16 May 2005
701 e-Learning Tips
701 e-Learning Tips is a free Digital Book edited by Elliott Masie. Some of the tips I really liked are:
Chapter 1 - the ABCs of "e"
Chapter 1 - the ABCs of "e"
- The e in e-Learning stands for education.
- Start small, grow later. Target a course that's small but highly visible in my organisation. After it's been deployed successfully, developing future courses will become more easily acceptable.
- Focus on people, then on corporate needs, then on technology.
- E-Learning will represent a behaviour change for most employees.
- Make sure you experience being an e-learner yourself before you deliver a course online.
- What's hardest about e-learning is getting learners motivated and organisations energized. Spending time on the "people" side of e-learning will pay great dividends.
- If you have a wonderful new idea, prototype it first, then ask for budget to develop it further. Chances of receiving budget dollars for something executives can see is much greater than for something they have to imagine.
- Create a Learning Consultant position for each Faculty (could this be the liaison librarian??) so that users have a person to help them become aware of, locate, use and benefit from e-learning experiences available to them.
- Critical success factors include lots of communication and change management; having a skilled e-facilitator, good content, not too bandwidth intensive and excellent project management.
- Challenge and validate all levels of ownership at each & every stage i.e. CEO, Directors, Faculty Directors etc.
- Imbed an e-learning culture into the culture of the business - without cultural acceptance it will never be successful.
- When doing a risk assessment in project management plan, ask "Who will have influence over the success and process of the end product and think about how to best communicate with them to maximise their support and buy-in.
- Design to a PROCESS rather than CONTENT.
- Go for two versions of a course: audio enabled and audio disabled.
- Good solid testing prior to launching course - include one of the learners the course is written for.
- Approach Marketing Dept for graphics and pictures to be used in our courses.
14 May 2005
Effective Online Facilitation
This Quick Guide from the Australian Flexible Learning Framework looks at effective online facilitation and its importance in online teaching and learning.
13 May 2005
Mentoring a New Online Teacher
Robert Pulling and I wrote this Quick Guide in late 2004.
Online Mentoring - Helping the New Online Teacher
Online Mentoring - Helping the New Online Teacher
