Roderick C. Sims

Dr. Rod Sims is Principal Consulant with Knowledgecraft, an independent organisation specialising in design and implementations strategies for online teaching and learning, and Adjunct Professor with Capella University where he teaches and supervises PhD students in the field of Instructional Design for Online Learning.

Rod Sims has a distinguished career spanning over 30 years in the computer and education sectors, with additional commercial experience in mainframe and PC systems, operating systems, on-line databases and application software. Since 1979 he has worked exclusively with educational technology, specialising in the design and development of interactive training and educational resources, especially e-learning environments.

As one of the consultants supporting the implementation of Control Data's PLATO system in the 1980s, Rod was responsible for customer training, product installation and sales support. In addition, Rod designed and developed a range of interactive products using complex authoring tools for business and industry including Fujitsu Australia, the Commonwealth Bank, NSW State Rail and Colonial State Bank.

Over the past 18 years, Rod has held senior academic posts at the University of Technology Sydney, Southern Cross University and Deakin University. In these positions he managed programs specialising in interactive multimedia, instructional design, courseware development and strategies for effective interactive learning. Rod has also practiced and taught computer programming and systems analysis. More recently Dr Sims held the role of Academic Director with QANTM Education, providing academic leadership in the accreditation of higher education programs.

As a researcher Rod has published extensively in the field of computers, teaching and learning and is a regular keynote and invited presenter at Australian and International conferences which specialise in interactive online technologies for education and training. His current research is addressing new paradigms for the design of online learning environments.

Rod Sims is a Fellow of the Australian Computer Society (ACS), a Fellow and Past-President of the Australian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education (ASCILITE) and Past-President of the Division of Learning and Performance Environments (DLPE) within the Association for Educational and Communications Technology (AECT). He was convenor of the 1992 and 2000 ASCILITE Conferences and is Executive Vice-President of the International Board for Standards in Training, Performance and Instruction (IBSTPI).

• Massively Multi-Learner Online Environments
• Emergent and Multidisciplinary Instructional Design
• Collaboration and Interaction for Meaningful and Engaging Learning

