So what’s all the buzz about? The design is based on a relatively simple learning model.  Students log in and learn new skills, mostly from YouTube videos produced by experts in a variety of subjects. There are videos ranging from art history to advanced trigonometry, from the most basic to advanced levels. Students complete sample assessments, then are assigned these tutorials, based on their performance. After reviewing these video tutorials, students are able to advance through the concepts, after successfully answering a set number of questions, related to that knowledge area.

Because learner progress is so carefully tracked, if a student is unable to advance, a flag goes up in the teacher’s progress report, so that he/she can then intervene with more personalized help.

Despite the growing investment in our public educational system in the U.S., the nation still holds an uncomfortably average to low-average international position in math and science, even in comparison to countries who spend far less per student.

So why is the Kahn model so controversial? As classroom sizes continue to grow, this approach seems like an efficient way to provide individualized learning to large groups of students, who all learn differently and at different rates. If classrooms across the country embraced this model, we’d have an educational system that’s not only more effectively administered and measured, but also more accountable.

But that’s not how everyone sees it, especially the educators themselves, who have valid concerns.

The Controversy

It’s no surprise that Bill Gates was willing to donate money to the Kahn Academy fund. In a recent TED Talk this year, he proposed radical education reform, increasing performance while cutting educational spending in half to reduce the budget deficit. With this in mind, it’s not hard for educators to see Gates as something of a threat to the present school system model.

Another improvement he suggests would be to stop giving teachers automatic raises based on seniority, when they earn a master’s degree in pedagogy.  While some educators argue that a post-graduate degree improves the quality of teaching, others argue that learning these more theoretical education techniques doesn’t necessarily result in higher learning outcomes for students.

Although the Kahn Academy was largely designed to supplement the classroom setting and not as an alternative to traditional public school teaching, it’s fascinating how much retaliation the not-for-profit has already received from traditionalists.

To address the problems facing our education system, isn’t now the time for bold ideas? Ideas like the Kahn Academy are certainly disruptive to the status quo. But isn’t that what we need?  Just as technology has disrupted the music industry, publishing, advertising, shouldn’t we accept this change and embrace the opportunity to improve our educational model?

Do we see the rise of Kahn as a threat, or as the long overdue “reboot” to our educational system needs?

Tip #3: Don’t Underestimate the Power of Humor

“A business owner, a salesman, and a game designer walk into a bar…”

A lot of clients shy away from humor, and in their defense, there are a lot of reasons why they might. It can come off as hokey; it can be subjective and fall flat, and if done carelessly, it can even offend an audience. Is it even worth the risk? The truth is, yes. It can be. Let’s take a look at why humor might be worth it:

• Comedy is engaging, and learners are going to be attracted to engaging material. Even if you can’t get your audience to laugh out loud, just the attempt at humor alone can make a student relax, which will cause them to be more open and receptive to the material.
• A sense of humor can make you seem more relatable. Very few learners will enjoy being lectured at by an authoritative professor type, especially if it’s a subject they might not be particularly interested in in the first place. If you know your audience, some well-crafted quips will help form a bond with your learners right off the bat. Now, instead of talking to a robot, they’re learning with a peer that can joke with them on their level and keep them engaged when they aren’t otherwise feeling motivated.
• Humor enhances memory. Want your learners to actually retain your information? In a study conducted by Valparaiso University, students recalled as much as 50% more material when it was presented to them with humor.

Case Study of the Benefits to Using Humor

Digitec designed a learning game for new employees at a large entertainment company.  We knew that the target audience would be younger, excited about joining the organization, and would enjoy playing games.

The web-based game involved players flying through a 3-D galaxy, exploring content on various themed planets. The players then needed to recall the information they’d discovered to play mini-games, earn points on a leaderboard and capture a key to unlock a content area.

To create more fun, we created an evil villain character that the players chase through the galaxy. For humor, whenever the player lost a mini-game, we created a library of random audio responses, including evil laughs, etc. So when the player won… or lost, they could smile at the reaction, and enjoy the experience even more.

