The functionality of web 2.0 technologies has caused academics to rethink their development of te... more The functionality of web 2.0 technologies has caused academics to rethink their development of teaching and learning methods and approaches. The editable, open access nature of web 2.0 encourages the innovative collaboration of ideas, the creation of equitable visual and tactile learning environments, and opportunity for academics to develop contemporary assessment tasks. In reviewing an example of a teaching tool based on Google SketchUp 3D Warehouse, we have had to consider social and cultural changes required by academics adopting and adapting such technology. In using open source and collaborative knowledge technology there is a risk of work – including the work of students and others – being seen to be plagiarised, and this coming into conflict with established rules of academic behaviour. We conclude that universities must not only be willing to invest in the educational infrastructure to avoid communication, ownership, and authority issues, but, more importantly, be prepared to examine cultural change regarding values and beliefs around ownership of knowledge and the roles of collaborative knowledge generation.
Any curriculum is a construct of perceived social, political and economic needs developed at a po... more Any curriculum is a construct of perceived social, political and economic needs developed at a point in time. Given that these needs are in a constant state of flux, the curriculum is subjected to periodical renewal and development processes. Gaining more visibility in the iterations of curriculum documentation is the need for Australians to be more aware of their activities impacting on the environment. Comparable to a specific curriculum document, the content knowledge delivered through initial teacher education is specific to the conditions at a point in time, requiring teachers to adapt as the curriculum evolves. Peering through the lens of teacher content knowledge, research has shown that teachers need to efficiently adapt to these changes and effectively develop their expertise in the new content material. Those that can innovate in applying their existing knowledge to the new content are said to possess adaptive expertise. Given the breadth and diversity of school curriculum, the economisation of formalised professional learning opportunities does not address the shortfall in teacher content knowledge. As a result, qualified teachers have resorted to autonomous methods of professional learning to bridge the knowledge gap. This study examines whether autonomous professional learning approaches are an effective method for teachers to gain an understanding of new syllabus content. Using a case study of technology education teachers self-educating around the concepts of eco-friendly technology education, the study identifies the intrinsic motivation of teachers to know and understand their evolving subject, and provides a basis for self-directed and autonomous professional learning. What this results in is the successful development of a basic understanding of new information and concepts in technology education.
The popularity of sites like YouTube demonstrates the potential preference for users to use video... more The popularity of sites like YouTube demonstrates the potential preference for users to use video podcasts (vodcasts) as an instructional tool. As educators have been encouraged to become more literate in authoring Web 2.0 technologies, the implementation of vodcasts as an effective pedagogy has been increasingly used in educational settings. The recent proliferation of distance education courses caused educators in higher education settings to consider why some programs are more suitable for distance education than others, and whether procedural knowledge and skills that are required in various industries may be able to be delivered using contemporary technologies. This article discusses the efficacy of using vodcasting as a pedagogical tool, in developing procedural knowledge and skills in computer aided design and drawing, to pre-service teachers studying via distance education, and demonstrates the capacity for vodcasts to foster autonomous student learning.
This paper examines ethics in learning and teaching geography in higher education. It proposes a ... more This paper examines ethics in learning and teaching geography in higher education. It proposes a pathway towards curriculum and pedagogy that better incorporates ethics in university geography education. By focusing on the central but problematic relationships between (i) teaching and learning on the one hand and research on the other, and (ii) ethics and geography curricula, the authors' reflections illustrate how ethics may be better recognized within those curricula. They discuss issues affecting teaching and learning about ethics in geography, and through identification of a range of examples identify ways to enhance the integration of ethical issues into university geography curricula.
Journal of University Teaching & Learning Practice, 2012
This paper builds on some ideas recently presented by Boyd et al.(2010). In that paper, the focus... more This paper builds on some ideas recently presented by Boyd et al.(2010). In that paper, the focus was on the ways in which experienced academic staff articulate the teaching-research nexus. By presenting six short case accounts, this paper describes how a reflective narrative activity enabled some 'new to academe'teachers to identify the teaching research nexus in their own work. For each of them, there was some particular reason or stimulus that led to them articulating the teaching-learning nexus in their work. Given the ...
... By around 11 000 BP, a palaeocoast would have been established at about 60 m below present se... more ... By around 11 000 BP, a palaeocoast would have been established at about 60 m below present sea level in the Bac Bo Gulf (Luu Ty & Nguyen The Tiep 1980). Shortly after this, much of the Pleistocene land within the area would have become gradually inundated by the sea. ...
