Friday
Aug202004
291 - Your Reactions to "Trainers as Designers"
August 20, 2004
** TRENDS by Elliott Masie - August 20, 2004 **
#291 - Updates on Learning, e-Learning & Training
48,004 Readers - The MASIE Center - www.masie.com
Free: 701 e-Learning Tips www.masie.com/701tips/
Your Reactions to "Trainers as Designers"
We have received over a 100 passionate responses to our recent question about the UPS and DOWNS of deploying Classroom Trainers in the e-Learning Designer Role. As you might expect, extreme positives and negatives with a large dose of "depends on the situation and person". But, reading these comments was incredibly interesting for us. We are feeding them back to you in two formats:
Here is a detailed listing of a large number of comments from TRENDS
readers:
http://www.masie.com/trainerdesigner/
And, here is a summary of the comments compiled by a member of our staff:
Are Trainers The Right e-Learning Designers?
Edited by Vicki Cerda, The MASIE Center, August 18, 2004
A significant number of full-time classroom trainers are being asked to take on e-Learning development or design functions. Are trainers the right e-Learning designers? That was the question posed to close to 48,000 TRENDS readers recently. We received a healthy dose of nearly 100 responses and comments. A summary of key points, as well as perspectives from all sides of the proposal follows.
Trainers typically bring deep subject matter expertise and/or a crisp sense of the learning from the learner's perspective. However, sometimes the match between classroom training competencies and instructional design competencies is not there. Being content and delivery experts does not necessarily translate to being able to design, assess and develop online material successfully. While the skills may not be interchangeable and are instead complementary, what was clear from the comments received is that there is a steep learning curve for anyone involved in instructional design in any medium, but even more so in the online world.
Distinct skill sets are at play here �" apples and oranges if you will.
Specifically there are skills required for: 1) classroom instruction, 2) instructional design for classroom instruction, 3) e-Learning instruction and facilitation, 4) instructional design for e-Learning, and 5) e-Learning development. Numerous readers said the latter was in a category all to itself (much more technical, involves programming skills, higher level of competency required …) and not to be “lumped” with the other four, as different and important as these might also be.
Here are some selected quotes and ideas from readers that thought the transition from trainer to e-Designer could be a positive one:
* “I find that when I work with the really good trainers who are in tune with the field, they can give the best insight into design and developing for any type of training.”
* “Trainers do have a better understanding of the content, and can use much the same knowledge needed to create a logical flow of subject matter topics in the classroom in the design of e-Learning. Trainers who develop e-Learning can make rapid changes to keep it current, exactly the way a trainer in the classroom can respond to new information received from senior management or today's headlines. The two major hurdles I see are budget and inflated expectations … When that's recognized, trainers become an ideal choice to design e-Learning.”
* “A designer/developer cannot develop material that works for delegates/learners unless they have presentation experience, so training or presenting is an important part of the development of a competent materials designer.”
* “I have found that my trainers who are forward thinking and anxious to learn new skills and take on new projects have made excellent e-Learning developers and designers … the key is working with trainers who one, have some design capabilities and two, more importantly, have the willingness and ability to adapt to new learning technologies.”
* “… these people often infuse our group with energy, they tend to be great facilitators which is very important with clients and working with Subject Matter Experts, and they do possess that instinctive/learned gut feel of 'what works' with adult learners vs. what is an absurd thing to ask people to do (you learn that pretty fast as a trainer when you are met with either smiles or grimaces as you explain an activity). But you also need to make a commitment to train and mentor people with the classroom background. And it is an ongoing process at least for a few months.”
Next, quotes and ideas from readers that thought the transition would most likely not work out:
* “The idea of trainers developing curriculum is not so different than people who take a short course in web design and then hang their shingle out for hire.”
* “Trainers do not by definition make the best designers. Neither do classroom teachers. (There is research on the latter). Why? Purpose and procedures are generally context specific to a given setting or audience profile. Profiles change but design backgrounds don't adjust when training requires problem solving, rather than a drill of procedure. Do I need to extrapolate?”
