Of great importance today is the growing emphasis on individualized instruction. Tardily, but not too late, we are finally beginning to acknowledge that there are myriad learning styles out there. An awareness that “Reading—Testing—and, Traditional Classroom Lecture” are not the only ways is essential if we are going to reap the learning-rewards that Multsensory Media and On-Line Education/Training offer us. Dr. Bernard J. Luskin in his recent book, CASTING THE NET OVER...
Maybe you’ve had the experience. Concerned about the cost and effectiveness of training in your organization, you decide to investigate this new world of e-Learning. It seems that the more you learn about e-Learning, the less simple it becomes. Sure, it’s available 24×7 from almost anywhere. And, it’s extremely cost effective. But, just what is it? The hype says that it’s adaptations of PowerPoint presentations and/or adaptations of written procedures. (But, as...
Raymond G. Fox passed away Monday. To anyone committed to technology based learning systems for education and training, please know that we have lost a giant. To view the Washington Post obituary link please click here. Ray founded The Society for Applied Learning Technology (SALT) in 1972 and served as its president until recently when his highly capable son, John, assumed those responsibilities. SALT is a professional society that provides a means...
More and more is being written about the growing importance of e-Learning. And, in terms of future potential, these writers are correct. Unfortunately, at this time, much that passes for e-Learning has few training values. That is because the majority of e-Learning today is either PowerPoint adaptations or written procedure adaptations – neither of which teaches anyone much of anything. The future of e-Learning is very bright. Those producers today that are...
We’ve come a long way down the technology trail in the past three decades. The training challenges for the Process & Manufacturing Industries have grown. The training choices have increased. And the trade-offs involving instructional design, production values, plus cost and efficiency issues have complicated the entire process for the Corporate Trainer. However, the heart of the matter has not changed. Learning values have always been balanced against corporate issues, involving both...
This blog is going to deal with what I consider the ideal training company. And, yes, you can discount my opinions if you choose as I am going to use ITC Learning and its thirty-two year existence as that example. Make of this what you will but I strongly believe that you should be looking for a similar training provider, regardless of your training needs. You will find one or more vendors-of-excellence...
Alvin Toffler wrote: “The illiterate of the 21st Century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” Toffler and many others have acknowledged that individual learning styles are unique and should be addressed more successfully. Other thinkers have acknowledged that today we live primarily in a “television learning culture.” People get much more of their information and form many more of their opinions...
Today, there is too much fascination with authoring software technology. “Do it yourself, and while you’re doing it, do it our way using our latest and greatest PowerPoint conversion software,” is shouted out loudly by each and every e-Learning authoring software manufacturer. Haven’t we heard that hype before? How many wire recorders, beta players, Super 8 cameras, and similar “latest and greatest” tools are languishing in the dust of thousands of corporate...
From a story in The Washington Post this week: “Only 11 of more than 60,000 Maryland high school seniors did not graduate last spring solely because they failed the state’s new required exams, state officials said Monday as they claimed success in a program meant to bolster academic rigor. . . . Although the results are encouraging, some are asking how tough the tests could be if only a tiny percentage of...
Periodically we should all take an inventory of our training initiatives and objectively evaluate how they meet the following tests: • Have your training initiatives been directly tied to your company’s business objectives? • Have you performed a “cost/benefit” analysis for each of your training programs and, if so, has each contributed positively to your organization’s bottom line? • Have you tailored your training to fill individual “knowledge gaps” or are you,...
In the best commercially available e-Learning and digitized CD-ROM programs, video, graphics, and audio do most of the teaching. Experts agree, and the research proves, that active multisensory training is vastly more effective than passive acquisition of information acquired through text or lectures. Good e-Learning and digitized CD-ROM training programs are also competency-based and real-world in nature. Trainees learn how to perform “hard” or “soft” skills, and they are taught these skills...
Real education and training must be more than the organized teacher-led group environment we know today. It must be a process that fully accommodates the uniqueness of individuals. And it will only achieve that goal when “intimidation,” a natural by-product of group instruction, has been erased. Video-based (with optional full audio) media instruction is uniquely positioned to serve as that ultimate eraser. Students are either self-motivated for learning and growth or they...
The buyers of technology training solutions have changed. And, in many instances, that has not been a good thing for learning outcomes. Up until the last decade most training purchases were made on the individual plant level. Those purchases were typically made by individuals who either had actual plant floor experience or by professional trainers. Recently, driven by e-Learning technology, many of those same purchases are made at the corporate level and,...
We should all look forward to the impending fall of the wall between business and education. That wall has separated the two sectors for many years, but the pressure of global economic competition is leading many to plan for that barrier’s demise. The historical separation is between business and that sector of the educational system responsible for the 75% or so of high school students who are not likely to earn a...
