Future Earth Australia Workshop

Greetings from the Future Earth Australia Workshop at the Australian Academy of Science's Shine Dome in Canberra. There are about 100 researchers, government and business people here discussing sustainability and the future of Australian cities. I am still not quite sure who, or what, "Future Earth Australia" is, or the workshop is supposed to accomplish.

This was one of the weirder events I have been to recently, in a building shaped like a 1960s flying saucer surrounded by a moat (headquarters of the Australian Academy of Sciences). The delegates were then shepherded across the road to a ‘Visceral Communications’ performance at New Acton. Performance artists shoveled ice, dance in the middle of the street and recite quotes about climate change. This is all a little too much like an episode of the TV comedy "Utopia". ;-)

Future Earth Australia

Future Earth Australia"

future look like in a sustainable global and Australian economy? What kind of urban environment is compatible with a decent lifestyle for the 90% or more of Australians who live in cities? What changes in values and behaviour are required to enable the social transformation to sustainability and how might we make them? - See more at: https://www.science.org.au/news-and-events/future-earth-australia-workshop#sthash.2b2jzYmg.dpuf

What will the corporations and institutions of the future look like in a sustainable global and Australian economy? What kind of urban environment is compatible with a decent lifestyle for the 90% or more of Australians who live in cities? What changes in values and behaviour are required to enable the social transformation to sustainability and how might we make them? - See more at: https://www.science.org.au/news-and-events/future-earth-australia-workshop#sthash.2b2jzYmg.dpuf

What will the corporations and institutions of the future look like in a sustainable global and Australian economy? What kind of urban environment is compatible with a decent lifestyle for the 90% or more of Australians who live in cities? What changes in values and behaviour are required to enable the social transformation to sustainability and how might we make them? - See more at: https://www.science.org.au/news-and-events/future-earth-australia-workshop#sthash.2b2jzYmg.dpuf

What will the corporations and institutions of the future look like in a sustainable global and Australian economy? What kind of urban environment is compatible with a decent lifestyle for the 90% or more of Australians who live in cities? What changes in values and behaviour are required to enable the social transformation to sustainability and how might we make them? - See more at: https://www.science.org.au/news-and-events/future-earth-australia-workshop#sthash.2b2jzYmg.dpuf

What will the corporations and institutions of the future look like in a sustainable global and Australian economy? What kind of urban environment is compatible with a decent lifestyle for the 90% or more of Australians who live in cities? What changes in values and behaviour are required to enable the social transformation to sustainability and how might we make them? - See more at: https://www.science.org.au/news-and-events/future-earth-australia-workshop#sthash.2b2jzYmg.dpuf

Australian Academy of Science

Australian Academy of Science

ICT Energy Saving Measures for DCNS Shortfin Barracuda Block 1A Submarine

Yesterday I gave a guest lecture at the Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) in Canberra. The invited topic for the computing students was "ICT Sustainability", but to make it more relevant to a military audience I talked on "ICT Energy Saving Measures for DCNS Shortfin Barracuda Block 1A Submarine". Earlier in the week the Australian government announced that Australia had selected French company DCNS to design a submarine, 12 of which are to be built in Adelaide. Described as a "Shortfin Barracuda Block 1A", the design is based on the Barracuda-class nuclear attack submarine.

The 150 MW nuclear reactor of the Barracuda will be replaced with conventional diesel engines and batteries for the Australian variant. Running on battery power these will be very quiet submarines. However,  they will will have limited electrical power. The K15 nuclear reactor of the Barracuda only needs to be refueled every ten years and the submarine is only limited by the amount of food it can carry for the crew. The Australian version will have a long range, but still be limited by the amount of diesel fuel which can be carried and the battery capacity underwater.

As I pointed out to the ADFA students, modern military  increasingly reply on computers and telecommunications. The sixty crew, plus embarked special forces, will require computer equipment for the mission and for off-duty entertainment. This will make up a significant part of the "hotel power" of the submarine. The more efficient the use of ICT, the longer the range and endurance of the submarines. Even a few percent increase is significant.

Open Universities of the Commonwealth

Garrett's  The State of Open Universities in the Commonwealth is a detailed 56 page examination of pioneering institutions, starting with the Open University (UKOU), Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) and the University of South Africa (UNISA). The study then looks at Athabasca University (AU), National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), Open Universities Australia (OUA), Open University Malaysia (OUM), Open University of Sri Lanka (OUSL), University of the South Pacific (USP) and University of the West Indies (UWI). Other institutions with open access are also examined in passing, including University of Southern Queensland (USQ), which I have been a student of (along with Athabasca).


As Garrett notes, these open institutions were intended to increase access and at lower cost, than conventional universities. An apparent trend is that the larger institutions (100,000 to 500,000 students) are growing, whereas smaller ones (less than 20,000) are declining. The report also notes that open university can be a difficult experience for students, especially for undergraduates. Another interesting point is that innovations, such as MOOCs, are not being lead by the open universities.

One area the report does not address is the experience for academic staff at open universities. Like students these institutions can be frustrating for the staff.

One point the report does not make is that open universities tend to be cooperative in nature. As an example, Open Universities Australia is not a university, but a group of mostly conventional campus based institutions which come together to offer on-line programs. Even OUA, which was created as a separate institution, found it had to call on the resources and staff of existing universities, particularly in the early years.

The report also does not address the vocational nature of open university, with students mostly enrolling to get a better job. It is perhaps this, which makes the character of open university different. Also many open universities teach courses which would be considered below university level, at least in Australia.

The major problem with this report is that it limits analysis to institution based in countries which are members of the "Commonwealth".  It is not clear that previous British colonies have enough in common to form a meaningful group. Also this excludes countries with interesting and important open universities. As an example, the Open University of Hong Kong is excluded, as while it was established in 1989 during British rule, Hong Kong left the Commonwealth in 1997.

My reading of this, and other reports, suggest that for a successful open university you need at least 100,000 students and a focus on vocationally relevant postgraduate programs. A good place to start are graduate courses for teachers.

Universities are reassessing their teaching techniques and what they teach. Employers are demanding graduates with more work relevant skills and students not from a conventional academic background require different teaching and support. Along with the move to on-line education, this is likely to result in conventional universities taking on the characteristics of open universities.

