Posted 1:35 PM by George Siemens
May 9, 2002

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What forces are driving elearning? What has changed that makes elearning necessary? The following are some of my thoughts:

1. Students have changed. Students are no longer traditional students - 18 - 25 year age group. The student population is aging, is taking courses part-time, is studying of campus, and is viewed as a "customer" of the learning organization (or department).

2. No longer lifelong employement, but rather lifelong learning (see article)...

3. Knowledge as a competitive tool. A well-trained, efficient workforce is a critical strategic advantage for organizations. Training is no longer a "necessary evil"...it is an investment in the future success of a corporation

4. Learning for improved performance - not necessarily a degree. Learning must be linked to improved performance on the job. Most learning that happens in corporations is not to "earn a degree"...it is to improve work performance. Education institutions need to understand this fundamental shift in WHY people are learning...if not, they risk becoming obsolete as corporate universities fill this gap with "just-in-time", "just-for-me" learning

5. Evolution of education theory. The teacher as lecturer and "distributor of knowledge" doesn't work in a society over run with information. Current educational theory (instructional design principles and exploratory learning) reveals the importance of an instructor as a facilitator...

6. Information overload...too much information...I'm breaking up...I can't hold on...it's overwhelming. Unorganized, unlinked information is worse than no information. Online learning can help to keep employees/students informed and up to date on the information relevant to their job.

7. Development of digital communication tools. WebCT, BlackBoard, web conferencing, streaming media, collaborative software are creating a resource base that is beginning to make technology transparent so that learning can happen. Instructors and students can now communicate across time and space with limited technical knowledge...and this is critical for widespread adoption of elearning. Most people are fine with technology...as long as it makes things easier.

8. Globalization. The world seems much smaller than it did even a decade ago. Education institutions used to compete geographically...i.e. whoever is close to us. Now, the Internet has changed that. Access is critical...can your students access your content from anywhere? If not, chances are, you will find institutions from across the world willingly to educate "your" students...

9. Speed. Everything is faster. Development times for products...idea to conception...information to customers...educating staff of new policies, procedures, and regulations. Businesses find that the quicker ideas result in products, the better the competitive advantage. Classroom learning has difficulty keeping up in this climate. And things don't appear to be slowing down...

10. Learning organization. The notion that an organization also "learns" is important. How are innovators perceived? How is transformation created? How do organizations stay fresh, vibrant...equipped to change with the changing world? An organization that learns is an organization that values employees who "walk different paths"...and provides them with room to make mistakes, recover, innovate, and re-create the entire organization. Idealistic? Yes...but, integral to future success.


Virtual College
Quote: "Like much of the tech world, online universities are reassessing program goals and strategies. Some programs will emerge in different forms and some will simply disappear. Those that survive, however, should be superior to their predecessors, especially as online and traditional universities begin to recognize their market lies not in the traditional student but in the ever growing numbers of working students and professionals seeking flexibility."

Comment: The education pie is growing...More students are learning. Continuing education and distant education (and corporate-focused education) will grow at rates that far exceed traditional education. The author makes an excellent point that "online programs designed to provide a traditional education in a nontraditional manner have had limited success."

Embrace New Technology
Quote: "One is "Start somewhere." Two is "Small changes can sometimes have big effects, even if they can't be predicted in advance. Make small changes." Three is "Seek and support innovators among the faculty, and enable them to share their experiences." Four is "Make mistakes, admit them, and go on.""

Comment: I love it!!...start - do something, improve it, collaborate, and make mistakes...this is the essence of starting elearning!! This is all anyone needs to know to succeed.

Distribute, not create
Quote: "The African Virtual University has dropped plans to offer its own degree programs in a variety of disciplines and will instead concentrate on delivering computer-science and business programs from established institutions."

Comment: This is a reality that will confront many colleges/schools/corporations over the next several years. As I've said before, the first to develop courses also become retailers...The time and investment required to produce online resources can be prohibitive...so, instead, organizations can purchase the courses designed by others. Nothing new here...basically, it is the same thing as a teacher purchasing a textbook for a course. The big issue will be on how much flexibility the course creators give to instructors to mix and match content...

Wireless
Quote: "The university said students will have cell phones with voice mail and a custom cell-phone plan, eventually in lieu of phones in dormitories. They will also have access to class schedules, course availability, grades and transcripts over a wireless Web."

Comment: The future is wireless...it just doesn't make sense for new buildings/facilities to be only hard wired (well, aside from security concerns!)...something about the concept of elearning requires the freedom of wireless...plus, students entering the workforce are already untethered...

Posted 1:32 PM by George Siemens
Plus ça Change...

