We had a very good user workshop on SocialLearn last week (Jo and Nigel have both blogged about it). That one was for OU folk, but Simon Buckingham-Shum has organised another one for non-OU people (apparently they do exist I've been told), on the 1st and 2nd July. Details are here if you're interested:
http://www.open.ac.uk/blogs/socialearn/2008/06/20/sociallearn-workshop2/
(Apply there, not through me - I'll only lose it)
A couple of thoughts from the last one:
i) Organising successful workshops which have the right amount of interaction and information giving is a definite skill. I don't have it, Simon does, so thankfully he's organising these.
ii) There was a very active backchannel in operation, to the point where I wondered if the presentations weren't becoming the backchannel and the twitter conversations the foreground. It didn't prevent very fruitful discussions in real social space though, and probably encouraged them (for instance I found out that Michelle was friends with Howard Rheingold through Twitter). But I'd like to foreground it more, so maybe have it displayed during the presentations. Mind you, Simon used Ning to this effect, and that was interesting to watch.
I heard very good reports about the s:l meeting and would like to attend this one. Sadly, I'm away at another meeting. A little more notice next time please guys?
Posted by: AJ Cann | 23/06/2008 at 03:14 PM
It's kinda Flashmob Alan - besides if you're going to go signing yourself up for HE academy stuff...
Posted by: Martin | 23/06/2008 at 03:52 PM
Think I could ask HEA for my money back? :-)
Posted by: AJ Cann | 23/06/2008 at 05:55 PM
Perhaps alan could attend virtually via twitter?!! are you going to offer a way for twitter to be incorporated officially into the workshop this time around? hashtags? RSS feed from hashtag search?
Posted by: Jo | 25/06/2008 at 06:57 PM