 The role of the learning technologist has moved from sitting solely within education institutions to wider in the community. The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland has integrated many technologies into its discovery and learning department led by Lizzie Seymour. We went to Edinburgh Zoo to meet her. A visit to the zoo provides a window into the world of other species. Amazing. From the weird and wonderful, and the cute and cuddly, to those with near celebrity status. The giant panda, Edinburgh Zoo's star attraction. Zoos have always brought animals into our world, but neither latest digital technology is taking us back into theirs. We are going to go on an adventure. And I've come along for the ride. We've got some places to visit and we've got someone who's been on an adventure already. This is Edinburgh Zoo's immersive classroom. This is Danilo and he is a Southern three-banded armadillo. Here hands-on experience and the latest digital technology are helping children to develop their understanding of the world around them. And we're about to see a giant armadillo being released on the screens behind us. This immersive experience takes them from the classroom into the natural habitat so they can see the threats facing armadillos and what's being done to protect them. If they're in danger, there are some in the wild so we know they're not extinct in the world. If you care about nature, it means nature keeps coming to life. So I'm learning technology, officer. Lizzie Seymour is in charge of integrating immersive technologies like virtual reality into the zoo's education program. People remember coming to the zoo, they might not necessarily remember the hour they spent in a classroom but they're going to remember the 10 minutes they spent looking at virtual reality and seeing the rainforest. You can tell kids about deforestation but nothing quite replaces using technology to see the forest as it was and then the forest cut down and that sort of stark shock and actually feeling like you're there really increases the empathy which we need for conservation action. In the middle of a chimpanzee enclosure And so if you have a look anywhere that there's a plus you can click on. These older children are also part of the zoo's summer school program. Today they're using 360-degree technology to learn about the threats facing chimpanzees in the wild within earshot of the real thing. It's really fun because you get to do lots of really fun activities that you don't usually do when you go to the zoo and stuff. And just in case you were wondering, yes, there was a chimp you could hear in the background. It's quite nice because the baby chimp, Marsindi, is in here a lot and because we're right next to the biggest viewing area of the outdoor enclosure it's pretty nice. Yeah, it's very interactive. Bringing learning to life. We saw a chimp which had cut its hand in the snare trap and it was lame in its hand so it's very real. And is that important to get that kind of real world perspective? Yeah, it is. So this is a snare patrol. It's a patrol which try and find all the chimpanzee's snares before a chimpanzee gets caught in one. They used to find 60 to 70 snares a day. Where? But now they only find three. Lizzie was recently named Learning Technologist of the Year by ALT. The first time someone not from a traditional education background has won the award, recognising all her hard work. Making digital technology work in a zoo really takes ingenuity and creativity and passion and that is what the judging panel really responded to. Lizzie presented such a convincing and passionate insight into how particularly young people and children in this environment and ecology in a zoo context and how digital technology can help take those lessons beyond the field trip and beyond the classroom and bring them closer to the learners. What we've done particularly over the last 15 months we've made sure that our learning platforms have reached across Scotland in fact across the globe. I think as a whole and holistically the digital learning platforms provide greater accessibility inclusivity and connectivity to our mission. We're able to connect with people who may find it difficult coming to the zoo or we may be connecting to people across the globe but it provides it equalises the platform of learning so it's a hugely important tool for us. Enhancing opportunities across education to improve understanding of the world we are a part of. Learning technology shouldn't be a term anymore it should just be the way that we do education.