* “It has been my experience that trainers often times lack the detachment necessary to design and develop e-Learning material. Most trainers who have been at it for a time cultivate a strong attachment to subject matter, sources and format that can evolve into an advocacy role wrapped in the comfort of familiarity. Developers, on the other hand, can be positioned to be the iconoclasts of the organization -- constantly questioning; challenging; weighing method against objective, learner-need and technology capabilities. I value my e-Learning designers and developers as change agents and I'm not sure that such a role could be reasonably expected from the general trainer population.“
* “It is a great challenge for most individual instructors, to expand subject matter expertise for a new course while also learning delivery & support techniques required for new delivery media. Asking them to also design the new courseware is a recipe for failure, even if they fully grasp the vision of the new design. We do, however, continue to use instructors for much of the actual development effort, providing detailed information and steering practice and evaluation activities. This lets the instructors keep a degree of personal ownership in the new course, reduces development time and improves initial success.“
* “I just got done dealing with this situation. The most significant problem that we had was the trainers wanted to recreate their stand up training on the web. They did not understand the value of presenting the learning in the right combination of onscreen text, audio, animation, and video …They were also the subject matter specialists and could not translate that knowledge into learning. In stand up training, they were always able to answer the student’s questions … Finally, the trainers viewed the online courses as a replacement for their jobs. They tended to make the training more complex than it had to be.”
Lastly, some readers who thought that “it depends” and/or had other ideas:
* “A person with good instructional design background and a focus on the learner can make the switch relatively easily. The most difficult transition is applying accelerated learning principles to online learning.
The person who focuses on information transfer (lecture) as opposed to the accelerated learning in the classroom often creates books on line books versus interactive online training. A person who is weak in ISD but excellent with PowerPoint effects tends to get caught up in the glitz of online vs. interactive online training.”
* “It's generally easier to make an instructional designer out of a content expert, everything else equal, than it is to make a content expert out of an instructional designer.”
* “… someone capable of delivering fantastic classroom instruction cannot always make the transition to creating well-designed e-Learning interventions. Being a multimedia designer/developer does not mean you know how to manage, direct, design and teach for the classroom, either.
Not everyone will be interested in both areas ... “
* “What about the new crop of e-Learning instructional designers (well educated Masters Degree folks) with NO standup experience to draw from?
Having interviewed a lot of designers recently, I saw a lack of real world understanding of the learning process.”
* “I think the future is in our youth. The 25-30 year old bracket is our first group of individuals who grew up using the Internet and really have a firm hold on it.”
* “ … trainers who can separate the content from the delivery will likely excel at e-Learning. Individuals who cannot make that theoretical leap will likely struggle.”
So, are trainers the right e-Learning designers (or are bricklayers the right building designers as one reader put it)? Well, it depends. In all cases, this question also needs to consider quality and purpose: “Is the training instructionally sound?” and “Does it meet the learning objectives of the business and the individual?” Design should not be relegated to trainers just because they are available. Successfully designing and delivering e-Learning (and of course developing it) involves very different skills sets and in the end, the right talent needs to fill the right role. But if we are to be considered professionals, then it is our responsibility to also be skilled in as many fields as possible so that we can make our teams and organizations that much more knowledgeable and stronger. It is also a matter of educating the decision makers in our organization that an instructional designer, especially in the case of e-Learning, is not just a subject matter expert putting his/her thoughts into PowerPoint.
What other things also seem to work best? Partnering up trainers and designers, being e-Learners ourselves so we can envision which tools work best for the learning objectives, thoroughly understanding how online learners engage differently than in classrooms. And aside from the mandatory instructional design competency, any person or organization looking to make the transition from “presentation” to “design” also needs to consider an individual’s creativity, ability to see the ‘big picture”, motivation to learn, propensity to maintain current with technical skills and ensure they have the requisite training and support available for its personnel.
I’d like to close by further adapting a metaphor sent by a TRENDS reader.
Compare it to being a musician. Some people can bang out a melody, very poorly on the piano, but produce something. Others can play concertos.
Also, there are good trainers and there are poor trainers. And there are good designers and bad designers. But it is our job as learning professionals to be the best at what we are now … and begin to prepare ourselves to be the best we can be in the future as we crossover more and more to new, morphed and/or emerging roles.
