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With its wee size, February can trip a person up. You think you’re on track to fit all your tasks in by month end, and suddenly it is month end. And then there’s the rain and hail and wind… So it’s just as well February doesn’t overstay its welcome in years that are indivisible by 4.
There are a couple of nice things about February, though — Valentine’s Day and Family Day. What are you getting up to this February?
As for Limestone, we’re putting the pedal to the metal. We have lots of interesting projects in the works, with plenty more to come, as we get into our busiest season of the year.
And as for the L&D industry, we’ve never seen more conferences jammed into one month than this February’s lineup. Have you updated your passport so you can take advantage? (Apparently, the wait times are down to just a month.) Or are you planning to enjoy a conference virtually? Either way, we’d love to hear your news if you decide to attend an event.
And finally, how are your New Year’s resolutions going? Drop us a line to share!
Our editor Kate is just an email away.
Happy reading!
Stephanie & Tristan Jutras
Managing Partners
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LIMESTONE LEARNING
ONLINE
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You're receiving The Quarry from Limestone Learning for one of these reasons:
- We've collaborated on one or more projects in the past.
- You've attended a webinar presented by one of our co-founders Paula Yunker or Stephanie Jutras with Lambda Solutions.
- You subscribed via our website at www.limestonelearning.com.
We hope you find this monthly update useful, but if you'd rather unsubscribe, you can do so using the link at the very bottom of the page. Cheers!
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Did you know?
Instructor-led training isn’t going anywhere. However, there is a shift toward digitization, and this trend is expected to accelerate.
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Welcome!
We're off and running for 2023 with a flurry of projects, including a documentation requirements elearning course for a healthcare-related professional association and safety training for a provincial utility.
(This is the time of year when many of our clients are sprinting toward their March 31 fiscal year end, which tends to keep us busy into April. If you need a hand with any time-sensitive projects, contact us as soon as possible so we can get started helping with your L&D planning this spring!)
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Did you know?
About 42% of companies that use online training report that it results in greater income.
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Upcoming events
 February 7–9, 2023: ATD TechKnowledge Conference, Dallas, TX
Technology waits for no one. Talent development professionals who embrace technological advancements are the ones shaping the future of work. ATD TechKnowledge paves the way for the L&D profession to come together to explore challenges, identify opportunities, and embrace growth. Join the conference for three immersive days of discovering the newest learning technologies, the hottest industry trends, and the most innovative approaches to L&D.
 February 8–9, 2023: Learning Guild Microlearning Online Conference, Dallas, TX
The Microlearning Online Conference explores microlearning from every angle. You’ll learn how and why to add microlearning to your training strategy, as well as what to consider when deciding whether microlearning is the right choice to resolve a knowledge gap or performance issue. You’ll learn best practices for engaging microlearning design, regardless of delivery medium, and tips on choosing tools for creating and delivering microlearning to learners.
 February 12–15, 2023: ITC 2023 eLearning Conference, Las Vegas, NV
The Instructional Technology Council (ITC) invites you to collaborate with colleagues from across the country and around the world at one of the friendliest and most comprehensive annual conferences for elearning practitioners. Share the new and innovative educational strategies and technologies you have implemented, and the tried-and-true techniques you or your staff use to teach at a distance. Have you experienced strategies that did not work out as well as you had hoped? Share the lessons you learned, too!
 February 13–15, 2023: Digital Learning Annual Conference, Austin, TX and online
Digital tools and resources aren't silver bullets that magically transform education, but online learning, blended learning, and the use of technology can increase student opportunities and improve student outcomes, when developed by thoughtful school leaders and implemented by effective teachers. DLAC celebrates K–12 digital learning practitioners, researchers, and policymakers. Join in to learn from each other and share best (and worst!) practices. The sessions are shorter, livelier, and more interactive than most conferences, creating a high-energy gathering built on sharing and conversations.
 February 13–15, 2023: Training 2023 Conference & Expo, Orlando, FL
Connection, collaboration, community, and camaraderie with your L&D peers — that's what you can expect at Training magazine's Training 2023 Conference & Expo. For more than 45 years, learning experts and professionals from all industries and experience levels have come together to forge lifetime bonds, learn real-world best practices, and transform training. The possibilities are endless — come to Orlando and find out how to turn them into reality at your organization!
 February 16, 2023: The Learning Ideas Conference: Creativity in Learning Design, online
This one-day, online event, hosted by online learning expert Dr. David Guralnick, will explore the concept of creativity and ways to design new approaches to learning. The event will feature experts from various fields relating to creativity, learning, and technology. Recordings of all sessions will be made available to registered participants after the event.
 February 28, 2023: World of Learning Summit, London, UK
The World of Learning Summit is a one-day event that brings together leading experts, brands and professionals from the L&D community under one roof. The carefully curated conference program offers delegates the opportunity to hear from thought leaders from the L&D community, in an informative yet informal setting. Combining a mix of interactive presentations, thought-provoking panel sessions and lively debates, delegates come away with practical solutions and fresh ideas they apply within their own businesses. Alongside the conference is the free-to attend exhibition, where visitors can access a whole host of free seminars, sessions, and interactive zones including: the mental wellbeing zone, the business & networking lounge, Learning Design Live, and the Life Skills Library.
