Assistant Director, JISC CETIS, University of Strathclyde
• Tony Stevenson Pro-Vice Chancellor –Planning & Resources, Newcastle University
• Iain Wheeldon (Panel Chair), Senior Teaching Fellow, Chair of UNITE, Newcastle University
• Dave Wolfendale Assistant Director Teaching, Learning & Research, Newcastle University