Is ELearning Effective?

I recently read a post on a leading social networking site, which suggested that eLearning was not an effective training solution. My initial reaction was one of complete disagreement. However, after some consideration, I would agree with this post. Yet, I would add that most ineffective eLearning solutions are the outcome of inferior practices by non-skilled instructional designers or organizational processes that limit the practice of good instructional design.

First let me define eLearning. Electronic learning (eLearning) – ELearning is a wide set of applications and processes, such as web-based learning, computer-based learning, virtual classrooms, and digital collaboration. It includes the delivery of content via Internet, intranet/extranet local area networks/wide area networks (LAN/WAN), audio and videotape, satellite broadcast, interactive TV, computer disk (CD) ROM, and more (Kaplan-Leiserson, 2004). Hartley (2000) implies that examples of the types of technology, which can be used in on demand learning, include faxes, emails, the Internet, personal commuters, PDAs, and cell phones.

Over my 18 years in workplace learning, I have evaluated a number of eLearning solutions. Unfortunately, it is with great sadness that I have consistently found flaws both from an instructional design and education perspective. I would suggest that developing an effective eLearning solution requires more than knowledge of the latest authoring tool or technology; it requires an understanding of the audience, developing strong learning objectives, creating engagement elements that motivate and stimulate learning, addressing the different learning modalities, solid writing, applying the correct audio and visual treatment, and incorporating the correct learning strategies based on the appropriate learning objectives.

The rigor that goes in developing an effective eLearning solution is one of sophistication as well as strict processes. I would suggest that authoring an eLearning solution requires more than creativity. It requires a level of experience and knowledge in education, instructional design, and instructional technology. A good eLearning instructional designer/developer must understand the process of educating your intended audience (children, students, or adults), and must be aware of the authoring tool’s capabilities. Creating a solid eLearning solution requires an ISD approach that is flawless in assessment, design, development, implementation, and evaluation, and I would also suggest that anyone who would suggest that these processes can be skipped has more than likely fell victim to silent voices of learners whose feedback was marginalized through the organization’s rhetoric of a successful learning program. Additionally, I would suggest that to under estimate the importance of the foundational education theories and strategies, as well as to select the wrong authoring tool or under utilize its capabilities is a guarantee recipe for developing an inferred solution.

A Case for Social Technology in Workplace Learning

Workplace learning has long been viewed as having the responsibility of deploying objective-based learning that enables employees to carry out the organization’s mission. The drivers of learning solutions in the workplace are the corporate power influencers, leaders who require learning to be specific in order to drive and align productivity to the mission of the organization. In recent years, developing social capital has become a concept for increasing importance in understanding the antecedents of organization performance (Morton, Brookes, Dainty, Backhouse, & Burns, 2006). As a result, creating learning opportunities through social connections has become a high priority initiative among learning leaders in workplace learning environments.

Until the twentieth century, print was the key medium for delivering learning in the workplace (Bower and Hardy, 2004). However, “the need for high-level skills in today’s knowledge-based economy has helped hurtle an emerging eLearning marketplace that is primed for growth in the years ahead” (Commission of Technology & Adult Education [CTAE], 2001, p. 10). The next several years will encompass a significant presence of broadband, wireless, smart cars, smart fridges, streaming media, voice recognition, and the inevitable growth of new Internet applications (Taylor, 2001). In a digitally enabled culture, workplace learning and development is becoming increasingly digitized (Boyd, 2002).

The learner’s perspective provides yet another lens through which to consider this digital evolution. In 2005, SkillSoft, a leading commercial eLearning content provider, commissioned an independent survey across a random sample of 3,000 employees to ascertain their attitudes and preferences regarding learning and development. The participants were asked to indicate their preferred method of learning. The researched yielded that 20% of the respondents liked to learn informally from other employees and through online learning materials based on their immediate need, 13% of the participants indicated that they preferred to attend instructor-led courses and workshops, and 67% preferred a blended method (Baldwin-Evans, 2006).

Shifting directions in learning organizations, advancements in technology, and preferences of learners have influenced training and education to move away from informative content delivery; that is, the transfer of discrete, abstract concepts (Goodyear, 2002). The movement is toward social-constructionist, student-centered models with increasing emphases on the skills that support independent, self-motivated learning (Hobbs, Brown, & Gordon, 2006).

Promise exists in the use of social media software within workplace learning environments to support this emerging digital learning era. Since its inception, social media tools have been expanding considerably (Boyd & Ellison, 2007). Examples of social media software include weblogs, wikis, RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds, social networking, and social book marking. Social media software is not limited to these specific technologies, and learning leaders are exploring how best to incorporate new social media software into workplace learning environments. New technology applications have given rise to an emerging form of electronic learning (eLearning), which has potential to support social learning and social constructivist theories.