I made it!

Photo by Dru Bloomfield

I made it to the finish line for this class, but hope I can continue to apply what I have learned.

I was able to get the final scene into my video and edit out the mistakes made. I learned a lot while making my first video and actually had fun doing it. I have never gotten to do anything like this so it was totally different for me and a lot of fun. I look forward to continuing to find ways to apply all that I have learned in this class.
It has been great to see how everyone else has applied what they have learned, and how they are making changes within their organiztions due to what they have learned. I hope to be able to do the same thing in the coming months.
Thanks to everyone for sharing their thoughts and what they have learned.

Final Project - Take Two

                                                         Photo by Horia Varlan

I have started the editing of the footage, and I have to say it is much harder to edit out mistakes in video than it is in audio alone. The process is the same, but it is so much harder to get the images in a video to line up then it is to get audio alone to flow.  I am just getting started with the editing and will continue to work on it, but I am finding it is much easier to cut out mistakes in audio than it is in video. It is not hard to cut out pieces of the video at the beginning and end of a clip, but I have been trying to cut out a section right in the middle of a clip. I will keep trying to get it cleaner, but I am realizing how much harder it is with video. I am finding that if the person is not in the same position at the end of the clip you want to keep and the beginning of the next clip you want to move to, the frame jumps when you watch it and the viewer can tell it has been edited. I did not really consider this when I was filming, if I had, I may have decided to re-do the entire clip to save the editing. I will keep working on it.

I also filmed the final scene today, which is going to require some additional editing due to some mistakes during the take. I will keep you posted on how that goes.

Final Project Take One

Photo by Horia Varlan

I decided to create a video as my final project. We have not historically used video in my department, but would like to. The final project for this class seemed like the perfect reason to take the plunge into video. I have to say there was a lot more pre-work needed than I initially considered. It seems pretty easy - hit record on the video camera, clean up the clips, and you are good to go. But there are a few important steps that need to take place before you hit record. For example: who can I find that is willing to be an actor in the video, what are they going to say, and what is the overall design/story of the video.

I found that not many people want to be videotaped and those that are willing to be on camera definitely want a lot of direction and a script to follow.  So, I have been working on the design of the activity I am filming, the scripts, what everyone is going to do, and finding people to participant. I finally found all the players needed, met with them a couple times before the big taping and thought we were set. I scheduled the taping on Friday afternoon, which I thought was a good time since most people are more willing to set aside time to help with something like this than they would be during the week; I was wrong. Everyone thought it sounded like a great idea, but as it got closer a few decided it was not going to work out for them. The first person that could not attend, no problem, her portion of the video was just her we can reschedule and tape her on her own. The second person that could not attend, who told me 30 minutes before the taping, that was a bigger problem. We needed all the other actors in her scene, so I had to find a replacement with little to no notice and little to no prep time for them. I am not sure how, but I found someone and he did a great job.

So - I was able to get 4 of the 5 scenes recorded yesterday and am starting the editing process today.

I will keep you posted on how that goes.

Podcasts - Who Knew There Were So Many Options

                                              Photo by Colleen AF Venable

I subscribed to a handful of technology and training podcasts when we looked at them in class, which have kept me busy throughout the last few months, but this weekend I decided to see what else is out there. Wow - that might have been a mistake. I don't think I will ever have time to watch television again. And Now that I think about it, I may also need to quit my job in order to listen to all the podcasts I have subscribed to.
Note to self - when you subscibe and say get all it really gets them all. All the way back to 2006. Yep - I had over 2000 files trying to download this weekend.
I found a ton of different music podcasts, sports, and podcasts with the sermons from my church. I am sure these have been around for year - actually I know that to be true since I have information from 2006 to current, but this is all new to me. It has opened up a whole new world for me and I just wanted to share how excited I was about all my new podcasts.

