Posts by: achollo
In this second episode of my LearnTech podcast series, I continue my talk with Anna Cox, who is a lecturer in the School of Education, on her interest in the use of iPads within a learning setting.
Ever keen to find new and accessible ways for UN staff to share best practice in the use of learning technology, I have begun to record a series of short audio case studies. In the space of five fleeting minutes, I chat informally with lecturers on examples of learning technologies they use and how they fit with their teaching. The podcasts are recorded using AudioBoo which is accessible via your web browser or mobile app.
In this first episode I talk to Anna Cox, who is a lecturer in the School of Education on her use of Xerte, the open source eLearning Authoring platform.
The intro to this episode mentions iPads, which was discussed in the second episode, so look out for that link.
I hope these podcasts will become a useful addition to our written and video case studies and other training resources, and any feedback or comments are very welcome, as are suggestions on future episodes.
This case study describes using the Xerte online eLearning Authoring system to develop resources for a blended learning course.
The aim was to increase the quality of communication of the module content, through interactive learning opportunities for distance learners. It was also anticipated that supplementary materials for other modules in the School of Education could progressively be provided in this format.
Case Study (case study, PDF 515.6 KB)
This case study describes using Panopto and iPad for easy and mobile recording of student assessments.
The main aim was to record student assessments and upload immediately to our VLE, minimising editing and publishing while maximising availability for external moderation.
Case Study (case study, PDF 171.6 KB)
All of the new 2012 – 2013 NILE sites are currently set as unavailable to students by default, so when you have finished building your new NILE sites, you will need to make them available to your students. Students will be automatically added to sites where possible but will not see any content until it has been made available.
Once your content is in place you can go ahead and make the sites available so that when students are added to them, they can access the content immediately.
In order to make your NILE site available to students please follow these 5 steps:
- Enter your unavailable NILE site.
- Under the Control Panel (on the lower left of the window) select Customisation, and choose Properties.
- Under Set Availability, select ‘Yes‘ to Make Module Available
- Click Submit
The new upgrade to NILE also speeds up the process of making a NILE sites available if you have a number you need to access:
- Click on the arrow next to the house icon [See screenshot]
- Select another of your NILE sites.
- Get in touch with the Learning Technology team on LTSupport@northampton.ac.uk if you have any issues or questions, and keep an eye on our blog for more updates.
Kyffin Jones, a Senior Lecturer in Special Needs Education for the School of Education explores the use of Skype in allowing students to pose questions to vulnerable young people, and reflect on the role of the media in representations of people with a disability.
Skype in Education (PDF, 74 KB)
If you would like to help us by reviewing some technology for learning and teaching, please contact the team.
I like an event with a good buffet lunch, so the one at the Northants Better Learning Through Technology Development Day went down really well. It had a good mix of tastes, full of vitamins and didn’t leave me with a bloated, stuffed feeling.
The event was much the same: there was a good mix of teachers from across the county who were interested in sharing their use of technology in schools. We had some excellent practical demonstrations of how to use Web 2 tools in the classroom – that’s the vitamins bit of my overstretched analogy – and the schedule was light and refreshing, so my mind wasn’t left feeling bloated.
In the morning, Gareth Honeyford ran a fun, practical session on simple stop-mo animation and its use in the classroom. He also showed what some KS2 students had achieved and it was great to see a demonstration of what young people can achieve with technology, training and imagination.
After Gareth’s session, we broke for coffee and exotic fruit, and found time to tweet comments on the morning. Steven Bryant and Paul Bramble, the School’s excellent technical team, wired up the twitter feed to appear either side of the lecture room, so it was great to see all the positive comments. The tweets were also projected onto monitors in the building’s reception area, so staff from the School of Education were able to follow the stream even if they couldn’t make the event.
Following on from coffee, the highly creative, Peter Ford lead a short activity in which we shared in pairs our use of technology in practice. It was good to keep it practical and great to hear people’s experiences.
Helen Cauldwell followed Peter with some excellent resources on how to work creatively with text. She has a mountain of links, proving she is the Bookmark Queen. I know some of the resources she’s bookmarked, but there’s so many more I’ve never heard of – and I surf the web lots. I guess this proved one of the BLT core beliefs, that sharing between colleagues can have a massive impact on practice, saving hours of time spent trawling. One teacher listened to Helen’s intro to a specific web tool, used it on her school blog during the session, and then shared it in the afternoon’s TeachMeet-style sharing. I tweeted her effort and there you have the #northantsBLT vision working perfectly. These events are always crammed full of excellent resources but more importantly they allow teachers some time to test and try-out at least one thing before they have to jump back into the river and start paddling again.
