Friday
Dec311999
122 - Real Education Becomes e.College; Digital Think Offers Classes Through Fatbrain.Com; Counting to Eight in Class
December 31, 1999
Hi from Las Vegas, where Learning Decision's 99 is starting today. We have
225 Chief Learning Officers and Training Executives here at the brand new
(by 48 hours) Venetian Hotel. The group is meeting in a retreat format to
look at 3 key Learning Decisions. These include Aligning Learning &
Training with Business Goals; Exploring the Economics of Training; and
Developing a Strategy for Leveraging Learning Technology. We will post a
dialogue summary of this retreat and will expand on it in the next several
Trends. Also, there will be a Learning Decisions Symposium at TechLearn
'99 for a similar audience. Stay tuned!
1. Real Education Becomes e.College & Offers $12 Million in Grants: Real
Education, one of the major players in the delivery of on-line learning to
higher education institutions has evolved its name to eCollege.Com They
have a new web site, an expanded range of programs and an exciting $12
Million Grant Program. Here is their announcement on the grant program:
"The 100 Degrees Online Grant Program is an effort to better address student
and corporate demand for high quality online degree programs. To this end,
we have arranged a grant competition whereby institutions of higher
education will compete for funds designed to mitigate the obstacles of
migrating traditional degree programs to the online environment.
eCollege.com will make grants ranging from $50,000 to $500,000 available to
100 institutions to be spent in areas recognized to be barriers to the
success or accessibility of online programs."
I am serving as an unpaid advisor to this grant program and the information
can be found at http://www.ecollege.com
2. Digital Think Offers Classes Through Fatbrain.Com: In another
announcement about the rapidly changing industry of learning, Digital Think
announced they are teaming with Fatbrain.Com to offer on-line classes.
Here is their announcement:
"DigitalThink, Inc.. today announced an agreement with online e-commerce
leader Fatbrain.com (Nasdaq:FATB), which will allow Fatbrain.com
to sell DigitalThink courses at its site. This partnership expands
DigitalThink's ability to help corporations increase revenue and decrease
time-to-market by ensuring that their employees are fully trained in key
information technology areas. In turn, Fatbrain.com will be able to provide
some of the most sought-after Web-based courses currently in demand by IT
professionals."
"Fatbrain.com will sell DigitalThink courses from its Web site at
http://www.fatbrain.com. In addition, Fatbrain.com will make DigitalThink
courses accessible to employees of more than 70 industry-leading companies
that have launched online bookstores through Fatbrain.com's 'FindITnow'
intranet bookstore program for corporations."
3. Multitasking & Learning Comments Deluge: We touched a nerve with the
question about the ability of people to multitask while learning at their
desktops. Last count, we had over 225 comments and letters from Trends
Readers. We will compile these into a collection in the next several days.
We had over a dozen folks mention the differences between some men and women
on the multi-tasking approach. Here is one comment:
"I read and re-read your "multi-tasking while involved in a learning event
email" - and the thing that keeps popping into my head is that while I, and
my female colleagues, seem to have the ability to multi-task (taking in some
of everything) - our male colleagues (and definitely partners!) don't seem
to be able to do the same. Maybe it's got nothing to do with ability but
more with desire to only do one thing but it may be a part of the answer.
I'm a strong advocate of training options, but grew up in the ILT world so
have lots of my own experiences with both - there is absolute value in
quiet, focused time whether in small chunks or large but, as your email
implies, this doesn't mean stuff is really filtering through. Is it the
pressure of tasks needing to be done that made your volunteers multi-task?
or did they truly learn as well as catch up."
We will post a wide collection of these comments next week. If you would
like to add your 2 cents, send me a note to multitask@masie.com
4. Counting to Eight in Class: One of the most interesting skill for
classroom trainers to perfect is their ability to WAIT. When I was teaching
a series of train the trainer programs, I would observe the average wait
time of trainers. This is the time between asking for questions and when
they actually started to speak again. The average was in the 2.7 seconds
range. Wow!
