Helen's reflections

This blog is moving

2011-08-31T20:25:00.000+10:00

After much deliberation I have decided to move part of this blog - the Helen's reflections part - to another site and I am pleased to introduce Curious Reflexions: http://curiousreflexions.wordpress.com/. I have registered Curious Reflexions as my business name and eventually will be offering consultancy and other services, but for now my focus is on finishing my PhD. I have selected a wordpress blog because I am looking for a blog template that does a bit more than the blogger one, and the wordpress one looks like it will do the job. If you are still interested in following me, please pop over to the wordpress site and check it out. It's still shiny and new, so let me know if there are any bits that are broken.

Hooroo

Helen

Does having a PhD help you at a Trivia night?

2011-08-14T10:41:00.000+10:00

I went to a Trivia night last night with some colleagues at the University. I used to love Trivia nights but I haven’t been to one for a long time. They are different these days, with powerpoint slide shows and projectors, and last night I realised that I am different too. There were six rounds of questions and we did well for the first two rounds – the general knowledge questions. We knew the chemical symbol for gold (it’s au in case you were wondering), the two highest grossing movies of all time (Titanic and Avatar) and we knew the names of all of the characters marooned on Gilligan’s Island. We did particularly well in the third round when we had to identify international architecture, and as a table we chatted about the conferences that we had attended all over the world.

But then things got harder and I realised that while I have focussed all of my attention on my PhD research topic the rest of the world has gone on without me. We were stumped in the sports section. We couldn’t remember who won the 2010 Women’s Singles Title at the Australian Open (has it really been eight months since Kim Clijsters took home the trophy), or the name of the person who won the Australian Ironman Championship six times (I will save you the trouble of Googling it – it’s Trevor Hendy). We stumbled in the section where we had to identify cartoon characters – who has time to watch TV when you are busy writing a PhD? There are cartoons on TV that I haven’t heard of and some of them have been on TV for several years. But the section where we failed in the most spectacular fashion was the flags section – we couldn’t remember if the stripes on the French flag were horizontal or vertical, and which country had the red stripe over white and which one has the white stripe over red. Actually, I still don’t think I can explain the answers to that one.

As I drove home and contemplated our performance at the trivia night it occurred to me that as much as I have loved reading in the past, I don’t have time for it anymore. Pre-Phd, I had one or two novels on the go at all times. I loved to read all kinds of books or to curl up on the couch with the newspaper on a rainy Saturday afternoon. But today, I can’t even remember a time when I did more than glance at the front page and the employment section of the newspaper. I think I am craving a trashy novel. It’s hard as a PhD student to contemplate using precious and valuable time to read something other than a journal article or text book, but I think that is exactly what I need to do. Maybe, I will even watch TV!

While I am absorbed in PhD research I am immersed in a place that is privileged and sheltered from the realities of what is happening in the rest of the world. And maybe, from time to time, we should come up for air and check out what is happening in the rest of the world. Read a trashy novel, see a tacky movie at the cinema or watch a re-run of a long-forgotten comedy on TV. Because while I have spent months reading, thinking and writing about qualitative research methodological approaches that have epistemological credibility, it is unlikely that there will be any questions about that at your nearest trivia night.

I'm back...

2011-08-09T17:41:00.000+10:00

Well it has been a long time since my last post, but it is time to get this blog going again. Plenty has been happening, but I haven't felt inclined to write much about it - especially in a way that I am prepared to share with other people. Anyway, I have felt inspired by two blog posts recently and I am keen to explore them a bit more.

Firstly, I have opened a twitter account, and you can find me @HelenHickson pretty easy huh! I have had the twitter account for a while and enjoyed the chatter of people I know and people I don't. I saw it as a fun thing to do while I was procrastinating about something else. Then I found this regular weekly chat called #phdchat and each week PhD students and graduate from around the world chat about different topics. The timing is not good for me and I need to get up at around 5 am if I want to participate in real time, but I enjoy reading through the resources, hints and tools that are shared by other students at different stages of their research. It's an amazing resource for PhD students.

But back to the two blog posts. Of course, now I have made friends with people on twitter and they share the coolest of stuff. Dr Inger Mewburn is The Thesis Whisperer and she writes and collates stories about the experiences of doing a PhD. I have only noticed the twitter feeds before, but they are witty, clever and always so very relevant. Yesterday she posted a story called, 'Is the University a bad boyfriend'. What a catchy title! I loved the story and I loved the metaphor and it got me thinking - why did I enrol in a PhD and what are my expectations about University work. Am I on track to have my dreams shattered and is there anything that I can do about it?

Then, today I saw this story in The Age: Lonely PhD student? Just log in. It is a great story about how the PhD journey does tend to be a lonely and sometimes boring experience, but social media does provide inspiration and food for thought, and the opportunity to connect with other people, anywhere in the world, who understand just what it is like. And that has got to be a good thing.

I promise to write more often!

The future of the e-portfolio?

2010-03-24T10:20:00.000+11:00

Sarah Stewart has been writing about her experiences of using an e-portfolio for her Midwifery Standards Review and this has got me thinking about how Social Workers in Australia can use an e-portfolio to collate and organise their professional development activities to demonstrate the requirements for accrediation. But are Social Workers in Australia ready to hear about e-portfolios?

I think Social Workers (and other health professionals) are happy to use the paper versions of a portfolio or record of training and development activities because they think they don’t have any other real choice. And I wonder if they are really happy with the paper version, or do they sometimes wonder if there must be a better way to do this?

We are all looking for something simple, easy to learn how to use, easy to maintain and easy to send off to our professional association when the time comes for review of our registration or accreditation. I see the enormous potential of the e-portfolio for professionals who need to keep a record of learning and development activities for their annual or bi-annual registration or accreditation review. In particular, I would like to see the Australian Association of Social Workers host e-portfolios - and I am preparing a paper to make this suggestion more formally.

E-portfolios are not something new that has been designed to make our life more difficult. The Australian ePortfolio Project released their stage 2 report in December 2009 and it makes interesting reading. There is a lot money being invested in Australia to develop e-portfolios. It’s not something that is going to fade away overnight. E-portfolios are a way to keep track of our activities and reflections – our learning and development and e-portfolios have enormous potential to do even more for us, things we haven’t thought of yet. So I say let’s get involved now, and influence the design so it works for us. And when the new students come along, we can dazzle them with our insight and fresh ideas.