The functionality of web 2.0 technologies has caused academics to rethink their development of te... more The functionality of web 2.0 technologies has caused academics to rethink their development of teaching and learning methods and approaches. The editable, open access nature of web 2.0 encourages the innovative collaboration of ideas, the creation of equitable visual and tactile learning environments, and opportunity for academics to develop contemporary assessment tasks. In reviewing an example of a teaching tool based on Google SketchUp 3D Warehouse, we have had to consider social and cultural changes required by academics adopting and adapting such technology. In using open source and collaborative knowledge technology there is a risk of work – including the work of students and others – being seen to be plagiarised, and this coming into conflict with established rules of academic behaviour. We conclude that universities must not only be willing to invest in the educational infrastructure to avoid communication, ownership, and authority issues, but, more importantly, be prepared to examine cultural change regarding values and beliefs around ownership of knowledge and the roles of collaborative knowledge generation.
Any curriculum is a construct of perceived social, political and economic needs developed at a po... more Any curriculum is a construct of perceived social, political and economic needs developed at a point in time. Given that these needs are in a constant state of flux, the curriculum is subjected to periodical renewal and development processes. Gaining more visibility in the iterations of curriculum documentation is the need for Australians to be more aware of their activities impacting on the environment. Comparable to a specific curriculum document, the content knowledge delivered through initial teacher education is specific to the conditions at a point in time, requiring teachers to adapt as the curriculum evolves. Peering through the lens of teacher content knowledge, research has shown that teachers need to efficiently adapt to these changes and effectively develop their expertise in the new content material. Those that can innovate in applying their existing knowledge to the new content are said to possess adaptive expertise. Given the breadth and diversity of school curriculum, the economisation of formalised professional learning opportunities does not address the shortfall in teacher content knowledge. As a result, qualified teachers have resorted to autonomous methods of professional learning to bridge the knowledge gap. This study examines whether autonomous professional learning approaches are an effective method for teachers to gain an understanding of new syllabus content. Using a case study of technology education teachers self-educating around the concepts of eco-friendly technology education, the study identifies the intrinsic motivation of teachers to know and understand their evolving subject, and provides a basis for self-directed and autonomous professional learning. What this results in is the successful development of a basic understanding of new information and concepts in technology education.
The popularity of sites like YouTube demonstrates the potential preference for users to use video... more The popularity of sites like YouTube demonstrates the potential preference for users to use video podcasts (vodcasts) as an instructional tool. As educators have been encouraged to become more literate in authoring Web 2.0 technologies, the implementation of vodcasts as an effective pedagogy has been increasingly used in educational settings. The recent proliferation of distance education courses caused educators in higher education settings to consider why some programs are more suitable for distance education than others, and whether procedural knowledge and skills that are required in various industries may be able to be delivered using contemporary technologies. This article discusses the efficacy of using vodcasting as a pedagogical tool, in developing procedural knowledge and skills in computer aided design and drawing, to pre-service teachers studying via distance education, and demonstrates the capacity for vodcasts to foster autonomous student learning.
This paper examines ethics in learning and teaching geography in higher education. It proposes a ... more This paper examines ethics in learning and teaching geography in higher education. It proposes a pathway towards curriculum and pedagogy that better incorporates ethics in university geography education. By focusing on the central but problematic relationships between (i) teaching and learning on the one hand and research on the other, and (ii) ethics and geography curricula, the authors' reflections illustrate how ethics may be better recognized within those curricula. They discuss issues affecting teaching and learning about ethics in geography, and through identification of a range of examples identify ways to enhance the integration of ethical issues into university geography curricula.
Journal of University Teaching & Learning Practice, 2012
This paper builds on some ideas recently presented by Boyd et al.(2010). In that paper, the focus... more This paper builds on some ideas recently presented by Boyd et al.(2010). In that paper, the focus was on the ways in which experienced academic staff articulate the teaching-research nexus. By presenting six short case accounts, this paper describes how a reflective narrative activity enabled some 'new to academe'teachers to identify the teaching research nexus in their own work. For each of them, there was some particular reason or stimulus that led to them articulating the teaching-learning nexus in their work. Given the ...
... By around 11 000 BP, a palaeocoast would have been established at about 60 m below present se... more ... By around 11 000 BP, a palaeocoast would have been established at about 60 m below present sea level in the Bac Bo Gulf (Luu Ty & Nguyen The Tiep 1980). Shortly after this, much of the Pleistocene land within the area would have become gradually inundated by the sea. ...
Uploads
Papers by William Boyd