I recently had the chance to talk about the Learning Revolution with the folks at the WP Tonic podcast. They asked great questions, which resulted in what I feel was a really useful discussion – one I’d encourage you to listen in on. And, if you don’t want to listen, the full transcript is also available on the WP Tonic site. For both the audio and the transcript, just go to:
A sampling of what we covered includes topics like:
How online learning borrows a lot from the past – much of it not good:
the first move that you’ll see most people make whether they’re organizations, entrepreneurs, whatever, when they jump into online learning is often going to be to do a webinar or a series of webinars. Then they use them for marketing and they try to sell them, whatever the case might be. But they’re going to go online with this tool that will allow them to present PowerPoint to the world, which of course, has been happening in lectures for decades and decades. … There’s a place for it. It does serve its purpose at times but to totally depend on that is a horrible way to go about educating people or helping people learn.
How we are in an age in which learners are taking control and the “catalog” now for online courses really is Google:
I think the edupreneurs and the traditional organizations that get that are starting to reshape their learning and realize the possibilities that the Web is offering. And so, they’re figuring out, “How can we curate that? How can we help that process?”, and then, “How can we help that interaction and engagement?”
How we know SO much more now about how people learn:
We’re finding, for example, that when people can space learning over time and practice things repeatedly over time and practice is a key word there, not just read them again and again but actually apply them in their situation. That’s one of the key areas. To take learning and do what’s called elaboration and connect it back to what you already know.
How Internet marketers were pioneers in driving the current online learning craze:
The best of the Internet marketers, the people who recognize this isn’t a one-shot deal, that you want to attract these people in and build a relationship with them and be a learning resource for them over time. And I think if there’s one key trend in adult learning, in particular right now, it’s moving beyond transactions and into relationships so that you come that go to resource for learning. And learning takes time. So you want to recognize that as part of what you’re doing.
How microlearning and video are creating such a big buzz – and how video, in particular, can be overused:
Using multimedia and giving people different ways to access content does result in better learning. And so, you can’t rely just on video. You can’t rely just on text. You can’t rely just on audio. It’s good to give people a mix. And I think particularly with video, you’re spot on [about some of the issues it can create]. This isn’t even a formal learning example, but I do happen to use a WordPress plugin provider who does all of their support with brief videos and it drives me nuts because I don’t need to watch the 5 minute. I just need to know that one thing that, if I were just looking a sheet of paper, I’d be able to find it very easily. But it’s a headache to deal with what they’re doing in terms of support.
And that’s just some what we cover before we reach the mid-show break. If you are interested in these and other Learning Revolution topics, I definitely encourage you to check out this WP Tonic podcast interview. I also encourage you to read my take on the podcast as an example of audience building that I posted on the Learning Revolution Web site.