Policy & Strategy
David White, Co-manager, Technology-Assisted Lifelong Learning, Department for Continuing Education, University of Oxford
The Characters Involved
• Open Standards Fundamentalist: we just need XML• Open Source Fundamentalist: we just need Linux• Open content Fundamentalist: we must share
everything • Vendor Fundamentalist: we must need next version of
our enterprise system (and you must fit in with this)• Accessibility Fundamentalist: must do WAI WCAG• User Fundamentalist: we must do whatever users want• Legal Fundamentalist: it breaches copyright, …• Ownership Fundamentalist: must own everything• Perfectionist: It doesn't do everything, so we'll do
nothing• Simplistic Developer: I've developed a perfect solution
– I don't care if it doesn't run in the real world• Web 2.0 Fundamentalist: Must use latest cool stuff
Where is the edge of theInstitution?
• Does the institution want to own or facilitate the ‘chat down the pub?
• Institutional boundary is becoming blurred, part of the overall ‘zeitgeist’– Economic– Web 2.0– Global– Social
• E-learning becomes simply Learning ?
The changing role ofcomputing services?
• Provision of specialist services
• Everyone gets a computer for admin
• Everyone gets email
• VLE – elearning
• Provision of social spaces
The challenge shifts fromthe technical to the cultural
• This stuff works pretty well (drives this issue)
• Do computing services become advisors as much as providers?
• Ownership, Legal, Risk etc
• Are we dealing with ‘Digital Natives’ or is that a red herring?
What’s actually being used?
• SPIRE survey results:
http://tallblog.conted.ox.ac.uk/index.php/2007/03/16/some-real-data-on-web-20-use/
80% Usage
Thoughts
• Need to educate all involved to become ‘new media’ literate
• Need for institutions to grapple with the ‘new media’ economy / social media
• Institutions need to decide what their role is in this economy
• Institutional boundary is blurring
