I AM ATTENDING the Dublin e-learning summer school later this week in DIT Aungier Street in hopes of sharing e-learning expertise with other third level educators. I feel a real affinity for these e-learning weeks, carrying an energy that stretches back to Moodle Moots with Jennifer Burke (RIP). I know I'll pick up some ideas that will get put to good use with my work on the two campuses of Tipperary Institute and I hope that some day a working group might be established by Limerick Institute of Technology to explore ways of sharing curricula. Significant economic pressures will come to bear in the next national budget and those pressures will undoubtedly force rationalisation between programmes at Moylish Park, Thurles and Clonmel. Clever use of Tipperary Institute's video services already allow me to speak in Clonmel to full classrooms in Thurles--without compromising academic standards. With a little planning, I could deliver our Web Promotion for Business course in locations throughout Tipperary and Limerick. With a fat internet pipe and a browser, students could watch, listen and text from home or study locations. We're doing this already with Online Meeting Rooms and IPTV services.
Realistically, I know there's a lot of ground work that has to happen first. You cannot make blended educational technology work if front line staff don't approve of e-learning. I think it's part of the Irish education landscape that needs work because we have a significant foundation already in place through industry events run by the Irish Learning Technology Association and the DIT e-learning team.
Follow the flow from the Dublin e-learning summer school on Twitter with the hashtag #elss11