Upcming MASIE Center Events:
- Rapid e-Learning Development
- e-Learning Briefing
- Learning Systems Seminar & Roundtable
- e-Learning Skills LAB
Dates, Locations & Information: http://www.masie.com
#291 - Updates on Learning, e-Learning & Training
48,004 Readers - The MASIE Center - www.masie.com
Free: 701 e-Learning Tips www.masie.com/701tips/
Your Reactions to "Trainers as Designers"
We have received over a 100 passionate responses to our recent question about the UPS and DOWNS of deploying Classroom Trainers in the e-Learning Designer Role. As you might expect, extreme positives and negatives with a large dose of "depends on the situation and person". But, reading these comments was incredibly interesting for us. We are feeding them back to you in two formats:
Here is a detailed listing of a large number of comments from TRENDS
readers:
http://www.masie.com/trainerdesigner/
And, here is a summary of the comments compiled by a member of our staff:
Are Trainers The Right e-Learning Designers?
Edited by Vicki Cerda, The MASIE Center, August 18, 2004
A significant number of full-time classroom trainers are being asked to take on e-Learning development or design functions. Are trainers the right e-Learning designers? That was the question posed to close to 48,000 TRENDS readers recently. We received a healthy dose of nearly 100 responses and comments. A summary of key points, as well as perspectives from all sides of the proposal follows.
Trainers typically bring deep subject matter expertise and/or a crisp sense of the learning from the learner's perspective. However, sometimes the match between classroom training competencies and instructional design competencies is not there. Being content and delivery experts does not necessarily translate to being able to design, assess and develop online material successfully. While the skills may not be interchangeable and are instead complementary, what was clear from the comments received is that there is a steep learning curve for anyone involved in instructional design in any medium, but even more so in the online world.
Distinct skill sets are at play here �" apples and oranges if you will.
Specifically there are skills required for: 1) classroom instruction, 2) instructional design for classroom instruction, 3) e-Learning instruction and facilitation, 4) instructional design for e-Learning, and 5) e-Learning development. Numerous readers said the latter was in a category all to itself (much more technical, involves programming skills, higher level of competency required …) and not to be “lumped” with the other four, as different and important as these might also be.
Here are some selected quotes and ideas from readers that thought the transition from trainer to e-Designer could be a positive one:
* “I find that when I work with the really good trainers who are in tune with the field, they can give the best insight into design and developing for any type of training.”
* “Trainers do have a better understanding of the content, and can use much the same knowledge needed to create a logical flow of subject matter topics in the classroom in the design of e-Learning. Trainers who develop e-Learning can make rapid changes to keep it current, exactly the way a trainer in the classroom can respond to new information received from senior management or today's headlines. The two major hurdles I see are budget and inflated expectations … When that's recognized, trainers become an ideal choice to design e-Learning.”
* “A designer/developer cannot develop material that works for delegates/learners unless they have presentation experience, so training or presenting is an important part of the development of a competent materials designer.”
* “I have found that my trainers who are forward thinking and anxious to learn new skills and take on new projects have made excellent e-Learning developers and designers … the key is working with trainers who one, have some design capabilities and two, more importantly, have the willingness and ability to adapt to new learning technologies.”
* “… these people often infuse our group with energy, they tend to be great facilitators which is very important with clients and working with Subject Matter Experts, and they do possess that instinctive/learned gut feel of 'what works' with adult learners vs. what is an absurd thing to ask people to do (you learn that pretty fast as a trainer when you are met with either smiles or grimaces as you explain an activity). But you also need to make a commitment to train and mentor people with the classroom background. And it is an ongoing process at least for a few months.”
Next, quotes and ideas from readers that thought the transition would most likely not work out:
* “The idea of trainers developing curriculum is not so different than people who take a short course in web design and then hang their shingle out for hire.”
* “Trainers do not by definition make the best designers. Neither do classroom teachers. (There is research on the latter). Why? Purpose and procedures are generally context specific to a given setting or audience profile. Profiles change but design backgrounds don't adjust when training requires problem solving, rather than a drill of procedure. Do I need to extrapolate?”
