Category: ace

Struggle with wordpress

Michael Chalk1 Commentace

Over at PRACE, we’ve been upgrading our website to wordpress, so that a range of people may author and edit content on the site. Yes it’s taken me quite some time to finally get the thing ready to show other co-ordinators, but it’s a lot of fun to work with the new system. It’s meant i’ve had to upgrade the wordpress on this site, to find out more about how it all works. (Upgrading is an adventure in itself.) .. and now, the editing (wysiwyg) toolbars don’t really work, the Read More …

Can You Hear Us? New project launch ..

Michael ChalkLeave a commentace, innovation, research

Thrills and spills !! What a lovely group of people we’ve got for the new PRACE research project into audio technologies: “Can You Hear Us?” We’re building on the successes of the 2007 “Can u hear me?” project, and last Thursday was the launch day. These sessions are always nerve-wracking and you never feel quite prepared enough, but we dived in and the water was warm! Plenty of ideas flowing around the table, and of course everyone is at different levels of knowledge and experience. First session was about creating Read More …

CommUnity makes you feel good

Michael ChalkLeave a commentace, community

A few weeks ago, we had the 15th anniversary of Preston Reservoir Adult Community Education (PRACE). Fifteen years !! As “MC”, aiming to keep the crowd engaged, i asked who had been involved with PRACE for one year, two years, three years etc. The record holders were Kerry and Jo, at around 4-6 years. Until someone turned it back on me and asked how long i’d been working there. Twelve years, yes 12. People seem surprised, as nobody works that long in the one place any more. These days most Read More …

Issues for '08

Michael ChalkLeave a commentace, adult literacy, classroom, e-learning, innovation

Over in the AFLF Networks Forum, Coach Carole has suggested discussion around our “top Ten list of issues and technologies would you like to explore in 08 (and why)” Link to the Forum here (login req’d .. but i was too slow to respond.) These are the ideas that fascinate me at the moment: Issues: Digital literacies and participatory digital culture, Development of professional expertise within the ACE sector, Shared writing spaces for adult literacy learners, Audio books on the web, Sharing resources across adult community education (ACE), Professional development Read More …

Hopes and fears for flexible ACE

Michael ChalkLeave a commentace, e-learning, innovation, research

Looking back over 2007, it was an extraordinary year, but i rarely had the energy to write here at all. I’d intended to use this place for reflecting on my research readings. i ended up just writing the thesis instead. One of the best projects in years was “Access ACE“, an investigation into flexible learning in Adult Community Education (ACE). Josie Rose managed somehow to negotiate with all of the regional and central managers at ACFE (the Adult Community Further Education board), and win them over to see the potential Read More …

Bad Luck can Lead to Low Literacy

Michael ChalkLeave a commentace, adult literacy, classroom

Great article in this month’s Literacy Link from ACAL. Steve Goldberg writes about his work running the national Reading Writing Hotline over the last seven years. He’s always inundated with requests for radio interviews, occasionally from shock-jocks who try to make him say that the education system is cracking up, and urge him to name the blameworthy. i love the way Steve tells his story .. these interviews are his favourite, because he gets to challenge all the “loaded assumptions about adult literacy”. And then he’ll tell some real life Read More …

Conversations in ACE: New ways to get audio and video online

Michael ChalkLeave a commentace, professional development

Have recently been working with the Conversations in ACE conference, Eastern Metro Region of "Adult Community and Further Education" (ACFE). Kerrin Pryor was presenting on her research into "New Literacies", where they are using "Squeeze Text" (or mobile SMS language) to explore literacy for young people.

A Change of Scene

Michael ChalkLeave a commentace, community, e-learning, professional development

Why would anyone use technology for learning? Do we ask the right questions, when planning for community building? Recently Delia Bradshaw gave a presentation to a group of community leaders from around Australia, as part of an induction for the Adult Learning Australia e-learning Creative Community Partnerships. Delia’s presentation is stored on this site. July ’09 Addendum: Took me a while to work out a way of presenting audio, text and images on the same page, in a navigable way. So much easier these days with a slidecast, for example Read More …

Resource Sharing continues in '06

Michael ChalkLeave a commentace, e-learning, professional development

Groups of teachers from PRACE, Olympic and Glenroy have continued to work together in the new year, after their LearnScope project in 2005. The “Resource Sharing” project has focussed on: Literacy/numeracy for people with (mild intellectual) disability Low level ESL learners – gathering tubs of materials ESL in the computer room – gathering activities / “teaching recipes” Student stories – publishing into books One extremely valuable resource for us has been the ACEBank resource sharing project, which was set up last year by the brilliant, but sadly disbanded TAFE frontiers. Read More …

Digital Storytelling in the South Grampians

Michael ChalkLeave a commentace, classroom, community, e-learning

Here at the Eureka! e-volutions in e-learning conference, Ballarat, Vic. an interesting presentation from the South Grampians adult education centre – who have been using digital storytelling as a way to engage their students in the 'disaffected youth' program. "Low literacy levels" are a major issue with the group, and the teachers have found the power of using images and voice to reconnect people with learning.