After lunch, the whirlwind that is Tom Rees delivered a short talk about mobile technology and the current discussion of BYOD, or Bring Your Own Device. Should schools allow students to use their own mobile technology in a class setting? Tom offered a number of views, opinions and perspectives and has invited the #northantsBLT to contribute to a resource of experiences which we hope will have impact at a local level.
The final part of the afternoon gave everyone a 2 minute slot to share an aspect of their practice. Some interesting ideas came up and we’ll find share them on the BLT website. I had lots I wanted to share but my two minutes ran out far too quickly.
I’ve attended past BLT meetings held around the county, so I was keen for the University of Northampton to host one of their inspiring sessions, and I think we were 100% successful. The feedback has been excellent and we’re already talking about being a host again in the future. This was an amazing team effort from Steve Bryant, Paul Bramble, Gareth Honeyford and Helen Cauldwell, but a special thanks goes to Julie Martin, the School Manager for the School of Education, who generously offered to host the event in the School’s newly built Sulgrave building.
I am extremely proud of how the School of Education and the Learning Technology team worked together to put on this event, which people enjoyed and found inspiring. I think it was a great example of great learning through technology, and I am confident the colleagues who attended will go back to their schools with some new ideas and inspire their students..
If you would like to follow the northantBLT network then look out for #northantsBLT or head for bltnorthants.net and have a look around.
See you at the next event.
My hopes for a good lunch are high.
Al Holloway
TWEETS FROM THE DAY
draigcymru40 Tony Whitfield
Have had a truly inspirational day, sharing different ICT ideas with Colleagues #northantsBLT& then twilight training with @janeconsidine.
acevansit Andrew Evans
A fantastic day at the #NorthantsBLT. University of Northampton were superb hosts. Leaving feeling very inspired
spowell81 Stacy Powell
Wow what a fantastic day at #northantsblt I feel overwhelmed with ideas but excited at trying them out.
peterford Peter Ford
University of Northampton is a brilliant venue for the #NorthantsBLT Development Day. Thanks!
simoneshaw Simon Shaw
Many thanks to @peterford and all the teachers who came along to share at #NorthantsBLT
geoffrussell3 geoffrussell3
#northantsBLT Thks for a great BLT day. And to Gareth and the staff at UoN@universityofNorthampton
mosquitomax Amos McMorrow
Listening out to the “Thought-Apples” from the people at the #NorthantsBLT – keep sharing.
lisarich30 Lisa Richards
Inspiring day yesterday at #NorthantsBLT. Thanks to all there and Northants Uni. Its inspired me to tweet!
chrisdicken Chris Dicken
Good buzz at UoN BLT animation workshop #northantsblt
Every Friday, a member of the Learning Technology Team will be at either Park or Avenue Campus to deliver a session as part of the month’s themed events. On the first and third Fridays of the month we will be in the CTC (MB6) at Avenue Campus. On the second and fourth Fridays of the month we will be in the T-Pod (Park Library) at Park Campus. Laptops will be available at both of the venues. Each session will begin with a thirty minute mini session on a specific theme, after which time there will be an open session in which staff can discuss any aspects of NILE and technology enhanced learning. If you would like to come along to one or both of the sessions, please just turn up – there is no need to book.
For the full schedule of events please see the Learning Technology Training page.
We’ve been hard at work building a library of videos which support staff and students in the use of NILE, Turnitin, and a growing number of web tools and software. They live in our NILE Help tab, which you can get to by following this link http://bit.ly/AeFbFR where you’ll find our new and growing library of DidiVids designed to help you use NILE more effectively. I hope they’ll be really useful to you, so I would really like your feedback on them. If we get good feedback, I’ll do more. If it’s bad feedback, I’ll cry a bit, but I’ll get over it. We are committed to improving the student experience, and offering support after hours is something we’re working towards. Check out the DidiVids and let them improve your life.
A case study on the use of GradeMark for marking and moderating online submissions of Health students assignments.
