how is your institution dealing with disruptive technologies? terry anderson, phd professor,...
TRANSCRIPT
How is your institution dealing with disruptive technologies?
Terry Anderson, PhDProfessor, Athabasca University
Athabasca University, Alberta, Canada
* Athabasca University
34,000 students, 700 courses
100% distance education
Graduate and Undergraduate programs
Master & Doctorate
Distance Education
Only USA Accredited University in Canada
*Athabasca University
* Athabasca University
Population density Canada - 3.36 people per sq km (35 million)Thailand - 118.43 people per sq km
(66 million)
Alberta average low temperaturein January -19 C.
• “Canada is a great country, much too cold for common sense, inhabited by compassionate and intelligent people with bad haircuts”. – Yann Martel, Life of Pi, 2002.
Our Values
• We can (and must) continuously improve the quality, effectiveness, appeal, cost and time efficiency of the learning experience.
• Student control and freedom is integral to 21st Century life-long education and learning.
• Current educational models do not scale for lifelong learning for all residents of our planet.
Our Values
• We can (and must) continuously improve the quality, effectiveness, appeal, cost and time efficiency of the learning experience.
• Student control and freedom is integral to 21st Century life-long education and learning.
• Current educational models do not scale for lifelong learning for all residents of our planet.
Three Educ. Technology Disruptions:
1. Content Crash2. MOOCs and OERs3. Connectivist learning – Network effects,
Persistence and participation beyond the course
Dealing with disruption
Posted on October 30, 2011 by G.E. Ross
Education was Based on Old Models of Scarcity
P. Banbury 2009
South African open Text project
"we are opening" in Nguni.
“innovative education project has enabled the government to print more than 2.4 -million free maths and science textbooks for a nominal cost.” SA Times, Mar. 2012
Siyavula | Technology-powered Learningwww.siyavula.com/
Are Open Texts Associated with Higher Marks?
“students in courses that used FWK textbooks tended to have significantly higher grades and lower failing and withdrawal rates than those in courses that did not use FWK texts.”
Feldstein, et al.(2012). Open textbooks and increased student access and outcomes. EURODL, 3. Retrieved from http://www.eurodl.org/?p=current&article=533.
We need more than objects, We need an OER culture
http://wiki.creativecommons.org/OER_Policy_Registry
http://www.poerup.info/
• MOOC History by Alys
From http://prezi.com/754uv3qpe_0k/mooc-history/ a MOOC History by Alyssa Martin
MOOC Completion Rates??
• Coursera Course Computational Investing, January 6, 2013 by Tucker Balch ,
• 53,265 enrolled • Completed the course:
– 4.8% of those who enrolled– 18% of those who took a quiz.– 39% of those who submitted the first project.
Familiar Access rationale
• "If we continue to keep the barrier to entry low, we’ll enable students to taste many many courses, and that may be a good thing for education.” Tucker Balch
MOOCs
• Free Access• Who benefits from their
attention?• Is partial
knowledge/learning bad?• The bar has been raised,
we have to add value beyond content or “subject matter content”
MOOCs Through the Lens ofOnline Learning Pedagogy
1. Behaviourist/Cognitive – Self Paced, Individual study
2. Social Constructivist – Groups, LMS
3. Connectivist – Networks and Collectives
Anderson, T., & Dron, J. (2011). Three generations of distance education pedagogy. IRRODL, 12(3), 80-97
xMOOC PedagogyGen. 1 - Cognitive Behaviourist
• Medium to high quality content– Screen captures, video lectures, page turners
• Machine scoring of quizzes and assignments• Optional testing (for fees) and emergent
accreditation– Badges, challenge exams for credit
Scaleable, Flexible!
MOOC Challenges to Traditional Schools
• Are our course really better than those from MIT?
• How interactive are our instructors?• Do we accredit seat time, courses or learning?• Will our students choose our fees over free?• Is American learning (knowledge) the same as
Thai learning?• Can we develop a business model from free
MOOCs?
2nd Generation - Constructivist
• Online Learning Current model – continued strong growth in US and globally
32% of higher education students now take at least one course online.
Constructivist Learning in Groups• Long history of research
and study• Established sets of tools
– Classrooms– Learning Management
Systems (LMS)– Synchronous (video &
net conferencing)– Email
• Need to develop face to face, mediated and blended group learning skills
Garrison, R., Anderson, T., & Archer, W. (2000). Critical thinking in text-based environment: Computer conferencing in higher education. The Internet and Higher Education, 2(2), 87-105.