I’m interested in what other people think. How do you keep track of your professional development and learning activities? Do you see a future in e-portfolios? Do you have an e-portfolio?

World Social Work Day 2010

2010-03-16T01:00:00.001+11:00

World Social Work Day 2010: Making human rights real - the Social Work Agenda. This is the press release from the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW).

'People are making changes in their lives to improve their quality of life every day across the world - and social workers are there helping them. World Social Work Day is a celebration of these achievements and an opportunity to highlight what work still has to be done for people’s rights to be respected.

Wherever we live in the world, people are being harmed, abused and neglected and their civil, political, economic, cultural and social rights are being violated. Every day, social workers are helping individuals and groups of people in such situations, helping them to live a better life and to find ways to respect competing rights in complex situations.

The implementation of all the international Human Rights Conventions, treaties and agreements used to focus on individual civil and political rights in order to guarantee fair trials, rights to vote, freedom from torture and abuse. More and more they now also consider collective/community rights and emphasise economic, social and cultural rights in order to defend the rights to education, housing, health, employment, adequate income and social security.

This new focus on making human rights a reality in daily life – ‘making human rights real’ - is an important issue in the consultations leading into the 2010 Joint World Conference. The social work profession works alongside those who are excluded, discriminated against, abused or poor – whose rights are not respected. The profession aims to achieve social change leading to a dignified life and social justice for all.

IFSW President, Dr David N Jones, comments that “Wherever there is extreme poverty, lack of basic needs like food, water and shelter, the trafficking and abuse of people across countries or serious family problems in affluent societies, you will find social workers alongside people, helping them to make changes in their lives. The 2010 social work world conference will show how social work will develop its contribution to building people-centred and sustainable social progress and social change. World social work day gives us an opportunity to celebrate this crucial work.” '

How do to celebrate World Social Work Day?

Emerging Realities of Allied Health Practice

2010-03-15T10:36:00.000+11:00

I am presenting at the Loddon Mallee Allied Health Conference in Echuca on Friday 19th March. It's an exciting conference that has a focus on Allied Health practice. I have been on the conference committee and I have really enjoyed finding out how a conference goes together. There are so many details to organise and it is a challenge to weave the posters and presentations together to make an interesting conference that will attract the audience and keep them entertained throughout the day.

I have now finished my conference preparation - the powerpoint is finished and has been sent off. This is a good thing to send it off before the conference, as I can now stop tinkering with it to make it perfect! I have finished my speaker notes and timed them to make sure that I will talk for just the right amount of time - not too long, not too rushed and I must remember to breathe! I have found that with my writing I use longer sentences than I can speak to, so there are several changes made with converting my writing to speaker notes.

I hope to see you there at the conference and I would really like to hear your feedback about my presentation.

International Federation of Social Work Conference

2010-02-23T10:57:00.001+11:00

Great news. I have been accepted to present at the IFSW conference in Hong Kong in June 2010. The conference is titled, '2010 Joint World Conference on Social Work and Social Development: the Agenda’ and is a joint conference with The International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW), the International Council on Social Welfare (ICSW), and the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW).

I will be travelling to Hong Kong with my Dad - he hasn't been there before and he thought it sounded like an interesting place to visit. I will be glad to have his company, and I hope to have a few days in Hong Kong to have a look around and enjoy the culture, the food and the shopping!

So, now I need to finalise my presentation which needs to be sent off soon. More later.

Elevator conversation

2010-02-15T10:36:00.005+11:00

How do you explain your research in simple language in just a few minutes. Some people call it the 'elevator conversation' and other people call it the ' three minute thesis'. I am often asked about my research and as I start explaining it, I sometimes notice people's eyes glaze over. I wonder why. Are they not really interested, or am I not making sense?

Here is my three minute thesis - does this make sense in just a few sentences? I'd really appreciate any feedback.

My research is about reflective practice. I'm interested in exploring how people learn to be reflective, why they become interested in reflective practice and how they use reflective practice. My early observations are that I see reflective practice taught in most University programs, and students seem to engage in reflective practice. Then they graduate and join the workforce and being reflective seems to be one of those things that is in the gap between university and the real world. Some time later, people are drawn back to reflective practice and I am interested in exploring how this happens and whether there are any events that trigger people to look for reflective activities.

Learn how to learn

2010-01-29T14:20:00.000+11:00

I have been reading a blog called 'The Clever Sheep', and Rodd Lucier has a recent post about learning called 'Learning to Change: Changing to Learn'. Wow - this is a powerful message that resonates for me when I am thinking about my role as a Leader or Educator for the future.

The brief video has a collection of international speakers who give us their view of the challenges for students and teachers. One theme is that students today are so engaged in a rich social network of email, text messaging and instant messaging, yet these activities are all banned at school. Students find a richer, more stimulating environment outside the classroom, rather than at school. Students learn in so many different ways now and we need to teach them about creativity, working in the context of the situation, working in teams and environments that are multi-cultural, multi-disciplinary and multi-lingual.

I believe that this applies for students, learners and educators of all ages. Whether they are young people at school, university students, or people learning in the workplace we need to have less of a focus on memorising facts, and more focus on learning how to learn - how to find out information, how to validate it, communicate it, find solutions to problems. If we do this - we can engage learners in learning how to learn. What do you think? How do you approach learning and teaching in your context?

Conferences - where shall I go next??

2010-01-27T19:24:00.001+11:00

It's that time of the year to start planning my activities for the year ahead. I have been thinking about which conferences I would like to attend, and where I can afford to go. I also think about the places I would like to visit and see if there is a conference on at a convenient time - unfortunately that hasn't worked out for me yet!

I have been accepted to present a paper at the Loddon Mallee Allied Health Network, which is a small regional conference that will be held in Echuca, Victoria in March 2010. The theme of the conference is 'Emerging Realities of Allied Health Practice' and I am planning to talk about online tools that can support reflective practice. It sounds like a fun conference.

I have applied to a couple of other conferences. I am really hoping to go to the International Federation of Social Work conference in Hong Kong in June 2010, but not sure if we will be accepted, and not sure if I can afford it. Time will tell, and I have a few applications for funding in the pipeline at the moment.

