JISC

Simon Atkinson

Simon Atkinson is Strategic e-Learning Advisor at Massey University - College of Education. He has worked in New Zealand and the United Kingdom Higher Education as a teacher, educational developer, consultant and senior manager. Simon was external consultant to the Croatian national e-Learning initiative EQIBELT and has produced online learning for the Open University and Hull University. He is a social scientist interested in the opportunities for flexible learning through appropriate technologies.

Helen Beetham 

Helen is a Consultant to the Joint Information Systems Committee's e-Learning Programme, in which role she develops and supports the JISC's activities in e-learning and pedagogy. She is widely published and a regular speaker at conferences in the UK and abroad. Rethinking Pedagogy for the Digital Age, edited with Rhona Sharpe, is available from Routledge, and a further book on learners' perspectives on e-learning is to follow. Helen supports the JISC 'Learners' Experiences of e-Learning' programme and is currently undertaking a JISC-funded study into digital literacies. Her interests include:

• Design for learning
• Learners' experiences of e-learning
• Digital literacies
• e-learning and educational theory (particularly activity theory)
• Strategic uses of technology to enhance learning

Dr Alan Clarke BSc (Hons), CMIPD, MEd, PhD is NIACE’s Associate Director for ICT and Learning. Before NIACE, he worked for the National Council for Educational Technology (now BECTA) and the UK Government’s Department for Education and Skills in the Learning Technology Unit. Alan has been involved with ICT and computer- based Learning for over twenty years and has undertaken a wide range of investigations, research studies and evaluations. His doctorate was on the design of Computer-Based Learning materials. He has been a member of the DfES Standard Unit’s expert group on ICT, the DfES ICT Skill for Life partners group, Distributed Electronic Learning Group and Cahired the Adult and Community E-learning Strategy committee.

His experience has covered a wide range of organisations including Training and Enterprise Councils, employers, local and national training providers, community organisations, further and higher education and Information and Communication Technology providers. He has written extensively on the use of ICT and learning, publications including:

• Principles of Computer-based learning Screen Design, Published by DfEE, 1996
• A Guide to the Cost Effectiveness of Technology – Based Training, DfEE, 1997
• IT Awareness Raising for Adults, DfEE, 1998
• How to create effective Information and Communication Technology Learning Programmes, NIACE, 1999
• Developing the Skills of Information Technology Tutors, NIACE, 1999
• The Learning Centre Guide for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises, NIACE, 2000
• Computing for Adults, Hodder and Stoughton, 1999
• European Computer Driving Licence, Hodder and Stoughton, 2001
• Designing Computer Based Learning, Gower, 2001
• Learning Organisations, NIACE, 2001
• Online Learning and Social Exclusion, NIACE, 2002
• New CLAIT Student Workbook, Hodder and Stoughton, 2002
• CLAIT Plus Student Workbook, Hodder and Stoughton, 2003
• E-learning Skills, Palgrave McMillan, 2004

James Clay has been ILT & Learning Resources Manager at Gloucestershire College since November 2006.

James is responsible for the VLE, the use of learning technologies, e-learning, the libraries, digital and online resources and the strategic direction of the college in relation to the use of learning technologies.

James’ current interests include researching learning on the handheld devices that learners have. How can we create learning activities which work on personal mobile devices. He also likes to experiment on how we use Web 2.0 to support learning.

James Clay previously was Director of the Western Colleges Consortium he was responsible for the management, strategic direction and development of e-learning using a shared MLE across the four partner FE Colleges of the WCC.

Before the WCC he worked for at-Bristol, a Millennium project within the Harbourside of Bristol - a job which involved delivering hands-on science education and designing educational websites on subjects as diverse as handheld learning experiences, Antiguan racer snakes, space science and the mummification process of the ancient Egyptians.

Prior to the above, James spent ten years in Further Education as a lecturer in Business & Economics, employing a variety of learning technologies.

http://elearningstuff.wordpress.com

 

 

Gráinne Conole

I joined IET as chair of e-learning in April 2006. Previously I was Professor of Educational Innovation in Post-Compulsory Education at the University of Southampton. I have research interests in the use, integration and evaluation of Information and Communication Technologies and e-learning and impact on organisational change.

Before joining Southampton, I was Director of the Institute for Learning and Research Technology at the University of Bristol, a centre of excellence on the development and use of information and communication technology in education.

I have research, development and project management experience across the educational and technical domains; funding sources have included HEFCE, ESRC, EU and commercial sponsors. Current projects include the JISC-funded learner experience project, PB-LXP with Mary Thorpe and the ESRC TLRP Technology-Enhanced Learning project, PI led by Eileen Scanlon and Mike Sharples. Institutionally I am working on an OU Learning Design Project. Past projects include the JISC LXP Learner Experience Proect, the HEFCE-funded E-Learning Research Centre, the JISC/NSF funded DialogPlus digital libraries project and the ESRC National Centre for Research Methods.

