Awards 2005

The annual ascilite awards, comprising 'ascilites' and the President's Award, are designed to reward leaders in the use of electronic technologies in teaching and learning in tertiary education. Each year at the ascilite conference these awards recognise exemplary product design and development in this area.

All entries are judged on their merits in terms of the above over-arching goal and the following criteria:

• Appropriateness for the target audience
  
• Appropriateness and effectiveness of the Learning Design
  
• Significance/impact on teaching practice and/or learning outcomes
  
• Creativity and Innovation
  
• Evidence of effectiveness (Evaluation)
  
• Overall quality
  

As in past years the standard of entries was very high. Of the 16 submitted, 5 were listed as finalists.

Use the links to see further details on each of these.

The Omnium Project. (Faculty of the College of Fine Arts - The University of New South Wales )
Contact: Rick Bennett (mailto:rick@unsw.edu.au)

The Universitas 21 Global MBA Program. (Universitas 21 Global Pte Ltd)
Contact: Sarah Teo Siew Chin (steo@U21global.com)

Problem Based Learning. (The Hong Kong Institute of Education)
Contact: Mike Keppell (keppell@ied.edu.hk)

Virtual Golden Foods Corporation. ( Queensland University of Technology)
Contact: Meredith Godat (m.godat@qut.edu.au )

Fire Ecology & Management in Northern Australia. (Charles Darwin University)
Contact: Lesley Instone (lesley.instone@cdu.edu.au )

The Omnium Project

Winner: President's Award

Creative practice has arguably undergone notable transformation over the last decade; from a predominantly singular and private activity, to one that encourages notions of the collective and shared collaborative working processes. However, such practice remains difficult to achieve, when collaboration is required to take place between geographically distanced partners and working teams. The traditional creative process, seen as an individual's reflective dialogue with their own work, no longer seems solely applicable in contemporary visual arts education and practice.

The Omnium Project aims to resolve specific difficulties faced by visual artists and designers wishing to work collaboratively, but whose locations and cultural backgrounds are both distanced and diverse. The potential for successful collaboration of such nature is highly applicable to both educational and professional contexts and extremely relevant to revised needs within both settings.

This application focuses on the Omnium Studio software and its use in the Creative Waves project as a case study; illustrating Omnium's innovation and leadership in the area of using computers and information/communication technology for learning and teaching in tertiary education.

Universitas 21 Global is a completely online graduate school backed by 16 prominent universities from around the world. It offers the student interactive, engaging learning experience that is faculty-led but learner driven It is characterised by:

• A case-based and problem solving approach
  
• A highly contextualised and constructive learning environment
  
• Integrated we-based resources
  
• Extensive faculty-student and student-student interaction
  
• An online learning community, with around-the-clock support services
  

U21G students benefit from a holistic learning environment. Knowledge is acquired within an authentic setting, where it is of immediate relevance to a student's working and personal life. There are ample opportunities for reflection, active construction of knowledge and learning through social interaction and collaboration.


Within teacher education problem-based learning (PBL) has the potential to enrich teaching and learning across the curriculum. It is suggested that PBL may offer a means of providing authentic scenarios for assisting pre-service teachers before encountering teaching practice. The use of media-based educational triggers and authentic scenarios may form a bridge between their studies and real-world teaching practice. Five media-rich educational triggers are described: in early childhood education, physical education, educational technology, project management and inclusive education. Reusable media-based educational triggers may also provide potential resources for other educators within teacher education.

The educational triggers include:

Case One: "What's Wrong With My Baby Boy?"
Case Two: "Quantum Leap"
Case Three: "Why Can't I Save This File?"

Virtual Golden Food Corporation

ascilite Award winner

Virtual Golden Foods Corporation presents an innovation that combines the technical affordances of virtual reality and the sound pedagogical foundations of situated and problem-based learning. As a virtual reality environment, it situates learning within a meaningful context so that information and ideas are readily recalled and applied in the real world. In other words, the 'real' world is experienced where important skills are practiced and applied prior to being in it. VGFC is cross-disciplinary and is the 'transitional interface' between the university and workplace through the workings of a case study. Virtuality in this project becomes the common visual context of a crisis environment across various Business disciplines for teaching students within a safe and risk-free environment.

Case Four: "Just One More Minor Change..."
Case Five: "Do you want to play as well..."


ascilite Award winner

Fire Ecology & Management is a key issue in northern Australia. Graduates of environmental science and natural resource management programs are required to immediately engage in the complex issue of fire management practice, policy and decision making in their workplaces.

This resource draws on authentic learning principles to prepare learners to take on these challenges. It brings together recent information and materials for the first time in a comprehensive, tertiary-level teaching and learning resource.

The resource presents an heuristic introduction, a thorough explanation of underpinning technical knowledge, the social contexts in which that knowledge may be applied, and concludes with the exploration of engaged community responses to issues of fire management. The sections build up in complexity, with the final section challenging students to draw together their learning.

The materials link theoretical knowledge to the practices that fire managers will need in their daily work.

Learner engagement is also encouraged via activities that provide opportunities to explore new concepts, knowledge and issues and also build towards recommended assessment items.