Small, high cost, campus based universities, focused on producing academics, will no doubt continue to have a role, but a very limited one. Just as paper mail and paper money still exist in a digital world, but are of limited use, "campus" universities will exist as a specialized service.

References

Garrett, R. (2016). The State of Open Universities in the Commonwealth: A perspective on performance, competition and innovation. Retrieved from: http://dspace.col.org/bitstream/handle/11599/2048/2016_Garrett_State-of-Open-Universities.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

Australian Higher Education Standards Framework 2017

The "Higher Education Standards Framework (Threshold Standards) 2015" comes into force in Australia from 1 January 2017. This places requirements, having the force of law, on universities and other higher education providers.

One curious aspect of the framework is that it assumes tuition is always in English, requiring institutions to ensure student's: "proficiency in English needed to participate in their intended study" (1. Admission). Also there appears no requirement for proficiency in English for staff.

The regulations provide for on-line teaching and even include provision for student interaction outside formal teaching. This might be accomplished, by student forms for example:

"The learning environment, whether physical, virtual or blended, and associated learning activities support academic interactions among students outside of formal teaching." (2.1 Facilities and Infrastructure)

Teachers are required to be qualified in the topic they teach, but need not be qualified in teaching, only needing "skills in contemporary teaching, learning and assessment principles relevant to the discipline, their role, modes of delivery and the needs of particular student cohorts" (3.2 Staffing). This is a far less stringent requirement than imposed on school and TAFE teachers,  who are required to have formal teaching qualifications.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

The Higher Education Standards Framework

PART A: Standards for Higher Education

1 Student Participation and Attainment

1.1.. Admission

1.2.. Credit and Recognition of Prior Learning

1.3.. Orientation and Progression

1.4.. Learning Outcomes and Assessment

1.5.. Qualifications and Certification

2 Learning Environment

2.1.. Facilities and Infrastructure

2.2.. Diversity and Equity

2.3.. Wellbeing and Safety

2.4.. Student Grievances and Complaints

3 Teaching

3.1.. Course Design

3.2.. Staffing

3.3.. Learning Resources and Educational Support

4 Research and Research Training

4.1.. Research

4.2.. Research Training

5 Institutional Quality Assurance

5.1.. Course Approval and Accreditation

5.2.. Academic and Research Integrity

5.3.. Monitoring, Review and Improvement

5.4.. Delivery with Other Parties

6 Governance and Accountability

6.1.. Corporate Governance

6.2.. Corporate Monitoring and Accountability

6.3.. Academic Governance

7 Representation, Information and Information Management

7.1.. Representation

7.2.. Information for Prospective and Current Students

7.3.. Information Management

PART B: Criteria for Higher Education Providers

B1:.. Criteria for Classification of Higher Education Provider Categories

B2:.. Criteria for Seeking Authority for Self-Accreditation of Courses of Study

Designing an Undergraduate Course on ICT Sustainability: Part 5 - Description

In Part 4 I looked at what to call a course in ICT Sustainability. Having decided on the deceptively simple "Green IT", here are more details:


Rationale: Undergraduate version to be offered alongside (not co-taught) existing postgraduate course.

Title: Green IT

Full Title: Green IT: Evaluating and reducing computer energy use, carbon emissions and e-waste

Description: Green IT teaches the evaluation and analysis of the energy use, carbon emissions and e-waste from computers and telecommunications in an organization, in accordance with international standards for greenhouse gas and energy audit. Students then learn to generate a sustainability strategy for IT, to reduce consumption of energy and materials, helping to reduce carbon emissions. Twelve weekly topics introduce the materials to students with interactive quizzes and forums to help build the skills needed for assignments.

Content: The course consists of two parts, corresponding to the learning outcomes, with one topic per week:

Sustainability Assessment:
 1. The Politics, Science and Business of Sustainability
 2. The Global ICT Footprint
 3. Energy Saving - Data Centres and Client Equipment
 4. Materials Use
 5. Compliance Audit
 6. Methods and Tools 

Sustainability Strategy:
 7. Enabling ICT
 8. Business Process Improvement
 9. Improving Data Centre Energy Efficiency
10. Enterprise Architecture
11. Procurement
12. Energy Star Program and Quality Management

Learning Objectives:

After completing this course, students will be able to:

1. Evaluate the sustainability of IT services, devices and day-to-day operations of an organisation, including the carbon footprint and e-waste, 
2. Prepare a sustainability strategy for IT in an organisation, covering both energy and materials use.

  The learning objectives are based on the Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA) skills definitions: "Sustainability assessment" and "Sustainability strategy", as used by the Australian Computer Society (ACS) for accreditation.

Workload: To complete the subject you will need to spend 8-10 hours each week reading, communicating with colleagues and tutors, and preparing assignments.

Text: Worthington, T. (2016). ICT Sustainability: Assessment and Strategies for a Low Carbon Future. Tomw Communications. Free open access e-Book: http://www.tomw.net.au/ict_sustainability/

Pre-reading: The Climate Group. (2008). Report Summary. SMART 2020: Enabling the low carbon economy in the information age. Available: http://www.smart2020.org/_assets/files/03_Smart2020Report_lo_res.pdf.

Readings:

