Learning Tech 2018 Exhibtion - what I learnt.

Learning Tech 2018 Exhibtion - what I learnt.

 

#LTUK18 

On 31st January and 1st February, I had the pleasure of browsing, engaging, watching, listening, tasting, touching and generally having a good mooch around Europe's leading workplace learning exhibition. 

Here are my thoughts on some of the stand out moments for me (in no particular order):

At the Docedo seminar, Claudio talked about AI in L&D. He explained that in the future L&D professionals would not train humans, instead L&D professionals will train algorithms - and it is those algorithms that will train humans. An interesting point he made was that currently the car depreciates in value over time, whereas in the future cars with AI will appreciate because as they get older they will have learnt more and will therefore be more valuable. He also quoted thinkers on the subject of AI that believe there will be computers more powerful than the human brain and that AI will truely happen all by 2025. I spoke to Jonathon about the customisable nature and social interaction available in their LMS. I also talked to Oliver about motorcycles very briefly, of course. Docebo also got my vote for best free pen in show: it had a light on one end and a tablet stylus on the other. From now on I’ll have no problem at all writing on my iPad screen during a power cut.

Most L&D professionals will subscribe to the importance of reflection to overcome the natural knowledge loss associated with the ‘forgetting curve’. I’d advise any learner to frequently revisit what they’ve learned, make note of the kinds of topics they are struggling to recall and use that as a focus for continued study. All conscientious learners do that, right? Well, Elephants Don’t Forget is a piece of software you can add on to the end of any eLearning experience that automates that cycle of reflection and development. Big thanks to Ben Scales for explaining it to me and listening to our questions.

It was fascinating to meet the person accredited within developing the 702010 model, Charles Jennings. During an informal meeting I caught a glimpse of the scale, influence and global reach of the initiative. It is fascinating to see one person set off on a quest which has grown to such levels.

I watched a seminar on the development and capabilities of Adobe Captivate Prime. Essential the training provide can upload a catalogue of videos designed to deliver learning, the Adobe AI will transcript the audio, translate it to a choice of languages and make that transcript searchable. The learner can search for a key word or phrase, jump to the relevant part of the video then isolate the chosen section of video and save it as part of a personal playlist. Very neat.

Recently we've been using Articulate Rise in our online Level 5 HRM programme so a visit to the Articulate 360 stand was in order. The 360 package offers a subscriber several apps including a content library (cl) and screen casting (peek). Very easy to use and slick from the learner’s point of view. Now I know more about the rest of the package I can wait to find uses for it to exercise my creative streak and, more importantly, improve the learner experience.

With its vibrant comic book stall branding the LMS provider Thinqi came across as really well thought out - and it looked great. I had the pleasure of listening to DPGs Systems Project Manager and general knower of all things systems, Laura Hughes, ask tech questions to the Thinqi representative, Nick. Nick did a fantastic job, actively listening to Laura, paraphrasing her questions and comments to affirm everyone was on the same wavelength. Nick's approach alone left me with the impression that Thinqi would be the type of people I’d be more than happy to work with

Whilst not my skill set and nothing to do with my role, I couldn’t leave without just one quick go on a virtual reality system. It was my first time on VR and you’ll be pleased to know that I can now fix nuclear reactors. Thanks go to MakeReal for ...er ... making it real

Along the way I caught up with our old friend Mike Collins and Julie and I finally got to meet Martin Couzins having only ever engaged with him virtually up to that point.

On Tuesday evening I went to the 'unveiling' of Towards Maturity's 'The Transofrmation Curve' Learning Benchmark Report which strives to explore how effective learning innovation influences business impact.

Andy Hullen's presentation was one of if not the best presentations I saw. His seminar was called 'If you build it, they won't come: how can we make self-directed learning successful?'. This is a subject I take a lot of interest in: an organisation can produce the most glorious eLearning programme in the universe but if the learning doesn't use it, it isn't worth the paper it isn't written on.

A couple of people asked me about what stood out most for me at the show. Above were some of the highlights not to mention that I had such an enjoyable time spent with DPG colleagues past and present. But overall, I’m going to say that the thing that stood out for me was that it was so interesting to see so much interest in technology in learning.

Refreshing, reassuring, eye-opening, entertaining and valuable. Book me in for next year.

I tweeted many times over the two days with photos of seminars and comments on the experience. Feel free to have a look @Gary_DPG

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Gary is The Professional Development Community Manager

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Comments

  • Enjoyed reading your blog Gary!  Yes there is definitley an increased interst in technology in learning, which is great to see :)

  • I must agree Gary that the interest on technology for learning seems to have doubled over the recent years. Although technology can be quite daughnting it can also be very exciting and interactive not only for learners externally but internally too.

    I can't wait to see what the future holds! 

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