Change or no change in Workplace learning

Clive Shepherd

Change and uncertainty: the making or the breaking of corporate learning and development.

Learning methods are (relatively) timeless. Only a few are depended on media. But the choice that we made amongst them do change.
Forces for change

1. New thinking
2. new expectations
3. new pressures
   

1. New thinking

Connectivism is new; it is all about connections, more importantly we learn in 2008 by means of connections externally.
Defining neuroscience: now we are much more aware to overload learners, to change the way present things to learners, Now we know that 30 hour e-learning course are too much.

Teachers do not create learning. Learner create learning. Teachers create the conditions to facilitate learning.

2. New expectations

How gen Y want learning to be:

• Interactive
• Student-centred
• authentic
• collaborative
• on-demand
  

Don't we all want this. Maybe Gen Y says what they want. In the end we don't have to pamper Gen Y or anyone else. We need do to the right thing.
So new thinking and new expectations demand a shift in emphasis....

3. New pressures

• Time pressures : "72% of all training are time-critical" (Bersin & Associates (2005))

A pyramid of learning interventions
Formal responses (we still need those)
Rapid responses
Use-generated responses

The last becomes more and more important.

• Environmental pressures (drastical reduce of travel)
• Cost pressures (Due to the financial crisis it might occur that some training departments will be eliminated almost entirely (Jay Cross (2008)) Employees are more than your greater asset.

We can't meet these pressures, but have to choose methods to maximise the effectiveness of learning.
Media to maximise the effectiveness of learning.

Learning media are evolving rapidly. New media enable change, like web 2.0 tools.
New tools, cost are getting down remarkably
new devices, mobile devices, laptop, low-price multimedia tools, as half the people are working away from their desk.
new bandwith

A time for action...
When the rate of change outside exceeds the rate of change inside, the end is in sight (Jack Weigh)
We need to be pro-active.