Massive Open Online Courses: promoting decent work at a scale

e-Learning / October 3, 2019by https://blog.itcilo.org/author/a-messutiitcilo-org/

On September 23rd, ITCILO’s Jobs for Peace and Resilience Training Programme jointly with the ILO’s Coordination Support Unit for Peace and Resilience released the first Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) about ILO’s Recommendation No. 205.

ILO’s Recommendation No. 205 on Employment and Decent Work for Peace and Resilience (2017) is the only international normative framework providing guidance for addressing world-of-work issues in response to crisis situations, including armed conflict, natural disaster, environmental degradation, and forced displacement.

Counting more than 600 registered participants, the MOOC aims to be a global awareness-raising tool about policies, approaches, tools, methods and case studies, which can be used to promote employment, and decent work measures that prevent crises, enable recovery, and build peace and resilience.

Watch on ILO’s YouTube the Opening Note by Sangheon LEE, the Director of the Employment Policy Department (EMPLOYMENT) of the ILO which leads ILO’s action for promoting full and productive employment by developing integrated employment, development and skills policies.

If you wish to join the global conversation, enrolment deadline is tomorrow 04 October! Link to register.

What are the opportunities of MOOCs?

If you want to use MOOCs for the world of work and promote decent work at a larger scale, we are delivering an online course on the benefits and opportunities of Open Online Education.

Join ITCILO online lab in October http://bit.ly/itcilo

ITCILO’s experience

This is not the first time that ITCILO and ILO are using Massive Open Online Courses to target government officials, ILO’s constituents, partners and staff, and development practitioners to open up the conversation on employment and decent work at a global scale.

Between 2016 and 2019, ITCILO released the following MOOCs which contributed to promoting decent work at a scale:

Mobile Seamless Learning for the 21st century

e-Learning, News / August 3, 2018by https://blog.itcilo.org/author/a-messutiitcilo-org/

How can mobile technology benefit learning?

Using mobile devices for learning is a logical extension of our life in this tech-centric world. Undoubtedly, technologies affect learning in various ways. Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) grant access to knowledge to all people regardless of where or who they are. We can now learn whenever the need arises. Learning is no longer limited to one location, nor does it follow a strict schedule.

However, despite the opportunities ICTs present, there are certain constraints mobile learning needs to deal with, such as digital literacy, data security, and infrastructure[i]. A customized mobile learning experience should be able to address these challenges.

How mobile learning can help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)?[ii]

The idea of learning in contexts builds upon the fact that learning does not happen in a vacuum, but is closely linked to objects and experiences in the real world so that knowledge becomes meaningful to learners. Mobile learning provides “Just in time, Just enough, and Just for me” experiences. Therefore, learners have the mobility and are able to decide what and how to learn depending on the contexts which makes it different from being simply eLearning on a mobile device.[iii]

The ITCILO has developed a series of mobile learning projects since 2011.

By offering a learning solution flexible to learners, mobile learning can boost engagement and knowledge retention. “Mobile technology offers unprecedented power for users to access information and services that can create life-changing opportunities in education and employment,” said Brahima Sanou, Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), at the Policy Forum on Mobile Learning held in Paris last year.

Moreover, UNESCO’s “Mobile Learning Project in Education for Sustainable Development and Micro-Gardening” [iv]has shown that ICTs can contribute positively to Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), literacy and skills development.

Register for the upcoming course on Mobile and Seamless Learning

Building upon internal expertise and partnership with internationally recognized institutions such as the Open University of the Netherlands, an upcoming course Mobile and Seamless Learning will be available in September 2018:

By the end of the Mobile and Seamless Learning course, participants will be able to:

Have a global overview about the history of mobile learning research and development;
Have a basic understanding of related theories (e.g. situated cognition, experiential learning, anchored instruction, cognitive apprenticeship);
Explain how various learning contexts can be connected and integrated enabling a continuous learning experience (seamless learning);
Explain what are the existing gaps between different learning settings;
understand the challenge of learning transfer between different contexts, and
Be aware of the essential technologies, tools and principles that enables seamless learning (e.g. storytelling, collaborative and networked, project-based and competence-based learning).

