tips and tricks for awesome learning design
Video lectures: how long should they be?
How long should video lectures be? Shorter than six minutes, according to the largest ever study of engagement with online videos. So why is it that tutors continue to produce long video lectures?...
Why HEIs should be focusing on employee experience
The loss of the familiar My colleague Phil recently wrote about how many tutors in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are dealing with a form of bereavement. The shift to online teaching during...
Why a solutionist approach doesn’t work for online learning
Learning happens everywhere, and online learning is no different. So why do so many universities only permit tutors to use the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE)? Prior to the Covid pandemic,...
Tom Whitford: practical advice for designing effective online learning environments
Tom Whitford is Head of Learning Design at Curio, a global learning consultancy, and he has a research background in designing social online learning experiences and communities. He also has a lot...
Constance Steinkuehler: What games design can teach learning design
A few episodes back, we talked with games designer Emma Henry about the overlaps between games design and learning design. In this episode, we return to this relationship and are honored to have the...
Paul Hoskins: Opportunities for universities in a challenging environment
Despite the challenges currently facing the higher education sector, strategic opportunities exist. Paul Hoskins is Principal at Curio, a global higher education consultancy. Paul has been at the...
Jo Nolan: Why conversation is the key to creative learning
Our guest in this episode is Jo Nolan, who is the managing director of cultural development agency Screen South. Now, what’s a cultural development agency I hear you ask? Well, Screen South connect...
Jordan Buckner: The value of teaching where your learners are
Jordan Buckner is a film-maker, artist and lecturer in animation. In response to lockdown, he moved his teaching into online spaces that his students were already using - particularly Twitch and...
Allan Atlee: How creative higher education is responding to COVID
In this week’s podcast, we’re privileged to talk with Allan Atlee. Allan recently took up the role of Deputy Director at the Glasgow School of Art, and is the former Dean of Academic Strategy...
Why you should challenge your students’ expectations of their performance
"The biggest effects on student learning occur when teachers become learners of their own teaching, and when students become their own teachers." (Hattie, 2009: 22) Sometimes you discover a piece of...
Emma Henry: why gamification often fails
Emma Henry is a learning designer who helps businesses develop products and apps that have a positive impact on learning. She's also a gamification ninja, and regularly helps companies align their...
Dr Emi Garzitto: Managing conflict in remote learning and working
Dr Emi Garzitto is a conflict coach and workplace climate specialist. For years, Emi has been doing awesome work in schools to help kids deal with conflict, and she’s now helping people and...
David James: How data and experiments can save L&D
David James is Chief Learning Officer at Looop, where he helps businesses use a data-driven approach to solving business problems with Learning and Development. In this episode, David argues how...
Helen Curston: The need for social rituals in online learning
Helen Curston is a former broadcast journalist and BBC TV producer, and her current role is Programme Director for Television Production, Computer Animation Arts and Games at the University for the...
Great online learning isn’t about technology
A lot of people think that awesome online learning is all about using the latest whizzy technology. It isn’t. If someone talks at you for 30 minutes, you switch off - whether you’re online or...
Francesca Maxwell: The benefits of teaching remotely
Francesca Maxwell is an award-winning artist who has worked with Wes Anderson, Tim Burton and Aardman Animations. She also happens to be an awesome educator who regards online learning as an...
Create the conditions for invention
"The role of the teacher is to create the conditions for invention rather than provide ready-made knowledge." Seymour Papert High quality learning is active - in other words, it involves the learner...
Environment influences learning performance
In business contexts, it is generally accepted that the environment can influence the performance of employees and leaders. But the influence of the online environment is often overlooked when it...
