Learner Centric Education

The way we learn has evolved. Users have truly become the center of the learning process. Often times the learners identify the appropriate material and way they want to learn. The time available for learning courses has been telescoped for want of time. The good news is that the time period for online learning is shorter and learners apply the learning directly to their work situation to remain competitive. The opportunities for learning are expanding. Technology provides access to new ways to learn both formally and informally. The younger generation grew up with technology — and demands online access to information, research, processes, and new skills. Step in e-learning.

What is different about e-learning?

e-learning helps learners to reach predicated levels of competency faster. e-learning allows learners to assimilate content at their own speed. If they understand material, they can skim; if it’s new material, they can spend time on the unfamiliar content. Contrast it with the classroom; instruction moves at the will of the instructor, who gears the class pace to meet needs of the majority of learners, not the needs of individual learners.
Learners can engage in learning anytime, anywhere, and from any location. Learners control when and where they want to do their learning. Some choose to learn from home while others take a “learning break” that breaks the monotony of the workday. Some even access learning from their mobile devices as they travel. This freedom to learn based on personal preference makes for happier, more engaged learners who find it easier to stay up-to-date on their knowledge and skills.
Consistency of eLearning delivers uniform content to all learners. No matter where the learners are located, they receive the same content, eliminating content variance that is often present with instructor-led learning.
Travel savings are significant. e-learning eliminates a significant amount of air, train and auto travel.

But what of the quality of e-learning, vis-à-vis face-to-face learning?

Classroom And Online Self-Study Prove Equally Effective.Outside of subject areas where face-to-face interaction is inescapable — for example, say a medical student is doing the rounds of the ward with her instructor — recent research indicates that no significant differences exist in the effectiveness of learning through classroom, online, or self-study. This is because of the following:
Meticulously crafted graphics and visuals help explain new concepts. Visuals, graphics, simple simulations, and even short videos contribute to a more visual approach to understanding concepts. This, combined with instructor’s audio help, ensure good learning. In fact, some animated sequences in eLearning would be difficult to duplicate in the classroom.
Responses through blogs, wikis, and discussion boards help learners see other points of view. The danger of isolation of online learners is mitigated by a plethora of interactive tools used to reinforce the learning.
Content is available to review multiple times. The opportunity to access specific sections of the learning content as many times as necessary to grasp key concepts provides for a better overall understanding of the topic. Also, choosing the best time to learn puts the learner in a better frame of mind to learn.

The end note therefore is that while e-learning maps easily with fast forward learning, the learner has the power to press the pause button at her will. Clearly, e-learning has arrived.

The motivation of this study was: Online learning—for students and for teachers—is one of the fastest growing trends in educational uses of technology. The National Center for Education Statistics (2008) estimated that the number of K-12 public school students enrolling in a technology-based distance education course grew by 65 percent in the two years from 2002–03 to 2004–05. On the basis of a more recent district survey, Picciano and Seaman (2009) estimated that more than a million K–12 students took online courses in school year 2007–08. (Page 12)

The genesis of online learning is distance learning. Distance learning has been around for over a century now. But the advantage of the World Wide Web has caused the online learning to explode.

The study focuses on the two main purposes of online learning:

(a) Learning conducted totally online as a substitute or alternative to face-to-face learning
(b) Online learning components that are combined or blended (sometimes called “hybrid”)
with face-to-face instruction to provide learning enhancement

Findings:
The overall finding of the meta-analysis is that classes with online learning (whether taught completely online or blended) on average produce stronger student learning outcomes than do classes with solely face-to-face instruction. (Page 38)

This is a significant tilt towards online learning. Earlier studies had concluded that online learning is only as effective as face-to-face learning. The second area of study also gave thumbs up to online learning. It said:

Blends of online and face-to-face instruction, on average, had stronger learning outcomes than did face-to-face instruction alone (Page 39)

Clearly, it makes sense for companies to move over to online learning and elearning, where possible. Not only will it cut costs but will also be a substantially better experience both for learners and teachers.

In the June09 issue of Harvard Business Review, Mr Robert I. Sutton writes about How to Be a Good Boss in a Bad Economy. His remedies for the Boss were predictability, understanding, control and compassion. He gives examples to further his argument about his remedies. While his explanation followed his remedy — it was predictable – his example on compassion had me bristled.

First, a little digression on compassion. These days we are bandying around compassion as a skill. As if it were something that one learns at the blacksmith’s or at the carpenter’s. It is our very innate nature, for God’s sake. It has nothing to do with managers or employees or with royalty; it is mine because of being a human being. It is our seventh sense. Don’t ever call it a soft skill. Compassion is not a good thing to have. It is the right thing to have.

Now, for that example on compassion. Let me quote Mr Sutton:

Quote

Jerald Greenberg, a management professor at The Ohio State University, provides compelling evidence that compassion affects the bottom line in tough times. Greenberg studied three nearly identical manufacturing plants in the Midwest that were all part of the same company; two of them (which management chose at random) instituted a temporary 10-week pay cut of 15% after the firm had lost a major contract. At one of the two, the executive who conveyed the news did so curtly, announcing, “I’ll answer one or two questions, but then I have to catch a plane for another meeting.” At the other one, the executive who broke the news gave a detailed and compassionate explanation, along with apologies and multiple expressions of remorse. He also spent a full hour answering questions about why the cost cutting was necessary, who would be affected, and what steps workers could take to help themselves and the plant. Greenberg found fascinating effects on employee theft rates. At the plant where the curt explanation was given, the rate rose to more than 9%. But at the plant where management’s explanation was detailed and compassionate, it rose only to 6%. (At the third plant, where no pay cuts were made, the rate held steady at about 4% during the 10-week period.)

Unquote

It is unfortunate that he gives thieving of employees as an example to buttress his idea about compassion for employees. It would appear that researchers such as Mr Greenberg — as quoted by Mr Sutton - think that employees by nature are prone to thieving. Why else would one do such a gratuitous research?
I would imagine that Mr Greenberg's research hypothesis read:
This research establishes a correlation between increase of theft by employees and the abruptness of language used by CEOs conveying salary reduction news.
And from this research Mr Sutton got compelling evidence that compassion begets less thieving!
I think this is absolutely unfair to employees.