Why the Project Worked

What worked here was that the humor was universal. We needed to localize the game for a Chinese market. Despite the cultural differences, which can certainly cause humor to backfire, the Chinese players enjoyed the fun of the feedback just as much.

I think another reason this worked was because of the detail behind the design. As the renowned architect Mies van der Rohe once said: “God is in the details.” Here, the player was able to expose a “world” behind the experience – a world designed to make them smile.

How to Reduce Risk

There are many ways that humor can negatively affect the experience, though. Here are a few rules of thumb to make sure humor is right for your project:

• Make Sure it’s Not Inappropriate. Humor is very culturally specific, and very subjective. If the humor could be offensive, avoid it. Also, when dealing with issues surrounding safety or professionalism, humor can be seen as being too light-hearted about the subject matter.
• Make Sure it’s Repeatable. There’s nothing worse than hearing the same joke twice. If learners will need to retake the content or see the same “gag” over and over again, think of an alternative.
• Keep Your Humor On-Topic. The research is clear that using a couple jokes can make all the difference, but all bets are off when the comedy and your topic just don’t relate. Chances are, it’ll just come off as forced and inappropriate. Best case scenario? They’ll remember the laugh, but not the lesson.
• KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE. This is one of the most defining factors on whether or not eLearning humor is successful. Utilizing humor is very effective, but may not be right for every project.  For instance, while learners who might be less than motivated may need humor to stay engaged, be aware that very dedicated learners might not need humor, or might even find it pandering. Make sure you understand your company culture.

Do you use humor in your eLearning? Please share what works and what doesn’t.

Tip #2: “Remember the real end product”

Like other vendors, we are often sent requests for proposals (RFP) or are contacted by prospective clients who tell us they need an eLearning course. Often, they contact several vendors, giving all of us the same requirements: they need a course that’s a virtual office environment, like Second Life, where learners choose avatars and explore different environments… oh yes, and the course needs to be on marketing.

Often, vendors will take this information and scramble to respond, by pitching virtual worlds of “lip synching” avatars and full fidelity simulations. Not surprisingly, when the client evaluates these proposals, they get sticker shock when they see the high price tag. As a result, the client may lose enthusiasm and put the project on indefinite hold. Or, the client may select the lowest bidder, move into production, only to discover six months and countless dollars later that they can’t measure a return on the investment (ROI).

Begin with the end in mind

One of Stephen Covey’s “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People” states that we should “begin with the end in mind.” For any type of learning design, it’s critical to remember that the true “end product” is not a virtual world, talking avatars or even an eLearning course at all. It’s a learner who knows or can do something they couldn’t do before the experience — something that directly aligns with a business need or objective that can be measured.

In this hypothetical example, the end product should have been a successful marketing manager. The experience needed to make sure the learner understands and can follow the process of market analysis, aligning with finance and creating test market plans. All of this might be best accomplished through a simulation, but perhaps not. Without fully understanding the learning gap and the problems within the organization, a vendor might just create the virtual world the client asked for, only to miss the mark on the real end product. A lose-lose.

If clients would invite vendors in to help determine what the problem is, then propose the recommended solution, this misalignment would happen less often.

Case Study — “Do It” Learning

At Digitec, we had a client who wanted an online course to teach search engine optimization (SEO). Instead of proposing a solution, right off, we met with the client several times to find out what the true end product needed to be. The “final product” was a business owner or marketer who understood SEO and could perform web site analysis related to their industry in order to create an effective SEO Web Strategy Document.

Other factors? The budget was tight and the content was very prone to frequent change. Knowing this, our solution was to use Knowledge Direct to create a series of PowerPoint modules that served as the tutorials. These short modules included animations, audio narration and embedded videos.

Using Knowledge Direct, we developed a constructivist learning approach. We uploaded the PowerPoint .pptx files into the built-in rapid content authoring tool within Knowledge Direct. Then we used the “Do It!” doc features within Knowledge Direct to enable learners to create their own SEO Web Strategy Document while they are learning. Do It! is a cloud-based “workbook-style” document creation tool. The feature enables a Knowledge Direct administrator to create document frameworks, then choose where to insert specific prompts within a module. Learners then respond to these prompts while they take the course content, to create their own final product.

