Posted 1:39 PM by George Siemens
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Posted 12:52 PM by George Siemens
Most achievement and progress is built on the foundation of failure. New inventions, corporate innovations, and learning, are usually not the result of a smooth linear process. In fact, given the nature of our resistence to change, the greatest (and often most needed) change is not planned...it is an accident.

Experimentation is a process of eliminating what doesn't work, leaving the one thing that does. I think we need to expiriment more...and be more willing to accept failure. What do I mean by this? I think that trying new technologies and taking new approaches to learning is very valuable - to the organization, the instructor, and the student. Too often, concepts of learning are held as intellectual views, not practical applications...so, while we all know that various learning styles exist, this understanding may not be reflected in most classrooms. Why not try it? Why not experiment with a new learning approach? Why not add a discussion thread to a regular classroom?

Recently, working with Dave Gurney from eTV, we finished a course using streaming video as the medium for connecting with students. Last spring, while evaluating student feedback on an online course, I noticed many comments focused on the difficulty of getting motivated online. "No instructor to talk to...no weekly class...it's too hard to motivate myself". To address these comments, we tried to offer the same course, adding a 20 minute interactive streaming session one a week to the course. Impact?...still sorting through the responses, but generally, streaming video was favorably received. Biggest request? Make the video available on demand...i.e. what if I missed a class and want to watch it at home? Or, what if I just want to review it? Point I'm trying to make? We didn't learn anything thinking about streaming...we learned by trying it...and improving on problem areas...it wasn't a perfect pilot...but it was one of growth...and a very valuable experience.

A culture of experimentation (and one that accepts failure) is needed for organizational transformation (OT). I've babbled about OT before...why is it needed?? Yesterday's academic structure can't compete in today's climate of change. Organizations and departments that are committed to providing learning need to innovate and transform themselves...and that needs room for failure. How does change happen? Often, at a small level...with one or two people playing with new concepts and trying them...and letting results speak for themselves.

One final note on experimentation in an academic setting...experimentation should not impact the quality of the student's learning..."acceptable failure" is failure that permits the instruct AND the student to learn...