10th July

So how does this information so magically appear on the ePcoP Mooc and in the Ning?

Behind the scenes there is a hard working design team, working in three states of Australia with help from our other Australian and international colleagues..

In the spirit of the MOOC and using Web 2.0 in a collaborative manner this team has not met physically during the MOOC design and development phases.
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Planning is completed by working in google doc, weekly Elluminate meetings the EpCoP learnspace the Ning and of course, the ever present email. Coming from a variety of backgrounds about  e-portfolio processes but driven by a belief in ePortfolios, the team has worked together to share their individual ideas and then collaborate to weave them into what we hope will be an exciting and vibrant course.
Graphics are about to be included to liven things up and the challenge badges are being perfected. The resources, with Pauline’s diligent efforts are making their way into the correct category.  Junita is organising a group of  12 Challenge mentors, e-learning enthusiasts, who have volunteered their skill and knowledge to ensure that  participants, who may be totally new to the ePortfolio process get a better understanding of the Web 2.0 tools. The Challenge Mentors will support participants  throughout the course to help develop artifacts to include in their e-portfolio and aide in their journey of life-long learning.

Sandra is planning the weekly MOOC SCOOP illustrating with humorous moments using Toondoos (a web 2.0 tool) to create a weekly newsletter for participants. The ‘stars’ of the Toondoos are two donkeys – Meshak and Marnie and a wise owl – Deago. Why donkeys you ask? They  possess great intelligence and are trusting, gentle and co-operative when treated well. Meshak and Marnie like the course designers and other contributors aim to support learners in the ePCoPMOOC journey with  gentle support and trust in each participant’s ability to shine.
The whole process of designing this course is an example of Web 2.0 collaboration and learning together.

Coach Carole has been gathering insights from eportfolio practitioners and finishing the content pages and managing the team and ensuring that collaboration is used throughout the development phase with the whole world looking on. Recent participation in the Edumooc 2011 has revealed another network of MOOCers with whom to bounce ideas and incorporate new MOOC thinking into the EpCoP MOOC.

Registrations have ramped up to 40 and still climbing. During the last weeks of July we will open up the Ning for self-enrolment and we invite you to promote to your networks. We will post a promotional flyer for you to use in your emails on the learnspace and Ning sites.
We are almost ready to introduce you to the MOOC experience with our first webinar on July 27th – a Wednesday evening event 8pm Sydney time. Come on over and join in!

http://tinyurl.com/29tyznz

July 3rd

Participants are gathering at the NING

Another week has gone by with the Epcop Mooc design team still hard at work designing and developing this collaborative project. Each design team member contributes a set of skills that helps to create a myriad of information, ideas, planning and implementation strategies.

Registrations are now open and participants are signing up for this exciting event.  Already there are 22 registrations and growing. Early registrants will be invited to join the Ning network and spend time getting comfortable with the communication strategies. We invite all ‘early bird registrants’ to introduce themselves in the Welcome forum and have a look around the site for some interesting and fun tools.

Epcop Radio is now on the air and participants can listen to advice and words of wisdom by contributors who have developed e-portfolios and are knowledgeable in the many processes involved.  Epcop Radio will help participants identify their direction and will continue during the event as useful ongoing support tools.

A team of Challenge Mentors from many Australian states are being organised Their mission is to empower those who are new to the technologies needed to create innovative assets for their e-portfolio. Many of them are members of EpCoP and some are volunteers from the Community Connect series at the Australia e-Series – thanks in advance for their willingness to contribute.

The Challenge Mentors  will be facilitating extra webinars during the Epcop MOOC to help participants develop positive expectations about using web 2.0 tools. These instructional guides will ensure the participants stay focused on content and that they are able to use the tools creatively and/or navigate around the online repositories with confidence. The Challenge Mentors will aim to provide instruction for the novice eportfolio learner during their learning process and offer peer support about the tools needed to create innovative assets for their e-portfolios. They will also keep an online presence in the EpCoP MOOC ning network for participants to tap into the wisdom of this crowd.

During July we will be refining the content, creating the achievement badges, organising the webinars and guest speakers, and getting the web spaces ready for you to launch into your themed missions in learning about Eportfolios. We’ll be ready for you ‘play’ and start your quests in August!

The more the MOOC develops the more potential the designers can see for providing new experiences for practitioners wanting to learn more about e-portfolios.  We are undertaking a game themed adventure together as an effective learning sequence to enhance each participant’s experience. We all love to play!

Participants will face challenges and quests and complete missions.  Completion of a particular mission will lead to the next level. Exploring ways of providing Badges of completion is taking the design team on a whole new adventure of their own. We’re looking for ideas on Open Badges.

RadioEpCop  is taking shape. Designers have been spending time trialling the different podcasting tools availiable.  The first podcast has already been embedded in the Learnspace.  Words of wisdom from eportfolio practitioners, ( Quotes ) are being sought from any practitioner who wishes to share tips on e-portfolios.  Each level of the MOOC will feature Radio EpCop podcasts that bring a fresh approach and guidance for the quests.

The MOOC Scoop  will be produced at intervals throughout the course to help keep everyone informed of the latest news and facts to assist in the completion of the missions.   Along with news of participants progress we will highlight the activities featured each week.

