Fragmentary Observations from the Outside About How FutureLearn’s Developing

I’m outside the loop on all matters FutureLearn related, so I’m interested to see what I can pick up from fragments that do make it onto the web.

So for example, from a presentation by Hugh Davis to the M25 Libraries conference April 2013 about Southampton’s involvement with FutureLearn, Collaboration, MOOCs and Futurelearn, we can learn a little bit about the FutureLearn pitch to partners:

More interesting, I think, is this description of what some of the FutureLearn MOOCs might look like:

“miniMOOCs” containing 2 to 3 learning units, each 2-6 hours of study time, broken into 2-3 self-contained learning blocks (which suggests 1-2 hours per block).

So I wonder, based on the learning block sequence diagram, and the following learning design elements slide:

Will the platform be encouraging a learning design approach, with typed sequences of blocks that offer templated guides as to how to structure that sort of design element? Or is that way off the mark. (Given the platform is currently being built, (using Go Free Range for at least some of the development, I believe), it’s tricky to see how this is being played out, given courses and platform both need to ready at the same time, and it’s hard to write courses using platform primitives if the platform isn’t ready yet?)

Looking elsewhere (or at least, via @patlockley), we may be able to get a few more clues about the line partners are taking towards FutureLearn course development:

Hmm, I wonder – would it be worth subscribing to jobs feeds from the partner universities over the next few months to see whether any other FutureLearn related posts are being opened up? And does this also provide an opportunity for the currently rather sparse FutureLearn website to start promoting those jobs ads? And come to that, how come the jobs that have been appointed at FutureLearn weren’t advertised on the FutureLearn website…?

Because jobs have been appointed, as LinkedIn suggests… Here’s who’s declaring an association with the company at the moment:

We can also do a slightly broader search:

There’s also a recently closed job ad with a role that doesn’t yet appear on anyone’s byline:

So what roles have been filled according to this source?

• CEO
• Head of Content
• Head of UK Education & HE Partnerships
• CTO
• Senior Project Manager / Scrum Master (Contract)
• Agile Digital Project Manager
• Product manager
• Marketing and Communications Assistant
• Interim HR Consultant
• Learning Technologist
• Commercial and Operations Director for Launch
• Global Digital Marketing Strategist

Here’s another one, Academic Lead [src].

By the by, I also notice that the OU VC, Martin Bean, has just been appointed as a director of FutureLearn Ltd.

Exciting times, eh…?!;-)

Related: OU Launches FutureLearn Ltd

PS v loosely related (?!) – (Draft) Coursera data export policy

PPS I also noticed this the other day – OpenupEd (press release) an EADTU co-ordinated portal that looks like a clearing house for OER powered MOOCs from universities across the EU (particularly open universities, including, I think, The OU…;-)