What is it?
A visual and collaborative process for designing the spaces and places where people learn.
Why is it important?
Effective communication and collaboration during learning design projects often mean the difference between success and failure. When groups design learning experiences together, ideas and decisions often are invisible and lack a common design system.
Learning Environment Modeling (LEM) equips educators and learning experience designers with a visual system for creating, collaborating, and communicating. This helps save time, clarify ideas, and engage people around a shared vision for the learning experience.
Why does a business professional need to know this?
The learning functions of organizations can sometimes seem like an expense that lacks a connection to business results. Learning environment modeling connects the learning and business functions of organizations by aligning investments in learning environments to results and evidence.
At the core of learning environment modeling is a common design language(Dodd 2015) and a set of standards that allow people from diverse backgrounds and experiences to communicate clearly, effectively, and consistently when planning and designing learning experiences.
The learning environment modeling system comprises visual canvas tools to organize ideas and visual building blocks that visualize the structure and flow of learning experiences. The system can be used in both analog and digital formats and provides a common format for decision making and strategic thinking. The system is most effectively used during collaborative planning and design projects by a skilled and experienced facilitator.
Learning environment modeling gives educators and learning experience designers an effective tool to visualize, communicate, and collaborate on projects and initiatives. This can help you save time, reduce risks, and engage diverse stakeholders in meaningful, efficient, and effective ways.
References
- (LX Studio) Learning Environment Modeling: Discover a New Solution for Designing World-Class Learning Experiences: LX Studio. An description of the LX Studio Learning Environment Modeling system.
- (Dodd 2015) Overview of Learning Environment Modeling Language (LEML): Dodd, Bucky. (2015). YouTube video.
About Bucky Dodd
Bucky Dodd, PhD, is the Chief Executive Officer and Principal Consultant at ClearKinetic, a boutique consultancy specializing in creating one-of-a-kind education and training solutions.
Term: Learning Environment Modeling
Email: BuckyDodd@ClearKinetic.com
Website: clearkinetic.com
Twitter: @buckydodd
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/buckydodd