The Rise of Learner Experience was the theme for the UK’s first Innovate EdTech conference and my first ELT event. The day was made up of engaging talks, workshops and seminars on new and innovative uses of technology in education. It was also an opportunity for the ELT and wider Educational Technology communities to meet, and to share ideas and best practice for embracing digital.
As a new member of the Cambridge University Press team, I was keen for us to immerse ourselves and demonstrate the variety of ways we are leading on conversations around Educational Technology. After attending several great talks, playing on a human-sized mobile phone, and getting my hands on some virtual reality glasses, I took a break to reflect on the highlights of the day and my key take-outs.
Three things I learnt from the EdTech Conference:
Virtual Reality is exciting, not frightening
Virtual reality (VR) is becoming increasingly prevalent in a range of fields, including medicine, entertainment and language teaching. However, 28% of you responded to my Twitter poll saying that VR in the classroom is scary. Fear not friends, 360-degree video has significant potential but designing for immersion means designing for context, interaction and experience. Cambridge Author, Paul Driver, walked us through the implications and the new skillset required to best take advantage of the affordances of VR.
EdTech can focus on teachers too
Typically, EdTech is positioned toward students: courses, apps and other tools to help learners work around chosen topics. However, there is plenty of opportunity to use technology to improve the learning experience of teachers. Katherine Miller Weber, Partnership Manager at FutureLearn, shared the potential of online courses to help teachers continue their own learning. In particular, how online courses can enable cross-disciplinary conversations, increase the diversity of voices, and allow teachers to personalise their professional training.
Let’s keep the human touch in intelligent tutoring
Personalised learning systems provide unprecedented opportunities to respond to every learner’s individual needs. But just how capable are these technologies at simulating the behaviours of a human tutor? Junaid Mubeen, research mathematician turned educator reviewed the opportunities and threats posed by these technologies and, in doing so, highlighted the importance of keeping the human dimension of learning at the epicenter of developments in EdTech.
With around 150 delegates this was a creative conference that has started small but has real potential to grow in coming years. It was a joy to be a part of and we’re already excited to see how it develops into something even bigger and better in 2018.
Interested in finding out more about Virtual Reality? Hear Paul Driver discuss his use of virtual reality and transmedia spherical video in teacher training.