By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. L&D's Role in the VUCA World: Part 1
Sahana Chattopadhyay, ID, Other Reflections, 2014/11/19

VUCA stands for 'volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity'. It describes the world we face: "The external conditions and environment are not going to stabilize enough for us to take a step back and come up with a solid plan and blue print of organizational learning. More...

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Digital Learning Research Network (dLRN)
George Siemens, elearnspace, 2014/11/19

George Siemens writes about receiving Gates Foundation funding for the Digital Learning Research Network at the University of Texas in Arlington. The Gates Foundation is a bit like the Pulitizer Prize - the recipients claim world status, but only entries from the United States are eligible for awards. More...

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Why podcasts are suddenly “back”
Marco Arment, Marco.org, 2014/11/19
Today's big story is the podcast renaissance (making me feel like a genius for devoting a recent keynote to Ed Radio (though I'd feel like more of a genius if it was working properly, and not cutting off audio files before they've finished playing)). But of course, it's not really a renaissance; podcasting has been growing steadily over the years. More...

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Pattern recognition: neither deduction nor induction
John Wilkins, Evolving Thoughts, 2014/11/19

I've spoken many times about the idea that to know is to recognize and yet I've rarely (if ever) followed it up with a reference. Part of the reason is that I'm lazy, and part of the reason is that I've slowly developed this idea over time. More...

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Beyond the MOOC Model: Changing Educational Paradigms
James G. Mazoue, EDUCAUSE Review, 2014/11/18
Though I disagree with a number of the details, this is on the whole a good article that effectively argues that the changes brought about by MOOCs are just beginning, and not in decline at all. James G. Mazoue identifies four major drivers of change that have become evident in the wake of MOOCs. More...

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Critical Digital Pedagogy: a Definition
Jesse Stommel, Hybrid Pedagogy, 2014/11/18
In this article Jess Stommel offers a crisp overview of digital pedagogy (with references to Friere and Giroux) and suggests that critical pedagogy:

• centers its practice on community and collaboration;
• must remain open to diverse, international voices, and thus requires invention to reimagine the ways that communication and collaboration happen across cultural and political boundaries;
• will not, cannot, be defined by a single voice but must gather together a cacophony of voices;
• must have use and application outside traditional institutions of education. More...

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Embedding Learning in Work: The Benefits and Challenges
Charles Jennings, Workplace Performance, 2014/11/18

One of the major aspects of the personal learning environment system we are designing revolves around the idea of embedding learning in work. More...

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Notes from Utrecht Workshop on Ethics and Privacy Issues in the Application of Learning Analytics
Niall Sclater, Sclater Digital, 2014/11/18
Summary of a presentation from Hendrik Drachsler - "his call for ethical and privacy issues in the application of learning analytics had produced over 100 issues... put into four categories: privacy, ethics, data and transparency" - and Jan-Jan Lowijs - "described the nine general themes in the Directive which we found a useful way to propose answers to some of the 100 issues that had been submitted". More...

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Technology Readiness Level (TRL) math for innovative SMEs
Serkan Bolat, Serkan Bolat, 2014/11/18
This overview of the concept of the 'technology readiness level' (TRL) is useful in the areas of innovation and technology development (we use it in-house at NRC). The idea is to distinguish between innovations that are still at the conceptual stage and those that are ready for production. Our MOOC technology reach 5 or 6, and did not receive project support to go further. More...

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Here's How To Figure Out Everything Google Knows About You
Julie Bort, Business Insider, 2014/11/17
This is a useful article not only because it tells you what Google knows about you (which is always interesting reading) but because it gives a hint at Google's methods and how effective they are. In my case, the methods produce spotty results, which oddly makes me happy. More...