Dr. Allen and Ethan Edwards will talk about the beginning of eLearning, how it’s evolved and what it is becoming. They will discuss the foundation of solid design and the true impact of both good and bad learning. They will field questions from the attendees and share some of their experiences from along the way.

Dr. Michael Allen, godfather of e-learning, has been a pioneer in the e-learning industry since 1975. With 45+ years of professional, academic, and corporate experience in teaching, developing, and marketing interactive learning and performance support systems, Dr. Allen has led teams of doctorate-level specialists in learning research, instructional design, computer-based training, and human engineering. 

Dr. Allen has defined unique methods of instructional design and development to provide Meaningful, Motivational, and Memorable learning experiences through "true" cognitive interactivity. He developed the advanced design and development approaches used at Allen Interactions, including CCAF-based design and the SAM process for iterative, collaborative development. 

Dr. Michael Allen was the Director of Advanced Educational Systems research and development of Control Data Corporation's famous PLATO computer-based education system used around the world. He was the founder and former Chairman of Authorware, Inc. and the primary architect of Authorware Professional, which was based on

Dr. Allen's extensive research on creativity and problem-solving. It became a groundbreaking authoring tool combining power and ease of use, and ultimately the industry standard. Authorware, Inc. merged with Macromind/ Paracomp to become Macromedia, which was later acquired by Adobe.

Ethan Edwards draws from more than 30 years of industry experience as an e-learning instructional designer and developer. He is responsible for the delivery of the internal and external training and communications that reflect Allen Interactions’ unique perspective on creating Meaningful, Memorable, and Motivational learning solutions backed by the best instructional design and latest technologies. 

Edwards is the primary instructor for Allen Academy Certified Instructional Professional Program. In addition, he is an internationally recognized presenter on instructional design and e-learning, has written many e-books on creating effective e-learning. He is a frequent blogger for Allen Interactions’ Blog, and every so often heads out on the road to vlog about e-learning design as it relates to the world around us. Edwards holds a master’s degree and significant doctoral work in educational psychology from the University of Illinois – Urbana Champaign.