Networked Learning Conference 2010

Dumb question, probably - but what do you mean by "birth discipline"? I started out with a degree in Botany & Geography - moved to a PGCE for 7-12 year olds - but taught post 16 with severe learning difficulties - then moved (via a spot of teacher training in Papua New Guinea) to an MSc in Info Systems & then now lecturer in computing .... but, I guess returning to my roots in some way, as I'm particularly interested in how computing can support learning ... [and travel to places with interesting Geography & wildlife when I'm not working!]

Hi Emma
I don't know who coined the term 'birth discipline' but it means the discipline you started with/studied initially.

Hi

I'm a Computer Scientist (theoretical) / Software Engineer (methodologies), and as a result I'd say that I'm some what more familiar with trying to make experiments that involve human subjects as controlled as possible. I've only recently moved to research in the educational area.

Chris

Hi Grainne,

I have been working as a learning technologist for a decade and only recently I have started to re-train myself as a prospective researcher in networked learning: first joining a woderful Open University course (H809) and currently attending an engaging Online MRes by the Institute of Education. My original HE background was a mix of Philosophy, Semiotics, Sociology of Communication and Media Education. Then, when I began to work as an instructional designer for multimedia production I studied (as a self-learner) a bit of human-computer interaction and curiously I somewhat retrieved my previous studies on drama (Brenda Laurel, Computer as theatre). Always as a self-learner I moved on distance and online education, harnessing classics in the field as Moore, Harasim, Mason and many OU scholars and practitioners.
As a new research student, I am retrieving studies by Bakthin and Lotman in the analysis f networked learning's instances. I am currently interested in an in depth exploration of the positives and negatives of ethnography when applied to virtual settings and networked learning. But this is only a start of a long journey.
Thanks for this seminar,
antonella

I started out with a degree in Modern Languages (French, Spanish & Italian). From there I drifted into the computer industry as a Technical Author, moving into Instructional Design. This triggered an interest in how people learned so I began doing OU courses with the Institute of Educational Technology (IET). These courses opened my eyes to a whole new world where people learned more than simply the skills needed to use a new piece of software. I guess the common strand that connects my various occupations is an interest in communication and how people interact with each other. My years in the computer software industry added an interest in technology, and in particular, how technology is intertwined with the ways people communicate, interact and learn.