RPP #171: Virtually Inspired - Interview with Marci Powell

• Interview with Marci Powell, Project Director of Virtually Inspired powered by Drexel University Online, and Chair Emerita and Past President of the US Distance Learning Association. We discuss technology-enhanced teaching and learning and Virtually Inspired, a website where educators can come for inspiration on how creative professionals around the globe are infusing technology with learning. We discuss:

  

  Marci Powell                              Dr. Susan Aldridge

• The purpose and function of the Virtually Inspired website
• The scope of Virtually Inspired: K12, healthcare, corporate, higher ed, government
• How the inspirations are discovered
• The most impactful tech: VR, AR and Mixed Reality, Blockchain, AI
• The role of traditional publishers
• Some of the most impressive entries: 
• Singapore Management University - CSI (customer service index) Agent on a Mission, a game to teach statistics
• Oral Roberts University - VR using clip-on glasses for smart phones in developing countries
• Brazil: Online Education for the Deaf
• The Inspiring leaders section of the website
  
  
• Links
• Virtually Inspired
• US Distance Learning Association
• PA/DE/NJ Distance Learning Association

• Podsafe music selection
• Atomic Pebbles by Rod Murray - AI Music from Jukedeck - create your own at https://jukedeck.com

Duration: 34:23

RPP #170: The Horizon Report - Interview with Audrey Watters

• Interview with Audrey Watters, a self-described “education writer, an independent scholar, a serial dropout, a rabble-rouser, and ed-tech’s Cassandra.” We discuss the Horizon Report and The History of the Future of Education Technology, the special focus of her Hack Education Project. 

• Like previous Horizon reports, the 2018 edition identifies key trends, challenges and developments in ed tech that are likely to impact teaching and learning in the next five years.
• Since we don't delve into the details of the latest Horizon Report in this interview, here is a snapshot of the "important developments in technology." You can judge for yourself the real value of this report after listening to this interview. 

Ref:The 2018 Horizon Report Higher Education Edition

• Educause stepped in to continue the work of the Horizon project after the NMC unexpectedly declared bankruptcy and ceased operations at the end of 2017.

• Links
• Educause: 2018 NMC Horizon Report
• Watters: A Horizon Report History
• Watters: The Horizon Never Moves
• Watters: Historical Data from the Horizon Report (Higher Education)
• Inside Higher Ed: Educause Publishes Report on Tech Trends
• Inside Higher Ed: Educause Steps In to Save New Media Consortium
• RPP #140: Future Trends: Interview with Bryan Alexander (2016)
• RPP #138: Higher Education Horizon Report by Alex Freeman (2015)
• RPP #123: eLearning Tech: What's on the Horizon? (2014)
• Podsafe music selection 
• Don't Be Long: The Beatles v Elken, a mashup of George Harrison's Blue Jay Way by Elken, a 60's influenced band from Dublin, Ireland. 

Duration: 38:04

RPP #169: Harvard Innovation labs - Interview with Jodi Goldstein

• Interview with Jodi Goldstein, Executive Director at Harvard Innovation Labs, a three-lab ecosystem that supports Harvard students, alumni and faculty in exploring innovation and entrepreneurship. We discuss:

  

  Jodi Goldstein
  Executive Director

• The Harvard iLab, Launch Lab X, and Harvard Life Lab
• How these innovation centers supplement the academic curriculum with experiential learning
• Strategies that universities can use to effectively support students in their entrepreneurial endeavors
• Success stories: 
• Vaxess Technologies - transports vaccines without refrigeration
• Rapid SOS - links devices to 911 and first responders
• ArtLifting - ecommerce platform to sell art by the homeless and disabled
• Links
• Harvard iLab
• Lessons Learned from Scaling an Innovation Center
• Podsafe music selection
• "Something About Eve" by Falling You. Ethereal ambient new age music.

Duration: 33:54

RPP #168: The Blackboard Ultra (Conversion) Experience

• Discussion with Rob McCunney, Blackboard Sysadmin and Instructional Designer, University of the Sciences. We discuss our conversion from Blackboard Learn managed hosting to SaaS and then to the Ultra Experience and Ultra Courses. 
• We discuss:
  

  

  Adoption of Blackboard Learn Ultra

• Moving from Managed Hosting to SaaS:
• What were some of the conversion issues?
• How much time/effort was expended?
• Were there any surprises?
• What advantages did you see?
• Turning on Ultra Experience:
• What were the conversion issues?
• What are the limitations?
• Turning on Ultra Course View:
• What are the limitations?
• How was Blackboard support?
• Links
• Blackboard Learn Ultra Experience
• RPP #157: Blackboard Roadmap - Interview with Jim Chalex
• Podsafe music selection from Music Alley
• Concerto No. 2 in G Minor (Summer) from the CD entitled "The Four Seasons by Vivaldi" by the American Baroque Orchestra. 

[Disclaimer: The University of the Sciences is a customer of Blackboard.]

