Association for the
Advancement of Computing in Education
Celebrating 30+ Years of
Service to the IT in Education / E-Learning Community
Celebrating 30+ Years of
Service to the IT in Education / E-Learning Community
Be it Resolved that this House Believes that the Use of Social Media and Networking is Contributing to the Attainment of Significant Educational Goals in Ways that Suggest Even More Powerful Future Impact
Moderator: George Siemens, Athabasca University, Canada
Keynote to Present in Favor: Jon Dron, Athabasca University, Canada
Keynote to Oppose: Neil Sewlyn, London Knowledge Lab, UK
This conference keynote debate will follow the Oxford-style format addressing the assertion:
"Be it resolved that this house believes that the use of social media and networking is contributing to the attainment of significant educational goals in ways that suggest even more powerful future impact"
This moderated debate will include active audience participation through mobiles.
Moderator: George Siemens, Athabasca University, Canada
Bio: George Siemens is a prominent writer, speaker, and researcher on learning, networks, technology and organizational effectiveness in digital environments. He is the author of Knowing Knowledge, an exploration of how the context and characteristics of knowledge have changed and what it means to organizations today, and the recently released Handbook of Emerging Technologies for Learning. Siemens is also with the Technology Enhanced Knowledge Research Institute at Athabasca University.
His current research interests include social software, emerging technology, information management and visualization, and the design of organizations in response to social and technological change pressures.
He is founder and President of Complexive Systems Inc., a learning lab focused on helping organizations develop integrated learning structures to meet the needs of global strategy execution.
He is an international speaker and consultant, detailing the changes universities, colleges, and corporations must make in order to address the challenges of an increasingly complex world. Siemens maintains www.elearnspace.org and www.connectivism.ca. Additional background information is available at www.elearnspace.org/about.htm.
Keynote to Present in Favor:
Jon Dron, Athabasca University, Canada
Bio: My main research interest is in e-learning. In particular, I am interested in how systems affect behaviour and how behaviour can affect systems. These kinds of system can help crowds to become teachers. This leads me to dabble in fields as diverse as architecture, evolution, complexity theory, distance learning theory and software design, plus a whole load of others.
Amongst other things my sub-interests include:
Social navigation, Educational social software systems, Adaptive educational software systems, Catering for and adapting to diversity in learners, Self-organising systems for learning,Learning objects and their abuses (and how they should be done), The evils of learning management systems (and how they should be done),Software to support learning communities
I am a fellow of TEKRI, the Technology Enhanced Knowledge Research Institute at Athabasca University where we explore a range of issues relating to social, adaptive and mobile technologies for learning. Lately I've been wondering about the pedagogical/technological divide that has defined the camps of the e-learning community for some time, and am thinking about how they can be brought together in a single conceptual framework.
Keynote to Oppose:
Neil Sewlyn, London Knowledge Lab, UK
Bio: Neil Selwyn is sociologist working at the London Knowledge Lab. His research and teaching focuses on the place of digital media in everyday life, and the sociology of technology (non)use in educational settings. He has written extensively on a number of issues, including digital exclusion, education technology policymaking and the student experience of technology-based learning. He has carried out funded research on information technology, society and education for the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the BBC, Nuffield Foundation, the Spencer Foundation, Becta, Centre for Distance Education, the Welsh Office, National Assembly of Wales and various local authorities.