Rainy Days and Satrudays

As I sit at my computer on a cold, windy, rainy Saturday, I cannot help but think about how what I choose to do on a day like this has changed over the last few months. Pre Emerging Technologies in Training class, I would have tried to find something good on television or put in a movie. I never would have thought to log into my computer and read blogs and then listen to a few podcasts. First of all, becuse I did not know how find a blog or a podcast before this class, but also because I never would have considered to chose a learning activity over the opportunity to watch a no brainer movie on the weekend. Don't get me wrong - I will still be watching a no brainer movie at some point today, but I have also been exposed to so many other options. The variety of information souces that are now at my fingertips continues to amaze me.

Fired due to Facebook comments?

                                                       Photo by Bernard Goldbach
This morning on the way to work, I heard a woman was fired from her job due to comments she made on Facebook. I missed much of the conversation so I Googled it and found this article. It explained that a woman was fired after posting some not so appropriate remarks about her boss on Facebook. It went on to say that Federal authorities have now filed a lawsuit against the employer because the woman's comments should be protected under labor laws.
I found this very interesting and cannot wait to hear how this turns out. I think the implications are huge. With more and more peole signing up for Facebook and other social media sites, this will happen again. Do companies now need to have Facebook policies? If so, will these policies hold up under the law?

Brainshark is going mobile

                                                 Photo by Honou

Today we received a message that the Brainshark presentations (similar to a PowerPont with audio) we create can now be viewed on mobile devices. This is huge for us. We use Brainshark presentations a lot to get information out quickly, especially to our sales teams. The problem has always been that the salses staff have to find time to view the brainshark presentations on their computers. The ability to now receive training via their mobile devices allows them to view the materials quicker and easier. This opens up a variety of additiona reasons we may use Brainsharks. Instead of creating a long communication message they have to read - we can now create a quick Brainshark they can play on their phones. This capability will make us reconsider why and when we use this tool.
I continue to be amazed at how much technology is out there that I don't know about and how quickly the stuff I do know changes to keep up.

Don't Forget About Classroom Training

                                                         Photo by Ken Mayer

Before starting in my current role, I was in a training position where we did not have the capabilities to develop e-learning. Or primary delivery method was classroom training. In my current position, we have our own e-learning team that develops many different e-learning deliverables. I have found myself designing CBTs for most of the projects I have worked on since I came to the area. Add to that, this class where I have been thinking a lot about how we can implement new ways of delivering training and I almost forgot classroom training was an option. That is until last week.

I have been working on a team that is re-designing one of the new hire curriculum. We were just notified a couple weeks ago that a new hire group is starting so they want us to get as many topics done by November 12th as possible. This push has caused all of us, including the e-learning team, to be extremely busy. Therefore, the capacity to create new e-learning deliverables in the next few weeks is limited. I had one more topic to complete and knowing my options were limited to get help from the e-learning team, I immediately jumped to what I could do with my newly acquired techie skills. Nothing seemed to fit. Then it hit me - this material really should be presented in a classroom. I almost forgot this was an option. Once I determined classroom was the best deliver method, the design fell right into place. I had spent so  much time trying to fit the content into a demo, CBT, audio file, or many other options I overlooked the need for a trainer lead discussion and assisted application. I think technology is great and I love that I have so many new options, but this week I realized that sometimes a good old classroom session is exactly what is needed. 

 Photo by Ken Mayer

Great Use of Technology

I saw a perfect example of how to use technology today. We received a message from the IT security area, which typically means a very long e-mail with more information than a person can absorb - have you every received a message like that?
Well, today was different. The message began by asking a question about what the last Google search you had done, and went into some stats about searches. What a great way to get the reader engaged and tie their experiences to the information being presented. (adult learning anyone?)
Then they did something even more amazing. They still had a long message, for those that enjoy them, but provided a link to a video that could be viewed in leu of reading the entire messgae. Addressing multiple learning styles in an IT security message?
The video used was created in Camtasia ,and it was perfect. It was a 4 minute clip that had audio with an animated PowerPoint presentation. The "video" highlighted items when discussed, showed examples of the forms required and how to access them, and did a great job of pulling the key points into the bullets and allowed the audio to going into greater detail.
It was such a great example of how a short audio/video clip can make a huge difference. I learned more from that 4 minute clip than I ever have from any IT security message.

Have you seen any good examples of how technology can be used?

Where have I been?