ACS. (2007). Policy Statement on Green ICT. Available: http://web.archive.org/web/20070906171858/http://www.acs.org.au/acs_policies/docs/2007/greenictpolicy.pdf.  AGIMO. (2010a). Australian Government Data Centre Strategy 2010 - 2025. Available: http://www.finance.gov.au/policy-guides-procurement/data-centres/data-centre-strategy/.  ANU. (2009). Professor Ross Garnaut discusses the challenges of climate change (pt1). (Video). Australian National University. Available: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cfw5cSi_OuI  CoSN. (2010). CoSN Energy Usage Calculator. Available: http://isse.utk.edu/ccp/projects/benefitscalculator/elecbenecalc.html.  EPEAT. (2008). EPEAT Criteria: PCs and Displays. Green Electronics Council. Available: http://www.epeat.net/resources/criteria/#pcanddisplays.  European Union Joint Research Centre. (2008). Best Practices for the EU Code of Conduct on Data Centres. Available: http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/activities/sustainable_growth/docs/datacenter_code-conduct.pdf.  FFITS. (2011). Activate power management on Windows 7. Available: http://www.ffits.org/learn/end-user-computing/29-activate-power-management-on-windows-7.  Gershon, P. (2008). Review of the Australian Government's Use of Information and Communication Technology. Available: http://www.finance.gov.au/publications/ICT-Review/.  Google. (2010). Google container data center tour. Available: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRwPSFpLX8I.  Kaplan, M. Forrest, W. Kindler, N.. (2010). Revolutionizing Data Center Energy Efficiency. Available: http://www.mckinsey.com/clientservice/bto/pointofview/pdf/Revolutionizing_Data_Center_Efficiency.pdf.  Monash University. (2011). Harvard (author-date) style examples. Available: http://www.lib.monash.edu.au/tutorials/citing/harvard.html.  Natural Edge Project. (2008a). Engineering Sustainable Solutions Program Sustainable IT Lecture Series. Available: http://web.archive.org/web/20080808180519/http://www.naturaledgeproject.net/SustainableIT.aspx.  Philipson, G. (2010). Carbon and Computers in Australia: The energy consumption and carbon footprint of ICT usage in Australia in 2010. Australian Computer Society. Available: http://www.computersite.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/ACS_Computers_and_Carbon_Report.pdf  Sawada, T. Origuchi, T. Nishi, S. (2007). Environmental Load Reduction Effects of Ubiquitous Broadband Services. Available: https://www.ntt-review.jp/archive/ntttechnical.php?contents=ntr200703025.pdf.  Tata Consultancy Services. (2011a). Corporate Sustainability Report 2009-2010. Available: http://www.tcs.com/about/corp_responsibility/Documents/TCS_Corporate_Sustainability_Report_2009-10.pdf.  TelecomTV. (2009). Green Planet. (video). Available: http://www.mobileworldlive.com/green-planet-episode-1-the-green-economy.  The Climate Group. (2008). SMART 2020: Enabling the low carbon economy in the information age. Available: http://www.smart2020.org/_assets/files/03_Smart2020Report_lo_res.pdf.  UPS. (2010). UPS Geospatial Technology Delivers Faster and More Sustainably. (Video). Pen State Public Broadcasting. Available: http://thenewlogistics.ups.com/sustainable-business/fuel-efficiency/.  US Army Logistics Innovation Agency. (2013). Smart and Green Energy (SAGE) for Base Camps. (Video). U.S. Army. Available: https://youtu.be/1HKuDPHQebE?t=3m57s

Required Skills: It is assumed the student is familiar with basic computing concepts, from an introductory university course. The student will need to be able to use a computer and the Internet to complete this on-line course and be familiar with academic writing and referencing to undertake assignments.

Assessment:

There are two areas of assessment in the course:
1. Weekly Assessment (20%): Contributions to weekly discussion forums (10%) and completion of a weekly quiz (10%),
2. Assignments (80%): mid course (40%) and at the end (40%).

To pass the course at least 10/20 for Weekly Assessment and 40/80 for Assignments is required. Grades of 70% and higher (Distinction and High Distinction) are based only on Assignments.

Rationale: The questions each week are on topics to be covered in the assignments, allowing students to build their skills.

Each major assignment correspond to a learning objective for the course: 1. Evaluate the sustainability of IT services and, 2. Prepare a sustainability strategy.

The course rationale is published in a conference paper: Worthington, T. (2012, July). A Green computing professional education course online: Designing and delivering a course in ICT sustainability using Internet and eBooks. In Computer Science & Education (ICCSE), 2012 7th International Conference on (pp. 263-266). IEEE. Presentation notes at: http://www.tomw.net.au/technology/it/green_computing_professional/

Quality Assurance: The course learning objectives are based on the Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA) skills definitions: "Sustainability assessment" and "Sustainability strategy". SFIA is used by the Australian Computer Society (ACS) in accrediting ANU computing degrees. The graduate course this undergraduate version is based on won the Education Category of the ACS Canberra ICT Awards 2010 and a national ACS Gold 2015 award in the ICT Higher Educator category.

Designing an Undergraduate Course on ICT Sustainability: Part 4 - What to Call the Course

In Part 3 I looked at the Learning Objectives for a course in ICT Sustainability. But should the course be called "ICT Sustainability"? The SFIA Foundation (2015) does not use the term "ICT Sustainability", but do use the terms "Sustainability strategy", "Sustainability management", "Sustainability assessment" and "Sustainability engineering".

The European Foundational ICT Body of Knowledge (for the EU by Capgemini Consulting and Ernst & Young, 2015), refers to "Environmental and sustainability issues (Energy Informatics and /or Green IT)". The term "sustainable" is only used with reference to development ("sustainable development") not environmental issues. The "ACM/IEEE CS Computer ScienceCurricula 2013" refers to "green computing" and "Sustainability ... social and environmental impacts of computer use and disposal (e-waste)". 

Based on this I propose to name the course "Green IT: Evaluating and reducing computer energy use, carbon emissions and e-waste".

I then have to come up with a short description of the course:

"Green IT teaches the evaluation and analysis of the energy use, carbon emissions and e-waste from computers and telecommunications in an organization. Students then learn to generate a sustainability strategy for IT, to reduce consumption of energy and materials, helping to reduce carbon emissions."

References

SFIA Foundation. (2015). SFIA 6: The complete reference guide. Retrieved from https://files.civilservicejobs.service.gov.uk/admin/fairs/apptrack/download.cgi?SID=b3duZXI9NTA3MDAwMCZvd25lcnR5cGU9ZmFpciZkb2NfdHlwZT12YWMmZG9jX2lkPTQ3ODk0OSZ2ZXJpZnk9ZTUxZTg1ZWE4OWU2MzE2ZmU1NjUyMTc3ZGIzYzVhZTkmcmVxc2lnPTE0NTk4NDI0ODUtMDIwZTVjMzMxMWUyMWI1NWU2ZDhjODc4N2ZkN2NlMGIwOTAwZDRmYw==

Improving TAFE NSW

A report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG), commissioned by TAFE NSW concludes the institution is uncompetitive and the situation will get worse without changes to reduce costs and improve services. The report is "The NSW Vocational Education and Training market and TAFE NSW's competitive position within it" (BSG, 2015).

BSG point out that while TAFE NSW is Australia's largest
vocational education and training (VET) provider, it is now competing with thousands of private Registered Training Organisations (RTOs). TAFE NSW rates well on the quality of teaching, but lower on job placement and convenience. Also TAFE NSW costs are much higher than RTOs and other TAFEs.

