learning agents

For elearning devs, IDs, trainers, & more — it appears a new toolset is on the horizon. [Christian]

On 02/10/2021, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, attention, corporate universities / corporate training, Daniel S. Christian, education technology, educational games / serious games, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, interaction design, interactivity, interface design, K-12 related, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, more voice more choice more control, multimedia, Natural Language Processing (NLP), participation, tools, training / L&D, usability, user experience (UX), vendors, vision/possibilities, voice recognition / voice enabled interfaces, by Daniel Christian

When the Animated Bunny in the TV Show Listens for Kids’ Answers — and Answers Back — from edsurge.com by Rebecca Koenig

Excerpt:

Yet when this rabbit asks the audience, say, how to make a substance in a bottle less goopy, she’s actually listening for their answers. Or rather, an artificially intelligent tool is listening. And based on what it hears from a viewer, it tailors how the rabbit replies.

“Elinor can understand the child’s response and then make a contingent response to that,” says Mark Warschauer, professor of education at the University of California at Irvine and director of its Digital Learning Lab.

AI is coming to early childhood education. Researchers like Warschauer are studying whether and how conversational agent technology—the kind that powers smart speakers such as Alexa and Siri—can enhance the learning benefits young kids receive from hearing stories read aloud and from watching videos.

From DSC:
Looking at the above excerpt…what does this mean for elearning developers, learning engineers, learning experience designers, instructional designers, trainers, and more? It seems that, for such folks, learning how to use several new tools is showing up on the horizon.

8 Higher Education IT Trends to Watch in 2021 [Stone]

On 02/01/2021, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, active learning, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, blended learning, Bring your own device (BYOD), Canvas - and other Instructure-related items, change, changing business models, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, CMS/LMS, collaboration, colleges, communications, communities of practice, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, cost of getting a degree, credentialing, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, digital video, distance education, education technology, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), hybrid learning, ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, IT in HE, law schools, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, more voice more choice more control, remote teaching and learning, smart classrooms, social learning / networks, society, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, technologies for your home, tools, training / L&D, trends, TVs, universities, user experience (UX), vendors, videoconferencing, vision/possibilities, web-based collaboration, by Daniel Christian

8 Higher Education IT Trends to Watch in 2021 — from edtechmagazine.com by Adam Stone
Keep your eye on these trends as higher education prepares for a post-pandemic future.

Excerpt:

1. Get Used to More Advanced Learning Management Systems
At Virginia Tech, the Canvas learning management system (LMS) was critical for coordinating synchronous and asynchronous learning. Such systems will only become more sophisticated moving forward, says Randy Marchany, the university’s IT security officer. “With COVID, instructors have become more video savvy,” he says. “We’re all getting smarter about how we use these tools.”

2. A Rise in Sophisticated Videoconferencing Platforms
Even after the pandemic, educators might continue lecturing over Zoom and other videoconferencing platforms. However, they’ll be doing it in more sophisticated ways. “People will be making these experiences more collaborative, more authentic — with much richer interactions and conversations,” Grajek says. “We are all becoming more experienced consumers, and we will see a lot of innovation in this area.”

From DSC:
Yet another step closer…

Reflections on “How to become a livestreaming teacher” [Grennier]

On 01/27/2021, in communities of practice, Daniel S. Christian, digital audio, digital learning, digital storytelling, digital video, distance education, education, education technology, experimentation, Facebook / Meta Platforms, Google, homeschooling/homeschoolers, ideas, innovation, instructional design, internet, K-12 related, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, library / librarians, lifelong learning, marketplaces, multimedia, new business models, online learning, platforms, remote teaching and learning, smart classrooms, streams of content, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, technologies for your home, tools, TVs, United States, vendors, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

How to become a livestreaming teacher — from innovatemyschool.com by Bobbie Grennier

Excerpts:

What is an encoder?
The format that a video camera records content in has to be transcoded so that it can be livestreamed to a destination like Facebook Live, YouTube, Twitch and Periscope. This is accomplished using an encoder software. An encoder optimizes the video feed for the streaming platform. The key to using an encoder is to learn to set-up scenes.

From DSC:
It will be interesting to see how learning-related platforms develop in the future. I’m continually on the lookout for innovative ideas across the learning landscapes, especially due to the Learning from the Living [Class] Room vision that I’ve been tracking this last decade. The pieces continue to come together. This might be another piece to that puzzle.