It seems social media, web 2.0, and technology is everywhere! Where have I been? Before this class I had never even heard about Web 2.0 - now I see and hear it everywhere. The cloud? Only clouds I knew about were in the sky, but now there are commercials about editing pictures and putting them in the cloud. Social media for me was Facebook, which I never access and LinkedIn, which I never access. Now everyone, including organiztions, are making the leap into social media. It is so much more than I knew - it is a way to collaborate, network, and learn.
Suddenly I have a heightened awareness about technolgy and it seems to show up in every part of my life. How did I not see it before?
It seems I am headed in the right direction now; I am a bit overwhelmed, but excited to see how I can use all these new tools in future training and in my personal life.

Thoughts about weekend three

Within one weekend I have gone from: I can edit video?? to  - I can edit video! It is unbelieveable! In fact, not only can I edit video, but I can convert video clips to a number of differnt files and even sort of know what they mean. Yep, I now can throw around MP4 and AVI as if I know what I am talking about. 

I am so excited about the new world this opens up for me both professionally and personally. The opportunities seem endless. Hard to believe we can grab any YouTube video or any other video file and convert them into a file we can use; even VHS to DVD. Oh and all of this can be done in a reasonable amount of time. I still think it is crazy we were able to put together a video in less than a half an hour.  Check it out.

I thought it would take me weeks to make a video, which I am sure you could edit for weeks, but the ease in which you can produce a video makes this a great option I will consider when designing training.

My department at work has not historically used video, so I am excited to see how we can beginning introducing some audio files into our deliverables.  I will keep you posted on what we are able to do.

R Phones Dead 2?

Jeewan blogged about the death of books. What else is going to become extinct due to technology?

Jeewan's blog reminded me of an article I read about the death of the phone. The author pointed out an important feature the phone is missing: information about status. You have to call a person to determine if they are available to take a call. People now us text, IM, and social networking to have conversations or even as a way to determine if someone is available to talk. It was interesting to read about the how the number of calls and the length of calls have decreased.

Do you think the phone conversation is an endangered communication option? Or do you agree with the author that "the calls we do make will be longer, reserved for the sort of deep discussion that the medium does best". Can technology actuallly help use identify the most appropriate way in which to use tools old and new?

Got Wiki?

It appears Wikis are everywhere. Yep, I am the one that said they would never be used in my company due to the lack of reviews needed to post informaiton, but it appears others did not get that memo. I have heard more about wiki's in the last 3 weeks then I have ever heard about them in my organization.
As with many new technologies, it appears the newly found ability to create a wiki on our internal project sites has made this the greatest invention ever. Sounds great, but unfortunately I think we are missing the mark. Only a few have access to add to the wiki and even fewer know how to add to the wikis that have been set up. Ithink this misses the point of what and why a wiki is used.
I love the attempt at using new technologies, but it seems the newest hotest things get overutilized and they often are not used as intended.

Do you guys see people jumping on the technology bandwagon to often and without an understanding of how to use the tool effectively?

From what I have seen, I think we are missing the point. We have overused the term wiki,

1. They are not really wikis - they are uses as anything from discussion boards to blogs
2. Only a few have access to add to the "wikis"

Social Learning in the Future

                                                           by Elias Bizannes

I stumbled upon an article that supports everything we are learning in this class, and emphasizes the importance of technologies for learning in the future.   In fact, the authors believe if learning and development professionals do not embrace and utilize technologies to create a new way of working and learning, the learning function will become irrelevant.   The article provides 10 predictions of what social learning will look like.

Looking Ahead at Social Learning: 10 Predictions

By Jeanne Meister and Karie Willyerd

Prediction 1: Augmented reality learning emerges

Prediction 2: Most learning incorporates use of a mobile device

Prediction 3:  Games and simulations are used for every content area

Prediction 4: We will have a huge appetite

Prediction 5: Peer-to-peer learning blossoms

Prediction 6:  Expert and credibility ratings create trusted search networks

Prediction 7: Search bots go on the prowl for you

Prediction 8: Governments will become more involved in ensuring that its citizens have access to training and retraining

Prediction 9: The learning function's focus shifts to accreditation, with less emphasis on the learning process itself

Prediction 10: You will be rated publicly, much like a Yelp or Amazon rating for people

Some of these predictions were things I might have expected. For example:

Prediction 2 – most learning incorporates use of a mobile device. But many of the authors’ predictions were things I had never heard of and still cannot quite wrap my mind around.  Such as Prediction 1 – Augmented reality learning emerges. In fact, you will have to read about it yourself since I cannot even summarize in my own words how it works. I would need to copy it word for word to ensure I explained it right.

