education technology

“UX to LX: The Rise of Learner Experience Design” [Kilgore] — plus — “Ten skills you need to be a UX unicorn” [Ward]

On 06/21/2016, in 21st century, attention, career development, colleges, community colleges, digital learning, education technology, elearning, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, higher education, instructional design, learning, learning preferences, online learning, user experience (UX), using teams, by Daniel Christian

UX to LX: The Rise of Learner Experience Design — from edsurge.com by Whitney Kilgore

Excerpt:

Instructional design is now approaching a similar transition. Most student consumers have yet to experience great learning design, but the commoditization of online learning is forcing colleges and universities to think differently about how they construct digital courses. Courseware is enabling the development of new modalities and pedagogical shifts. An abundance of data now enables instructional designers to decode learning patterns. As a result, we are witnessing the growth of a new field: Learner Experience Design.

Parse higher-education job postings and descriptions, and it’s evident that LX design is, as a discipline, among the fastest growing fields in education. But what exactly makes for great learning design, and how can instructional designers ensure they remain competitive in this new era of student-centric education?
…
The transition to digital content has made entirely new layers of student data available. Learners now leave a digital footprint that allows designers to understand how students are interacting with course materials and for how long. LX designers can develop course pathways that connect student challenges to specific sections of content. For the first time, faculty have insights into time on task—before, during and after class. Ready access to student behavior data is helping institutions develop powerful predictive analytics, and LX designers are leading the field to make more and better informed choices on content delivery to help students better understand the critical concepts.

The groundswell of data and learning technology shows no sign of slowing down, and a LX designer’s job will grow more complex alongside it. Learner experience designers must rise to the challenge, so universities can deliver online courses that captivate and resonate with each unique student.

Ten skills you need to be a UX unicorn — from medium.com by Conor Ward

Excerpt:

So if the discipline of UX is not about improving how things LOOK, but instead how they WORK, then of course UX Design includes a multitude of varied deep specialisms and expertise. How could it not?

Well, thats where the mythical part of this discussion comes in, many UX designers out there still believe very strongly (and for good reason) that this multi skilled ‘specialist-generalist’ cannot exist.

They could well be correct in their current circumstances. For example if their company does not work like this, then how could they? Especially if their company is an agency, and their access to users is limited or non-existent.

My own experience is that we must strive towards unicorn-ism. I have created and curated a fantastic team of UX Unicorns (yes a group of unicorns is called a blessing, Google says so) and more importantly together with my colleagues and bosses we have created the environment for them to survive and thrive.

From DSC:
The above two articles get at a piece of what I was trying to relay out at The EvoLLLution.com. And that is, the growing complexities of putting digitally-based materials online — with a high degree of engagement, professionalism, and quality — require the use of specialists. One person simply can’t do it all anymore. In fact, User Experience Designers and Learner Experience Designers are but a couple of the potential players at the table.

All of these images link to at PowerPoint Show — a roughly 39MB .ppsx file.

Examples:

Specialists central to high-quality, engaging online programming [Christian]

On 06/20/2016, in 21st century, adjunct faculty, analytics, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, attention, Augmented Reality (AR), bots, changing business models, colleges, communications, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, convergence, dangers of the status quo, Daniel S. Christian, data related items, design, digital audio, digital learning, digital photography, digital storytelling, digital textbooks, digital video, distance education, e-publishing related items (EPUB and more), education technology, educational games / serious games, elearning, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, faculty/staff, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, interaction design, interactivity, interface design, learning ecosystem, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, lifelong learning, Michigan, Mixed Reality (MR), mobile learning, multimedia, online learning, pace of change, pedagogy, personalized/customized learning, social learning / networks, student-related, teaching & learning, teaching online, transmedia, trends, United States, universities, usability, user experience (UX), user interface design, using teams, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, web design and production, web-based collaboration, writing, by Daniel Christian

Specialists central to high-quality, engaging online programming — from EvoLLLution.com (where the LLL stands for lifelong learning) by Daniel Christian

Excerpts:

Creating high-quality online courses is getting increasingly complex—requiring an ever-growing set of skills. Faculty members can’t do it all, nor can instructional designers, nor can anyone else. As time goes by, new entrants and alternatives to traditional institutions of higher education will likely continue to appear on the higher education landscape—the ability to compete will be key.

