Over the last decade the word “engagement” has been re-packaged, resold an remarketed so that it’s become a buzzword linked with organizational success (we must have engaged employees), customer relationships and social networking (we must be engaged with the customers”, and even, perhaps more sadly, in education. I say sadly because the meaning is unclear, and it’s become the latest fad in many of these fields.
That doesn’t mean it has no value, however, even if it is oversold.
Knowledge Management in Instructional Design. ERIC Digest.
Instructional designers engage in activities related to the planning and implementation of instructional and performance support solutions. Available tools and technologies influence the way in which instructional designers accomplish their tasks. Knowledge management represents a technology that is changing how instructional design professionals work. This article will review what instructional designers do, describe knowledge management, and indicate how knowledge management is influencing instructional design.
This is certainly a very stupid question, proving that there are such things as stupid questions, but in addition to being the wrong question to ask, it can stimulate thinking on the topic. Here’s an interchange between Robert Bacal and Sam Lane circa 2000.
On 30 Nov 00, at 16:09, Sam Lane wrote:
(It’s probably not the next big thing (it’s actually definitely not), and it’s probably not “gone”)
Just a few comments on the issue of web based training.. First the quest to use technology in place of or to reduce human intervention in learning (and other areas) is exceedingly old, back to the origins of Television (the ultimate learning panacea (or so it was thought), learning machines a la Skinner, through CAI and CAL (learning languages like Logo and Plato). James, isolates the key problem, acceptability on the part of learners.
Cost effectiveness of such attempts can only occur when the technologies can actually REPLACE “high touch” environments, and that can’t happen until the desire for high touch disappears.
ERIC Identifier: ED470032
Publication Date: 2002-10-00
Author: Driscoll, Marcy P.
Source: ERIC Clearinghouse on Information and Technology Syracuse NY.
I spend a fair amount of time each day maintaining, fixing or otherwise “serving” the machines in my office and home, or figuring them out. It struck me that there is a hidden cost to automating our lives to the extent that some of us might be actually lowering our productivity by over indulging in technology.
So, here’s a poll. I’ll post the link to results shortly, so be sure to bookmark or comeback for the discussion to follow.
We know from psychological research that human beings tend to discount information, data, or viewpoints that conflict with their pre-existing positions on any issue. We all do that to some degree. What is jarring is seeing learning professionals, trainers and teachers deliberately avoiding interacting with those who have views different from their’s.
I’ve seen this among the leading proponents of social networking as it is used to promote learning, i.e., social learning people. For example, Elliott Mazie, an elearning guru refused public discussion on an article he posted that clearly mis-stated some research numbers. Others have done similar things on Twitter. In fact, when challenged on the basic tenets of social learning dogma, the majority shut down. Avoid & deny.
I’m not sure I understand what falls under the term “social learning” platforms since I’ve seen almost every thing imaginable, including YouTube, described as a social learning tool. But what I’m looking for is your views.
I’ve seen so many vague claims for the effectiveness of social learning, but I’m not really seeing clear explanations of how social learning tools can help learning occur within companies and organizations in a way that will show a return on investment.
In Part I of this series we looked at the first part of Tony Bingham’s post on “Learning Socially” and pointed out that so far in the article, nothing the President of ASTD mentioned is relevant or telling regarding the need or movement towards “social learning. Let’s look further at Bingham’s article to see if there is any substance or valid data in it. We’ll continue with an attempt to deal with what has to be one of the silliest fad terms to hit the training world — informal learning.
Bingham says: Continue reading
One thing that happens as you age, and provided you’ve been paying attention, is that patterns seem to emerge. You hear some people talking, and you can quickly determine what is going on, hostile, friendly, business, personal, whatever, from the patterns exhibited. Many things start to look familiar.
And you get the feeling you’ve seen most things before. Because you have.