 

John Cook

 

John Cook (PhD MSc BSc CEng MBCS CITP FHEA) is Professor of Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) at the Learning Technology Research Institute, London Metropolitan University. He has a cross-university role of E-Learning Project Leader. In addition, he has published widely in the area of TEL, having a specific interest in five related areas: informal learning, mobile learning, appropriation, user generated contexts and TEL Leadership & Innovation. For more information see: http://homepages.north.londonmet.ac.uk/~cookj/

John Davies

John is a Senior Education Developer at the University of Sussex. He is involved in a range of technology-enhanced learning projects at the University and has supported the development of the University's Moodle VLE. He has participated in a number of JISC-funded projects at Sussex, including a current project, SkillClouds, that is investigating how technologies could help students to engage with the skills they acquire both within and outside the curriculum. His other roles at the University include managing projects on the development of online course evaluation and the creation of interactive tutorials to support student transition into university.

John Davitt

John Davitt is a writer, broadcaster and education technology specialist. He has worked in the education sector for the last twenty-five years as an English teacher, senior manager and regional adviser with the EU Flexible Learning Project. As a journalist he writes for the UK Guardian, The Times and The Observer, with a regular feature in the Education Guardian. John has worked extensively with teachers in schools in UK, China and Africa and he is committed to levelling the playing field regarding access to new learning opportunities. He is the author of the book "New Tools for Learning" (2006) a practical guide as to how to make the technology fit the learning need, and the WordRoot CD an interactive guides to words and their etymology. He has recently developed The Learning Score, a tool that lets teachers map out and share learning intentions as a graphical event - rather like a music score. His new book "Setting Learning Free - The Difference Engine runs again" will be published in December 2008 but he's likely to give you a digital version before then if you ask nicely! 

Sara de Freitas

Dr Sara de Freitas is Director of Research at the Serious Games Institute (SGI) – an international hub of excellence in the area of games, virtual worlds and interactive digital media for serious purposes, including education, health and business applications. Situated on the Technology Park at the University of Coventry, Sara leads an interdisciplinary and cross-university applied research group. Based as part of the largest commercial arm of any UK university, the SGI applied research group - with expertise in AI and games, visualization, mixed reality, augmented reality and location aware technologies - works closely with international industrial and academic research and development partners.

Extending the aim of bringing together industrial and academic research and development, Sara also chairs the Lab Group, a group she founded in 2003 to bring together leading edge academic and industrial research groups in the e-learning area. Sara also holds a visiting fellowship at the University of London, where she continues to support leading edge research and development work in the field of e-learning. Formerly based at the London Knowledge Lab, Sara held two distinguished fellowships there and latterly worked as Manager of the London Knowledge Lab (Birkbeck College, University of London). Sara also held a Research Directorship on a prestigious University of London Centre for Distance Education award, and was funded on two Joint Information Systems Committee projects.

In addition to holding other awards, Sara has worked on a range of research projects more recently funded through Advantage West Midlands, the European Regional Development Fund, the Science City project and the UK Technology Strategy Board. Sara has also lectured widely in the UK and abroad, has a long publication record in the field and sits on various committees and associations. Working as a consultant for the UK Joint Information Systems Committee e-Learning Programme, 2003-2007, Sara has published a number of leading reports in the field and contributed to innovating learning and practices.

E. A. Draffan

E.A. Draffan trained as a Speech and Language Therapist, before specialising in the field of Assistive Technologies. She has since worked with disabled students in Further and Higher Education, set up an Assistive Technology Centre, contributed to the work of TechDis and other institutions and groups. She is now a Research Fellow at the University of Southampton with interests in the ease of use and accessibility of e-learning and has recently been working on the JISC funded LexDis project.

Richard Everett

Richard Everett currently holds the position of Director of eLearning at Oaklands College in Hertfordshire and is a member of the Senior Management Team. He leads a ground-breaking and award winning eLearning team engaging with teachers and lecturers locally (as well as regionally, nationally and internationally) to encourage the use of technology for learning. Richard is proud to have been the inventor of the highly successful eMentors’ concept (where students teach the teachers to use technology appropriately) which has recently been awarded the Tony Burgess award by the Centre for Excellence in Leadership http://www.centreforexcellence.org.uk/conference/Default.aspx?Page=nomenu2008LVATonyBurgess. A case study of this work can be found on the Institute for Learning website at http://www.ifl.ac.uk/services/docs/1214/IfLcsOaklandsCollege.pdf. Richard and his team have been responsible for many other practical innovations in supporting eLearning including the highly successful ‘Pack of Cards’ http://www.oaklands.ac.uk/cards which are cards written by practitioners for practitioners of simple techniques to use in the classroom or workshop using technology.

More recently Richard has been seconded to the Oaklands College New Building Capital Project where he has been influential in turning around a conventional build that did little more than emulate a traditional building – to one that embraces the ‘intelligent’ (CCRE) building concept. He is in high demand advising colleges around the country on ‘Intelligent building’ strategies and has been responsible for much of the advice on this subject on the Learning and Skills Councils Technology for Learning Good Practice site. Much of the Oaklands College contribution to this can be found at http://oaklearn.oaklands.ac.uk/videos/index.php. 

Shri Footring

Shri Footring has been an e-Learning Advisor at the JISC Regional Support Centre, Eastern since 2005.