More information about the course: https://www.itcilo.org/en/areas-of-expertise/learning-methodologies-and-technologies/seamless-learning-design-new

Contact person: Alessia Messuti a.messuti@itcilo.org

***

Photo Credit: Alessia Messuti (Nairobi, Kenya)

References:

[i] (2017, June 28). Chinese spend 3 hours a day on their smartphones, ranking second in the world: survey. ChinaDaily. Retrieved from http://europe.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2017-06/28/content_29916917.htm

[ii] (2018, June 19). Social media use continues to rise in developing countries but plateau across developed ones. Pew Research Center. Retrieved from http://www.pewglobal.org/2018/06/19/social-media-use-continues-to-rise-in-developing-countries-but-plateaus-across-developed-ones/#table

[iii] Alhajri, R. (2016, October 10). Prospects and challenges of mobile learning implementation: a case study. Retrieved from https://www.omicsonline.org/open-access/prospects-and-challenges-of-mobile-learning-implementation-a-case-study-2165-7866-1000189.php?aid=84267

[iv] (2017, March 24). Harnessing digital skills and mobile learning for inclusive sustainable development. International Telecommunication Union. Retrieved from https://www.itu.int/en/mediacentre/Pages/2017-PR12.aspx

Bridging Learning Gaps through Seamless Learning Design

e-Learning, News / June 8, 2018by https://blog.itcilo.org/author/a-messutiitcilo-org/

The idea of “learning in contexts” builds upon the fact that learning does not happen in a vacuum, but is closely linked to objects and experiences ‘in the real world’ so that the knowledge becomes meaningful to learners. Besides, context offers non-language related information, such as smells and weight, which interweaves implicitly with experiences in context, and contributes to learning ‘unconsciously’. In other words, by relating concepts and principles to the real world, context help learners better internalize the knowledge.

In its report “Leveraging technology to support education for refugees”, the UNESCO recognized mobile learning as a context-responsive solution to improve learning opportunity and promote education in displacement settings. Mobile learning is regarded as an alternative to address individual challenges, education system challenge, as well as challenges related to specific levels and types of education.

Knowing the importance of “learning in contexts”, since 2013 ITCILO has been developing a portfolio of mobile learning products that can be found here

Building up on internal expertise and partnering up with internationally recognized institutions such as the Open University of the Netherlands, an upcoming course on Seamless Learning Design is available as of July 2018:

By the end of the seamless learning design course, participants will be able to:

have a global overview about the history of mobile learning research and development;
have a basic understanding of related theories (e.g. situated cognition, experiential learning, anchored instruction, cognitive apprenticeship);
explain how various learning contexts can be connected and integrated enabling a continuous learning experience (seamless learning);
explain what are the existing gaps between different learning settings;
understand the challenge of learning transfer between different contexts, and
be aware of the essential technologies, tools and principles that enables seamless learning (e.g. storytelling, collaborative and networked, project-based and competence-based learning).

More information about the course: https://www.itcilo.org/en/areas-of-expertise/learning-methodologies-and-technologies/seamless-learning-design-new

Contact person: a.messuti@itcilo.org

Cover image credits: https://it.freepik.com/

Why learning analytics for capacity development?

e-Learning, Innovation, News / April 20, 2018by https://blog.itcilo.org/author/a-messutiitcilo-org/

Capacity development is a founding principle of the ILO’s Development Cooperation Strategy to secure better decent work outcomes through improved services to constituents. However, how can we increase the effectiveness of capacity building programmes for costituents and players in the world of work?

Learning Analytics is the measurement, collection and reporting of data about learners and their contexts, for purposes of understanding and optimizing learning and the environments in which it occurs.

There are several reasons why training organizations would wish to invest in learning analytics:

Predict learners’ performance
Provide learners with a personalized eLearning experience
Increase learners’ retention rates
Measure engagement and teaching success
Improve instructional and delivery strategies of eLearning courses and programmes

With these factors in mind, the ITCILO developed a dedicated Online Programme in Innovative Learning Interventions where professionals with a capacity-building function explore the use of latest technology and innovation for translating the sustainable development goals into achievable actions, including the potential of Trusted Learning Analytics.

The main objective for Learning Analytics is to unveil so far hidden information in educational data to gain new insights and prepare them for different educational stakeholders (learners, trainers and managers). This new kind of information can support individual learning, enhance facilitation and teaching quality, as well as improve organizational knowledge management processes and system administration.

This course aims to contextualize Learning Analytics and its most important dimensions. It will demonstrate why Learning Analytics have the power to be a real game changer for educational research by enhancing e-learning experiences and creating more effective e-learning environments by helping to predict learners’ performance, providing learners with a personalized learning experience. Increased retention rates and boosting cost efficiency. It also will touch on the ethical and privacy side of Learning Analytics that needs to be discussed within potential target organizations to guarantee adoption and uptake of Learning Analytics from stakeholders.