An online-based teaching and learning marketplace — backed up by AI, cloud-based learning profiles, voice-driven interfaces, learning agents, and more. Feeds/streams of content into how to learn about any topic…supporting communities of practice as well as individuals. And people will be key in this platform — technology will serve the people, not the other way around.

Jeff Bezos Wants to Go to the Moon. Then, Public Education. [Dresel]

On 01/26/2021, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Alternatives, Amazon, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, change, disruption, education, education reform, education technology, educational games / serious games, elearning, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, new business models, online learning, online media, online tutoring, personalized/customized learning, platforms, strategy, student-related, technologies for your home, United States, user experience (UX), vendors, virtual field trips, virtual K-12 schools, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, web-based collaboration, by Daniel Christian

Jeff Bezos Wants to Go to the Moon. Then, Public Education. — from edsurge.com by Dominik Dresel

Excerpts:

Jeff Bezos’ $2 billion investment to establish a Montessori-inspired network of preschools may be shrugged off by many as the world’s richest man dabbling in another playground. Instead, we should see it for what it is: the early days of Amazon’s foray into public education.
…
It would be easy to think that Amazon’s rapid expansion into industry after industry is just the natural, opportunistic path of a cash-flush company seeking to invest in new, lucrative markets. But Jeff Bezos, himself a graduate of a Montessori preschool, doesn’t think in short-term opportunities.

Yet, the world has had its first taste of the disentanglement of schooling from school buildings. Even though in 20 years we will still have school buildings—much like we still have bookstores—there is little doubt that the future will see more, not less, online instruction and content delivery.

Microsoft Education offers a free tutoring service to help students with their math problems [educatorstechnology.com]

On 01/18/2021, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, education, education technology, entrepreneurship, future, game-changing environment, homeschooling/homeschoolers, ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent tutoring, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, mathematics, Microsoft, online learning, online tutoring, parents/guardians, personalized/customized learning, platforms, remote teaching and learning, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, tools, United States, vendors, videoconferencing, virtual K-12 schools, virtual tutoring, vision/possibilities, youth, by Daniel Christian

Microsoft Education offers a free tutoring service to help students with their math problems — from educatorstechnology.com

Excerpt:

In today’s post I want to bring to your attention this interesting math resource from Microsoft Education called Tutoring Experts. As its name indicates, Tutoring Experts allows students to seek help with their math problems from tutors that are available 24/7.

Also see:

From DSC:
One wonders if there aren’t some opportunities here for more online-based tutoring services. Perhaps graduates from schools of education will move more towards this type of thing…

Perhaps the online-based materials in the future will have a question mark “?” icon that instantly connects to that service’s teachers, professors, trainers, pastors, and/or other SMEs. Or perhaps this type of thing is already there…I’m not sure.

If it were possible to do the Socratic method w/ each of your Ss at one time, would you do it? Could it work? [Christian]

On 01/05/2021, in adjunct faculty, Amazon, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, assessment, attention, blended learning, corporate universities / corporate training, Daniel S. Christian, digital audio, digital learning, distance education, education technology, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, entrepreneurship, experimentation, face-to-face, future, Google, higher education, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, intelligent systems, interactivity, K-12 related, languages and translation, law schools, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning spaces, multimedia, Natural Language Processing (NLP), online learning, online tutoring, participation, pedagogy, platforms, remote teaching and learning, student-related, teachers, training / L&D, TVs, Uncategorized, United States, universities, user experience (UX), vendors, videoconferencing, vision/possibilities, voice recognition / voice enabled interfaces, web-based collaboration, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
For me the Socratic method is still a question mark, in terms of effectiveness. (I suppose it depends on who is yielding the tool and how it’s being utilized/implemented.)

But you have one student — often standing up and/or in the spotlight — who is being drilled on something. That student could be calm and collected, and their cognitive processing could actually get a boost from the adrenaline.

But there are other students who dread being called upon in such a public — sometimes competitive — setting. Their cognitive processing could shut down or become greatly diminished.

Also, the professor is working with one student at a time — hopefully the other students are trying to address each subsequent question, but some students may tune out once they know it’s not their turn in the spotlight.

So I was wondering…could the Socratic method be used with each student at the same time? Could a polling-like tool be used in real-time to guide the discussion?

For example, a professor could start out with a pre-created poll and ask the question of all students. Then they could glance through the responses and even scan for some keywords (using their voice to drive the system and/or using a Ctrl+F / Command+F type of thing).

