http://TerryWassall.jiscinvolve.org A Blended Learning Project Blog Sat, 20 Mar 2010 18:20:55 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=wordpress-mu-1.2.5 http://TerryWassall.jiscinvolve.org/2008/12/12/reactions-to-on-line-higher-education-learning/#comment-4 Terry Wassall Sun, 21 Dec 2008 14:32:00 +0000 http://TerryWassall.jiscinvolve.org/2008/12/12/reactions-to-on-line-higher-education-learning/#comment-4 Hi Sarah. I agree with the point you make about developing exemplars at the grass roots level. To the extent exemplars are emerging it is mainly within individual institutions and this is likely to continue. If so, what is needed is more efficient methods of communicating these and enabling take up in other institutions. JISC has an established role facilitating this already. As far as multi-disciplinary programmes are concerned these still are largely hosted and delivered by single institutions. However, several of the reports seem to be encouraging partnerships between HEIs to povide transnational programmes to, one assumes, dispersed international students. This adds another layer of logistical complexity to the notion of centres of expertise although these were characterised as clusters of key instititions with expertise in educational technology and e-pedagogy rather than necessarily subject specific (I may have missed something here!). It seems that partnerships, intra- and inter-national, to deliver multi-disciplinary degrees will have some cognitive overlap and may well be strategically attracted to one another because they are similarly endowed with e-learning expertises. Or there may be a major/minor partnership where an institution's home degree programme taught on-campus is supplemented by a number of distance taught modules from a partner insitution who may have more e-learning expertise. I think we are only just beginning to see what the possibilies would be if there is sufficient investment in e-learning infrastructure, pedagogy and staff development. Hi Sarah. I agree with the point you make about developing exemplars at the grass roots level. To the extent exemplars are emerging it is mainly within individual institutions and this is likely to continue. If so, what is needed is more efficient methods of communicating these and enabling take up in other institutions. JISC has an established role facilitating this already. As far as multi-disciplinary programmes are concerned these still are largely hosted and delivered by single institutions. However, several of the reports seem to be encouraging partnerships between HEIs to povide transnational programmes to, one assumes, dispersed international students. This adds another layer of logistical complexity to the notion of centres of expertise although these were characterised as clusters of key instititions with expertise in educational technology and e-pedagogy rather than necessarily subject specific (I may have missed something here!). It seems that partnerships, intra- and inter-national, to deliver multi-disciplinary degrees will have some cognitive overlap and may well be strategically attracted to one another because they are similarly endowed with e-learning expertises. Or there may be a major/minor partnership where an institution’s home degree programme taught on-campus is supplemented by a number of distance taught modules from a partner insitution who may have more e-learning expertise. I think we are only just beginning to see what the possibilies would be if there is sufficient investment in e-learning infrastructure, pedagogy and staff development.

]]> http://TerryWassall.jiscinvolve.org/2008/12/12/reactions-to-on-line-higher-education-learning/#comment-3 Sarah Bartlett Wed, 17 Dec 2008 16:02:40 +0000 http://TerryWassall.jiscinvolve.org/2008/12/12/reactions-to-on-line-higher-education-learning/#comment-3 Terry, Thanks for the mention - I appreciate it. The overarching point I was making in my blog is that we look to JISC to provide technological leadership at the ideas level, and then to find existing exemplars to fund and generally encourage at the grass roots level. To me, this is the only sustainable way forward. One related question that's occurred to me since I wrote that blog entry is how a "subject centre of expertise" approach fits in the context of an increasingly multi-disciplinary paradigm. Sarah Terry, Thanks for the mention - I appreciate it. The overarching point I was making in my blog is that we look to JISC to provide technological leadership at the ideas level, and then to find existing exemplars to fund and generally encourage at the grass roots level. To me, this is the only sustainable way forward.
One related question that’s occurred to me since I wrote that blog entry is how a “subject centre of expertise” approach fits in the context of an increasingly multi-disciplinary paradigm.
Sarah

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