Ed/Tech must-reads 290425

Building bridges: What 40 years of educational technology research teaches us about the theory-practice gap from Australasian Journal of Educational Technology

The editors of AJET - Chris Deenen (UniSA), Henk Huijser (QUT), Linda Corrin (Deakin) and Feifei Han (Griffith) - take a well deserved victory lap in this editorial marking the 40th anniversary of this journal. They identify the gap between theory in SoTL (or SoTEL) and the practicalities of it (how we implement technologies, rethink learning designs, building capabilities) as one of the major challenges facing us as practitioners. The second major issue identified is the overlooked contributions of third space professionals (practitioners) (and thanks for the citation, btw). It is a thoughtful but overall positive piece, articulating many of the challenges I have heard mentioned in discussions with colleagues in the space and it is encouraging to know that AJET remains focused on these important issues.

SAIL: Sensemaking AI Learning from George Siemens

This is mostly a reminder to people that this wonderful newsletter exists, as much as anything. I don’t know why George Siemens has such a low profile in the GenAI discourse that I see - though I notice that he isn’t on LinkedIn and I have long abandoned Twitter (fine, “X”). Anyway, he has been writing this newsletter fairly regularly since 2020 and poses complex discussions in accessible language. In this issue, he covers AI literacy, what is needed in an AI engineering team for HE, what an entirely AI driven uni might look like (horrifying), considers the new jobs that AI is creating and notes that the EU has banned AI note taking from their meetings.

Using activity theory to explore how learning technology professionals support the use of a virtual learning environment during a period of change at a higher education institution—a small-sample in-depth study from Studies in Technology Enhanced Learning

Personal terminology bugbear - this is my issue but I’m making it yours 🙂 - there is a tendency in some parts of the UK to describe learning/instructional designers at learning technology professionals. As someone who worked as a learning technologist, these are complementary but different roles. Moving on. This paper interviews 5 LTPs at a UK university in the middle of moving from one VLE/LMS to another. Common recurrent themes of the need for clear policies and strategy are noted and the ongoing challenge of under resourcing of support for these kinds of initiatives is (once again) reported. Throw this one in the folder of resources used to support future discussions with your own institutional leaders when the times comes.

TELedvisors webinar April 2025 - How to influence as third space practitioners Thursday 1st May, 12pm AEDT

While on the topic of how third space folks try to wield influence, this webinar from my colleagues in the ASCILITE TELedvisors Network should prove invaluable. Hosted by Olivia Rajit (UT), it features two presenters providing alternative perspectives on the ways that they try to get things done in their institutions. Gavin Beck, Manager Educational Technology & Strategy (UTS) handles the pedagogically sound technology side of things while Julie Robert (Dean Learning & Teaching) Arts Education & Law (Griffith) considers more pedagogically oriented endeavours.

ASCILITE May Webinar: Adding Insult to Injustice: How Justice Perceptions and Social Media Shape Vengeful Dissent in Online and On-Campus Education. Tues 22nd May 11am AEST

The title of this session alone caught my attention - “vengeful dissent” - very spicy. I will let the organisers tell the story via their own blurb.

Ever received an angry email from a student? Online education is booming, but it comes with unique challenges—one of which is the reported greater volatility of students studying one. In this webinar, Dr Lauren Shaw (James Cook University) explores findings from Adding Insult to Injustice, a study examining how perceptions of fairness (procedural justice) and the use of student-led social media groups influence vengeful dissent in both online and on-campus higher education. Join us to unpack the implications of this research and discuss strategies to better support online student engagement while protecting staff wellbeing.