Think of all the steps that a learner has to go through prior to asking a
question to the trainer. Review of all items covered, finishing their note
taking thought of the moment, testing the question for stupidity, scanning
the classroom for other question askers, wetting their lips and actually
raising their hand. 2.7 Second? No Way!
Simple Change: Extend the WAIT TIME to 8 Seconds. Watch how many new
people ask questions once the wait time is extended to eight seconds. It
will seem like a really long wait to the trainer at first. But, it will
send the message that you are really wanting to give people the time to
process their confusion thoughts into questions.
When teaching live, distance learning classes, the wait time should probably
go up to 10 to 12 seconds. I sometimes even play soft music for 20 seconds
on the phone to give people time to formulate and test their questions.
Start Waiting.. It Works!
5. Learning Quotation: Mrs. Ham, PS 173
"Learning often happens when you are not watching. If you are curious, and
follow your curiosity, you will learn every day. In fact, some of the best
learning happens when you are having so much fun, or are concentrating so
hard, that you don't even notice."
---- Mrs. Ham, PS 173, Manhattan 1956 (Elliott's Second Grade Teacher)
6) Note on Sponsorship Opportunities for TechLearn '99 (including The 1999
Computer & IT Training Convention):
We have had a large number of suppliers and developers ask us about bringing
their booth to TechLearn '99. Since we have built a learning model that
does not include a trade show, we wanted to explain how they could be
involved in both TechLearn '99 and The 1999 Computer & IT Training
Convention:
"We have a sponsorship program, which allows each sponsor to include
literature or CD's in a TechLearn RESOURCE SUITCASE which every participant
will receive at Registration. In addition, Sponsors are included on our web
site, have a Point of Contact meeting place at TechLearn and can do a
follow-up mailing to the participants. We currently have over 65 sponsors,
including Microsoft, Lotus, Cisco, Novell, CBT Systems, Forum Corporation,
SMG, NETg and other key players from both the training and learning world.
Sponsorship is only $2,700 and includes year round resources from The MASIE
Center. Please contact Jen Schwern at jen@masie.com or 800-98-MASIE for
information. Complete details are available at http://www.techlearn.com/sponsor/
225 Chief Learning Officers and Training Executives here at the brand new
(by 48 hours) Venetian Hotel. The group is meeting in a retreat format to
look at 3 key Learning Decisions. These include Aligning Learning &
Training with Business Goals; Exploring the Economics of Training; and
Developing a Strategy for Leveraging Learning Technology. We will post a
dialogue summary of this retreat and will expand on it in the next several
Trends. Also, there will be a Learning Decisions Symposium at TechLearn
'99 for a similar audience. Stay tuned!
1. Real Education Becomes e.College & Offers $12 Million in Grants: Real
Education, one of the major players in the delivery of on-line learning to
higher education institutions has evolved its name to eCollege.Com They
have a new web site, an expanded range of programs and an exciting $12
Million Grant Program. Here is their announcement on the grant program:
"The 100 Degrees Online Grant Program is an effort to better address student
and corporate demand for high quality online degree programs. To this end,
we have arranged a grant competition whereby institutions of higher
education will compete for funds designed to mitigate the obstacles of
migrating traditional degree programs to the online environment.
eCollege.com will make grants ranging from $50,000 to $500,000 available to
100 institutions to be spent in areas recognized to be barriers to the
success or accessibility of online programs."
I am serving as an unpaid advisor to this grant program and the information
can be found at http://www.ecollege.com
2. Digital Think Offers Classes Through Fatbrain.Com: In another
announcement about the rapidly changing industry of learning, Digital Think
announced they are teaming with Fatbrain.Com to offer on-line classes.
Here is their announcement:
"DigitalThink, Inc.. today announced an agreement with online e-commerce
leader Fatbrain.com (Nasdaq:FATB), which will allow Fatbrain.com
to sell DigitalThink courses at its site. This partnership expands
DigitalThink's ability to help corporations increase revenue and decrease
time-to-market by ensuring that their employees are fully trained in key
information technology areas. In turn, Fatbrain.com will be able to provide
some of the most sought-after Web-based courses currently in demand by IT
professionals."