If you are a trainer, information technology (IT) specialist, decision maker in education and training institutions or instructional designer and you are already experimenting with Learning Analytics within your organization, feel free to get in touch and share with us your experience (delta@itcilo.org)

From Global to Local: using Massive Open Online Courses for content creation

e-Learning, News / March 23, 2018by https://blog.itcilo.org/author/a-messutiitcilo-org/

As part of the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on Humanitarian Essentials, jointly organised by the Humanitarian Leadership Academy and ITCILO from 16 October to 12 November 2017, participants were asked to submit a case study exercise. This assignment had as objective to internalise the learning contents of the MOOC and combine them with the professional experience and interests of the participants.

MOOC learners were asked to draft a case study on how they have applied or would apply humanitarian principles in their current or future working context. This exercise allowed them to better understand the key challenges and dilemmas related to the application of humanitarian principles, by reflecting on them in specific crisis situations and emergencies.

“How you or your organization applied the humanitarian principles, and what are your lessons learned?”

In total, 66 case studies were submitted. A peer review was applied to score the case studies against a number of criteria, including “demonstrated understanding of the principles and their main challenges and dilemmas, demonstrated learning, and reader-friendliness”. This review resulted in a top-30, of which the tutor of the MOOC selected fifteen case studies which are now available through an online publication: “Humanitarian Learning in Practice”.

From “access to information in Greece” to “first emergency response in the Balkans” or “principles to humanitarian actions in Somalia”, the published case studies refer to either ongoing developments in the humanitarian sector or offer interesting insights in what can be learned from responding to current crises.

The fifteen authors come from different backgrounds and offer various understandings. All together, these case studies provide a comprehensive overview of the challenges of applying humanitarian principles in the field, and we hope that their work is an inspiration for others who like to reflect and learn.

Learning and Technology Innovation for Capacity Development

e-Learning, Innovation, News / February 23, 2018by https://blog.itcilo.org/author/a-messutiitcilo-org/

Technology transforming learning

Once thought of as just a part of ‘resources‘in the learning experience, we‘ve come to see how technology can be so much more than that. It can play a key role in all elements of the training and learning environment. Technology can shape, and reshape, who is the learner and who is the trainer. It can open up knowledge and content that otherwise would be less accessible, for example through access to open educational resources.

The benefits of engagement, interactivity and collaboration are all enabled and enhanced with technology. They are of course possible without it, you can still engage and motivate, personalise learning and facilitate collaboration, without any technology at all. However, at scale, technology greatly increases training institutions’ capacity for these outcomes.

Reinventing learning environments for the world of work

Learning technologies, knowledge-sharing platforms, communities of practice, mobile applications are more and more used in the world of work. However, the right expertise and the methodological know-how to design and implement technology enhanced learning are not always available. To this purpose, the ITCILO, in collaboration with the Open University of the Netherlands and Goethe University Frankfurt, developed a dedicated Online Programme in Innovative Learning Interventions. Professionals with a capacity-building function can explore the use of latest technology and innovation and see how they contribute to the impact of the projects they are currently launching.

By innovation, we mean new or improved technological products and processes, which can influence how individuals and organizations invest in achieving their objectives. Concepts such as Open Online Education, Learning Analytics, Mobile and Seamless Learning, New Immersive and Augmented Learning Experiences are examples of how integrated technology processes can make capacity development more impactful by rooting solutions in empathy with end-users and enhancing access to educational opportunities.

The opportunity

The Online Diploma Programme on Innovative Learning Interventions aims at fostering the potential of:

the improved measurement, compilation and reporting of data about individuals for purposes of understanding and optimizing learning experiences through Trusted Learning Analytics;
learning and working across multiple contexts through social and content interactions using personal devices which enable the creation of Mobile and Seamless Learning experiences;
eliminating barriers to entry educational opportunities and broadening access to capacity development through Open Online Education paths;
augmented and immersive reality experiences which lead to transformative ways for creating engagement and interactions between individuals and environments, though New Learning Experiences.

More info:

http://www.itcilo.org/en/areas-of-expertise/learning-methodologies-and-technologies/diploma-programme

MOOCs impact: ITCILO explores learning analytics to boost engagement

e-Learning / January 19, 2017by https://blog.itcilo.org/author/a-messutiitcilo-org/

In December 2016 the ITCILO released a new report on Massive Open Online Courses for Development which builds on an extensive literature review and draws upon the internal expertise built by the Centre. The most controversial feature of MOOCs is probably low completion rates, typically around 7%. It’s easy to count certificates, but MOOCs are so much more! For this reason, the Centre is adopting a new approach based on Learning Analytics to assess participation with metrics that encompass all desirable learning activities, such as browsing and exploring, and not just completion. Building on its internal expertise, the Centre has developed a MOOCs4Dev Toolkit, which gives guidelines on the three phases of MOOCs rollout: design, implementation and evaluation.