With a background in software engineering, teaching and management, Shri advises supported learning providers on developing their use of technology to support learning and teaching at a strategic level.

Shri’s interests at the JISC RSC include Adult and Community Learning, VLEs, Web2.0 and Learning and Teaching in Virtual Worlds. She has been closely involved with the Open University Schome Park Research Programme and is currently leading a national RSC group investigating the use of virtual worlds for learning and teaching.

Josie Fraser

I help promote the use of a wide range of technologies to support and enhance how people communicate, participate, collaborate and learn. I like to solve problems and handy at designing solutions and making sure they are implemented effectively. I'm particularly interested in how technologies can make learning more engaging, dynamic and accessible, and more people and community-centered.

I design and run workshops, seminars, events and training programmes, and undertake a wide range of consultative, research and project work.

I work with Government, not-for-profits and industry designing and implementing services that increase social participation, build active, engaged communities, and support formal and informal learning. I work across age ranges, and have the skills and experience to support organisations who want to use social media and software with under 19 year olds, developing policy and practice which is safe, legal and ethical.

Dai Griffiths

Dai has a background is in the arts and in education. He has taught at many levels including primary and secondary education, higher education and continuing education, and in industry. His professional engagement with eLearning started in the early 1990s as a multimedia developer. Since then he has worked on a range of projects focusing on various aspects of technology and education, as a developer, researcher and project manager, and in his current position he has a role coordinating the research carried out in the Institute for Educational Cybernetics. In recent years the main focus of his research has been IMS Learning Design, and he has published extensively on this, including a number of book chapters. He was coordinator of the UNFOLD project, funded by the IST programme, during which led six international events for communities of practice involved in IMS LD. He currently leads the contribution of the Institute for Educational Cybernetics to the TENCompetence project.  

Tom Hamilton

Tom is the Director of InQbate. His experience spans both arts and sciences, and includes industry as well as the statutory and community sectors. After initial study in fine art, he went on to train in medicine and practised as a doctor in the NHS for 5 years, before leaving to explore how the emerging digital technologies could be used to support the personal and professional development of healthcare professionals.

He has been working in technology-enhanced learning for the past 8 years. Prior to joining the Human Centred Technology Group at the University of Sussex, he was Creative Director at Worth Media, a Brighton-based e-learning design agency, working closely with the NHS and other Government departments in the development of online learning resources and communities. This culminated in secondment to the Sussex Learning and Skills Agency to develop their e-learning Strategy for the 14 to 19 sector.

Tom is interested in the interrelationship between creativity and learning and how both of these are shaped by context. His research centres on how the environment in which learning and creativity take place can be enhanced by technology and design.

Since arriving at the University of Sussex in 2003, Tom has been involved in the development of the University’s e-learning strategy and intranet as well as a range of projects focussed on creativity and learning, such as CreativityIncubator.com and the Homework project.

He is currently Director of InQbate, the HEFCE-funded Centre of Excellence in Teaching and Learning in Creativity, where part of his role was to take the lead on the design of the Sussex Creativity Zone. This is an innovative teaching and learning space that employs flexible spatial design and embedded technologies to support a range of learning activities.

He also provides consultancy on the design of effective learning spaces for the educational, arts and commercial sectors.

Rachel Harris

Until starting Inspire Research, I was a Senior Research Fellow with SCROLLA at Glasgow University. My research focused on the application of computers in education, particularly the characteristics of online learning communities. I worked on the Maps and Learner Guides project for FE and HE; EQUEL E-quality in E-learning research Laboratoire; and ENSeL Engaging Networks for Sustainable eLearning.

Previously, I managed research within the Centre for Open and Distance Learning at Robert Gordon University, where I led the Virtual Learning Space project. This developed an online collaborative environment for sharing eLearning skills. Membership is now over 4000. I also led the development of a postgraduate eTutoring course. My experience also includes online event organisation, including the May 2000 OTiS online tutoring eWorkshop. Over 100 delegates logged on from 30 countries!

Rob Howe

Rob is the Head of Learning Technology and Media development at The University of Northampton. He has been involved in Learning Technology for the past 14 years having initially had roles as IT Trainer and Learning Technology Adviser. He is the Project Manager of the JISC E4L project and is involved in numerous other funded projects. Rob is a teaching fellow of the university and has recently gained certified membership of ALT.

Julie Hughes

Julie Hughes is an eportfolio teacher and learner who works in the School of Education at the University of Wolverhampton. Julie is a passionate user of technology to support learning and teaching and an avid educational blogger. During the past year Julie has introduced eportfolios and blogging to Foundation Degree and PGCE students creating interesting and challenging learning communities. Current and previous students have presented their elearning experiences to national and international audiences and have been included in JISC (The Learner’s Voice) and ESCalate publications. Julie is also currently seconded half time to the University’s CETL with a remit for supporting innovation in learning and teaching and mentoring staff in their development as eportfolio practitioners and researchers.

Julie’s research interests focus upon the use of technology to create, sustain and develop reflective learning communities from Foundation Degree level through to mentoring colleagues in HE. Julie is the co-chair of the University’s eportfolio research group which is one of two British members of the International Coalition for Eportfolio Research.