I thought this was a great article that gave me a lot to think about. Hope you like it too.

More thoughts about audio...

Once again I am thinking about how much we can do with audio.  It seems so simple, but we don’t use it as much as we could/should?

Meeting the training needs of our sales staff is a continual challenge. It is increasingly harder to balance between providing the knowledge needed with the time they have in the office or at a computer.  How can we do a better job of using the “window time” they have in their cars?  Audio seems to be the answer; whether it is an actual podcast that is created weekly or bi-weekly or audio files that provide just in time training on hot topics.  I think we have an opportunity to create some new training deliverables, using audio, which can still provide the knowledge needed but in a format that allows the sales team to take it on the road.

Could I Really Be Considered "Techy"?

I know. I find the idea of me as a person with any technology skills a stretch as well. However, I have to share that for the first time in my life I found myself in a situation where I felt borderline "techy".
It all happened during a staff meeting last week. We were brainstorming about what we need to do better. As you can image, technology came up a lot. By the time our session was over we had a list of "new" technologies my department thinks we should learn to use. The list read something like this:
                                                                                                            Photo by Dean Johnson

• Podcasts
• Wikis
• Blogs
• Skype

This is about the time I started to find myself in unfamiliar territory. I not only understood all the "techy" terms people were throwing out, but I know how to use all of those technologies. The list created at work looked very similar to the syllabus that was create the first night of class. Had I not taken this class I would have been very intimidated with that list of technology, but now I am excited and cannot wait to help find ways to use these technologies.

Editing Audio: More Than Just Fun

                                                                 By Tim Patterson

Last week I had a chance to see firsthand how important it is to have the ability to edit audio files. Using adacity and editing audio was one of my favorite activities from the second weekend, but I have to admit it was my favorite because it was fun not because I thought it was something I would do a lot. But last week I saw how editing audio saved my department a lot of time and money. Let me explain.

I have been working with our e-learning developers on a CBT that was due this week. As part of the CBT we asked two leaders to record the introduction. This was used to try to provide the WIIFM to the learner and show how important this topic is to the senior leaders. You may have noticed I said senior leaders. For any of you in the corporate world, you know how hard it is to schedule time with senior leaders and to add to this one of the leaders was in an outside office. Lucky for us we were able to get the time to record scheduled and just by chance there were others in our department going to our outside office the exact time we needed to go - so we tagged along to record the audio needed.

Sounds like everything was falling into place - right? Well, did I mention that compliance approved the scripts we used for the audio, however, when the recording took place one of the leaders made a few changes. Seems harmless, but compliance did not like the changes made and wanted us to remove some information. Oh no - now we have to schedule more time with the senior leader to re-record the entire script, we have to drive 2 hours to do this, oh and we only have 2 days to get this done.

Or ...

We can edit the current audio file we have to remove the information. Lucky for use the information that needed to be removed was at the beginning of a sentence and there was a comma after the information. This provided a natural pause that made removing the information easy and clean. I knew the information was removed, but when I listed to the new audio file I could not tell is had be edited. It worked!!

Editing the audio took minutes, while re-recording audio would have taken days. The ability to edit the audio file save us both time and money. I am learning the ability to edit audio is more than just a fun thing to do - it is a valuable skill that really helped us out last week.