From September to November 2016 the Centre launched its fifth MOOCs: the Crowdfunding MOOC for Caribbean Entrepreneurs, in partnership with the World Bank Group.

The MOOC aimed to provide entrepreneurs with the knowledge and skills to use crowdfunding to test the market demand for their product or service and plan their own rewards or presale Crowdfunding campaign. The course registered 296 participants from countries belonging to the World Bank Group’s Entrepreneurship Program for Innovation in the Caribbean (EPIC). 57% of the selected applicants were female and 42% were male. This is in contrary to MOOCs statistics found in the literature, where female participation is typically lower than male participation. Furthermore, thanks to 2-step facilitation strategy the MOOC achieved a record-high completion rate of 19% with 57 Crowdfunding Campaign plans submitted by participants. One of them was already launched on Kickstarter and has not only reached but exceeded the crowdfunding target of CAD $8,000 with over 140 backers to expand Taste Tea Naturals, a social enterprise based in Antigua and Barbuda.

Together with the MOOCs4Dev Report, the CMCE contributed to building the growing expertise of the Centre in MOOCs4Dev. The course also received very positive feedback, with all participants saying they would recommend the course to a colleague.

“I want to sincerely thank the team for designing a great course. I have learnt more than I could have ever imagined. I have the tools necessary now to do my campaign […]. I am eternally grateful for what I have learnt on this online course and hope to be one of your greatest success stories.” CMCE participant

If you want to know more, contact us at delta@itcilo.org

Pedagogical use of Virtual Reality Applications

e-Learning, Innovation / August 8, 2016by https://blog.itcilo.org/author/wambeke/

The future of virtual reality has arrived already and is gradually moving beyond its gadget stage. With the introduction of Ocolus rift the access to immersive learning and simulation experiences has been widely opened. It looks likely that by 2020 computer systems that deliver convincing immersive reasonably reliable virtual reality will cost no more than a big screen television does not. The real-world-simulations make it difficult to distinguish what is still real and what virtual. With this blogpost we would like to build upon the results of a workshop we have done at the ITC-ILO where the pedagogical added value of virtual reality applications was discussed in the context of learning and training.

Tablets 4 teaching & learning: where does ITCILO stand?

e-Learning, Innovation, Tools for Learning / October 2, 2015by https://blog.itcilo.org/author/a-messutiitcilo-org/

Photo by Chandni Lanfranchi.

Tablets and mobile devices are the most recent addition to the long list of technological innovation believed to support and enhance the teaching and learning process.

The Commonwealth of Learning has just published the Tablets for Teaching and Learning: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis aiming at investigating the evidence supporting the use of mobile devices in educational contexts.

Results from 27 primary empirical research studies confirm previous findings about the average effect of contemporary technology on students’ achievement, the benefits that go beyond mere performance on tests, and the importance of pedagogy in the successful integration of technology in educational contexts. Moreover, the findings highlight the need for providing teachers with professional development to support their ability to integrate tablets’ technology effectively into their teaching and to create teaching and learning environments conducive for meaningful learning.

Since 2014 here at ITCILO we have been experimenting the use of tablet technology for learning. Initial findings and reflections have been collected in a comprehensive publication regarding Acceptance and Educational Benefits of Tablet Computers during Training for Adult Learners. Furthermore, these experiences have led to the creation of a training manual for trainers and facilitators interested in effectively using tablets during learning events for adults. The manual is available for FREE on the IOS e-Book STORE or as a non-interactive PDF.

Takeaways from the UNESCO Mobile Learning Week 2015

e-Learning, News / March 2, 2015by https://blog.itcilo.org/author/

From our colleague Alessia Messuti

With a keen eye for innovation in learning, ITCILO attended this week the annual event on mobile learning hosted at UNESCO headquarters in Paris.

Since 2011, UNESCO hosts the Mobile Learning Week (MLW) to attract education leaders, researchers and practitioners from around the world to discuss the latest practices, experiences and issues related to how mobile technology (either alone or in combination with other technologies) can enable learning and open access to education.

With more than 1000 participants coming from 70 countries this year, the conference lasts for 5 days and offers the opportunity to attend workshops and breakout presentations from learning and development experts (USAID, UN WOMEN, UNESCO, GIZ, UNHCR, OECD…), private sector representatives (Pearson, Qualcomm, Intel, Microsoft, Vodafone…) and academics (UCL, ODU, …). Last but not least, the conference is FREE of charge. therefore an attractive opportunity for all those involved in leveraging technology for education.

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