Then in real-time / on-the-fly, could the professor use their voice to create another poll/question — again for each student to answer — based on one of the responses? Again, each student must answer the follow up question(s).

Are there any vendors out there working on something like this? Or have you tested the effectiveness of something like this?

Vendors: Can you help us create a voice-driven interface to offer the Socratic method to everyone to see if and how it would work? (Like a Mentimeter type of product on steroids…er, rather, using an AI-driven backend.)

Teachers, trainers, pastors, presenters could also benefit from something like this — as it could engage numerous people at once.

#Participation #Engagement #Assessment #Reasoning #CriticalThinking #CommunicationSkills #ThinkingOnOnesFeet #OnlineLearning #Face-to-Face #BlendedLearning #HybridLearning

Could such a method be used in language-related classes as well? In online-based tutoring?

Could AI-based techs be used to develop a “table of contents” for the key points within lectures, lessons, training sessions, sermons, & podcasts? [Christian]

On 01/02/2021, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, adjunct faculty, adult learning, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, colleges, communications, communities of practice, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, Daniel S. Christian, digital audio, digital learning, digital video, distance education, education, education technology, emerging technologies, experimentation, face-to-face, faculty/staff, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, interaction design, interactivity, interface design, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning spaces, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, more voice more choice more control, multimedia, Natural Language Processing (NLP), new media literacies, online learning, online media, online tutoring, pace of change, platforms, podcasting, presentations, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, remote teaching and learning, smart classrooms, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, technologies for your home, tools, training / L&D, transmedia, TVs, universities, usability, user experience (UX), user interface design, vendors, videoconferencing, vision/possibilities, voice recognition / voice enabled interfaces, web-based collaboration, webinars, workplace, by Daniel Christian

From DSC:
As we move into 2021, the blistering pace of emerging technologies will likely continue. Technologies such as:

Artificial Intelligence (AI) — including technologies related to voice recognition
Blockchain
Augment Reality (AR)/Mixed Reality (MR)/Virtual Reality (VR) and/or other forms of Extended Reality (XR)
Robotics
Machine-to-Machine Communications (M2M) / The Internet of Things (IoT)
Drones
…and other things will likely make their way into how we do many things (for better or for worse).

Along the positive lines of this topic, I’ve been reflecting upon how we might be able to use AI in our learning experiences.

For example, when teaching in face-to-face-based classrooms — and when a lecture recording app like Panopto is being used — could teachers/professors/trainers audibly “insert” main points along the way? Similar to something like we do with Siri, Alexa, and other personal assistants (“Heh Siri, _____ or “Alexa, _____).

Like an audible version of HTML -- using the spoken word to insert the main points of a presentation or lecture

(Image purchased from iStockphoto)

.

Pretend a lecture, lesson, or a training session is moving right along. Then the professor, teacher, or trainer says:

“Heh Smart Classroom, Begin Main Point.”
Then speaks one of the main points.
Then says, “Heh Smart Classroom, End Main Point.”

Like a verbal version of an HTML tag.

After the recording is done, the AI could locate and call out those “main points” — and create a table of contents for that lecture, lesson, training session, or presentation.

(Alternatively, one could insert a chime/bell/some other sound that the AI scans through later to build the table of contents.)

In the digital realm — say when recording something via Zoom, Cisco Webex, Teams, or another application — the same thing could apply.

Wouldn’t this be great for quickly scanning podcasts for the main points? Or for quickly scanning presentations and webinars for the main points?

Anyway, interesting times lie ahead!

The Year TV Leaped Into The Future [Roettgers]

On 12/27/2020, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, Amazon, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, bots, business side of he, career development, change, changing business models, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, communications, content development, aggregation, repositories, Daniel S. Christian, digital audio, digital learning, digital storytelling, digital video, distance education, education, education technology, educational games / serious games, elearning, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, future, game-changing environment, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), ideas, innovation, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, internet, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, lifelong learning, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, new business models, online learning, online media, online tutoring, platforms, reinvent, smart classrooms, social learning / networks, social media, society, staying relevant, surviving, teaching online, technologies for your home, technology (general), telecommunications, telelegal, telemedicine / telehealth / virtual health, telepresence, television, tools, training / L&D, trends, TVs, United States, using teams, vendors, vision/possibilities, by Daniel Christian

The Year TV Leaped Into The Future — from protocol.com by Janko Roettgers

The lockdowns this year have transformed our homes into offices, schools, concert halls, movie theaters and gyms. Our homes are working harder for us, but so is our technology. The device that is working the hardest is perhaps the TV—becoming our lifeline to a far more virtual world.

