blendED2016

Open Educational Resources (OER) constitute an important resource with the potential to facilitate the expansion of quality education and learning opportunities worldwide. OER are learning resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an open license that permits their free use or modification. OER can be full courses, course materials, modules, textbooks, streaming videos, tests, software, and any other tools, materials or techniques used to support access to knowledge. Mobile computing using the powerful new 3G and 4g phones, tablets and netbooks has opened the door for learners and teachers to access the world’s knowledge from almost anywhere, at anytime. The internet houses the world’s treasure of knowledge. In this context the role of OER in providing learners and teachers with learning content, applications, games etc. is becoming increasingly more relevant. The internet is the world’s intellectual commons and OER renders this knowledge accessible to all. The world’s knowledge is a public good that should be made available to everyone. The free and open sharing of educational resources can serve to promote the building of knowledge societies and the reduction of the knowledge divide that separates nations, as well as the divide within societies themselves.

Session Notes 

MIT App Inventor 2, is an outstanding tool for teaching and practising. It abstracts away most of the difficulties usually associated with mobile development, and simplifies development intentionally, and visually, into the basic building blocks of computer science.
App Inventor 2 was initially used as a training platform for the students of "Master in Innovation in Technology & Entrepreneurship " of the Eastern Macedonia and Thrace Institute of Technology for the past two years (2014-2016) as part of their course entitled "Web Applications Design and Mobile Communications" .
More than 40 students in the past two years tested their skills on Mobile application development having minimum or even none prior programming expertise.
The main objective was the development of professional skills in emerging technologies such as the mobile apps.
Students worked in groups or as individuals after a number of F2F classes in order to develop their final projects.
A number of virtual/blended sessions have been organized between the students' groups and the Instructor, either for mentoring or guidance purposes.
Final projects such as the "Tack my Child " app, the "Course evaluator" or the "Tutor evaluation" have been successfully developed by the students.

The effectiveness of App Inventor 2 as platform for Android application development in a Blended environment have been proved, indicating also the block based programming as an appropriate Instructive approach for audience with no prior programming experience.

It is a strong belief that App Inventor 2 can be successfully used in a Highschool
Labs motivating students to gain programming skills in a Blended Learning environment.

Session Notes 

This session will provide participants with the opportunity to learn about changes to the current Guide to Education and to contribute to clarification of language within the field of online and blended learning in Alberta. Status regarding follow up on challenges shared at May’s JTC will be shared (including upcoming exciting changes in PASI). There will also be opportunity for attendees to contribute suggestions for the development of standards, guidelines and quality indicators in online and blended learning. 

Session Notes

 

The senior leadership team from the Sun West School Division will present their system journey of moving all of their schools to Personalized electronically Blended Learning (PeBL).  They will describe the supports that were used to manage the merging of 3 types of learning: 1) online; 2) blended; and, 3) personalized.  They will provide exemplars that can be implemented to support teachers changing their pedagogy so as to become “Activators” of learning within a 21st Century learning environment.

Session Notes 

Jason Maitland and James Burla examine the linkages and interactions between the components that comprise blended learning. They will present their thinking on how these seemingly disparate elements relate:
- reflective leadership, teacher excellence, community and social capital
- defining blended learning - creating a definition that works in your school
- changing the locus of control - using Moodle to differentiate and personalize learning for teachers and students
- software to remediate - knowing your students
- student and teacher metacognition (lifelong learning - mindset) as a foundation for developing the right blend
- Student formative self-assessment - blended/differentiated assessment
- Policy - a model for teacher growth
This presentation will be fast paced, hard hitting and provocative. Let's see if these two baristas, Maitland and Burla, can create some discussion around the perfect blend.

Session Notes 

Join this discussion session to learn how schools are shifting practice to create flexible and personal learning. A brief overview of e-learning in Canada will provide the background for learning more about several successful programs from across Canada. A synthesis of successful principles from the programs will be the base for a discussion about how to improve your own program.

Outcomes include:
• Awareness of specific emerging online and blended models;
• Understanding policy and funding implications; and
• How re-characterizing the “Carnegie Unit” opens new opportunities.

Session Notes 

In 2016, there is a massive discrepancy in the Digital and Web Literacy abilities of our students, teachers, parents and educational leaders.Technology can be used in ways to encourage and discourage learning. What distinguishes digital and web literacy in education from just using technology, is the focus on learning. The decision to "use" or "not use" technology is part of digital and web literacy as well - as we consider how to best meets the needs and wants of our learners. In this collaborative and interactive session, participants will be offered examples of evidence of digital and web literacy integration in all learning environments. We will then work together to create a collection of Digital and Web Literacy resources.

Session Notes 

Why teach electronics and robotics? It is not just all in good fun anymore. Technology giants are getting serious about robotics, electronics, and automation. Teachers must prepare students for the employment market not just in the basics of read, write, and math; but also prepare employable students that collaborate with ease, are complex problem-solvers, and work with creative approaches and means. Project-based robotics and electronics competitions engage students to learn and make mistakes on the fly and under highly stressful yet fun, hands-on scenarios. Mechanical teachers - you do not have to be, at first. Teachers will learn to facilitate and inspire students to build, create, and think. I would like to share my experiences with robotics competitions and my online electrotechnology courses. I will talk about Junior High and Elementary CTF courses that are also available online, not only through ADLC but also through other robotics educational platforms.

Session Notes 

This session will explore the ongoing development of EDU 210 - Introduction to Educational Technology. This is a required course for all Education students at the University of Alberta. The course is offered both online and in a blended format. The focus of the course design is to provide maximum flexibility and personalized learning in terms of time, place, pace and learning style. A combination of project based learning, interactive lecture time, creating smaller class groups within the class and providing significant asynchronous and open supports makes flexible learning possible even in this high enrollment course. Since this is an Education course , the content is driven by both Inspiring Education and The Learning and Technology Policy Framework.

Session Notes