Learning communities

Training and presentation FAIL video

I’ve been running a lot of (Moodle) training recently, and putting a lot of effort into planning. I’ve tried to make the training relevant and interesting for the different audiences, to include opportunities for feedback. I’ve built in practical hands-on sections, and the opportunity to ask questions, even though the training for Moodle is normally [...]

This time of year on Learning Communities

While I am blogging more often these days at Learning Technology Blog (from University of Nottingham Learning Technology Section) I’m always intrigued to find out what was on my mind at this time in previous years. Friends on Facebook – fake contacts? I and others were concerned in 2010 with whether or not Facebook was a worthwhile [...]

MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) on Change: Education, Learning, and Technology

I’ve signed up for the MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) on Change: Education, Learning, and Technology change.mooc.ca. I’ve tried these courses before and (inevitably?) dropped out due to pressure of time. I plan this time to participate at a level which matches my schedule, so that I dip in and do as much as [...]

Living by Morris

When you move on to a new phase of your life it’s time for a good clear-out. We are becoming empty nesters. For longer and longer periods our children are no longer at home, and it’s time to retrench. We’ve already re-modelled the living room and bought furniture I absolutely love. Our offspring [...]

Painted caves and fingerless hands

There’s a theory that by experiencing and reading widely, particularly outside one’s own field, one can be inspired by ideas from wildly different domains and encourage innovation and problem-solving. So I like to remain open to new ideas and concepts and sometimes actively seek them. Or at least, that’s the excuse I make when I [...]

Universities on Twitter, online and lecture capture

I do most of my blogging now at the University of Nottingham’s Learning Technology Section blog Here are some highlights of my posts in June. Twitter in Universities: How much use is an official University Twitter account? Dropbox security breach illustrates dangers of the cloud How online learning is revolutionising education: a thought-provoking infographic Maximising Online Resource Effectiveness Invitation [...]

Video recording conferences with the Kodak Zi8

I don’t have a lot of time to blog, and it gets difficult to maintain two blogs, so most of my recent blogging can be found at the University of Nottingham’s Learning Technology Section blog My favourite post in May was Video recording conferences with the Kodak Zi8 in which I review the mini [...]

Passwords, Moodle and sacred videos

I’m the main blogger at the University of Nottingham’s Learning Technology Section blog so you’ll find more of my blog posts there than at Learning Communities at the moment. Some of my April posts have been: Why I like Moodle Spirituality, syrup & sacred calendars Creating passwords and security questions Open Nottingham Seminar: First Thoughts Creating [...]

Epic failures in vision

Epic failures in vision happen to the most sage people sometimes… Thomas Watson, "The world will never need any more than about 5 computers." Western Union, "The telephone has too many shortcomings to make it a useful tool for communications." Marshall Foche "Airplanes are interesting, but of no real military value." Ken Olsen "There is no reason [...]

Let’s change education with video: The Khan Academy on TED

TED talks are always worth watching, so it’s difficult to recommend any particular one. However, if you’re interested in video in education, though, take a look at Salman Khan’s TED Talk