Within a module — Demystifying SEO, for example, the learner used the embedded Do It! doc to answer questions and help them formulate their strategy by creating and researching their own search terms.

Throughout the course, the responses were redisplayed, so the learner could revise and refine their approach. Ultimately, at the end of the course, learners had completed their own SEO Web Strategy Document which they could export to Word, .pdf, email or access online. For the client, the end product was an easy-to-update course which enabled them to view detailed reporting, as well as view and comment on the learner’s actual web optimization strategy.

Why this worked…

In this example, the final product was not extremely flashy or expensive. The modules did not include virtual worlds, and there were no lip-synched avatars. But the project was produced well under the client’s budget, is simple for the client to update in-house using PowerPoint, and enables a coach to measure the effectiveness by accessing the learner’s actual Web Strategy Document — the true end product.

Let me know if you’d like to learn more about Do It learning.

A Vendor’s Take on Choosing the Right Vendor

When I received my first iPod, my first chore was figuring out what to do with it. Tell me that some of you didn’t (or don’t) have a iPod somewhere at home gathering dust – especially now that our mobile devices store all our music, which will soon move to the cloud.

The paradigm shift for me came with the discovery of podcasts. What could be more low-tech? Audio recordings are downloaded to your iPod on a scheduled basis. Subscribers automatically get the latest downloads to listen to, when they want.

One of my goals has always been to learn Spanish, but I found it difficult to find classes that fit my schedule. I turned to Rosetta Stone, and while it was effective, I found that being “chained” to my computer was difficult to accommodate in my schedule, as well.

One thing, of course, I could always schedule was my Saturday morning 15 mile bike treks. So I started getting into the habit of strapping on my iPod when I strapped on my bike helmet. Finally, my iPod had a purpose! I’d synch my iPod to download the 80 or so Coffee Break Spanish lessons, then make my way through each one, episode by episode. I started with Lesson 1, three years ago, listening, unabashedly repeating the phrases to the wind, behind my dark sunglasses, babbling away on solitary bike trails in complete anonymity. If something didn’t make sense, I’d simply reach across to my arm-tethered iPod, pause, replay, continue.

How simple and effective can you get? I suppose I must be an aural learner, because after numerous episode replays, I found myself memorizing Mark and Cara’s dialog, verbatim. I was learning.

Why was the iPod so effective? I found out one Saturday morning, when my iPod was dead. So, instead, I brought along my iPhone. Same thing, right? Wrong. Now, when the podcast rattled away beyond my comprehension, I needed to unlock my phone, navigate to iTunes, pause the playback, then touch and drag on the timeline to try and replay what I’d missed. If you’ve ever tried this, you’ll see that not only is it awkward, but on bike at 15 MPH, it’s dangerous.

Shortly after this experience, I worked with my developers to ensure that our eLearning platform automatically created podcast versions of our modules. It captures the audio from PowerPoint recordings and creates a combined audio podcast. Very simple. Very effective, especially for all of us aural learners.

Just recently, after three years, I’ve completed the Coffee Break Spanish series and am on to another series called Showtime Spanish. I’ve augmented my learning with continual evening classes in intensive Spanish and continue to work away at the higher levels on Rosetta Stone.

This post is merely to suggest that sometimes the most effective learning can come from the simplest sources.

This is also my “shout out” to Coffee Break Spanish. The series is free and incredibly well designed and presented.

With the explosive growth in mobile devices, including smart phones and tablets, mobile learning, or “mLearning” is a natural application for this new technology. With the portability that these devices now give us, we can access the right information, right when and where we need it. How many times have you turned to your cell phone, when you needed directions or wanted to find out how to fix a leaky sink? It’s the perfect “learning” tool. Yet, many in the training and development industry are holding back on a mobile learning strategy, and I think that’s a huge mistake.

