Registered training organisations (RTOs) in Tasmania can now apply for a share in $144,400 in E-learning Innovations funding and support to implement innovative e-learning solutions for businesses and individuals, tailored to local priorities.

E-learning Innovations funding timelines, information, guidelines and application processes vary in every state and territory.

Read the TAS 2011 E-learning Innovations Guidelines for Applicants for information on how to apply for funding in Tasmania.

Applications can be made from 24 August 2010 using the Expression of Interest application form.

Applications close on 5.00pm AEST on 20 September 2010

To assist you in applying for funding, a free online information session will be held:

Date: Thursday 9 September 2010
Time: 12:30pm-1:30pm
Location: http://tinyurl.com/egems-2011innovations OR https://sas.elluminate.com/m.jnlp?sid=675&password=M.8831B0E4AD9F2C0338DBE968E80CB0

Registration is not required. Participants must have access to internet, headphones and a microphone and have installed and configured the Elluminate web conferencing software beforehand.

For more information contact the Tasmanian Innovations Coordinator, Fiona Huskinson:
Phone: (03) 6233 2140          
Email: fiona.huskinson [at] skills.tas.gov.au

IWith over 3.5 million courses registered worldwide, open source learning management system Moodle has grown to become one of the most popular delivery tools in education and training.

 Teachers and trainers around the world are using Moodle with learners across all education sectors, from primary to high school to vocational and tertiary education. Moodle has the flexibility to deliver either complete online courses or blended learning, or to facilitate individual modules, assessment or networking exercises.

 But how can Moodle help you?

 Moodle allows practitioners, without previous web development skills, to quickly create effective online learning sites which are tailored specifically to the needs of their learners.

 Moodle’s interactive features are popular with teachers, trainers and learners due to the engagement and flexibility they provide. Features include:

 ·          Lessons – learners progress through a series of web pages, accessing information, completing activities and answering questions.

 ·          E-assessment – includes online assignment submissions, quizzes/tests that are automatically graded, and poll questions.

·          Chat – allows ‘real time’ text conversations between teachers/trainers and learners, and supports html and images. Chats are logged and can be accessed as a resource.

·          Wikis – web pages created for specific courses that can be edited by both teachers/trainers and learners to allow interaction and collaboration.

 ·          Forums – allows interaction between teachers/trainers and learners. Different types of forums can be created to suit individual needs, eg teacher-only, course news, open-to-all, or one-thread-per-user. 

 How one RTO is embedding Moodle

 Since receiving E-learning Innovations funding and support from the Australian Flexible Learning Framework (Framework) in 2009, Capital Hairdressing Academy and Regional Training (CHART) has worked to harness the benefits of Moodle for learners, teachers/trainers and employers.

CHART adopted Moodle as a tool to introduce e-learning to apprentices enrolled in Certificates II and III in Hairdressing. Using Moodle, CHART created its own customised e-learning resources, where it was previously restricted to generic hard copy materials.

Using Moodle, CHART’s hairdressing apprentices are able to complete the theoretical component of their training online, at their own pace, during their down time at work or in their own time at home. Training is comprised of online lessons and quizzes, and learners are automatically reminded and prompted when to submit their assignments.

Teachers and trainers have benefited from the convenience of being notified via an automatically generated email from Moodle when a learner has completed a lesson and is ready to move to the next unit.

To speed up reporting to employers and encourage faster progress, employers are able to mentor their apprentices. Using a group wiki, employers can communicate with their apprentices and monitor their progress. 

Kathe Kobold, Director of Studies at CHART, said that while the project had proved a significant learning curve, Moodle was the right choice for them because of its easily adaptable features.

 “Moodle has allowed us to create online learning resources which are customised to the specific needs of our learners: we can enter our own content, create our own activities and design our own e-assessment exercises,” Ms Kobold said.

 “It also makes it easier for teachers and trainers to keep track of the pace at which apprentices are progressing through their theoretical training.”