Do you like to go to conferences ? or present at conferences? Do you have any suggestions for funding? How do you find out about conferences that are on? I have found this great website called Conference Alerts and once you subscribe and choose the topics you are interested in, it sends me a monthly list of conferences all around the world. Do you know of any others? Now let me see... any conferences in Hawaii??

Are you feeling lucky?

2010-01-06T21:12:00.003+11:00

                  I've found that luck is quite predictable. If you want
            more luck, take more chances. Be more active.
            Show up more often. Brian Tracy.

I had to read through this one a few times. Can luck be predictable?  Are there people out there that are luckier than others? Do people make their own good luck or bad luck? Maybe it depends on your beliefs and your understanding of the world.

I really like this quote and it resonated for me. If you want more luck - then take more chances... but can it really be that simple. If you are more active and show up more often, you are going to be more involved, more engaged and more likely to be in the right place at the right time. Which is luck - right?

What do you think? Is Brian right and is luck predictable?

PhD progress

2009-12-31T21:15:00.001+11:00

I have been plodding along with my PhD and I feel like I am starting to build some momentum. I have had a few weeks off work and been able to work on it full time and I can see the shape beginning to emerge. I'm not sure if this is how it will look in the end, but it does feel helpful to start to build some structure around my reading and writing.

I had a bit of a panic this week when I realised how much more there is to do. I have written around 10,000 words, and my final thesis will be around 100,000 words, so there is a long way to go. Of course, I haven't started data collection yet, and this will form the main part of my thesis. The bit that I am up to is finalise my research proposal and make decisions about all of the details. Things like which methodology I will use, how do I design the right method, how do I write a literature review that incorporates all of the literature that I have accumulated. Then I will present to a University panel for Confirmation that I can proceed with the research, and the I need to apply for Ethics approval.

The literature review is the bit where I felt really stuck - I was surrounded by papers and it was all starting to feel like it's all too hard. But then I thought, I have been doing this for two years already, and I am not going to throw all of that away. I need to break it down into smaller chunks, and work on each bit, one at a time. And later, I will make sure that all the pieces go together properly.

Has anyone else been in this situation before? Do you have any suggestions that might help me?

E-portfolio and citations

2009-12-22T20:37:00.000+11:00

I have been starting to think about how to develop a portfolio of my academic activities, publications and presentations and I am wondering about the best format to use.   I looked at developing a CV, which is a bit like a detailed resume and is a written collection of my academic achievements, publications, presentations etc.

I have been exploring the world of e-portfolios and thinking about whether I need  collection of citations. I sometimes come across a review that a person has written about a presentation that I have done, or their thoughts about an article that I have written and I thought it would be good to gather this information together in one central place.

There are some fantastic examples out there. Sarah Stewart's e-portfolio is one of the best that I have seen and includes her biography, employment, projects, publications and awards.

I have also discovered a citation tracker that was developed by Panos Ipeirotis - this is a program that uses Google Scholar to find your publications. I think the term 'citation' in this context relates to what I would call 'journal publication'. Panos blogged about monitoring citations and after clicking around his blog and profile I discovered that Panos also has this awesome academic tree where he has tracked his academic genealogy.  It looks like a fun thing to do, and is a powerful representation of academic history and being able to track this over time. From Panos' page, I found Gene Golovchinsky and he also writes about the importance of measuring citations. Gene also suggests that it is a good way to find papers that you might have forgotten about, or new things that need follow up. Gene and Panos are computer science experts and I am sure they have computer skills that are way out of my league.

I am looking for something simple to use, cheap (preferably free) and easy to update. Do you have any suggestions or ideas that might help me or lead me in the right direction? What do you use to keep track of publications, presentations and citations?

My PhD - Wordle Cloud

2009-12-21T20:51:00.000+11:00

I am nearing the end of my second year of my PhD studies and I thought it was time to check out where I am up to. I have been studying part time and plodding along, and this year I took 4 months off after my mum died. I have enjoyed taking a break, but now I am starting to feel impatient to get going again. I've had a few weeks off work and been able to study full time and this has been really enjoyable.

I thought it was a good time to do another wordle cloud to display and distill my PhD writing. Wordle is a tool for generating “word clouds” from text. I have copied the text from my PhD writing over the past two years - I am up to around 10,000 words. The wordle clouds give greater prominence to words that appear more frequently in the source text. It is pretty cool and you can make your clouds look different with funky fonts, layouts, and color schemes.

It's interesting to see the themes that are emerging from my thinking, reading and writing. Do you have any feedback or comments about my wordle word cloud?

Professor Mick Dodson AM presenting the 209 Sir John Quick Lecture.

2009-11-09T20:07:00.000+11:00

A crowd turned out in the early evening of Melbourne Cup Day to hear Mick Dodson's presentation. I didn't really know what he would be talking about, but based on the little that I know of him, I was expecting a passionate lecture about indigenous rights. And we weren't disappointed. As the crowd trickled in, I thought about the demographics of the people here and I wondered why there weren't more young people here.

Professor Dodson talked about Sir John Quick, who migrated to Australia and worked in a few different jobs, including journalism, law and was knighted for his work in establishing the foundations for the Australian Federation. This was a man who achieved great things, and this is the power of having a dream, persistence and education.

Professor Dodson talked about human rights. He reminded us 'that we can't think that any problem is too hard or that it will go away. It won't. We all agree that every child deserves a good education, yet we don't deliver it. We have failed these children. There has been recent works with rebuilding schools and new classrooms, but are there good teachers for all of the schools, even the remote and far away ones. The education revolution begins and ends with people. We need to see the worth and potential in every person.'

Professor Dodson spoke about a school in the ACT that took Grade 5 kids away on a camp and when they came back to the school, they discovered that the Grade 4 kids had moved into their classroom. The Grade 5 kids told them to leave, but they refused. The Grade 4 kids were supported by their teacher and they liked the new classroom so they decided to stay. The Grade 4 kids kept all of belongings and work of the Grade 5 kids and refused to give it back. The Grade 5 kids were sad and confused and felt like they had been tricked, but the grade 4 kids didn't care. Sound familiar? This kind of critical, experiential learning delivers a powerful message to students and parents about Australia's history.

