TEL-lingit like IT is

Kortext have released a report, University of the Future: Transforming learning and improving value ( here to go straight to the PDF ). Main finding, from "the UK's leading provider of digital textbooks and learning solutions" is, surprisingly - " 89% of students would be more likely to attend a university that enables online collaboration and note sharing and access to the latest editions of textbooks". I wonder where they might find a vendor for such a service...? OK. Way too much sarcasm. Let's unpack the report. To begin with, the report has been researched independently by 3GEM . I have no doubts as to the validity of the responses. The headline findings are also arresting at first glance - until you try to extend some of them... "69% say that getting core textbooks included in course fees would represent greater value for money." So, 31% believe that spending on texts in addition to course fees would not represent greater value...? 

I was fortunate to attend BETT late last month. I missed the speakers, as I could only attend one day and my primary interest wasn't software or education systems. I was interested in hardware developments . These, I think, represent very significant shifts in contemporary TEL. About a decade ago I was, I admit, somewhat bemused by the interest in mobile technologies. I was interested in the work of Traxler  and Herrington & Herrington , but these were the days before the iPad, and touch-screen technologies were not ready for everyday consumers. Talk of mobile learning was restricted to media availability through iPods; text message; and IM. Tablet technology was in its early stages, and laptops were still very bulky. There was potential, but it was, at least to me, piecemeal and multi-device dependent. Oh, how things have changed. Yes, we have had the recent explosion in iPad and Android tablets. Mobile phones are now incredibly powerful by processor, RAM, storage, screen

Interesting to see this report just released from HEPI , with a focus on the use of technology in support of campus-based education. The reports makes seven recommendations: Higher education institutions should ensure that the effective use of technology for learning and teaching is built into curriculum design processes. This should include consideration of win-win methods, which offer both improved outcomes and lower costs. To support this, the UK higher education sector should develop an evidence and knowledge base on what works in technology-enhanced learning to help universities, faculties and course teams make informed decisions. Mechanisms to share, discuss and disseminate these insights to the rest of the sector will also be required. Institutions that do not currently have learning analytics in place should give consideration to adopting it at the earliest opportunity. Education researchers should consider how the learning analytics big dataset can be harnessed to provi