Making the case for Mobile Learning

It’s simple to make the business case for mLearning. Just look at the numbers. The growth is occurring so fast, that it’s no longer feasible to expect our learners NOT to be mobile. How fast is it growing? Here are some statistics from “Mobile by the Numbers” posted by Mashable’s Sarah Kessler:

* Of the 4 billion mobile phones globally, 1.08 billion are smart phones
* By 2014, access to the internet through mobile devices will overtake access from the desktop
* 50% of all searches are performed on mobile devices
* Americans spend an average 2.7 hours a day socializing on their mobile devices, which includes 1/3 of all Facebook posts and 50% of all tweets

What does this mean for learning? It’s already happening out there, so don’t expect your employees to go back to the desktop when it’s “time to learn.”

Where does mLearning fit?

Whether you offer mobile learning options through your corporate portal or not, your learners are already “mLearning”. It’s just that the process comes so naturally, we don’t think to call it learning.

According to a 2008 eLearning Guild 360 degree Report on mLearning, here are the numbers on how it’s being used today, according to a survey of eLearning Guild members:

1. On-demand access to information (64.1%)
2. Job aids and/or checklists (55.9%)
3. Procedures (51.4%)

While “training” did make this list as well, it was farther down, as it should be. Mobile devices and the explosion of wireless access everywhere opens up incredible possibilities for learning. Just because it doesn’t reside on a corporate intranet or has been assigned to someone’s learning plan, doesn’t mean it isn’t valid. As educators, shouldn’t this be our goal? Continual learning?

I’ve heard from quite a few training and HR executives on mLearning. Many are saying something like: “We’re not looking at mobile learning, right now. That’s further downstream for us.” My only response is to look out. The water is rising…and fast. You might not be ready, but believe me, your learners are.

The survey, based on the responses from 876 professionals from the eLearning Guild, asked about the use of Web 2.0 type applications in their learning programs. The survey also asked members how likely they are to begin incorporating these technologies in the future.

What is e-Learning 2.0?

The term “e-Learning 2.0” directly relates to “Web 2.0,” or the use of web-based collaborative tools or applications, such as wikis, blogs, YouTube or social media sites like LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. The results, at a glance:

70% of respondents said e-Learning 2.0 initiatives are somewhat or very worthwhile
50% reported needing to embrace these technologies to stay competitive
Larger organizations are making limited use of these resources, while smaller organization will be making significant use.

How e-Learning 2.0 Will Transform How we Learn

Typically, educators have followed the expert-based model. Formal learning is typically designed and selectively organized by a teacher or instructional designer. The “course” is then presented outside the work environment, where learners passively consume this knowledge and demonstrate mastery by answering multiple-choice questions, a measurement rarely suitable for measuring competency.
The key feature of e-Learning 2.0 is that it encourages two-way communication; whereas, formal learning has been more one-way. So why is this significant?

You might be familiar with the Princeton University 70/20/10 learning model. This model states that 70% of learning and development happens on the job; 20% of learning occurs during feedback and observation of others; and only 10% of learning and development comes from formal learning. Simply stated, e-Learning 2.0 features better align with the 70/20/10 model by:

- Providing more two-way communication, while on-the-job
- Encouraging feedback from experts and others
- Allowing learners to observe others doing the job, through YouTube videos for example.

So, based on this 70/20/10 learning model, it makes sense that social media is well-suited for education. And with the continued growth of mobile devices and the speed of change, learners will expect learning resources that provide solutions to their problems, whenever and wherever they are. So how do we adapt learning to meet these expectations?

Be sure to read my next post, where I’ll feature some specific ways that you can implement the most popular e-Learning 2.0 features into your learning strategy.

Are you providing any e-Learning 2.0 features in your organization? How successful do you think they are?

The recent release of the iPad is a sign that things are changing… fast. A CNBC report cited the iPad as the most quickly adopted non-phone electronic device ever! And despite the fact that growth has slowed, somewhat, mobile adoption of the Droid and iPhone 4 continue to build. The bottom line is that these consumers will expect to be able to take their learning on these devices.