BSG suggests TAFE NSW needs to rationalize its campuses and overlapping on-line courses. The consultants also point out TAFE NSW is not making enough of having campuses in Sydney, a very desirably destination for international students.

This report should be read by all those interested in Australian higher eduction. There are lessons here for universities, not just TAFE.

What Makes A University Different?

Greetings from the Australian National University (ANU) in Canberra, where Professor Brian P. Schmidt AC FAA FRS, ANU Vice Chancellor is consulting staff, students and the community on the future of the university.
The ANU released a draft document "Australian National University: Our Vision" and is conducting a series of consultation sessions.

My suggestion is to "flip" the university to make "ANU 2.0", putting the emphasis on on-line teaching and research, turning it into a truly  global institution.

The VC started by commenting that the legislation governing the university was decades old. The Functions of the University, as set out in the Australian National University ACT (1991), Section 5, are:

(1)  The functions of the University include the following:

(a)  advancing and transmitting knowledge, by undertaking research and teaching of the highest quality;

(b)  encouraging, and providing facilities for, research and postgraduate study, both generally and in relation to subjects of national importance to Australia;

(c)  providing facilities and courses for higher education generally, including education appropriate to professional and other occupations, for students from within Australia and overseas;

(d)  providing facilities and courses at higher education level and other levels in the visual and performing arts, and, in so doing, promoting the highest standards of practice in those fields;

(e)  awarding and conferring degrees, diplomas and certificates in its own right or jointly with other institutions, as determined by the Council;

(f)  providing opportunities for persons, including those who already have post-secondary qualifications, to obtain higher education qualifications;

(g)  engaging in extension activities.

(2)  In the performance of its functions, the University must pay attention to its national and international roles and to the needs of the Australian Capital Territory and the surrounding regions.

From "Functions of the University", Section 5, Australian National University ACT (1991).

The Australian Parliament has given the ANU a broad mission for national and regional development in a world context. But this may need some minor refinement.

The VC made use of an on-poll tool during his presentation, with the audience able to vote on aspects of research and education and the results displayed in real time. As he commented, this is a good technique to use during a lecture to keep students engaged. Such a "Lecture 2.0" technology is an improvement on dull old non-interactive presentations. The VC has previously produced a groundbreaking fully on-line Astrophysics Course, showing the future of university education.

The "Australian National University: Our Vision" at four pages is longer and more detailed document than it needs to be. I suggest it could be trimmed to less than a page. Alsoit needs to be more specific on "research-led" education. Research into how people learn is useful, as is teaching new discoveries from research. However researchers require additional training in how to teach to make them effective educators (Bryant & Richardson, 2015).

The ANU's efforts to consult the staff, students and community in a "blended" way, with face to face forums, computer support in the live events and on-line forums points to the future of the ANU as an online institution. Australian needs such an "ANU 2.0", which has a campus to support its research and education activities which will be primarily on-line. A reasonable goal would be within ten years to have five times as many on-line off-campus students and researchers, as  on campus ones, or about 30,000 on-campus and 150,000 on-line students).

Reference

Bryant, D., & Richardson, A. (2015). To be, or not to be, trained. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, 37(6), 682-688. DOI: 10.1080/1360080X.2015.1102818

Designing an Undergraduate Course on ICT Sustainability: Part 3 - Learning Objectives

In Part 2 I decided to teach the undergraduates in a separate course, making it easier to have different learning objectives and assessment from graduates. But what should the learning objectives be for a course in ICT Sustainability?

The postgraduate course has two leaning outcomes:

1. Evaluate the sustainability of IT services, devices and day-to-day operations of an organisation, including the carbon footprint and e-waste,
   
2. Prepare a sustainability strategy for IT in an organisation, covering both energy and materials use.

These correspond to two of the four SFIA sustainability skills:

• "The evaluation of the sustainability of operational or planned IT services, devices and day-to-day operations such as travel. ..." From Sustainability assessment Skill SUAS (SFIA Foundation, 2015). Emphasis added.
• "The preparation of a sustainability strategy for IT, taking into account any established corporate strategy, to be used as a basis for policies and planning, and covering both consumption and sources of supply of energy and materials. ..." From Sustainability strategy, Skill SUST (SFIA Foundation, 2015). Emphasis added.

The Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) for AQF Level 7 – Bachelor Degree requires:

Skills
Graduates at this level will have well-developed cognitive, technical and communication skills to select and apply methods and technologies to:

• analyse and evaluate information to complete a range of activities 
• analyse, generate and transmit solutions to unpredictable and sometimes complex problems 
• transmit knowledge, skills and ideas to others

Application of knowledge and skills
Graduates at this level will apply knowledge and skills to demonstrate autonomy, well-developed judgement and responsibility:

• in contexts that require self-directed work and learning 

• within broad parameters to provide specialist advice and functions

The Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) for AQF Level 7 – Bachelor Degree requires:

Skills

Graduates at this level will have expert, specialised cognitive and technical skills in a body of knowledge or practice to independently: analyse critically, reflect on and synthesise complex information, problems, concepts and theories research and apply established theories to a body of knowledge or practice interpret and transmit knowledge, skills and ideas to specialist and non-specialist audiences

Application of knowledge and skills

Graduates at this level will apply knowledge and skills to demonstrate autonomy, expert judgement, adaptability and responsibility as a practitioner or learner

The difference is that at level 7 cognitive skills are to be "well-developed" and at Level 9 "expert". At level 7 the student will "analyse and evaluate" information, at level 9  "critically, reflect on and synthesise complex information". to complete a range of activities.

1. Evaluate the sustainability of IT services, devices and day-to-day operations of an organisation, including the carbon footprint and e-waste,
   
2. Prepare a sustainability strategy for IT in an organisation, covering both energy and materials use.

References

SFIA Foundation. (2015). SFIA 6: The complete reference guide. Retrieved from https://files.civilservicejobs.service.gov.uk/admin/fairs/apptrack/download.cgi?SID=b3duZXI9NTA3MDAwMCZvd25lcnR5cGU9ZmFpciZkb2NfdHlwZT12YWMmZG9jX2lkPTQ3ODk0OSZ2ZXJpZnk9ZTUxZTg1ZWE4OWU2MzE2ZmU1NjUyMTc3ZGIzYzVhZTkmcmVxc2lnPTE0NTk4NDI0ODUtMDIwZTVjMzMxMWUyMWI1NWU2ZDhjODc4N2ZkN2NlMGIwOTAwZDRmYw== 

Designing an Undergraduate Course on ICT Sustainability: Part 2 - Separate from postgraduates

This is the second of a series of posts on producing an undergraduate version of an on-line masters course on green ICT. In part 1 I looked at the genesis of the masters course in 2008. I had assumed that I could simply change the postgraduate assessment criteria to produce an undergraduate version to be co-taught. That is, the postgraduate students would be in the same class as undergraduates, using the same course materials, but doing more advanced versions of the assessment tasks. However, the more I looked at this option, the harder it got.

