Three rules for trainers to live by (Guest Commentary)

And how they apply to e-learning

After 30 years of working with adults in technology-supported learning I have found three principles to hold true.

The first is that adults execute a finely honed personal cost-benefit analysis when it comes to a learning or training task. The basic tenets of the equation are, “How long will it take me to figure this out?” and “What will I get out of it?” This calculation is made continuously throughout a learning program, which means you can lose them at any point. Conversely, if they want to learn something badly enough they’ll put up with seemingly insurmountable challenges. So the number one principle is, “It’s all about the motivation.”

My second observation comes from years of listening to adults talk with passion about their learning experiences. The common thread of these stories is that the learners were at a point in their lives when they could use the knowledge. As the Buddhists say, “When the student is ready the teacher will appear.” So despite the tales of woe about low rates of participation in company-mandated training programs, we know that people like to learn, and will learn what they want to know. So the second principle is, “It’s all about relevance.”

My third observation is that in many fields there is no point in pre-packaging knowledge in a static training program because it is obsolete before the training is launched. The principle as it applies to many sectors is, “If you think you’re on top of your field you haven’t opened your e-mail for the day.” The skills and knowledge required of knowledge workers are changing so rapidly that skill sets can only be defined in the broadest of terms, such as critical thinking and ability to learn. And it’s tough to teach those skills on the job. So the best bet is to let motivated learners loose to access relevant learning. Which leads me to my third conclusion, “The optimum use of technology in learning is to support dynamic, fluid, learner-driven learning experiences.”

I am heartened to report that the e-learning industry is beginning to embrace these principles. A recent e-learning symposium in Fredericton, organized by the Canadian Society for Training and Development, provided several examples of projects that use technology as a tool to empower the learner. Ben Watson, the event chair, set the tone in his opening remarks by acknowledging that, because the presenters had to prepare their talks in advance, they could not be expected to be current. “Things are changing so quickly in this industry that the best way to learn will be from the talks in the hallway.” The event was structured with many opportunities to network and participants were encouraged to go after their own learning.

A presentation about e-learning and communities of practice at Pierre LeGardeur Hospital, located in the Montreal area, provides an excellent example of a learner-driven approach. During 2003-04, Mancomm Performance Inc. worked with the hospital to implement online learning for nurses as they adopted the new McGill nursing care methodology. One of the project challenges was the low level of technical competency among the learners. The consultants spent more than 200 hours teaching basic computer skills such as how to manipulate the mouse. However, because the new job aids simplified their work flow, the learners were motivated. The consultant, Benoit Brosseau, said he rashly promised, “I am providing you with tools that are going to actually save you time. If anything we do takes you more time, I’ll go away.”

The basic principle of the project was to develop tools as the needs emerged, and then support the learners while they learned the new technologies. They began the project with webmail and gave everyone an e-mail account. As communications started to flow, the nurses decided they needed something to standardize terminology and methodology. Brosseau used a Wiki for this. A Wiki is a web application that allows users to add content, as on an Internet forum, but also allows anyone to edit the content. (Probably the best known Wiki is the multilingual encyclopedia found at www.wikipedia.org.) In three months the users generated 600 pages of information, and each page had a person trained to assume overall responsibility for the content.

In addition to Wiki, they used a variety of other free open source technical solutions. These include Mambo, a content management system (www.mamboserver.com), and Moodle, a course management system for creating online learning communities (http://moodle.org). One online community was developed for nurses, and another for social workers. In most cases the online knowledge community was restricted to members. However, a section of the social workers community can be accessed by patients. Other communities of practice that are forming include nutritionists and physiotherapists.

The consultants estimate that by using open source software they saved the hospital $1 million. However, they stressed that the main reason to use these products is that they are the best applications for the jobs. Brosseau concludes that the reason for the project’s success is that rather than imposing a system, the solutions were allowed to emerge. “There were lots of meetings, hand-holding and facilitation. We provided the training wheels and then said, ‘Off you go.’”

The future will be made up of free-range learners who go out and find their food rather than just picking it up off a conveyor belt, as Jay Cross, CEO of Emergent Learning Forum, told the symposium in a wrap-up session.

People are ready to make the leap. Like Brosseau and his training wheels, HR needs to offer tools that allow learners to be reflective about what they do and how they could do it better. And then, just get out of the way.

Lyndsay Green is a pioneer in e-learning. She co-founded The Training Technology Monitor in 1993 and was chair of CSTD’s first e-learning symposium in 2001. She can be reached at [email protected].

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