On-Demand Learning
Hartley, Darin E. (2000). On-demand learning:
Training in the new millennium. Amherst, MA: HRD
Press.
THE
ON-DEMAND SOCIETY
We
are spoiled beyond the wildest beliefs of people who
lived 200-300 years ago. Most of us use technologies
just getting ready for work in the morning that were
unavailable to even the richest kings s a few years
ago. Communication occurs nearly instantly at a global
level; the personal computer is pervasive; we shop on
the Internet and the products are delivered to our
doors…
All
of these are “on demand" products---that is, we get them
when we want and we are in control. The author
believes that learner's will start to gravitate to
similar educational situations. For example, fewer
people will want to drive to campus to take a particular
class from 9 to 10 AM or watch a telecourse episode from
6 to 7 PM.
“We
must go from being the best in class to being the best
out of class”. P.9
SOME
HIGHLIGHTS IN LEARNING HISTORY
·
Greek philosophy
·
Plato and the Academy
·
Aristotle creates the Lyceum
·
Gutenberg creates the printing press
·
John
Amos Comenius uses pictures to facilitate learning
·
John
Dewey advocates Real World learning
·
BF
Skinner emphasizes positive reinforcement
THE
ON-DEMAND LEARNER
Adult Learners:
·
Are
self-directed
·
Have
rich experience to draw on
·
Have
different kinds of experiences
·
Need
to be convinced of the benefits (WIFM = “What’s In It
For Me?”)
·
Need
a social context for their learning
·
Are
flexible and open to new learning technologies and
practices if they see the value of them
Work
is less prescribed than it used to be. An office
worker’s boss doesn’t say “Fly to
Denver. Schedule a meeting. Deliver a presentation”,
etc.---they simply say “Win the Johnson account.” The
author calls this kind of open-ended work “configured”
work.
There is more need for (and tolerance of) multitasking
(notice how TV screens have gotten busier?)
Competencies of On-Demand Learners
·
Results-oriented
·
Take
initiative
·
Seek
information
·
Self-efficacy
·
Flexible
·
Learn “on the fly”
·
Goal-driven
·
Career-oriented
HOW
TO ENABLE ON-DEMAND LEARNING
Myths You’ll Have to Confront
·
“I
can’t learn unless I’m in a classroom with an
instructor”
·
“People won’t take the time to learn on their own”
·
“We’ve got to inundate them with theory”
Rules
·
Make
it easier to use and it will get used.
·
Make
it accessible
·
Build for the lowest common technological denominator,
not the cutting edge
·
Give
rich feedback
·
Allow plenty of practice time
·
Allow people to fail, but “safely”
·
Use
assessment to direct learning, not to punish
·
Break content into small chunks
·
Make
it easy to navigate
TECHNOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR ON-DEMAND LEARNING
Conduct a Technological Assessment
Infrastructure Assessment
·
Intranet?
·
Bandwidth limitations?
·
Who
has authoring permissions?
·
What
types of software/hardware will be supported?
·
Remote access?
·
Browsers?
·
Plug-ins?
Design Considerations
·
What
types of information?
·
Size
limitations?
·
Legal issues?
·
Security issues? Restrictions?
·
In-house or outsourcing?
·
Cost?
·
Resources?
ON-DEMAND LEARNING BEST PRACTICES (EMPLOYEE AND CUSTOMER
EXAMPLES)
Job
Aids
·
Dell’s badge aids (cards with useful info fit behind
name badges)
·
Monitor Flipcards
·
Computer Monitor frames
·
Pocket Guide books
·
Sequence cards
·
Checklists
Case
Study: The Limited, Inc.
Online Training
·
Tips, tricks, and hints
·
Glossaries
·
Recommended learning and career paths
·
Online skills assessment
·
Copies of training manuals
·
Student exercise files
·
Online library (with video clips, too)
·
Links to useful sites
·
Industry-specific information
·
Kudos: Customer Testimonals and Success stories
·
Online class schedule
·
Online class registration
·
Online summary of student account information
·
Technical tutorials
·
EPSS
·
Quick reference cards
Face-to-Face Training
·
Lab
classes
·
One-on-one training
·
“Sneaker-based” training at employee’s work location.
·
Brown Bags
·
Telephone training hotline
Other:
·
CDs
for Product and Sales Training
·
Audio Books
DELL’S TRAINING CONSULTANT COACHING GUIDE
They
use Outlook’s Calendar function to distribute reminders
to desktops, and use Outlook’s Task function to
distribute tasks (along with attendant links and files)
Example
Dell’s Task List For New Hires
Administrative
1.
Locate your dept. administrative assistant.
2.
Get
any office supplies you need.
3.
Order your business cards.
4.
Draw
your org chart.
5.
Get
a long distance calling code
6.
Take
an Outlook tutorial (if needed)
7.
Complete Travel Profile.
8.
Call
computer support number (if needed)
Work
Site Orientation
1.
Locate conference rooms in your building
2.
Locate training rooms in your building
3.
Discuss locations of the following campus buildings
(list)
4.
Locate your building services coordinator
5.
Receive security orientation
6.
Tour
executive briefing center
Understand Dell Culture
1.
Take
the Dell Business Model online tutorial
2.
Review the Code of Conduct.
3.
Cruise the corporate communications site
4.
Review CEO’s Top Ten List of Things to Do for current
year
5.
Take
the “Know the Net” online course
And
so on. It goes on to:
·
Business Segment Orientation
·
Dell
Learning Orientation
Other case studies include BellSouth, Digital Lava,
DigiCard, SalesMogatchi, dictionary.com, Neuromedia’s
Chatterbots, IDX Systems and Investor U.
VISIT THE BOOK’S COMPANION SITE AT
WWW.LEARN2NOW.COM
Hopefully, that’ll give you the flavor of this book. As
always, if you find any of this interesting, please read
the book in its entirety.
Here
are the remaining chapters:
·
A
sample technology-enabled learning strategy
·
Policies and guidelines
·
Current successes
·
Strategy
·
A
functional requirements specification template
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