 Ms Kobold explained that CHART faced some challenges in adopting Moodle, as the hairdressing industry is highly practical and many employers and apprentices in this field were unfamiliar with e-learning.  

 “We chose Moodle as an e-learning delivery platform because we recognised that its capacity for interaction would appeal to learners in this highly practical field.

 “We also decided to introduce Moodle in stages, starting with our teachers and trainers. Once they were comfortable using Moodle, we released it to our employers and apprentices.

 “In 2010, we’ve expanded its use in conjunction with the Mahara e-portfolio system as a professional development tool.”

 Read about other E-learning Innovations projects using Moodle:

  Locher & Associates Pty Ltd – using Moodle and Elluminate web conferencing software to improve the delivery of its Certificate IV in Frontline Management.

  Pivot Solutions Pty Ltd – using Moodle to engage geographically isolated learners in the WA health industry.

  New England Institute of TAFE – using Moodle to deliver flexible learning to learners studying veterinary nursing.

 Read more about Framework E-learning Innovations projects

 Visit the Moodle Demonstration Site (registration and log in required)

Individuals and organisations are embracing smartphones as they look for more ways to mobilise how they run their lives and businesses.*

 So what makes a smartphone anything more than an ordinary phone?  

  Smartphones allow you to access your emails, contacts and appointments anywhere and anytime.

  Smartphones have more advanced hardware, ie a large, high resolution screen, lots of memory, and a fast processor.

• Smartphones allow you to run hundreds of thousands of applications in practically any category you can think of.  

Taking advantage of the fact that a large number of learners, teachers and trainers now own a smartphone and are comfortable using smartphone technology, vocational education and training (VET) providers across Australia are exploring new ways to incorporate these devices into teaching, training and assessment.

 The Australian Flexible Learning Framework’s (Framework) Queensland Toolbox Champion, Sandra Lawrence, explained that using smartphones in this way can make teaching and training more flexible, engaging and immediate.

 “These technologies are opening up new ways for practitioners to share information and interact with learners,” Ms Lawrence said. 

 “Smartphones present an exciting opportunity to deliver mobile tools such as e-books, augmented reality and e-assessment applications to learners. Practitioners can send and receive large amounts of information while out in the field, streamlining the training and assessing process; meanwhile learners can access resources, tools and interact with their teachers and trainers beyond the physical classroom.”

 This year, the Framework is helping the VET system to incorporate smartphones into teaching and training with E-learning Innovations funding and support. 

 Skills Institute in Tasmania is managing two projects focused on using smartphones to benefits learners and assessors in the mining and transport and logistics industries.

 Traditionally, assessors in these industries carry large amounts of documentation when they travel to assess learners in the field. These projects aim to streamline the assessment process, by converting this documentation to iPhone compatible formats. iPhones will provide quick and easy access to assessment tools and store evidence such as video, images and job task sheets that assessors can upload straight to teachers and trainers.

 The iQTImPlayer, an advanced version of the QTImPlayer developed for iPhones, is being used as the delivery platform for iPhone resources in these projects.

 This shift from a paper-based system will make travelling long distances to assess geographically dispersed learners easier for assessors, by allowing them to leave bulky files and laptops at home. The ability to upload information directly to teachers and trainers also removes the requirement to enter assessment data into a learning management system (LMS) once the assessor is back in the office.

 Scripture Union Queensland is responding to the growing prevalence of smartphones among learners by testing the accessibility and functionality of their LMS (Moodle) on different mobile platforms.

 Scripture Union began the process of embedding e-learning in 2009. With E-learning Innovations funding and support, they implemented a blended learning approach combining face-to-face and online training (eg learning objects, wikis, and video streaming) for learners in the youth work industry.

 Scripture Union’s current project is altering this web-based content to be smartphone compatible, allowing learners to access training anywhere and anytime.

