Learning programs — whether academic, vocational or corporate — don’t always meet expectations. Technological advances, cultural shifts, and new business realities continually alter the market for human talent, eliminating the need for certain skills and creating demand for new ones. Either way, the shelf life of skills gets shorter while the need for more responsive education and organic learning models becomes imperative.
EdTech and e-Learning are the two primary fields that help address these challenges. Both fields are experiencing surges in industry valuations given the crucial roles they now play in the economy. With both fields also in flux as they continue to evolve, how can educators and corporate trainers stay updated on the best practices, latest insights, and most effective tools for eLearning?
One way to keep pace is to follow trade publications, blogs, and social media accounts of movers and thought leaders in the industry. Another is to participate in eLearning events. In particular, learning conferences are among the best ways for teachers, L&D practitioners, HR leaders, and course designers to stay on top of the rapid changes and looming challenges in the industry. Conferences also help educators build professional networks, unlock opportunities, and enhance their capabilities in teaching, training, and developing the next generation of talent.
There are dozens of notable learning conferences that are held every year and choosing specific ones to attend can be tricky. Here are our picks for 2020:
January
2020 6th International Conference on e-Society, e-Learning and e-Technologies
January 9-10, 2020 Portsmouth, United Kingdom
The annual ICSLT conferences bring together the leading minds in education, social sciences, and technology to share research and collaborate on education-focused initiatives. This year’s conference focuses on eLearning platforms, strategies, and evaluation.
February
WEI International Academic Conference on Education & Teaching and Learning
February 11-13 Barcelona, Spain
This four-day event is organized by the West East Institute and focuses on business, economics, education, and the social sciences. Activities and presentations will also tackle a wide variety of subjects including eLearning, blended education, distance education, teaching methods, educational policies, and professional development.
Learning Technologies Conference
February 12-13 London, United Kingdom
Learning Technologies’ two day conference is one of the biggest corporate learning conferences in Europe. The event brings in 8500 attendees, 200 exhibitors and showcases 200 free L&D seminars.
Chief Learning Officer Exchange
February 23-25 Austin, Texas
Spearheaded by the HR Exchange Network, this event aims to help participants enhance the learning and development strategies of their organizations. Keynotes, workshops, and other sessions will include techniques and insights on how to anticipate skill gaps and develop learning programs that make sense in the context of your company.
Training 2020 Conference & Expo
Feb 24-26 Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort, Florida
Produced by Training magazine, this event has more than four decades of history behind it. The conference brings together the best minds in the learning and training industry in one venue.
March
3rd ICTEL 2020 - Singapore (International Conferences on Teaching, Education & Learning)
March 24-25 Singapore
This series of conferences brings together educators, trainers, and other learning practitioners all over the globe to build networks, exchange insights, and create sustainable learning solutions for the future.
April
WEI International Academic Conference on Education & Teaching and Learning
April 14-16 Vienna, Austria
This three-day event is organized by the West East Institute and focuses on business, economics, education, and the social sciences. Activities and presentations will also tackle a wide variety of subjects including eLearning, blended education, distance education, teaching methods, educational policies, and professional development.
April 28-29 London, United Kingdom
Run by iVentiv, Learning Futures provides L&D executives the opportunity to network and learn from their peers. The conference is unique in its approach to teaching, as it forgoes the traditional keynote model in favour of interactive, problem-solving experiences.
May
ATD International Conference and Expo
May 17-20 Denver, Colorado
ATD is one of the top eLearning conferences in the US, attracting over 12,000 yearly. The four day event is packed with influential speakers and actionable sessions. 2020 conference goers can look forward to Sir Richard Branson, Indra Nooyi, and Ben Nemtin as key speakers.
June
Chief Learning Officer Apex, Spring
June 1-2 Seattle, Washington
Professionals who lead the learning and development efforts of their organizations constitute the ideal attendees of this event. Entitled Future-Forward: Reimagine Learning to Accelerate Talent Performance & Deliver Business Impact, the conference attracts top L&D practitioners and serves as the ultimate venue where the very best minds in the industry exchange insights, set new standards, and define the next milestones for eLearning.
WEI International Academic Conference on Education & Teaching and Learning
June 9-11 Washington DC, USA
This three-day event is organized by the West East Institute and focuses on business, economics, education, and the social sciences. Activities and presentations will also tackle a wide variety of subjects including eLearning, blended education, distance education, teaching methods, educational policies, and professional development.
June 10-11 London, United Kingdom
This event celebrates work with a conference, free-to-attend exhibition, interactive experiences, live demonstrations, and an after party. The event is divided into three sections: Future of Work, Technology and Resourcing, and Learning & Development. Attendees can meet with over 300 exhibitors and attend sessions led by over 130 speakers.
Training Industry Conference and Expo
June 16-18, Raleigh, North Carolina
TICE is a highly interactive conference focused on building leaders in corporate learning and development. The three-day event gathers L&D professionals to discuss strategic alignment and overcome organizational obstacles.
July
July 14-15 Chicago, Illinois
Get the insight and learn the tactics you need to improve the learning experiences of your students. This conference zeroes in on the critical areas of talent development: learning technologies, instructional design, training delivery, and assessment.
July 20-22 Anaheim, California
Organized by D2L (Desire2Learn), this conference explores new learning trends and techniques for higher education, schools, enterprises, and other organizations, especially those using the Brightspace platform.
July 28-30 Orlando, Florida
This 3-day conference features keynotes and workshops where you can glean best-in-class insights about the future of education and learning. Organized by EdTech leader Blackboard, the conference involves 800+ institutions, more than 50 exhibitors, 1500+ attendees, and representatives from more than 40 countries.
