Adding value


Most off-the-shelf e-learning products do a good job, but they often fail to provide a completely self-contained solution. Often there’s a gap between what the course teaches and the specific way that an organisation works. You can add value by creating additional online materials that fill this gap, providing the user with not only the general principles but also the specific usage. The DfES did this when they introduced Windows 95 across their organisation: to supplement online courses from NETg and others, they created a range of additional guides and job aids for easy reference on their intranet.

You can also add value by providing tutorial support to e-learners. Using the interpersonal skills you’ve acquired as a trainer, you’re well placed to offer subject-matter expertise and coaching, whether online or face-to-face.

You may be able to use your classroom training skills more directly, by presenting real-time seminars online. Although synchronous communication on the Internet is limited at present by the availability of bandwidth, it is already feasible to combine one-way video, PowerPoint presentations, multi-way audio and text-based chat, along with application sharing, assessment questions and audience polling, to create truly interactive sessions for large numbers; ideal when your audience is widely dispersed geographically.

Another option is to build integrated curricula, combining face-to-face workshops with online materials. Exploit the benefits of the classroom, not necessarily to present new learning material, but for group projects, discussion and additional hands-on practice.

Yet another possibility is to provide accreditation services for e-learners. You could proctor online examinations or assess students’ assignments and portfolios of work. There will continue to be opportunities in this field as long as online assessments are restricted in the learning objectives that they are capable of measuring, and as long as it is difficult to authenticate students without face-to-face contact.

Finally, your organisation could act as an e-learning gateway for your clients. It is increasingly easy to establish your own, branded learning portal, with access to a wide range of learning resources, e-commerce facilities and collaboration tools.




E-Learning's Greatest Hits
E-learnings Greatest Hits
ISBN: 0954590406
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 198

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