Maybe it's the weather (hey, who doesn't love to look out the window in May and see white)... The material that seemed to draw me towards it as I was preparing this week's "column" all focused on the concept of change and the incredible fight or flight reaction that this seems to inspire in people. And the reality of it all is that change is very scary. We all have habits and routines that are comfortable because they work for us and, in general, just plain work. These have evolved over a considerable period of time, and when we are asked to change, strong emotions suddenly well up. Faced with this situation, you are likely to hear anything from "When will I have time to do this stuff?" to "Wait till I tell my union representative about this!"

...talk about Ed Reform course - Ben Levin quote about ed resistance to change...need to re-evaluate that in light of pressures that are building on the system...

Many Students' Favorite Professors Shun Distance Education

Quote: "Are the professors who are the most beloved and respected for their teaching the ones who are participating in distance-education programs, especially online? What do their opinions mean for the future of distance education? And can technology convey the qualities that make a professor the heart and soul of a campus?"

Comment: Hmmm...so many questions. This article has already raised the hackles of many online proponents. It is interesting to note that the professors quoted in this article have been teaching for decades - the "youngest" has been lecturing for 30 years. Is it a surprise that they are uncomfortable with changing to an online format? It certainly doesn't surprise me. One of them gets his wife to deal with any technological issues he encounters; is this an ideal and willing candidate to experiment with technology? While many of these very talented teachers may consider online learning a "fad", the article does admit that online courses are becoming more like the traditional classroom experience and that instructors are also able to become "great" in an online format.

Change Comes Hard

Quote: "For as long as I can remember, I have heard teachers at all levels complain about students who have poor attitudes toward learning. The roles are now reversed. It's time for teachers and professors to stop complaining about having to learn a new way to teach."

Comment: In the face of change, do we look at ways to address the demands of change, or do we expend our energy trying to prove that change is unnecessary? This is a short, yet powerful editorial! Ceraulo draws a very compelling comparison between adoption of e-learning in education with the adoption of the PC in the computer industry of the 1970s. She also stresses the importance of institutions investing in the creation of quality online course offerings that are not cookie cutter products which can easily be cloned by other schools.

Overcoming the Comfort Zone Syndrome or Teaching an Old Dog a New Trick

Quote: "...holding on to the fantasy that software is the answer to all our problems flies in the face of what anyone who has worked in the online collaboration world for more than two weeks knows to be the truth. The trust is that the biggest barrier to overcome is people's (especially adults') natural resistance to change - the kind of change that requires people to overcome old attitudes and work habits and embrace new ways of doing things."

Comment: When it comes to dealing with change, you generally hear a lot of discussion centering around the fact that change is hard to deal with, but not a lot of talk about how to actually impliment change successfully. The best that I could find in the reams of material scattered on and around my desk was this article. Yes, it comes from a corporation (so they tout their skills and abilities in order to convince you to buy) and yes, it focuses on online collaboration specifically. However, if you look past these two points it has enough interesting ideas about how people avoid (and ultimately eliminate) change to their normal behaviour, as well as some strategies that people have used to ease change into the daily routine to make it a worthwhile read. If anyone has any links to other such documents, please e-mail them to me and I will happily focus a future segment of "From Steve's Head" to strategies to help deal successfully with change.

The Social Life of Paper

Quote: "Whenever a plane takes off, the basic data about the flight - the type of plane, the radar I.D. number, the requested altitude, the destination - are printed out on a stiff piece of paper, perhaps one and a half by six and a half inches, known as a flight strip. And as the plane passes through each sector of the airspace the controller jots down, using a kind of shorthand, everything new that is happening to the plane - its speed, say, and where it's heading, clearances from ground control, holding instructions, comments on the pilot. It's a method that dates back to the days before radar, and it drives critics of the air-traffic-control system crazy. Why, in this day and age, are planes being handled like breakfast orders in a roadside diner?"

Comment: I like the way Malcolm Gladwell cobbles together a broad cross-section of seemingly unrelated ideas. While this article seems to contradict the whole tone of this week's thoughts, I think it helps to bring an important perspective to it. Despite the efficiencies offered by technology, paper still has a very important role to play in our everyday lives. Far too often in e-learning circles the focus is on the "e", leaving the learning aspect to become an after thought. Regardless of whether we are thinking blackboard (as in chalk) or discussion board (as in digital), the focus should still very much be on the learning that is to occur as opposed to the medium that is to be used. The medium is the enabler, but we must put time and thought into what it is that we are hoping to enable. Achieving this balance will help to produce online courses that are effective because they have been created to address a specific need, not to use a specific technology.