The explosive emergence of net-based learning in higher education brings with it new possibilities and constraints in teaching and learning environments.This edited collection considers how the concept of Academic Bildung - a term suggesting a personal educational process beyond actual educational learning - can be applied to net-based higher education. The book is drawing on Scandinavian research to address the topic from both a theoretical and practical standpoint.Chapters explore the facilitation of online courses and argue how and why universities should involve dimensions of Academic Bildung on both a strategic and technological pedagogical content level. The book is structured in three parts: Part I frames the current state of net-based learning and introduces Bildung as a concept; Part II contains a set of four case studies in Norway, Sweden and Denmark, also including a fifth study that looks at Scandinavian approaches to teaching and learning in comparison with data from the USA, the UK, Australia and Canada; Part III provides a synthesis of theories and cases to examine whether a Scandinavian orientation can be discerned. Contributions suggest that in order to address one of the fundamental functions of higher education, the ability to produce new knowledge, the Academic Bildung of the students has to be in focus. Grounded in theoretical and empirical discussion, this book will appeal to researchers and academics in the field of higher education as well as personnel who work with teaching and learning with technology, and academics interested in the question of Academic Bildung.

This volume explores how technology-supported learning environments can incorporate physical activity and interactive experiences in formal education. It presents cutting-edge research and design work on a new generation of "body-centric" technologies such as wearable body sensors, GPS tracking devices, interactive display surfaces, video game controller devices, and humanlike avatars. Contributors discuss how and why each of these technologies can be used in service of learning within K-12 classrooms and at home, in museums and online. Citing examples of empirical evidence and specific implementation, this timely and critical volume examines how body responsive technologies are being used within the educational community to advance the next generation of educational technology.

Building Better Universities provides a wide-ranging summary and critical review of the increasing number of groundbreaking initiatives undertaken by universities and colleges around the world. It suggests that we have reached a key moment for the higher education sector in which the services, location, scale, ownership, and distinctiveness of education are being altered dramatically, whether universities and colleges want it or not. These shifts are affecting traditional assumptions about both the future shape of higher education institutions, and the roles of and relationships between learners, teachers, researchers, managers, businesses, communities and other stakeholders.

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Building Better Universities" aims to bridge the gap between educational ideas about what the university is, or should be for, and its day-to-day practices and organisation. It roams across strategic, operational, and institutional issues; space planning and building design; and technological change, in order to bring together issues that are often dealt with separately. By analysing the many challenges faced by higher education in the contemporary period, and exploring the various ways universities and colleges are responding, this powerful book aims to support a step-change in debates over the future of higher education, and to enable senior managers and faculty to develop more strategic and creative ways of enabling effective twenty-first-century learning in their own institutions."

Are MOOCs a catalyst to reimagine education, a sign of the impending corporate takeover of the education sector, or merely a well-publicized but passing trend? Massive Open Online Courses shares insights from multiple stakeholders on what MOOCs are now and could eventually become, providing those in higher education as well as K-12, military, government and corporate training with an authorative source on the full range of key issues surrounding MOOCs.

MOOCs, or Massive Open Online Courses, are a disruptive technology currently forcing a serious reconceptualization of accreditation, assessment, motivation and retention, technology-based instruction, and the overall college experience. In this timely volume, Paul Kim brings together experts from higher education, business, law, learning analytics and other relevant areas to provide an evenhanded, research-based positioning of MOOCs within the existing educational technology landscape and an explanation of how they may ultimately help us rethink the future of education.

Every day, learners use and reuse open, digital resources for learning. Reusing Open Resources offers a vision of the potential of these open, online resources to support learning. The book follows on from Reusing Online Resources: A Sustainable Approach to E-learning. At that time focus was on the creation, release and reuse of digital learning resources modeled on educational materials. Since then the open release of resources and data has become mainstream, rather than specialist, changing societal expectations around resource reuse. Social and professional learning networks are now routine places for the exchange of online knowledge resources that are shared, manipulated and reused in new ways, opening opportunities for new models of business, research and learning. The goal of this book is to extend the debate of how open, online resources might support learning across diverse contexts. Twenty-four distinguished experts from nine countries distributed across Europe and North America contribute empirical evidence and ideas. Collectively they provide a vision of the potential of open, online resources to support learning across everyday contexts of education, work and life.