WEI International Academic Conference on Education, Teaching and Learning
July 27-30 Boston, Massachusetts (Harvard Faculty Club)
This four-day event is organized by the West East Institute and focuses on business, economics, education, and the social sciences. Activities and presentations will also tackle a wide variety of subjects including eLearning, blended education, distance education, teaching methods, educational policies, and professional development.
August
TBD TBD
This event showcases emerging trends and innovation in educational technology with a special focus on their impact on business, sustainability, and growth. Aiming to foster collaboration among EdTech and education players in the APAC region and beyond, the summit explores investment opportunities, workplace transformation, and potential synergies among stakeholders.
Distance Learning And Teaching Conference
August 4-6 Wisconsin, Madison
Organized by the University of Wisconsin-Madison, this event offers insight, training, solutions, and opportunities for online/distance learning professionals. Canvas, Duarte, and Magna Publications count among the conference’s key sponsors.
September
International Conference on Interactive Collaborative Learning (ICL2020)
September TBD Tallinn, Estonia
Founded in 1998, the annual ICL conferences focus on research and best practices in the field of interactive, computer-aided learning. Featuring keynotes, workshops, discussion panels, and other sessions, these conferences cover a broad range of subtopics such as mobile learning, game-based training, and eLearning tools.
October
October 13-15 Austin, Texas
This event features the most promising innovation and trends in the training industry. Themes for the 2020 conference include Mobile Learning, eLearning, Augmented Reality, AI, Gamification, and Instructional Design. The TechLearn Conference is produced by Lakewood Media Group and Training Magazine.
Chief Learning Officer Symposium Fall 2020
October 19-21 Chicago, Illinois
The CLO Symposium features world-class speakers, breakout sessions, and actionable tactics selected to help you transform corporate learning into a culture of excellence. The focus will be on hot topics such as AI, performance management, business alignment, and immersive learning experiences.
October 21-23 Las Vegas, Nevada
Peek into the future of digital learning. Keep abreast of what’s new and what’s making waves in the industry — from tools and technologies to practices and mindsets. Organized by the eLearning Guild, DevLearn 2020 is the conference you wouldn’t want to miss. This year’s event offers more than 200 dynamic sessions in virtually every area in digital learning including course design and measurement analytics.
TBD TBD
The QM Connect Conference raises the bar on learning methodologies and outcomes. Entitled Committing to Excellence for Learners, this event produced by Quality Matters will reveal how top organizations are creating, tracking, and sustaining high-quality online learning.
October 25-28 San Antonio, Texas
If you are a K-12 teacher, administrator, or course designer, then this annual event will help you create better experiences for learners. Featuring more than 200 sessions, the conference brings together thousands of educators, EdTech leaders, and learning experts in providing solutions for the various challenges in K-12 education.
November
Workforce L&D ’20
November 9-11 Kissimmee, Florida
The goal of this conference is to help organizations attract, develop, and retain top talent. The event’s highlights include sessions on microlearning, training audits, soft skills development, mandatory training programs, gamification, and onboarding.
(Note: This event has since been cancelled)
November 15-18 Orlando, Florida
Attracting more than 2000 L&D practitioners, the Learning 2020 event explores the links between workplace challenges, business success, and learning solutions. This year’s conference will focus on globalization and automation, delivering new insights and creative tactics for corporate learning.
SETDA Leadership Summit & Education Forum
November 16-18 Arlington, Virginia
The State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) hosts two major annual events: one focuses on emerging technologies and the other is the summit for state educational leaders and private sector partners. The latter explores a broad range of issues including assessment practices, EdTech issues, professional development, and emerging innovations in learning.
November 17-19 Toronto, Ontario
Learning and development practitioners will bring home a haul of takeaways from this much-awaited industry event. Organized by the Institute for Performance and Learning (I4PL), the 2020 Conference attracts delegates from around the world for a three-day deep dive into the freshest technologies, tools, thoughts, and tactics in digital learning.
OLC Accelerate 2020 Conference
November 17-20 Orlando, Florida
Produced by the Online Learning Consortium, this conference is 25th in the annual series and focuses on research, online education, and other topics in digital learning. Usually attended by thousands of eLearning professionals, the event is a great venue not only for discovering the latest trends but also for building professional and business networks.
December
December 2-4 Berlin, Germany
This event is a cross-sectoral conference on digital learning and EdTech. To be attended by more than 2,300 participants from more than 100 countries, the event features keynotes, labs, workshops, and demos.
Reimagine Education Conference 2020
December 10-11 San Francisco, California
This conference gathers together hundreds of deans, executives, and policymakers from world-class universities, global companies, and leading EdTech industry players. Discover the future of universities, workplaces, and learning experiences with keynotes from Wharton, Google, IBM, Harvard, and other institutions. Reimagine Education Conference is also the venue where the most prestigious awards in educational innovation will be presented.
28th ICTEL 2020 - Bangkok (International Conferences on Teaching, Education & Learning)
December 19-20 Bangkok, Thailand
This series of conferences brings together educators, trainers, and other learning practitioners all over the globe to build networks, exchange insights, and create sustainable learning solutions for the future.
Conclusion
Learning conferences are an immersive and fun way for educators, course developers, and corporate trainers to discover new trends, fascinating insights, and effective tactics in digital learning. These events also provide opportunities for learning practitioners to expand their professional networks and open up opportunities for future collaborations.
Do you know of a great learning conference we haven’t listed here? Contact us and let us know!
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