Does Online Instruction Work?
from an article in HUMAN RESOURCE EXECUTIVE ONLINE
by Peter Capelli

Studies that look at the effectiveness of online training, compared to classroom-based learning, offer some conflicting results. Online training seems to be more effective for older, motivated students, while the classroom works best for younger low-achievers. There are some lessons HR leaders can take away from the findings.

Experience Guru Takeaways:

Gov't research indicates:

• The most important difference (between ILT and WBT) is that online learners have near continuous access to the material.
• Online learners who spend more time on their learning tasks perform better (there's a qualifier in there...)
• "Blended" learning, using techniques in addition to online, improves outcomes even more

New research suggests:

• Inexperienced, low-achieving and younger students did better with traditional delivery
• Why? classroom instruction is good at forcing students to pay attention

Summary:
The best outcomes can be derived from a combination of ILT and WBT approaches, tailored to meet the needs of the learner

Dan Pink, on learning and motivation from his book, Drive:

"Human beings have an innate drive to be autonomous, self-determined and connected to one another. And when that drive is liberated, people achieve more and live richer lives."

"The opposite of autonomy is control. And since they sit at different poles of the behavioral compass, they point us to different destinations. Control leads to compliance; autonomy leads to engagement."

"It means resisting the attempt to control people - and instead doing everything we can to reawaken their deep sense of autonomy. A sense of autonomy has a powerful effect on individual performance and attitude. According to a cluster of recent behavioural studies, autonomous motivation promotes greater conceptual understand, better grades, enhanced persistence at school and in sporting activities, higher productivity, less burnout and greater levels of psychological well-being."

[Jane Hart] Organizations - and L&D departments in particular - need to relinquish control and support learner/employee autonomy. Social Learning requires a culture of trust in employees that differs from the "teacher/student" model of planning and controlling their every move.

Mark Oehlert, from the Defense Acquisition University makes the point:

“The US Airforce will give a pilot a $30m aircraft full of deadly tools – so why not trust them with Facebook at work?”

Leadership Lessons: Tips to remember when things go wrong

some thoughts on lessons I have learned, prompted by an article from Bnet.com

1. Relax, you can't control other people’s actions. Your job is to define a vision and expectations and provide the resources to help people achieve goals. Great leaders understand the rule of equifinality (multiple paths - including small failures - can lead to the desired outcome).
2. Empathize without blaming everyone involved: show empathy for those who got things wrong, those who suffered as a result, and for yourself; that’s a leadership quality.
3. Learn from the experience; share the lessons you learn from your failures. Solicit team input on what could have done to prevent it. Record the lessons: adjust policies, processes and procedures to reflect the learning.
4. Inspire confidence in your team by allowing these opportunities for them to succeed or fail on their own, and then help get them back on course. Re-energizing the team is your next step.

Here's an interesting heads-up on future employment demographics (note: training impact) from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics - Employment Projections: 2008-2018 Summary

• The number of persons age 55 years + in the labor force is expected to increase by 12.0 million, or 43.0 percent, during the 2008-2018 period
  
• The labor force in 2018 will be more diverse (Asian workers +29.8%, Hispanics +33.1%)
  
• Service-providing industries will add 14.6 million jobs, or 96 percent of the increase in total employment
  
• Occupations that require a post-secondary degree are expected to account for nearly half of all new jobs
  
• Short and moderate-term on-the-job training are the most significant sources of post-secondary education for 17 of the 30 occupations projected to have the largest employment growth

What does this mean for...

• corporate talent recruiting & development efforts?
• efforts to make work spaces welcoming for a diverse talent force? 
• support for emerging leaders?
• internal talent development and learning programs?

Passionate learners, better performers.

Think about someone learning more about their hobby, like gardening, cooking or bicycle repair.

That person is not simply flipping through a manual. They are sponging up the knowledge they need, applying it immediately, and retaining it for life. They become more passionate about the topic as their comprehension grows. Over time, they discover new ways apply the learning, and their performance improves.

We want students to become better, faster. Short-term results (success or failure) lead to increased satisfaction, and higher satisfaction leads to a demand, or a pull, for additional learning. Our objective is not to push more content at them (check-in-a-box-training), but to help them achieve results quickly.

Find someone who is passionate about a topic or task and you will find a person who is or will soon become, successful at performing it.