OEB & The TVET eConvergence BRAND

Greetings/Salam PeL,

THIS FOR NOW IS MY FINAL POST FROM MY BERLIN EXPERIENCE. 

THIS IS THE OEB - ONLINE EDUCA BERLIN. IT IS A HUGE EVENT THAT CATERS FOR ALL TYPES OF ORGANIZATION THAT IS ON TO LEARNING VIA TECHNOLOGY. SO WE HAVE EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS, INDUSTRIES, SCHOOLS etc COMING IN TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS EVENT.  UNESCO UNIVOC WAS ALSO PART OF THIS CONFERENCE AS VOCATIONAL EDUCATION VIA ICT WAS A TOPIC BEING DISCUSSED.  CLICK HERE FOR THE OEB2015 TRAILER

THERE WERE TWO OCCASIONS IN WHICH WE WERE INVITED TO PARTICIPATE AND PRESENT OUR IDEAS.

THE FIRST SESSION WAS AN INVITATION TO A SPECIAL WORKSHOP BY UNIVOC TO PRESENT AND DISCUSS OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES (OER) WITH OTHER SELECTED TVET CENTERS REPRESENTATIVES FROM MEXICO, SRI LANKA, SAUDI ARABIA, JAMAICA, MALAWI, NIGERIA, SCOTLAND, AFRICA etc. HERE AGAIN THE TVET eCONVERGENCE WAS DISCUSSED AMONG THE TVET REPRESENTATIVES. THIS PARTICULAR WORKSHOP WAS LEAD BY MAX EHLERS FROM UNESCO UNIVOC. 

THE SECOND SESSION WAS ON THE THE 3RD OF DECEMBER 2015. WE PRESENTED THE  TVET eCONVERGENCE INITIATIVE AS AN OVERVIEW AS PART OF THE WORKSHOP TITLED, USING TECHNOLOGY TO REDUCE THE LEARNING DIVIDE IN VOCATIONAL EDUCATION. THIS WORKSHOP  WAS OPENED TO ANYONE WHO CAME FOR THE CONFERENCE. LEAD BY MODERATOR, MARK WEST FROM UNESCO PARIS. HERE WE WERE PART OF A PANEL OF FOUR. THE PANELIST WERE

·         Shafika Isaacs (South Africa, ICT4D Professional)

·         Donald Clark (UK, Plan B Learning)

·         Dr. Zainal Azhar Zainal Abidin 

          (POLITEKNIK MALAYSIAN,MOHE, TVET eConvergence project)

·         Elke Wemhoff (GIZ Germany/Indonesia)

THE FIRST SESSION ALLOWED ME TO MEET OTHER MEMBERS OF THE TVET CENTERS UNDER UNIVOC. WE LISTEN TO THEIR PRACTICES AND DISCUSSED ON COMMON ISSUES RANGING FROM ONLINE EDUCATION MANAGEMENT TO OER AGENDAS AND PRACTICES. THE TVET e CONVERGENCE WAS WELL RECEIVED AS A PRACTICED THAT COULD SOLVE MANY ISSUES, AMONG THEM FUNDING AND CONTENT CREATION. THE CONCEPT OF A COMPETITION TO CREATE CONTENT WAS HIGHLIGHTED. A BRANDING MARKETING APPROACHED TO OER WAS DISCUSSED AS A POSSIBILITY FOR MOVING FOWARD. THE CIDOS INSPIRING LEARNING AWARDS OR  eDOLA2015, WAS SUCH A BRAND. WE HOPED THAT IT WILL BE CONSIDERED AS A BEST PRACTICE BY UNESCO UNIVOC FOR TWO REASONS, (1) AN ONLINE KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT PRACTICE, AND (2) AN ONLINE eCONTENT COMPETITION PRACTICE.

THE SECOND SESSION WAS CONDUCTED IN A PANEL/SEMINAR MODE. I FOUND THIS VERY INTERESTING. THE MODERATOR WAS FROM UNESCO PARIS AND HIS APPROACH TO CONDUCTING THE SESSION ALLOWED IT TO BE INFORMATIVE. WE EACH PRESENTED OUR PRACTICES, ADDRESS THE THEME OF DISSCUSION AND THEN TOOK QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR.

LESSONS LEARN, ALL INSTITUTIONS FACED THE SAME CONCERNS; BUDGET CONSTRAINS, CHANGING OF THE MINDSET, STAFF SHORTAGE/OVERBURDEN, CONFLICTING POLICIES AND CULTURES, INSUFFIECIENT TECHNOLOGY SUPPORT etc., HENCE WE ARE NOT ALONE. WE WERE ALL LOOKING FOR ANSWERS BUT THERE IS NO ONE RIGHT APPROACH. GETTING TOGETHER, SHARING THOUGHTS AND PRACTICES MADE IT EASIER TO REFLECT AND REASSESSED OUR PRACTICES.

TEACHERS AND STUDENTS WILL NOT CONVERT TO AN eLEARNING CULTURE EVENTHOUGH THE MANAGEMENT HAS PROVIDED RESOURCES AND BANDWIDTH. A CULTURE MUST BE CREATED, ESPECIALLY IN THE CREATION OF OERs. HENCE, MY MAIN THRUST TO THE OER via COMPETITION AND ITS USE BY EDUCATORS AND STUDENTS WAS SIMPLE, IT WAS BUILT ON A PROVERB AND A QUOTE:

a) YOU CAN BRING A HORSE TO WATER BUT YOU CANT MAKE HIM DRINK (11TH CENTURY PROVERB),

b) A GOOD TEACHER WILL LEAD THE HORSE TO WATER, AN EXCELLENT TEACHER WILL MAKE THE HORSE THIRSTY FIRST (MARIO CORTES),

c) IN TODAYS CONSUMER CONTEXT, MAKING THE HORSE THIRSTY IS NOT ENOUGH, THE BRAND OF THE WATER SOURCE IS AS IMPORTANT! (CeLT'S APPROACH)

THEREFORE, eDOLA & THE TVET eConvergence INITIATIVE WITH THE ENDORSEMENT OF UNESCO UNIVOC IS SUCH A BRAND WE ARE LOOKING FOR.

CLICK HERE FOR THE PRESENTATION  PDF

Dr.N