Microsoft – Online E-Learning – Part 2

Wednesday 30th October – Microsoft, Redmond Campus.

We were very privileged to be able to meet some Microsoft representative from their Online E-Learning team to discuss a range of topics.  The focus of our visit was to look at the strategy behind how and why Microsoft develop online e-learning tools. What was really interesting was how motivated and enthusiastic the team were and passionate about what they are doing. I think we have made some great partners.

We looked at several of the current initiatives such as IT Academy and the Digital Literacy programmes but then had a glimpse into where these projects were heading and how they were going to be delivered across Microsoft technology. This includes the use of Adaptive technologies and learning seeded directly within the Windows 8 apps.  I think this is going to be a key point to get right as you remove the human element online. There was some concern in the room about a ‘machines are self-aware’ situation though! A key link to our former discussions was the role of Instructional Design in the content planning and creation, something that is a key fundamental to the curriculum of equivalent Digital Learning Designers or ‘Instructional Designer LITE’ as was penned by Microsoft!

Overall it was an insightful trip that gave some perspective to the impact and scale of e-learning online and how global super powers like Microsoft are engaging with it. What is particularly interesting is from what we have seen so far its not a million miles from where we are now. There is an obvious cultural divide that makes a difference but i am confident we are heading in the right direction which excites me further still.

As a side note i have long been an Apple fan for a number of reasons. It had a ‘connection’ with me. Whilst i use Windows machines in daily life this is more related to office productivity. I have grown more open minded in my years and whilst i take some of todays visit with a pinch of salt and eek out the corporate machine (they were really up front about this as well!) i find myself silently excited about the potential of where Microsoft can take these technologies and have a product that can be of huge benefit to education. There are changes coming with the way consumer technology is being used and the potential for certain products (cough, Kinect) is outstanding, especially when you consider its place in education.

Today i left feeling in awe. Shame they didn’t give me Surface Tablet to trial!

UK Project Team meets Microsoft

Online E-Learning – Part 1

Wednesday 30th October – North Eastern University and Washington State Board/Online

After a couple of long days it was nice to head into a more sedate pace with a day of two halves (Check Part 2 – Microsoft). Using Blackboard Collaborate video conferencing we met 2 representatives from North Eastern University (NEU) in Boston, MA. We discussed approaches to ‘Instructional Design’ and the way in which this informs how e-learning content is manufactured and delivered. One highlight of this discussion was around Adaptive Learning. I suppose this is the online equivalent of differentiation a class tutor would do in the classroom. However it is so much more in many ways. Its the intelligent data that reacts to what a user does online be get tasks correct or if they struggle. NEU were looking at ways to use this to better enhance and inform the online experience. This was also evident in some of the course that Shoreline were producing in collaboration with a firm called Cog Books.

Our next discussion was with a representative from the Washington State Board for Community Technical Colleges. We had heard much about the way in which the state supports community colleges and some of the framework around it. In this meeting we looked a little deeper at some initiatives that were of benefit to all community colleges. The biggest was using the consortium of 34 colleges to obtain a range of e-learning software platforms at reduced cost because of the huge partnership. This included Blackboard Collaborate, Tegrity Lecture Cast and Canvas LMS software. All colleges could buy into these tools at a fraction of the cost and were freely available to all staff. This posed an interesting alternative for our visiting project group.

Also as something unrelated. One of the tutors at Shoreline was really keen to show us some newly acquired Moon rocks from NASA. We couldn’t pass up the opportunity!

We managed to grab a quick bite to eat before heading off to Microsoft to meet the E-Learning team.

Visiting Shoreline Community College

Tuesday 29th October – Shoreline Community College (SCC), Seattle
Today we visited SCC in North Seattle. Situated in a leafy suburb of Seattle, SCC, has the smallest catchment of the Seattle Community Colleges and has on average around 5000 (fte) learners mainly from the local area but several of these are also foreign students from mainly East Asia. The site is set in 80 acres of woodland and has great feel to it.

The Group

We were greeted by Ann Garnsey-Harter, the Executive Director of the Virtual College based at SCC. We also managed to meet the President of the college, Daryl Campbell where we got an overview of the US education and the way in which colleges operated within it. Interestingly one highlight here was how closely the colleges work with local businesses to create programmes of study that result in employment by looking at the skills gaps and producing courses to meet that need.

Ann Garnsey-Harter, Executive Director of the Virtual College and Resource Development

We were given a tour of the campus and popped into several live classes. Many of the top subjects included Dental Hygiene, Motor Vehicle and Music based subjects. Interestingly all music students have to learn the Piano no matter what course they take and we were lucky enough to see some of these students practising ready for assessments. In the Biotech labs were told how learners can go onto to work in the Biotech industry in Seattle and that research projects from the college are passed down to high school learners to help create a track of progression for learners into the industry. Also, the Motor Vehicle learners took classes on most of the major car brands and are supported directly by the manufacturers and dealerships who supply a range of cars to work on. This also leads directly into work on a good salary as a Motor Vehicle technician within one of the businesses.

After lunch and being serenaded by a student Jazz band (who were great by the way) we discussed the Virtual College programme at SCC. We heard how SCC have grown their online provision to account for 20% of their student numbers and providing 154 different courses either fully online or blended (Hybrid) learning. Interestingly SCC charge additional fees for the online and blended programmes but this is not too much in comparison to tuition costs.  We were lucky enough to see some examples of the Virtual Courses on the new LMS called ‘Canvas’.  Canvas has a look and feel to the newer versions of Moodle but has some additional tools installed and good integration with Social Media to better interact with learners. One key feature of the Virtual College courses is that they all seek to attain the ‘QM’ or ‘Quality Matters‘ standard of approval. The QM mark is assigned to courses that meet the national benchmark for online courses. A rubric is used to judge the quality of the course for supporting teaching and learning. It is not concerned as much by the content but has a focus on how effective the delivery is. This was really interesting to see and gave SCC a token to aim for to help make their courses more competitive in a busy marketplace.

This has been a brief overview of the days events and there has been much to take in. There are some similarities between UK and US education provision and there has been much to take away. More interestingly has been the differences and some interesting ideas that will help further inform the courses we are writing and also the strategies to take back to our own institutions.

Here are some pictures of our day.