We would like to announce the new eLearning Assistant Service which is now open for application.

We have recruited and trained a team of eLearning assistants to closely work with teachers and assist them in planning and implementing their eLearning strategies. The eLearning assistants' responsibilities include:

• advising teachers on eLearning strategies that might support expected learning outcomes;
• providing practical skills and tips in using the strategies;
• assisting teachers in developing teaching materials and setting up course websites in the learning management platforms (Moodle and WebCT);
• answering teachers' questions during the actual implementation of the strategies;
• suggesting to teachers the methods to collect feedback and data for evaluation; and
• informing teachers about basic technical skills so that teachers can do simple upgrades to the materials and independently use the sites in the future.

The typical eLearning strategies that the eLearning assistants support involve operations of the different functions of WebCT and Moodle, and putting learning materials such as PowerPoint and Acrobat on the learning management platforms. Please contact Ms Eva Cheung (eva-cheung@cuhk.edu.hk) if you need more information.

We invite you to include audio/ video material in your teaching at CUHK by using the new podcast service to be launched by ITSC in the new semester 2009.

Teachers are now invited to submit their proposals for new audio/ video material in their teaching to be hosted on this new podcast station. Contents posted on this new podcast station will be accessible by visitors from all around the world.

Teachers are free to choose any technology to create their audio/ video podcast described in their proposals. Accepted proposals will receive technical support from ITSC for implementation. The produced audio/ video podcasts will be officially launched on the new CUHK Podcast station in the new semester 2009.

Deadline for proposal submission: Extended to Oct 15, 2009 (by email to elearning@cuhk.edu.hk)
Questions? Please email to elearning@cuhk.edu.hk

Don't miss the following if you are interested in submitting your proposal:

• Teaching & Learning with Podcasting (by Briana J Ferrigno, Columbia Center for New Media Teaching and Learning, Columbia University in the City of New York)
• 7 Things You Should Know About Podcasting (PDF, ELI 7 Things Series)
• Confessions of a Podcast Junkie: A Student Perspective (by Carie Windham)

Recording of lectures/ workshops and presentations and publishing them as online resources can be a good strategy for students to consolidate learning. We consider that lecture/ presentation recording systems will create new learning possibilities for students. Under the 3+3+4 curriculum, students begin their undergraduate education one year younger, in general, than their predecessors. The recorded sessions can effectively expand the curriculum, provide further support to fill knowledge gaps and/or enable students to revise topics at their own pace.

The eLS@CU team is investigating potential tools for such services. Echo360 is one such industry-leading platform that automatically and reliably captures class lectures and converts them into podcasts, video, rich media, and other formats for anytime, anywhere playback. The system is basically a care-free arrangement as it captures, and then publishes lectures/ presentations without the teacher needing to pay attention to controlling any apparatus in the location. The capture schedule can be preset by central staff for an entire semester with just one operation at the beginning of the term.

Echo360 supports full-motion playback of the entire lecture – including supporting course visuals. The teacher's voice, video and materials are in sync, mimicking the classroom experience with the realistic replay experience. Students can identify and jump to the desired lecture segment with keyword search capabilities embedded in the player interface (Figure 1 is a captioned screen capture of a sample video for students to review).

Initial conservations have been going on between ITSC/ CLEAR and some faculties at the University. The Faculty of Medicine has taken the initiative of setting Echo360 up in one of their lecture halls. There will be a number of modules in which lectures are recorded and saved.

The Faculty of Science has also shown interest in using it in a number of ways. It can be used to record lectures and to record students' presentations as the technology offers an opportunity to focus students' attention on presentation skills. The recorded presentations support more effective peer critiques as well. It can also be used to record additional teaching sessions where teachers can cover topics they do not have time to cover in the course. Time in classroom can be used for the more meaningful topics or activities, while background facts and concepts can be self-learnt by students through the support of the new Echo-videos.

Only a very limited number of Echo360 machines will be set up on campus and tested in the pilot phase. Teachers who want to participate in the pilot and/or want to learn about other possibilities for having presentations recorded, please contact Edman Chan at edman-chan@cuhk.edu.hk.

The eLS@CU is now openly inviting CUHK teachers to share their experiences with their colleagues in the "Teaching and Learning Expo 2009". We have designed an interactive Expo event to facilitate conversation and sharing.

We are now in the third year of running a teaching and learning Expo at the University. This year, rather than limiting ourselves to innovations that involve the web technology only, we would like to extend the concept of teaching and learning innovations to all ideas and practices that lead to learning enhancement in a course, a programme or across the university as a whole, regardless whether technology is involved or not.

