One of the great disadvantages of the digital world is that it continues to develop at an alarming rate not allowing human beings to fully embrace what is currently available before it moves on to another potentially revolutionary state. With this in mind we should be cognisant of that fact that e-learning has already been substantially embraced in countries like America, India and Australia and if UK is not careful it will find itself stuck in a time warp. Notwithstanding that e-learning has a strong presence in UK, particularly in educational institutions and major corporations; small and medium enterprises tend to be follow traditional routes to up-skilling their employees. Whilst some claim to have had bad experiences of e-learning in the past, it is more than reasonable to suggest that e-learning is now coming of age because the technological infrastructure required is far superior to that of 7 years ago. Broadband and Internet access speed and availability is evident everywhere we look. ie. personal computers at home, at work, laptops in transit and mobile phones with WIFI access in cafes, public houses, hotels and airports.
In a tough economy, one of the first areas of cost reduction is training. Whilst training should always be acknowledged as an investment it provides a strong case for seeking alternative ways of developing a work force. E-learning is a serious and ideal alternative for a myriad of reasons. So let's look at some of the key areas, which clearly demonstrate why e-learning is the future.
Classroom training is costly!
• Requires highly paid instructors
• Requires fully equipped facilities
• Corporate staff required to schedule resources (people, equipment, facilities, logistics)
• Printed course materials can reach up to 30% of course costs
• Students who do not turn up impact the training budget overhead
• Staff are away from work often incurring travel and accommodation costs
• One day's training substance only 5-6 hours @ average day rate of £99 - £250 + VAT
• Learning outcomes often not measured - only certificate of attendance/completion provided - little or no accountability to employers
• Students under pressure to absorb content only for the course duration - slow students may not absorb learning and have no recourse when the course is finished
• Unmotivated students often go with the flow ie. its a day away from the office
Benefits of E-Learning
• A web-based approach to learning - students require Internet access only and can access course materials anytime and anywhere of their own convenience
• Affordable - a typical "one-day course" represents 9 hours of learning substance for £60
• May use own familiar computer or work facilities
• Convenient method of learning for administrators, learners and instructors - they are available to focus on quality content as opposed to scheduling and allocating resources
• Logistics and administrative costs ie course scheduling, travel, accommodation are eliminated thus achieving economies of scale
• Students can revisit course content for an extended time period
• Students can fit their learning around their work schedule and other activities
• Students can browse course materials at their own pace in a patient way without pressure - slow students do not drag down the rest of the class
• Employers can monitor students' progress through tracking and reporting facilities
• Employers can identify learning outcomes and observe and facilitate their application in the workplace thus developing and improving the effectiveness of employee skills
• The knowledge tests also enable the learner to gauge the training need and measure the improvement realized after the training has taken place
• Goal Setting and Action Planning features helps users create their CPD plans.
• Evidence of learning undertaken and applied can underpin performance appraisal
• Tutor support focuses on one to one delivery rather than group lectures
• Students can interact and share ideas with other students through email
What are the key drivers?
Whilst recognising that students can be motivated, learning is not a passive experience with unmotivated students expecting instructors to wave a magic wand in a classroom environment, which will allow knowledge to be absorbed. This is why motivated learners tend to favour e-learning as a stimulating alternative to classroom learning, which they consider to be waste of time. As well as being self-motivated employers must provide reasons and rationale for developing their employees.
The Classroom is closed - or is it?
It is true that in many large corporations, fully equipped training facilities and real estate is sitting idle. But training in a classroom can still be effective in the right environment. Certain courses such as first aid, coaching and mentoring and some technical courses requiring practical skills still require a hands-on approach. Thus a classroom environment can reinforce the concepts learned through e-learning. So an e-learning component can still add value to the learning process. This is known as a blended approach to learning and should be adopted where practical. With knowledge acquired through e-learning a blended classroom based workshop enables skills development and a situation analysis backed up by problem diagnostics and solving i.e. classroom activity is all about migrating relevant knowledge through to the students place of work thus improving productivity and performance - whilst e-learning is a cost effective way of knowledge acquisition and most importantly knowledge retention.
Conclusion
In summary, e-learning comes in all shapes and sizes ranging from basic Scorm compliant systems through to educational programmes using more sophisticated software design as witnessed in the HRD Online system. Once the learning objectives have been identified we must embrace the most appropriate method to achieve those objectives. E-Learning can stand alone, but for certain subject matter, traditional learning or a blended approach may be the most economical and effective choice. But there is no doubt whatsoever that by incorporating an e-learning approach as an integrated part of an organisation's training strategy and the overall business plan, learners become enthused, gain a holistic view of the organisation, its vision and goals, and become involved in realising progress rather than being a bystander as well as providing a learning choice that is enormously flexible, effective and indeed affordable.
For more information visit www.businesstransitions.co.uk or contact the author.
Author - Ted Brightmore
Managing Director of Business Transitions and
Regional Partner for The HRD Group Ltd - world-wide e-learning provider based in Nottingham
26 August 2010