…

For example, will there be a need for the following team members in your not-too-distant future?

Human Computer Interaction (HCI) Specialists: those with knowledge of how to leverage Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Mixed Reality (MR) in order to create fun and engaging learning experiences (while still meeting the learning objectives)
Data Scientists
Artificial Intelligence Integrators
Cognitive Computing Specialists
Intelligent Tutoring Developers
Learning Agent Developers
Algorithm Developers
Personalized Learning Specialists
Cloud-based Learner Profile Administrators
Transmedia Designers
Social Learning Experts

7 items re: bots; bots will be relevant to K-12, higher ed, corporate training & business/retail as a whole

On 06/16/2016, in Amazon, Apple, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, bots, business, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, computer science, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, data related items, digital audio, digital learning, education, education technology, emerging technologies, Facebook / Meta Platforms, Google, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), innovation, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, K-12 related, machine-to-machine communications, Microsoft, productivity / tips and tricks, programming, tools, training / L&D, workplace, by Daniel Christian

The rise of the chatbots: Is it time to embrace them? — from knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu

Excerpt:

The tech world is all agog these days about chatbots. These are automated computer programs that simulate online conversations with people to answer questions or perform tasks. While chatbots have been around in various rudimentary forms for years — think of Clippy, Microsoft’s paper clip virtual assistant — they have been taking off lately as advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence make them more versatile than ever. Among the most well-known chatbots: Apple’s Siri.

In rapid succession over the past few months, Microsoft, Facebook and Google have each unveiled their chatbot strategies, touting the potential for this evolving technology to aid users and corporate America with its customer-service capabilities as well as business utility features like organizing a meeting. Yahoo joined the bandwagon recently, launching its first chatbots on a chat app called Kik Messenger.

Bill Gates says the next big thing in tech can help people learn like he does — from businessinsider.com by Matt Weinberger

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

In a new interview with The Verge, Microsoft cofounder and richest man in the world Bill Gates explained the potential for chatbots — programs you can text with like they’re human — in education.

Gates lauds the potential for what he calls “dialogue richness,” where an chatbot can really hold a conversation with a student, essentially making it into a tutor that can walk them through even the toughest, most subjective topics.

It’s actually similar to how Gates himself likes to learn, he tells The Verge…

The complete beginner’s guide to chatbots — from chatbotsmagazine.com by Matt Schlicht
Everything you need to know.

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

What are chatbots? Why are they such a big opportunity? How do they work? How can I build one? How can I meet other people interested in chatbots?

These are the questions we’re going to answer for you right now.
…
What is a chatbot?
A chatbot is a service, powered by rules and sometimes artificial intelligence, that you interact with via a chat interface. The service could be any number of things, ranging from functional to fun, and it could live in any major chat product (Facebook Messenger, Slack, Telegram, Text Messages, etc.).
…

A chatbot is a service, powered by rules and sometimes artificial intelligence, that you interact with via a chat interface.

Examples of Chat Bots
Weather bot. Get the weather whenever you ask.
Grocery bot. Help me pick out and order groceries for the week.
News bot. Ask it to tell you when ever something interesting happens.
Life advice bot. I’ll tell it my problems and it helps me think of solutions.
Personal finance bot. It helps me manage my money better.
Scheduling bot. Get me a meeting with someone on the Messenger team at Facebook.
A bot that’s your friend. In China there is a bot called Xiaoice, built by Microsoft, that over 20 million people talk to.

Chatbots explained: Why Facebook and other tech companies think they’re the biggest thing since the iPhone — from businessinsider.com by Biz Carson

Excerpt:

Chatbots are the future, whether we’re ready for them or not.

On Tuesday (April 5, 2016) , Facebook launched Bots for Messenger, a step that could define the next decade in the same way that the Apple App Store launch paved the path for companies like Uber to build a business off your phone. Its new messaging platform will help businesses build intelligent chatbots to let them communicate in Messenger.

“Today could be the beginning of a new era,” said Facebook Messenger chief David Marcus.

