Can you believe January is already over?? I know, I know the e-Zine is late…it’s summer…what can I say?
For many educators, January is a month for reflection and preparation for the year ahead. So what will 2005 hold for education, learning and technology?
I was pondering this question as I reviewed my subjects for the start of the new university year – so much of the content seemed tired and old – yet many of the articles were circa 2001 – 2003! Have things changed so much?
Well – yes, and of course, no!
Technology has changed rapidly – we have so many new and exciting options – readily accessible!
Has e-Learning practice changed in organisations? Hmmm – that’s an interesting one…there are certainly more organisations embedding e-Learning into their overall strategic approach. Is it effective? Well, we might leave that debate for another time…
Have the learners changed? Absolutely! Learners now expect, and yes, they demand some form of technology-supported learning – in all educational settings. And keep an eye on those young ones – their use of technology will be shaping some of our future decisions – but more on that later in the year!
Has the use of technology changed in educational institutions? Yes – but is it enough? Have you noticed how much academic discourse there is, still questioning if technology can enhance learning? Why is that?
This year I’ve decided to leave that debate to the disbelievers – it’s time to move forward and redirect my energies into exploring the new technologies and determining their educational value and providing others with the opportunities to collaborate and share our practices! So join me – this year is going to be HUGE with lots of LTUG opportunities for engaging exchanges and debates.
Watch out for our calendar of events – we’re just locking in dates and presenters and we’ll publish that progressively as events are confirmed!
Some snippets to look forward to…podcasting (and no, it’s nothing to do with gardening!), wikis, more on blogs, RSS, and so much more from the technical perspective.
Plus, remember those Learning Technology Award winners from the LT2004 conference last year? Well, we’re hoping to get them to present their innovative uses of technology in a webinar series and share some their wins, and some of their challenges…
It’s going to be a HUGE year!
Digital Dialogues 