"Fatbrain.com will sell DigitalThink courses from its Web site at
http://www.fatbrain.com. In addition, Fatbrain.com will make DigitalThink
courses accessible to employees of more than 70 industry-leading companies
that have launched online bookstores through Fatbrain.com's 'FindITnow'
intranet bookstore program for corporations."
3. Multitasking & Learning Comments Deluge: We touched a nerve with the
question about the ability of people to multitask while learning at their
desktops. Last count, we had over 225 comments and letters from Trends
Readers. We will compile these into a collection in the next several days.
We had over a dozen folks mention the differences between some men and women
on the multi-tasking approach. Here is one comment:
"I read and re-read your "multi-tasking while involved in a learning event
email" - and the thing that keeps popping into my head is that while I, and
my female colleagues, seem to have the ability to multi-task (taking in some
of everything) - our male colleagues (and definitely partners!) don't seem
to be able to do the same. Maybe it's got nothing to do with ability but
more with desire to only do one thing but it may be a part of the answer.
I'm a strong advocate of training options, but grew up in the ILT world so
have lots of my own experiences with both - there is absolute value in
quiet, focused time whether in small chunks or large but, as your email
implies, this doesn't mean stuff is really filtering through. Is it the
pressure of tasks needing to be done that made your volunteers multi-task?
or did they truly learn as well as catch up."
We will post a wide collection of these comments next week. If you would
like to add your 2 cents, send me a note to multitask@masie.com
4. Counting to Eight in Class: One of the most interesting skill for
classroom trainers to perfect is their ability to WAIT. When I was teaching
a series of train the trainer programs, I would observe the average wait
time of trainers. This is the time between asking for questions and when
they actually started to speak again. The average was in the 2.7 seconds
range. Wow!
Think of all the steps that a learner has to go through prior to asking a
question to the trainer. Review of all items covered, finishing their note
taking thought of the moment, testing the question for stupidity, scanning
the classroom for other question askers, wetting their lips and actually
raising their hand. 2.7 Second? No Way!
Simple Change: Extend the WAIT TIME to 8 Seconds. Watch how many new
people ask questions once the wait time is extended to eight seconds. It
will seem like a really long wait to the trainer at first. But, it will
send the message that you are really wanting to give people the time to
process their confusion thoughts into questions.
When teaching live, distance learning classes, the wait time should probably
go up to 10 to 12 seconds. I sometimes even play soft music for 20 seconds
on the phone to give people time to formulate and test their questions.
Start Waiting.. It Works!
5. Learning Quotation: Mrs. Ham, PS 173
"Learning often happens when you are not watching. If you are curious, and
follow your curiosity, you will learn every day. In fact, some of the best
learning happens when you are having so much fun, or are concentrating so
hard, that you don't even notice."
---- Mrs. Ham, PS 173, Manhattan 1956 (Elliott's Second Grade Teacher)
6) Note on Sponsorship Opportunities for TechLearn '99 (including The 1999
Computer & IT Training Convention):
We have had a large number of suppliers and developers ask us about bringing
their booth to TechLearn '99. Since we have built a learning model that
does not include a trade show, we wanted to explain how they could be
involved in both TechLearn '99 and The 1999 Computer & IT Training
Convention:
"We have a sponsorship program, which allows each sponsor to include
literature or CD's in a TechLearn RESOURCE SUITCASE which every participant
will receive at Registration. In addition, Sponsors are included on our web
site, have a Point of Contact meeting place at TechLearn and can do a
follow-up mailing to the participants. We currently have over 65 sponsors,
including Microsoft, Lotus, Cisco, Novell, CBT Systems, Forum Corporation,
SMG, NETg and other key players from both the training and learning world.
Sponsorship is only $2,700 and includes year round resources from The MASIE
Center. Please contact Jen Schwern at jen@masie.com or 800-98-MASIE for
information. Complete details are available at http://www.techlearn.com/sponsor/
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