Comments on: The medium is my message

By: John Zonneveld

John Zonneveld — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 17:24:45 +0000

I completely agree that the web provides instant access to a vast ocean of information on any topic imaginable. The problem I see with this observation is that it leaves organizations with no way to focus their learning investment (yes, there is a cost to employees surfing the web for the purposes of learning new concepts). It is also difficult at best to measure an organization’s learning investment ROI with completely unstructured learning experiences.

Not all learning needs are equal either. While some jobs require very subjective and informal learning experiences (a.k.a. On-demand learning or just-in-time learning), others require very structured, prescriptive learning experiences. In my many years of experience in the learning technologies business, I’ve seen a strong correlation between the level of technical expertise required to perform a given job and the need for prescriptive focus (complex technical curricula) to ensure that those responsible for building and servicing technically complex goods have the skill required by the OEM to properly perform their jobs.

By: Jon Matejcek

Jon Matejcek — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 14:02:51 +0000

It’s interesting to me when large companies view their business processes as the procedural equivalent of helicopter repair. To them, it’s all relative. For example, non-compliance with purchasing procedures won’t get anyone killed, but it could cost the company a lot of money (resulting in career casualties, perhaps). So, they pile on the training. The training audience, meanwhile, is thinking, “Lighten up, it’s only purchasing. Just tell me how to do this stuff when I actually need to buy something.” One more step in the loss of their ‘learning tastebuds,’ (lame attempt to extend Tom’s metaphor!).

By: Dashe & Thomson » Blog Archive » LMS: Can Learning Really be Managed?

Mon, 16 Jul 2007 12:55:41 +0000

[...] great post the other day from Harold Jarche, in which he observes, “Learning Management Systems (LMS) are the ERPs of the education and training world.” While some organizations strive to automate and structure the learning process, Jarche points out [...]

By: Harold

Harold — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 13:36:07 +0000

I like your metaphor, Tom. A friend of mine says that most corporate e-learning is “shovelware”.

By: Tom Haskins

Tom Haskins — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 13:09:51 +0000

I wonder, if a learner has an appetite for “junk learning”, whether s/he needs to be put on a restricted diet or given more criteria to interpret what they are getting fed. I suspect that most formal content appears intrinsically useless, tasteless, “devoid of nutrition” — unless it’s tied to a job skill like “flying helicopters”. Restricting the diet amounts to “blaming the victim” who has lost his/her taste for valuable learning from so much junk content.

By: Harold

Harold — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 15:17:49 +0000

My experience is that most learning would be better with less control by instructors, but more skills on the part of the learner. Our educational institutions don't prepare self-directed learners, for the most part.

There are places where control is necessary, but these are not the majority, IMO. When I was responsible for clear-cut procedural training, like flying & fixing helicopters, the need for controlled content and evaluation was quite obvious. However, when it comes to crew resource management or tactics, it's less cut & dried and requires individual knowledge-making skills, not just doing it by the book.

By: Janet Clarey

Janet Clarey — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 15:11:49 +0000

I flip-flop on the control issue – especially lately for some reason. Food analogies are often where my mind wanders…it’s great to wander around the grocery store selecting food and eating it on the spot but hey, somebody has got to buy the stuff, bring it home and cook it to be efficient. Eating is a process and an experience. Learning too? What’s efficient learning? And, some people won’t wander into the market and select what they want…they’d prefer to go hungry or take what’s in their friend’s wrapper and eat it.