Higher Education in the Digital Age. Moving Academia Online
A couple of years ago I attended a workshop at the European University Institute, Shaking the brick and mortar: moving higher education online, where I presented Opening up the gates: scaffolding lifelong learning.
The reflections on that workshop have now been published as a book: Higher Education in the Digital Age. Moving Academia Online, edited by Annika Zorn, Jeff Haywood, and Jean-Michel Glachant.
I have contributed to the book with chapter 3, Translearning: unfolding educational institutions to scaffold lifelong networked learning.
The whole book can be downloaded in preprint format. Please find below the abstracts and links to download both my chapter and the whole book.
Book chapter abstract and download
Most works on instructional technology focus on the potential – and sometimes weaknesses – of technologies to do certain things. This chapter will take the opposite approach: we will be looking at 10 different “institutions” in education (the school, the classroom, the textbook, the library, the syllabus, the schedule, the teacher, evaluation, certification and the curriculum) and see how, on the one hand, digital technologies are challenging the foundations of such institutions and, on the other hand, how they can strengthen their role in education by unfolding their reach and scope. Ours is, thus, an approach that focuses on transformation of institutions by pushing them outside of their formal education framework and into lifelong learning by being part of learners’ informal educational networks.
Peña-López, I. (2018). “Translearning: unfolding educational institutions to scaffold lifelong networked learning”. In Zorn, A., Haywood, J. & Glachant, J. (Eds.), Higher Education in the Digital Age. Moving Academia Online, Chapter 3, 55-82. Northampton, MA: Edgar Elgar.
Book abstract and download
The European higher education sector is moving online, but to what extent? Are the digital disruptions seen in other sectors of relevance for both academics and management in higher education? How far are we from fully seizing the opportunities that an online transition could offer? This insightful book offers a broad perspective on existing academic practices, and discusses how and where the move online has been successful, and the lessons that can be learned.
Higher Education in the Digital Age offers readers a comprehensive overview of the ways in which a move into online academia can be made. Analysing successful case studies, the original contributions to this timely book address the core activities of an academic institution – education, research, and research communication – instead of focusing only on online learning or digital strategies relevant for individual academics. Chapters cover online and networked learning, as well as the myriad ways in which the digital age can improve research and knowledge exchange with experts and society more widely.
Academics, managers and policy makers in higher education institutions will greatly benefit from the up-to-date case studies and advice outlined in this book. Academic administrators and academic project leaders will also find this a useful tool for improving the accessibility of their work.
Zorn, A., Haywood, J. & Glachant, J. (Eds.) (2018). Higher Education in the Digital Age. Moving Academia Online. Northampton, MA: Edgar Elgar.
All other information can be found at the official website of the book.