I have been thinking...

        photo by quinn.anya

I have been thinking a lot about how to apply all this information we have been learning, but specifically how to apply it in corporate America. With all the firewalls and different sites that are blocked by corporate security, many of the tools we have learned cannot be used in my work setting. But learning all these new tools and what they can do has opened up a whole new world of options for me as an instructional designer. I am fortunate to work with e-learning developers that have access to tools similar to what we have learned, the difference being their tools are approved for use. The problem is as a designer that provides them with instruction on what to create, I have been the one that has held back our ability to use these technologies because I had no idea what could be done.
I feel sorry for my teammates now; I am going to be asking for all kinds of new things. :) I love the idea of audio files, like those we made with audacity. We use audio in the computer based training we create, but that is it. I can see us using it in so many other ways. We could

• have leaders provide a short message about how important the training is and the WIIFM. The link to this message could be included in the invitations to training. 
•  provide short audio clips from the facilitator or leader to recap key points from training. These could be sent out as reminders a week or two after training.
• capture role play activities for customer service or sales training for good examples or even non-examples.

I also think we could use the demos, like those made with Jing, more often. These are such a great way to teach a person a new system or new process within a system they already use. What a great way to expose a learner to a new system before, during, or after training. It would also be great to have links to demos within manuals or procedures to help support the text that explains the process.

And don't forget about Wikis. I am not sure my company is ready for the concept of a self correcting system that does not have 15 levels of review before information is posted, but I think we can use these in a few situations. I am thinking about a class I am designing for our corporate training and development community. It was be a great way to share what they are learning, how they have applied, best practices... Oh wait - they should decide what it become not me. Anyway - I think it would be fun to try it with that group.

I will continue processing all this new information and considering how I can use it, and I will keep you posted on how it goes.

So Many Choices . . . Where Do I Post My Thoughts

As I sat down to Blog, Tweet, and update the class Wiki (it still sounds weird to hear myself saying any of those words) I had to consider where do I post what? What is most appropriate for a blog entry? What should I put in the class Wiki, and when should I ever use Twitter. I went back through Robin's PowerPoints from class and found some information about the spectrum of Blog Posts. I found this very helpful, especially the non-examples, which highlighted all the things I thought blogging included - for example: journaling, posting links, and posting assignments. The idea that blogging is a place for synthesis, reflection, and analysis is a new idea to me. Blogging in general is new to me, but I brought with me a mental model of what blogging was all about, and I am learning quickly I have a lot to learn. So bear with me as I find my way through all these new venues to post my thoughts. I may not always chose the most appropriate vehicle to express my thoughts, but you will be hearing a lot of my thoughts.

Thoughts After Weekend Two

Wow! Another weekend full of new tools - I mean new FREE tools. Amazing there is so much free stuff at your fingertips. How am I going to remember it all and how am I going to use it for learning? It is a bit overwhelming!

These tools we learned about this weekend open up so many different delivery methods for training. Audio, video, demos, real time editing/collaborating and so much more. This is an instructional designers dream: variety. The opportunities are endless! And the time required to create many of these deliverables is measured in hours versus minutes - hard to believe.

Creating New Post - With Demo

Step One

New Post

This is my first post with a demo.

First Audio File

Here is my first MP3 file! Need some practice with editing the audio, but what a great start.

Second Weekend

The first night of the second weekend was packed with even more free stuff that I did not even know existed. I especially loved Google Docs and Skype! And of course I feel pretty cool that I know have a blog and started a Wiki. I have always been so intimidated by technology, but this class has really been a huge eye opener for me. It has made me realize that technology is not that scary - at least not when you have someone to guide you through it.
I cannot wait to see what we learn tomorrow.

Using Twitter in Training and Development

I have been thinking about how twitter could be used in training. I searched blogs to see what I could find about this and ran into an interesting blog about how this can be useful and how to do it.

The Google Reader

I love the Google Reader!! What a great idea. I would never check that many blogs or sites on my own. Now I just log in and it is all right there for me. Love it!

Weekend One

I thought I knew how to use Google? Well the truth is, I didn't even know how to use the search function let alone all the applications and other features. So amazing all this stuff is out there for free, and that I might even be able to figure out, with some help, how to use some of it. Case in point - I am a blogger now! :)

Wikinomics: Chapter Five Reflections

Chapter Five

What strikes you as interesting and why?