Open Learning Units offer a very flexible approach to the teaching of psychology. They are designed to be more than sufficient for the purposes of A/S and A-Level psychology, and the applied emphasis will appeal to various vocational courses such as those offered by BTEC and also to mature students on Access courses.
Their primary use will be in the classroom with a tutor's guidance, but the interactive style makes them equally appropriate for the purposes of self-study. More advanced students might want to use the Units to learn at their own pace, and in all cases, the careful structure of the writing and the extensive use of Examples, Open Questions and Self-Assessment Questions make them ideal revision guides.

Digital Solidarity in Education is a book for educators, scholars, and students interested in better understanding both the role technology can play in schools and its potential for strengthening communities, optimizing the effects of globalization, and increasing educational access. The digital solidarity movement prioritizes the engagement and mobilization of students from diverse racial, ethnic, linguistic, and economic backgrounds, and with giftedness and/or disabilities, to utilize and apply technologies. This powerful book introduces innovative technological programs including virtual schools, e-tutoring, and interactive online communities for K-12 students that can: * increase students' knowledge and understanding of advanced concepts while reinforcing their basic skills; * reinforce students' communication in their first language while introducing second and third language possibilities; * nurture students' capabilities to think analytically, while using creative and innovative ideas to think simultaneously "outside of the box." The experienced author team shows how collaborative partners from the private sector can assist public school systems and educators in creating access for all students to technological innovations, with a goal of increasing individual opportunities for future college and career success. Combining theoretical scholarship and research with the personal perspectives of practitioners in the field, this volume shares with readers both the nuts and bolts of using technology in education, and the importance of doing so.

Most people working within the higher education sector understand the importance of making e-learning accessible to students with disabilities, yet it is not always clear exactly how this should be accomplished. E-Learning and Disability in Higher Education evaluates current accessibility practice and critiques the extent to which 'best' practices can be confidently identified and disseminated. This second edition has been fully updated and includes a focus on research that seeks to give 'voice' to disabled students in a way that provides an indispensible insight into their relationship with technologies and the institutions in which they study. Examining the social, educational, and political background behind making online learning accessible in higher and further education, E-Learning and Disability in Higher Education considers the roles and perspectives of the key stake-holders involved in e-learning: lecturers, professors, instructional designers, learning technologists, student support services, staff developers, and senior managers and administrators.

Children and Families in the Digital Age offers a fresh, nuanced, and empirically-based perspective on how families are using digital media to enhance learning, routines, and relationships. This powerful edited collection contributes to a growing body of work suggesting the importance of understanding how the consequences of digital media use are shaped by family culture, values, practices, and the larger social and economic contexts of families' lives. Chapters offer case studies, real-life examples, and analyses of large-scale national survey data, and provide insights into previously unexplored topics such as the role of siblings in shaping the home media ecology.

"How can faculty create a strong E presence for their online classes? This volume highlights the need for creating a presence in the online environment. The authors explore the emotional, psychological, and social aspects from both the instructor and student perspective. It provides an instructional design framework and shows how a strong presence contributes to effective teaching and learning. Filled with illustrative examples and based on research and experience, the book contains methods, case scenarios, and activities for creating, maintaining, and evaluating presence throughout the cycle of an online course."--

Bridging the gap between theory and practice, this fully updated new edition of Designing Learning offers accessible guidance to help those new to teaching in higher education to design and develop a course. With new considerations to the higher education context, this book uses current educational research to support staff in their endeavour to design and develop modules and degree courses of the highest quality. Offering guidance on every stage, from planning to preparing materials and resources, with a focus on the promotion of learning, this book considers: Course design models and shapes, and their impact on learning How the external influences of learning and teaching are translated by different institutions How to match the content of a course to its outcomes Frameworks to enable communication between staff and students about expectations and standards Taking into account the diverse student population when designing a course The place of Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), communication tools and systems for monitoring students' engagement The importance of linking all aspects of the taught curriculum and wider co-/extra-curricular activities to support learning Ways to evaluate and enhance a course and to develop oneself as a teaching professional in HE. Providing advice, illustrative examples and case studies, Designing Learning is a comprehensive guide to designing a high-quality course. This book is a must-read for any academic looking to create or update their course or module.

