Converge 2007 - Gordon Institute of TAFE, Geelong Victoria

The 2007 conVerge conference is designed to enhance e learning opportunities for the VET environment. This year the conference was hosted by the Gordon Institute of TAFE in Geelong. Presentations from the conference can be accessed on the Converge 2007 website.

Each of BRIT's E-Learning Mentors has provided a report on the conference below:

Cameron James
Converge 2007 was a very well run conference, Gordon TAFE did a great job of hosting the 280 delegates. The pre-conference dinner was one of the best feeds I've ever had.
I've put together a summary of all the sessions I attended:

Session	Facilitator	What I learned
Ways forward to a new E-learning environment	Nigel Paine Teaching and learning specialist	That unless the VET sector seriously embraces E-learning and moves quickly to embed it in training and assessment Australia is at risk of falling far behind the rest of the world and having a very serious skills shortage.
Lights, camera, action - e-learning with podcards, keepads and instructional video	Raymond Rozen & Russel Edis RMIT	Podcards are basically a picture file that can be viewed on an ipod. The podcards we were shown were for teaching advanced mathamatics and featured equations and graphs. These could be used effectively in fitness with pictures of exercises and instructions.
Creating online Auslan video resources	Julian Hurtan Kangan Batman TAFE	How easy it is to create a good quality instructional video and upload it to the TAFE VC. They were using a progressive download function that allowed the video to stream like you-tube.
E-learning trends at BRIT	Cam James & John Kellow BRIT	Only one person turned up to our presentation :(
Using E-portfolios	Deb Petty Swinburne TAFE	Nothing ...... ZZZZZZ
Strategies for E-learning within a whole of organisastion change	John Mitchell VET strategist JMA consultanting	Learning will need to be more stimulating, flexible and personally relevant than ever before. The VET system is going to need a significant overhall overhall driven by a lifelong learning agenda.
Voice and images - mulitmedia for engaging learners	Learning facilitators from Morrison House	These guys use the iriver MP3 player (Russian ipod) with an in built microphone to help people to learn how to speak english. They also used the voice tools on the TAFE VC for students to be assessed on their english skills.
Y-gen social networking trial	Vicki Rose NMIT	Vicki trialled using sms and blogs with pre-apprentices to help make their learning more interactive and to engage them with their class mates a bit more. What they elarned form the trial was that although the students uses sms and blogs in their spare time they did not like using them for work or school. Also what ever Blog site Vicki put together it was never considered "cool" enough by the students.
Wiki's and communication in and beyond the class room	Coonara Community House	Full amrks to these guys for having a go but my impression was that they were using wikispaces as just an easy way to make a website. They didn't seem to be allowing the students to actively contibut to the wiki by adding content. Maybe that will happen next?

Peter Verrion
What did I learn at Converge? A whole lot of things. I came away encouraged, but also with an awareness that I have more things to do! Some of these are listed here.

One of the highlights was listening to Nigel Paine. There were a couple of points that he made that I thought were interesting, one was that we need to move from 'Shaping' to 'Framing'. I gathered from this that some of what we do in VET tries to shape students into learning the way we think they need to learn, whereas we should try to provide a framework where the learning can happen, and allow the student to pick the best approach for them. This can be quite a challenge, but the proper use of the appropriate e-learning tools can make this easier.

I also liked the comment about the 'price of inactivity is greater than the cost of a mistake' (or something close to that - a quote from the CEO of E-bay, I think). It shows that we need to keep moving forward, and while we might get it wrong at times, its better to keep moving forward and have to adjust direction every so often, than to sit there and what for the perfect time to do something. I would think that there never will be a perfect time!

There were also a couple of comments Nigel made in response to questions. One was to 'show people what you do'. we cant change everything overnight, but we can show others what we do, and this may lead to incremental change. Small changes perhaps, but changes none the less. The second related to LMS having limitations - recognising this would mean that we would look for the best tool for the student/client, not the one we use all the time. Framing rather than Shaping! (See Nigels website here )

I went to a few different sessions covering different topics. Most of the ones I attended related more to the implementation of strategies, as that is part of my role at BRIT. It was interesting to learn about the different ways people were approaching this. An added benefit was learning about the different types of software being used.

The networking was good, it was nice to see some familiar faces, and good to see some new people as well. Overall, I enjoyed it and got a lot from attending. Now I need to spend some time looking at what we are doing/going to do at BRIT, and make sure it all lines up with what I learnt.


James Binkley

I enjoyed conVerge 2007 immensely. I had no idea what to expect, as this was my first conference, but I thought it ran very smoothly and had much to offer.

It brought e-learning facilitators from across Victoria together for 2 days of learning and networking. It exposed us to new ideas and put a new spin on old ones. There was a variety of technologies and tactics presented. I found that many of the technologies at various TAFEs around Victoria are being used at BRIT in one centre or another in one way or another.

That knowledge is a very good thing and I think it shows that we have people at BRIT who are flexible and willing to use whatever technologies we can offer them if it suits their needs. This is part of what we need to become more flexible (not to mention responsive) in our delivery.

Some of the sessions that stand out in my mind:

Elfchemy:

The Holmesglen ELFs talked about where they are and how they got there and seemed to have their act together, being very proactive in embedding e-learning within their departments. They stressed the need for E-learning Champions in each sector who were skilled, enthusiastic, excited and supported. The need for committed, visionary supportive management was also imperative.

Media on the Move:

Michael Coghlan talked about the history of Media on the Move and showed us how to put together a podcast. I came away with a great number of applications and sites to research online to determine the best way to get our podcasts out there.

Facebook; Twitter:

Howard Erry from e-Works gave us a good intro to these two apps. It was hands-on for about half the attendees and he walked through each application online using a laptop and projector and possibly a smartboard. I’m not sure, it was hands-on, I was busy Twittering with Sue.

John Kellow

Converge was an opportunity to meet other like minded teachers and see what they were doing. The stand out session for me was Nigel Paine's key note address. It was both informative and thought provoking. It has lead me into analysing the way I teach. Am I using my thirty years teaching experience? or am I just teaching the same way for thirty years? Seeing how podcards operate was interesting as was the uninteresting ways various presenters chose to present their their work. If we are to be leaders then next year why not challenge everyone to find more interesting and creative ways of presenting. If we are boring each other what is happening to our students?