Resumé and thesis
Download my resumé (pdf, 860 KB)
Download my thesis (pdf, 69.95 MB)
I am an Assistant Professor in Teacher Education at the University of Canberra, where I teach Enhanced Learning in Professional Contexts and Learning with Technology. I give conference and seminar presentations and workshops on social networking, Web 2.0, the ‘Net Generation,’ and how to use online tools and technologies in education. My professional networks include Education.au, Education Network Australia (EdNA), Mission Australia’s Learning Unlimited, The Learning Federation, the Department of Education and Children’s Services (SA), Adult Learning Australia, the Association for Academic Language and Learning, the National Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services, the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA) and, of course, universities and schools Australia-wide.
Podcasting
I have won four awards for my SkillSoup podcasting project
- an Australian Learning and Teaching Council (ALTC, formerly known as the Carrick Institute) Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning (2008)
- Fordham University’s award for Best Educational Podcast 2007 (Higher Education Category),
- The ANU’s award for staff excellence for Innovation in IT Application on Campus (2007), and
- The ANU Vice-Chancellor’s Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning (2008).
I was interviewed for Podcast for Teachers in Episode 98 about SkillSoup and the Award for Best Educational Podcast (Higher Education Category), 2007. Have a listen (about 22 minutes in) if you want to hear more about what drives the SkillSoup project.
I was also interviewed by Kerry Johnson from E-Learning Insights on the same topic.
Anthropology
Download my PhD thesis (pdf, 75 MB)
My PhD in social anthropology has proved invaluable in my acting as a ‘cultural translator’ in the social contexts of the new educational technologies, and this is where I get my edge for interpreting between the innovators, the ‘early adopters’ and the ‘rest’ of us! In my work as an educational consultant, I draw on my extensive anthropological fieldwork training and expertise, cultural insights, and ethnographic sensibilities, to determine how web tools are being used by online communities and then determining how those tools can be most effectively used in the educational context. My background as an anthropologists also explains why MeganPoore.com focuses on the more social aspects of education and how they link in with conversations about the politics, economics and technologies of education.
Online educational design
I have worked extensively in online educational design — in particular the integration of ICT into teaching and learning. I collaborate closely with clients to determine what it is that they want to achieve in online education and then help them get there using the right technological tools for the job. I also introduce educators to the range of tools available to them, and encourage them to think about how they might use those tools to enhance their teaching.
Academic skills advising
As an academic skills adviser at the ANU, 2004 – 2007, I worked with students on all elements of their learning at university: essay writing, time management, thesis development, research strategies, argument, use of evidence, focus, reasoning … you name it! I even managed to build bit of a reputation for educational podcasting with my SkillSoup project at the ANU. I also conceptualised and co-ordinated the highly successful Learning Futures Symposium, a nation-wide educational ‘unconference’ that brought together both schools and higher ed people to discuss the future of education in a Web 2.0 world.