Ruth Hyde

Ruth graduated in 2006 with First Class BSc (Hons) in Computer Science from the University of Hertfordshire. She spent her third year of her degree on a placement year, working for a Call logging Company, BTS, supporting their call logging software and hardware. Following graduation she spent a year working in the local community in St. Albans, Hertfordshire. Ruth has been working in the Blended Learning Unit since June 2007 as a Research Assistant on the STROLL project (STudent Reflections On Lifelong e - Learning). She has always been interested in new technologies, with first hand experience of studying at Hertfordshire and using their MLE StudyNet.  

Alice Jones

Alice is currently learning technologist at the University of Chester. Her primary responsibilities are the support, integration and development of online learning and learning technology for the Faculties of Applied and Health Sciences and Social Sciences. Alice is also one part of the PADDLE project at the University exploring the integration of personal learning environments into Higher Education. This project is part of a wider programme funded by JISC to explore the issues surrounding the integration of user owned technologies with institutionally owned systems. Before joining the University, Alice worked with both the Welsh Assembly and a charitable foundation in Hong Kong.

Jacquie Kelly

With over 6 years in the IT industry and 18 years in FE and HE education sectors, prior to joining JISC infoNet in January 2003, Jacquie's experience includes IT systems design and software development, Teaching Computing (Systems Analysis and Design, Programming, Knowledge-Based Systems), Course Leadership and Development, Learning and Teaching Co-ordinator involved in the implementation of the University's Learning and Teaching Strategy and Academic Advisor member of Learning Portal Team. As a member of the JISC infoNet team, Jacquie's main activities encompass the e-learning activities and project management of a BCE-related project.

Sarah Knight

Sarah Knight is the Programme Manager for the JISC e-Learning Programme. The aim of the JISC e-Learning programme is to enable UK further and higher education to create a better learning environment for all learners, wherever and however they study. Its vision is of a world where learners, teachers, researchers and wider institutional stakeholders use technology to enhance the overall educational experience by improving flexibility and creativity and by encouraging comprehensive and diverse personal, high quality learning, teaching and research.

Sarah manages the Design for Learning Programme which has funded two pedagogic planning tool projects, Phoebe and the London Pedagogic Planner. Sarah also manages the Learner Experiences of e-Learning Programme which is exploring the student’s expectations and experiences of using technology. The new Institutional Approaches to Curriculum Design Programme is also managed by Sarah.

Sarah has managed the production of a number of e-Learning Programme publications including ‘Effective Practice with e-Learning’, ‘Innovative Practice with e-Learning’, ‘Designing Spaces for Effective Learning’ and ‘In Their Own Words’.

Sarah also established and runs the JISC Learning and Teaching Practice Experts Group which provides valuable consultation and dissemination opportunities for the e-Learning Programme.

Victor Lally

Vic Lally is Director and founder of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Research and Teaching in STEM Education at the University of Glasgow. Vic’s interests in learning in technology-enhanced contexts include Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) and learning in three-dimensional and mobile environments. He has written over 100 papers and articles, and been Director/co-director of 17 national and international projects, as well as editing/co-authoring 4 books. He has worked extensively in China and Europe, and is currently developing a collaborative professional development programme with colleagues in South Africa and Malawi. Vic’s latest project, ‘Inter-Life’ (ESRC/EPSRC – 2008-2011 under the Technology Enhanced Learning Programme) is an investigation of the learning of life transition skills by young people, using three-dimensional online tools and environments. Outside of professional life, Vic devotes his time to his family and partner, with whom he shares interests in walking in the mountains, gardening and cooking.

Stuart Lamour

Stuart has been working at University of Sussex as an e-learning Developer / Integrator on the SkillClouds project since April 2008. Stuart has previously worked on a broad range of projects for clients including MoMa (Museums of Modern Art New York) ,The Home Office, The National Portrait Gallery and The British Museum. Stuart is from a background in A.I. (artificial intelligence) Stuart is now more involved in I.A. (information architecture) and user experience design, but keeps a healthy eye on new technologies shaping the web. 

Ellen Lessner

Ellen Lessner is the ILT (information and learning technology) Development Coordinator at Abingdon and Witney College and has an interest, and specialist knowledge, in the use of technology and assistive software to promote inclusive learning and to enhance personalised learning. She has also been involved in e-learning projects on a regional and national level with a variety of organisations including JISC, TechDis, FERL and Oxford Brookes University.

Ellen is also the Project Manager for the Support and Synthesis Project which is working with the 7 projects who are doing research in the second phase of the JISC Learner Experiences of e-Learning projects - (http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/programmes/elearning_pedagogy/elp_learnerexperience.aspx ).

Jon Loose

Dr Jon Loose is Director of Teaching and Learning at Heythrop College,  University of London, and Convener of the 'Psychology plus' combined  undergraduate degrees.  Jon is also the director of the PSYCHE  project, which is part of the JISC funded REProduce programme, aiming  to explore the reuse and repurposing of teaching materials in  technology-enhanced, blended learning contexts.