• Exceutive Vice-President
• Online Learner
• Certification
• Workshops

• Sims, R. & Bovard, B. (in press). Using elaborations of online presence to foster critical thinking and reflection, in M. Spector (Ed) Finding Your Online Voice: Stories Told By Experienced Online Educators. Lawrence Erlbaum.
• Sims, R. & Hedberg, J. (in press). Encounter theory: A model to enhancing online communication, interaction and engagement, in C. Jawah (Ed) Interactions in Online Education: Implications for Theory and Practice. London, UK: Routledge Education.
• Sims, R. (in press). Learner emancipation: Do we really need instructional design? Journal of Learning Design. (Invited Submission)
• Irlbeck, S., Kays, E., Jones, D. & Sims, R. (in press). The Pheonix Rising: Emergent Models of Instructional Design. Distance Education, 27(2).
• Two invited "Expert Edge" contributions included in Morrison, G.R., Ross, S.M. & Kemp, J.E. (2004) Designing Effective Instruction. 4th Edition. Hoboken NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
• Sharing Goes beyond Sharing One's Toys (R. Sims & D. Jones, pp 352-354) The Recipe for Success requires the Right Mix (R. Sims, pp 375-377)
• Sims, R. (2004). Invited Commentary in T. Anderson & D. Whitelock, The Educational Semantic Web: Visioning and Practicing the Future of Education: Journal of Interactive Media in Education, 2004 (1), Special Issue on the Educational Semantic Web. Available: http://www-jime.open.ac.uk/2004/1/
• Sims, R. & Bovard, B. (2004). Interacting with online learners: How new elaborations of online presence can foster critical thinking and reflection. In R, Atkinson, C. McBeath, D. Jonas-Dwyer & R. Phillips (Eds), Beyond the Comfort Zone: Proceedings of the 21st ASCILITE Conference (pp 841-850). Perth, 5-8 December. http://www.ascilite.org.au/conferences/perth04/procs/sims.html .
• Sims, R. (2004). 21 Years of Educational Multimedia - Where Have We Got To, and Where Should We Go? Proceedings of Ed-Media 2004. World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia and Telecommunications. Lugano, Switzerland; June 22-26, 2004; Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE). [Invited Paper]
• Sims, R. (2003). Interactivity and feedback as determinants of engagement and meaning in e-learning environments, in S. Naidu (Ed) Learning & Teaching With Technology: Principles and Practices. London: Kogan Page.
• Sims, R. (2003) Promises of interactivity: Aligning learner perceptions and expectations with strategies for open and flexible learning. Distance Education, 24(1), 87-103.
• Sims, R. & Jones, D. (2003). Where practice informs theory: Reshaping instructional design for academic communities of practice in online teaching and learning. Information Technology, Education and Society, 4(1), 3-20.
• Sims, R., Dobbs, G. & Hand, T. (2002). Enhancing quality in online learning: Scaffolding design and planning through proactive evaluation. Distance Education, 23(2). 135-148.
• Peat, M., Franklin, S. Lewis, A. & Sims, R. (2002). Learning Human Biology: student views on the usefulness of IT materials in an integrated curriculum. Australian Journal of Educational Technology, 18(2), 255-274.
• Hedberg, J. & Sims, R. (2001). Speculations on design team interactions. Journal of Interactive Learning Research, 12(2/3), 189-204.
• Sims, R. (2000). An interactive conundrum: Constructs of interactivity and learning theory. Australian Journal of Educational Technology, 16(1), 45-57.
• Sims, R. (2000). On-line Alchemy: Preventing Gold Being Turned Into Lead. Australian Journal of Advanced Nursing, 18(1), 22.
• Sims, R., O'Reilly, M. & Sawkins, S. (Eds) (2000). Learning to Choose : Choosing to Learn. Proceedings of the 17th Annual ASCILITE Conference. Lismore, NSW: Southern Cross University Press. (ISBN 1 86384 470 8)
• Sims, R., O'Reilly, M. & Sawkins, S. (Eds) (2000). Learning to Choose : Choosing to Learn (Short Papers and Works in Progress). Lismore, NSW: Southern Cross University Press. (ISBN 1 86384 473 2)
• Sims, R. (1999). Interactivity on stage: Strategies for learner-designer communication. Australian Journal of Educational Technology, 15(3), 257-272.
• Sims, R. (1999). Online Learning: Leading or Misleading? Australian Journal of Advanced Nursing, 16(3), 31.
• Sims, R. (1999). Beyond interactivity. Australian Journal of Advanced Nursing, 16(2), 24.
• Sims, R. (1998). Technology determinism or educational effectiveness? Australian Journal of Advanced Nursing, 16(1), 21.
• Sims, R. (1998). Collaborative research - can technology help? Australian Journal of Advanced Nursing, 15(4), 20.
• Sims, R. (1997a). Interactive learning as an "emerging" technology: A reassessment of interactive and instructional design strategies. Australian Journal of Educational Technology, 13(1), 68-84.
• Sims, R. (1997b). Interactivity: A Forgotten Art? Computers in Human Behavior, 13(2), 157-180.
• Sims, R. (1997c). Move on Nostradamus: There's a New Age Approaching. New Zealand Journal of Applied Computing and Information Technology, 1(1), 105-109.
• Sims, R. (1993). Computer Based Training - an Australian Perspective. Educational Technology, 33(9), 15-23.
• Chia, W., Pennell, R. & Sims, R. (Eds) (1992). A Future Promised. Proceedings of the 1992 Conference of the Australian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education. Sydney: ASCILITE.
• Sims, R. (1988). Futures for computer-based training: Developing the learner computer interface. Australian Journal of Educational Technology, 4(2), 123-136.
• Farrow, M. & Sims, R. (1987). Computer-Assisted Learning in Occupational Therapy. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 34(2), 53-58.