As well as having to have separate learning objectives and assessment criteria for the two cohorts of students, there are additional administration processes to deal with co-taught courses. With a face-to-face course this additional administrative work is worthwhile, as then only one series of lectures is needed for all the students. There may also be some education benefit for the students to be mixed, but this can also be a source of frustration.

It occurred to me that there are few advantages in a co-taught course where asynchronous e-learning is used. As there are no live presentations, there are no savings from having to give them just once. Course materials are prerecorded and so can easily be duplicated. With the students separated into two classes it will be much easier to ensure the student gets the correct assessment.

As per the previous post, the Skills Framework for the information Age (SFIA) has four skills related to sustainability in the latest version (SFIA Foundation, Version 6, 2015):

Sustainability strategy SUST

The preparation of a sustainability strategy, taking into account any established corporate strategy, to be used as a basis for policies and planning, and covering both consumption and sources of supply of energy and materials. Evaluation and inclusion, as appropriate, of political, legislative, economic, social and technological factors. Identification of major external standards, practices or schemes to be adopted. Consultation with identified relevant parties, either internal or external. Obtaining agreement to the strategy and the commitment to act upon it.

Level 6

Provides leadership and guidelines on sustainability; leads in the development of a sustainability strategy for IT, encompassing sources of supply, control and measurement of in-house utilisation, procurement of resource-efficient products and services, and legislative factors

Level 5

Contributes to strategy formation by providing in-depth analysis of one or more broad aspects of the organisation’s use of energy and materials, and by recommending elements of the strategy; provides in-depth advice in own area of expertise. Provides analysis of risks arising in the areas covered.

Level 4

Assesses and reports on how different tactical decisions affect organisational sustainability. Evaluates factors and risks (political, legislative, technological, economic, social) that impact on operational processes and strategic direction.

From SFIA Foundation. (p. 32, 2015).

Sustainability management SUMI

The specification, planning and management of changes to assets, systems, processes or practices intended to reduce or constrain consumption and/or disposal of energy or materials, within the context of company strategy and policy, and regulatory and contractual requirements. The evaluation of changes to ensure that planned benefits have been obtained. The specification of remedial and process improvement actions in cases where planned benefits have not been obtained. The identification and planning of alternative sources of supply.

Level 6

Establishes the overall approach to the incorporation of sustainability requirements and factors into the specification and design of systems and services; determines relevant methods and tools to be used to address energy efficiency issues in specification, design and operation.

Level 5

Plans and implements new practices that ensure that sustainability matters are appropriately addressed in specification, design and operation of systems and services. Recommends methods, tools and practices to be used. Establishes organisation-wide practices for the disposal of materials. Sets standards for the conformance of components and services to efficient use of energy and materials.

From SFIA Foundation. (p. 33-34, 2015).

Sustainability assessment SUAS

The evaluation of the sustainability of operational or planned services, devices and day-to-day operations such as travel. The establishment of a model or scheme to track changes in consumption over time and to generate feedback to enable improvements in energy or resource efficiency. The identification of areas requiring attention, and the initiation of actions to change or control the procurement of energy or other resources, so as to improve sustainability.

Level 6

Determines the organisation’s approach to the assessment of sustainability and to the monitoring of the effectiveness of activities intended to cause improvements. Provides overall leadership in assessment activity around the organisation.

Level 5

Leads the introduction and management of measures to assess and report on sustainability and the impact of conservation activities. Ensures that the effectiveness and accuracy of the monitoring actions is kept under review, and that appropriate improvements are made.

Level 4

Assesses, records and reports on utilisation of energy and other resources, showing expertise in a given area such as a class of computing devices, or business travel. Provides advice on the improvement of sustainability in that area of expertise.

From SFIA Foundation. (p. 43, 2015).

Sustainability engineering SUEN

The development and application of appropriate knowledge and methods to assure sustainability in all phases of the life cycle of energy- or materials-consuming systems and services, including maintenance and re-use. These include such things as energy supply risk analysis, specification of guidelines for sustainable procurement of assets and materials, energy efficiency and sustainability factors influencing system design, system design for sustainable operation and use, efficient coding design and adoption of re-use/sharing principles, achieving behaviour change to more sustainable ways of working, and the verification of energy and resource efficiency in operation.

Level 6

Creates models/ develops technical architectures to ensure that new systems and services are designed so as to maximise their positive sustainability impacts and energy and carbon savings for the organisation, including the optimisation in use and recycling of materials and assets. Defines and promulgates best
practices in sustainability. Influences organisation’s recognition of current and upcoming regulatory sustainability and efficiency obligations, national and international standards, and marketplace capabilities. Promotes and advocates for the organisation’s sustainability strategy for use of IT and Digital services including levels of sustainability, and encompassing, amongst other dimensions, travel, energy supply, consumables, waste and office provision, strategies, procurements and processes.

Level 5

Takes overall design responsibility for a project/system, ensuring that sustainability criteria, standards and best practices are adopted at all levels in the project, from the coding, hosting and tools used in building the system to the mechanisms adopted for testing and backing up the system in operation and how the project is run (eg team meetings etc.). Ensures business case options for design address sustainability and energy efficiency impacts.

Level 4

Investigates and recommends components and subsystems that meet sustainability criteria and levels.

From SFIA Foundation. (p. 48, 2015).

The postgraduate course was designed to align to "Sustainability assessment" SUAS and "Sustainability strategy" SUST. However, the course is not tightly aligned to these skills as the course was designed and run first and a copy sent to SFIA Foundation, who then created the sustainability skills. This should allow different skills definitions to be used with minor changes to the course.

