The Conversation | 7 March 2014 ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Virtual communities can provide an alternative to the on-campus experience but, as yet, there is little evidence to suggest that virtual engagement with peers and with content matter experts can provide the same benefits as being immersed in the intellectual culture on campus, writes Jason Lodge of Griffith University. And do read this related essay by Kate Bowles on the creation of the space - or part of it, anyway - that the University of Wollongong occupies - For Leon Fuller. ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Much hype and discussion has surrounded the evolution of online … [Read more...]
The Scan # 145 6 January 2014
07/01/2014 by
Summer Edition _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Extremism risks uni reputation : Pyne Academic extremism risks damaging the standing of Australia's universities, says education minister Christopher Pyne. 6 January 2014 | Pyne's comments come in the wake of the controversy over the support for the anti-Israel boycott, divestment and sanctions movement by Sydney University's Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies and that a Sydney University senior lecturer was part of a WikiLeaks Party delegation granted an audience with Syrian dictator … [Read more...]
MOOCs as a form of furtive learning
03/01/2014 by
The Scan has tended to ignore MOOCs apart from "big" developments - Australian universities joining up with MOOC platforms (Coursera, edX) or Australian universities setting up their own platforms (Deakin, UNE, OUA). One of our most visited posts ever (from 2012) is UNSW launches a MOOC program. A search of our posts still reveals a lot of posts - dozens???? We posted something for The Summer Edition from the Christian Science Monitor - Are MOOCs making education a monoculture? - which has attracted an interesting amount of interest. We hope the CSM benefits - it's a quality media outlet. We'll do somewhat more on MOOCs in future - there's a lot of interest ...a little bit more than we … [Read more...]
Bob Smith’s secret
02/01/2014 by
2 January 2014 ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Online classes see cheating go high-tech. Tech-savvy students are finding ways to cheat that let them ace online courses with minimal effort, in ways that are difficult to detect, reports The Chronicle of Higher Education. ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................... "Bob … [Read more...]
Are MOOCs making education a monoculture?
02/01/2014 by
2 January 2014 .......................................................................................................................................................................................... The rise of Massive Open Online Courses is presenting higher education with a powerful challenge. Access to great teachers will help millions. But will MOOCs cause a massive institutional shakeout as well, asks John Yemma of The Christian Science Monitor? .......................................................................................................................................................................................... A tree farm produces a monoculture you can count … [Read more...]
The Scan’s most viewed posts 2013
15/12/2013 by
15 December 2013 In 2013, over 700 items were posted on The Scan (down from about 900 in 2012). There were some surprises. The short obituary on Peter Redlich attracted a surprising number of views because he died suddenly (although he'd been ill for some time), being Jewish, he was buried within 24 hours and a full obituary wasn't published for some weeks, so as word spread, people ended up at The Scan via search engines. An increasing amount of traffic comes to The Scan by way of search engines: The Scan "archive" of items is now approaching 2000 (it totals more than posts of over 1600 because a post may contain several items). The Scan of 22 March 2012 is a perennial … [Read more...]
The Scan | #143 | 11 November 2013
11/11/2013 by
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Typhoon Haiyan slams the PhilippinesSuper Typhoon Haiyan, one of the most powerful on record, destroyed thousands of homes as it tracked across central Philippines. Winds of more than 300km/h, flash flooding and landslides have left families without shelter, food and water. Thousands of people are feared dead. Red Cross staff and volunteers are on the ground in the disaster-affected communities, helping people evacuate and providing emergency first aid and relief supplies, such as food, water and … [Read more...]
Open2Study reaches 100,000 students
11/11/2013 by
Open2Study Media | 28 October 2013 In just six months, Open Universities Australia has reached 100,000 enrolments in its free online learning platform with 53,000 students from more than 180 countries undertaking one or more of its massive open online courses, or MOOCs. Open2Study began by offering 10 free subjects in April, with each taking four weeks to complete. The platform currently offers 32 courses with Principles of Project Management, Food, Nutrition & Your Health, Writing for the Web, User Experience for the Web and Strategic Management attracting the highest enrolments. With new subjects added almost every month, the Open2Study team expects to have up to 50 … [Read more...]
The debate we have yet to have
17/10/2013 by
Regulation of what and why? The topic of this series of annual forums, governance and regulation, begs the questions: of what and why? When the ‘what’ refers to individual institutions the answers relate primarily to university mission (purpose, direction and goal focus) and self-governance at various levels from the Council or Senate as the governing body (including Finance Committee), the Executive as the strategic managing body, Academic Board as the internal quality assurance entity, and Faculties and Centres, Business units and Administrative services, including their policies and procedures for self-regulating and monitoring, and for external reporting on capacity, needs and … [Read more...]
The Australian Higher Education Supplement 18 September 2013
18/09/2013 by
This is The Australian‘s own summary of lead items in its online edition. As this is a subscription service, you or your organisation will need to have a subscription to The Australian to view the full article. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Coalition spreads workload John Ross TONY Abbott has structured his government for a hands-off approach to tertiary education and research. Student protest over Taib plaza Kylar Loussikian STUDENTS at the University of Adelaide will agitate for the renaming of a plaza that honours one of Malaysia's most … [Read more...]