Professor Dodson issued some challenges to the Government - "if we are aiming for social inclusion this is about an inclusive society that we all feel proud of and we all feel part of. How can we achieve this when the Government suspends the Racial Discrimination Act in the Northern Territory to specifically target policy at Indigenous people? There are many gaps to close and expectations to do well. We need to teach people about their rights and the rights of other people. We can only be fully inclusive when the wisdom and the vote of disadvantaged people can be heard".

It was an inspiring, provocative and challenging lecture and I left feeling that there is more that I can do personally, for both indigenous people and also other people who are experiencing disadvantage.

What about you - Have you ever been to a passionate lecture like this - where you got inspired to take action or do something differently? What did you do and how did it turn out?

Gee... this blog has gone quiet

2009-11-01T18:52:00.000+11:00

Yes - things did go quiet here for a while and that is because my mum passed away in August and things have been pretty mixed up since then. You can check my other blog to read a bit more about this.

It turns out that I am not going crazy, but experiencing a 'normal grief reaction'. Whatever 'normal' really is. I am just starting to feel like I can string a few words together, and they make sense and I can concentrate on reading and writing. I have taken some time off from my PhD studies and I am looking forward to getting back into in in the New Year.

Well... this is what I have been doing - what have you been up to for the past three months?

Rural Social Work Conference - Geelong

2009-07-23T17:15:00.000+10:00

I am in the final stages of preparing for my presentation at the Rural Social Work conference in Geelong next week. I have presented different aspects of my research in a few places recently and I am having trouble working out what to include and what to leave out. The conference presentation is for 40 minutes, which seems like a very very long time to talk, however when I practice timing my presentation the time seems to run away and I worry that I am trying to fit too much in.

It's a challenge to work out what to include however, I think I will start with the basics of reflective practice, some information about me and my research, some information about blogs and my blog, then present some of my favourite blogs. What do you think? Do you have any feedback about this approach or any suggestions? Did you attend the conference and see my presentation? What did you think? I welcome all feedback.

thanks

Helen

15th International Reflective Practice Conference: Comhrá

2009-06-06T17:14:00.001+10:00

Welcome to the people who are visiting my blog for the first time after the 15th International Reflective Practice Conference: Comhrá at Limerick University, Ireland.

I'm writing this post early because I am taking some time off for leisurely travel to Ireland in the hope that I will have adjusted to the time zone and shaken off my jet lag before I need to stand up and present at the conference. If you are reading this it also means that someone was interested enough to come along to my session, listen to me and follow up - and that is all good news. I hope to hear from you and I would love you to post a message and tell me what you thought of the conference and my presentation.

For those of you that are new here I want to tell you about my five main reasons for keeping a blog. For those of you who are experienced bloggers - please respond with your reasons and we can share the joy amongst us all.

1. I like to get these thoughts, ideas and feelings out of my head and written down somewhere. Preferably, somewhere I can find it again, so a chronological blog is perfect.

2. I like to have a separate personal and a professional blog. I can let my family and friends know what I have been doing and load up the photos, and I can also keep in contact with other blogging contacts who might (or might not) be interested in what I get up to on the weekends.

3. I like the stimulation and ideas from other people who respond to my comments. There are very interesting people out there that I would never have met if it wasn't for this blog.

4. I live in a regional town and it can be hard to talk with other people about what I am thinking and feeling. I enjoy connecting with people and discussing the issues, without worrying if they might be related to someone who knows someone.

5. It's fun. It's new and it is the future. As a PhD student I want to have contemporary research in 3 or 4 years time and I am certain that we will be doing more and more online. So, I might as well learn how to do it now.

If you are new to blogging, here are some of my favourite blogs that I recommend you visit. Sarah's blog is an experienced blogger and her blog is fantastic - she has great information for new people about how to get started, and ideas and examples about technology, tools and techniques. Pam is a midwife and I enjoy reading her posts about the different aspects of her life. David's blog is fun and I enjoy reading his thoughts about daily life, through the eyes of a 20-something US bachelor. Mary-Helen is doing a PhD about doing a PhD and she describes her blog as a place to dump her thoughts - it's an interesting journal and I enjoy reading about her latest PhD adventure. Dave has a blog about using a blog for reflective practice and he has some great ideas about using technology. Do you have any favourite blogs to recommend to us?

Reflective Practice research design

2009-06-06T16:48:00.000+10:00

I have been plodding along with my PhD and thinking about reflective practice and trying to work out how to design my research. I am getting towards the stage where I need to make some decisions and make a start if I am ever going to finish.

I had an idea about setting up a couple of different reflective practice groups, including a blogging group to test out some different reflection methods and techniques and explore people's experiences, but it all sounds too restrictive. How will I know which are the best or the right methods to select? What happens when people leave or join the group? I don't want to impose my ideas about reflective practice on other people - I think it is the kind of thing that you have to work out for yourself and personal preferences are very important.

So I was thinking that maybe I should do simple old qualitative research, where I talk with people about their experiences of reflective practice, how they learned about it, when they began to value reflective practice and how do they do it. I think it would be fascinating reading. This way, I could invite people to be involved and perhaps target some of the influential writers about reflective practice. There is also a place for me to explore the idea about blogging for reflective practice and find out about bloggers' experiences.

I have been reading Dave's blog - he has been writing about using a blog for reflective practice, and his ideas fit in really well with mine. I'm off to the 15th International Reflective Practice Conference: Comhrá at the end of the month and I am presenting my research ideas about reflective practice and blogging. I'm interested in your thoughts and ideas - do you think we can use a blog for reflective practice? Do you think my research proposal will work?

The 'Can Do' Initiative

2009-06-06T15:24:00.000+10:00

I have recently discovered the ‘Can Do’ Initiative. This is an initiative funded by the Australian Government and promoted by the Australian General Practice Network. I think this is a fantastic example of an innovative approach to flexible learning.

The 'Can do' initiative encourages health professionals to focus on education, training and networking to learn about dual diagnosis of mental health and substance abuse problems.
The program offers an interactive on-line education program where you watch short lectures, read notes and consider a case study, then there are questions to answer to complete the module. The overview explains that it is a six-hour clinical education module that "provides comprehensive education and training in the recognition, management and review of service users presenting with co occurring mental health and substance use disorders. Many other training packages are available that address alcohol and drug issues or mental health issues but few address the combination of the two and their management in the general practice setting. "

The program is accredited and for me, as a Social Worker, I can count the time towards my Professional Development requirements. And it's free. So it is pretty easy and a flexible and interactive way for busy health professionals, especially people working and living in rural and remote areas to be able to access quality education and training.