For an undergraduate professional course accreditation (ACS, 2016) requires skills to be at least SFIA Level 3:

Autonomy

Works under general direction. Uses discretion in identifying and responding to complex issues and assignments. Usually receives specific instructions and has work reviewed at frequent milestones. Determines when issues should be escalated to a higher level.

Influence

Interacts with and influences colleagues. Has working level contact with customers, suppliers and partners. May supervise others or make decisions which impact the work assigned to individuals or phases of projects.

Complexity

Performs a range of work, sometimes complex and non routine, in a variety of environments. Applies methodical approach to issue definition and resolution.

Business skills

Demonstrates an analytical and systematic approach to issue resolution. Takes the initiative in identifying and negotiating appropriate personal development opportunities. Demonstrates effective communication skills. Contributes fully to the work of teams. Plans, schedules and monitors own work (and that of others where applicable) competently within limited deadlines and according to relevant legislation, standards and procedures. Appreciates the wider business context, and how own role relates to other roles and to the business of the employer or client.

The Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) for AQF Level 7 – Bachelor Degree requires:

Skills

Graduates at this level will have well-developed cognitive, technical and communication skills to select and apply methods and technologies to:

• analyse and evaluate information to complete a range of activities 
• analyse, generate and transmit solutions to unpredictable and sometimes complex problems 
• transmit knowledge, skills and ideas to others

Application of knowledge and skills

Graduates at this level will apply knowledge and skills to demonstrate autonomy, well-developed judgement and responsibility:

• in contexts that require self-directed work and learning 

• within broad parameters to provide specialist advice and functions

Comparing SFIA and AQF

To try and relate the SFIA and AQF views of what a student needs to be able to do I used TagCrowd.com
to create a word frequency tables (tag cloud) of the twenty five most frequent words in each definition.

SFIA

approach (2) assigned (2) business (3) colleagues (1) complex (3) contact (1) demonstrates (2) identifying (2) impact (1) individuals (1) influence (2) issue (4) level (2) monitors (1) negotiating (1) others (2) partners (1) personal (1) receives (1) resolution (2) reviewed (1) role (2) skills (2) uses (1) work (7)

AQF

activities (1) advice (1) analyse (2) application (1) apply (2) autonomy (1) broad (1) cognitive (1) complex (1) demonstrate (1) evaluate (1) graduates (2) information (1) judgement (1) knowledge (3) learning (1) level (2) methods (1) others (1) provide (1) skills (5) specialist (1) transmit (2) unpredictable (1) well-developed (2)

I then looked for words in common between SFIA and AQF:

SFIA Level 3			AQF Level 7
Word	Frequency		Word	Frequency
work	7		skills	5
issue	4		knowledge	3
business	3		analyse	2
complex	3		apply	2
approach	2		graduates	2
assigned	2		level	2
demonstrates	2		transmit	2
identifying	2		well-developed	2
influence	2		activities	1
level	2		advice	1
others	2		application	1
resolution	2		autonomy	1
role	2		broad	1
skills	2		cognitive	1
colleagues	1		complex	1
contact	1		demonstrate	1
impact	1		evaluate	1
individuals	1		information	1
monitors	1		judgement	1
negotiating	1		learning	1
partners	1		methods	1
personal	1		others	1
receives	1		provide	1
reviewed	1		specialist	1
uses	1		unpredictable	1

The words which occur in both definitions and more than once in either are: skills, complex, demonstrates, level, and others. Adding synonyms would likely show more matches. However, one thing is clear, the AQF implies a much higher level of autonomy ("demonstrate autonomy, well-developed judgement and responsibility") than SFIA ("Usually receives specific instructions and has work reviewed at frequent milestones"). SFIA better reflects the real world, where a new graduate is expected to learn the practical aspects of the job under supervision. AQF expects an unrealistic level of autonomy of a new graduate.

References

ACS. (2016). ACCREDITATION MANAGEMENT MANUAL: Application Guidelines – Professional Level and Advance Professional Level Programs. Sydney:Australian Computer Society. Retrieved from: https://www.acs.org.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/24499/ACS-Accreditation-Document-2-Application-Guidelines-V2.0.pdf

SFIA Foundation. (2015). SFIA 6: The complete reference guide. Retrieved from https://files.civilservicejobs.service.gov.uk/admin/fairs/apptrack/download.cgi?SID=b3duZXI9NTA3MDAwMCZvd25lcnR5cGU9ZmFpciZkb2NfdHlwZT12YWMmZG9jX2lkPTQ3ODk0OSZ2ZXJpZnk9ZTUxZTg1ZWE4OWU2MzE2ZmU1NjUyMTc3ZGIzYzVhZTkmcmVxc2lnPTE0NTk4NDI0ODUtMDIwZTVjMzMxMWUyMWI1NWU2ZDhjODc4N2ZkN2NlMGIwOTAwZDRmYw==

Save the Office for Learning and Teaching Petition

The Office for Learning and Teaching (OLT) is an Australian Government body which funds research to improve teaching at universities. The Australian government plans to close the OLT in mid 2016. There was a report "A New National Institute for Learning and Teaching" calling for a new body, based at an Australian university, but this has not progressed. In response Associate Professor Angela Carbone, Monash University has set up a petition "Save the Office for Learning and Teaching" calling on the government to either continue the OLT or proceed with the new center.

While I support work to improve university teaching, OLT has not been very effective at doing that. OLT funds research, whereas what is needed is training. The problem is not that there is a lack of research on how to teach, just a lack of incentive to apply it in universities.

Tick & Flick Vocational Qualification Rort

A media report includes alleges Australian private training providers awarding certificates without carrying out adequate assesment ("Concerns over 'tick and flick' qualification companies 'rorting' RPL government-funded training scheme", ABC News, 16 April 2016). RPL (Recognition of Prior Learning) allows accredited trainers to issue a certificate and charge the student fees (funded by the government VET-FEE-HELP scheme), without the student having done any training. However, there is still supposed to be an assessment of the student's skills, to a level equivalent to that for students who undertake training.

The integrity of Australia's vocational education and training (VET) sector is important to the community. VET involves the expenditure of billions of dollars of public money (with student fees subsidized by government). Also the safety of the public depends on having skilled workers, as the VET sector certifies workers who undertake safety related tasks. If VET assessment is not correctly carried out then the public is at risk.

