E P I C   T H I N K I N G

3c. E-learning research - University of Sussex

An interesting source of research in e-learning is the www.reveel.sussex.ac.uk site. This provides access and links to good research with the research methodology. This is an attempt to separate out the significant studies from those that have poor methodologies.

Several studies on learning effectiveness are of interest including:

Allen et al (2004)

Guerandel et a (2003)

Kekkonen-Moneta (2002)

On community and connectivity:

Uschi (2002)

De Laat & Lally (2004)

Rovai (2001)

Kreijns et al (2003)

There’s also a warning about the so-called ‘grey literature’, where the research is perhaps serving specific interests.

On the whole this is a credible site that holds lots of promise.

Research: ASTD State of the Industry Report

Just released this month, the annual 2004 report has a wealth of data on the training industry based on data from 344 US organisations.

The headlines are:

1. Learning increasingly linked to performance
2. E-learning up from 15.4% to 23.6%
3. Annual training expenditure per employee steady at $820
4. Time steady at 26 hours per employee

top

INTERVIEW

4. Given the chance, Epic loves to hear the opinions and experiences of influential figures within the learning industry. You may remember we ran an interview with John Brown of Ufi Ltd. back in October. This month, Lee Maxey, Chief Learning Officer at Pathlore, has generously answered our e-learning questionnaire. The questionnaire aims to get personal views, rather than general thoughts on the state of the market and the questions have been designed acccordingly.

Introduction by Donald Clark, Epic

Lee Maxey has been a constant source of inspiration for me. We have bumped into each other at many conferences in many cities and I'm always amazed at the freshness of his thoughts. One of his most endearing habits is his ability to change his mind. Having promoted the idea of LCMSs, he now sees them as red herrings. As an American who spent his early years in Europe, he can also see things from both sides of the pond. His sheer enthusiasm for learning and the internet comes through in this interview.

Q What's your INTEREST in learning/online learning?

I LOVE learning. My view is that if one is not learning, then one is not really living. As a student, competitive athlete, teacher, coach, and now as a parent, I continue to be amazed at how different learning can be depending on one’s perspective. Online learning is not the issue as much as one’s view of learning as a whole. Having the understanding and appreciation of how learning can change one’s world is far more important than the delivery vehicle for learning.

Q What interactive technology do you use and have at HOME?

We have a wireless DSL connection to the internet and a basic TV. We don’t watch much TV. Our use of the internet ranges from email, to shopping, to searches for needed information, to finding kids resources.

Q What stands out as your MOST EFFECTIVE learning experience?

Wood Badge training for Boy Scout Leaders and flight school training to be a pilot were both powerful learning experiences. They both were totally immersive, and continue to impact how I think about learning today. One was a team-based collaborative experience that involved a lot of behavioural and a “soft skill” focus. The other was an intense solitary activity with high degrees of precision and procedure.

Read the rest of the interview

top

ARTICLE

5a. Audio Review: Will Wright – Simulation Design

At Epic we have all been excited recently by the potential of audio files and iPods as learning devices. Thus when I came across an audio file by Will Wright on www.itconversations.com I downloaded it to my iPod and began listening. Will Wright, for those that don’t know, was the founder of Maxis, the company that created the world’s best selling PC game The Sims. This is a game that my daughter spends many hours playing and hence I was also interested to understand the way the game was designed.

Will is also a very amusing speaker and interesting individual. He explained that when he gets a new game the first thing he does is work out what you have to do and then do the complete opposite i.e. drive the wrong way on a racing game. He also likes his children to experiment in the same way and added “do you know that Barbie’s hair is flammable?” I personally liked his style which made me listen on.

Read the rest of the review

5b.Audio downloads and Podcasting

www.itconversations.com offers free download audio files of conversations with leading people in the IT industry and is just one of many sites offering free audio downloads. You might also be interested in Podcasting. Podcasting is like subscribing to a set of news feeds except that rather than read them on screen you can listen at your PC or on an iPod. There are many podcasting feeds you can subscribe to at www.ipodder.org. These include regular podcasts from US Universities on education and technology. Even the BBC is getting in on the act. You can now sign up to the “In our Time” podcast where Melvyn Bragg and three guests investigate the history of ideas and debate their application in modern life. Just go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/inourtime/mp3_podcast.shtml. This automatically delivers a new audio file to your PC whenever the BBC updates it. Alternatively if you just want to download the file manually go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/inourtime/mp3.shtml.

Happy listening!

top

SHOW REPORT

6. Online Educa Berlin 2004

Epic's Donald Clark recently spoke at the Online Educa international conference in Berlin. Here is his report of the show.

Online Educa is 10 years old this year and remains the leading European e-learning conference with:

It’s an eclectic mix of researchers, educationalists, corporates and policy makers. Note that this doesn’t mean any real interaction between them. Indeed there were some fractious sessions and more than the odd culture clash (more of this later). In many ways this is what makes this an interesting event.

A strong feature of the conference is the short speaker slots. Three or four speakers per session means they’re limited to about 20 mins each. This lowers the odds on boredom, and as the speakers still have to pay to attend the quality can be variable. In fact, this year, there was some disgruntlement around ‘presentation skills’.

Read the rest of the report