The Expo is composed of four main parts:

• Opening, international online conversation, keynote address with response. (2 hours), followed by
• Talks organized in parallel sessions (25-minute slots). The talks include information talks on defined themes and formal presentations by teachers on their work. There are two main themes:
  1. Enhancement of teaching and learning through innovative curriculum and learning designs (e.g. OBA roadmaps, innovations in coping with 3+3+4 curriculum, and innovative teaching strategies)
  2. Enhancement of teaching and learning through innovative uses of eLearning strategies
• An assembly of poster presentations (12:30 pm – 2:00 pm) where we hope our participants enjoy a light lunch as they learn about new ideas and discuss with colleagues.
• The posters will be kept in the Expo venue where they will stay for a poster exhibition for a week from 24 October to 30 October.

Details of the previous two Expo can be found at their archived websites at http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/elearning/expo2007 and http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/elearning/expo2008

Interested teachers please pay attention to the 'call for presentation/ participation' emails which will be released to teaching staff early September. More information can also be obtained through emailing to learn.lam@cuhk.edu.hk

In the academic year 2008–2009, the Faculty of Science purchased a set of clickers (three radio-frequency receivers and 300 clickers) together with an associated question-design system (Sun-Tech Xpress Audience Response System). The intention of the project was to investigate how clickers might be used for improving the teaching and learning environment and processes. In the second semester of 2008–2009 year, professors from eight different courses piloted the clicker system in their lessons.

At the end of the semester, about 300 students filled in a survey regarding their use of clickers. An average more than 40% of students agreed that usage of clickers had enhanced their motivation, interaction and understanding of materials in their learning process.

Opinions from the teachers who piloted the clickers also confirmed that the clicker system opens up a number of new possibilities for managing class activities that facilitate interactions, and lead students to think and reflect on what they have learnt. Below are a few important characteristics of clickers and tips on how to use them for good results.

1. Clickers are useful for many purposes. For example, they can be used to raise the interest and motivation of students in class through enriching interactions between teachers and students.
2. Clickers questions can be competitive as students can compare their performance with their peers on the spot. Students are relatively more engaged.
3. Clickers can make students attentive to class particularly if the questions are asked regularly throughout the lesson.
4. Clickers allow teachers to understand what has been learnt and not learnt in a lesson and thus make a plan for immediate actions to clarify or elaborate difficult concepts.
5. Good clicker questions that require application of knowledge stimulate students' logical and critical thinking processes.
6. Teachers can use clickers to test students towards the end of a course for revision and examination preparation.
7. Clickers can be an easy, instant and convenient approach to assess students in class. Individual students' scores can be recorded. However, fairness is an issue if the clicker assessments are a significant component of the course grades.
8. Clicker questions can be created on the spot. The method increases flexibility in the teaching and learning processes and let teachers tailor instructions to meet students' needs.
9. Clickers can be used in a wide range of settings: lecture, tutorial, laboratory, seminar, etc.
10. There are certain challenges in using clickers. For example, the distribution and collection of the clicker devices to and from the students require time. Teachers need time to learn how to create and operate clicker questions. The clicker software does not work in Mac OS and certain versions of Windows. Good planning and practice make perfect.

More details of the project can be found in the website: http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/sci/clicker/

Both WebCT and Moodle were upgraded in summer 2009 to enhance the system security and better user experience.

• WebCT CE6 has been upgraded to version 8 (CE8). This upgrade focuses on enhancing stability and security of the system and there is no added functionality or changes to the current user interface.
• Moodle 1.6 has been upgraded to version 1.9.5+. This upgrade brings new features and enhanced security and stability to all users.

The interfaces of the two systems remain essentially the same. Similar to previous year, a series of hands-on workshops will be organized in early September to assist teachers and teaching assistants to become familiar with the use of the platforms – see below for schedule of the workshops. For more information, please visit http://www.cuhk.edu.hk/elearning or contact us through elearning@cuhk.edu.hk.

Teaching and Learning Innovation Expo, 2009, CUHK
Date: 23 October 2009

ITSC Seminar & Workshops
Forthcoming ITSC seminar & workshops on eLearning are:

eLearning Showcase and Open Lecture by Dianna Laurillard. Polytechnic University
http://www.3c.edc.polyu.edu.hk/feature_BLShowcase.html
Date: 16 October 2009

ASCILITE 2009
http://www.ascilite.org.au/conferences/auckland09/
Date: December 6–9, 2009
Auckland, New Zealand

Dr. Clayton R. Wright has written a comprehensive list of educational technology conferences for 2009–2010. We would like to express our gratitude to Clayton for his kindness in allowing us to redistribute the list to interested teachers. Please download the document by following the link HERE.

eLearning assistants: We have a team of trained student helpers to assist teachers in building simple courseware on Moodle or WebCT free of charge. Please contact us for more details: eva-cheung@cuhk.edu.hk

eLearning clinic: We provide free face-to-face assistance to teachers on eLearning matters. Contact us to arrange for appointments at: elearning@cuhk.edu.hk