The VET sector also has potential for an expansion of export of education, alongside university programs. China is planning to spend $15bn on two million redundant workers from state-owned enterprises ("China to shed 1.8m coal and steel jobs", Yuan Yang, 29 February 2016). This includes retraining for workers. Australian RTOs could retrain some of these workers, or train the trainers.

RPL is is a legitimate part of training. The student has to present evidence that they have the required experience and it meets the requirements for the skill being assessed. As an example, I obtained a Certificate IV in Training and Assessment (TAE40110) partly by RPL. The assessor first discussed with me what relevant experience and training I had and then suggested which VET modules would be suitable. I then had to find evidence of each. This required not only documents, but people to attest to what I had done. It was a difficult and time consuming process, not a "tick and flick" exercise. Also I was not able to obtain a whole qualification by RPL, having to also do several training modules and be tested on these.

e-Leanring is Like an Automatic Toaster

E-learning is a like a modern toaster: remove the "e" parts and what you are left with is education as it was 100 years ago.

Recently my electric toaster stopped browning one side of the bread. This is the "bagel" function on advanced toasters, but I want toast. When the toaster tripped the earth leakage detector, shutting off power to my apartment, it was time for a new one. But what to do with the old toaster?

Canberra has no toaster recycling service and I did not want it to end up in landfill. So I disassembled the toaster (after ensuring it was unplugged), putting the metal and plastic parts in the household recycling bin. What I noticed was than under the large sleek modern stainless steel outer shell was a lot of empty space and a small old fashioned looking toaster, with a small electronic circuit board attached.

The toaster mechanism was an assemblage of folded steel, springs, wire and a large brass knife-switch, which would have been familiar to someone one hundred years ago. The circuit board adds a timer to the toaster to make it "automatic". Remove the timer, outer case, lights and buttons and you have an old fashioned toaster. Similarly, a modern car, without the streamlined panels and computer controls, is a steel chassis with an internal combustion engine (or electric engine) and would be familiar to a mechanic from 100 years ago.

This got me thinking that e-learning is a like a modern toaster: remove the "e" parts and what you are left with is education as it was 100 years ago. Education still consists of first working out what the student needs to know, then how to test it and then how to teach it. E-books can replace books, on-line tests replace paper tests, videos replace lectures, but underneath all this window dressing are the same basic educational techniques.

Chinese Innovation Precinct for Sydney

The University of New South wales (UNSW) has announced that the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology will back a "Torch Innovation Precinct" at UNSW in Sydney. This will be the first Torch High Technology Industry Development Center, under the Chinese Government's Torch program, outside China. The Torch program aims to get new, high value businesses going within three years (Segal, p. 32, 2003). It will be interesting to see if the rapid Torch approach can be applied within an Australian regulatory environment.

"... Torch Center seeks to achieve four major objectives by cooperating with other pertinent authorities at central and local levels.

• To perfect the support system for high-tech industrialization, focusing on promoting indigenous innovation;
• To foster the growth of tech-based SMEs and boost technological innovation in enterprises;
• To promote the development of innovation clusters and advance upgrades in high technologies;
• To mobilize innovative resources including capital, technology and talent to reinforce support for innovation and industrialization.

To realize the above goals, we will try to carry out nine pillar tasks:

• To create favorable high-tech industrialization systems and mechanisms propitious to indigenous innovation;
• To boost the capacity for independent innovation in tech-based companies;
• To strengthen the construction of high-tech industrial bases;
• To speed up the establishment of the fostering and tutorial system of technology companies;
• To intensify the construction of a service system for innovation clusters;
• To further improve the financing and investment system for high-tech industrialization;
• To promote technology transfers and business-research cooperation;
• To encourage the globalization of high-tech industries."
  
  From Mission: Torch High Technology Industry Development Center Program, Ministry of Science and Technology, China.

Reference

Segal, A. (2003). Digital dragon: high-technology enterprises in China. Cornell University Press.

Designing an Undergraduate Course on ICT Sustainability: Part 1

This is the first of a series of posts on producing an undergraduate version of an on-line masters course on green ICT which as been running at higher education institution in Australia and North America since 2009. The main issues are how to provide the undergraduate students with more scaffolding and how to ensure the course will scale for more students, without requiring excessive instructor hours. A less difficult task is to adjust the learning outcomes and assessment tasks for lower level students.

In 2008, I was commissioned by the Australian Computer Society (ACS) to design a one semester on-line course on "Green Technology Strategies", as part of a postgraduate program for ICT professionals.  The course has been revised several times (the original version is "Green Technology Strategies,  2009 and latest "ICT Sustainability: Assessment and Strategies for a Low Carbon Future", 2016) and has been run at universities in Australia and North America for the last eight years. So I thought it was time to try an undergraduate version. As part of designing the original course I produced a series of posts from 23 October 2008 (about 20 in all). These then formed the basis for a conference paper.

Adapting a masters course for undergraduates may seem the reverse of normal practice, where the undergraduate version is developed first and then adapted, with more challenging assessment, for postgraduates. However, it should be simpler to start with more advanced students and with that experience see how it could be offered to undergraduates.

The first post graduate students started the course in February 2009 at the ACS Virtual College then masters students at the Australian National University (from July 2009), Open Universities Australia (from 2010) and Athabasca University (Canada).

Mary Pringle produced a draft of a self paced version for Athabasca University in 2014.  This self paced version does not appear to have been used at Athabasca, but I did adapt the on-line quizzes for my masters students. This is part of what may make an undergraduate version of the course feasible.

Quizzes

Weekly quizzes were used at ANU in 2015, but not for credit. The results from the quizzes correlated reasonably well with formal assessment, but many students did not do the quiz as it was not for assessment. This year the quizzes are 10% of the assessment (1% per week, with the best 10 out of 12 weeks counting). This 1% is sufficient to have the students undertake the quiz.

To make room for quizzes in the assessment scheme, in 2016 the marks for forum discussions were reduced from 20% to 10% (1% per week, with the best 10 out of 12 weeks counting). Also to aid student learning, and reduce the marking burden on instructors, the forum discussion was made peer assessed. Each student has to post between four and six short items each week. Students rate each others posts 0, 1, or 2, the learning management system (LMS) calculates an average for each student which the instructor checks. This has worked well so far.

