Business School E-learning Blog

The University of Hertfordshire’s Blended Learning Unit and the Higher

Education Academy, in association with the University of Calgary and

University of Queensland, are delighted to announce

The Fourth International Blended Learning Conference:

“Engaging Students in the Curriculum”

17-18 June 2009, de Havilland Campus, University of Hertfordshire,

Hatfield, UK

The aims of the conference are to explore the varied ways in which we

engage students in the curriculum.

This year the main keynote will be given by Prof. Randy Garrison,

Director of the Teaching and Learning Centre and a full professor in the

Faculty of Education at the University of Calgary. He is also the

co-author of “Blended Learning in Higher Education - Framework,

Principles and Guidelines”.

On Day One we will be linking up with colleagues in Canada to hear

presentations on their approach to blended learning curriculum design

and to share ideas.

Day Two will begin with a live link-up and a keynote presentation from

the University of Queensland.

Call for Papers, Case Studies and Posters

The conference committee invite the submission of contributions for the

Fourth International Blended Learning Conference. Contributions are

sought on a range of topics around engaging students in the curriculum.

These might include, but are not restricted to: curriculum design,

computer supported collaborative learning, computer aided assessment,

learning materials and learning objects, change management strategies

and institutional policies. We would particularly welcome submissions

from students telling us about their expectations and experiences.

Submissions fall into four categories:

1) Presentation - a 20-25 minute presentation at the conference.

Selection will be made from initial submission of an abstract. We

encourage you to submit a research paper of unpublished, original work

or a case study (2000 - 4000 words) before the conference. This will

undergo peer review to be included in the proceedings.

2) Discussion session - your work (research paper or case study plus

additional media if desired) will be made available to delegates prior

to the conference. The session will be a 5 minute introduction then a

discussion on your work. Selection will be made from initial submission

of an abstract. You will be required to submit a complete research paper

of unpublished, original work or a case study (2000 - 4000 words). This

will undergo peer review to be included in the proceedings.

3) Workshops - 1 hour workshop sessions. Selection will be made from

submission of an abstract summarising the objectives of the workshop and

the proposed activities.

4) Poster/ Virtual Poster - Selection will be made from initial

submission of an abstract. A research paper of unpublished, original

work or a case study (2000 - 4000 words) may then be submitted for peer

review to be included in the proceedings.

Abstract submission deadline Monday 19 January 2009

Visit www.herts.ac.uk/blu for more details

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Podcasting For Pedagogic Purposes

A HEA Special Interest Group
Lots of information on their wiki here:

http://podcastingforpp.pbwiki.com/

The Thames valley university podcast day started with a demonstration by Derek France (d.france@chester.ac.uk) about student experiences and podcasting.

Example One:
A pilot in the geography department where students had 5 minute maximum audio podcasts uploaded to the feedback area of their VLE. We can do same in weblearn.

He recommends: 2 minute generic audio clip (which each student would get) followed by 2 minutes of audio feedback which is ‘spliced’ under the generic material (more on technology later). Thus students get 2mins generic, 2 minutes specific then the mark and an invitation to come in for face-to-face meeting. Their trial with 200 students – only 4 didn’t listen to the audio file and all others really appreciated it. Possible issue: he marks using their standard marksheet, then uses this as a prompt for creating the audio – adds 2 minutes per script plus time to combine files (he reckons one evening as a practised user) and then uploading. 80% of students listened ff campus in their own time. Great for enhancing student experience….

New book – Derek wrote chp 5 and the link below will get to an example of different podcasts
Podcasting for Learning in Universities
http://www.atimod.com/podcasting/index.shtml

Example Two:

Students on a geography field trip creating their own podcast rather than write a report. Transformed student learning experience- most students didn’t need equipment, they had their own, but best investment was some £25.00 tripods to keep camera stable while filming. Similar scheme for group of students taking a migration module – they had a template of 10 slides for putting photos in, and created their own audiotape to tell the story of a group of migrants. Would work really well with Londonmet Tate Modern artgallery project.

