Category: Reports and reflections
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Openness in education – a new hope
There is hope yet. Higher education is going through a turbulent time, so it’s important to recognise the leadership provided through educational research, with a global impact from educational projects and innovation. At OER26, the quiet army of global educational professionals and academics with a shared vision of education for all found their collective voice…
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Institutional appetite for change – Leadership learning for higher education (HEPN)
At the start of the month I attended the Higher Education Partners Network (HEPN) North event and represented the experiences of the online learning operational teams who implemented new technology and processes in a people-centred way. Here are some of the leadership points from the day I attended. Entrepreneurial universities One of the ironies of…
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Assessment, feedback and AI in online and distance education
Contrary to popular belief, contemporary discussion of assessment in higher education is not exclusively the domain of artificial intelligence (AI) evangelists, nay-sayers and everyone else in between trying to make sense of it. No, assessment as a fundamental pillar of teaching and learning has many facets, so it is refreshing to have a little bit…
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Why professional educational technologists matter: ALT Annual Conference 2025 – Day 2
I’ve seen a shift in how our community of professionals working in educational technology, learning design and educational leadership has become more attuned in its use of contemporary pedagogy and student-focused practice. There’s a maturity of thought, informed by both established and emerging theory, and design methodology, that is complemented with a renewed enthusiasm for…
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Make the magic happen: ALT Annual Conference 2025 – Day 1
Motivational and a celebration of our professional community. That’s my initial reaction to Day 1 of the Association for Learning Technology Annual Conference 2025 in Glasgow. With all the uncertainty in our sector, I am thankful that we have come together to acknowledge the value of our profession and our collective desire to be responsive…
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Learning Engineering: Collaboration, Context and Challenge
There are many approaches to improve what we do in education, with a sometimes overwhelming number of internal and external factors that bring opportunities and challenges. Learning Engineering (an engineering-inspired approach to educational design, as opposed to the study of engineering) provides a method to tackle these opportunities and challenges in a collaborative, data-informed and…
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The journeys taken: Research in Distance Education and E-learning Conference 2025 – Day 2
This is the second post writing up my experience at RIDE 2025, the Research in Distance Education and E-learning conference at the University of London (see Day 1 where I discuss themes of Context and Culture). Linda Amrane-Cooper, Director of the Centre for Online and Distance Education (CODE), introduced Day 2 with the rationale for…
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Context and culture: Research in Distance Education and E-learning Conference 2025 – Day 1
Online education brings together many people as educators, students and professionals. It’s a highly collaborative sector and it’s underpinned in many ways by a desire to do good. This year’s Research in Distance Education and E-learning conference at the University of London has the title ‘Empowering and Sustaining Change’ and in any change process the…
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Joyful online learning: reflections on a Lego Serious Play session
Bringing people together and learning from a range of perspectives is one of the most enjoyable aspects of my job. In all my professional roles, working with others and bringing a range of expertise together has been key in achieving successful outcomes. This article is a reflection of a LEGO Serious Play (LSP) session which…