 With barely a week passing without a powerful new handset being launched on to the market, and with new applications constantly being released, the smartphone looks set to continue to revolutionise the delivery of education and training. Stay tuned to Flex e-News and flexiblelearning.net.au for updates on how the Framework is adopting and embedding these new technologies.

Want to find out how selected registered training organisations (RTOs) around Australia are using e-learning to deliver more flexible and engaging teaching and training?

A new online blog contains the latest information, resources and news on E-learning Innovations projects funded and supported in all states and territories by the Australian Flexible Learning Framework (Framework).

E-learning Innovations projects develop innovative solutions which drive the integration of e-learning into Australian workplaces and RTOs.

Visit the blog to find:

·         An interactive map – See who’s doing what in e-learning in your local area. This feature allows you to search the profiles of the 2010 Framework E-learning Innovations projects by location around Australia.

·         Project outputs – Browse resources contributed by previously funded E-learning Innovations projects, including learning objects and case studies.

·         Latest news and mailing list – Read the latest E-learning Innovations news online, or sign up to our mailing list to receive a monthly summary of the latest news.

·         Dedicated state and territory pages – Catch up on the latest developments and news from Tasmania as well as other states and territories plus updates via RSS from 2010 E-learning Innovations projects.

·         Project login – Projects funded in 2010 can manage their profiles and submit progress reports in a central online location.

Check out the E-learning Innovations blog at: http://innovationblog.flexiblelearning.net.au 

Want more E-learning Innovations?

Check out the 2010 E-learning Innovations project profiles, which set out each project’s current directions and aims, and include a link to their project site where you can follow their progress throughout the year.

Using the E-learning Innovations project profiles search tool, you can access up-to-date information on all projects by key word, year of funding, state/territory, industry area, type of RTO and project category.

The Australian Flexible Learning Frameworks e-learning Innovations projects  are well underway in Tasmania.  You can keep up with their progress throughout the year  by visiting their wiki page by clicking on the links below.

1.  e-Learning for Hydro Generation Technician Trainees
2. Top Gear in Technology
3.  Electronic Library on Touch Screen (ELOTS)
4.  iDrill Down Under
5.  Opening up Educational Resources
6.  Virtually Here
7.  Settle In!
8.  Yes I can Manage
9.  Interactive Scaffold Training
10.  Driver Behavioural Change E-learning Program

Marlene is a fellow e-learning coordinator, based in South Australia. Each month she produces a most excellent newsletter. The March edition came out this week. I am continually impressed with Marlene’s picks from all that is out there and the interesting educational take she puts on it. I can’t see the point of reinventing the wheel and am instead referring you on. I recommend you check out the February edition and the January edition as well. The newsletters are a good mix of interesting tools and articles about using this technology for training.

In the January edition I came across a neat little tool that I am now very fond of, Screenpresso.   So check out the newsletter to find out about it.  It took me a while to work out how to use it so if you need any pointers give me a call.

You can subscribe to the newsletter. It does mean you will get other info Marlene sends out to her network, mostly advertising SA-based events. I will do a brief post each month when the newsletter comes out, so that is another way you could keep up to date.

Marlene has a great presence online. I’ll list a few places she is so you can get an idea of what is possible:

at linkedin
at flickr
on twitter
at plaxo
on facebook, and
diigo.

If you are really keen just put Marlene’s name into Google. And put your own name too, perhaps, and see what happens.

What makes a successful e-learning innovation application? 

Many of you will now be in the midst of preparing your e-learning innovation program application. There is a lot too it – and really a successful application needs a successful project to underpin it.

I thought it would be useful to remind you about two presentations from Tas-eday09: from Clint Smith and Brad Beach. Click here for their powerpoints.

Clint gave eight tips:

suss out the funding body
make sure you fit the right category
research
delivery – count e-posteriors
innovation – explain the change
design – provide an e-solution
scope your content, and
embedding – plan for growth.