Lots more information at www.impala.ac.uk Informal Mobile Podcasting And Learning Adaptation projectwesite
Projects and resources for podcasting are available here:

http://www2.le.ac.uk/projects/impala

Practical session led by Alan Carr (acarr@midchesh.ac.uk)
Website is here:
http://www.rsc-northwest.ac.uk/content/view/209/197/

he runs radio podcast station: www.darkhorseradio.com

led session on ‘how to’ podcast. Let us have fantastic CD with lots of resources on, including the free download from audacity (free software for podcasting) with accompanying .DLL file that is needed to make package run. Also copyrightfree music, handouts and lots more. Debbie Holley and Linda Johnson both have copies of the CD, as do the TLTC trainers, Mimi and Amanda.

Alan uses free server at http://www.podomatic.com/ - but it is San Francisco based and updates tend to be made at night over there – which is afternoon here, so beware if you plan a presention! http://www.libsyn.com/index is what he uses professionally, this costs around $10 a month and is more stable.

He recommends using a USB mike, and check it can automatically output mp3 files, this makes the job of editing and moving files much faster.

Using audacity – hints – save project! Then save final as either WAV file (original quality but big) or mp3, which is compressed.

Debbie and Linda plan to set up a working group to develop some pilots with Chris O’Reilly (one of the multimedia developers with expertise in the area) and Amanda and Mimi from TLTC. Please join us.

Debbie Holley
20/10/08

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http://blogs.londonmet.ac.uk/tel/

This blog charts TEL activity within London Met and alerts students and staff to developments locally, nationally and internationally that are relevant.

John Cook

E-Learning Project Leader

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Essay Writing Competition

TO ALL FIRST YEAR STUDENTS
The first week at University can mean many different things to different people and each student’s experience is unique. Why not capture your reflections on what you have experienced here at London Metropolitan University by entering an essay competition? You could win a gift voucher and have your essay published on the Write Now Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning website (http://www.writenow.ac.uk).

Three winners will each receive a gift voucher worth £100 and go on to participate in the cross-institutional competition with Liverpool Hope and Aston Universities, where one overall winner will receive a gift voucher of £200. Three runners up at London Met will receive £50 vouchers and have their essays published on the website.

WHAT IS THE TITLE? WHAT IS THE WORD LENGTH?
‘My first week at university’ Maximum number of words: 1,000

WHAT ARE THE JUDGING CRITERIA?
We are looking for a well written piece that shows originality and captures the student experience of the first week in a way that is interesting and communicates the essence of what it is like to be a student in those first few days.

HOW DO I ENTER MY ESSAY FOR THE COMPETION?
You will need to follow these instructions exactly:
1. Word process your essay and put the word count at the end.
2. Make sure you also include at the end of your essay:
a) Your full name, London Met ID number and your email address (the one you will check, whether personal or London Met);
b) The category of entry that describes you most closely (one category only): ‘residential’ if you are living in university accommodation, ‘non-residential’ if you are living in your own accommodation or ‘mature’ if you are over 25.
c) The following declaration, typed:
“I give the University permission to use anonymised quotes from my essay for publicity and to help improve the student induction experience. I am happy for my entire essay to be published with my name on the Write Now website if I am a winner or runner up.”
3. Enter your essay by sending it as a Word attachment via email to: writingcentre@londonmet.ac.uk.
Please write ESSAY COMPETITION in the subject line.

WHEN IS THE CLOSING DATE?
Friday 17th October at 6pm (end of week 3)

WHEN WILL I HEAR THE RESULTS?
The winners and runners up will be contacted by email and announced on the Writing Centre website (http://www.londonmet.ac.uk/writingcentre) on Monday, 3rd November. The entries will be judged by Dr Peter O’Neill, Writing Specialist at the London Met Writing Centre, Dr Kathy Harrington, Director of the Write Now CETL, and a Student Writing Mentor at the London Met Writing Centre.

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