Problems with Groups• Restrictions in time, space, pace, &
relationship - NOT OPEN• Often overly confined by leader expectation
and institutional curriculum control• Usually Isolated from the authentic world of
practice• “low tolerance of internal difference, sexist
and ethicized regulation, high demand for obedience to its norms and exclusionary practices.” Cousin & Deepwell 2005
• “Pathological politeness” and fear of debate• Group think (Baron, 2005)• Poor preparation for Lifelong Learning
beyond the course Paulsen (1993)Law of Cooperative Freedom
Relationships
NOT Scaleable
Networks add diversity to learning
“People who live in the intersection of social worlds are at higher risk of having good ideas” Burt, 2005, p. 90
If you want to learn how to fix a pipe, solve a partial differential equation, write software, you are seconds away from know-how via YouTube, Wikipedia and search engines. Access to technology and access to knowledge, however, isn’t enough. Learning is a social, active, and ongoing process.
What does a motivated group of self-learners need to know to agree on a subject or skill, find and qualify the best learning resources about that topic, select and use appropriate communication media to co-learn it?
http://peeragogy.org/
Walled Gardens (with windows)
• Connectivist learning thrives in safe learning spaces with windows allowing randomness, external participation and public presentation
The Landing Platform
44
1,686 plugins available, our installation using about 90Fairly strong development team, plotted roadmap
What is the Landing?
• Walled Garden with Windows• A private space for Athabasca
University – students, staff, alumni• A public place• A user controlled creative space• Boutique social network• Networking, blogging, photos,
microblogging, polls, calendars, groups and more
• A campus for Athabasca
48
Multiple rationales for This Connectivist Space
48
setnet
group
collective
CoursesCommitteesResearch groupsStudy groupsCentres and departments
Sustaining tiesMaking tiesAd hoc networksKnowledge diffusionSocial capitalSocial presence
CooperationSharingSerendipityInterest -orientationSense-makingCollective intelligenceIntentional discovery
• Bottom up control and Innovation
LMS
ELGGAndersen, Henriksen, Secher & Medaglia, (2007) "Costs of e-participation: the management challenges", Transforming Government: People, Process and Policy, 1(1)29 - 43
Theories of Disruptive Technologies
• Disruptive technologies:– Lead to profound change in
the business model, customer base or functionality of an existing organization
• Sustaining technology– Increases efficiency or
effectiveness of current product or process
Disruptive technologies
• “are typically:– cheaper, – simpler, – smaller, – more convenient to use" Clay Christensen (1997)– access to new users (social justice?)
• Classic examples are the micro computer, digital cameras or the innovations of the industrial model of distance education.
Impact of Disruptive Technologies
• Student’s access to content and learning activities no longer directly controlled by institution
• Very significant reductions in costs of some models of education
• Teacher role may be threatened• Opportunities for “de-skilling” and further
industrialization of academic role
Excerpts from The Innovator’s Solution – page 183-4 -- PROCESSES:
”
“… Innovating managers often try to start new-growth businesses using processes that were designed to make the mainstream business run effectively.. the new game begins before the old game ends.
Disruptive innovations typically take root at the low end of markets or in new planes of competition at a time when the core business still is performing at its peak -- when it would be crazy to revolutionize everything. It seems simpler to have one size-fits-all processes.
A context for successful disruption
• An enduring Culture of Innovation• Learning communities of practice within the
institution• New partnerships, exploiting net tools• Extensive use of OERs and cloud computing• Constant work on testing and accreditation
• Are you building learning networks???
E-learning Readiness of Thailand’s Universities (2011)
• A list of many “top down” recommendations!• “Faculty support is essential, especially in
nurturing grassroots ideas from the faculty rather than imposing a top-down pedagogical approach. Institutions must offer instructional technology support to help faculty so that they can focus on the instruction rather than the technology.” p. 130
E-learning Readiness of Thailand’s Universities. Comparing to the USA’s Cases Apitep Saekow and Dolly Samson International Journal of e-Education, e-Business, e-Management and e-Learning, 1(2), June, 2011
Learning as Dance (Anderson, 2008)
• Technology sets the beat and the timing.
• Pedagogy defines the moves.
• More flexible To control your networked destiny you must be more flexible than your environment.
The Law of Requisite Variety Ross Ashby (1956)
Terry Anderson [email protected]
Blog: terrya.edublogs.org
Your comments and questions most welcomed!
http://www.slideshare.net/terrya/thailand-2013-keynote