Virtual Reality and education: some thoughts
Tony Bates, online learning & distance education resources, 2017/07/28
Tony Bates weighs in with some thoughts on virtual reality (VR) after a Vancouver VR Community event at Mobify‘s headquarters in downtown Vancouver. "VR is not just a fad that will disappear," he says. "There are already a large number of commercial applications, mainly in entertainment and public relations, but also increasingly for specific areas of training." True, but VR doesn't apply everywhere. "Most suitable educational applications are likely to be where the cost of alternative or traditional ways of learning are too expensive or too dangerous," he writes. He also argues thagt educational intent must be built-in. "VR may often need to be combined with simulation design and quality media production to be educationally effective." This pushes up the cost, again limiting the applications of VR.
AltSpaceVR Closes – What does it Mean for Social VR?
Emory Craig, Digital Bodies, 2017/07/28
I think the main takeaway here is that multi-user social virtual reality (Social VR) is hard, and it can be expensive. I don't think this is the end for the genre, as the possibilities are too tantalizing. "AltSpaceVR was a sandbox that showed the potential of social VR. We learned a lot about how others behave in VR, and yes, more than a little about ourselves. We saw the promise of their Frontrow feature – how it could transform the virtual into an experience that was incredibly personal. The potential for education and entertainment was crystal clear."
The NGDLE's Relevance to Community and Technical Colleges
Paul Czarapata, Lisa Jones, EDUCAUSE Review, 2017/07/28
More on the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative report on the Next Generation Digital Learning Environment (NGDLE). The argument is that, rather than serving simply as a content repository like the LMS, the NGDLE "focuses on personalization, tool integration, and content exchange, thereby serving as a launch pad for new learning experiences." What's key to NGDLE is interoperability. In the traditional LMS, "Although some existing integrations are standards-based and easier to maintain — examples here include LTI and Common Cartridge, both from the IMS Global Learning Consortium — many are proprietary, single-use integrations." Tio me, all this sounds a lot like the discussions of the personal learning environment (PLE) over the last ten years, but without the personal.
Five Key Questions About the State of Online Learning
Contact North, TeachOnline.ca, 2017/07/28
The questions, with answers:
- Is Online Learning Growing or Has It Reached a Plateau? Yes, and no.
- What are some of the biggest gains in online learning since 2010? Five gains are listed.
- Do we still have issues with quality in online learning? Of course we do. Some examples are listed.
- Where is technology taking online learning? AI, sims, OER.
- If you were to highlight one key feature of learning in the future, what would it be? Anytime, anywhere assessment of competencies and capabilities.
Ghost 1.0
John O'Nolan, Ghost Blog, 2017/07/28
Ghost is a new open source content editing and blogging application. After four years of development, version 1.0 is a major release, "a tremendous upgrade to that experience, with a cleaner design, a new toolbar, support for Markdown tables, CommonMark, Github-flavoured Markdown and multiple view options depending on whether you prefer a focused single column or a side-by-side preview." More, Ghost allows authors to embed various content types in their posts, a feature I expect will only be expanded over time.
Practical User Research: Creating a Culture of Learning in Large Organizations
Sam Moore, A List Apart, 2017/07/27
What I like about this article is that it merges the idea of learning and research. It's set in a corporate environment, but the commentary could apply to anyone. The idea here is that companies need to be constantly learning about customer needs and how to provide for them, but it's a challenge to build this need into a learning cultujre. The bulk of the post addresses how to do that. But my takeaway is that when the information environment is rapidly changing, as it is today, the structure and methods of learning and reserach are essentially the same. You can't, for example, merely provide a series of already-solved problems when the problems are still new and unsolved. You have to give people tools and methods to approach these problems anew. Learning isn't about 'knowing the solutions', it's about 'how to find solutions'. Image: Management Primciples.