For busy academics of all subject disciplines who have been asked to convert their face to face teaching into an online model of delivery. The chapters present the steps that need to be taken to design and facilitate a high quality learning experience for students using a variety of modes and media. Each chapter includes a task and a checklist designed to help the reader through the transition process, covering such aspects as tools, structure, presentations, live and 'on demand' teaching, assessment, ideas for activities, inclusion and trouble-shooting.

Blended learning provides the flexibility to accommodate the varied requirements of pedagogies, disciplines and levels of course, together with the needs of a wide variety of learners. However, anyone concerned with the integration of online tutoring to support students appropriately may need to reassess current practice. This book adopts a pragmatic and common-sense approach to blended learning by situating the use of online media within a well-grounded teaching and learning strategy. It provides practical ideas for the successful implementation of blended strategies, including good practice in both asynchronous and synchronous tutoring, appropriate assessment design for developing successful blended learners, and innovative approaches to professional development for distance tutors. It is illustrated with a wide variety of examples and comments from students and practitioners in both distance and campus-based environments in 13 different countries. Since the first edition was published in 2006, there has been great interest in Web 2.0 technologies and their potential for use in an educational environment. This second edition has therefore incorporated many new examples of good practice, making use of a combination of tried and tested tools as well as blogs and wikis for supporting students. There has also been a recent rise in the use of activity-based learning and interest in its potential for supporting students in distance and online environments. The new edition incorporates many new exemplars of learning activity design in Part Three, to illustrate approaches to the development of critical, independent learners.

Possibly credited to advancements in technology or learning behaviors, or a rise in focus on personal development, the education and training industry is steadily growing, creating a demand for eager entrepreneurs. Exploring varied opportunities aspiring business owners will be given business ideas, teaching and training methods, and an overview of essential tools. A range of industry examples will be given for accreditation, certifications, and credit; adding training onto an existing business as side income; how to sell media/training tools; how much to charge clients; start up costs; software types used; the legal obligations around taxes, business registration, working from home, and content confidentiality; and growth planning and writing a business plan. Relevant and fun call-outs, tip boxes, industry stats, an index, and a rich appendix and glossary will be provided. Appendix will offer resources in continued learning and rounded training for trainers; industry organizations and trade groups; books and eBooks; videos; software; websites; successful online trainers and online education institutions; consultants; and certification organizations. Teaching methods and tools will cover videos; eBooks; interactive software types; college sponsored staff training for college instructors; hardware, camera, video, sound equipment; online group forums; online events; choosing the right presentation style and linking to appropriate social media sites; and networking presentations.

The Elements of Instruction provides a common vocabulary and conceptual schema of teaching and learning that is fully applicable to all forms of instruction in our digital-centric era. This critical examination of educational technology's contemporary semantics and constructs fills a major gap in the logical foundations of instruction, with special attention to the patterns of communication among facilitators, learners, and resources. The book proposes a new framework for organizing research and theory, clear concepts and definitions for its basic elements, and a new typology of teaching-learning arrangements to simplify the selection of optimal conditions for a variety of learning goals. As trends in media, technology, and methodology continue to evolve, these historically contextual, back-to-basics pedagogical tools will be invaluable to all instructional designers and educational researchers.

E-schooling: Global Messages from a Small Island looks at how an entire school system is starting to transform learning through ICT. Based on evaluation of ICT work in a wide range of schools in Northern Ireland, asking what it takes to change learning through technology in what we call 'e-schooling'.

The book sets out to analyze and suggest answers to two key questions:

• can the intervention of government and the forging of strategic alliances with providers of education and of technology bring about systemic change?
• without radical reform of curriculum, assessment and learning are computers any more than a frill?

The authors, an education technology strategist and inspector, and a teacher education specialist, map out the complexities for those involved in teaching, training and evaluating in what is probably one of the most far reaching changes to education ever seen.

This book puts the spotlight on the costs and benefits of e-schooling and asks some hard-hitting questions of those involved in educating young people in schools at the start of the twenty first century.

Designing Effective Digital Badges is a hands-on guide to the principles, implementation, and assessment of digital badging systems. Informed by the fundamental concepts and research-based characteristics of effective badge design, this book uses real-world examples to convey the advantages and challenges of badging and showcase its application across a variety of contexts. Professionals in education, game development, mobile app development, and beyond will find strategies for practices such as credentialing, goal-setting, and motivation of their students.

