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What
is eLearning?
There
are many educational and training ideas that
are encompassed in the eLearning concept. For
example, eLearning includes distance
learning, computer
based training, online learning, and others.
Many of these terms have overlapping meanings,
and some experts may even disagree on the best
term to use for any particular type of technology-assisted
learning.
At
Distance Learning Providers, we use the term
eLearning to describe a learning process that
takes advantage of the combined technological,
information and human resources of a network
(Internet or Intranet) to deliver synchronous
live learning, where interaction, collaboration,
team learning and intuitive learning are the
feature that make it truly a Live, Virtual Classroom.
How
well does eLearning work?
As
companies around the globe strive to produce
just-in-time
products to stoke the economy and compete
for cost-effectiveness and efficiency, eLearning
is proving that it can meet and exceed the training
needs of an ever-changing world. Undeniably,
eLearning cuts the costs of travel, facilities,
administrative overhead, duplication of effort,
and more importantly, the opportunity cost of
people away from the job. More importantly,
eLearning delivers organizational knowledge
in a high-performance, highly
interactive environment. Educational psychologist
William Glasser estimated that we learn:
- 10%
of what we read
- 20%
of what we hear
- 30%
of what we see
- 50%
of what we see & hear
- 70%
of what we discuss with others
- 80%
of what we experience
- 95%
of what we teach someone else
Based
on Dr. Glasser's scale, the interactivity and
involvement in the Distance Learning Providers'
Virtual Classroom delivers the highest performance
possible—short of making every student
a teacher.
Why
is corporate America so excited about eLearning?
The
drivers for the eLearning industry fall into
two major categories: economic, and corporate.
Economic
Drivers: We have moved from the Industrial
Age, through the Information Age, to the Knowledge
Age. Information is everywhere, overwhelming
in its volume and difficult to find when we
need to use it. Knowledge about our customers
drives the products that we develop. Knowledge
and experience often differentiate us from
our competition, but only if our organizations
can move quickly enough to take the advantage.
"Business at Internet speed" is
a phrase often used to describe today's work
pace. Sales and support staffs need to know
as much as they can about new products and
as quickly as possible, to keep up with the
pace and deliver the results that management
and the customer expect.
Corporate
Drivers: If knowledge is a corporate asset,
then training—the certain, consistent
delivery of corporate knowledge to every staff
member who requires it—must be viewed
as both a strategic initiative and a competitive
advantage. In 1988, there were approximately
400 corporate universities. Today there are
approximately 1600—and if the trend continues,
they will exceed the number of traditional
universities in the U.S. by 2010. In addition
to training employees, corporate universities
are becoming profit centers that are responsible
for training a corporation's complete supply
chain—including customers, partners,
channel partners and suppliers. Time-to-market
is also a major driver for corporations. When
your company is global and product launch
information must reach thousands of decentralized
sales, support and management professionals,
instructor-led training just can't deliver
corporate knowledge fast enough.
How
widespread is eLearning expected to grow?
Here's
what just a few experts say about the future
of eLearning:
"The
next big killer application for the Internet
is going to be education. Education over the
Internet is going to be so big, it's going
to make e-mail look like a rounding error."
John
Chambers, CISCO Systems
"We
expect the online training market to nearly
double in size, every year, through
2003, reaching approximately $11.5 billion
by that time."
W.R.
Hambrecht & Co.
"IDC
estimates that the U.S. corporate market for
eLearning will exceed $7 billion by 2002,
representing a compounded annual growth
of 98% from 1997 to 2002."
IDC
What
are all the pieces to an eLearning system?
The
training groups within an enterprise are often
confused by all the technology and various components
of eLearning.
- A
total eLearning solution includes a Learning
Management System (LMS): the "operating
system" for eLearning.
It manages and facilitates the registration
process, organizes the course catalog, and
tracks employee progress. LMS systems should
be AICC (Aviation Industry Computer-based
training Committee) compliant.
- The
second component is the Learning Content Management
System (LCMS). This system manages the
content to be provided, whether it is customized
or off-the-shelf content. An LCMS should keep
pace with evolving eLearning standards (currently,
the widely accepted XML and Microsoft's LRN
standards).
- The
third component is the delivery system that
eLearners will use to interact and collaborate
with the instructor and with each other. The
delivery system uses technologies such as
voice over IP, video, whiteboard, feedback
tools, breakout rooms, application sharing
and evaluation tools to create a classroom
environment. Distance Learning Providers'
Virtual Classroom meets all of these requirements
with highly interactive and involving learning
environments and teaching tools.
Can
any instructor-led course be delivered through
an eLearning system?
No,
not all courses can be delivered through eLearning.
Courses must be instructionally
designed for this new media. And depending
on the subject matter, the learners and the
work environment, a blended solution might serve
the need better. A blended solution is a combination
of instructor-led,
synchronous
(distance learning) and asynchronous
(off-line) learning.
Distance
Learning Providers are experts in helping you
design the best solution for your needs, and
are leaders in providing blended solutions.
How
do we decide, whether to build/buy our own eLearning
system, or outsource it?
Typically,
only very large organizations can justify the
investment in an in-house eLearning system.
(Those that do successfully implement such systems
reap great efficiencies, cost savings and learning
performance!) Unfortunately, even though the
cost of buying an eLearning platform has declined,
the costs of configuring, deploying, maintaining,
and supporting these platforms has stayed constant
or increased.
Before
spending your training budget on an in-house
eLearning system, we recommend that you outsource
the technology and delivery component. This
strategy will get your feet wet in eLearning,
let you compare its effectiveness to other modes',
and help you determine all of the potential
costs involved in implementing an in-house system.
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