ICT & 21st Century Learning Communities

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2015:

Contact hours can be completed during scheduled class times, online or as a combination of both

170 hours

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes and Assessment Requirements of this entry.

The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

This subject explores the practical 21st Century application of theories of communities of practice as described by Wenger and Lave, and others. It explores virtual learning communities with a particular focus on open source tools and resources. Underlying this investigation is a theoretical framework designed to make relevant and contextual links between theory and practice. The subject should be of interest to educators from all sectors including primary and secondary, tertiary, industry and training, and others interested in the use of modern applications to support learning communities.
Topics will include:

• Social Networking and education
• Open Source Content Management
• Communities of Practice in Wikis
• Distributed Intelligence and Distributed Cognition
• Open Source philosophy and applications for education
• Collaborative learning communities
• Establishing learning communities

On completion of this subject, students will have the knowledge, skills and understanding to enable them to:
• Engage with and understand relevant theoretical perspectives;
• Understand the practical implementation of these technologies in education settings;
• Engage with contemporary ICT trends and practices;
• Ethically apply contemporary technologies in their practice

The goals of this subject align specifically with National Standards for Teachers, in particular:
• 2.6 Highly Accomplished: Model high-level teaching knowledge and skills and work with colleagues to use current ICT to improve their teaching practice and make content relevant and meaningful.
Lead: Lead and support colleagues within the school to select and use ICT with effective teaching strategies to expand learning opportunities and content knowledge for all students.
• 3.4 Highly Accomplished: Assist colleagues to create, select and use a wide range of resources, including ICT, to engage students in their learning.
Lead: Model exemplary skills and lead colleagues in selecting, creating and evaluating resources, including ICT, for application by teachers within or beyond the school
• 4.5 Highly Accomplished: Model, and support colleagues to develop, strategies to promote the safe, responsible and ethical use of ICT in learning and teaching.
Lead: Review or implement new policies and strategies to ensure the safe, responsible and ethical use of ICT in learning and teaching.

• 1500 word essay: Negotiated essay on aspects of digital technologies in the support of learning communities, due mid semester, 30%
• Project equivalent to 2250 words: A practical application of the use of digital technologies in the support of learning communities, due mid semester, 45%
• Contribution: involvement in discussion of weekly readings, making regular contributions to the learning community website, throughout the semester, 10%
• 750 word essay: Constructive review of a student project, due end of semester, 15%

Attendance at all classes (tutorial/seminars/practical classes/lectures/labs) is obligatory. Failure to attend 80% of classes will normally result in failure in the subject.

Readings as provided

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

On completion of this subject, students will have the knowledge, skills and understanding to enable them to:
• Be skilled communicators who can effectively articulate and justify their practices;
• Be able to work in teams with skills in cooperation, communication and negotiation;
• Be independent of mind, responsible, resilient, self-regulating;
• Be able to work collaboratively with others to solve problems;
• Be able to evaluate and synthesise relevant research literature