So what are these chatbots, and why is everyone obsessed?

Facebook wants to completely revolutionize the way you talk to businesses — from businessinsider.com by Jillian D’Onfro

Bot wars: Why big tech companies want apps to talk back to you — from fastcompany.com by Jared Newman
Can a new wave of chatbots from Facebook and Microsoft upend apps as we know them, or is that just wishful thinking?

Excerpt:

The rise of conversational “chatbots” begins with a claim you might initially dismiss as preposterous. “Bots are the new apps,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella declared during the company’s Build developers conference last month. “People-to-people conversations, people-to-digital assistants, people-to-bots, and even digital assistants-to-bots. That’s the world you’re going to get to see in the years to come.”

Microsoft CEO Nadella: ‘Bots are the new apps’

Excerpt:

SAN FRANCISCO – Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella kicked off the company’s Build developers conference with a vision of the future filled with chatbots, machine learning and artificial intelligence.

“Bots are the new apps,” said Nadella during a nearly three-hour keynote here that sketched a vision for the way humans will interact with machines. “People-to-people conversations, people-to-digital assistants, people-to-bots and even digital assistants-to-bots. That’s the world you’re going to get to see in the years to come.”

Onstage demos hammered home those ideas. One involved a smartphone conversing with digital assistant Cortana about planning a trip to Ireland, which soon found Cortana bringing in a Westin Hotels chatbot that booked a room based on the contents of the chat.

Addendums on 6/17/16:

Facebook’s head of AI wants to teach chatbots common sense — from wired.com by Bryan Derballa
Microsoft’s new acquisition can enhance Cortana’s chat bots
Wand Labs’ expertise could help Microsoft beat Facebook and Google at the AI game.

Holographic storytelling — from jwtintelligence.com by Jade Perry

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

The stories of Holocaust survivors are brought to life with the help of interactive 3D technologies.

‘New Dimensions in Testimony’ is a new way of preserving history for future generations. The project brings to life the stories of Holocaust survivors with 3D video, revealing raw first-hand accounts that are more interactive than learning through a history book.

Holocaust survivor Pinchas Gutter, the first subject of the project, was filmed answering over 1000 questions, generating approximately 25 hours of footage. By incorporating natural language processing from Conscience Display, viewers were able to ask Gutter’s holographic image questions that triggered relevant responses.

From DSC:
I wonder…is this an example of a next generation, visually-based chatbot*?

With the growth of artificial intelligence (AI), intelligent systems, and new types of human computer interaction (HCI), this type of concept could offer an on-demand learning approach that’s highly engaging — and accessible from face-to-face settings as well as from online-based learning environments. (If it could be made to take in some of the context of a particular learner and where a learner is in the relevant Zone of Proximal Development (via web-based learner profiles/data), it would be even better.)

As an aside, is this how we will obtain
customer service from the businesses of the future? See below.

*The complete beginner’s guide to chatbots — from chatbotsmagazine.com by Matt Schlicht
Everything you need to know.

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

What are chatbots? Why are they such a big opportunity? How do they work? How can I build one? How can I meet other people interested in chatbots?

These are the questions we’re going to answer for you right now.
…
What is a chatbot?
A chatbot is a service, powered by rules and sometimes artificial intelligence, that you interact with via a chat interface. The service could be any number of things, ranging from functional to fun, and it could live in any major chat product (Facebook Messenger, Slack, Telegram, Text Messages, etc.).
…

A chatbot is a service, powered by rules and sometimes artificial intelligence, that you interact with via a chat interface.

Examples of chatbots
Weather bot. Get the weather whenever you ask.
Grocery bot. Help me pick out and order groceries for the week.
News bot. Ask it to tell you when ever something interesting happens.
Life advice bot. I’ll tell it my problems and it helps me think of solutions.
Personal finance bot. It helps me manage my money better.
Scheduling bot. Get me a meeting with someone on the Messenger team at Facebook.
A bot that’s your friend. In China there is a bot called Xiaoice, built by Microsoft, that over 20 million people talk to.

