I think its fair to say that many of us have missed face to face meetings over the last year and a half. Yes, we have discovered that a lot of project work can be done online. But I miss the informal talks and the ideas generated by meeting up (and the social life). So I am delighted to say we are going to Online Educa Berlin from 1 to 3 December. Online Educa has long been one of my favorite gatherings of the ed tech community - a chance to meet up with friends old and new. I am working with my colleagues from Careers Chat to organise a workshop on 1 December about chatbots in education and careers. Its going be be hands on, exploring possibilities of chatbots and educationists working together.

Here is the blurb, taken from the Online Educa programme on the web. If you are coming to the conference would love to see you at the workshop. You can sign up on the OEB workshop web site.

In today’s world, change is occurring at an unprecedented rate. Societies everywhere are undergoing a deep transformation. The Covid-19 pandemic, Industry 4.0 disruption, climate change, and an ageing workforce have become realities impacting on the social and economic fabric of societies.

Advances in technology are creating new tipping points that can trigger new ways in which customers and practitioners can access trustworthy careers information, advice and guidance at anytime of the day or night. The deepening divide between the ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’ is forcing us all to consider how best to prepare for a fast-changing world of work.

Since March 2020, a team of highly experienced researchers and technology experts have worked on the creation of a unique and innovative Careers Chatbot (CiCi), powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. We believe that bots and humans can work together. You hear a lot about bots and technology being disruptive, but they do not need to be. This work is greatly influenced by the idea of social technology, of using combined human and digital resources to influence social processes – this can help individuals to prepare for possibilities rather than just simply make plans. We will set out key lessons learned and ideas for further development.

Agenda

1.    Welcome Introduction to the team – 5mins
2.    CiCi the careers chatbot demonstration and q &a session – 25 mins
3.    Practitioner observations: technology-supported learning and training – 30 mins
Break - 45 mins
4.    Design and development challenges and opportunities – 30 mins
5.    Use of labour market information / intelligence – 30 mins
6.    Question & Answer session – 15 mins

Outcomes

•    The potential of chatbots in careers guidance and education
•    Different kinds of chatbot
•    How to design a chatbot
•    How a chatbot gets its character
•    How to use labour market data in careers education
•    Ethical issues around chatbots
•    How teachers, trainers and careers advisers can work alongside bots

Audience

Anyone interested in the topic from a wide range of sectors e.g., career development specialist organisations, Education and Research, NGOs and Civil Society, Government and Policy.

Please note: participants are kindly requested to bring a laptop or a mobile phone.