How And Why To Keep A “Commonplace Book”
Ryan Holiday, Thought Catalog, 2017/07/27
According to Ryan Holiday, "A commonplace book is a central resource or depository for ideas, quotes, anecdotes, observations and information you come across during your life and didactic pursuits. The purpose of the book is to record and organize these gems for later use in your life, in your business, in your writing, speaking or whatever it is that you do." I prefer a more digital approach to what is offered here, but it's a good structure for learning. Sharing your contributions makes it even better!
We Need More, Not Fewer, Collaborations With Tech Companies
Mary L. Gray, Chronicle of Higher Education, 2017/07/27
The reasoning here is that since resources for research are so limited, it makes sense for academia to partner with business, and if there are problems with the relationship (as there most certainly are) then the focus should be on making it work better, not on ending it. "We can’t blame scholars, particularly early in their careers, for seeking out the best resources and access to this data to do their work. The question shouldn’t be how to avoid working with tech companies; the question should be how best to ensure that collaborations between tech and social research." Other countries, however (those Umair Haque would say have public goods) would ensure there is public financing and support for research in the public interest, not merely for private gain.
A multi-disciplinary perspective on emergent and future innovations in peer review
Jonathan P. Tennant, et.al., F1000 Research, 2017/07/27
This is a detailed and well-thought-out contribution to the future of peer review. It is definitely needed. "If the current system of peer review were to undergo peer review, it would undoubtedly achieve a “revise and resubmit” decision," write the authors. Existing publishing platforms "were designed to attract a huge following, not to ensure the ethics and reliability of effective peer review." Something new is needed. The authors propose a system where "peer review becomes an inherently social and community-led activity, decoupled from a traditional journal-based system, and instead becomes part of the commons."
The End of the American Experiment
Umair Haque, Medium, 2017/07/26
Patrick Watson gave us the same message some three decades ago: democracy requires prosperity - universal prosperity - in order to survive. Umair Haque expresses this using the term 'moral universals': "Moral universals are simply things that people believe everyone should have," he writes. And this, he argues, is what separates the United States from the democracies of the world. "Moral universals anchor a society in a genuinely shared prosperity. Not just because they “spread the wealth”, though they do: because, more deeply, moral universals civilize people... in America today, there are no broad, genuine, or accessible civilizing mechanisms left... the natural consequence of failing to civilize is breaking down as a democracy — democracy no longer exists in the sense of “people cooperating by voting to give each other greater prosperity”. They have merely learned to take prosperity away from one another." See also: Rolling Stone on Justin Trudeau.
The Algorithm That Makes Preschoolers Obsessed With YouTube
Adrienne LaFrance, The Atlantic, 2017/07/26
You might read this article on the level it's presented: an expanation of the popularity of YouTube Kids in the fact that it allows kids to make choices. Or you might read it a bit more deeply and see how the selection algorithm is actually shaping the nature of the videos that made available for seecton. Or even more deeply and see how advertisers already understand this very well and are using YouTube Kids to pump marketing content straight into their subconscious by having them select their advertisements over and over and over (This video of a person pressing sparkly Play-Doh onto chintzy Disney princess figurines has been viewed 550 million times).
What if MOOCs Revolutionize Education After All?
Jeffrey R. Young , Barbara Oakley, EdSurge, 2017/07/26
Some pragmatic thinking with a pinch of a push for content knowledge. The premise is that MOOCs are actually going to challenge the classroom model, and ultimately, universities and the teaching professors. "Once they begin becoming broadly available for college credit, it's going to start changing the scenario of higher education." Best line in the post: "The thing is, moving a university is a little bit like moving a cemetery. You can't expect any help from the inhabitants." Professors, who have a vested interest, are going to resist, not help, the transition to MOOCs. But not just any type of MOOC: "look at a problem and pace through it in my mind as if I was playing a song. I could pull it instantly to mind, pull all the solution steps. I kind of knew it inside and out, and when you do that with enough problems, you begin to internalize the material at a very in-depth level."
