Leading with Learning
[Updated June 18, 2018] We hear the word “learning” and our knee jerk, often unconscious reaction is to think “education.” But, in reality, learning is not primarily about education. Indeed, formal, teacher-led educational experiences account for only about five percent of the learning we do in life.
No, learning is about much, much more than education. By extension, the Learning Revolution is much, much more than an education revolution. The Learning Revolution is:
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.
I had the pleasure of discussing lifelong learning and the market for lifelong learning with Seth Kahan as part of his Visionary Talk video series. We talked about how and why the market for lifelong learning has changed and what organizations need to be doing to ensure they thrive in the new learning landscape. You can access the conversation by going to Visionary Talk or by clicking on the video below.
Seth, as you may know, is a best-selling author and founder of Association Transformation. He is also part of the faculty at the upcoming Leading Learning Symposium. We encourage you to join us at the symposium to interact and learn with Seth in real time.
Jeff
I posted this a few places back in the spring – it’s from the Tagoras Leading Learning Spring Summit – but it occurred to me recently that it really should be posted here as as well. A brief overview of why trade and professional associations can and should dominate the market for lifelong learning. (Many, I find, take it for granted that they do, but that is not the foregone conclusion that it used to be.)
Start with the individual terms:
Here’s how I define it:
the lifelong process of transforming information and experience into knowledge, skills, behaviors, and attitudes. (from A Definition of Learning)
I had to piece together Merriam-Webster and Oxford to get a definition that I felt was truly accurate:
a system of “interaction and exchange” (M-W) that governs the “the wealth and resources of a country or region, especially in terms of the production and consumption of goods and services.” (Oxford)
Learning is a process. An economy is a system. Both are dynamic and evolving; both never “end” in any meaningful sense.
In a Learning Economy, the process of learning is the fundamental driver of the system. Learning fuels innovation; it fuels change; it enables participants in the system to adapt so that they can sustain wealth and create new wealth.
Without learning, the system atrophies.
You could argue that every successful economy is a learning economy – and you would be right. What is different now, though, is the sheer speed, scope, and scale of learning – and, by extension, change – that is possible.
Technology – in the broadest sense – has made this possible. And learning continues to drive the advancement of technology. Both knock down economic barriers and borders.
A flywheel effect. A virtuous – or is it vicious? – circle.
That is the Learning Economy.
Jeff
P.S. – What the Learning Economy is relates directly to what the Learning Revolution is.
I’ve suggested before that succeeding with content marketing is not necessarily easy – especially as more and more people jump on the bandwagon. One key to making it work is to create truly useful content, and for my money, that usually means educational content.
To help give you a leg up on doing just that, I’ve released The Learning Revolutionary’s Toolbox from behind the e-mail sign-up wall. You can just click to download – no e-mail address or credit card required.
In the Toolbox, you will find a range of tools to help you with creating and distributing educational content, whether strictly for marketing purposes or as a way of generating revenue.
Either way, if you find it useful, I’d be truly grateful if you would share this page with others by clicking any or or all of the social buttons at the bottom of this post, blogging about it, e-mailing, or however you choose. (Yes, I’m trying to practice what I preach.)
Enjoy,
Jeff
P.S. – Why not also grab the first chapter of Leading the Learning Revolution for free while you’re here and also set yourself up to get occasional, high-value updates from me on strategic thinking to fuel your life and business? Just sign up below (You can, of course, unsubscribe at any time, and I absolutely, positively will not share your contact info with anyone.)