Rose Luckin

Rose is a Professor of Learner Centred Design at the London Knowledge Lab (LKL), a visiting Professor in Informatics at the University of Sussex an EPSRC Advanced Research Fellow. Prior to moving to the Knowledge Lab in 2006 she was director and co-founder of the Interactive Digital Educational Applications Lab and the Human Centred Technology Research group at Sussex.

She completed her DPhil at the University of Sussex in 1998 and since that time her work has concentrated on the Learner Centred Design (LCD) of educational computing technology. In particular, she explores ways in which technology can scaffold the learning process. Initially her focus was on the development of educational software that used artificial intelligence techniques to dynamically model the learner and to adapt the nature of the task set and the support offered. More recently her work has involved investigating the relationship between learners and the educational context with which they interact. She has consulted for organisations including the BBC and the DfES and was appointed by the Minister for Schools as a non-executive director of Becta where she chairs their Research Advisory Group.

Sheila MacNeill

Sheila MacNeill is an Assistant Director with JISC CETIS and was part of the support team for the Design for Learning Programme. Sheila has managed the CETIS EC (Educational Content ) SIG for the past 3 years. Before joining CETIS Sheila work for LT Scotland developing online web based resources for the schools sector. Currently she is involved in supporting a number of JISC programmes including the recently started Institutional Approaches to Curriculum Design. 

Alan Masson

Alan Masson is the Assistant Director of the Institute of Lifelong Learning at the University of Ulster. His current duties include the design, co-ordination and management of e-learning related systems and services including the institutional VLE, which is used across four campuses and a partner institution in the Middle East.

Alan is Director of the Centre for Institutional E-Learning Services to support teaching and learning, a Northern Ireland recognised area of excellence and part of the national CETL network. Currently, the primary focuses of Alan’s work are the modeling of teaching and learning practices, the aggregation of highly discoverable and connected support environments for teachers and learners and the application of user-perspective narrative tools as agents to inform and change practice.

Alan has led a number of JISC funded projects in the areas of Library and VLE integration, Digital Rights issues in Digital Repository environments and Curriculum Development.

Marion Manton

Marion is eLearning Research Project Manager at Technology-Assisted Lifelong Learning (TALL), in the Department for Continuing Education at the University of Oxford. As well as managing research projects, she is responsible for the ensuring the quality of all TALL programmes from an online learning perspective.

Her particular interests are in effective pedagogical models for different learning scenarios and how best to facilitate these by the appropriate use of technology. As well as in the development of effective tools and processes to help academics identify these and translate knowledge of their subject and teaching into high quality online learning. Marion has led many research projects for TALL including Mosaic, ReliefSim, and Phoebe.

Lou McGill

Lou McGill is a consultant in elearning and information management. She is currently working on a range of studies and projects. Her professional interests include learning literacies, curriculum design, and the sharing, management and use of learning resources. Lou used to work on the JISC eLearning team and was Programme manager for  the Scottish Funding Council eLearning Transformation Programme, the Digital Libraries in the Classroom Programme and the Exchange for Learning Programme (x4l). Lou has over 20 years experience as a librarian in the field of education and is passionate anout learning. She is an active member of several social networking sites, is also a photographer and has just started home educating her 11 year old son. 

Gemma McLean

Gemma McLean is the project officer on the JISC funded project PREVIEW, which aims to deliver problem-based learning for students on healthcare courses via the virtual environment Second Life.

The project has been running since January, and eight problem based learning scenarios have been developed and tested for Paramedic students at St George's University of London, and Health and Social Care students at Coventry University.

Gemma works for Coventry University and is responsible for the overall management of the project as well as technical development. She has created various machinima videos for the project as well as developing a virtual care home within Second Life.

She has recently graduated from Coventry University with a first class honours degree in Multimedia Computing.

Alistair McNaught

Alistair McNaught is the Senior Advisor for Further Education with the JISC funded TechDis Service. Alistair has 19 years teaching experience in FE and 5 years in 11-18 education. A geography teacher by background, he has been involved in using e-learning in mainstream teaching since the mid 1990s. He worked part time as ILT co-ordinator at Peter Symonds' College for 3 years, contributing to a wide range of subject based projects. He worked for many years as a freelance author and has been involved in staff development for nearly a decade. 

After going part time at Peter Symonds' College, Alistair worked for Becta's FERL team and was involved in the writing and delivery of both the ILT Champions Programme and the Ferl Practitioner's Programme. He also worked with a range of Regional Support Centres on developing subject based interactive materials across a wide range of subjects and levels using simple software tools and techniques. His main interests lie in (i) the use of e-learning to accomodate a range of learning needs (ii) providing teachers with the tools, techniques and confidence to provide flexible, adaptable learning experiences for their students (iii) helping develop pragmatic pedagogically sound approaches to the use of e-learning in supporting disabled learners. 

Within TechDis, Alistair has been heavily involved in the TechDis staff packs, the Accessibility Essential series and the FE Senior Manager Briefings. He has particular interest in the interplay between content and  pedagogy in creating accessible learning experiences in mainstream teaching contexts. He has contributed to a wide range of practitioner focused publications.