A smorgasboard of apps & tools for your review

On 06/10/2016, in communications, education technology, graphics, higher education, K-12 related, parents/guardians, tools, visualizing information, by Daniel Christian

Apps to explore over summer break — from edtechafterdark.com by Zac Leonard

With thanks to Campus Technology, who mentioned this list in their June 2016 edition

20+ tools to create your own infographics — from hongkiat.com

Excerpt:

While not everyone can make infographics from scratch, there are tools available on the Web that will help you create your very own infographics. In this article, we’re listing more than 20 such options to help you get your messages across to your readers, visually.

Apple working on Echo-like device: report — from usatoday.com by Marco della Cava

Excerpt:

SAN FRANCISCO — Apple is planning to make Siri smarter by linking it to the vast menu of iOS apps and eventually will deploy the digital assistant on a standalone device similar to Amazon’s best-selling Echo, according to a published report.

The news, reported Tuesday by tech media site The Information, answers an oft-asked question about why the iPhone-maker seems to be sitting on the sidelines as a growing number of companies, from Google to Siri-offshoot Viv, make big announcements about the coming age of voice-activated machine learning.

“People-to-people conversations, people-to-digital assistants, people-to-bots and even digital assistants-to-bots,” Nadella said. “That’s the world you’re going to get to see in the years to come.”

2 great tools for creating beautiful newsletters — from educatorstechnology.com

Excerpt:

Newsletters are great communicative tools which you can use with your students for a variety of educational purposes. There are now several web tools which makes the process of newsletter making a simple matter of choosing a template, filling in content, adjusting elements and sharing the finished product. Below are two very good examples of web tools we recommend for teachers keen on designing educational newsletters for their classes.

Amazon Alexa now has over 1,000 Skills, up from 135 in January — from techcrunch.com by Sarah Perez

Microsoft launches a project management app called Planner — from theverge.com by Nick Statt
To compete with Trello and Asana

Excerpt:

Microsoft wants to help businesses and small teams collaborate and track work with a new app called Planner. Released [on 6/6/16] for free as part of the Office 365 suite, Planner is a project management service similar to products like Asana and Trello. Microsoft isn’t doing anything particularly groundbreaking here. It uses the established concept of a digital whiteboard plastered with note cards, which you can use to track projects, communicate progress, and attach files. It also integrates with other Microsoft products like OneNote and Outlook.

This app builder is letting students turn their ideas into apps for free — from techcrunch.com by Fitz Tepper

Best apps for parent engagement — from by Theresa Stager

Excerpt:

Parent engagement is one of the most important pieces to an administrator’s job, and there are so many ways to do it. In many conversations I have with other school administrators, one of the most common questions that arise is, “What do you use that works?” There are multiple apps and services that allow for communication between school and parent. At St. Mary Catholic School in Rockwood, Michigan, we utilize the apps listed below and our parents are so thankful to have the insight into our building and our classrooms.

Somewhat related:

Four tools to merge the digital and physical in your maker classroom — from edsurge.com by Susan Wells

Excerpt:
It’s a new world: the digital and tangible are merging, and educators need to help students navigate the changing terrain. The solution? Let them be Makers. I’ve been involved in digital learning and education technology for more than 30 years, and the burgeoning attempt to merge the digital and physical worlds has been one of the most interesting aspects of the evolution of EdTech to date. Managing that change in a Making context that encompasses digital tools, hands-on construction, creation and interaction allows students to learn and create new knowledge experientially. It gives them the ability to conceptualize new ideas and invent solutions for unexpected problems. It’s no longer enough—if it ever was—for teachers to lecture to a row of desks; today’s teacher must be more of a coach. The task now is to help students understand what they need to know, strategize about what they need to do next and engage in critical problem-solving—all while helping them understand how information in the arts, sciences and mathematics fit together.

“Microsoft Outlook makes its Augmented-Reality (AR) debut on HoloLens”, a solid update from Blippar, plus other items related to AR & VR

On 06/09/2016, in Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, attention, Augmented Reality (AR), education technology, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, human-computer interaction (HCI), Microsoft, Mixed Reality (MR), student-related, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, by Daniel Christian

Bringing Outlook Mail and Calendar to Microsoft HoloLens — from blogs.office.com
and
Microsoft Outlook makes its Augmented-Reality (AR) debut on HoloLens — from eweek.com by Pedro Hernandez

Introducing the New Blippar App: The power of visual discovery — from blippar.com

Excerpt:

Blipparsphere is our new proprietary knowledge graph baked right into the Blippar app as of today. It builds on our existing computer vision and machine learning technology to capture deeper and more rich information about the world around you.

