Digifest 2024 - Imagining the Future

Recent years have thrown at us a few challenges with COVID, student engagement and the growth of Artificial Intelligence. This year's Jisc Digifest which I attended on 12 - 13 March, looked to inspire us with a theme focusing on the future of education and research,  reminding us also that the future is not inevitable but can be shaped by us.

The sessions ranged from hearing about space environmentalism and the problems of space debris (see this fascinating online map) to the future of high performance computing – including quantum computing and fusion computing.

Key questions and learning points that stood out to me were:

• AI – after a year dominated by the challenges and opportunities of generative AI in education, it was starting to feel like we were reaching some form of consensus with the focus moving from detection to assessment redesign, clear guidance for students (including traffic light models), staff and student AI literacy and in the longer term the potential of closed small language models
• Digital transformation - with many large-scale projects going on in institutions across the sector, there was a focus on the factors needed to make them coherent and truly transformational – cross-functional collaboration, challenging assumptions and making sure the people rather than the technology are central – all these factors can be seen in more detail in the Jisc Framework.
• Staff and student engagement – the different ways students choose to engage with us remained a focus post-COVID with many people noting that staff engagement has changed too (how many people are on campus on Fridays!). In student terms, there was a focus on effective blended and hybrid learning and on the use of data to gain a more granular understanding of the way in which students engage (for example, high levels of online activity can be a sign of a student having difficulties as well as low levels) and how to measure value rather than just behaviour.
• Innovation – as well as suppliers showing such exciting things as immersive rooms and immersive environments, there was also discussion of pedagogical innovation such as Phenomenon Based Learning and discussion on how we shape our global future, for example through Inner development goals.

Fancy learning more about what JISC is doing and the future of technology in our sector? Why not sign up for Connect More – an online conference or register your interest for Digifest 2025.

Photo credit: Drew Beamer on Unsplash