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(January 2nd, 2026) - iLRN Illuminators Forum #5: At the Threshold: Recasting iLRN as an Open Immersive Learning Society


iLRN ILLUMINATORS’ FORUM

Weekly scanning forum supporting the iLRN Immersive Futures — State of XR & Immersive Learning 2026

Episode Title

At the Threshold: Recasting iLRN as an Open Immersive Learning Society

Series: iLRN Illuminators’ Forum (Weekly Global Scan)

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Purpose: To convene the global immersive learning community at a pivotal moment for the field—inviting shared responsibility, collective sense-making, and forward-looking vision in support of the 2026 State of XR & Immersive Learning effort.



Date: January 2, 2026



Time: 2:00–3:00 PM Pacific / 5:00–6:00 PM Eastern



Format: Live webinar + recording

Participatory dialogue and open reflection



Host: Jonathon Richter

iLRN Survey: What’s your vision for the immersive learning field in 2026? https://tally.so/r/kdeyde

Recording

[YouTube linklink: —https://youtu.be/OFtJBMvH8IY

Illuminators Forum – Immersive Learning Weekly

Episode 5: 2026: Immersive Learning at a Threshold

SPECIAL APPEARANCE BY:
Caitlin Krause
Author of DIGITAL WELLBEING: Empowering Connection with Wonder and Imagination in the Age of AI

As we begin 2026, immersive learning appears to be addedcrossing aftera publishing]

genuine

threshold.

Overview

This session marksOver the openingpast momentdecade, the field has moved from experimentation to legitimacy. Evidence has matured. Practices have diversified. Expectations—societal, institutional, and ethical—have sharpened.


Happy 2026! What feels different now is not simply technological acceleration, but a shift in responsibility.

Immersive environments are increasingly used to rehearse real decisions, shape public understanding, and mediate collective experience. That raises a larger question for all of iLRN’us working in this space:

What should immersive learning be accountable for in 2026?

This Friday’s 2026Illuminators’ cycleForum is intentionally designed for everyone—researchers, educators, designers, developers, students, and institutional leaders—whether you join us live or engage asynchronously afterward.

If you can join live, we’ll reflect together on where immersive learning stands today and what signals matter most. 

If you can’t attend, we invite you to watch the recording and contribute your perspective through a deliberateshort reframingvision form.

This conversation directly supports our recasting of the networkImmersive Learning Research Network as an Open Immersive Learning Society—one thatgrounded treatsin immersiveshared evidence, plural perspectives, and AI-enabled learning not as isolated innovations, but as shared capabilities carrying realpublic responsibility.

Rather


than
• focusingShare onyour a2026 singlevision: technology,https://tally.so/r/kdeyde project,
or

paper,
Yes... this episode invites the community to step back and consider the field itself:

  • what immersiveImmersive learning is nowentering capablea of,
    • consequential
  • whatphase... obligationsthis accompanyis thosethe capabilities,moment and
    • to
  • how we might collectivelyhelp shape their use toward durable, meaningful good.

The forum serves both as a live convening and as an open call to contribute perspectives that will inform iLRN’s scanning, synthesis, and reporting throughout 2026.

Invitation to Participate

Participants are encouraged to engage in one or both ways:

  • Join live to take part in the opening dialogue and collective framing.
  • Contribute asynchronously by sharing your vision for immersive learning in 2026 and beyond via the registration form.

The intent is not consensus, but visibility: surfacing aspirations, tensions, priorities, and unresolved questions that deserve sustained attention over the coming year.

Guiding Questions for the Session

  • What does it mean to treat immersive learning as shared societal infrastructure rather than a collection of tools?
  • Where do you see the greatest opportunity—and risk—in current immersive and AI-augmented learning practices?
  • What responsibilities should the immersive learning field explicitly claim in 2026?
  • What would meaningful impact look like if we evaluate success beyond novelty or scale?

Position in the 2026 Scan Pipeline

This episode functions as a threshold moment for the 2026 State of XR & Immersive Learning report:

  • Establishing shared framing questions
  • Opening channels for global contribution
  • Setting expectations for interpretive, evidence-informed scanning rather than promotional trend-spotting
it—together!

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