Issues in Reusing Online Resources: Chapter 1

This is an era marked by rapid developments in three different educational arenas -- access, lifelong learning and e-learning. In both developed and developing countries there is a growing demand for access to education... Alongside this growing demand for access, increased numbers of adults are returning to colleges and universities for additional education and training (CIHE, 2002). Lifelong learning has come of age, brought about by changes in attitudes to learning and in employment patterns, where jobs and careers are recast many times during a lifespan. Permeating and supporting these first two developments, in access and lifelong learning, are developments in information and communication technologies (ICT). New technologies are beginning to transform how higher education is organized and delivered both on campus and at a distance. E-learning affords new opportunities to increase flexibility in time and location of study, in forms of communication (for example, asynchronous discussions) and types of interaction... Although e-learning has the potential to provide the kinds of flexibility required by wider access and lifelong learning there are some major obstacles. On the one hand, wider access and lifelong learning require vast increases in specially designed course materials to satisfy the greater range of demands for learning. On the other hand, creating the digital resources necessary for online course delivery requires considerable investment, a factor that makes resource development only viable for courses with large student numbers or sizeable budgets. In order to address this difficulty, numerous national and international initiatives have been funded to investigate ways in which digital learning resources might be developed, shared and reused by teachers and learners around the world (so as to benefit from economies of scale). Behind these initiatives lies a vision of a future in which reusable resources (or 'learning objects' as they are called) could comprise a new currency of exchange within a learning economy. Learning objects, produced by publishers, teachers, support staff and students themselves, would be stored in digital repositories, where they could be easily accessed, recombined and reused within online courses. However, despite this vision, the idea of reusing electronic resources is more complex than the object economy scenario, outlined above, may suggest. The next section identifies seven issues associated with the reuse and sharing of resources. These sections focus on educational design, the need for standards, and on the culture and organization that would be necessary in institutions (and across institutions) if reuse were to become a reality

Relational Neurogenesis for Lifelong Learning Agents

Reinforcement learning systems have shown tremendous potential in being able to model meritorious behavior in virtual agents and robots. The ability to learn through continuous reinforcement and interaction with an environment negates the requirement of painstakingly curated datasets and hand crafted features. However, the ability to learn multiple tasks in a sequential manner, referred to as lifelong or continual learning, remains unresolved. The search for lifelong learning algorithms creates the foundation for this work. While there has been much research conducted in supervised learning domains under lifelong learning, the reinforced lifelong learning domain remains open for much exploration. Furthermore, current implementations either concentrate on preserving information in fixed capacity networks, or propose incrementally growing networks which randomly search through an unconstrained solution space. In order to develop a comprehensive lifelong learning algorithm, it seems essential to amalgamate these approaches into a condensed algorithm which can perform both neuroevolution and constrict network growth automatically. This thesis proposes a novel algorithm for continual learning using neurogenesis in reinforcement learning agents. It builds upon existing neuroevolutionary techniques, and incorporates several new mechanisms for limiting the memory resources while expanding neural network learning capacity. The algorithm is tested on a custom set of sequential virtual environments which emulate several meaningful scenarios for intellectually down-scaled species and autonomous robots. Additionally, a library for connecting an unconstrained range of machine learning tools, in a variety of programming languages to the Unity3D simulation engine for the development of future learning algorithms and environments, is also proposed

The Andragogy, the Social Change and the Transformative Learning educational approaches in Adult Education

This paper is concerned with the methods and techniques used in adult education in order to allow the educator to successfully respond to suitable learning experiences on the part of the learner as well as to reinforce interaction between the learners. The strategies adopted, teaching aids and the choice of suitable teaching material also is discussed in order to achieve a successful outcome in the learning process. The goal of the educator is not only to transfer knowledge but also to urge the learner to search for knowledge himself. A further goal of the educator is to encourage the learner and facilitate the learning procedure. In addition the general framework for the first meeting of adult learners in lifelong learning is mentioned. Also the obstacles an adult is confronted with on beginning a lifelong learning program are explained, focusing on mental, financial and social obstacles which make the learning procedure difficult owing to a lack of self-esteem. Keywords: adult education, lifelong education, andragogy, transformative learnin

The Andragogy, the Social Change and the Transormative Learning Educational Approaches in Adult Education

This paper is concerned with the methods and techniques used in adult education in order to allow the educator to successfully respond to suitable learning experiences on the part of the learner as well as to reinforce interaction between the learners. The strategies adopted, teaching aids and the choice of suitable teaching material also is discussed in order to achieve a successful outcome in the learning process. The goal of the educator is not only to transfer knowledge but also to urge the learner to search for knowledge himself. A further goal of the educator is to encourage the learner and facilitate the learning procedure. In addition the general framework for the first meeting of adult learners in lifelong learning is mentioned. Also the obstacles an adult is confronted with on beginning a lifelong learning program are explained, focusing on mental, financial and social obstacles which make the learning procedure difficult owing to a lack of self-esteem. Keywords: adult education, lifelong education, andragogy, transformative learnin

