Transforming Information and Learning Conference 2008
Keynote Speakers
Dr Marissa Wettasinghe
E-learning and Communities of Practice at the National Institute of Education: challenges & successes
Keynote presentation by
Dr Marissa Wettasinghe
Assistant Professor, Learning Sciences & Technologies Academic Group
Head, Centre for IT in Education
National Institute of Education
Nanyang Technological University
Synopsis of Presentation :
Communities of Practice (CoPs) are a norm these days in many
organizations. CoPs are groups of like-minded people
who share a concern, a set of problems or a passion about
a topic and who wish to deepen their knowledge or expertise
in this area by interacting on an on-going basis (Wenger,
2002). With the advent of e-learning in educational institutions,
CoPs can now be formed and managed with much more ease.
Technology also provides for niche communities as learners
and educators with distinct interests seek out each other
across the globe. The National Institute of Education
set-up the e-learning champions committee to assist in
the sharing of resources and assist in the professional
development of academic staff in efforts to tap on the
affordances of e-learning technologies for teaching and
e-learning purposes. This presentation uncovers
some challenges and successes in its attempts to build
a CoP of e-learning educators amongst its professors.
Background of Speaker
Dr. Marissa Wettasinghe is an Assistant Professor at the
Learning Science and Technologies Academic Group, and Head
of the Centre for IT in Education at the National Institute
of Education. She lectures in pre-service and in-service
teacher and corporate education programmes including ICT,
e-learning Instructional Design and Adult Learning Strategies.
Her teaching and research interests have spanned a wide range
of e-learning topics including IT for enhanced teaching & learning,
adult learning, continuing professional development of teachers
using IT in education and classroom management.
Dr Matthew Allen
Dr Matthew Allen is Associate Professor of Internet Studies at Curtin University of Technology. Currently Matthew is primarily engaged in doctoral supervision and research in the broad field of Internet Studies. Matthew obtained a PhD from the Australian National University in 1991 and, in that year, first came to Perth to work. Since 1991, he has variously taught and researched in media and cultural studies, before, in 1998, becoming engaged with internet studies and establishing one of the first units at Curtin to explore the social and cultural dimensions of the Internet. While Matthew has many diverse research and teaching interests, they all are underpinned by a desire to understand better the ways in which organisations, societies and people change through their connection with innovations in technology. Within this desire, Matthew focuses particularly on the way people understand and make sense of these technologies, as parts of their experience and engagement with the world, not simply as ‘tools’.
Matthew’s current research is directed towards understanding the development of broadband Internet access, with a particular focus on the roles of users’ desires for ‘content’ and ‘connectivity’. Matthew continues to explore the ways in which new technologies such as the Internet are regulated. With Associate Professor Jane Long (UWA) he works on gender, family and space relating to the Internet.
Since 2001 Matthew has been involved in the international Association of Internet Researchers (AoIR) and is currently its President. In 2003, he chaired the AoIR conference in Toronto and assisted with organising the first AoIR conference in Australia, held in Brisbane in 2006.
Matthew is also a ministerial appointment to the State Library Board of Western Australia.