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This
conference edition of the EJEL contain a selection of papers which were
presented at Glasgow Caledonian University in November 2003.
The keynote address of Gilly Salmon, from the Open University in the UK,
spoke to a variety of possibilities as to how the future of e-Learning
might unfold. The main thrust of this message was that it is important
is to remember the very old adage from instructional technology -
learning is first of all about interaction between people, and the
technology must serve that interaction, and not try to drive the process
in a different direction.
On the other hand the power of the technology should to be fully
utilised, as it does offer unprecedented opportunities for interaction
and for linking people, ideas, texts and resources. This leads to the
notion of e-publishing. This new idea requires the reconceptualisation
of the term 'e-paper' which will mean something different to simply
publishing "conventional papers" on the Web.
What does that mean, and how can it be done? First of all, a new
emphasis on connected texts is required. Wherever it is appropriate,
include links to Internet resources and sites: websites, blogs,
discussion forums etc. These papers of course still need to retain
academic substance in their own right, but they should also link into
the much larger virtual conversation, which is out there on the other
side of the web browser.
Of course much of the detail of how this will be achieved is yet to be
determined but the idea is certainly in interesting one and it offers a
clear challenge to the academic community.
It is clear that there is much work to be done in developing a new
e-Learning world and that we have only just begun to have a glimpse of
the new and exciting ways in which learning will eventually be
transformed. Roy
Williams
w.w associates
Reading, UK.
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