Learning by numbers: trends in collective and collaborative activity on OpenLearn

Professor Andy Lane

OpenLearn is …

• An institution-wide programme;• A sub-brand for OU’s open educational media• Making some of the OU’s educational materials freely

available in a web-based open learning environment;• Seeking to advance open educational resource practices by:

– Deploying leading-edge learning management tools for learner support;

– Encouraging the creation of non-formal collaborative learning communities;

– Encouraging other institutions to reuse and rework the content;– Enhancing international research-based knowledge about modern

pedagogies for higher education.

OpenLearn’s website architecture makes tracking activity across platforms tricky

Long form content for learners Long form content for educators

Information and short form content

Researcher network

External sites

YouTubeEDU

iTunesU

Facebook

Measuring activity

• Activity on OpenLearn is measured by:– Analytics– Observation– Surveys– Unsolicited emails

• But which activities are collective or collaborative?• And are users just information seekers?

Participative tools and technologies

• External social networking sites add participation• LearningSpace and LabSpace feature various tools and

technologies that enable in situ user participation:– Profiles– Forums– Learning journals– Learning clubs– Study unit revision and creation

Trends in form posts and journal entries

Month Mar 10

Apr 10

May 10

Jun 10

Jul 10

Aug 10

Sep 10

Oct 10

Nov 10

Dec 10

Jan 11

Feb 11

Mar 11

Forum posts

85 158 196 267 372 289 223 155 112 79 117 70 141

Journal entries

154 153 163 254 171 175 175 147 105 139 101 91 134

Collective and collaborative activity is ...

• Often based around existing ‘communities’• About sharing information and ideas more than doing

things• Supplements project based activity• Gives licence to experiment or enable staff development

•

The question becomes collaboration by whom for what purpose ...

• To share research and scholarship findings and ideas• To share teaching resources• To co-develop common resources• To enable staff develop within and across institutions