This augmented reality app will now have an added feature — from by Sneha Banerjee
Blipparsphere is live now in the Blippar app for iOS and Android.

Excerpt:

This technology startup, which specializes in augmented reality, artificial intelligence and computer vision, launched Blipparsphere. This is a new proprietary knowledge graph technology, which is live now on the Blippar app. Blipparsphere builds on the company’s existing machine learning and computer vision capabilities to deepen and personalize information about a user’s physical surroundings, providing a true visual discovery browser through the app.

5 top virtual reality & augmented reality technology trends for 2016 — from marxentlabs.com by Joe Bardi

Excerpt:

What are the top Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality technology trends for 2016?
2015 was a year of tantalizing promise for Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality technology, with plenty of new hardware announced and initial content forays hitting the mainstream. 2016 is shaping up as the year that promise is fulfilled, with previously drooled over hardware finally making its way into the hands of consumers, and exciting new content providing unique experiences to a public hungry to experience this new technology. So where are Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality headed in 2016? Here’s our top 5 emerging trends…

CASE STUDY: How Lowe’s used the PIONEERS framework to lead a successful augmented reality and virtual reality project — from marxentlabs.com by Beck Besecker

Excerpt:

PIONEERS Case Study: Lowe’s Innovation Labs
By following the PIONEERS framework, Lowe’s Innovation Labs was able to create a brand new buying experience that is wowing customers. A project of Lowe’s Innovation Labs, the Lowe’s Holoroom is powered by Marxent’s VisualCommerce™, which enables Lowe’s to fill the Holoroom’s 3D space with virtual renderings of real products stocked by the home improvement retailer. Shoppers can design their perfect kitchen and then literally walk into it, share it via YouTube 360, and then buy the products that they’ve selected and turn their virtual design into reality.

College students experiment with virtual reality — from edtechmagazine.com by Eli Zimmerman
Innovative course curricula at three higher ed institutions give students hands-on practice with virtual reality.

Campus Technology Announces 2016 Innovators Award Honorees

On 06/09/2016, in 21st century, A/V -- audio/visual, colleges, community colleges, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, education, education technology, emerging technologies, higher education, innovation, IT in HE, teaching & learning, technology (general), tools, universities, by Daniel Christian

Campus Technology Announces 2016 Innovators Award Honorees

The categories for the 2016 Campus Technology Innovators include:

Teaching and Learning
Student Systems and Services
Administration
IT Infrastructure and Systems
Education Futurists

From DSC:
As one of the Judges for this year’s awards, I congratulate these award honorees on jobs that were well done! There were some solid submissions this year.

Sony’s canvas redefines the giant display landscape.

The bigger your giant display, the more important viewing angle becomes.
In this example, we’re showing an 8K x 2K (7680 x 2160) screen.

Sony redefines high-end visual display with new canvas for creativity — from blog.sony.com

Excerpt:

The scalable system is made up of multiple display units (each measuring 18 x 16 inches) that can be joined together with no bezels to create a limitless and seamless large-screen display.

Also see:

Sony’s InfoComm introductions include best LED-based video wall EVER — from ravepubs.com by Gary Kayye

Excerpt:
Sony is literally blowing people away with their new Crystal LED technology. Sony’s new Canvas display system is a high-end visual display that re-defines the landscape for large-scale visual entertainment. The new technology, Crystal Light Emitting Diode Integrated Structure (CLEDIS), uses Sony’s ultrafine LEDs in a unique surface mounting structure as its light source to deliver a visual experience not possible with even the highest end conventional LED array. This scalable new type of canvas delivers an unmatched viewing experience, offering 99 percent black surface area, for high contrast, high resolution and immersive visuals.

This new type of canvas enables limitless flexibility and creativity in public spaces and high-end visual entertainment. It is far more advanced when compared to the technologies currently available for large-scale display, offering a leap forward in depth, contrast, color, resolution and impact.

