Study of how UK FE and HE institutions are supporting effective learners in a digital age (SLiDA) Download the final report1 The final report has recommendations for further and higher education on how to develop effective institution-wide strategies and practices which better support effective learners in a digital age. Download the case studies2 See a report of the methodology3 used to create the case studies and the appendices4 Overview This project has been examining how UK further and higher education institutions are supporting learners for a digital age. The case studies demonstrate a range of ways of creating and enabling opportunities that promote the development of effective learning in a digital age. The ultimate aim is to promote strategies which support learners to develop the access, skills, strategies and attributes they need to learn effectively with technology. Aims and objectives Project methodology In order to engage with institutions in a collaborative process of creating a case study, we will work with institutions over a period of time. Project Staff Project Manager
Transliteracy Research Group At 3Ts 2013: Transliteracy from Cradle to Career in Saratoga Springs this week I learned some new things about transliteracy. 1. In What I Want, When I Want to Watch It: Brief Thoughts on Television Literacy in the Streaming World with Hollie Miller & Michele Forte, Hollie aka @theotherinside showed us a feature on Hulu Plus which allows you to choose between adverts. That means that when the ads come on - as they invariably do - if you don't like the one they're showing, you can choose a different ad from several on offer. Very interesting ad-based literacy - I've never been asked to consciously choose my own ads before, even though I know I'm already trading off that information on many of my social media platforms. And of course, in the process, Hulu learns lots about your preferences ;) 2. many people, I'm sure, would find the image more memorable than the number. 3. So, three new personal takeways for me from this one day conference - very valuable and energising.
The Never Ending Thesis www.nesta.org.uk/library/documents/DecodingLearningReport_v12.pdf Our Decoding Learning report looks at the impact of digital technology in the classroom. Key findings Schools spent £487 million on ICT equipment and services in 2009-2010. But this investment has not yet resulted in radical improvements to learning experiences or attainment.No technology has an impact on learning on its own right; impact depends on how it is used. Rather than categorising innovations by the type of technology used (eg, do games help learning?) In the last five years UK schools have spent more than £1 billion on digital technology. Something is going wrong. Nesta commissioned the London Knowledge Lab (LKL) and Learning Sciences Research Institute (LSRI), University of Nottingham, to analyse how technology has been used in the UK education systems and lessons from around the world. Authors Rosemary Luckin, Brett Bligh, Andrew Manches, Shaaron Ainsworth, Charles Crook, Richard Noss
Grant 4/11 - Call for projects in developing digital literacies JISC invites institutions to submit funding proposals for projects to support the development and implementation of institutional approaches to digital literacies across the entire workforce and including students. Total funding of up to £1,000,000 is available for 10 to 12 two year projects funded at up to £100,000 each. The deadline for proposals is 12 noon UK time on Wednesday, 8 June 2011. It is envisaged that bidders will be notified of the outcome of the evaluation process in the week commencing 4 July 2011. The successful projects will be expected to start work mid July 2011. The work is to be completed by 31 July 2013. Briefing event A briefing event was held online via Elluminate at 10 am on the 12th May 2011. Recording of briefing session1 – please note there were technical difficulties at the start of this session so please start the recording approximately 10 minutes into the session Powerpoint presentation2 (pdf) Eligibility
Developing digital literacy in higher education: live chat | Higher Education Network | Guardian Professional The popularity of the Guardian's digital literacy campaign shows not only how much interest there is in this topic but also how much misunderstanding there is about what digital literacy is, or what purpose it serves. So what is digital literacy? In a blog for the us, JISC InfoNet researcher Doug Belshaw, describes the digitally literate as knowing how the web works, understanding how ideas spread through networks and able to use digital tools to work purposefully towards a pre-specified goal. But he then laments that digital literacy goes beyond mere computing skills such as using a word-processor or a database: "The digital world is not a single, homogeneous space and, as a result, the literacies we require to traverse and interact in this space vary enormously. The digital landscape changes rapidly meaning that young people require not a static functional literacy, but a critical and creative set of attributes that help them to navigate various networks." Panel to follow
Learning literacies in a digital age Download this document1 This paper draws on a JISC report, Thriving in the 21st century: Learning Literacies for the Digital Age, which explores examples of learning literacies provision in UK further and higher education. The nature of work is changing, not just for the growing numbers of graduates directly employed in the ‘digital’ industries. According to the recent e-skills report ‘Technology Counts’, an estimated 77% of UK jobs involve some form of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) competence, requiring skills to be updated as technology changes. ‘Education can play a role in influencing future cultural and social practices with technology.’Opportunities for learning are also changing and by most measures becoming more numerous and openly available. The nature of knowledge is changing, so that what counts as useful knowledge is increasingly biased towards what can be represented in digital form, and/or applied to immediate problems and situations. Looking to the future
arcadia@cambridge Projects | Cambridge University Library Emma Coonan and Jane Secker Information literacy is widely recognised as a key part of lifelong independent learning. It has been defined as "... knowing when and why you need information, where to find it, and how to evaluate, use and communicate it in an ethical manner." (CILIP, 2004) Meanwhile UNESCO take a broader view that goes beyond learning, stating that: Information literacy empowers people in all walks of life to seek, evaluate, use and create information effectively to achieve their personal, social, occupational and educational goals. Information literacy can be defined as a set of skills, attributes and behaviour that underpins student learning in the digital age. SCONUL's Seven Pillars of Information Literacy model, widely accepted in higher education, sets out the skills and attributes that an information literate person should have. References CIBER (2008) Information behaviour of the researcher of the future.
20 ways of thinking about digital literacy in higher education | Higher Education Network | Guardian Professional Josie Fraser, social and educational technologist, Leicester City Council First define what you mean by digital literacy: The definition I most frequently use is this one: digital literacy = digital tool knowledge + critical thinking + social engagement. Then it's worth knowing its main characteristics: • It supports and helps develop traditional literacies• It's a life-long practice• It's about skills, competencies and critical reflection on how these skills and competencies are applied• It's about social engagement Top tips for developing the digital literacy of non-traditional students: Begin by exploring the ways in which the group are already using mobile and web based technologies. Many of them will already be engaging with tech for personal use, for example Skyping relatives, keeping in touch on Facebook or using mobile phones. Literacy is not static: I like Bélisle's three models of literacy: functional, socio-cultural and transformational.