Participating at Online Educa Berlin has almost become a habit for the ITCILO Distance Education Learning and Technology Application (DELTA) unit. Why so? Online Educa is the global cross-sector conference on technology supported learning and training and every here there is the opportunity to meet about 2,000 learning professionals and exchange about education, training and technology.

In particular, there were 3 reasons why this year ITCILO attended the conference:

• Launch of the Gamification Portfolio

As part of its Innovation mandate, DELTA has been experimenting with Gamification for Learning methods: from face-to-face methodologies towards integration of game elements into online learning modules and courses. We are currently involved in 4 training projects where we identified the potential of game elements to better engage learners and involve them throughout the learning experience. The gamification.itcilo.org is the online portfolio were further details are provided. Stay tuned because more updates will come!

 

Participating at OEB 2015 allowed us to get inspiration from other organizations working in the same field. Philipp Busch and Seynabou Fachinger from GIZ, the German Technical Agency for International Cooperation, shared the interesting results of their 2015 Gamifcation Hackaton for Social Good carried out in Addis Abeba. The event resulted in one winning team which conceived AfriOne, a mobile application that integrates game elements to get people experience different cultures in a new way, and prevent tribalism before it happens.

 

• Launch of the Quality4Digital Learning MOOC

As part of the ECBCheck quality framework for digital learning, ITCILO co-facilitated the workshop on “Reconsidering the concept of quality in times of collaboration and simulation in new media learning” jointly with GIZ and UNU. The session particularly focused on how to adapt the existing ECBCheck framework of criteria towards the MOOC format. 40 participants helped us having an interesting discussion regarding media and learning design, assessment and technical support issues that need to be taken into consideration when our organizations are addressing massive audiences through open formats.

From left to right: Volker Lichtenthaeler, Alessia Messuti, Erik Tambo and Anthony Camilleri.

The session also provided the opportunity to launch the Quality4DigitalLearning MOOC, where the discussion on how to adapt quality in new digital formats will continue! Starting date is February 15, 2016: registrations are open!

• Participation at the UN Knowledge Networking

Finally, on our last day, we attended the UN Knowledge and Networking session facilitated by Mehmet Korkmaz (UNICEF) and Cristina Petracchi (FAO). The session brought together about 30 learning professionals from different UN agencies (UNHCR, UNOPS, UNESCO, UNSSC) and learning and development institutes exchanging mainly on the good practices and issues around 3 areas: instructional design for e-Learning, learning technology and blended learning.