Alison Muirhead

I studied Psychology at Strathclyde University in Glasgow, Scotland graduating with a BA Hons and Masters in Research (MRes). My interest in the psychological aspects of learning led me to join the Scottish Centre for Research into Online Learning and Assessment (SCROLLA) as a researcher. In January 2005 Rachel and I started Inspire Research Ltd, a research consultancy specialising in elearning.

Since then, we have undertaken research and evaluation work for many clients, including: the European Commission, the Scottish Qualifications Authority, NHS24, HEFCE/JISC InfoNet, Health Scotland and the University of Greenwich.

Richard Noss

Richard Noss is co-director of the London Knowledge Lab, an interdisciplinary collaboration between the Institute of Education, and Birkbeck, University of London. He is Professor of Mathematics Education at the IOE, and since the end of 2007, he has been the director of the Technology Enhanced Learning phase of the Teaching and Learning Research Programme, funded jointly by the ESRC and EPSRC. He has a Masters degree in pure mathematics, a PhD in mathematical education and has taught at all levels of the education system.

Richard has directed some 20 research projects, and published more than 200 articles and conference papers. He has edited and authored five books, including Windows on Mathematical Meanings: Learning Cultures and Computers co-authored with Celia Hoyles in 1996. He is on the editorial board of several journals and is a past editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Computers for Mathematical Learning.

John O'Donoghue

John's background covers a wide range of educational experiences, initially teaching in a social priority area school, moving later to post graduate lecturing, advising and consultancy for both initial teaching training and education and more recently a within a National ICT Research Unit. He has held the position of Chair and President of the Association for Learning Technology (ALT) and has hosted a previous conference. John has held honorary research fellowships at universities both here and abroad. He now holds a visiting research fellowship at the University of Wollongong, Australia and is a consultant to a major project with the Australian Universities Teaching Committee on Information and Communication Technologies and Their Role in Flexible Learning. John’s previous position was as a Senior Learning and Teaching Research Fellow at the Centre of Excellence in Learning and Teaching at the University of Wolverhampton where he had a responsibility for advising and developing technology supported learning for both staff and students. He is now the holder of the Chair in Learning Technologies attached to the School of Health at the University of Central Lancashire. This role embraces all the academic and pedagogical aspects of networked learning and teaching technologies, research, development, implementation and evaluation.

He has acted as a consultant in a number of peripheral projects which utilise the Internet and the Web as a means of communication, his specialist area being its use as a medium for student/ pupil services and delivery, learning, teaching and management.

For many years an advocate of the 'global classroom', John continues to write and publish extensively on the use and exploitation of the information in information technology. He sits on a number of review, editorial and programme committees and has recently edited a book entitled ‘Technology Supported Learning: A Staff Perspective’ which considers the way infrastructure, policies and culture affect eLearning intervention and includes a number of case studies.

Sarah Porter 

Sarah is Head of the Innovation Group at JISC. The Innovation Group leads activities that support core themes in the JISC’s strategy through innovation programmes and initiatives. The Group works closely with colleges and universities to carry out action research, and develop advice and guidance, products and services.

Sarah has worked in the higher education sector for the last 12 years, in a variety of institutional and national roles. Her particular interest is in how technology can enhance the day-to-day business of education and research; in particular the central importance of technology-users, institutional processes and practices, and education’s broader political and cultural context.

Geoff Rebbeck

Geoff has been in Further Education for 12 years starting out as a lecturer in Health and Social Care. Prior to joining Thanet College he worked in the NHS for 20 years as a Hospital Manager both in East Kent and in West Cumbria where he was based at Whitehaven and Workington, covering the community health services for the western half of the Lake District.

He has been a course leader for numerous health and social care courses, as well as assessing and verifying on NVQs across the care spectrum. He also teaches on the Cert. Ed. and its successor courses and works as a sessional tutor for the University of Greenwich on an innovative e-learning short course. He recently completed a BSc (hons.) at Greenwich in e-learning.

He was an original ILT champion. He now combines the role of e-learning co-ordinator with other aspects of working in the College Innovation and Improvements Team; observations, curriculum review and staff training and development. He has recently completed a secondment to work as SE England Regional co-ordinator for the Learning And Skills Network.

Currently the College is one of 15 nationally working with BECTA on the e-maturity Project, completing some innovative work on aspects of staff development. Geoff is also working with the Institute for Learning and BECTA in the use of e-portfolios for tutors as a tool for professional development. He is also working as an adviser to the JISC Regional Support Group in the South East.

He recently introduced Pebblepad into college to make radical changes in how all aspects of staff development is approached and completed. He is a member of the BECTA e-portfolio experts reference group.

Peter Reed

Peter is part of the ReForm Project team http://www.edgehill.ac.uk/reformproject/index.htm having come from a Learning Technology background and with previous experience as coordinator of Edge Hill's eQT Pathfinder Project, which aimed to further embed and enhance eLearning across collaborative FE partnerships.