A hacker stole $31M of Ether — how it happened, and what it means for Ethereum
Haseeb Qureshi, freecodecamp, 2017/07/26
Hackers robbed Ethereum of $31 million of Ether. "They found a programmer-introduced bug in the code that let them re-initialize the wallet, almost like restoring it to factory settings. Once they did that, they were free to set themselves as the new owners." Eter is crypto-currency, like Bicoin, but Ethereum uses this concept to allow people to create contracts, and it was one of these contracts that was hacked.
Get Started With Serverless Computing On Kubernetes With Minikube And Kubeless
Bitnami, 2017/07/24
This is the sort of thing that could eat the rest of my vacation (or a lot longer, if you don't have a developer background). Kubeless allows you to manage a "serverless" architecture (it's not really 'serverless', it's just that all of your applications and functions run on other people's servers), and you use software like Kubernetes to set up and coordinate them. This is bleeding edge and far from user-friendly. From Wikipedia: "Kubernetes (commonly referred to as "K8s") is an open-source system for automating deployment, scaling and management of containerized applications that was originally designed by Google and donated to the Cloud Native Computing Foundation." There's a webinar this Wednesday if you want to learn more.
Are MOOCs, Bootcamps and Other Alternative Education Options Effective?
Kara Voght, U.S. News & World Report, 2017/07/24
According to this article, "A new study questions the quality of these programs, as well as the evidence that demonstrates their efficacy." When an article questions whether any form of online learning is "effective", the first question to ask is, "what do they mean by effective?" This is what I wondered on reading this article. I was disappointed, on multiple accounts. First, American Council on Education study cited in the article in no way resembles the coverage in this article. After gnashing my teeth I did some hunting and found a second article by the same authors published by the American Academy of Arts & Sciences which does cover the topic. But on a reading of the article I found nothing questioning their effectiveness (save the oft-repreted comment about MOOC completion rates), only an assertion that there is insufficient research on their quality. Both these reports - by researchers Jessie Brown and Martin Kurzweil - are quality reports. It's a shame the U.S. News & World Report treats them so disrespectfully.
The Complex Universe of Alternative Postsecondary Credentials and Pathways
Jessie Brown, Martin Kurzweil, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2017/07/24
This is a survey document (56 page PDF) tracking research and commentary on the rise of alternative credentials (such as microcredentials, badges and certificates) and alternative learning pathways (such as word-based learning, MOOCs and short courses. The report has very little to say about effectiveness (see the executive summary) though it does make comments in passing as it cites other articles (eg. by the Chronicle). It looks into the historical antedecents and is a detailed examination of the rise of these alternatives, including how they are beginning to be incorporated into traditionaal programs. At the end, it remarks on the dearth of quality assessment for these alternatives: "evidence of the efficacy and value of these alternatives—for students and taxpayers—is still thin. Robust data on many programs’ features, cost, enrollment, and outcomes are simply not available."
Instructional Quality, Student Outcomes and Institutional Finances
Jessie Brown, Martin Kurzweil, American Council on Education, 2017/07/24
This newly released report from the American Council on Education (25 page PDF) begins up front with a definition of instructional quality - sort of: "we maintain that the most sensible approach is to consider both inputs and outcomes, or to look at how actionable instructional inputs impact student outcomes." Reading through the report, though, we ssee the usual: persistance, completion rates, and GPA. It should be noted that this report seems far more interested in their impact on institutional revenue. I read this as an extended logical model; although "we are not aware of any study that directly evaluates the impact of improvements in instructional quality on net revenue" the report makes the case that such a link is there. As such, it does the job quite well.
Feed your need to know
The Keyword, Google, 2017/07/24
I search a lot, and I search in fairly precisely defined areas, and I need to keep up on news in these areas, so the new Google service - a feed based on my search interests that updates with news daily - would seem to be perfect. Except, first, it's only available in the U.S.; I'll have to wait a few weeks. And second (and worse, in my mind) it's only available in the Gogle App (for Android, iOS and Pixel Launcher).
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Copyright 2017 Stephen Downes Contact: [email protected]
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