Stephen Downes
Stephen Downes | |
---|---|
Downes in 2009 | |
Born | |
Alma mater | |
Occupations |
|
Stephen Downes (born April 6, 1959) is a Canadian philosopher and commentator in the fields of online learning and new media. He has explored and promoted the educational use of computer and online technologies since 1995.[1] He gave the 2004 Buntine Oration[2] and was a presenter at the February 2007 Online Connectivism Conference.[3] In 2008, Downes and George Siemens designed and taught an online, open course reported as a "landmark in the small but growing push toward 'open teaching'"[4] - widely considered the first massive open online course (MOOC).
Born in Montreal, Quebec, Downes lived and worked across Canada before joining the National Research Council of Canada as a senior researcher in November 2001. Currently, he is a researcher at the NRC's Digital Technologies Research Centre in Ottawa.[5]
Downes was the winner of the Edublog Award for Best Individual Blog in 2005 for his blog OLDaily.[6] He is Editor at Large of the International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning.[7]
Downes ran for Mayor of Brandon in 1995, when he was working at the Assiniboine Community College. A member of the New Democratic Party, he ran on a platform to the left of incumbent mayor Rick Borotsik.[8]
Notes
[edit]- ^ Kinney, Duncan (September 2010). "An Open Education Primer: What you need to know about the future of post-secondary education". Unlimited Magazine. Retrieved 2014-07-12.
- ^ Downes, S. (2004). "Buntine Oration: Learning Objects" (PDF). International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning. 1 (11): 3–14. ISSN 1550-6908.
- ^ University of Manitoba: Learning Technologies Centre Archived 2007-03-02 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Parry, Marc (August 29, 2010). "Online, Bigger Classes May Be Better Classes". Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved 2010-09-02.
- ^ "NRC Experts and Staff: Stephen Downes". National Research Council of Canada. April 16, 2003. Archived from the original on September 7, 2012. Retrieved 2010-09-02.
- ^ "2005 Edublog Awards".
- ^ International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning Editorial Board Retrieved on 2010-09-02.
- ^ Bud Robertson, "Election-Profile-Brandon", Winnipeg Free Press, 1 October 1995, A1.