WikiEducator workshop

Another Wikieducator workshop starts tomorrow:

The Learning4Content (L4C) initiative is conducting face-to-face workshops in 52 Commonwealth countries – and online workshops every month. To date, this is the largest wiki skills training project on the planet.

The L4C initiative will help WikiEducator achieve its goal of a free version of the education curriculum by 2015. Each L4C workshop participant receives free wiki skills training in return for providing a free lesson or learning resource to WikiEducator.

Register here: http://wikieducator.org/Learning4Content/Registration

This is a great place to learn about open content and using mediawiki.

These guys are a little modest.  This may even be the largest wiki skills training project in the known universe.  I dislike the three terms skills, training and project, but this is worth a look.

Siemens and Downes teach a course

From the TALO list: “Stephen Downes and George Siemens will be collaborating in an online course this fall”

http://ltc.umanitoba.ca:83/wiki/Connectivism

While this is an Aussie based list (originally) we are still a victim of a northern hemisphere-centric view of the world.  In New Zealand, this is spring. Actually it starts in September.  And while this is a course, I’d hope it does not turn out to be like one.

Topics: (Obviously subject to change)

• Week 1: What is Connectivism?
• Week 2: Rethinking epistemology: Connective knowledge
• Week 3: Properties of Networks
• Week 4: History of networked learning
• Week 5: Connectives and Collectives: Distinctions between networks and groups
• Week 6: Complexity, Chaos and Research
• Week 7: Instructional design and connectivism
• Week 8: Power, control, validity, and authority in distributed environments
• Week 9: What becomes of the teacher? New roles for educators
• Week 10: Openness: social change and future directions
• Week 11: Systemic change: How do institutions respond?
• Week 12: The Future of Connectivism

I’ve decided to have a little fun with this.  I’d like to see if anyone is interested in forming a learning cell as part of this course: either a NZ based (second preference) or Christchurch based (First preference, F2F included, at MCB http://www.madrascafebooks.co.nz or Cafe 101 etc)  Feel free to let me know.  derekdotchirnsideatgmaildotcom

Theory and Practice of Online Education

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Terry Anderson has released the second edition of his popular Theory and Practice of Online Learning. The book is available for purchase or as a free download (click here to download the entire book in .pdf format). Topics include social media, philosophies of technology, mobile learning, cost decisions about technology, libraries, learner support and more. The broad range of subjects, both theoretical and practical, should be of immense interest to readers of the DEANZ blog.