There is no doubt, now, that mLearning is here. The key now is to make sure that the learning will be ready to support the variety of mobile devices, including the Droid, iPhone, iPad, Blackberry, and all the rest and will be easily supported.

Instead of the Digitec “skunk works” here dreaming up another content management system (CMS) approach to creating mLearning, our mLearning solution was to adapt our existing tools to accommodate the new technology, to provide simple cross-platform delivery and support.

Knowledge Direct is now mLearning compatible. Our Direct-to-WEB rapid eLearning content creation tool not only allows you to create game-based learning using PowerPoint, but it ports directly out to iPhone, iPad, Droid, Blackberry, as well as PodCast versions of the eLearning.

Now, learners can log into Knowledge Direct, take their modules and complete their assessments, all from their mobile device.

It’s really interesting how times change. When I look back at the “failure,” of our initial mLearning app, I have to remind myself that Apple’s first mobile device was actually the Newton. Anybody remember that?

Back in 2002, my company released a product called “Knowledge Direct PDA.” One of my genius coders, Michael Roberts, engineered a web app that enabled administrators to log in, create modules of content, and assign tests and interactive checklists.

Learners could login from any WEP-enabled cell phone (preferably a PDA), access the modules and complete the assigned tests and checklists. It seemed to us as though the benefits of the application were obvious. For the employee, they had instant access to content wherever they were. For administrators, test scores and task completion reporting could be wirelessly transmitted back to the server or updated during the next synch. To us, this product was the next logical step in combining “learning on demand” with mobile performance support.

In 2003, we presented the product to the eLearning Consortium - a group of about a 100 or so thought leaders from mostly Fortune 500 companies led by Elliott Masie. No one was interested. Despite being members of the leading-edge learning technology consortium, not a single attendee had any plans for mobile learning.

A recent article by Fast Company magazine describes how receptive kids are to mLearning. Whether teaching themselves the alphabet with First Words or playing KidsCalc Math Fun, they get it. Granted, our first-gen mobile app didn’t compare with Clifford’s Be Big with Words app, but I sometimes wonder how different things might have been if I had been pitching to a roomful of seven-year-olds. “The Child is the Father of Man.”

Let’s hope that the latest onslaught of technology has made us all a little more receptive to recognizing what might appear to be a crazy idea.

What’s your favorite mLearning app? I’m pretty addicted to the PromeToys’ Spanish Conjugations for the iPhone.

Never before can I remember the release of so many disruptive technologies that directly affect learning. With new tools emerging such as mobile delivery, rapid development, Second Life-style immersive experience, and augmented reality… how do we know which are going to be the best fit for learning?

I often see learning professionals put off making a decision, waiting for more certainty. The point I think Sheperd is making is that we so often address these technologies by looking for the problems they solve, and so each new technology is seen as a new “solution looking for a problem.” But I agree that’s the wrong direction. Our only real problems are those that affect us: What hinders our learning community? What inspires our learners? How can we give them what they need, when they need it? How can we integrate technology, whatever it may be, so transparently that it doesn’t “disrupt” their lives? We need to remember these problems when choosing technologies.

Still this requires analyzing so many new technologies. As an eLearning solution provider, walking an exhibition floor at Learning conferences can be disorienting. It reminds me of that scene in “Nauseau” by Jean-Paul Sartre, where the main character suddenly realizes how many choices there truly are in life. The character becomes literally ill when recognizing the sheer number of possibilities. Should I invest in a technology? Which one? What if it’s the wrong choice? Will it survive?

These are the same concerns we had in the early days of interactive learning –with interactive videodisc, LAN servers, TenCore, Icon Author… and then Macromedia Authorware, and Director. But back then, technology felt more exciting. This was when the term “multimedia maven” became popular, and there was such anticipation with each new product or version release, because each represented some new possibility that it might solve our problems.

I think we need to view this new world with an old eye toward potentiality. As educators living amid so much disruptive technology, it is our responsibility to be aware of the latest technology, embrace those we really believe in, and then start applying the technology to create solutions to our real problems.