OLDaily

Strategies for Safe Operation and Addressing the Impact of COVID-19 onHigher Education Students, Faculty, and Staff
U.S. Department of Education, 2021/06/07

Not surprisingly this document (54 page PDF) focuses on the steps needed to open up institutions for in-person learning. But perhaps surprisingly, the bulk of it is devoted to online learning. "The need for high- quality online options is here to stay," write the authors. "Given this reality, it is essential that IHEs invest in professional learning opportunities tailored to the digital context." At the start of the pandemic, "Nearly half of faculty had not taught online," and this state of unreadiness was evident in the uneven response that resulted. The report also addresses a full section to addressing broadband and device access for students, and another to providing basic needs support to students. Actually addressing these issues, which the report does, is far more satisfying than bland assertions that the problems exist (as though we could just shrug and give up on the whole enterprise). Via Sara Goldrick-Rab.

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On Academic Elitism, Implicit Racism, and Social Media, Joshua Earle
Joshua Earle, Social Epistemology Review and Reply Collective, 2021/06/07

This article uses a sharp example to expose one of academia's most persistent shortcomings: "We imagine that those who are not a part of our organization can’t themselves be experts of—or well-read in—our field." What's more, "All of these barriers fall most heavily onto racialized and otherwise marginalized people (scholars included)." That's why, when MC Hammer expressed an option on the importance of citation, academia (represented in this instance by the Society for the Social Studies of Science) treated him like a novice. And quite rightly got its knuckles rapped. “lol, the audacity.” Indeed.

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Design Variables for Self-Directed Learning in MOOC Environment
Tai Wang, Juhong Christie Liu, Tonggui Li, Paperity, Journal of Educational Technology Development and Exchange, 2021/06/07

This paper does a lot of things right but suffers, I think, from a critical flaw. The authors argue that "early design recommendations for distance learning environment were primarily teacher-centered," however, it is "not inclusive enough to continue to use the traditional teacher-centered framework to view the design elements of a new distance learning environment." Quite so. So the plan - to examine the literature of self-directed learning and evaluate the design elements found therein. This, I think, is where the paper runs into problems. The list of elements identified (table 3) lacks rigor and precision. The items listed (for example, "the lecture video is elaborately designed") aren't all design elements, they are unclear in their meaning, and the list is far from comprehensive. This may be a result of translation, but it seems to be that the elements conflate the design element itself and a 'success criterion' for that element. The result is that the three core elements - "learner-centeredness, reflective practice, and collaborative learning" - aren't really design elements at all!

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A Federated Bookshelves reader
Andy Sylvester, 2021/06/07

There has been some chatter on the interwebs about the idea of using OPML to share book libraries. The good part of this is that a decentralized listing library may be the only way to develop alternatives to Amazon. But I caution that the library has to enable people to access and read the books seamlessly. Otherwise, what's the point? This post points to a GitHub repository that brings together recent discussion on the idea. It begins (where else) with Dave Winer's Little Outliner, which looks beautiful but is awkward to use (IMO).

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10 Reflections from Online Teaching
Tyler Tennant, HASTAC, 2021/06/07

I think this is a first-rate set of reflections on teaching online. It seems to me that they capture what really works online instead of trying to force an offline mode of teaching into an online format. The first two items, small groups and recorded lectures, will be familiar to most. But where online really shines is in things like free writing exercises (because you can share immediately), presenting video feedback (because it's easy to record and save), and using multimedia. But more, it allows you to generate student agency and choice, supporting accessibility, mid-course corrections, and student presentations.

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