I'm about half way through and really enjoying the program. Do you know of any other programs like this that offer a similar program?

Re-organising Universities - Article review

2009-04-22T13:33:00.000+10:00

I've been reading this article, 'Re-organizing Universities for the Information Age' by David Annand as part of the flexible learning course that I am doing.

Annand argues that 'University education is still conducted within pre-Industrial Age organisational structures' and suggests that we can expect that Universities will need to transform themselves to meet the needs of more and more students, and increased demand for flexible, cost-efficient learning options. Annand points out that distance education is perhaps a step in the right direction in terms of offering flexibility for students and cites Taylor's ideas of a 'Fifth Generation Learning model'. Annand warns that the traditional inflexibility of University programs does not position a University well for the future, where the demand will increase and be unsustainable in the current, traditional format. In closing, Annand talks about 'irresistible technological, economic, and social imperatives seem about to impose significant change on the conduct of higher education worldwide'.

There are some strong ideas in this article - I love the term 'irresistible technology' - I agree that there is something seductive and captivating about new technology. The lure of something new and fresh and different. But we sometimes get pulled back to reality when we find out that new technology isn't available for everyone. Some people won't have the computers, or the broadband internet to be able to access the 'irresistible technology'. But I will stop this tirade and try and focus back on the article!

I think it is an exciting time to be a PhD student at a University because I feel like we are about to embark on something new. New in terms of delivery of learning, and flexibility of learning and assessment, which will affect the structure of the University, where people are based and how we communicate with each other. As a PhD student hoping to move into a Research or Academic career, I am excited and encouraged by the flexibility that I hope to see available by the time that I complete my research. It's an interesting article and I am keen to hear what other course participants think.

Helen

What is Flexible Learning anyway?

2009-04-18T17:20:00.000+10:00

I have been having a think about what is flexible learning and I wanted to try to draw together some of the excellent resources out there. As part of the course , we are directed to find out about the Australian Flexible Learning Framework. This is a great web site and suggests that flexible learning is basically learning where there is more choice for the learner in where, when and how the learning will happen. It can include things like teleconferencing, videoconferencing and using other multi-media tools. Megan suggests that flexible learning has probably been around for a while, however the tools that we use now are more advanced and interactive and Jenny has a really clear example of some of the problems and solutions to flexible learning.

Sarah's blog is awesome and a great place to explore at any time, as she is a regular contributor and there is always something new there. Sarah's post about cookie baking introduces the Personal Learning Environment (PLE), and for Sarah it seems that the online tools and activities tend to merge into one PLE. Sarah has also written about eLearning and her ePortfolio.

I'm still thinking about how it all goes together and what will work for me. I am seduced by all the bright lights and whistles of the multi-media world that we live in and the options and opportunites that are out there. I feel that Sarah is brave and courageous to expose to the world her ePortfolio, goals and achievements, and I am not sure if I could do this. But then, why wouldn't you want to tell the world about your successes? Maybe this is one of those things where you just need to take a leap and see what happens? What do other people think?

Helen

X marks the spot

2009-04-14T20:11:00.000+10:00

One of the things we are asked to do as part of the flexible learning course is to think about the reasons that a person might have for NOT doing a flexible learning course. It is an interesting way to approach this ... and here is my short story.

X is a busy person. There is always something to do and there are so many 'jobs lists' around the house that she is thinking of making a list of the lists. Where does all the time go these days? I am sure that it wasn't this busy last year. X is interested in a course, but there is no way that she can fit in the time to attend the classes, she can't take time off work, she can't afford any fees. Makes you wonder if she is really committed to the course in the first place?

If there was a course that was flexible - it just might work. It would need to be something where she can pick out the bits that she really wants to learn, and do just as much or as little as she can. It would be different to the 'normal' courses, where someone else decides what needs to be studied - in this course, X can decide which bits are interesting and relevant and which bits she already knows or is not interested in. This course is about actually learning something new, rather than just going through the motions of what you have to do for assessment. It might mean no study for a whole week, then a flurry of activity at once when the opportunity can be grabbed. Technology is important too - she can't access the internet at work, because her organisation has it blocked, although she does get broadband internet at home. It needs to be simple to use, not take forever to load up on the screen and it needs to be fun.

Helen

Flexible Learning Course - 2009

2009-04-06T16:15:00.000+10:00

I have just joined up for the Flexible Learning Course 2009. It is an exciting program, developed by staff in the Educational Development Centre of Otago Polytechnic in New Zealand and the best news is that it is free. Yep - free. The course is structured into chunks, so you can practice a range of activities that are designed so that you have a go at different things, like developing a blog, reading and responding to other blogs and meeting a group of other interested people.

I have a little experience in blogging and I set up my blog last year. I have posted intermittently and met some very interesting people around the world who have similar interests to me. I am a PhD candiatate at La Trobe University in Bendigo and I am interested in exploring whether blogging can be a way for practitioners that are socially or geographically isolate to engage and connect with other professionals. I am looking at a couple of different ways of reflective practice and one way is via a blog.

My reasons for doing the course are to develop my skills, experiences and confidence with flexible learning and to engage with other people who are also interested in these topics. I hope to also be able to learn the language of e-learning, PLEs, delicious, twitter and other strange words.

I have two blogs and they are linked via my profile. One blog (this one) is about reflective practice and the other one is more personal and family orientated. I wasn't sure about whether to combine the blogs or separate the blogs. I had thought that family members might enjoy the personal one and be bored with the reflections, and the people interested in the reflections wouldn't really be interested in my veggie garden. I am interested in your feedback - what do you think?

Helen

Conference Review

2009-02-28T14:34:00.000+11:00

Yesterday I attended the Loddon Mallee Allied Health Conference and had a great day. It was an opportunity to meet with other Allied Health practitioners in Bendigo and to hear about current policy, practices and research. It was also an opportunity for me to present an aspect of my research about using a Blog as a tool for reflection. There were several highlights for me: John Mulder, CEO talked about Bendigo Health's Strategic Plan and future plans for building a new hospital - it looks fantastic and is an exciting time. Robyn Lindsay is the Chief Physiotherapist at Bendigo Health and she delivered a fantastic presentation that was very entertaining and fun - I loved the use of superhero characters. One thing that really resonated for me is the importance of timing - when you are looking for change one strategy is to keep plodding along, building up skills, experience and research and wait for the time to be right - then pounce.