The majority of the assessment is by two major assignments. To provide more scaffolding, these were each divided into two parts for 2016. The student has to first briefly write what they propose to do and after feedback, do it. Assignments are individual and instructor marked, which, even using a rubric, is a time consuming task. It may be feasible to have group projects, or a buddy system, where students provide each other with feedback before the final assignment is submitted. As well as reducing instructor time, this could be a useful learning experience. However, this then takes more organization and dispute settlement, by the instructor.

Learning Outcomes and Assessment Alignment

The easiest part of this exercise should be adapting learning outcomes and aligned assessment items from masters to undergraduate level. The green IT course was originally designed to align with Level 5 of the Skills Framework for the information Age (SFIA). When written in 2008, there were no green IT skills in SFIA, so it was aligned with "Strategy & planning" and "Procurement & management support". A copy of the course was sent to the SFIA Foundation with a request for green skills and the course was modified when SFIA added these green skills. The SFIA skills descriptions were used for the learning objectives and these then translated into assignment task descriptions, to ensure alignment.

The course was designed for SFIA Level 5, as that corresponds to a postgraduate masters level program (ACS, p. 14, 2016), corresponding to in the Australian Qualifications Framework AQF Level 9 (Masters Degree). For an undergraduate program, this needs to be changed to SFIA Level 3 (ACS, p. 40, 2016), corresponding to, AQF Level 7 (Bachelor Degree). The ACS accreditation requirements are used for this mapping, as ACS accredit higher education programs in the ICT field in Australia and are the Australian signatory to the 2007 Seoul Accord, which provides mutual-recognition of computing qualifications between the UK, Canada, Japan, Korea and the USA (Seoul Accord Secretariat, 2011). The SFIA Levels should therefore correspond to professional standards in other countries.

The exercise is therefore to change Learning Objectives and assessment exercises from SFIA Level 5 (AQF Level 9) to SFIA Level 3 (AQF Level 7). One difficulty is that Sustainability assessment (SUAS) is only defined at levels  4 and 5, and Sustainability strategy (Skill SUST,) at levels 4, 5 and 6 in SFIA. SUST level 4 was added last year for SFIA Version 6 (SFIA Foundation, 2015), but there are no level 3 Sustainability skills.

One approach would be to conclude that the sustainability skills are too advanced for undergraduates and not attempt to teach them. A more productive approach would be to use the terminology from the generic level 3 description and use this to make draft sustainability skills at that level, ask the SFIA Foundation to add them and use the draft in the interim.

A less complex approach is to use the generic description of each skill along with the generic description of the level. This last approach is something which the SFIA Foundation might like to consider, so as to make the framework less complex and documents about one quarter the size.

References

ACS. (2016). ACCREDITATION MANAGEMENT MANUAL: Application Guidelines – Professional Level and Advance Professional Level Programs. Sydney:Australian Computer Society. Retrieved from: https://www.acs.org.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/24499/ACS-Accreditation-Document-2-Application-Guidelines-V2.0.pdf

Seoul Accord Secretariat, (2011). Seoul Accord. Retrieved from http://www.seoulaccord.org/accord/contents.jsp?menu_l=144

SFIA Foundation. (2015). SFIA 6: The complete reference guide. Retrieved from https://files.civilservicejobs.service.gov.uk/admin/fairs/apptrack/download.cgi?SID=b3duZXI9NTA3MDAwMCZvd25lcnR5cGU9ZmFpciZkb2NfdHlwZT12YWMmZG9jX2lkPTQ3ODk0OSZ2ZXJpZnk9ZTUxZTg1ZWE4OWU2MzE2ZmU1NjUyMTc3ZGIzYzVhZTkmcmVxc2lnPTE0NTk4NDI0ODUtMDIwZTVjMzMxMWUyMWI1NWU2ZDhjODc4N2ZkN2NlMGIwOTAwZDRmYw== 

We'll Always Have Paris? Banks and Climate Change

Greetings from the Australian National University in Canberra, where Dr Megan Bowman from King’s College London is speaking on "What does the Paris Agreement mean for private finance actors in the global response to climate change?".

Dr Bowman pointed out that the Paris Agreement on climate change has provision for non-nation state actors, which can be cities, regions and companies.

One difficulty I have is that the Paris agreement does not contain sufficient actions to achieve the stated aim of a 2 degree increase in temperature. Even these commitments by nation states are not binding, in that there is no penalty for not achieving what they promised. The money to help developing nations are also not committed. The money from the private sector is not firm.

As Dr Bowman pointed out probate companies will act on climate change when it is in their own self interest, in particular banks, insurance companies and pension funds. However, I suggest that nation states will also only act in their own interest.  So a better approach would be to craft an international agreement where it is in the interest of each individual party to act.

As an example, rather than developed nations "give" money to developing nations, it should be recognized that these are investments which the developed nations expect to receive a return on. It would be better if this self interest was explicitly recognized, rather than being hidden, as it is at present. This approach might use some aspects of Islamic banking: rather than giving a soft loan to a developing nation, the developed nation would be come a partner in the investment.

The question then is how to get nation states to act in the public interest, or in the case of companies, to act in the long term interests of their owners, not in the interests of the politicians and managers in power for a brief time. Given that the Panama Papers show government officials funneling funds to offshore accounts and companies acting dishonestly in the short term, it is difficult to see how any world order can make them act ethically in the long term. Unless there is something like a carbon market, which converts public interest into individual private interest, it is difficult to see how there could be changed.

Canberra Code Cadets

Greetings from Unconference Canberra, where the Code Cadets students from Canberra Grammar School showed a video of their tour of silicon valley. The video was fun, but what was more impressive was the way the students were able to talk about what the saw on the trip to hi-tech companies.

Teach Coding at School Workshop in Canberra

The Australian Computer Society is hosting a "Do you want to teach Coding at your school?" workshop in Canberra, with "Code Club Australia", 19th May 2016.

"Code Club Australia is a nationwide network of free, volunteer-led, coding clubs for children. We create projects for our volunteers to teach at coding clubs. The projects we make teach children how to program by showing them how to make computer games, animations and websites. 

Code Club is about fun, creativity, and learning through exploring. It’s important that the children enjoy their time at Code Club. They should understand that they’re in charge of the computer, and can (and should) make it to what they want, not the other way around.

Other benefits of Code Club, such as learning about computational thinking, or developing expertise in coding, are secondary to these two objectives."