Tish Roberts

Tish is the Programme Director, e-Learning, and is responsible for JISC’s e-Learning development programmes, which include activities in the following areas: e-Portfolio, e-Assessment, Learning Resources and Activities; e-Administration for Learning and Teaching; and Technology Supported Learning Environments (virtual and physical) and addresses the following cross-cutting themes: Technology and Standards; Learning and Teaching Practices and Strategy and Policy. Tish works closely with the JISC Learning and Teaching Committee (JLT).

Malcolm Ryan

Malcolm Ryan is a principal lecturer in Education in the School of Education and Training at the University of Greenwich. He is a qualified and experienced educational technologist and brings these skills to his role as Head of the Teaching and Learning Enhancement Team (TALENT).

He is tutor to a wide range of adult students undertaking continuing professional development (CPD) programmes. He specialises in working with students at a distance and has developed considerable expertise in exploiting information and communication technology (ICT) in support of learning and teaching and is programme co-leader of the innovative Certificate of Professional Development in e-Learning, Teaching and Training (CeLTT).

He is known for working collaboratively with colleagues across Europe and regularly acts as a consultant within/out the university. Former team member of several JISC and HEA projects including DEL eLISA, CAMEL and Design for Learning eLIDA CAMEL and coordinator of the HEA e-benchmarking exercise within the University. Current projects include the provision of training in ICT for teachers and trainers across Europe and e-social reputation via the eTTCampus 2.0, manager of the Pathfinder (SEEL) project and member of the ELESIG management group. He is a member of the Editorial Committee of IJEL, and ALT’s Further Education Committee, on the Steering Committee of AACE’s ED-MEDIA international educational technology conference and a reviewer for ALT-J.

Gilly Salmon

Gilly is Professor of E-learning and Learning Technologies, and Head of the Beyond Distance Research Alliance at the University of Leicester and creator of the Media Zoos. She is a Fellow of the HEA and a National Teaching Fellow. Her current research projects include MOOSE (Modelling in Second Life) and CALF (Creating Academic Learning Futures). She is author of E-moderating, E-tivities, co-author of Learning in Groups and co-ed of Podcasting for Learning. She is co-chairing the 2009 ALT conference. Websites: www.le.ac.uk/beyonddistance/mediazoo, www.e-moderating.com

Carol Shergold

Carol Shergold works at the University of Sussex as E-learning Development Manager in IT Services. She is responsible for developing and managing a programme of projects to support technology enhanced learning/e-learning. Areas of interest include embedding e-learning, education and web 2.0, tagging and the semantic web, user centred design, and service oriented approaches to system integration. Carol is technical lead on the SkillClouds project.

Ros Smith

Now a consultant and writer on e-learning, Ros Smith joined the Ferl team at Becta in 2002 where she worked on the Ferl Practitioners' Programme and on issues related to inspection and e-learning.

She has since co-authored and written a number of well received publications and training materials on e-learning for national organisations. These include 'Demonstrating Transformation' (Becta, 2004), 'Effective Practice with e-Learning' and 'Innovative Practice with e-Learning', (JISC, 2004 & 2005) and 'Designing Spaces for Effective Learning' (JISC, 2006).

Since 2007, Ros has also worked with the LSN on a guide for practitioners and advisers on the e-CPD framework and has compiled a publication for JISC synthesising outputs from the JISC Learner Experience of e-Learning theme, In Their Own Words. Ros has facilitated sessions at the JISC Innovating e-Learning conferences in 2006 and 2007.

Mark Stiles

Mark Stiles is Professor of Technology Supported Learning at Staffordshire University where he is Head of Learning Development and Innovation. Mark leads a team which has corporate responsibility for "eLearning" and which, as well as driving and supporting developments at the University, carries out research and development work in the strategy, policy, pedagogic and technical aspects of technology supported learning (TSL). The current main focuses of Mark's own work are on strategy and policy for TSL and the use of technology to support work-based learning. Mark is Deputy Chair of JISC's Learning and Teaching Committee, Chair of the JISC-CETIS Board, and represents the JISC and UK HE as a member of the Board of Directors of the IMS Global Consortium - an international standards body for learning technology interoperability.

Janet Strivens

After working at the Universities of Exeter, Aston and York, I joined the Department of Education at the University of Liverpool in 1979. During the 80s I was involved with all aspects of the department's work including initial teacher training. In the early 90's I became closely involved in the University's Enterprise in Higher Education Initiative, running staff development for academic staff on teaching, learning and assessment issues, and was seconded to the University's Centre for Careers and Academic Practice, the forerunner of the Centre for Lifelong Learning, where I have worked ever since.

My interests all cluster around supporting the learner and the learning process. I have a special interest in all aspects of assessment. I am also leading the implementation of personal development planning within the University, which reflects a range of interests from e-portfolios to the self-managed learner. I helped to design the Liverpool University Student Interactive Database (LUSID), the University's personal development planning support tool, and am still involved in its development.

I currently have a half-time secondment to the Centre for Recording Achievement (http://www.recordingachievement.org) as Senior Associate Director, which gives me access to national and international developments in both technology and pedagogical practice to support the lifelong learner.

