Posted 8:56 PM by George Siemens
What's the position to pursue in elearning? As I've mentioned before - instructional design. See "Find Jobs, Track Industry Health on the Internet
Quote: "Instructional design is one of the largest categories of e-learning jobs, and search engines produce better results with this specific keyword than the general term e-learning. There also are historical data for the job category of instructional design."

(Article also highlights current, significant trends in elearning).

HorizonLive & WebCT
Quote:"Essentially simulating a classroom, HorizonLive complements WebCT by providing a sense of Internet community and collaboration in a synchronous environment. When a student sits at his or her desktop and logs on to a course powered by HorizonLive, he or she sees the instructor via streaming video, hears the instructor’s lecture, sees visual content provided by the instructor, and can chat with fellow classmates and the instructor throughout the duration of the class."

Comment: This makes so much sense it hurts. Platforms like WebCT and Blackboard are in danger of trying to become everything to everyone - content management, learner management, presentation, testing, development, collaboration, file sharing...etc. It works in a young industry (which elearning still is), but as the industry matures, specialization is needed...or else we end up with a platform that has many mediocre tools.

In previous ERN editions, I've mentioned the need for integrating activities where students do not have to provide 100% of the motivation (as they do in asynchronous learning). A platform like HorizonLive (or Centra) allow instructors to provide some motivation for students...and it mimics the classroom - which is helpful for new online students. Oh yeah...and it results in better learning and increased student satisfaction. For more information on synchronous learning, see elearnspace's synchronous resource.

The Illusion of E-learning: Why We Are Missing Out On the Promise of IP Technology
Quotes: "E-learning has not kept pace with the development of increasingly rich IP-based delivery platforms because the e-learning experience is, far too often, puerile, boring and of unknown or doubtful effectiveness...Developers don’t seem to be aware of how people learn, or if they are, they nevertheless continue to use mostly flawed models of adult learning...The technology platform is driving the instructional strategy, warping our focus, which should be on creating an engaging learning experience that reliably contributes to the organization’s objectives."

Comment: Even though the author leaves the impression the article was written while in a very foul mood...I agree. I've used excellent platforms (like Groove, streaming media, HorizonLive, Polycom, etc.) as an instructor and as a student. They round out the learning experience very nicely. Yet they are not commonly used. Our concept of elearning development needs a sharper focus - on instructional design...and on using technology tools that make the learning process much more effective.