For a learning theorist and Professor there are few things more invigorating than working with a group of highly motivated learners. My long time colleague and friend Dr. Craig Montgomerie often asks me to join his online Athabasca University class MDDE 610: Survey of Current Educational Technology Applications to provide his students the opportunity engage with a professional like myself who has extensive experience in promoting the use of Educational Technology.
In the MDDE webinar for November 18, 2014 titled Leading learning and technological change we focused on the most difficult challenges in any organizational change — dealing with an organization’s culture and implementing strategies that require a cultural shift. Through examining a case study of the ACU Connected Mobile Learning Initiative we explored how addressing the following four key principles increase your chances of success significantly:
- Start with Why
- Identify and engage key influencers
- Install an effective execution strategy
- Enlist and empower self-differentiated leaders
We also analyzed how ignoring even one of these principles can contribute to failure and how these principles are currently being used in new E-learning strategy at BCIT.
Webinar slide deck – MDDE 610 Nov 2014.pdf
The following resources were mentioned or briefly discussed in the webinar and can be used to gain a deeper understanding:
People who like this stuff…like this stuff
Includes a short annotation and links the books Start with Why (Simon Sinek), Influencer, Four Disciplines of Execution (4DX) and Freidmen’s Failure of Nerve.
Connected The Movie by the ACU Connected Initiative
Link to the ACU Connected mobile movie that started and provided the fundamental Why or vision for Mobile Learning at ACU.
Additional resources on Change and Innovation:
Clayton R. Wright has released the 32nd edition of the conference list. The list below covers selected events focused primarily on the use of technology in educational settings and on teaching, learning, and educational administration. Only listings until June 2015 are complete as dates, locations, or URLs. A complete listing of June events should be captured in the next conference list – normally distributed in May.
Educational Technology & Education Conferences #32 January to June 2015 Clayton R Wright
I have been trying to save the posting of exceptional videos for my Wednesday Watchlist but I just can’t wait with video.
1. Asking questions (Socrates 101)
2. Labeling technology and design challenges (Aristotle 101 )
3. Modelling problems qualitatively (Aristotle 102 or Hume 101)
4. Decomposing design problems (Descartes 101)
5. Gathering data (Galileo or Bacon 101)
6. Visualizing solutions and generating ideas (da Vinci 101 )
7. Communicating solutions in written and oral form (Newman 101)
By associating important figures in intellectual history with each of the seven thinking skills Goldberg points out that each of these problems have been already solved or addressed. He is also pointing out that our narrow form of contemporary education which emphasizes plugging numbers into a formula and the regurgitation of information not only which excludes these fundamental skills so well established in classical education but it is leaving our engineers, and I would argue so many other students, ill prepared to efficiently solve current problems.
Goldberg’s Slideshare presentation The missing basics: What engineers don’t learn and why they need to learn it is also worth checking out.