Addendums:

The Second Year of The MOOC: 2020 Saw a Rush to Large-Scale Online Courses — from edsurge.com by Dhawal Shah

Excerpt:

This was the year that more people learned what a MOOC is.

As millions suddenly found themselves with free time on their hands during the pandemic, many turned to online courses—especially, to free courses known as MOOCs, or Massive Open Online Courses. This phenomenon was compounded by media worldwide compiling lists of “free things to do during lockdown,” which tended to include MOOCs.

Within two months, Class Central had received over 10 million visits and sent over six million clicks to MOOC providers. These learners also turned out to be more engaged than usual. In April 2020, MOOC providers Coursera, edX and FutureLearn attracted as many new users in a single month as they did in the entirety of 2019.

.

From DSC:
The pieces continue to come together…

...team-based content creation and delivery will dominate in the future (at least for the masses). It will offer engaging, personalized learning and the AI-based systems will be constantly scanning for the required/sought-after skills and competencies. The systems will then present a listing of items that will help people obtain those skills and competencies.

#AI #LearningProfiles #Cloud #LearningFromTheLivingClassRoom #LearningEcosystems #LearningSpaces #21stCentury #24x7x365 #Reinvent #Surviving #StayingRelevant #LifeLongLearning and many more tags/categories are applicable here.

How E-Learning Content Is Evolving: 7 Trends You Need to Know About [Harper]

On 12/21/2020, in adult learning, Augmented Reality (AR), business, change, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate universities / corporate training, data related items, digital learning, digital storytelling, elearning, future, innovation, instructional design, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, lifelong learning, microlearning, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, online learning, personalized/customized learning, platforms, social learning / networks, story, storytelling, training / L&D, trends, ubiquitous learning, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, XR - extended reality, by Daniel Christian

How E-Learning Content Is Evolving: 7 Trends You Need to Know About — from trainingmag.com by Tiffany Harper
Continuous, personalized learning in small bites through a storytelling approach—that sums up the future of the e-learning industry.

Excerpt:

VR and AR
Technological innovations let us play better games. The progress of VR and AR technology (virtual reality and augmented reality) is closely related to the gaming industry, but that doesn’t mean it stays there.

We can turn any space into an environment that’s ready to explore. If we learn about the universe, we can see it around us. If we learn about industrial technology, we can be virtually present in a plant. This technology is especially important for corporate learning. Instead of sending employees away to develop new skills, companies benefit with lower expenses and greater convenience.

We haven’t seen the best of virtual and augmented reality in e-learning yet. But as the trend progresses and more learners get their devices, it won’t be unusual for AR and VR to be included in every online course of the future.

Re: college admissions: Hhmmm….here’s an interesting idea.

On 12/16/2020, in Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, business side of he, colleges, community colleges, data related items, future of higher education, higher education, ideas, innovation, intelligent systems, learner profiles, learning agents, learning preferences, liberal arts, universities, by Daniel Christian

Can Algorithms Save College Admissions? — from chronicle.com by Brian Rosenberg
We’ve tried a system based on competition long enough. It isn’t working.

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

Here is an alternative and much more radical proposal: What if we replaced the current and longstanding admissions process among private colleges with a match process, similar to what has for years been used to match medical-school graduates with residency and fellowship positions? What if, in other words, we used data and algorithms instead of travel, merit aid, and free food to drive college admissions?

From DSC:
Love the “What if…” thinking here and the spirit of innovation behind it. I wonder if AI and cloud-based learner profiles might play into something like this in the future…?

Also see:

7 Ways To Make College Admissions More Equitable — from stradaeducation.org by Patty Reinert Mason and Jeff Selingo
Is it time to reconsider early-decision applications, legacy preferences, and reliance on feeder high schools?
Selingo offers these practical steps colleges and universities can take to make admissions more equitable:

Eliminate early-decision applications.
Be upfront about what you’re looking for in this year’s incoming class so students and parents have the information they need.
Be transparent about what it costs to study at your school.
Look beyond traditional “feeder high schools” for recruitment, creating opportunity for a more diverse group of students.
Reduce preferences given to athletes and legacies.
Rethink application requirements to put more emphasis on high school coursework and grades and less on extracurriculars, recommendations, and essays.
Expand the size of freshman classes.

