The Peeragogy Handbook. How to Use this Handbook. Working together is how things get done. This free, open, crowd-sourced wiki-book shows us the best ways to get there. I’m glad I was on the team that created it. Intro: If you want to learn how to fix a pipe, solve a partial differential equation, write software, you are seconds away from know-how via YouTube, Wikipedia and search engines. Access to technology and access to knowledge, however, isn’t enough. Learning is a social, active, and ongoing process.  In particular, what do they need to know about peer learning? Peeragogy. MORE >>

This post is written by Ryan Tracey. The young nation of Australia has a rich history in e-learning. They say necessity is the mother of invention, and so in 1951 the  School of the Air  was launched to educate children dispersed across the outback. From Kalgoorlie in the west to the aptly named Longreach in the east, school students in remote communities received their instruction over the radio. Fast forward to today, and our love affair with communication technology continues unabated. Furthermore, 38% own a tablet, and another 33% are planning to purchase a tablet within the next 12 months. MORE >>

Late last year I was at a dinner with a Board I won’t mention by name. There were roughly 50 people at the event. Tables were pre-assigned and I found myself sitting across from a chap in his mid-50′s whose professional job was an accountant. He worked at a rather large firm as a partner. And no, I won’t insert any accountant jokes at this time. About halfway through the meal, the conversation at the table of 10 shifted to social media. Other than Denise (my better half) no one really had any idea of my background or my natural propensity for all things social. The point? MORE >>

2013 has well and truly arrived. That means it’s time to plan your next round of professional development events to attend. If you’ll be down under over the next 12 months, may I draw your attention to the following… ACE2013 – Australasian Computing Education Conference. • Where: Adelaide. • When: 29 January – 1 February 2013. • More info: ACE2013. Australian eLearning Congress. • Where: Melbourne. • When: 6-8 February 2013. • More info: Ark Group. Learning Cafe Unconference. • Where: Sydney. • When: 21 February 2013. MORE >>

Most of the time a meta-analysis of studies looks at only the numbers as a means of comparison. Here is an interesting qualitative meta-analysis and the highlights of the results. Fengfeng Ke, a researcher focusing on digital game-based learning, computer-supported collaborative learning, and simulations for instructional use, conducted a review of 89 research articles that provided empirical data on the application and effectiveness of computer-based instructional games. Ke chose to conduct a qualitative meta-analysis. She analyzed 256 reports and eliminated 167 for various reasons. 2009). MORE >>