Amanda Kenny from La Trobe University spoke about her plans for a common first year for Health Sciences students and the development of a rural allied health centre in Bendigo. It sounds like a very exciting idea, and that there may be prospects for teaching and research positions for new PhD graduates!

I was really impressed with Pam Harvey's presentation. Pam is a Lecturer at Monash University, School of Rural Health and her presentation was interactive, engaging and inspiring. Pam talked about the differences and diversity among the people in our workplaces and suggests that we should look at the these differences and diversity rather than trying to box people into groups like generation x or y. Pam talked about modern Web 2.0 tools like wikipedia, twitter, and blogs and encouraged people to check out my blog - thanks Pam it is great feedback. I haven't been sure if a blog is an appropriate tool for reflection, and this is something that I will think more about. Pam mentioned that it is important for us to develop these new social networking skills so that we can keep in contact with our colleagues and clients and understand how to use the new technology. These social networks may be part of a solution for isolated clients and practitioners, whether they be isolated geographically or socially.

It was a great conference and I look forward to next year.

Helen

Allied Health Network Conference, Bendigo 27/2/09

2009-02-22T20:38:00.000+11:00

I have been preparing my first poster to deliver at the Allied Health Network Conference in Bendigo on Friday, 27th February 2009. I wasn't sure what to present, as I am in the early stages of my research and I have lots of options for which direction I might take. I have decided to present my thoughts about Critical Reflection and the use of an on-line blog. I have attached the notes here and I will present the poster on Friday. I welcome any feedback about the poster and I will be back next week to let you know how it went.

Helen

Overcoming fear monsters

2009-02-04T21:52:00.000+11:00

There are very few monsters who warrant the fear we have of them. Andre Gide

I went along to my first Toastmasters meeting on Monday night and I have to say that it was a lot of fun. In a scary, out of my comfort zone kind of way. It's one of those things that I know is going to be good for me, but on the other hand I resist.

Toastmasters is a structured meeting type of workshop, where you learn speaking skills by practicing conversation with other people in a meeting type of atmosphere. Members give short speeches and other members evaluate and provide feedback. It is very respectful and feels comfortable - it feels like a safe place to practice public speaking and develop my skills. It is also a great way to meet a whole lot of interesting people. I'll be going back.

Jerry Seinfeld got a big laugh when he joked about a survey that found that the fear of public speaking ranks higher in most people's minds than the fear of death. "In other words," he deadpanned, "at a funeral, the average person would rather be in the casket than giving the eulogy."

The Toastmaster principles seem to be that the way to overcome fears is to face up to them, and practice repeatedly, until it becomes second nature and comfortable. Have you ever faced up to your fears? What did you do? Did it work? Any advice gratefully accepted.

Helen

How do you learn how to learn from experience?

2009-02-01T20:38:00.000+11:00

I have been thinking about people learn from their experiences. There are heaps of interesting quotes from those much wiser than I and I have attached a few below:

We should be careful to get out of an experience only the wisdom that is in it - and stop there; lest we be like the cat that sits down on a hot stove-lid. She will never sit down on a hot stove-lid again - and that is well; but also she will never sit down on a cold one anymore. ~Mark Twain, Pudd'nhead Wilson's New Calendar, Following the Equator, 1897

Experience is the name everyone gives to his mistakes. ~Oscar Wilde, Lady Windemere's Fan, 1896

Learn all you can from the mistakes of others. You won't have time to make them all yourself. ~Alfred Sheinwold

I have been wondering about how people learn from their experiences. Do people really learn from their mistakes? How do you learn to do this? Can you learn from other people's mistakes, or do you have to make the same mistake yourself? And Mark Twain's advice is very relevant for me - make sure not to overgeneralise and to miss out on many positive experience because of fear of negative times.

How do you learn from experience? Can you learn from good and bad? Can you learn from other people's experiences? How does it work?

I look forward to hearing from you.

Helen

One door closes... then what?

2009-01-31T19:48:00.000+11:00

I was having lunch with a friend recently (great lunch Nadine) and I was talking about how I was feeling confused about some choices that I have recently made in my work, and some choices that I need to make in the future. Over the past year, I have experienced having one door close - a career path that I had worked hard towards was destroyed by a vindictive bully. I won't go through all of the gory details, but it was a difficult time. I found, that soon after another door opened, and I decided to step into the adventure of PhD candidature. This is something that I have always wanted to do. I really love being a PhD student - I love reading, and finding out about other people's research, planning my research and writing and presenting my research. I am glad to be a part time student because it will go for longer and it is a wonderful time.

But back to the door thing - I find myself in a position now where I'm not sure what to do next. I was talking with my friend about this and she commented that it can be hard when there are lots of doors open. It made me stop and think - she is right and there are lots of doors open for me at the moment. It is nice to be in a position where there are lots of good options to consider, but it does make it hard to know what is the right thing, or the best thing to do.

How do you decide which is the best career move next? What kind of jobs should I be looking for or thinking about as a PhD graduate? Has anyone else been in this situation before? What did you do? Does anyone have any tips or suggestions to help me out?

Helen

Wordle - a tool for distilling thoughts

2009-01-22T20:33:00.000+11:00

I have decided to go back to wordle and see if I can find a clearer way to understand my thinking - it's a bit like sifting sand from a mine to find the gold. Here is the wordle of the past four months of my blog. Cool huh. I think wordle is a great reflection tool or reflection technique - it's a way to see things more clearly. I have also seen Wordle used as a way of distilling poetry and journals, and I am going to see what my journal looks like when its Wordled. Not sure if I will share it - but I will save that for another time.

thanks

Helen

Confidence in Public Speaking

2009-01-22T18:10:00.000+11:00

I have been having a think about my presentation skills and confidence at getting up in front of a group of people and being able to make sure that words actually come out of my mouth. I feel like I do an OK job. I get feedback from other people that I look and sound confident. But I don't feel confident. I feel anxious, nervous and worried. I believe that it is possible to die from embarassment. I feel light headed, dry mouthed and it sounds to me like my voice is a quavery squeak.