Also see:

Attention Administrators: More Flexibility in Online/Course Schedules Results in Higher Enrollment — from fierceeducation.comby Jacqueline Renfrow

Teaching with Amazon Alexa — from Sylvia Martinez

Excerpt:

Alexa is a voice-activated, cloud-based virtual assistant, similar to Siri on Apple devices, or Google Assistant. Alexa is an umbrella name for the cloud-based functionality that responds to verbal commands. Alexa uses artificial intelligence to answer questions or control smart devices, and has a range of “skills” — small programs that you can add to increase Alexa’s capabilities.

Many teachers are experimenting with using smart devices like Alexa in the classroom. Like most other Amazon features and products, Alexa is primarily designed for home use, anticipating that users will be household members. So in thinking about Alexa in a classroom, keeping this in mind will help determine the best educational uses.

Alexa is most often accessed in three ways…

Some items from Andreessen Horowitz’ “Social strikes back” series

On 12/09/2020, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, curriculum, digital video, distance education, education technology, emerging technologies, Facebook / Meta Platforms, future, game-changing environment, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, marketplaces, online learning, online media, online tutoring, personalized/customized learning, platforms, remote teaching and learning, social learning / networks, social media, society, trends, United States, by Daniel Christian

Social strikes back — from a16z.com
Social Strikes Back is a series exploring the next generation of social networks and how they’re shaping the future of consumer tech. See more at a16z.com/social-strikes-back.

Excerpt:

Until recently, it was commonly accepted that “social” was done. The market had been fully saturated, the thinking went, dominated by the holy trinity of Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Turns out, rumors of social’s demise have been greatly exaggerated. Not only are we seeing the rise of innovative new social networks—from the earshare of Clubhouse to the seamless interactivity of cloud gaming—but having a social component has become a powerful acquisition and retention tool for every consumer product, across education, shopping, fitness, food, entertainment, and more. In this series, we reveal what new social looks like, the forces that are driving it, and how to build it.

Meet Me in the Metaverse — from a16z.com by Jonathan Lai

Excerpts:

There are many competing visions for how we’ll build the Metaverse: a persistent, infinitely-scaling virtual space with its own economy and identity system.
…
New social modalities will emerge in the Metaverse. Advances in cloud streaming and AI will enable new forms of engagement with friends—for example, the ability to pop into a persistent virtual world and discover new people and experiences together, entirely unplanned.

Live, Social, and Shoppable: The Future of Video — from a16z.com by Connie Chan

Excerpt:

Now, we’re about to enter a whole new era of video-first products that extend far beyond entertainment and gaming. If phase one of video was a laid-back experience, video 2.0 will be far more interactive and participatory, with users engaging with the platform, giving direct feedback on the content, and fundamentally shaping the experience in real time.

Also see:

Edtech’s Answer to Remote Learning Burnout — from a16z.com by Anne Lee Skates and Connie Chan

Excerpt:

While previous generations of edtech largely focused on in-school content distribution, more recently founders have turned their attention to after-school and out-of-school education. There’s a lot left to build. We believe post-COVID online education will differ from the past in key ways.

Marni Baker Stein on What’s Next For Higher Education — — from gettingsmart.com by Getting Smart Staff

Excerpt:

On this episode of the Getting Smart Podcast, we’re talking with Marni Baker Stein, Provost and Chief Academic Officer at Western Governors University (WGU).
…
For example, with regards to skills: WGU put together a skills architecture team alongside national competency networks. They then used EMSI, a common way to describe skills, to tag them to a competency and execute dynamic audits of performance.

“Learners desperately need education to organize itself around what they need it to become.”

Digital Credentials: A Better Way to Capture and Communicate Learning — from gettingsmart.com by Tom Vander Ark, Rebecca Midles and Rashawn Caruthers

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

There is an invention opportunity to better credential units of learning, to open up individual learning pathways, to better communicate capabilities, and to reduce friction in talent transactions.

The pandemic is accelerating this shift to verified credentials. Enrollment in short-term credential classes increased by 70% over last year while freshman college enrollment dropped by 16%.

There are six opportunities to better capture and communicate learning.

The Opportunity for Personalized and Local Guidance — from gettingsmart.com by Tom Vander Ark, Rebecca Midles and Rashawn Caruthers

Excerpt:

There is a big opportunity to create tools that complement advisor efforts to help learners better understand themselves, spot and try out possible futures, make informed decisions about what’s next, and persist through challenges.