Gemma Towle

Dr. Towle is currently the Research Associate on the University of Northampton’s ‘E-learning for Learners’ (E4l). An experienced researcher having worked on various research projects, her background is in information science and publishing and her specialism is electronic books. Gemma is naturally curious (nosy) about many research areas but particular publishing and elearning and from a user/learner perspective.

John Traxler

John Traxler is Reader in Mobile Technology for e-Learning and Director of the Learning Lab at the University of Wolverhampton. He works with the University’s nationally-funded Centre of Excellence in Learning and Teaching looking at innovative technologies to support diverse communities of students and with the University’s Centre for International Development and Training exploring ways of using appropriate innovative technologies to deliver education in developing countries especially sub Saharan Africa.

He is a Director of the International Association for Mobile Learning, Associate Editor of the International Journal of Mobile and Blended Learning and Conference Chair of mLearn2008, the world’s biggest and oldest mobile learning research conference. John has co-written a guide to mobile learning in developing countries and is co-editor of the definitive book on mobile learning: Kukulska-Hulme, A. and Traxler, J. (2005) Mobile Learning: A Handbook for Educators and Trainers, Routledge.

John has written over 10 book chapters and publishes regularly on evaluating and embedding mobile learning, and is interested in the profound consequences of universal mobile devices on our societies.

He has been invited to present at the South African national science festival, SciFest, at Rhodes University, and invited by Microsoft to the Mobile Learning Summit in Seattle and by the Canadian government to the ICTD conference in Bangalore. He will shortly start a two-month spell as visiting scientist at the Meraka Institute in Pretoria supporting mobile technology projects.

He is jointly responsible for national workshops on mobile learning for UK universities and has delivered similar workshops to university staff in Germany, Kenya, South Africa, Canada and India. He advises UK universities on mobile learning projects, for example in large-scale-messaging, podcasting and broadcasting with Bluetooth.

He advises the Swiss BioVision Foundation on appropriate technologies to support Kenya farmers and continues to work with the Kenyan government implementing national support for teachers’ in-service training using mobile phones and video. He has links Avallain AG, one of Europe’s leading e-learning system developers. He was the Evaluator for the EU FP6 m-learning project

Steve Warburton

I am an experienced ICT and e-Learning manager at King’s College London with a strong background in the implementation and evaluation of learning technology. I have managed both technical and pedagogically driven e-Learning projects that have included work on personal publishing tools, social software, virtual learning environments, and the development of a variety of blended teaching programmes. I also provide consultancy both within/out the University specialising in the support of distributed/distance learners. 

Les Watson

Les Watson is a freelance educational adviser. He is currently interim Director of Information Services at Royal Holloway University of London for part of his time and he is also a consultant to the Joint Information Systems Committee e-learning programme on Technology Enhanced Learning Environments.

Previously Les was a Pro Vice-Chancellor at Glasgow Caledonian University from 1999 to September 2006. During this time he was responsible for Library, C&IT Services, student services, e-learning, the Caledonian Degree and work based learning all of which were integrated into a University wide Learning Service. At Caledonian Les led the development of the Learning Cafe, REAL@Caledonian, and the award winning Saltire Centre.

At Caledonian Les was also the Project Director of the JISC Digital Libraries in the Classroom Spoken Word Project which continues to develop access to streamed digital audio resources and promote their use in the curriculum. He is a Fellow of the RSA, a member of the Universities and Colleges Information Services Association (UCISA) executive, chair of the annual UCISA management conference committee, a member of the JISC Board and a registered consultant with the Higher Education Academy. He was also recently the lead consultant for the JISC Infonet project on ‘Developing Technology Rich Spaces for Learning’, and co-author, with Hugh Anderson, of a report for the JISC on ‘The Design and Management of Open Plan Technology Rich Learning and Teaching Spaces in Further and Higher Education in the UK’.

David White

David has worked in the crossover area between education and online development for over 12 years consulting on and developing new forms of online educational media and interaction for the BBC, Channel 4 and Oxford University. He was a Senior Lecturer in the communication and media field at the University of the West of England specialising in interactive narrative.

David has been the co-manager of Technology-Assisted Lifelong Learning (TALL) for three years and in that time he has helped to develop and run TALL's suite of online distance courses and has been the principal investigator on a number of JISC-funded elearning projects which have studied issues such as formal and informal sharing online and the culture of online course development. His current research interests include studying the potential of massively multiplayer 3D online environments to support communities of practice and the general culture of participation and social networking on the web.

Andrew Williams

Andrew is currently Director of ILT Support and Development at Kingston College, which involves responsibility for network services, learning information management, e-learning development and associated staff training. He is a long-standing advocate for the role of technology in enhancing and extending the experience of learners with a particular interest in mobile technologies, information integration and intelligent e-learning systems. Andrew is especially passionate about the potential for technology as an enabling factor in personal and professional development.

Andrew is presently manager for the KASTANET project (Kingston Access to Science Teaching Across New and Emerging Technologies), a JISC-funded initiative within the HE in FE e-learning programme. This is exploring the role and potential of podcasting and SMS services within the context of transition between the further and higher education sectors.