The responses from big media firms about how they could respond to the “threats” posed by user generated content was interesting. The ideas provided were very good, but I have not seen any of these put into practice by big media. It is similar to many big companies. Even if they have an idea about the changes that need to be made, which many do not, they do not act. It seems technology and the consumers are passing them by.

What application do you see between what you’re reading and your experiences? How so?

The first example that came to mind was this class. Allowing the class to create the syllabus and outline for the course to include assignments and grading. This is a great example of modeling what is being taught. This is not often the case. I have taken classes about the importance of interaction and application during training where the facilitator lectured the entire time. No time was provided for interaction and no connection was made as to how the martial could be applied.

When learning about collaboration and prosumers it makes perfect sense to make the learners the prosumers.

What implication do you see for how you and others learn? Why are these worth noting?

Prosumption in learning would dramatically increase efficiency and effectiveness. If learners played a key role in what and how they learned, it would change the face of learning. What a way to increase the WIFM. If the learner had an active role in the creation of the class and the ability to provide ongoing feedback to tweak the class, they would have a vested interest in the topics and how the class turns out.

This could be implemented even in corporate training. The scale to which the learner controls the content may differ based upon the subject, but the concept can work. There would always be topics that must be covered especially with regulatory, safety, or technical training, but there is no reason the learners cannot play a bigger role in what and how they learn.

What are you struggling to understand and why?

I am struggling with copyrights, piracy, intellectual property rules. I am not sure I ever really knew all the rules, but now it seems the lines are blurring from what is protected and what is not. The record companies are still fighting to uphold strict copyrights, but now some artists are not? How does a person know what they can use and what is protected?

Wikinomics: Chapter Four Reflections

Chapter Four

What strikes you as interesting and why?

Assume the best people reside outside your doors. This is not a traditional thought. Most companies promote internally and externally the fact they have the best and the brightest. But, when looking at the entire world as your resource, it is easy to see how there may be better people out there. Comparing the world’s ideas to those from the 5000 employees that work within the confines of a company could lead you to believe the best people are outside the company. I had never thought about that comparison before or the opportunities available with mass collaboration.

How might you use these technologies in your workplace? Advantages? Disadvantages? Challenges? Benefits? Why?

The concept of ideagoras could be used in my workplace on a smaller scale even if the organization is not willing to search for solutions outside the company. The organization has about 10,000 employees, but it is divided into divisions and departments that often know little about how the other areas are run. I think the organization would benefit from tapping into resources across business units and departments. If there was a board to post questions/problems to tap into other leaders, IT areas, or training and development employees to see what solutions are out there, I think we could all learn something and be better for it. I am sure we repeat mistakes across business units due to a lack of collaboration or willingness to ask for help outside our own business units.

Other thoughts

Solutions in search of questions and questions in search of ideas: what a great concept. Of course a retired scientist should be paired up with an R&D department looking for answers. How great is it that this retired scientists can solve problems and provide unique solutions big R&D departments had not considered. This is a brilliant idea to connect those in search of help with those that have the answers. I do, however, see how the balance of these external resources and internal resources will become an increasingly difficult task. Along with the mindset change needed for the big companies to open their R&D vaults: their safety nets.

Wikinomics: Chapter Three Reflections

Chapter Three

What strikes you as interesting and why?

The Wiki process. As you can see from the previous chapters, I have some questions about how to maintain the accuracy of Wikipedia. I cannot believe there are only 5 paid staffers and most of the edits / updates are from volunteers that love their topics. Compared to the Nupedia Company that was also discussed it seems the risk of inaccuracy is worth taking as Nupedia never got off the group with all the hoops to jump through within the review and approval process.

Also interesting to see that Wikipedia has 4 inaccuracies to Brintannica’s 3 – however Wikipedia’s were fixed already.

How might you use these technologies in your workplace? Advantages? Disadvantages? Challenges? Benefits? Why?

I love the ability to get information into a wiki quickly, without the painful review process currently required in my company, but I still do not believe our leaders would see this benefit outweighing the risk or incorrect information. However, the self-selection, bottom-up control, and self policing argument is a good one. We have vast online resources that are a nightmare to keep updated. The process is painful and requires a number of sign-offs. I wonder if we had a wiki format in which people could self-select topics in which they had an interest/expertise and they were ultimately in charge of maintaining that topic if we may actually have more accurate information.

