Conference Website
Presentations Available as Video

1. "Social Software - New Trends in Teacher Education"
Prof. Dr. Peter Baumgartner, Danube University Krems (AT)

In contrast to the “Content is King” slogan which emphasises the importance of making suitable content available especially on the internet, Baumgartner put forward the slogan “Context is King”. He emphasized the current availability of good content suitable for learning and teaching all over the place. What to do with this content, how to use it in education is the important challenge. “If content is all we need, why would we need universities? Libraries could do the job!” He stressed the social aspect of learning emphasizing the importance of the environment in which the learning is organized.

Principles of Learning
1. Learning is fundamentally social.
2. Knowledge is integrated in the life of communities.
3. Learning is an act of participation.
4. Knowing depends on engagement in practice.

Social Software

Examples of Social Software

Conclusions:

The main principles of learning also apply to eLearning

1. (e)Learning mostly happens in informal situations.
2. The production of special (e)learning content loses importance.
3. (e)Content is created in collaborative learning situations.
4. Good Content is everywhere. It has to be integrated in social learning situations (situated learning).
5. What matters is the learning arrangement, content is just a part of it.

2. “Individualizing future media”
Dr. Eike Wenzel, Zukunftsinstitut GmbH (DE)
Future researcher at the famous Zukunftsinstitut of Matthias Horx

 

He spoke about current trends in internet development. The main trend has been consumer empowerment. What the consumer demands is produced. This is a change from the conventional idea of “the public” to community building and individualization of media. This includes social “DIY” sites like myspace.com and bebo.com.

The trend is towards the concept of a patchwork society developing in the direction of individualization of mass media and empowerment of the customer. The success of the iPod and similar devices is based on mobility, flexibility and individuality.

Digital individuality is the key. “I want to be active!” Modern lifestyle is more individual, and demands will be more complex than in the past – consumers demand participation and convenience (no manual please!)

Information does not equal knowledge. Content is fluid and its reliability must continually be checked. Always the problem of information overflow. Local orientation very important,  every business is local.

3. “New Teacher Competencies and Challenges”. Prof. Dr. Andrea Kárpáti
Eötvös University, Budapest (HU), Faculty of Sciences, Centre for Multimedia and Educational Technology. UNESCO Chair for ICT in Education

IT will do what we want it to do. Therefore you change ICT to suit your pedagogy.

Recent surveys show teacher use of ICT is not increasing. (EMILE study: www.emile.eu.org) Why do teachers not use ICT? Teachers’ belief vital.
Inservice training should be subject specific. Perception that eLearning fails to deliver. ACCESS – MANAGE – INTERROGATE – EVALUATE – RECREATE.

European profile for teachers? OECD CERI report for 1995-2002 “ICT & the quality of learning”. ICT can support collaborative learning. Personality of teacher important.
http://ulearn.itd.ge.cnr.it/uteacher/ uTeacher Project  which discusses and investigated the possibility of a Common European Framework for Teachers' Professional Profile in ICT for Education.

http://www.epict.org/ EPICT is a course concept that offers educators basic ICT skills on a personal and a professional level through focusing on the pedagogical integration of ICT in the teaching practice.

Problem: ICT works in contrast to our test-centered educational world.

Surveys show:
What doesn’t work: Individual exploration. Crash courses. Using the computer as overhead projector.
What works: Role modeling in pre-service teacher education. School based in-service education. Lifelong learning. Curriculum change supported by ICT.

4. ”Open-Source Software in Education”
Gerhard Schwed, MAS, Department for Interactive Media and Education Technologies, Danube-University Krems (AT)

FOSS Free open source software. Free in the sense of “Free speech” not in the sense of “Free beer”.
The cathedral model has changed to the bazaar model, from a strict hierarchical structure to a creative chaos model. Linux, Firefox browser, Star and Open Office. Wikipedia online encyclopaedia where users input the information. Moodle learning environment. www.sourceforge.net
 
5. “Blended Language Learning - From Vision to Reality”
Prof. Dr. Kurt Kohn, University of Tuebingen - Applied English
Linguistics (DE)

Blended Learning is a new term for the integration of eLearning with traditional approaches. Previously battle cries in language teaching included “Multimedia” and “eLearning” but these faded and failed. Blended Learning seeks to embed ICT activities in the classroom. Without such integration ICT is dead!
The human dimension is vital. Learning and teaching is about human beings not technology. The computer is only a tool, it is up to the teacher to make the best use of it.

So far there has been a slow uptake on eLearning and Blended Learning. Why? Adverse forces: The comprehensiveness of traditional teaching and learning. Natural protection against new technology – “Nothing wrong with the old ways”. Requires redesign of courses, this can prove difficult. eLearning is often seen as a “counter” world rather than a complementary world to present teaching strategies.
The eLearning pedagogy must be compatible with goals of language teaching. Learner autonomy. Authenticity. Co-operation.
Challenges: Infrastructure essential but teachers are the key players.
Requirements: Teachers’ positive attitudes. Familiarity with technology. Time resources outside class hours.
Blended learning courses need on the job collaborative teacher training and continuous course support.

6. “Seismic shifts in communication patterns of youth: What this means for schooling.
Or How the world changed under my nose and I didn’t notice a thing.”
Prof. Dr. John LeBaron (United States of America)
Professor of Educational Technologies Western Carolina University (USA)

How can we prepare for the future when we hardly recognize the present any more?

There is an old problem and a new problem. The old problem is that kids know more about technology than their parents and teachers, example - operating the VCR. The new problem is that a communications gap has opened including the fact that the means of communications and the language of communication is fundamentally different.

Education faces:

Issues arising from this include:
The need for communications literacy, information literacy and child safety.

Should we be concerned?

New information sources includes blogs, wikis, social networks etc.

The problem included the reliability of information and the identification of the source.  Concern about cyber discretion.

Child Safety: Growing percentage of children using open chat rooms. Significant percentage report having been solicited online.

Adult on child abuse is not the only danger. Also child on child, child on adult, student on adult, administrator on teacher, teacher on administrator, parent on teacher, teacher on parent.

What is a school to do?

Are we in the business of Command and Control or Learning and Teaching?
A school can’t command and control so schools must use learning and teaching.

Institutionally:
Plan ongoing professional development.
Develop acceptable operations policy. AUPs
Build cyber discretion into all curriculum levels.
Build networks – Peer educators networks; with parents and other stakeholders.

Individually:
Learn cyber linguistics
Make the unfamiliar routine
Dare to dive in! Use the tooks the kids use.
Model ethical behaviour.
Exploit the hidden talents of children - as teachers of adults

As teachers our wisdom and maturity is important but old dogs must learn new tricks.

EPIC 2015 is a short film set in 2015 detailing the changes which have occurred as a result of the development of the internet.
http://epic.makingithappen.co.uk/