From DSC:
Leveraging the power of the BYOD phenomenon along with the increased usage of active learning-based classrooms, if students could “upload” their content to such enormous screens, one could easily imagine some highly-engaging discussions — providing students with excellent opportunities to create and share their own content. Numerous windows and applications could be simultaneously displayed on such a video wall, providing/hosting some serious Jigsaw teaching techniques!

Faculty Innovation Toolkit [Meyer & Schaffhauser]

On 06/08/2016, in adjunct faculty, digital textbooks, digital video, e-books, education technology, educational games / serious games, faculty/staff, ideas, innovation, interaction design, interactivity, learning, productivity / tips and tricks, social learning / networks, social media, textbooks, tools, by Daniel Christian

Faculty Innovation Toolkit — from campustechnology.com by Leila Meyer and Dian Schaffhauser

Excerpt:

15 Sites for Free Digital Textbooks
12 Tips for Gamifying a Course
10 Tools for More Interactive Videos
4 Ways to Use Social Media for Learning

The SIIA CODiE Awards for 2016

On 06/06/2016, in analytics, Bring your own device (BYOD), business, career development, CMS/LMS, collaboration, communications, competency-based learning/education, computer science, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, data related items, education technology, educational games / serious games, elearning, instructional design, K-12 related, languages and translation, learning, mathematics, mobile learning, mobile technologies, neurodivergent/special needs, programming, reading, science, teaching & learning, tools, vendors, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, web-based collaboration, workplace, writing, by Daniel Christian

The SIIA CODiE Awards for 2016 — with thanks to Neha Jaiswal from uCertify for this resource; uCertify, as you will see, did quite well

Since 1986, the SIIA CODiE Awards have recognized more than 1,000 software and information companies for achieving excellence. The CODiE Awards remain the only peer-recognized program in the content, education, and software industries so each CODiE Award win serves as incredible market validation for a product’s innovation, vision, and overall industry impact.

Will “class be in session” soon on tools like Prysm & Bluescape? If so, there will be some serious global interaction, collaboration, & participation here! [Christian]

On 06/04/2016, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, active learning, adult learning, career development, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, CMS/LMS, collaboration, colleges, communications, communities of practice, community colleges, competency-based learning/education, convergence, corporate universities / corporate training, cost of getting a degree, Daniel S. Christian, digital audio, digital learning, digital video, disruption, distance education, education, education reform, education technology, elearning, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, heutagogy, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, interaction design, interactivity, internet, IT in HE, K-12 related, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning spaces, lifelong learning, love of learning, microlearning, Microsoft, mirroring and/or multiple devices, mobile learning, mobile technologies, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, more voice more choice more control, multi-touch, multimedia, new business models, new media literacies, online learning, online tutoring, participation, platforms, presentations, professional development, second screen apps, smart classrooms, social learning / networks, student-related, tablets, teaching online, technologies for your home, telecommunications, telepresence, television, tools, training / L&D, transmedia, trends, TVs, ubiquitous learning, universities, user experience (UX), vendors, videoconferencing, web-based collaboration, webinars, workplace, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
Below are some questions and thoughts that are going through my mind:

Will “class be in session” soon on tools like Prysm & Bluescape?
Will this type of setup be the next platform that we’ll use to meet our need to be lifelong learners? That is, will what we know of today as Learning Management Systems (LMS) and Content Management Systems (CMS) morph into this type of setup?
Via platforms/operating systems like tvOS, will our connected TVs turn into much more collaborative devices, allowing us to contribute content with learners from all over the globe?
Prysm is already available on mobile devices and what we consider a television continues to morph
Will second and third screens be used in such setups? What functionality will be assigned to the main/larger screens? To the mobile devices?
Will colleges and universities innovate into such setups? Or will organizations like LinkedIn.com/Lynda.com lead in this space? Or will it be a bit of both?
How will training, learning and development groups leverage these tools/technologies?
Are there some opportunities for homeschoolers here?

