Last week I was lucky to be allowed to go to the Learning Technologies & Learning and Skills Exhibitions at Olympia in London. (Lucky because I persuaded work to pay for the flights…). I have never been to one of these things before and it was initially really overwhelming: so many stalls (with companies trying to sell their wares) and a continual hubbub of networking. Even the seminars were out in the open exhibition floor – just some chairs in rows, a large screen for the inevitable PowerPoint slide deck, some loudspeakers and a guest presenter.
On which subject, amongst the teeming hordes I happened across someone I recognised – James McLuckie delivering a seminar on The Essentials of Supporting an Online Learning Community. Overall I met 3 fellow MSc students – all by accident – not bad going for an online course with students all over the world!
PS It was really amusing how much more attention I got from the stallholders once they checked out my badge: “oooh big company person! Come buy our stuff!!!”
It was a good exhibition. Pity we didn’t bump into each other!