Some quick thoughts from this week's Learning Technologies Conference at ExCel London.
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| Photo by Iswanto Arif on Unsplash |
I heard several people say that they felt there wasn't much new, that there seemed to be a lot of 'the same sort of thing' as last year (and the year before that etc).
If it's true that, as a profession, we tend to leap ahead in steps, always jumping forward to the next, new, shiny thing/theory/approach/tool, and that we're not currently able to do that because we can't see anything like that ahead, then I'd suggest that this is a good thing.
If we have plateaued, then this is surely the time to adopt a more pioneer attitude. Let's colonise that plateau, own it, build on it, create a community out of all the other homesteaders. Let's talk to and learn from each other, borrow from and lend back to them our collective knowledge, skill and tools, and then support all of that with an infrastructure that encourages and allows our shared space to be a better, more collaborative, productive and joyful place to live and work.
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That was quick, Niall! I was only at the conference on day 2 and heard poor feedback on the opening plenary on day 1 but great feedback on the same on day 2, though I felt Daniel needed to bridge the gap between talking about education and teaching, towards adult and workplace learning. AI seemed to be covered a lot but then it's moving forward at a rate. The session I went to on LMSs was comprehensive in the experiences that were shared, but would not have been of much use to someone who's already doing all this, so it is horses for courses. I also heard someone say the overall conference seemed to be 'bitty', with less obvious themes coming through. I don't suppose it helped having the talks over different floors and in a different place from the food, with no real 'lobby' like in Olympia where everyone meets up.
ReplyDeleteWhat did you think of the exhibition? On the eLN stand on day 1 I was surprised (maybe I shouldn't be) by how many people are just starting their going digital journey. I wonder, where will all the talent come from to deliver on this? Will it be via conversion of F2F people or developing new skills? Or will people be poaching talent from competitors? I was also surprised how many people starting out really don't understand what's involved. It's something we're thinking about as the eLN board and will perhaps do a webinar on for new members.
Hi Joan, thanks for commenting. I think that 'bitty' maybe reflected the organisers' desire to fill up the new space with content (an old L&D tendency). I was fortunate to be chairing two sessions on two days which complemented each other, albeit in different streams. My job to help the attendees join the dots here, I assumed. To your comment about organisations only now setting out on their digital journey, that supports my point that maybe we need to pause, let others catch up, offer support and experience to help them find and/or grow the talent required. If we keep leaping ahead, they'll never catch up. Hope to see you at an eLN meeting soon.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure we can all get to the same place, Niall, but I definitely support the idea of offering support and experience. Have I asked if you'd consider mentoring on behalf of the eLN? Our first event will be on 29th March in London, the LT Awards Showcase, where winners present their case studies and the learning that goes with it. We'll be opening it up for bookings soon - hope to see you there!
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