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Beyond Distance Research Alliance Learning Futures conference
'The Campus and Beyond'
8 - 9 January 2008
View resources from the conference and please complete the feedback form
Learning Futures - The challenge
- Universities have a responsibility to - and the ability
to - provide a holistic environment for learning at
the level of higher education. The on-campus
buildings are adorned with the names of historical
benefactors. These help to keep us grounded in the
values and traditions of the past. The physical
environment includes the means to research, digital
the archives of past learning and the presentation
of new knowledge, the resources for learning and
living, the people and the (for many) unparalleled
and pervasive 'atmosphere' of scholarship. The
campus buildings provide the focus and
wherewithal for nothing less than the creation and
transmission of cultures .to position our society
for the future. Who amongst us will dispute this?
The original kind of off-campus extension to
learning is familiar to us- field trips, clinical
practice, gallery visits - all powerful, important and
part of the scholarly experience. However,
technology provides largely untapped opportunities
for creating new types of learning environments
that extend the possibilities of the 'old' tools
(books, lecture theatres, seminars rooms). Consider
the encouraging success of podcasting in
geography, for example.
However 'online' is a learning environment too. The scope, depth and breadth of possibilities have grown exponentially over two decades. Millions of people experience electronic networked environments, in their variety of guises, as communities and as libraries, each providing access to untold riches for knowledge generation and sharing.
Many millions contribute to building them too - without the benefit of a campus.
Of course the online space is much less organized or controlled compared to the physical academy. Time works differently. Interdisciplinary is the norm not the exception. Contributions are scrutinized for their usefulness rather than the status of their author. Hierarchies are less obvious. The importance of personal identity (and the associated potential for discrimination) is more complex, often with different constructs in different contexts. Ownership is based less on monetary benefactors and more on commitment and knowledge. More recently, one way communications media such as radio and TV have been somewhat swamped by interactive and participative approaches- Web 2.0 take the stage! As educators of the 21st Century, we have to put more effort into design and delivery for successful learning as a result.
So. we invite you to 'Start The Year' and look forward with the 2008 Learning Futures Conference: The Campus and Beyond. Here the focus will be on collaborating for understanding, researching and practising learning and teaching in Higher Education in environments old and new, familiar, traditional and mixed. We invite you to join with us and see e-learning as the vital alternative to the traditional campus of the future, as well as its extending force. Most importantly we will look towards and over the horizon.and consider the best pathways.
Professor Gilly Salmon
About the Conference
- The 2007 Beyond Distance conference focussed on 'Learning Futures' - spotting future trends and learner expectations, and how practitioners can ride the surf to improve learning and teaching.
It built on the 2005 and 2006 conferences which were concerned with setting the e-learning research agenda. The hallmark of the BDRA conferences is the provision of space, time and ideas for those involved in elearning teaching and learning to come together to exchange ideas and think through the development of concepts, theories and rigorous and appropriate methodologies, good practice and models of change. An important aim has been to shift the focus to improving student learning from concentration on learning technologies.
The 2008 conference is firmly focussed on Learning Futures: spotting future trends and learner expectations, and riding the surf to improve learning and teaching. The aims are:
- To articulate and surface key transferable e-learning ideas and models for consideration in different contexts
- To develop stronger relationships promoting research on innovative teaching in inter-disciplinary, intradisciplinary, cross professional, multi institutional ways through building principles and models for testing through work in practice and context
- To continue to shift the focus to improving student learning from learning technologies, with a particular emphasis on those renewing distance learning programmes
More details about the Conference content:
Day 1 - 8 January: 'The Campus and Beyond' Day 2 - 9 January: Research into Practice
Booking
- To book a place, contact:
- E-mail: staffdev@le.ac.uk
- Phone: +44 (0) 116 252 5118
- Fax: +44 (0) 116 223 1815
Staff Development Centre
Charles Wilson Building
University of Leicester
University Road
Leicester LE1 7RH
Book Online
You can now book your place online, select the appropriate form:
University of Leicester Members of Staff Attendees Booking Form
Non-University of Leicester Attendees Booking Form
Venue
- Gilbert Murray Conference Centre
- Oadby, Leicester
Map of Leicester and Conference Site location
Directions to Conference Site
Map of the Conference Site
Printable version of all travel information
Gilbert Murray Hall, founded in 1957 is set in its own landscaped gardens. This dedicated conference centre is a highly regarded conference venue. It provides ample space for registration and hospitality along with seminar space, all under one roof and the adjacent lawned areas offer the perfect location for our conference with a selection of en suite accommodation nearby.
Cost
- Non-University of Leicester Delegates
£200 for the 2 days including overnight accommodation and conference dinner - £75 for day1 or day 2 only
University of Leicester Members of Staff - Free of charge to University of Leicester staff - Day attendance only (Please note: the Conference dinner is not included- this costs £14.50 if you wish to attend)