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Ex-Obama advisor calls for more AI skills training in schools and the workplace to kick-start learning technology innovation
Monday, October 14 2024
Article on Business Plus:
- Richard Culatta delivered keynote speech to Learnovation 2024 summit
- AI expert calls for fresh approach to innovation with more empathy for learners
Outdated attitudes to education and a lack of focus on AI skills at all levels are the biggest barriers to innovation in learning technology, a top advisor to former US President Barack Obama told Learnovation 2024, the annual summit on the future of work and learning.
Richard Culatta, CEO of International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) and Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD), was a keynote speaker at the summit at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Thursday, October 3.
The ISTE and ASCD are nonprofit organisations that aim to help educators use technology to revolutionise learning. A native of the United States, Richard served as the Chief Innovation Officer for his home state of Rhode Island and is a former Executive Director of the Office of Educational Technology for the US Department of Education, a role to which he was appointed by Barack Obama.
Richard is also the author of Digital for Good: Raising Kids to Thrive in an Online World, which outlines his vision for a new approach to social media and digital technology for children.
The theme of The Learnovation Summit 2024 was ‘Navigating the Future of Learning’, with speakers and workshops focused on preparing learners for the challenges of the 21st century and the future of work. Learnovation is the annual summit organised by The Learnovate Centre in Trinity College Dublin, a leading global future of work and learning research hub funded by Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland.
In his keynote speech, Richard urged developers to place empathy for the learner at the centre of new learning technology innovations, adding that the failure to produce better user experiences is due to the instinctive disregard for learners’ needs, an attitude borne from everyone having gone through education and, on that basis, assuming they know what’s best for the learners they serve.
Richard also urged developers to rethink their approach to innovation, reminding them that in order to innovate, developers needed to actively seek to understand user behaviour to discover their challenges and pain points. He also called for a more iterative approach to innovation, with greater emphasis on testing small solutions and building on their successes rather than proposing time-consuming and unwieldy projects that never get off the ground.
The speech also referenced the need for better AI skills training at all levels – from primary, secondary and third-level education, as well as workplace training and upskilling – to teach how to use the AI to support skills like brainstorming ideas and synthesising information so that people can spend more time critically analysing the best solutions.
“I was delighted to give the keynote address at this year’s Learnovation summit on the future of work and learning. My address focused on the need to rethink our attitude to learning, our approach to innovation, and the need to prepare people in schools and in the workplace to utilise AI technology in ways that helps us become better human beings. We are in an exciting moment for technological progress, but barriers to innovation in learning must be overcome so that we can maximise the potential of technology to transform learning.”
Director of Learnovate Nessa McEniff says:
“AI is a transformative tool that can help unlock students’ potential for success by personalising learning, empowering educators and engaging learners. We must develop children and teachers’ ability to harness AI to meet their needs in our rapidly evolving world.”
About Learnovate:
Learnovate is a global research and innovation centre in learning technologies and the future of work and learning. An industry-led technology centre funded by Enterprise Ireland, Learnovate supports organisations to unlock the transformative power of learning using applied research, innovative practices, and technology. Learnovate’s vision is to be globally recognised as a centre of excellence for the future of work and learning, and to enable Ireland to strengthen its competitive position in this sector.
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