What are you struggling to understand and why?

Open source. I have read the success stories in the book and see how powerful this type of collaboration can be, but I still have questions about ownership and profit. I am not sure where this goes if every company adopts this mindset? Yet I also wonder what will happen to the companies that do not embrace it.

Wikinomics: Chapter Two Reflections

Chapter Two

What strikes you as interesting and why?

Coase’s Law was interesting to me. The fact that it was written in the 1930’s, but still true today, and in fact may help explain why companies finally have to change again. Companies that continue to perform transactions in house that are cheaper in the marketplace and miss the opportunities the Internet and collaboration provide are not going to make it.

What application do you see between what you’re reading and your experiences? How so?

I don’t see much application. In the departments in which I have worked, I have found a traditional view toward leadership and training. There is still an overarching belief that classroom lecture is the best way to train; quick and you get the right information disseminated. Everything in this chapter goes against this idea. How do you know someone else does not have a better idea or a better way to do something? Is there really one right way? How can you keep the staff engaged without the option for input? How can you keep them engaged in training? How can anyone learn without application and interaction?

What implication do you see for how you and others learn? Why are these worth noting?

The discussion about the Net Generation was interesting, especially the idea that the real problem with education is not the undisciplined students, the teachers, or the standards rather the lack of engaging content. When learners are used to creating their own content, collaborating to get answers, and finding information about anything they are interested in within seconds, it is easy to see how a traditional classroom setting would not offer the engagement needed. The need for application, self-directed learning, interaction, and collaboration is greater than ever. I think this is not only true for schools, but also for corporate learning. It is extremely important for corporations to realize this when designing/developing training

How might you use these technologies in your workplace? Advantages? Disadvantages? Challenges? Benefits? Why?

I think blogs could be utilized in a number of ways in the corporate training world. Blogs would be a great way to get learners to reflect upon their learning; I don’t think we do enough of that. Others could learn from their peer’s experiences. The facilitator could provide questions or additional learning following a training session in a blog, which provides reinforcement for the training received and an arena for continued feedback and learning.
I still have questions about wiki’s and how they are maintained. I think they could be a valuable tool, but in my work environment the idea that anyone can add comments, correct or not, is a risk most are not willing to take.

Wikinomics: Chapter One Reflections

Chapter One

What strikes you as interesting and why?

I found the success stories of self-organization vs. hierarchical management interesting. My work experience has included a heavy dose of hierarchy. I do not believe it is always the most successful leadership model, but it is the one I have seen most often and the one that has been rewarded within the organizations in which I work. Why don’t companies see this?

I loved the example of the companies that have successfully used this for R&D. Amazing stories. It shows that even a highly regulated and typically secretive industry, pharmaceuticals, can even use collaboration to their advantage.

What application do you see between what you’re reading and your experiences? How so?

I love the idea of putting a question out for all to help answer. On a small scale, I saw this work so effectively this week at work. We have a team of instructional designers that do not collaborate like we should, but one of the designers was struggling with how to present some material. She sent a message out to the entire department; the responses were amazing. The training will be so much better due to that small act of collaboration. On a larger scale the opportunities are endless.

What are you struggling to understand and why?

Peer production – collaborating openly to drive innovation and growth in an industry sounds great, but how do you get a traditional business to utilize these tactics?

Being Open / Peering / Sharing /and Acting Globally are not typical concepts considered. Working in a traditional business that is heavily regulated it is hard to envision this happening. You do not share openly and collaborate with competitors. You do not post the questions you are having trouble solving or ask for help. You protect what you know and what you don’t know. Even within the business units you can find areas where sharing among your own teams is not done, those that know keep that knowledge in order to maintain their status. I am struggling how you get the collaboration started.



The second thing I am struggling with is the accuracy of Wikipedia or any Wiki. If I am a new leaner that does not know anything about the topic, I will have no way of knowing the information is not correct.