Early Career Academics and e-Learning at ANU

Greetings from the Commonwealth Solar Observatory at Mount Stromlo in Canberra. I am taking part in Early Career Academic Retreat for the, with new staff from the Australian National University (ANU). Day one was on research and  today on teaching. I talked to the group tomorrow about "Learning to Teach Using e-Learning for Early Career Academics". This afternoon the ECAs are discussing eduction policy with Professor Marnie Hughes-Warrington, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic).

One issue which came up in the morning discussion the ANU  plan for the used of e-learning. The ANU by 2020: Education Portfolio Operational Plan has a section on "Online education" (page 12). This states "Online education will be focused on graduate coursework", with 5 online masters programs offered by 2014 and 20 by 2017. Also 5 double online masters will be offered by 2014.

In addition ANU joined the edX  Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) consortium and is working on two courses for 2014, in Astrophysics and Engaging India.

Challenges for Early Career Academics

Greetings from the Commonwealth Solar Observatory at Mount Stromlo in Canberra. I am taking part in Early Career Academic Retreat for the next two days, with new staff from the Australian National University. I will be speaking to the group tomorrow about "Learning to Teach Using e-Learning for Early Career Academics".

In "Raising the Stakes: Gambling with the future of universities" (University Of Queensland Press, 2013), Peter Coaldrake and Lawrence Stedman look at where Australian universities came from and where they might be going. The common room at the observatory has a panoramic view of the Brindabella Ranges, and the early morning fog. Hopefully the fog of uncertainty of the future of higher education will lift a little during the next two days.

Some tipics for discussion are:

1. Awards to encourage ECAs
2. Transition from contract to continuing position
3. Grant application support
4.  Improvements to the extrnal funding model
5. Teaching sklills for ECAs
6. On-line education training for ECAs
7. Changes to ANU degree stuctures and their effect on ECAs
8. Assessment of teaching performance for ECAs

Learning to Teach Using e-Learning for Early Career Academics

I will be speaking on "Learning to Teach Using e-Learning for Early Career Academics", at the ANU Annual NECTAR Retreat, 5 June 2013, in Canberra. I would welcome comments, suggestions and corrections on the notes and slides (使用e-学习的早期职业学者学习教).

Early Career Academics (ECA) are under increasing pressure to teach, as well as research. While PHD graduates have extensive experience of the university system, most have no formal education or training in how to teach. Some formal training in how to design and deliver courses would greatly reduce the frustration new academics, and their students, feel. ECAs would benefit from the discipline which comes from designing courses for pure on-line delivery, even if a face-to-face component is used later. This is illustrated in my experience of designing an award winning course in ICT Sustainability, which is now offered by universities in Australia and North America. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have recently come to prominence. Some of the techniques of these can be combined with conventional teaching for easy adoption by ECAs, using synchronized asynchronous e-learning with a linear syllabus, or for short: "MOOCs with Books".