Bricolage

I have always believed that if you can’t handle a paper to do list and diary then the fanciest electronic organiser will not help you manage your time.

If you don’t understand basic maths then Excel won’t make you numerate.

If you are a boring public speaker, then you will be even more boring with PowerPoint.

On the other hand I also believe that all of those skills are trainable. In the process of learning to use the tool you may also pick up the fundamentals of the technology.

Because the good time manager can spend a lot less of that valuable time if they learn to use a good tool to manage appointments, deadlines and contacts. The great speaker, who is used to connecting with an audience, won’t abuse the slide-show technology to the detriment of the audience.

The mathemagician will make Excel models that dazzle one the tool is understood.

So how about e-learning. Does the technology make it easier to learn?

After a semester using e-learning technology to learn about e-learning my essential bias remains that if you can’t do it without computers, then computers won’t suddenly make it easier by themselves.

As a learning tool, though the learning has to take place on two fronts. First learn the technology, then learn the subject content. I found the technology we were given to work with very easy to use. we were asked to prepare a blog using Edublogs.org, asked to communicate through a social networking system - Ning.com and asked to prepare a wiki on wikispaces.com. The tools were new to all of the members of the learning team I joined, but we all had enough computer literacy to pick them up pretty quickly. Our comfort with the tools increased progressively, and this is evident when I scan the progressive contributions.

But learning to use 3 bits of software is not a masters level subject. It was the content, rather than the process that we were interested in. did using these tools teach us more about e-learning?

I would have to say a resounding yes. But it would not have happened if we didn’t have some basic study skills and high motivation.

An example of the course design was posting our assignments as blog posts. for the first time in many years of formal and informal study, it was the first time I was ever able to see exactly what my class mates were learning. not only did I know what they were reading - as might happen in a face to face class - I could also see what insights that they gained from it. The technology didn’t make it happen, it just made it possible.

So like the good speaker with PowerPoint where the audience’s experience is enhanced, or the good time manager with an electronic organiser, where contacts, appointments and tasks are brought together with a few keystrokes, the e-learning tools made the subject more beneficial for the students who did the work.

I suspect that many of us put a lot more effort into this subject than others we have done. I think the technology aided this for two reasons, interest and possibility. we were interested in the content, rather the process. The process just made it possible to satisfy our interests.

The person who made it possible was Anne Bartlett-Bragg, our lecturer from UTS. To her we owe a great debt, because she provided the tasks and the tools that helped us learn for ourselves. I’m suspect Anne is a great face to face lecturer. To reinforce my bias - she couldn’t have designed and facilitated the on-line course if she was not. But with the tools that she arranged for us to use our learning was exponentially greater. 

Thanks Anne. and a special thanks to my teammates, Prue, Heather, Mal, Nic, Debra and Michelle for taking advantage of the opportunity. I learned lots from you all.

 

 

This blog post completes an e-learning subject in my masters degree in adult education at UTS. Nominally it is to direct my lecturer to an assignment - posted on a private Ning.

But it also to say that the learning is over so now the learning can start.

I have been reluctant to commit to a blog in the past because i feared that I would not be able to come up with enough material to post regularly. In this subject i have learned otherwise.

I also had some questions about what would make interesting reading. My area of interest is adult learning, in particular experiential learning. I also have some rather strong views on what makes a presentation interesting. A third area of interest is making the findings of adult learning researchers accessible to people whose most positive memory of a classroom is leaving it.

This subject has given me plenty of material to work with in each of those areas.

I have also learned about new tools, in particular wikis, RSS feeds and aggregators.

I am setting up a private wiki to allow a number of trainers to develop assessment materials to meet some national competencies. Without the collaborative experience that went into making the JuJu wiki that a team of us developed for the course, that idea would never have seen the light of day.

I also intend to use Jing to develop five minute explanations of software features - primarily for my clients, but links will be posted on a public netvibes page. I doubt that I would have found the tool or the content without the course. I also intend to move a directory of on line tools there from my current public page. If those pages are not up yet, they will be shortly.

The most valuable part of the learning, though, was the people.

I participated in the best team I have ever worked with. And it was on line - a virtual team. We came from a variety of backgrounds and had a range of objectives. We were a truly self managing team.

I will have more to say on the reasons i believe that the term worked together so well in future posts. But the most valuable piece of learning from the whole course was that virtual teams work.

Thanks to all who helped me learn that. I look forward to hearing how your implementation of our learning develops.

It was great JuJu.

This tale did the rounds on a number of internet list serves and inspired thoughts on training, performance evaluation, selection and sundry related issues. It came to my attention through a posting from William D. Lovett, a Management and Training Consultant from Wakefield RI, who attributes it to Fred Nichols, but says that Fred believes Anonymous is the real author.

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Once upon a time, there lived a man named Clarence who had a pet frog named Felix. Clarence lived a modestly comfortable existence on what he earned working at Wal-Mart; but he always dreamed of being rich.”Felix!” he exclaimed one day, “We’re going to be rich! I’m going to teach you how to fly!” Felix, of course, was terrified at the prospect. “I can’t fly, you idiot! I’m a frog, not a canary!” Clarence, disappointed at the initial reaction, told Felix, “That negative attitude of yours could be a real problem. I’m sending you to class.”So Felix went to a three day class and learned about problem solving, time management and effective communication…. but nothing about flying.

