Transforming higher education: From Flipped lessons and MOOCs to lifelong learning for archaeologists, Excellence and Innovation in Learning and Teaching (ISSNe 2499-507X), 2023, 2 (original) (raw)
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In F. Giligny, F. Djindjian, L. Costa, P. Moscati & S. Robert (eds.), 21st Century Archaeology: Concepts, Methods and Tools (Oxford: Archaeopress), 2015
While the World Wide Web has provided the public with heretofore-unimagined access to information, the democratization of online content creation has also provided an unprecedented opportunity for the spread of misinformation and misinterpretation. Archaeology is no exception, as developments like the exposing of museum collections, the ability to conduct armchair “surveys,” and unfettered access to uncontextualized images via simple Web search have combined to confront a new generation of avocational and aspiring archaeologists with myriad explanations and interpretations of artifacts, archaeological data, and history writ large. The rise of MOOCs (both as “massive open online courses” and as repositories for massively-accessible online content) may help combat this by providing a structured mechanism for practitioners to reach, interact with, educate, and learn from an ever-growing online audience. This is of particular importance for archaeology, a field in which standards of conduct and interpretation are keys to sound and ethical practice.
Harnessing the potential of online learning in Italian Universities: from blended classes to MOOCs
8th International Conference on Higher Education Advances (HEAd’22) Universitat Politecnica de Valencia,, 2022
In this paper some integrated teaching experiences conducted at the University of Padua and particularly one of the courses in the Archaeology area are presented. The objective is to present the benefits of blended lessons in order to show numerous benefits that this kind of learning method can offer: flexibility, time and cost efficiency, more convenience for working students or those with other commitments, the ability to review content several times, greater accessibility for students with disabilities, and specially high degree of student engagement and interactivity. The characteristics of some teaching materials created or used exclusively online, for open and free teaching are described, including the impact they might have on lifelong learning, in the dissemination of our subject, and in the promotion of the territory at an international level.
MOOCs and Archaeological Advocacy
Advances in Archaeological Practice, 2017
This review assesses the capabilities of the technology of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) as tools for increasing the presence of archaeology in our digital society. Instead of focusing on the academic value of the content of these courses, I explore their usefulness as promoters of rigorous archaeological practices and ethics, as well as the protection and preservation of cultural heritage. After enrolling as a student in six MOOCs, I have analyzed whether these courses successfully provided students with an informed and critical understanding of the field, as well as creating networks of advocates that can share this knowledge across their communities.
42nd Annual Meeting, Computer Applications & Quantitative Methods in Archaeology (Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne), 2014
While the World Wide Web has provided the public at large with heretofore-unimagined access to information, the egalitarian – and frequently anonymous – nature of online content creation has also provided an unprecedented opportunity for the spread of misinformation and misinterpretation alike. Archaeology is no exception to the double-edged sword that is the 21st century web, as the opening of museum collections, the ability to conduct armchair “surveys” via tools like Google Earth, unfettered access to uncontextualized images via simple Web search, and similar developments have combined to confront a new generation of avocational and aspiring archaeologists with myriad explanations and interpretations of artifacts, archaeological data, and history writ large. While certainly – and literally! – not a deus ex machina, the rise of the MOOC (both in its traditional definition as “massive open online course,” and in its growing use as a repository for massively-accessible online content) may help counter this current state of affairs by providing a structured mechanism for professionals across the academy to reach, interact with, educate, and learn from an ever-growing online audience. This is of particular importance for archaeology, a field in which standards of conduct and interpretation are keys to sound and ethical practice. The open, inclusive nature of MOOC-based learning experiences can allow them to compete with similarly free and open sources of information about archaeological topics that are broadly accessible on the public Internet. Further, in the MOOC environment, experts leading open online learning experiences can draw in new participants, while simultaneously ensuring that the facts, techniques, and practices conveyed in their particular learning experience represent accurate scholarly interpretation and understanding, as well as the most up-to-date professional standards and methods. Successful participants, in turn, may go on to serve as international and intercultural hubs from which accurate, professionally-conveyed information can flow outward to various peripheries, while at the same time the multicultural nature of MOOC audiences may also serve as a mechanism for improving the professional practice of archaeology, in part by creating a feedback loop via which practitioners can be exposed to viewpoints and cultural interpretations that might not be commonly considered. While distance education is not a new phenomenon by any means, the combination of open learning opportunities and 21st century technologies has allowed “non-traditional” education to take a decidedly non-traditional turn of its own. New technologies and techniques allow learners to be provided with interactive experiences, while teachers can be provided the ability to keep their fingers on the pulse of the participant collective, ensuring that knowledge and understanding are being effectively communicated to the community of learners, and that the feedback loop between participants and practitioners remains firmly in place. This paper considers the role of MOOCs in this “new academy,” with two open learning experiences offered by HarvardX/edX in 2013 serving as case studies to evaluate and demonstrate the opportunity presented by the MOOC phenomenon not only to engage students online, but to take steps toward creating a true worldwide community of practice.
MOOCs and Archaeological Advocacy The Interpretation of Past Societies in the Digital Era
This review assesses the capabilities of the technology of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) as tools for increasing the presence of archaeology in our digital society. Instead of focusing on the academic value of the content of these courses, I explore their usefulness as promoters of rigorous archaeological practices and ethics, as well as the protection and preservation of cultural heritage. After enrolling as a student in six MOOCs, I have analyzed whether these courses successfully provided students with an informed and critical understanding of the field, as well as creating networks of advocates that can share this knowledge across their communities.
Excavations, Surveys and Heritage Management in Victoria, 2021
Archaeology is in many ways a hands–on and materials– based discipline, which presents specific challenges for online teaching and learning. Online and ‘blended’ teaching modes have been available to archaeology students for some time but, in March 2020, Australian universities were required to switch all content to online delivery to reduce COVID–19 transmission in our communities. Enormous efforts were made by university teaching staff to swiftly accommodate these changes. This paper presents student perspectives on learning archaeology online in 2020 and beyond. It outlines obstacles associated with learning archaeology online, shares student feedback on the pros and cons of undertaking different types of online activities and considers the role that online learning may be able to play in the longer–term. The differences between in–person and online learning are pedagogical as well as practical. We hope that sharing student experiences will help elucidate what makes certain activities and resources effective for learning archaeology online, and that this information can be used to inform future online resource development.