Monday, December 5th
For many days before the hype on social media was real, and the event did not disappoint.
#mpos16 is now trending in Australia, ranking 10
— TT Mobile AU (@TTMobile_au) December 4, 2016
It started on one of those “magical” Canberra mornings. Moodlers from all over the planet (mostly Australians) received the welcome of Melissa Silk and her children STEAMpop.zone and Lumifold.
Probably the only time I'll get to say I did something @moodler couldn't do #mpos16 pic.twitter.com/ts0P2HOhmj
— Jennifer Lawrence (@JennyALawrence) December 5, 2016
See slides for Melissa Silk’s keynote.
For the rest of the day, the audience split around sessions encompassing 14 presentations over three threads: “Innovate and Experiment”, “Enhance Engagement”, “Work Smarter Not Harder”. Gamification, transformative experiences and “shake ups” were the order of the day. Particularly interesting was Jennifer Lawrence (not that one, mind you, rather “our” JLaw) with Using the ‘Extended Workshop’ activity for peer assessment.
Tip 7: Disrupt the moderation process @JennyALawrence by doing a pre-moderation process #mpos16 pic.twitter.com/axlXALwqXe
— Scott Rickard (@Rickard_Scott) December 6, 2016
As Jean-Paul Gagnon and his existential-ish presentation, Why I’m changing almost everything next semester:
Great question from Jean-Paul Gagnon – realities of busy schedules and distance ed students means difficult to engage with students #mpos16 pic.twitter.com/pLeANupwGa
— Katie Freund (@katiedigc) December 5, 2016
The evening was topped with Moodleposium’s second keynote, What resolutions can we make? by David Meacham, from UNSW Canberra. He pleads for “simplicity in an age of abundance“, in order to focus on the things that matter, pedagogically and politically.
Good first day at #mpos16 – some snapshots from @MelSilk @gamerlearner @JeanPaulRGagnon @TanyaLawlis. Looking forward to Day 2! #edtech pic.twitter.com/1kXlDz4t4S
— Leah Holroyd (@WordsAboutBooks) December 5, 2016
And the first day was out. Attendees felt a sense of closeness due to the focus on regional and local experiences, while at the same time they broadened horizons as the conversations shifted from “how to use Moodle” to “how to teach better through Moodle”.
JP had some Roos join in ????pity we didn't notice until after his talk finished #mpos16 ???? pic.twitter.com/CdqJDnWoXN
— Scott Rickard (@Rickard_Scott) December 5, 2016
Tuesday, December 6th
Kicking off day 2 of Moodleposium with Associate Professor Joanne Lind, 'It's alright to be wrong' #mpos16 pic.twitter.com/dOEuOEaEjH
— Courtney Hayes (@courtney_jhayes) December 5, 2016
This refreshing message kicked off day two. On her talk, Western Sydney University’s Joanne Lind discussed the value of “mistakability” in the light of her experience as a Med School professor. Mistakes can be a critical part in fine-tuning learning and teaching approaches. Games, she argues, are a great way to welcome mistakes. (Perhaps except at family parties.)
Thanks Lind for a great example of blended learning: survey, app, discussion board, practical tasks not simply lect & seminar ???????? #mpos16 pic.twitter.com/mhVGbcfnXd
— Scott Rickard (@Rickard_Scott) December 5, 2016
The day followed through with insightful talks about Moodle for prisoners…
Up next at #mpos16 pic.twitter.com/5ZR4aAh3Yj
— Jennifer Lawrence (@JennyALawrence) December 5, 2016
…critical thinking…
Re: critical thinking: "just tell me what you want me to write?!" #mpos16 pic.twitter.com/YmqnBO0hbV
— Rebecca Goodway (@rebeccagoodway) December 5, 2016
…robots doing “weird simulations”…
Is this guy going to put me out of a job? #mpos16 pic.twitter.com/qancvh8m1j
— Mindwalker (@mind_walker) December 6, 2016
(humans gave them a run for their money, though)
Trialling HTC VR #mpos16 pic.twitter.com/xbGPscT4mZ
— Colin Simpson (@gamerlearner) December 6, 2016
…among many critical, fun and heartwarming talks.
Who knew I'd follow @187gangsters because of a Moodleposium session? #mpos16
— Francis Ramirez (@FrancisRamirez) December 6, 2016
The end of the day and the event whole came thanks to Sue Gregory from the University of New England, and her closing keynote, Virtual Worlds and more: Engaging in online learning.
To close us out for #mpos16, we welcome A/P Sue Gregory from UNE on virtual worlds and online learning. pic.twitter.com/2VFZdb72lz
— Moodleposium (@Moodleposium) December 6, 2016
It felt as the proper send-off, and a great way to conclude and synthesize the conversations that took place during two days in December at Canberra. In today’s world, virtualization is a continuum. We hop from realm to realm, each with its different languages, tools and customs. Learning is an invaluable potential beneficiary of this “multiverse” as it allows for comparisons and diversification.
The motto of the event was not just for show, as during its course people wrote ther resolutions on literal dialog balloons, and also online.
Grabbed this shot of our @Moodleposium #mpos16 balloons leaving the building. I'm already looking forward to next year. pic.twitter.com/2RP8gJD9YA
— Scott Rickard (@Rickard_Scott) December 6, 2016
See the slides on Sue Gregory’s keynote.
Find the MoodlePosium program, with links to all the presentations, here (PDF).
What is your Teacher and MoodleNews reader resolution for 2017?
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