Designing Effective Digital Badges is a hands-on guide to the principles, implementation, and assessment of digital badging systems. Informed by the fundamental concepts and research-based characteristics of effective badge design, this book uses real-world examples to convey the advantages and challenges of badging and showcase its application across a variety of contexts. Professionals in education, game development, mobile app development, and beyond will find strategies for practices such as credentialing, goal-setting, and motivation of their students.

This book is designed to introduce professors and administrators in higher education to the philosophical, theoretical, and research support for using a constructivist perspective on learning to guide the reconstruction of undergraduate education. It presents an original framework for systematically linking educational philosophy and learning theories to their implications for teaching practice. In this volume, Innes summarizes the sources he found most useful in developing his own set of teaching principles and course development process, and makes an argument for a particular perspective on learning--transactional constructivism--which is consistent with the philosophy of John Dewey and supported by current theory and research in learning science. Transactional constructivism, a combined approach, builds on the strengths of two competing views: psychological constructivism and the sociocultural perspective. Reconstructing Undergraduate Education: Using Learning Science to Design Effective Courses: *overviews the philosophical and theoretical underpinnings of the teaching model that is the focus of the volume; *presents a summary of Dewey's educational philosophy and connects his work to current theory and research in learning science; *examines psychological constructivism, one of the basic positions within the range of learning theories that takes a constructivist perspective; *offers a case study example of a course designed and taught from this perspective; *reviews the sociocultural and the transactional constructivist perspectives; *explores the quality of dialogue and disciplinary discourse in the classroom--an issue that is critical to the success of models derived from a transactional constructivist perspective on learning; and *explores broader issues related to reform in higher education. This volume is a vital resource for all professionals involved in undergraduate education.

A clear and concise course design is integral to effective student learning in units of study; however, unit design can be a daunting task for academics. Effective Unit Design for Higher Education Courses is a practical resource based on theoretical foundations, designed to assist both professional course designers and academics with varied levels of curriculum design and development experience or background in higher education units and courses. This book provides a variety of practical advice, skills and resources to assist academics in designing curriculum that focuses on enhancing student learning. Readers are given a range of evidence-based developmental tools that challenge some of the currently accepted conventions behind unit design. Appropriate for any skill level, this book is designed to provide an accessible and structured process to design or revitalise high-quality units of study. Chapters cover a range of topics including developing assessment methods, strategies for providing feedback and evaluating unit design. The book has been structured to follow a design process, but as unit design is non-linear, chapters can be read in any order depending on interest or need. An essential guide for curriculum designers of all skill and experience levels, this book will appeal to all higher education academics tasked with an aspect of unit design.

Transforming Universities with Digital Distance Education explores the ways in which higher education stakeholders can apply and leverage the benefits of online learning. Systems-wide access, scale and quality are achievable goals but require forms of teamwork and financial modelling beyond those at the instructor or programme level. This book's organisational view tackles the systems and practices that will help senior managers and decision-makers guide an entire institution away from dysfunction-incremental progress, insufficient capacity, high costs and generic products-and towards the macro-level implementation and operations of effective online pedagogies.

The higher education sector is being disrupted through the effect that technological innovations have on the educational market. As digital and mobile technologies are developing further, higher education institutions must embrace these developments to meet the needs of their learners and to not become irrelevant. In higher education, disruptive effects are mainly visible on a program/product level, with an increasing number of programs including some element of online education. Disruptive effects also become evident on a pedagogical level, where student engagement, collaboration and social learning, gamification and serious games, competency-based learning, teacher training, and overcoming geosocial divides are high on the agenda. This book considers the effect of online elements and their design on university business models and internationalization, course design, massive open online courses (MOOCs), and the scalability of online programs. It also explores how higher education institutions across the globe respond and react to the challenges and opportunities evolving in online education.

Communication and Learning in an Age of Digital Transformation provides cross-disciplinary perspectives on digitization as social transformation and its impact on communication and learning. This work presents openness within its interpretation of the digital and its impact on learning and communication, acknowledging historical contexts and contemporary implications emerging from discourse on digitization. The book presents a triangulation of different research perspectives. These perspectives, which range from digital resistance parks and cyber-religious questions to cultural-scientific media-theoretical reflections, point to the performative openness of the analysis. The book represents an interdisciplinary approach and opens a space for understanding the social complexity of digital transformations in teaching and learning. This book will be of great interest to academics, post graduate students and researchers in the field of digital learning, communication and education research.