Module 6 Post

Learning in a Digital World

Learning is the manifestation and exchange of information that is used to advance knowledge in a particular research and/or subject area.  Learning should be based on a learning theory that outlines a plan for delivering, interpreting information and predicting the outcome.  Instructors have the responsibility to deliver to create a learning environment that will nurture the students learning process and outcome.  This semester we learned a great deal of the importance of Siemens theory of Connectivism to provide the foundation for learning in the current digital age.

 Technology plays an integral role in learning. We are in a digital age where information and knowledge is desired instantly and technology supports this demand.  Technology expands are network and increases our perspectives.  I believe that students are less inhibited to expressing themselves in an online learning environment.  Working with students across the country with various experiences and philosophies allows broader perspectives and can be more exciting. I found that students that are accustom to online learning are more eager to play and active and leading role in their learning experience.  This is a positive as it mimics real world experiences where taking ownership for your personal goals is the law of the land.  This is also supported by the Constructivist theory principles that self driven learners will learn best.    

Reference:

Driscoll, M. P. (2005). Psychology of learning for instruction (3rd ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education.

Siemens, G. (2004). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. Retrieved from

http://elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm

Module 5 Responses

This week I responded to the following blogs:

http://mraedcu8845.wordpress.com/

I had also responded to the following blog:
http://sullusteagueeduc-8845.blogspot.com/

Module 5 New Technologies

Deploying new technology in the workplace can be challenging for the end user and the team that is developing and deploying the technology.  Often times the end user is accustom to performing a job function a certain way and new technology can be difficult to learn, appear cumbersome, intimidating and not relevant. I recently rolled out a new system at work to streamline the work type request to help improve efficiency amongst resources and provide more accurate reporting.  In the initial stages of the project there was a great deal of resistance to this new system.  Keller’s ARCS model would have been beneficial to help motivate the team in the area of Attention, Relevance, Confidence and Satisfaction. 

The new system was rolled out by executive leadership to grab the attention of the folks that were going to be utilizing the system.  There were several pilot sessions and deployment meetings to bring awareness to the new process.  The corporate initiative was to increase efficiency across the organization and this process directly coincided with this goal.  Streamlining the work would allow resources the ability to focus one solution and timeline for a faster implementation.  From a metrics stand point projects would not be open as long with various scope now being spread across multiple projects. 

Once the teams were aware of the system and the importance to the company it was also important to build their confidence in using the system and identifying the satisfaction of the usage.  According to Driscoll (2005) curiosity will motivate but it is important to provide out of the box experiences to captivate learners.  To achieve these goals innovative process workshops were held and process documentation made available.  The users were very pleased with the training made available and quickly caught on to the process. Once their confidence was built up it was easier to see the benefit of streamlining the work.  Several end users were identified as subject matter experts (SME) in the process and rolled it out to other organizations.  The SME’s gained satisfaction by not only learning a new process but also gaining presenting and instructing knowledge that could be used in future position.  Driscoll (2005) discussed the importance of learners realizing that not all skills will be applied immediately but are equally important. 
ARCS is a useful checklist, which draws upon some well established research. And, given the doubts many trainers feel about delivering online, where they can’t establish face-to-face contact, it’s probably more useful in this context than anywhere.

References
Driscoll, M. P. (2005). Psychology of learning for instruction (3rd ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education