* “It has been my experience that trainers often times lack the detachment necessary to design and develop e-Learning material. Most trainers who have been at it for a time cultivate a strong attachment to subject matter, sources and format that can evolve into an advocacy role wrapped in the comfort of familiarity. Developers, on the other hand, can be positioned to be the iconoclasts of the organization -- constantly questioning; challenging; weighing method against objective, learner-need and technology capabilities. I value my e-Learning designers and developers as change agents and I'm not sure that such a role could be reasonably expected from the general trainer population.“
* “It is a great challenge for most individual instructors, to expand subject matter expertise for a new course while also learning delivery & support techniques required for new delivery media. Asking them to also design the new courseware is a recipe for failure, even if they fully grasp the vision of the new design. We do, however, continue to use instructors for much of the actual development effort, providing detailed information and steering practice and evaluation activities. This lets the instructors keep a degree of personal ownership in the new course, reduces development time and improves initial success.“
* “I just got done dealing with this situation. The most significant problem that we had was the trainers wanted to recreate their stand up training on the web. They did not understand the value of presenting the learning in the right combination of onscreen text, audio, animation, and video …They were also the subject matter specialists and could not translate that knowledge into learning. In stand up training, they were always able to answer the student’s questions … Finally, the trainers viewed the online courses as a replacement for their jobs. They tended to make the training more complex than it had to be.”
Lastly, some readers who thought that “it depends” and/or had other ideas:
* “A person with good instructional design background and a focus on the learner can make the switch relatively easily. The most difficult transition is applying accelerated learning principles to online learning.
The person who focuses on information transfer (lecture) as opposed to the accelerated learning in the classroom often creates books on line books versus interactive online training. A person who is weak in ISD but excellent with PowerPoint effects tends to get caught up in the glitz of online vs. interactive online training.”
* “It's generally easier to make an instructional designer out of a content expert, everything else equal, than it is to make a content expert out of an instructional designer.”
* “… someone capable of delivering fantastic classroom instruction cannot always make the transition to creating well-designed e-Learning interventions. Being a multimedia designer/developer does not mean you know how to manage, direct, design and teach for the classroom, either.
Not everyone will be interested in both areas ... “
* “What about the new crop of e-Learning instructional designers (well educated Masters Degree folks) with NO standup experience to draw from?
Having interviewed a lot of designers recently, I saw a lack of real world understanding of the learning process.”
* “I think the future is in our youth. The 25-30 year old bracket is our first group of individuals who grew up using the Internet and really have a firm hold on it.”
* “ … trainers who can separate the content from the delivery will likely excel at e-Learning. Individuals who cannot make that theoretical leap will likely struggle.”
So, are trainers the right e-Learning designers (or are bricklayers the right building designers as one reader put it)? Well, it depends. In all cases, this question also needs to consider quality and purpose: “Is the training instructionally sound?” and “Does it meet the learning objectives of the business and the individual?” Design should not be relegated to trainers just because they are available. Successfully designing and delivering e-Learning (and of course developing it) involves very different skills sets and in the end, the right talent needs to fill the right role. But if we are to be considered professionals, then it is our responsibility to also be skilled in as many fields as possible so that we can make our teams and organizations that much more knowledgeable and stronger. It is also a matter of educating the decision makers in our organization that an instructional designer, especially in the case of e-Learning, is not just a subject matter expert putting his/her thoughts into PowerPoint.
What other things also seem to work best? Partnering up trainers and designers, being e-Learners ourselves so we can envision which tools work best for the learning objectives, thoroughly understanding how online learners engage differently than in classrooms. And aside from the mandatory instructional design competency, any person or organization looking to make the transition from “presentation” to “design” also needs to consider an individual’s creativity, ability to see the ‘big picture”, motivation to learn, propensity to maintain current with technical skills and ensure they have the requisite training and support available for its personnel.
I’d like to close by further adapting a metaphor sent by a TRENDS reader.
Compare it to being a musician. Some people can bang out a melody, very poorly on the piano, but produce something. Others can play concertos.
Also, there are good trainers and there are poor trainers. And there are good designers and bad designers. But it is our job as learning professionals to be the best at what we are now … and begin to prepare ourselves to be the best we can be in the future as we crossover more and more to new, morphed and/or emerging roles.
Upcming MASIE Center Events:
- Rapid e-Learning Development
- e-Learning Briefing
- Learning Systems Seminar & Roundtable
- e-Learning Skills LAB
Dates, Locations & Information: http://www.masie.com
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