His pointers are spot on … here is an example, from tip 3 research:

show you’ve done the “R&D”: explain why it will succeed
ready to go: got the skills, got the plan, and
main outcome is a successful e-learning delivery solution.

If you can’t say yes to each of these then think carefully about your readiness to apply in 2010. 

Brad’s presentation is making a project work for learners, the client and your organisation. This is something to have foremost in your mind when preparing your application. Here are his list of dos and don’ts for a good project.

Don’t

pick a technology which is too hard to deal with
pick a project based on an interest in a particular technology
pick a project and then look for the teacher
stop thinking about the students/industry

Do

have a risk strategy
have a realistic timeframe with manageable outcomes
be clear about the project outcomes for all parties

Time spent revisiting, or looking at for the first time at, these presentations would be well spent.

And finally, if you’d like to watch the excellent top ten tips, it is available at vimeo (http://vimeo.com/3157299).

Do you have a project idea, but aren’t sure how to pull together an E-learning Innovations application?

Check out the February e-Gems webconferencing session to hear about the key things your E-learning Innovations funding application needs to address, such as priority areas, funding categories, risk strategies, the project management plan, impact and sustainability, and budget.
This national session is in addition to the face-to-face and online state and territory-specific information sessions being held throughout the country in February.

E-learning Innovations funding and support, provided by the Australian Flexible Learning Framework (Framework), helps registered training organisations around Australia to develop innovative e-learning solutions and better support the training needs of business and industry. For more information, visit http://flexiblelearning.net.au/innovations.

Presenter:
Sue McShane has been involved with the Framework since 2007. She worked as a senior project officer for the Industry Engagement Project in 2007-2008 and ran the national series of ‘writing a business case for e-learning workshops’ in 2008. Sue worked as the ACT Innovations Coordinator in 2008 and will be working as the ACT E-learning Coordinator in 2010. Sue also teaches tourism at the Canberra Institute of Technology. Her hands-on approach to e-learning and experience as an online and face-to-face trainer makes her hints for writing a business case for e-learning invaluable.

Date: Thursday 18 February 2010
When: 12:30pm - 1:30pm AEST
Where: http://tinyurl.com/2010-egems-fundingfrenzy

Full URL for session (copy the complete link):
https://sas.elluminate.com/m.jnlp?sid=675&password=M.A7D53AA304F8CA6C068468280E7AB

Attend one of our Information Sessions. We will answer questions such as:

• What’s this all about?
• Where does this money come from?
• Are we eligible to apply?
• What would increase our chances?
• What’s involved in running a project?
• What would be expected of us?
• How would we benefit?

And any other questions you might have. Details regarding the information sessions are as follows: Launceston, The TramshedsTuesday, 9 February (10.00am – 12.30pm) Hobart, RydgesWednesday, 10 February (10.00am – 12.30pm) 

If you have any questions please contact Fiona Huskinson on
(03) 6233 2140 or fiona.huskinson@skills.tas.gov.au or Jennifer Dunbabin on (03) 6233 8487 or email:.jennifer.dunbabin@skills.tas.gov.au

Please register using the form below.

cforms contact form by delicious:days

Hello everyone,

Listed below are the presentations from the e-learning showcase event held on the 18th November.  Video from the day will be made available and accessed via the Australian Flexible Learning Website, links will be made available when ready for viewing. Still working on Clint Smith’s presentation, it’s being naughty and not uploading!

Cathy Moore - Story Telling techniques

Clint Smith - How to prepare a winning e-learning innovation application

Frankie Forsyth - Niche marketing : how to succeed as a small RTO in a global market

Brad Beach - Making a project work

Deirdre Brown - Creating a blog as a learning resource

Roger Stack - Virtual worlds, real learning

Kim Edgar - LORN

Ian Whitehouse -  A successful project requires effort - Seven steps to success

Brad Beach - Online facilitation

Gail Wilson - ePortfolios, what is al the fuss about?