• I’ve become an avatar four or five times over.
• I’ve strutted my stuff in second life (and walked into a lot of walls in the process).
• I’ve seen elearning from the outside and elearning from the inside.
• I’ve seen what’s been, what’s here, what’s to come and what’s really out there!
• I’ve caught the del.icio.us bug and even learned how to type del.icio.us without having to concentrate really hard
• I’ve sold JuJu beans (but I haven’t mastered typing JuJu with making at least one mistake - practice makes perfect!)
• I’ve had more emails in my home email than my work email (and that’s saying something!)
• I’ve posted essays in a pubic space (now that is nerve wracking!)
• I’ve seen the good the bad and the ugly of elearning
• I’ve felt old (there’s nothing like new technology to do that!)

Am I still an elearning skeptic? Sure, but I’m a much more enthusiastic, informed, experienced and even a little evangelical skeptic.  A little skepticism is a healthy thing I think. 

Thanks Anne, the JuJus and all my EMT 1 coleagues, its been fun.

The elearning skeptic.

The 2008 report identified the following six emerging technologies:

(1) Grassroots video: Like most internet users, my main experience of this phenomena is through YouTube and, like most people, I am amazed at the way sites like this have taken off over the past few years.  My experience with grassroots video as an educational tool is limited, though I have used some YouTube based videos as part of presentations I have run in relation to incidental learning and knowledge management including the following:

Introduction to wikis

Introduction to peer assist groups 

(2) Collaboration webs: I have a very limited exposure to the concept of collaboration webs, with my recent use of Ning and del.icio.us being my only real venture into this space.  Like many people I have heard of Facebook, MySpace and Filckr but I have had no real interaction with them. I am very keen to explore this area further and get a better handle on how these types of technology can be utilised for adult learning though, like many people, I fear that internal IT constraints may make the use of this type of space problematic, at least in the short term.

(3) Mobile broadband: Part of my time as a learning professional was with a major Australian telecommunications company, so I am very familiar with this type of technology. The technology has certainly come on leaps and bounds, through it can still be very cost prohibitive when compared to ’wired’ broadband.  I am also aware of the trends towards mobile learning (so called ‘mlearning’) but my experience of this type of learning remains theoretical only.

(4) Data mashups: This is another concept I have only a limited experience of.  I am a frequent user of Google Earth and am familiar with the integration of map data and Wikipedia locations that is available within it.  I have no experience of this technology within an educational setting.

(5) Collective intelligence: My main experience of the concept of collective intelligence is with Wikipedia. 

(6) Social operating system: Social operating systems are something with which I am unfamiliar.  Though I am aware of the precursors such as Facebook and MySpace (as discussed above).

My experiences, in the educational context, of the significant trends outlined in the report are limited.  My current context does not significantly utilise technology for learning and much of its IT infrastructure is restrictive to the use on the on-line space for collaboration and learning.  Of all the trends, the most pertinent to me is the final one, concerning the gap between the perception of technology by the user and by the educator.  Being at the forefront of elearning I have experienced this first hand and am all too familiar with the fact that there is a growing segment of our ‘customers’ who embrace what elearning has to offer more than some of our practitioners do.

The Horizon Report 2007 identified the following 6 key technologies:

(1) User-created content: As outlined above, I have some experience with the key user-created content sites, though my use of them in the educational context is still somewhat limited.

(2) Social networking: Online social networking is something I am only new to and, once again, not something that I have not utilised in the educational context.

(3) Mobile phones: Having worked in telecommunications for a number of years I am very familiar with mobile technology. I have read about the use of mobile phones in learning (mlearning), but have not engaged in this type of learning, nor utilised it for the learning of others.

(4) Virtual worlds: I have heard for the phenomenon that is Second Life, but have no direct experience of it in any context.

(5) New scholarship: I am personally familiar with the concept of on-line publication and have read a number of e-books and listened to a number of educationally based podcasts. I have started to dabble in the use of podcast for distribution of learning content.

(6) Massivley Multiplayer Educational Gaming: I am very aware of the huge rise in on-line multiplayer games, chief amongst these being World of Warcraft which has over 10,000,000 players world-wide.  The use of this technology for learning fascinates me and I have read a number of articles in this area, though my direct experience is minimal.

Final word:  There is huge potential out there in relation to the use of technology in learning and, as an educator, I need to start focusing on getting across these technologies if I am to continue to meets the needs of my learners.