Today I attended the Learning Technology Research Symposium hosted by CoCo at my old stomping ground, Sydney University.

The first part of the day comprised a “Research Poster Showcase”, in which the symposium attendees browsed posters about the work being undertaken by researchers not only at Sydney University, but also at other universities in Australia and overseas. Some of the researchers were present to chat and answer questions about their pride and joy.

The showcase was followed by a keynote presentation, New technologies, new pedagogies: Mobile learning and participatory culture, presented by Jan Herrington from the University of Wollongong. Jan provided an overview of a series of workshops undertaken at UOW in which both teachers and students learned how to develop vodcasts for dissemination via PDAs and iPods.

One of Jan’s points was that while many university students are familiar with mobile technologies and use them on a daily basis, they remain under used in higher education; and where they are used, they tend to be employed for relatively low-level purposes (such as downloading lecture recordings or looking up timetables). I would suggest a similar situation exists in the corporate sector. It’s time to get smarter about m-learning!

The afternoon comprised “Research Round Tables”, in which the attendees contributed to open discussions facilitated by expert chairs.

At the end of the day, I found the symposium informative, and I enjoyed catching up with my uni buddies and meeting new people in the e‑learning community. I’m certainly looking forward to next year’s.