Digital Dialogues

E-Learning Still in Early Stages in Australia and New Zealand

The Cape Group (an Australian-based global human capital research and advisory firm) have just released a report based on responses from 30 of the top 100 organisations in Australia and New Zealand. Learning Circuits magazine (from ASTD) reviewed the report:
The survey found that only a handful of organizations viewed themselves as being mature users of e-learning. The survey also revealed that more than half of the organizations interviewed (62 percent) considered themselves to be in the early stages of e-learning technology adoption.
While the organisations appear to have adopted a sophisticated array of e-learning tools and technologies to drive business outcomes, few are exploiting the full capabilities available. Most organizations are still laying the foundations for e-learning, says Cape Group director and e-learning industry expert Dion Groeneweg, "While organizations we researched view e-learning as an effective and efficient means of solving real business issues, many have a long way to go before they will realize the full benefits of their solution," says Groeneweg.
For 73 percent of the organizations surveyed, their e-learning journey will continue as the solution expands and new business requirements demand more from e-learning. "As organizations move away from tactical e-learning solutions, performance management and competency development will be key focus areas for the immediate future," says Groeneweg said.
The full report can be purchased from the Cape Group.

Life without the Net

Can't live without it??? What would you do if you couldn't access the internet for 2 weeks.....ooooh that's getting really frightening!
I think I would cope without spam emails, but....could I survive without my newsfeeds? My blogging? My research? Nah - don't even want to think about it.... it's hard enough when I'm travelling and end up on limited access with dial-up connections....
A story in the Sydney Morning Herald reports that Yahoo! Inc and the OMD media agency commissioned the study to give marketers a deeper understanding of people's dependence on email, websites, and other internet-based tools. About 30 people in the US were asked to keep diaries on broadband connection deprivation (boy, not even dial-up!) - and over 1,000 households were also asked how long they would last - 5 days was the average response!!!
How long would you last and what impact would it have??
I'd certainly have some banking issues, a few worried students,....
Oh, by the way - it probably wasn't that hard for the research participants - they were still allowed to use the internet at work, but not for personal use...hmmmm - that's a bit easy, isn't it!

Wonder what impact this would have on learning strategies if we made students in an online course not access the content for 2 weeks....more like a holiday....?
Any comments??

Robin Mason's new book!

For those that attended Robin Mason's VC, she talked about her new book:
The Connecticon:Learning for the Connected Generation
By Frank Rennie, Lews Castle College and Robin Mason, The Open University

I have just received advice from the publisher that is in now released and on special for US $26.95 (paperback edition) if purchased through the publisher!
Here is what the promo says about it:

This book makes the case that the changes brought about by the connectivity of the Internet have so transformed the nature of post secondary learning that we need to view it differently. Both the content and the processes of learning have been profoundly altered because of the accessibility of information and the multi-way interactivity provided by the Internet. We call this new phenomenon the Connecticon—which encompasses the new opportunities created by the infrastructure, the content, the multiple connection devices of the Web, as well as by the hyper-interactivity of the connected generation for whom attention is the new currency. It is the aim of this book to identify and document the Connecticon—its nature, its impact and its implications. We will do this in the broad domain of learning, though a similar study could be carried out in commercial, social or political fields.

To order a copy go to the publishers website: Information Age Publishing Inc

It would great to get reviews on this book - so please let me know what you think!!

September Overview

The last 2 weeks seemed to be totally focused on blogs - have you noticed?? Or is it just me?
The Flexible Learning Framework have released 2 new guides:
On your mark, get set, blog!
and
Teaching and learning with blogs
Meanwhile, in the US, Learning Circuits (American Society of Training & Development's free e-zine) has released a guide in their "Answer Geek" section on blogs and the technology.
But wait there's more...I presented (with a couple of colleagues) to UTS academics (over 100 people attended) on the implications of using blogs in teaching and learning!
And we're also going to be running 2 hour workshops on setting up blogs and integrating them into pedagogical frameworks - yes, including the assessment issues!

So it has to be more than the just the full moon that has put blogs right on the radar screen of some many practitioners!
Interestingly, I still find a large portion my presentation time is spent explaining the concept and trying to justify to the audience that blogs DO matter!
I will be summarising my presentation into a paper that will be available on the LTUG website shortly.
But if you can't wait for that - did you happen to see Mondo Thingo on the ABC last Thursday (23 Sep) night? A Sydney cab driver is interviewing his passengers (with their permission) and then capturing the issues and posting them to his blog! You can see the whole story on the ABC website:
And make you also visit the blog too!
http://www.cablog.com.au/

So - the message is: Keep on blogging!
ABB

Copyright Tips!

The internet certainly doesn't make this any easier - but the Copright Council might be able to help!
DON'T BE A COPYCAT
The Australian Copyright Council runs copyright training sessions specifically for people working in educational institutions.
http://www.tpatwork.com/ViewArticle.asp?issueid=196&articleid=1362

Rapid e-Learning

Josh Bersin from Bersin Associates has published an interesting study on the appropriateness of using rapid e-Learning approaches - through the use of rapid authoring tools and the use of instructional templates.
The report is overviewed by Macromedia on this link

A useful guide or taxonomy has been developed - The Four Categories of Training - that breaks down some of the courses traditionally provided in organisations and suggests which technological approach may be best suited.
Briefly the 4 categories are:
Information Broadcast - quickly let your learners know about a change - rapid e-Learning is great for this use.
Critical Knowledge Transfer - quickly let everyone know of a change, ensure they have read and understood the content or changes. Again - they recommend the rapid e-Learning approach.
Develop New Skills - they recommend a more traditional approach - either classroom or blended options.
Create Certified Competencies - a blend of traditional methods - perhaps incorporating simulations, rapid e-Learning, exercises and assessment that lead to certification.

For practitioners that are often required to use these templates in rapid authoring software or their LMS this is a useful guide!
You can also visit the Bersin Associates site and download the slides from a webinar conducted on the Rapid e-Learning study.

Knowledge Sharing

Informal, joined up knowledge sharing using connected weblogs in pursuit of Mental Health service improvement
While I'm focusing on blogs (when am I not?) I thought this might be of interest! Lee Bryant from Headshift - a UK-based internet technolgies company that focuses on social and communication technologies has integrated blogs and wikis into the Mental Health Services in the UK to provide a bottom-up knowledge management system.
I saw Lee present at BlogTalk2.0 in Vienna and this innovative use of blogs is another demonstration of the power of blogs and also how practitioners can adopt technology to design solutions to needs that enhance process - rather than complicate them!
http://www.headshift.com/archives/001823.cfm