Duration: 31:13

RPP #167: Alchemie - Interview with Julia Winter

• Interview with Julia Winter, CEO and Founder of Alchemie, which combines commercial game design with a deep understanding of how students learn. Alchemie’s digital learning tools provide an intuitive learning experience that encourages students to explore and experiment with concepts. We discuss:
  

  

  Julia Winter, CEO

• Julia's background
• History of Alchemie
• How Alchemie works
• The audience for Alchemie
• How students learn by manipulating bonds and electrons
• The Epiphany Platform
• Real-time Assessment
• Machine learning and data analytics
• AR/VR/XR
  
• Podsafe music selection
• "Summertime" by Brother Love

Duration: 27:07

RPP #166: FlatWorld - Interview with Alastair Adam

• Interview with Alastair Adam, Co-CEO of FlatWorld, a digital-first college textbook publisher building a niche between the high cost traditional publishers and open education resources (OER) publishers. We answer the questions:
  
• What is the background of FlatWorld?
• How many titles are available?
• How many faculty are using FlatWorld books?
• How are authors recruited?
• What formats are available? 
• How much does a typical textbook cost - electronic and print?
• Are electronic versions compatible with Kindle and iPad?
• How much do authors earn?
• Does FlatWorld support the LMS?
• What special features are available?
• What is "FlatWorld Unlimited"?
• Podsafe music selection
• Mine Again from Passion Leaves a Trace by Black Lab

Duration: 36:02

RPP #165: Coursetune - Interview with Maria Andersen

• Interview with Maria Andersen, CEO and Co-Founder, Coursetune. Coursetune has a completely new way to visualize the underpinnings and framework of curriculum design - a way to "harmonize" your curriculum. We discuss:
• Maria's background
  
• Need for a Coursetune
• Improving curriculum design beyond spreadsheets and whiteboards
• How Coursetune works
• Why it is like "Autocad" for learning design
• Target audience
• and more
• Podsafe music selection
• "See the Sun" by Black Lab from California with tunes featured in the movies "Spider Man" and "Blade: Trinity"

Duration: 39:12

RPP #164: Future of Education Discussion with Bryan Alexander

• This special audio (and video) podcast is a broadcast of a Panel Discussion at the USciences eLearning 3.0 Conference held on Thursday, March 8, 2018 at the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia. Rod kicked off the Panel discussion by showing a brief video on one possible future education scenario.
• Moderator: Dr. Bryan Alexander
• Panelists:
• Dr. Bobbe Baggio, Associate Provost, Cedar Crest College
• Dr. Ken Hartman, CEO Degree Quest & Former President, Drexel University Online
• Dr. Paul Katz, President, University of the Sciences
• Dr. Rodney Murray, Executive Director of Academic Technology, University of the Sciences
• We discuss the questions (with direct links to sections):
• How will students differ in 2030?
• How will faculty differ in 2030?
• Where do you see educational entrepreneurship having the greatest impact?
• Which educational trends keep you up at night?
• Impact of student and national debt
• and much more  
• Links
• Rod's Pulse Podcast Youtube Playlist
• Podsafe music selection 
• Utopian Prince by Rod Murray - AI Music from Jukedeck - create your own at https://jukedeck.com

Duration: 62:27

RPP #163: Academia Beyond Millennials with Bryan Alexander

• This special audio (and video) podcast is a broadcast of Dr. Bryan Alexander's Keynote, entitled Academia Beyond Millennials: The Next Generation of Higher Education. It was given at the USciences eLearning 3.0 Conference on Thursday, March 8, 2018 at the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia. Bryan discusses:
• Globalization of higher education
• Demographic, macroeconomic and political changes
• Education trends
• Defunding of public universities
• Student loan debt
• Privacy in the post-Snowden world
• Trends in Accessing, Sharing, Cognifying and Filtering
• AI and automation
• VR + AR = Mixed Reality
• iOT
• Links
• Dr. Bryan Alexander's Biography
• Future Trends Forum
• Join the eLearning 3.0 Conference mailing list
• RPP #140: Future Trends: Interview with Bryan Alexander (March 2016)
• Podsafe Music Selection
• Utopian Prince by Rod Murray - AI Music from Jukedeck - create your own at https://jukedeck.com

Duration: 47:35

RPP #162: Starfish - Interview with Howard Bell

• Interview with Howard Bell, Senior Vice President of Higher Education Student Success and the General Manager of Starfish at Hobsons. We discuss their Starfish Enterprise Success Platform including Early Alert, Connect, and Degree Planner, and how it helps scale student support initiatives in a way that enables students to engage with the campus community and achieve their academic goals. We also discuss:



Howard Bell
SVP Hobsons

• Interface with the LMS and SIS
• Automatic flags and progress surveys
• Predictive analytics framework
• Student points of contact
• New Degree Planner features
• Partnering with student networks
• Measuring return on investment
• Links to Related Podcasts
• RPP #101: Starfish Retention Solutions: Interview with David Yaskin (March 2012)
• RPP #158: StudyTree - Interview with Ethan Keiser
• RPP #159: AEFIS - Interview with Mustafa Sualp

• Podsafe Music Selection 
• "Run" from the new age piano album "Lines Build Walls" by Ehren Starks

Duration: 38:58

RPP #161: USciences eLearning 3.0 Conference

• Rod discusses the new USciences eLearning 3.0 Conference, including
• Background and history of this conference in it's 16th year
• What is eLearning 3.0
• Keynote Speaker, futurist Dr. Bryan Alexander
• Panel on the Future of Higher Education including Dr. Alexander, Dr. Bobbe Baggio, Dr. Paul Katz (USciences President), Dr. Ken Hartman (past President of Drexel eLearning, Inc.) and Dr. Rod Murray.
• Program schedule and registration
• Social networking hour with craft beer provided by the USciences Brewing Certificate Program 
• Sponsors
• Platinum: AEFIS
• Gold: Practice, Ferrilli
• Silver: Blackboard, DubLabs, Evolve IP, Labster
• Bronze: Examsoft, SixRedMarbles, Glisser, PADLA, StudyTree, MapleSoft, Mersive, Mediasite
• Podsafe music selection
• Vivaldi: Concerto No. 4 in G Minor “Winter” (Allegro movement) from The Four Seasons by the American Baroque Orchestra. 

Duration: 14:09