1. The iSchool Institute
Symposium Series
Sept 30-Oct 1, 2013
Pushing the
Envelope in
Education
New Roles for
Libraries
MOOCs, eLearning
and Gamification

2. Welcome
 Welcome
 Washrooms
 Hashtag #moocslib
 WiFi:
Select: UTorwin
Password: UToronto1home
To sign in:
UTORid: fis.guest
Password: tor0011
 Lunch
 Starbucks
 No-host drinks tonight – dinner for those who want to
stay
 Tomorrow

4. The Philosophy
 What are the opportunities for libraries in the e-
learning space?
 Support? Provider? Creator? School? Colleges?
None?
 What are the academic underpinnings of e-learning
and gamification?
 How does this relate to libraries, learning, and
research institutions?
 What’s happening today in real experience and
practice?
 And, what can we vision and imagine for the future?
 How do we do this? Where can we start?

5. The Agenda for Monday
 Introduction
 Framing the Opportunities for Libraries
 CISCO learning, access to knowledge, and
employability
 Underpinnings of eLearning: How the "Tried
and True" Informs the New
 MOOCs for Librarians
 Lunch (provided)
 eLearning in Libraries
 Research
 Gamification in Action
 Quick trip for a beer conversation afterwards

6. The Agenda for Tuesday
 Coffee & Muffins
 MOOC Toolkit
 eLearning Support in Action
 Supporting eLearning
 Lunch (*provided)
 MOOCs to Online Learning
 ELearning/MOOC Platforms
 Putting it All Together: Brainstorming Roles
for Supporting eLearning, MOOCs &
Gamification

7. What came together
to threaten the
current social and
business models of
education?

8. Perfect Storm? Critical Mass?
 Digital content – web, licensed, free and fee
 Shareability
 Globalization of edu-markets
 New research into understanding learning
styles and intelligence
 Production price point is doable and mass
market potential
 Devices are ready and available in core
market(s)
 Cloud software and hosting creates a
simplified online environment – no
downloads…

9. Perfect Storm? Critical Mass?
 Devices are affordable
 Alignment of synchronous and asynchronous
strategies for learning
 Collaboration based software is emerging more
fully into the workplace
 Social software is fully embedded in the
consumer space and especially with targeted
young scholars
 Online registration and payment methods are
more rugged
 Homework and assignments can be done and
submitted by individuals and cohorts

10. Perfect Storm? Critical Mass?
 Decent video, audio, recording, and graphics
tools. Way past PPT
 Online assessment is emerging as doable
 Class size variable seems to be based on
judgment combined with business models
 Class size depends on how learning happens
– technical transfer or knowledge embedding?
 Solid tools and practices are emerging for
learning and engaging. Real challenge is on
the instructor / designer level and with
evaluation of same.
 Content is differentially emerging…

11. The Landscape
 Content
 Infrastructure
 Technology
 Environments

12. Content
 Textbook publishers: Cengage Learning,
Pearson, and McGraw-Hill
 e.g. Ed2Go, Learn4Life, Gale Online High
School
 10’s of thousands of authors, rugged
editorial and updating… major investments
in development
 Other content – open-textbooks, open
source, open access
 Loads of excellent and questionable content
available for free (or hopefully free)

13. Infrastructure
 The “Cloud”
 Linked Data
 The Web

14. Technology
 Simple tools make an e-learning
environment like multiple instruments make
and orchestra.
 The musicians AND the conductor make the
experience.
 It takes work, plans, scripts and practice.
 The experience happens on many levels
whether there’s and audience of one or
more . . . or not.

15. Environments
 MOOCs
 EdX, Coursera, Udacity
 Learning Management Systems
 Blackboard, Moodle, Desire to Learn (D2L)
 Very interesting early successes in pilots
and trials: TED and Khan Academy,
University of Phoenix, MIT and Harvard, etc.

16. Unresolved Issues
 Copyright
 Rights
 Ownership (unions and faculty contracts)
 Compensation
 Sustainability
 Accreditation
 Credential(s) acceptance

17. Key Questions
 How does e-learning fit into the library
service portfolio
 Do we just support or get more fully into it?
Where does our library fit?
 To build or not to build your own?
 How does learning happen best?
 How do we assess student success in this
environment?
 How do we measure success?

18. MOOCs

19. How could the landscape
change?
 Prediction: 45% of higher education
institutions in North America merge or go
under…?
 New entrants: the periphery moves to the
centre.
 Public Libraries offer K-12 credits and
become schools
 Public Libraries offer college courses and
online support and coaching
 Associations adopt technical certification
and accredited diplomas for IT, and technical
trades

20. How could the landscape
change?
 Disruption: Local boards of education are no
more. They are forced to merge at the state
and provincial level as cost-effective models
and technical scalability become concerns
based on financial considerations.
 Disruption: Massive mergers/consolidations,
bankruptcies of traditional publishers and
institutions of higher education
 Disruption: Global providers emerge from
the Far East and drive west.

21. Questions . . .

22. ENGAGE

23. Enjoy the Symposium
Stephen Abram, MLS, FSLA
Consultant, Dysart & Jones/Lighthouse Consulting Inc.
Cel: 416-669-4855
stephen.abram@gmail.com
Stephen’s Lighthouse Blog
http://stephenslighthouse.com
Facebook, Pinterest, Tumblr: Stephen Abram
LinkedIn: Stephen Abram
Twitter: @sabram
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Skype: stephenkabram