The Dice Q3 Tech Job Report | Tech Hiring and COVID-19: What You Need to Know

On 11/11/2020, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, adult learning, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, career development, cloud-based computing / apps / other cloud-related, colleges, community colleges, computer science, content development, aggregation, repositories, corporate / business world, corporate universities / corporate training, credentialing, curriculum, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, distance education, elearning, emerging technologies, entrepreneurship, future, future of higher education, game-changing environment, global / globalization, higher education, ideas, informal learning, innovation, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, internet, IT in HE, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, lifelong learning, microlearning, Microsoft, mobile technologies, more voice more choice more control, online learning, online media, online tutoring, personalized/customized learning, platforms, professional development, programming, social learning / networks, society, staying relevant, streams of content, technologies for your home, technology (general), telepresence, television, tools, training / L&D, trends, TVs, United States, universities, vendors, videoconferencing, virtual tutoring, web-based collaboration, workplace, by Daniel Christian

The Dice Q3 Tech Job Report: Tech Hiring and COVID-19: What You Need to Know — from techhub.dice.com
The report, issued quarterly by Dice, provides exclusive statistics and analysis on the tech hiring landscape, including top cities and states, top employers and the most sought-after skills and occupations.

From DSC:
One can quickly see how valuable this information would be as a data feed into an AI-based, next-generation learning platform.

The platform would connect the marketable skills with the courses, websites, blogs, RSS feeds/streams of content, etc. that would help a learner quickly and affordably build such in-demand skills. Given the shortening half-lives of many kinds of information, such a service is needed desperately…especially now with the impact of the Coronavirus.

Also relevant: See how ISTE built its upcoming virtual event!

Could/would an AI — working with a cloud-based learner profile — help here? [Christian]

On 11/10/2020, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, active learning, adult learning, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, attention, curriculum, Daniel S. Christian, digital learning, education, education technology, educational games / serious games, elearning, emerging technologies, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, global / globalization, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), hybrid learning, ideas, innovation, instructional design, intelligent systems, intelligent tutoring, interaction design, interactivity, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, learner profiles, learning, learning agents, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, learning spaces, lifelong learning, love of learning, more voice more choice more control, neurodivergent/special needs, online learning, online tutoring, passions, personalized/customized learning, platforms, professional development, psychology, reinvent, staying relevant, student teaching/teacher education, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, training / L&D, user experience (UX), virtual K-12 schools, youth, by Daniel Christian

Temperament-Inclusive Pedagogy: Helping Introverted and Extraverted Students Thrive in a Changing Educational Landscape — from onlinelearningconsortium.org by Mary R. Fry

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

So how do we take these different approaches to learning into account and foster a classroom environment that is more inclusive of the needs of both extraverts and introverts? Let’s first distinguish between how extraverts and introverts most prefer to learn, and then discuss ways to meet the needs of both. Extraverts tend to learn through active and social engagement with the material (group work, interactive learning experiences, performing and discussing). Verbalizing typically helps extraverts to think through their ideas and to foster new ones. They often think quickly on their feet and welcome working in large groups. It can be challenging for extraverts to generate ideas in isolation (talking through ideas is often needed) and thus working on solitary projects and writing can be challenging.

In contrast, introverts thrive with solitary/independent work and typically need this time to sort through what they are learning before they can formulate their thoughts and articulate their perspectives. Introverted learners often dislike group work (or at least the group sizes and structures that are often used in the classroom (more on this in a moment)) and find their voice drowned out in synchronous discussions as they don’t typically think as fast as their extroverted counterparts and don’t often speak until they feel they have something carefully thought out to share. Introverted learners are often quite content, and can remain attentive, through longer lectures and presentations and prefer engaging with the material in a more interactive way only after a pause or break.

From DSC:
Could/would a next-generation learning platform that has some Artificial Intelligence (AI) features baked into it — working in conjunction with a cloud-based learner profile — be of assistance here?

That is, maybe a learner could self-select the type of learning that they are: introverted or extroverted. Or perhaps they could use a sliding scaled to mix learning activities up to a certain degree. Or perhaps if one wasn’t sure of their preferences, they could ask the AI-backed system to scan for how much time they spent doing learning activities X, Y, and Z versus learning activities A, B, and C…then AI could offer up activities that meet a learner’s preferences.

(By the way, I love the idea of the “think-ink-pair-share” — to address both extroverted and introverted learners. This can be done digitally/virtually as well as in a face-to-face setting.)

All of this would further assist in helping build an enjoyment of learning. And wouldn’t that be nice? Now that we all need to learn for 40, 50, 60, 70, or even 80 years of our lives?

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