Why E-Learning is So Effective
E-learning is hot. And for good
reason. If done right, it can produce great results by decreasing costs and
improving performance. Also, unlike a one-time classroom session, the eLearning
course is available for others. This includes the static eLearning course
as well as any ongoing conversations in networked communities.
E-learning
Supports the Organization’s Goals
- Improved training costs. Producing learning content is time consuming whether it’s online or not. With elearning, each time the course is accessed your return on investment improves because you are dividing the fixed production costs by number of uses
- Decreased material costs. Let’s say you have to train how to arrange equipment in a sterile environment like an operating room. If you had to use the real environment, it would be costly. Even setting up a fake environment has material costs and labor. By creating the environment online and letting the learner practice, you never have to worry about the costs associated with set up, use, and clean up.
·
Increased
productivity. Because elearning is not
bound by geography or time, you can control training’s impact on production by
training people during down times. In addition, with the current economy,
you’re asking people to do more with less. So elearning is a great way to
give them the tools and skills needed to enhance their performance.
E-learning
Supports the Learner’s Development
- Real-time access. Live learning events require that those who participate align their schedules to the training calendar. Elearning eliminates this because the course can be accessed anytime, anywhere. This can also happen without Internet access. I saw a Red Cross demo where the learners accessed the content on a PC out in the field and uploaded their results when they were back online.
- Improved retention. The combination of multimedia and instructional design can produce a very rich learning experience that is repeatable. Throw in some good practice activities with feedback and you have a learning environment that’s going to help your learners retain the course content which will produce results.
- Personalized learning. Look out the window at your parking lot. My guess is that you’ll see a dozen or more different cars. They all do the same thing, yet we have personal opinions about what we want to drive. The same for learning. Learners want control. Elearning allows you to offer control to the learners in a way that classroom learning doesn’t.
E-learning
Nurtures a Learning Organization & Community
- Ongoing access to resources. If you take a class in the real world and need a refresher, you better hope that you took good notes. Otherwise, you’re out of luck. That’s not the case with elearning. Ideally, you continue to have access to the online content and resources to brush up on what you learned.
- Knowledge management. Many people see elearning as only the authored courses. But elearning includes all sort of online technologies. If you incorporate some of the tools that allow collaboration and conversation, you can capture organizational knowledge that is available for future learners.
- Encourage sharing. The foundation of a learning community is built on sharing what you know with others. This is where incorporating a forum or wiki really adds value to your elearning. Depending on how the course is structured, you can encourage sharing of resources and insight gained from the course.
- Employer of choice. People want opportunities to grow. A cafeteria with high fat foods is one way. Another is a catalog with all sorts of elearning courses. This allows them to explore other opportunities in the organization. During downtime, it would be great to spend fifteen minutes learning to better manage meetings or improve working with peers. Offering these opportunities to learn makes you a place people want to stay.
By
Basil Mbuna
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