Thinking Ahead: An Interview with George Siemens & Dragan Gasevic
Channel: Center for Online Innovation in Learning
Date: 26/01/2015

Dr. George Siemens (with Stephen Downes) offered what is considered by most to be the first Massive Open Online Course (MOOC). He is currently serving as Professor and Executive Director of the “Learning Innovation & Networked Knowledge (LINK) Research Lab” at the University of Texas Arlington, and is Co-founder and President of the Society for Learning Analytics Research.

Dr. Dragan Gasevic is a Professor and Canada Research Chair in Semantic and Learning Technologies in the School of Computing and Information Systems at Athabasca University. Drs. Siemens and Gasevic are both experts in “big data / data analytics,” and are working together on the development of “ProSolo,” a new software platform to support and connect learners in personalized, competency-based online learning.

This interview, lead by COIL Co-director Kyle Peck , is a free-wheeling discussion about where education is going and what institutions can do to serve learners.  

Topics include:
 • learners taking more control of their learning and systems helping them do so
 • the increasing complexity of higher education
 • the growing “learning pie”
 • parts of the "Stanford 2025" vision ("missions rather than majors" and “looping”)
 • “Knowmads” — people who gather smaller, more detailed learning credentials from a variety of sources
 • the “Amazon.com" image of a learning marketplace
 • what learners will need from professional educators and the schools that employ them
 • new roles for learners, educators, and technologies, and
 • scaffolding learner interactions.

Another key point made is that because technologies can negate the economic value of things (and activities) that can be duplicated at no cost, such as lectures, the future of universities will be in providing learning activities that can’t be replicated and distributed (active and immersive learning models, debates, role plays, case-based experiences) and that benefit from real-time expert consultation, as well as scaffolding learner interactions, and assessment and credentialing.

As George said, “If you enjoy learning, this is a great time to be alive!”

This video is available in alternative media upon request. Please contact coil-accessibility@psu.edu with any accessibility requests and we will be happy to assist you.