Along these lines, are are some videos/images/links for you:

Also see:

5 Apple TV apps that are actually great on a big screen — from gizmodo.com by David Nield

What are micro-credentials? — from onlineschoolscenter.com

Also see:

T1V announces ThinkHub Q2 software release, focuses on interactive collaboration experience for customers — from t1v.com

Prysm Adds Enterprise-Wide Collaboration with Microsoft Applications — from ravepubs.com by Gary Kayye

Excerpt:

To enhance the Prysm Visual Workplace, Prysm today announced an integration with Microsoft OneDrive for Business and Office 365. Using the OneDrive for Business API from Microsoft, Prysm has made it easy for customers to connect Prysm to their existing OneDrive for Business environments to make it a seamless experience for end users to access, search for, and sync with content from OneDrive for Business. Within a Prysm Visual Workplace project, users may now access, work within and download content from Office 365 using Prysm’s built-in web capabilities.

New forms of HCI raise numerous career-related and curriculum-related questions for us [Christian]

On 06/03/2016, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, adult learning, Amazon, analytics, Apple, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, assistive technologies, business, career development, change, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, communications, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, education technology, emerging technologies, future of higher education, game-changing environment, Google, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, interaction design, interactivity, interface design, internet, languages and translation, learning, lifelong learning, professional development, teachers, teaching & learning, technologies for your home, tools, training / L&D, trends, universities, usability, user experience (UX), user interface design, vendors, workplace, by Daniel Christian

Questions from DSC:

Which jobs/positions are being impacted by new forms of Human Computer Interaction (HCI)?
What new jobs/positions will be created by these new forms of HCI?
Will it be necessary for instructional technologists, instructional designers, teachers, professors, trainers, coaches, learning space designers, and others to pulse check this landscape? Will that be enough?
Or will such individuals need to dive much deeper than that in order to build the necessary skillsets, understandings, and knowledgebases to meet the new/changing expectations for their job positions?
How many will say, “No thanks, that’s not for me” — causing organizations to create new positions that do dive deeply in this area?
Will colleges and universities build and offer more courses involving HCI?
Will Career Services Departments get up to speed in order to help students carve out careers involving new forms of HCI?
How will languages and language translation be impacted by voice recognition software?
Will new devices be introduced to our classrooms in the future?
In the corporate space, how will training departments handle these new needs and opportunities? How will learning & development groups be impacted? How will they respond in order to help the workforce get/be prepared to take advantage of these sorts of technologies? What does it mean for these staffs personally? Do they need to invest in learning more about these advancements?

As an example of what I’m trying to get at here, who all might be involved with an effort like Echo Dot? What types of positions created it? Who all could benefit from it? What other platforms could these technologies be integrated into? Besides the home, where else might we find these types of devices?

Echo Dot is a hands-free, voice-controlled device that uses the same far-field voice recognition as Amazon Echo. Dot has a small built-in speaker—it can also connect to your speakers over Bluetooth or with the included audio cable. Dot connects to the Alexa Voice Service to play music, provide information, news, sports scores, weather, and more—instantly.

Echo Dot can hear you from across the room, even while music is playing. When you want to use Echo Dot, just say the wake word “Alexa” and Dot responds instantly. If you have more than one Echo or Echo Dot, you can set a different wake word for each—you can pick “Amazon”, “Alexa” or “Echo” as the wake word.

Or how might students learn about the myriad of technologies involved with IBM’s Watson? What courses are out there today that address this type of thing? Are more courses in the works that will address this type of thing? In which areas (Computer Science, User Experience Design, Interaction Design, other)?

Lots of questions…but few answers at this point. Still, given the increasing pace of technological change, it’s important that we think about this type of thing and become more responsive, nimble, and adaptive in our organizations and in our careers.

Amazon now lets you test drive Echo’s Alexa in your browser — from by Dan Thorp-Lancaster

Excerpt:

If you’ve ever wanted to try out the Amazon Echo before shelling out for one, you can now do just that right from your browser. Amazon has launched a dedicated website where you can try out an Echo simulation and put Alexa’s myriad of skills to the test.

From DSC:
The use of the voice and gesture to communicate to some type of computing device or software program represent growing types of Human Computer Interaction (HCI). With the growth of artificial intelligence (AI), personal assistants, and bots, we should expect to see more voice recognition services/capabilities baked into an increasing amount of products and solutions in the future.