Tap it again, Sam: Harmonizing personal environments towards lifelong learning

The increasing number of mobile vendors releas- ing NFC-enabled devices to the market and their prominent adoption has moved this technology from a niche product to a product with a large market-share. NFC facilitates natural interactions between digital world and physical learning environments. The scaffolding of learning ecologies is a key aspect for lifelong learners in their challenge to integrate learning activities into busy daily life. The contribution of this manuscript is twofold: first, a review of scientific litera- ture in which NFC has been used with a direct or indirect purpose to learn is presented, and potential uses for learners are classified according to their type of interaction; based on these findings the NFC MediaPlayer is presented as an instantiation of an ecology of resources (EoR) in a lifelong learning context. Finally, shortcomings and best practices are highlighted in the conclusions, and future work is discussed

MODEL PEMBELAJARAN SEUMUR HIDUP BERBASIS TEKNOLOGI INFORMASI DAN KOMUNIKASI (TIK) UNTUK PEMBERDAYAAN PEREMPUAN PEDESAAN PADA PKBM

Lifelong learning (life long education) has a large role in improving the quality of the human development index. The quality of education in rural communities is far behind and powerless, especially women. Development of the quality of women's education in rural areas needs to be done comprehensively by combining formal, non-formal and informal education. The learning approach used combines andragodi and heutagogi so that lifelong education can be successful. To accelerate the goal of educational development for rural women can be done by forming learning communities through Community Learning Centers (PKBM).Learning for rural women in PKBM needs to be integrated using information and communication technology (ICT) because the community lives in far-off places while learning needs to be done in stages and continuously (life long learning). The use of ICTs in learning for rural women will facilitate the process and interaction in learning. Providing skills and economic empowerment become the main material in learning for rural women. Through education and ICT the empowerment of rural women will be more effective and can improve the quality of life of women socially and economically

Assessment of online interaction pattern using the Q-4R framework

Online learning has merged into mainstream education as it allows learners to work at their own pace, get personalized attention and interact in a structured manner. The role of interaction is crucial in this process andvarious methods have been proposed in literature (Marcelo and Perera, 2007) to analyze its role in online learning. The purpose of this paper is to present findings on analysis of the linkages between interaction patterns, task given and facilitation methods in an online learning environmentA model of interaction patterns called Q-4R framework is proposed and, the experiences of 16students of the Master of Instructional Design & Technology programme at the Open University Malaysia werestudied. The flow of interactions in two comparable courses was explored for a period of two months each and evaluated. The study has thrown significant conclusions that can help us further understand the progression in interaction patterns over a period of time inadvertently aiding lifelong learning. (Abstract by authors

Stakeholder perspectives of play-based learning in the first year of primary school : a case study in Aotearoa New Zealand : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Educational Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand

This qualitative research study explored key stakeholders’ perspectives of a play-based learning (Pb-L) approach in the first year of primary school. A case-study design was used to gather information about the perceived value, challenges, and characteristics of a Pb-L environment in an Auckland-based primary school. The children’s perspectives of the role of play were explored in six focus group interviews, while an online survey was used to collect parent or caregiver’s experiences of the current Pb-L approach. Lastly, two separate interviews were conducted with a classroom teacher and school leader to capture their experiences of implementing a play-based approach. The findings of the study indicated that children perceived self-initiated, hands-on exploration that was based on their interests, and social interaction with peers, as important in their play and learning activities. Overall, the parents, teacher, and school leader demonstrated a shared understanding of the value of a Pb-L approach, particularly in relation to the importance of child well-being and children’s social and emotional development. The study outlines the adults’ perspectives of the benefits and challenges of a play pedagogy and highlights the implications for schools/teaching practice, including potential opportunities for future research. It is proposed that a Pb-L pedagogy provides an approach to development and learning that embraces the natural playfulness with which children enter school to support meaningful early learning experiences that promote lifelong learning

Knowledge Acquisition among Academics at a Malaysian Public University

This study describes the knowledge acquisition of academicians at a local public university in Malaysia. This study is guided by four research questions: 1) the reasons for learning among academician in the context of academician practice 2) types of learning do academician learns in acquiring knowledge 3) factors influence and inhibit learning for knowledge acquisition among academician 4) personal characteristic of academician and the implication of learning outcome to academicians. A qualitative research method was used in the study and the primary data were collected mainly through interviews using a semi structured question guide during the in-depth interview with twelve respondents by using purposive and snowballing techniques. Three reasons of learning for acquisition of knowledge among academician emerged from the study. All respondents believed that learning is part of the knowledge advancement that academicians must keep abreast with the environmental change. Learning is a lifelong. Learning should be continuous as the academicians need to updated their knowledge. Academicians need to keep abreast with the technology changes. The themes emerge from the academician's knowledge acquisition are: Academicians acquire knowledge through formal, non-formal and informal learning strategies such as conferences, seminar, by academic visit, industrial linkages. Sources of informal learning is through reading, discussion, sharing knowledge with student, and research. The three themes that motivate academicians for learning are: the quest for knowledge, academic performance and salary. There are some barriers that inhibits the process of learning among academicians such as time, costs infrastructure and management support. The characteristics of learner as open minded, hard working, good communication and interaction skill and patience also influence on their learning. The learning outcomes to academicians allow to keep abreast with environment changes, increase job performance, selfconfident, add experience, career development and personal satisfaction. Five conclusions are drawn from the study. Academicians took responsibility to learn, learning is lifelong process, use multiple strategies of learning, and their personal characteristic and motivation to learn influence their learning for knowledge. Recommendation are put forth for knowledge acquisition are foster positive attitude toward lifelong learning, foster workplace learning, stimulate exciting environment, encourage active and cooperative learning and facilitate technology infrastructure