OLDaily

Presentation
Electron Express
Stephen Downes, Feb 28, 2019, In-House, Ottawa

This is an overview of how applications are being created for the web and the desktop using Node.js packages including Express and Electron. It's intended for a non-technical audience and describes how the software works and what it can do. This not a 'how-to' guide, it's a survey of the landscape.

[Slides] [Video]

Horizon Report Preview 2019
EDUCAUSE, 2019/02/28

This report (11 page PDF) carries on Horizon's long-standing tradition of predicting things that have already happened. Need proof? For the short term, Horizon is predicting mobile learning and analytics. Medium term sees mixed reality and artificial intelligence. And get ready, because in 4-5 years we'll see blockchain and virtual assistants (that will be a surprise to anyone who bought a Google Home with Bitcoin). It's not that these predictions are unhelpful, they're also too vague to be useful. Consider 'blockchain'. They write "the  legacy of blockchain might be what the technology inspired rather than the broad adoption of blockchain technology itself." Well - yeah. But what will be the technology inspired by blockchain? I've taken my own stab at that question - but it's hard to see Horizon getting beyond a one-word answer. Via Campus Technology.

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The concept of praxis
Kelli McGraw, 2019/02/28

I still think 'praxis' is a meaningless term that serves only to confuse non-academic readers, but here's an overview anyway, with some well-posed questions about the concept.

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The PERLA Framework: Blending Personalization and Learning Analytics
Mohamed Amine Chatti, Arham Muslim, International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 2019/02/28

From the abstract: "This paper discusses the Personalization and Learning Analytics (PERLA) framework which represents the convergence of personalization and learning analytics and provides a theoretical foundation for effective analytics-enhanced personalized learning." It's important to not that the authors distinguish personalization from adaptation (or adaptive learning systems). "Personalization is learner-driven; the system only helps learners decide what to do next." Anyhow, the framework is based on a cycle alternating execution and evaluation (described by feed-forward and feedback indicators respectively). I'm not sure what it adds specifically but I can imagine it being referenced in future work in this area.

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ALEKS from McGraw-Hill: Web-Based, CCSS-Aligned, AI-Driven 6-12 Math Curriculum
Michael Karlin, The Ed Tech Round Up, 2019/02/28

This is a glowing review of ALEKS (Assessment and LEarning in Knowledge Spaces) from McGraw-Hill Education. The idea is that "it is designed to provide instruction and guidance at whatever level a student may need." Of course it is not intended to replace the teacher (yet) and the reviewer takes pains to say this. On the other hand, "the AI is built on information gained from free responses and not multiple choice questions, so it is able to capture more of the subtlety and specifics of exactly what students know." It felt a bit like a softball review but Michael Karlin asserts "the opinions expressed in this review are my own" and "I was not compensated for writing this review" so I take it at face value.

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Understanding Participant's Behaviour in Massively Open Online Courses
Bruno Poellhuber, Normand Roy, Ibthihel Bouchoucha, International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 2019/02/28

This article is a useful correction to the caterwauling about MOOC drop-out rates in the early days of the research. The authors identify five major categories of MOOC users, each of which has a different set of objectives and behaviours in the course: browsers, self-assessors, serious readers, active-independent, active-social. There's also a category called 'ghosts' (or, in the abstract, 'ghots', which I think is actually a better word). According to the authors, "we need to rethink the names and definitions used in MOOC research, especially concerning who is a student, what persevering means, and what success is from the MOOC participant's perspective.

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Moodle Announces Moodle Workplace: The best of Moodle, fine-tuned for organisational learning
Moodle, 2019/02/28

Reflective of a slow trend in educational technology, Moodle has announced a move to corporate learning support with Moodle Workplace. The explanation is, "our community of users and our Moodle Partners have been needing new features specific to learning and development in the workplace." But more telling is the response to the question, "Is Moodle Workplace open source?" It is this: "Moodle Workplace is not being distributed in the same way as Moodle core. For now, Moodle Workplace is only available via selected Moodle Partners, so that we can ensure a high quality experience with Moodle Workplace." In other words: no. Via Checkpoint.

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