Given these trends, personnel working within K-12 and higher ed need to start building their knowledgebases now so that we can begin offering more courses in the near future to help students build their skillsets. Current user experience designers, interface designers, programmers, graphic designers, and others will also need to augment their skillsets.

With thanks to Fred Steube for this resource

Virtual reality facilitates higher ed research and teaches high-risk skills — from edtechmagazine.com by Jacquelyn Bengfort
From neuroscience to ship navigation, virtual environments deliver real-world learning inside the classroom.

Excerpt:

Simulators are an important part of their education. Stepping into one of three full-mission bridge simulators replicates the experience of standing in an ocean liner’s pilothouse and lets students practice their skills in handling a ship — without risk.

“In the simulator, you can push the limits of the environment: increase the amount of current that’s there, go to the limits of the amount of wind that can be handled by the tugs,” says Capt. Victor Schisler, one of Cal Maritime’s simulator instructors.

Oculus Launches Virtual Reality Program in High Schools — from thejournal.com by Sri Ravipati
The new initiative provides students with VR equipment to create short films on social issues.

Excerpt:

Oculus has announced a new pilot program for high school students to use virtual reality as a tool for social change.

As part of the VR for Good initiative, the 360 Filmmaker Challenge will connect nine San Francisco Bay Area high schools with professional filmmakers to create three- to five- minute 360 degree films about their communities. Students will receive a Samsung Gear VR, a Galaxy S6, Ricoh Theta S 360 cameras and access to editing software to make their films, according to Oculus.

How Adobe is connecting virtual reality with the world of product placement: 360-degree video mixes atmosphere and ads — from adweek.com by Marty Swant

Excerpt:

Interested in watching the 2015 hit film The Martian from the surface of the moon? Adobe wants you to take you there.

Adobe isn’t entering the latest next-generation space race to compete with SpaceX, Blue Origin or Virgin Galactic anytime soon. But it is for the first time entering the worlds of virtual reality and augmented reality through new Adobe Primetime products.

[On May 17th] Adobe debuted Virtual Cinema, a feature that will allow Primetime clients to develop experiences for users to enter a virtual environment. According to Adobe, users will be able to view traditional video in a custom environment—a cinema, home theater or branded atmosphere—and watch existing TV and motion picture content in a new way. There’s also potential for product placement within the virtual/augmented reality experience.

From Samsung Gear 360 Unboxing and Video Test — from vrscout.com by Jonathan Nafarrete

Could HoloLens’ augmented reality change how we study the human body? — from edtechmagazine.com by D. Frank Smith
Case Western Reserve University is helping to revolutionize medical-science studies with a new technology from Microsoft.

Excerpt:

While the technology world’s attention is on virtual reality, a team of researchers at Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is fixated on another way to experience the world — augmented reality (AR).

Microsoft’s forthcoming AR headset, HoloLens, is at the forefront of this technology. The company calls it the first holographic computer. In AR, instead of being surrounded by a virtual world, viewers see virtual objects projected on top of reality through a transparent lens.

CWRU was among the first in higher education to begin working with HoloLens, back in 2014. They’ve since discovered new ways the tech could help transform education. One of their current focuses is changing how students experience medical-science courses.

How to make a mixed reality video and livestream from two realities — from uploadvr.com by Ian Hamilton

Excerpt:

Follow these steps to record or stream mixed reality footage with the HTC Vive
A mixed reality video is one of the coolest ways to show people what a virtual environment feels like. A green screen makes it easy for a VR-ready PC to automatically remove everything from a camera’s feed, except for your body movements. Those movements are then seamlessly combined with a view from another camera in a virtual environment. As long as the two cameras are synced, you can seamlessly combine views of two realities into a single video. In essence, mixed reality capture is doing what Hollywood or your weatherman has been doing for years, except at a fraction of the cost and in real-time. The end result is almost magical.

Learning Ecosystems

“UX to LX: The Rise of Learner Experience Design” [Kilgore] — plus — “Ten skills you need to be a UX unicorn” [Ward]

Campus Technology Announces 2016 Innovators Award Honorees

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