But if I want to be a world famous researcher, author and conference presenter, then I am going to have to find a way to improve my confidence in public speaking. And my first presentation, all by myself is planned for Feb 27th 2009.

I was inspired by Jeffrey's ideas about Learning from Impromptus, and his advice that people get better with practice. I also enjoy Kevin's blog and especially his post about the magic of dialogue - Kevin says that it is a skill that can be learned.

So I have decided that I am going to learn and practice how to improve my confidence in public speaking. I found a group called Toastmasters - they advertise in my local area - the Bendigo Club 'Have you ever wanted to speak confidently in front of an audience? Learn and practice your speaking skills in a friendly, supportive environment. And have a lot of fun along the way.' Yep -that's for me. What an appealing advertisement - it actually sounds like fun. And not scary at all.

So I am going to join and I will let you know how it goes. Wish me luck! Do you have any other advice or suggestions for ways to improve my confidence in public speaking? I'd love to hear from you.

Helen

Who controls my expression of opinion?

2009-01-19T20:10:00.001+11:00

I was inspired by a post all the way on the other side of the world - Buckeyebrit posted a blog called Blogging and the day job. And it got me thinking - who owns the information and who is entitled to say where and when I can express my thoughts and opinions. I work in a Government organisation and they have very strict rules about confidentiality, so I am careful to never name the organisation and always talk about what I think, rather than something that happened at work. And I am always conscious to be careful about what I say about the organisation in the public domain.

Sarah Stewart has written extensively on topics like 'An ethics question', and privacy and confidentiality, and suggests that Health Professionals that blog about their clinical practice should be prepared for scrutiny. This resonates for me and it is something that I agree with.

As a PhD student I always identify with La Trobe University, the place where I am enrolled. But I have never asked anyone there if they are happy for me to blog about my experiences as a student. Imagine if they tried to stop all students from blogging? Is there a line between my thoughts, experiences and reflections as a Social Worker employed in a Government organisation, and a Social Worker who is a PhD student? How could I possibly separate them?

As I build my portfolio and reputation as a Researcher, these lines will continue to blur. If I write a paper or present at a conference and identify myself as belonging to one organisation or the other, it will soon become obvious that I belong to both organisations, and it will become more difficult to separate them. Have other people experienced this situation? What do you do about it?

Regards

Helen

2009 Loddon Mallee Allied Health Conference

2009-01-17T08:21:00.000+11:00

I applied to present a paper at the 2009 Loddon Mallee Allied Health Conference that will be held in Bendigo in February - the title of the conference is 'Change: Embrace What's New'. I was disappointed not to be accepted to present a paper about my research, but I was invited to present a poster during the lunch break. I haven't presented a poster before, so this is a new experience for me and I am quite looking forward to it.

I have been working on a catchy title and I have come up with, 'Critical Reflection online: can a blog support isolated practitioners?' What do you think?

I think that I need to include my blog address on the poster and have some paper copies of the poster to handout, in case anyone is interested in finding out more. This is challenging because it is the first time that I actually publicising my blog - maybe people will come and look at it!

I have tried to upload a copy of my poster, but I can't get it to work yet. I will keep working on it and I am sure there will be a way. Have you presented a poster at a conference before? I'm interested to hear if you have any suggestions or tips for what I can do to make it an interesting and fun experience.

Helen

Mind Maps: an innovative solution

2009-01-02T20:20:00.000+11:00

I have been thinking about my PhD research and trying to find a way to create a kind of mind map to chart what I want to do and how the different topics link together. I have used a couple of old-fashioned versions, with bits of paper, a grey-lead pencil and an eraser. They almost work, but are not quite right. I followed a blog from Sarah Stewart where Sarah tells us about 7 things we don't know about her and tags another seven people to do the same. It is an interesting way to find out more about people.

I ended up at Pam Harnden's blog. Pam is a midwife and much of her blog about about midwifery (much of which I don't understand), but there is heaps of fantastic information about tools and other stuff relevant to everyone. Pam has posted a link to bubbl.us - a free web application for brainstorming and mid mapping. It is awesome and is just the thing that I need to be able to get my thoughts and ideas into a map, and be able to move ideas and topics around, and to do it electronically, rather than the old pencil and paper way. Thanks Pam.

I have also decided this year that I will spend more time commenting on the interesting blogs that I read. I tend to read a lot and lurk, but I am committed to spending more time commenting and encouraging comments back to my blog. I haven't found a good way to keep track of them all yet so if anyone has any suggestions I am keen to hear from you. I have worked out how to subscribe to posts, but how can I find out if a blogger replies to a comment that I leave on their blog? Is there a simple way or do I just need to subscribe and go back and check regularly? I hope there is someone out there that can help me with this.

Helen

New Year's resolutions

2009-01-01T21:29:00.000+11:00

Well we made it to the start of another exciting year. I had an early night last night, and was in bed at 12.01, and I woke up feeling bright and fresh - a great way to start the new year. I normally make a list of resolutions, and then usually forget about them. This year, I have written a letter to myself, which is placed in a sealed envelope and stored in a safe place and delivered back to me, unopened on 1 December 2009. It will be an interesting reminder of the goals that I started out with for 2009.

Do you like New Year celebrations? I tend to agree with Seth Godin who sees NYE as a time of 'faux merriment' (I absolutely agree), yet it is a time of exciting possibilities where there is a chance to start afresh and I think that is a wonderful way to look at the year ahead.

So what are your New Year Resolutions? I'm planning on learning more about e-learning and technology, making time to write in my blog more consistently, and spending more time learning how to ride my bike. I'd love to hear about your resolutions and how they go.

Hooroo

Helen

Same, but different

2008-12-28T14:11:00.000+11:00

I've got a friend that has this saying that really annoys me - he tells me about something and tells me that 'it's the same, but different'. It annoys me because I think if it is the same it can't be different. And that begins the roundabout of vocabulary.

This phrase has got me thinking about where I am in my life at the moment. I am looking for some things to change and other things to stay the same. Am I looking for the same, but different?

I love the song by Pink, 'Leave me alone, I'm Lonely'. That song just sums things up for me.