For other L&D events throughout the year ahead, see our blog post, Learning & development conferences in 2023.
And if you know of a valuable L&D/T&D/elearning/instructional design conference or online/virtual event happening in 2023 — or even 2024 — let us know!
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Did you know?
Collecting impact data on training programs is one of the best ways to defend them when cost-cutting occurs at an organization.
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Accessibility corner
If you’re creating a downloadable document that contains form fields, remember to add labels to each form field. The labels will tell the user what kind of information each field is requesting. For example, if your form has “date” fields, make sure each part (day, month, year) is labelled.
See more at The Anatomy of Accessible Forms: Required Form Fields.
Got an accessibility tip? Share it with our editor!
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 Quick tip
Ever need to look something up while you’re working? You go to the Internet to search for a definition or fact — and next thing you know you’ve been sucked into a YouTube video featuring a talking cheetah who’s an expert at grilling steak.
If you need a little help avoiding the Internet, but you still need to look up information, try using the Smart Lookup panel in Microsoft Word. You can find it by entering “Smart Lookup” in the search bar at the top.
Got a productivity tip? Share it with our editor!
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Did you know?
An IBM study found that for every dollar spent on online learning, an organization reaps $30 in productivity.
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What we’re reading
5 Ways to Use Blended Learning Solutions to Provide JIT Support. Just-in-time learning and blended learning can fit together surprisingly well.
Making Your L&D Budget Recession-Proof: 7 Strategies to Take Now. Everyone wants to be recession-proof, and L&D practitioners are no exception.
RFP Elearning: Way to Excellence. Knowing the components of a good elearning RFP can help us advise clients on their needs.
AI Wrote a JavaScript Code for eLearning for Me. The AIs are coming for us! Or maybe they can just help us… [See more on A.I. in the Web links section below.]
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What we’re blogging about
 Learning & development conferences in 2023
by Sam Chow
So much to do, and only 28 days to do it! February has a way of suckering us into thinking we’re on top of things and then — whoops, it’s March already. If you’re working hard but wondering if there are easier/better ways to perform tasks or even ideate and create, why not sign up for a free webinar to get some ideas? There are plenty on offer this month.
Read more >>
 Learning & development conferences in 2023
by Kate Spezowka
Happy new year! Bring on the learning! Last year saw (mostly) a return to in-person events — with many retaining a virtual component and some opting to remain online-only. Here’s a preview of what to expect in conferences for 2023.
We encourage you to share our posts on social media, or directly with anyone you think might be interested!
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More resources
 Toggl is a time-tracking product that helps you manage your time (for example, with a Pomodoro timer). Available for free — or pay to add features.
Have you ever thought of sending Valentines to your customers? WordStream offers 34 designs for the occasion.
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Did you know?
Online corporate training can increase employee retention by up to 60%.
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Web links
 Inside the AI Chatbot — An Interview with Tristan Jutras. Yes, that Tristan Jutras! In this episode of the Talk Techie to me Podcast, he chats with host Tasia Custode about ChatGPT and what it can and cannot do.
Not enough? You can binge the TJ experience as he talks all things AI, (including ChatGPT more recently), on various past episodes of his weekly tech livestream, MOMENTOUS Live, co-hosted with Graye Williams, Tasia Custode, Will Silver and the occasional guest:
"Remember to Like and Subscribe," etc., etc.
Creating Effective Surveys for Instructional Design. In this podcast, Connie Malamed of eLearning Coach talks with Caroline Jarrett of Effortmark about best practices for creating surveys and other forms.
Reflecting on Instructional Design, Performance Support, and Technology. In this podcast, the IDIODC (Instructional Designers in Offices Drinking Coffee) hosts have a wide-ranging conversation with L&D expert Allison Rossett.
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Don't forget!
Follow Limestone on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter and for the latest in L&D news and research (and more), as well as Limestone blog post notifications.
While you're at it, be sure to follow Stephanie, Tristan and Paula on Twitter, too, to see a variety of articles posted on a regular basis that differ from those found on the Limestone account.
To ensure you don't miss any updates, enable notifications for each Twitter account. And feel free to share!
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Quote of the month
 “There is a huge value in learning with instant feedback.”
— Anant Agarwal
Anant Agarwal is an Indian computer architecture researcher. He is a professor of electrical engineering and computer science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and also has served as director of the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. He is the founder and CTO of Tilera, a fabless semiconductor company. He also serves as the CEO of edX, a joint partnership between MIT and Harvard University that offers free online learning.
See more at Wikipedia.
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Don't forget!
There are lots of free L&D webinars available every month. Be sure to check out Limestone’s monthly webinars blog posts so you don’t miss out. Feel free to pass along to anyone you think might be interested!
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Corporate life (romantic or otherwise)
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It’s your newsletter
Thanks for checking out this edition of The Quarry. Remember, this is your newsletter. If you’d like to contribute a story or news item, please get in touch with our editor, Kate, at thequarry@limestonelearning.com!
Until next month…
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