On the first day of “flying lessons”, Clarence could barely control his excitement (and Felix could barely control his bladder). Clarence explained that their apartment had 15 floors and each day Felix would jump out of a window starting with the first floor eventually getting to the top floor. After each jump, Felix would analyze how well he flew, isolate on the most effective flying techniques and implement the improved process for the next flight. By the time they reached the top floor, Felix would surely be able to fly.

Felix pleaded for his life, but it fell on deaf ears. “He just doesn’t understand how important this is…” thought Clarence, “but I won’t let naysayers get in my way.” So, with that, Clarence opened the window and threw Felix out (who landed with a thud).

Next day (poised for his second flying lesson) Felix again begged not to be thrown out of the window. With that, Clarence opened his pocket guide to Managing More Effectively and showed Felix the part about how one must always expect resistance when implementing new programs. And with that, he threw Felix out the window. (THUD!)

On the third day (at the third floor) Felix tried a different ploy. Stalling, he asked for a delay in the “project” until better weather would make flying conditions more favourable. But Clarence was ready for him. He produced a timeline pointed to the third milestone and asked, “You don’t want to slip the schedule do you?” From his training, Felix knew that not jumping today would mean that he would have to jump TWICE tomorrow. So he just said, “OK. Let’s go.” And out the window he went.

Now understand that Felix really was trying his best. On the fifth day he flapped his feet madly in a vain attempt to fly. On the sixth day he tied a small red cape around his neck and tried to think “Superman” thoughts. Try as he might, though, Felix couldn’t fly.

By the seventh day, Felix (accepting his fate) no longer begged for mercy. He simply looked at Clarence and said, “You know you’re killing me, don’t you?” Clarence pointed out that Felix’s performance so far had been less than exemplary, failing to meet any of the milestone goals he had set for him. With that, Felix said quietly, “Shut up and open the window”. He leaped out, taking careful aim on the large jagged rock by the corner of the building. And Felix went to that great lily pad in the sky.

Clarence was extremely upset, as his project had failed to meet a single goal that he set out to accomplish. Felix had not only failed to fly, he didn’t even learn how to steer his flight as he fell like a sack of cement. Nor did he improve his productivity when Clarence had told him to “Fall smarter, not harder.” The only thing left for Clarence to do was to analyze the process and try to determine where it had gone wrong. After much thought, Clarence smiled and said, “Next time…… I’m going to find a smarter frog”

My colleague Prue found a survey that checked your Web2 dependency. It asked whether you hosted your own web site, read or wrote blogs, contributed to wikis and so.

That started me thinking about the things that I now do by internet that 10 years ago would have required a physical world activity.

Looking up a phone number is now an on-line activity for me. Do they still print phone books?

Books. That’s another major change. Looking around my office and home, i guess I must have been a pretty prolific book buyer, once. I still read. Often i reread books that i bought years ago, but now I am more likely to download an article from the web and read it. I have almost completed a masters degree without going to the physical university library. A very different approach to my earlier studies. The on line library has replaced the physical one. Downloads and print outs have replaced books. 

The ones I do buy are, as often as not, bought from Amazon.com.

They still make great gifts though, and I suspect that most of the books I have bought in the past few years have either been as gifts or for my 9 year old son. He shares my love of reading, but also has an extensive collection of (approved) sites in his favourites folder.

I cannot remember when I last used a street directory. For years I used Whereis to print out a map and directions. These days I have a GPS unit in my car, so even online maps have been superseded.

My banking is predominately online. I cannot recall the last time I visited a branch. 

I have always had a dictionary very close to my desk. it is still there, sitting beside the thesaurus. They are rarely opened now, though. I go straight to one look when I need a synonym, antonym or definition.

I haven’t quite got into Skype, yet. I have made a few international calls and conference calls that way, and found it useful.

I used to subscribe to a number of international magazines. Now I access them on line.

I still buy a daily newspaper, but also have Google news alerts delivered to my inbox on key topics and as RSS feeds for more general updates.

When I take a photo it is on a digital camera and I view it on my computer before deciding to (rarely) print it out.

When I started this blog, it was part of an e-learning subject. Now I realise I am not just into e-learning. I have adopted e-living! 

I couldn’t speak to my accountant today. He is at a Continuous Professional Development program to find out about the finer points of this year’s federal budget. A quick Google search of CPD Australia turned up programs for nurses, midwives, lawyers, project managers, career counsellors, speech pathologists and teachers.

Engineers Australia list 7 forms that CPD may take in order to retain chartered status:

• Formal post-graduate study not undertaken for award purposes;
• Short courses, workshops, seminars and discussion groups facilitated by recognised practitioners in the field;
• Learning activities in the workplace;
• Private study;
• Service to the engineering profession;
• Presentations at seminars and symposia;
• Tertiary teaching and/or academic research; and
• Other structured activities that meet the objectives of the policy.

But how do trainers stay up to date?

There are some great training conferences. The Australian Institute of Training and Development (AITD) hosts one most years. They also hold professional development events in most capital cities on a regular basis. There is a usually a large Australian contingent at the American Society for Training and Development’s (ASTD) annual conference.   

While the opportunity to maintain currency is available, it is not required. The standard qualification for trainers in Australia is the Cert IV in Training and Assessment. It lasts forever.  

I believe that the value that good trainers add to industry, commerce, government and society is so high that there must be a requirement for continuing professional development, if only because of the value that poor trainers subtract. 

Tags: continuing professional development, CPD, training trainers