'Leave me alone
I'm lonely
Alone
I'm lonely
I'm tired
Leave me alone
I'm lonely
Alone
I'm lonely tonight '

I feel like I want it all and I want other people to know and Pink describes this well,

Go away
Come back
Go away
Come back
Why can't I just have it both ways
Go away
Come back
Go away
Come back
I wish you knew the difference
Go away
Come back

My star sign (Libra) in the Sunday Herald Sun Magazine by Jonathon Cainer, Dec 14 2008 read: You want things to stay the same, yet you want them to change. You seek peace, yet you crave excitement. Is there a hint of inconsistency here? Might you be looking for a cake you can have and eat, but that will also allow you to shed kilos in the process? You're pushing the boundaries of what's possible. But then, you are you. Sometimes you can achieve a balance that seems precarious to everyone else but works perfectly. Stop worrying, but don't stop striving. I have brilliant news for you.

That feels so right for me - it resonates with what I am thinking and feeling. I do want excitement, but I don't want to give up my safe, organised and structured life. I like peace and quiet and time to do my own thing. A few days after this I got a phone call with a job offer. It's a temporary job, just a few months and an opportunity to try something new - it's a Social Work position and an opportunity to dip my toe in the pool of what I think I would like to do next. So I feel excited and a little anxious. And nervous. And enthusiastic. And scared. So I will work in the same office, park my car in the same spot, eat my lunch at the same place with the same people, but it will be a different job with a different boss and a different role. Same, but different.

Helen

That time of the year

2008-12-07T20:16:00.000+11:00

Well it is that time of the year - the crazy season where everyone wants to meet for a drink and to catch up. I don't really see the point myself - it is nice to catch up with friends, but it seems to get so busy, and I get very tired and frustrated.

And there are presents to buy. I found this nice book by Ian 'Macca' McNamara from Austrlalia All Over and I bought it as a gift for ... someone special (I hope they don't read this). Anyway, I was having a flick through the book and I wondered if I should be doing this. Did it make the book second hand if I read it first? I was careful not to bend any pages, and I didn't open it up too far so it still looks neat and bound, like it did in the shop. But I felt a little guilty, like it was the wrong thing to do. And then I thought, who will know? Does that make it OK to do the wrong thing if no-one will know? And if the gift receiver did know that I had already read the book, would they mind? That helped - I thought that the gift receiver wouldn't mind that I had already read through the book and that helped me feel a bit more comfortable.

Let me share this poem with you. The poem is by Brian Powell of Queensland and published in the book called, 'Song of the Thong':

Ode to 'I'm on a Committee'

Oh, give me your pity,
I'm on a committee'
Which means that from morning to night.
We attend, and amend, and contend, and defend
Without a conclusion in sight.
We confer and concur,
We defer and demur,
And re-iterate all of our thoughts,
We revise the agenda with all our addenda,
And consider a load of reports.
We compose and propose, we suppose and oppose
And the points of procedure are fun,
But through various notions and brought up as motions
There's terrible little gets done.

Ah yes - I have been on many a committee like this. It is a great way to get a message across - using poetry, humor and a bit of fun. I am drawn to poetry and I think I will have a go at using poetry with reflective practice and see how this works. If I am feeling really brave, I will post some here.

So much to learn ... about elearning

2008-10-28T19:50:00.000+11:00

I am enjoying the challenges of learning about the exciting new world of electronic communications and technology. It is overwhelming and exciting, interesting, challenging and daunting. There is so much there - elearning, eportfolios, different social networking tools, like Facebook, and different ways to communicate. I want to follow up finding out about Skype - I'm not exactly sure what it is, but I think it has something to do with the tiny camera at the top of my laptop that keeps winking at me!.

I have discovered wordle - it is cool and some web sites have fantastic examples of the way it can be used. I was really impressed with Rodd Lucier . Rodd is a teacher and has amazing and innovative ideas about engaging people in different ways of communication.

Rodd got me thinking - when do we stop being a learner? There is always something new going on - a new discovery or a new way of looking at something from the past. Or there is a new way to communicate and a new way to share information with other people.

I have been doing some training at work - introducing a model of strengths coaching and learning about Positive Psychology. I have found a fun sounding website called Authentic Happiness and taken a few of the on-line quizzes. While I am normally sceptical about the merits of an on-line quiz, I enjoyed these quizzes, especially the quiz about signature strengths. I learned that my greatest strength (according to the quiz) is my love of learning. This really resonated for me and it helped me to make sense of why I get bored and seek out new things, new experiences and new adventures. It was one of those aha moments for me and helps me to understand that I need to plan my future around variety and new adventures, rather than being stuck in a routine which won't sustain my interest.

It is fun to be a teacher and a learner. There is much for me to learn and I am enjoying exploring the bewildering world of elearning.

Helen

A bit about me

2008-10-18T11:36:00.000+11:00

I am a Social Worker and a PhD candidate at La Trobe University. I have commenced my PhD, studying part time this year, and I am plodding along, while trying to balance a home renovation and full time work. I enjoy being busy and I love to learn new things, so I am always interested in hearing about and trying something new.

I went along to the Reflective Practice conference in Rotorua, NZ in September 2008. There were lots of new ideas there - a visit to a country that I have always wanted to visit and an opportunity to find out about how a conference works and what is involved in presentating a paper or a poster. I was surprised at the diversity of topics presented, from really interesting to quite ‘out there’. I was really looking forward Sarah’s presentation about Blogging - I had some basic ideas about an on-line blog but I don’t think I had actually seen one before. I was captivated with Sarah’s enthusiasm and energy, and her bubbly, humorous presentation style. I was drawn to her simple, basic approach which gave me confidence that this was something that I might be able to do to.

My previous studies have included a Master of Professional Practice (Development) at La Trobe University - the focus of this was Critical Reflection and I studied with two amazing teachers - Jan Fook and Fiona Gardner. So this has found me meandering along a pathway of critical reflection and I am exploring the ways that people learn to be reflective, and their experiences of practicing using different reflection tools and methods.

I have used a reflective journal for some time now, and I am interested in seeing and feeling how an on-line journal complements or distracts from my written notes. But more of that another day.

cheers

Helen

Welcome

2008-10-05T12:08:00.000+11:00

Hello world. This is my first post and the first exciting step into the world of blogging and letting people see what I am thinking and feeling. I'm a bit nervous, and also excited. Anyway - here we go.

Helen