ICELW was pleased to have two fantastic keynote speakers for ICELW 2012: renowned keynote speaker and evidence-based training pioneer Dr. Ruth Clark, and workplace learning and communication expert Dr. Saul Carliner. More about our keynote speakers and their talks is below.

Dr. Ruth Clark

Principal/President
Clark Training & Consulting, USA

Talk: Applying the Science of Instruction: Evidence-based Guidelines for e-Learning

Multimedia offers instructional professionals a rich pallet of instructional modes and methods to render a range of learning environments. In fact modern technology can deliver more media than the human brain can absorb. In this session we will look at the confluence of technology, human working memory, and instructional methods for learning. We will draw on evidence and psychology on the optimal use of visuals as a context to review the kinds of research questions that are productive and the features of research studies that constrain our conclusions. Some topics we will review include:

• Evidence-based instruction: What, why, and how

• Learning styles: money wasted?

• Strengths and limits of instructional evidence

• Working memory, cognitive load and the psychology of learning

• Do visuals improve learning?

• Who benefits most from visuals?

• What kinds of visuals are most effective?

• Evidence-based guidance: No silver bullet

• What are the best questions to ask of and about instructional research?
  

About Ruth Clark
For over 30 years, Ruth Clark has helped workforce learning practitioners apply evidence-based training guidelines to design and development of classroom and e-learning instruction. Ruth has written 7 books that translate important research programs into practical training guidance including e-Learning and the Science of Instruction, Developing Technical Training, Efficiency in Learning, Graphics for Learning and Evidence-based Training Methods. Her most recent book, The Essentials of Scenario-based e-Learning is currently in press. A science undergraduate, Ruth completed her doctorate in Instructional Psychology/Educational Technology in 1988 at the University of Southern California. Ruth is a Past President of the International Society of Performance Improvement and a member of the American Educational Research Association. Ruth was honored with the 2006 Thomas F. Gilbert Distinguished Professional Achievement Award by the International Society for Performance Improvement and was a Training Legend Speaker at the ASTD 2007 International Conference. Ruth is currently a dual resident of Southwest Colorado and Phoenix, Arizona and divides her professional time among speaking, teaching, and writing.

Dr. Saul Carliner

Program Director, PhD in Education
Associate Professor of Education
Concordia University, Canada

Talk: What the Research Says about Informal Learning (and Implications for Practicing Professionals)

Is informal learning the most natural way of learning for work, as some characterize it? If not, what does happen in the process of informal learning that affects its use in workplace learning? Is social media the best way to expand the use of informal learning within an organization? What other options exist? This session explores informal learning research, and presents 9 insights that practitioners and researchers should consider when looking to promote and expand informal learning within workplaces.

About Saul Carliner
Saul Carliner has both academic and professional careers in workplace learning and communciation. He is currently Director of the Education Doctoral Program and an associate professor of educational technology at Concordia University in Montreal. Also an industry consultant, Carliner offers strategic planning for departments, projects, and technology, and offers related facilitation for clients such as AT&T, Chubb Insurance, Cossette Communications, Georgia Tech, IBM, Lowe's, Microsoft Corporation, Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre, ST Microelectronics, UPS, and several Canadian and US government agencies.

His research interests include emerging forms of online communication and training for the workplace; management of groups that prepare these materials; informal learning; and transferring research results to practice. He has received funding from several major government agencies. He has also published over 100 articles and 8 books, including the in-press Informal Learning Basics, award-winning e-Learning Handbook (with Patti Shank), and best-selling Training Design Basics and Designing e-Learning.

Carliner is a Certified Training and Development Professional (CTDP), editor-in-chief of the IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication, board member and chair of the Certification Steering Committee of the Canadian Society for Training and Development, a past Research Fellow of the American Society for Training and Development, and a Fellow and past international president of the Society for Technical Communication. He holds degrees from Carnegie Mellon University, University of Minnesota, and Georgia State University.