The construction industry is often seen as hands-on and practical, but digital skills are central to how learners are trained and how construction businesses and self employed workers operate. To explore this in more depth, we interviewed teaching practitioners from further education (FE) colleges and an industry training board to understand what digital skills are currently being taught, what learners will need in the future, and where the biggest opportunities and challenges lie.
At Digifest this year, we hosted a discussion session with around 45 delegates to explore how smart glasses might be used in post16 education, either as an assistive technology or as a teaching and learning tool. We explored three scenarios: supporting visually impaired and hard‑of‑hearing learners, and using smart glasses in specialist environments such as […]
As part of ALT/ Jisc XR Community’s work investigating the ethical use of immersive technology, we’ve invited Matthew Coxon (Programme Lead (BSc, Psychology) and Senior Lecturer in Cognitive Psychology at York St John University), who is a member of our steering group, to share his experiences: Over the past decade, we’ve been developing our approach to using virtual reality in Psychology teaching at York St John […]
Immersive technologies offer new ways to engage learners and create transformative experiences. But with innovation comes responsibility. Using the Association for Learning (ALT)’s Framework for Ethical Learning Technology (FELT), we explored some of these issues in a community event for the ALT/ Jisc XR community, with 68 attendees. The work into this area was inspired […]
Despite the lunchtime slot, it was a solid turnout for the extended reality (XR) community meet up at Digifest, reflecting the growing interest and engagement in XR within the sector.
Zac books a demo with a new device from Apple and considers whether it has opportunities for teaching, learning and assessment. The Apple Vision Pro.
In a recent community session, around 30 members gathered to discuss how they were integrating immersive technologies into teaching and learning at their institution. Through the discussion, participants explored some of the challenges, questions, and best practice tips with one another. Three key themes emerged from the workshop: (1) determining a plan for embedding XR, (2) getting teaching staff engaged, and (3) getting learners engaged.
Chris shares what’s on Nesta’s emerging technology watch list for 2024
As immersive technologies such as augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR) and virtual reality (VR) become more prevalent, it is crucial to consider their wider impact on the environment and society. While these technologies offer exciting new possibilities for education, they can also leave a significant carbon footprint and contribute to e-waste. This blog post explores some of the sustainability related opportunities and challenges for education providers when using extended reality (XR) technologies.
The way we work is always evolving. Recent advancements in immersive technologies such as virtual and augmented reality and artificial intelligence such as ChatGPT are set to transform the way we work. In this blog post, we’ll take a look at how such technology could change our workplace practices. We’ll also consider what skills an employee might need for the future workplace.