The Resource Kit continues to grow with a wide range of articles, websites, blogposts and e-books with something for everyone. These will help you to learn the basics or delve much deeper into the philosophy of e-portfolios.

Webinars are being planned for each topic and will feature guest presenters; these will be scheduled for Tuesdays at 11am Sydney time. Presenters are being targeted and invited.

When you register you will be invited to join the EpCoP MOOC network where the fun really begins. There are already 9  registrations to participate in this fun new learning experience.  We invite you to participate in a webinar on July 27th to introduce the course, and to jump in and take a look around before the official start date in August.

17 June 2011

The MOOC is now taking shape as an enticing, engaging and invigorating approach to learning about eportfolios. Participants will be able to choose their preferred Eportfolio environment in which to share their creative artefacts and will be able to tap into the ‘wisdom of the crowd’ through a series of real time webinars focused on each topic. The MOOC will cater for all levels of e-portfolio knowledge and purpose.

Participants will be able to visit the EpCoP learnspace to collect their learning resources and instructions. Here they will also gain access to other e-portfolio communities of practice and add their own comments for continuous improvement of the MOOC experience.

A collaborative community online (a protected space) has been set up for participants and facilitators to share information and talk to one another about their learning experiences and for notifications of the upcoming webinars. This Ning network also enables participants to set up their own groups if they plan to work as a project team or if they wish to form subgroups in the MOOC as their own action team or study buddies. Instructions will be available for participants to navigate and develop their own page on the Ning that will help them establish a sense of belonging to the epcopMOOC community.

The MOOC experience will be enriched with a number of innovative learning tools and strategies.

●     the content pages for each topic features the wisdom of eportfolio leaders in text and video, and focuses on providing the right amount of shared knowledge before participants launch into the quests

●     the quests feature a variety of tasks, actions and goals to enable partiicpants to achieve their mission

●     the weekly newsletter, the MOOC Scoop. This online publication will feature the focus on each mission and quests and enable participants to be recognised for their achievements at each level

●     the topic based podcasts, Radio EpCoP. These voice files will enable participants to listen to the opinions of eportfolio learners, leaders and administrators

●     the Challenge gallery where participants can choose one or more Web 2.0 tools to explore and use for the development of their creative artifacts

●     the Bloggers gallery where participants can choose a blog tool for their reflections on their MOOC experiences

The MOOC is growing and evolving daily. The design of this course is being collaboratively undertaken in a Google site with Carole, Junita, Sandra, Jane, Allison and Pauline all contributing resources and ideas to the initial plan. We are now inviting others to join this collaboration process by sharing their e-portfolio expertise to aid in the course development.

The course is being designed in the Google site where resources are gathered and ideas exchanged. https://sites.google.com/site/epcoplearnspace/ Using Popplet , a collaborative mind mapping tool, has enhanced this process.
After the introductory week the course is divided into seven topics which include answering questions such as the What, Why, Where, How and Who of eportfolio practice through selected reading, sharing and participant work.

The main purpose of the MOOC is to support VET practitioners developing a professional e-portfolio to support their Continuing Professional Development (CPD) needs

Practitioners as learners will be invited to undertake challenges and missions as part of a practical quest to earn badges of achievement. This learning process is designed to help participants remain enthusiastic and engaged throughout the course.

Leaders will provide guidance, share knowledge and moderate webinars throughout the course. These leaders will drive and support the learning experience through frequent online news, regular reflections of progress and a consistent online presence.

Learners will be enabled to determine their own learning pathway and create their own approach to eportfolio design and development whilst earning their Open Badges of achievement. Learners will be able to learn collaboratively and cooperatively in small teams or/groups or individually.

What is a MOOC?
A MOOC is a Massive Open Online Course

What is EpCoP?

The Eportfolio Community of Practice supported by the Australian Flexible Learning Framework and over 130 members. The EpCoP website is http://epcop.net.au and the associated discussion group is http://conversations.epcop.net.au

Why this blog?
We will use this blog to report on the progress of the collaborative design, development and delivery of the EpCoP MOOC.

What is the EpCoP MOOC?

This MOOC is designed to encourage learners to develop skills and knowledge with an emphasis on e-portfolios and 21st century learning.
The advantages of this MOOC are many, it offers instruction, guidance and connectivism. This allows the participant to be part of the growing Epcop Community of Practice that will allow transparent connections with professionals from all over Australia and the world.
Communities of Practice are groups of people who share a passion about a topic, idea or emerging pedagogy and helps develop communication on an ongoing basis. This helps participants to deepen their knowledge and expertise in building their professional practice around their chosen field.

The requirements for developing a  Community of Practice, suit a MOOC well, as participants have the opportunity to enhance their learning, creativity and innovation by developing connections that share their ideas. Opportunity and learning can grow when many people connect in this way.

This MOOC will offer a spectrum of courses structured and designed to enhance your e-learning and develop your e-portfolio knowledge.  This Mooc is intended  to help  your professional development and enhance your skills. A cluster of resources around e-portfolios have been sourced and developed by the design team at Epcop to partner with course content and this blog.  E- facilitators experienced in the delivery of  on-line classes will facilitate the synchronous courses using the Blackboard/ collaborate live classroom.