Hi Janet,

Thanks for taking the time to run this event with colleagues in e/merge Africa! Having had the advantage of reading much of an advance copy of your new book I think we are all in for a treat today and in any ensuing discussion.

Thanks Jennifer, I think that large parts of this vision have been realised in particular the way that the discoverability, dissemination and reuse of OER assumes the availability of a wide range of digital technologies which are becoming more available across the world. For me the real challenges are reuse across context and making the shift from consumers of OER to producers of OER.

I am the convenor of the e/merge Africa network and an educational technologist in the Centre for Innovation in Learning and Teaching at University of Cape Town. Lots of experiences with OER including collaboration in the design and development of course materials and guidance to leaders of a course in online facilitation as an OER.

Thanks Janet,

Can you mention the preferential price for which the course will be available to e/merge Africa members?

Hi Janet, I’m so glad that this seminar has started. I’m in the late stages of a PhD which requires me to publish articles as I go and then bring them together with an overview/ kappa chapter in a book for submission. Ending is taking longer than planned (maybe its often like this) and my publication opportunities are a bit constrained by a preference for long form articles and the sheer nicheness of my focus on researching design issues of online conferences. This counts out the proprietary journals which mostly focus on shorter articles and also some edtech journals which are focused on the latest technologies. In general I’ll take what I can get from good, peer reviewed online journals but its highly unlikely that I will get any of the articles from my PhD into one of the limited number of high prestige journals that bring in more subsidy funding from the South African Department of Higher Education and Training.

What struck me during the webinar was the repeated references by Rob in particular to the difference between good and bad ID. This could imply that the differences between ID models and the range of ways that they are applied are not only contextual but could also result from ideological choices relating to the perceived knowledge differentials and power dynamics between educators and students as well as between students.

I’m curious about what happens to ID
– as the scope of intentional learning expands to include unintentional learning driven by students
– in peer learning contexts
– in the MOOC space where a very low percentage of students are expected to finish a course

Hi Tonia,

Thanks to you and Rob for offering this online seminar to e/merge Africa.

Your question about the definition of instructional design is perhaps more complex in many places outside the USA. The language of “instructional design: seems to have currency in most places where people are talking about the design of online and hybrid/blended courses and learning activities. Then we have a systematic process for design of online and hybrid/blended courses and learning activities. Somehow I don’t associate the term ID with the design of purely face to face processes…

At the same time many of us outside of the USA are more accustomed to the language of various learning design models which put far more overt emphasis on the learning than the teaching. From this place I have an allergic reaction to the term “instructional design” because it seems to imply that its all about teaching for predetermined learning outcomes. I’m here to find out more about the scope for different approaches within the ID paradigm so I’m putting my assumptions/ prejudices on the shelf 😉

Hi Jerome, Peter and Kolawole,

So many reasons here why online courses might fail – and most of these would be predictable to anyone with basic experience of online teaching and learning. Are the universities which go online without basic requirements in place just badly advised/ unaware of what is needed? Is there some level of fantasy where sensible, reality based planning is required?

Hi Jerome,

Thanks for kicking this off 🙂

I’m curious about what it would mean to say that an online course has failed eg
– very few people want to take the course?
– most participants drop out?
– nothing/ very little is learnt?
– very low completion/ pass rate?

Any thoughts from anyone in the seminar?

Hi Jerome, I am thinking about your question: “what can we realistically do about it?”. The reasons why the actual workload fills more than the standard working day are likely to be deeply rooted in the ways our societies and economies work. This means that its not so easy to find solutions as individuals besides opting out or working less and getting paid less. Perhaps a role here for strong unions?

Hi Laura, as it happens I have had the good fortune to work over several years in units with a strong commitment to ensuring that their practices, products and research findings are as widely and openly disseminated as possible. My personal experiences of open access publishing include publishing special issues in the International Journal of Education and Development using Information and Communication Technology (IJEDICT) and the African Journal of Information Systems (AJIS). I have also recently published an article in IJEDICT. I have only had positive experiences of these high quality journals and their very thorough and effective editors and reviewers.

[Tony]

Please share one of your hot questions about open access publishing.

• This reply was modified 7 years ago by Tony.

Hi Mohamed, thanks for asking about ” the methodology and instruments to develop quality for e-learning”. From the limited reading I have been doing it would seem that there are lots of different methodologies and instruments. Perhaps there isn’t one combination of methodology and instruments/s that will be right for all our contexts and projects… Any thoughts from others here?

Hi Patrick, good to meet you here. Can you say anything more about why a seminar about MOOCs matters to you?

Hi all, its great to be at the start of another online seminar by the UCT MOOC team! I’m interested in MOOCs for several reasons including:
1) Using MOOCs for my own professional development
2) Figuring out what it takes to be consistently successful in completing MOOCs – especially since I finally finished a MOOC earlier this year in about my fourth attempt at a MOOC.
3) Working out how to use MOOCs both by themselves and in wrapped format as part of a professional development programme.
4) Using MOOCs to learn more generic lessons about the design of blended and online courses.