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What is it?

Digital teaching and learning materials that anyone can freely use for nearly any purpose. They are used as an alternative to college textbooks, which are often too expensive.

Why is it important?

Open educational resources (OER) provide a solution to expensive course materials, especially textbooks, which students often have trouble affording. They are typically licensed under a copyright license developed by Creative Commons that allows creators of OER to legally share their work with fellow practitioners. OER holds benefits for instructors who normally teach with traditional course materials. Instructors who use OER typically follow new processes in course preparation that can lead to innovations in teaching.

Why does a business professional need to know this?

The cost savings realized through open educational resources (OER) are easily understood, but the other benefits of OER are just beginning to have a transformative effect on instruction. Benefits include the following:

  • Learners can access the content anywhere and anytime.
  • OER supplements traditionally used textbooks and lectures
  • Teachers can augment existing content with multimedia content or other formats that enhance the experience of learning
  • It is easy and fast to update the curriculum

OER holds tremendous promise for businesses as well, as they begin to explore opportunities to upskill and reskill their employees through low- or no-cost educational resources and tools. The benefits listed above apply as much to business as they do to education. As organizations look for ways to improve educational offerings and develop new ones, OER can make it possible to offer broader, and more economical, choices for their employees.

Like the Massively Open Online Course (MOOC) phenomena, OER gives businesses opportunities to provide small, discrete upskilling opportunities or large-scale reskilling pathways at a fraction of the cost of traditional training. Additionally, the licensing flexibility of OER allows organizations to legally edit OER content or combine it with in-house content. (See also open access)

References

About Mark McBride

Photo of Mark McBride

Mark McBride, PhD, is currently the associate director for Libraries, Scholarly Communications, and Museums at Ithaka S+R. He is a thought leader in higher education, with a track record of implementing changes within complex organizations. Mark has worked in public higher education for nearly 20 years, focusing on academic libraries and student access to education. He is a learning scientist, focused on investigation implications of open education in the higher education curriculum.

Term: Open Educational Resources

Email: mark.mcbride@ithaka.org

Twitter: @mcbrarian

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/markmcbride/

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What is it?

An educational delivery model, primarily through an internet-based platform, in which the learning experience is intentionally designed and incorporates best practices to share knowledge (content, learning activities, etc.) while providing thoughtful and well-structured opportunities for engagement.

Why is it important?

We are a global society and many businesses have operations in more than one country. This means that it is not always possible to bring people together for in-person training. Online learning provides the flexibility to provide needed training in a timely and quality manner. This term is important not only to educators but also to parents, business leaders, politicians, and students.

Why does a business professional need to know this?

While various forms of distance education have been around forever, online learning is a relatively new modality that has seen significant growth over the past several years. This is true not only because of the flexibility and accessibility it can provide but also because it can be employed anytime and anywhere—​even during a natural disaster or other crisis. Business professionals can use online learning to reach employees who are unable to travel to in-person training.

Learners with an internet connection can select learning content that is live at a designated time at a specific internet address (synchronous online learning). Or they can select learning content that can be accessed on demand at any time (asynchronous online learning).

ELearning is a form of asynchronous, on-demand learning. It may be completed online, but you can also deliver eLearning from a Learning Management System (LMS) server that doesn’t require access to the internet.

Online learning is finding its place at all educational levels around the world, including K-12, higher education, university, corporate, and government. Education and training will continue to evolve, and online learning is just one part of that evolution. Understanding its current structure can help you determine the future direction of learning in your organization.

References

About Jennifer Mathes

Photo of Jennifer Mathes

Jennifer Mathes, PhD, is CEO at the Online Learning Consortium. She has over 20 years of experience in both public and private higher education where she has supported online learning initiatives since she taught her first online course. She holds a PhD in education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she wrote her dissertation on Predictors for Student Success in Online Education.

Term: Online Learning

Email: jennifer.mathes@onlinelearning-c.org

Twitter: @DrMathes

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/dr-jennifer-mathes-38a2b6a/

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What is it?

The entirety of all the systems, resources, procedures, practices, and people that influence learning for an individual or group, including the interrelationships among these elements.

Why is it important?

In this age of self-directed learning and rapid change, the health of the learning ecosystem is critical. People learn more effectively and contribute more valuably if they can quickly access robust and relevant learning support.

Why does a business professional need to know this?

Leaders can exert considerable influence on the elements and qualities of a learning ecosystem in an organization, thereby affecting how efficiently and successfully people can develop their knowledge and skills.

A leader’s role is to selectively curate the components of the ecosystem, align them toward articulated goals, and troubleshoot any issues that arise. In shaping a learning ecosystem, leaders are very much like gardeners. They select what to plant, ensure adequate water and sunlight, boost nutrients, and prune here and there.

Leaders advocate for elements that enable learning and performance—from training and development programs to searchable databases to enterprise social networks and more. They ensure that people have access to the most useful and relevant resources and facilitate sharing of resources to help spread new knowledge and effective practices. They craft procedures and practices with an eye toward efficiency, productivity, and flexibility for change, and they align them to a common purpose. And leaders bring people together to learn from and with one another.

By managing all of these elements as part of an ecosystem instead of as unrelated pieces, leaders can create reinforcing loops that propel learning and development, positively affecting performance. Just as a biological ecosystem benefits from human intervention to nurture balance and counter destructive forces, the learning ecosystem benefits from a leader’s careful cultivation to support people’s growth.

References

About Catherine Lombardozzi

Photo of Catherine Lombardozzi

Catherine Lombardozzi is a lifelong learning and development practitioner and founder of Learning 4 Learning Professionals. Her work focuses on supporting the professional development of designers, facilitators, faculty, consultants, and learning leaders. She is the author of Learning Environments by Design.

Term: Learning Ecosystem

Email: clombardozzi@l4lp.com

Website: l4lp.com/

Twitter: @L4LP

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/catherinelombardozzi/

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What is it?

Connecting in an engaging way by truly listening, having empathy, and understanding the perspective of others such that the learners’ ways of knowing have deepened or changed in a meaningful way.

Why is it important?

Meaningful interaction is needed to effectively manage conflict, collaborate, influence, and create a sense of belonging and community.

Why does a business professional need to know this?

Interaction is a critical attribute for anyone in business. If you are only hearing, rather than listening, you can miss important information, leading to situations such as: developing a solution for the wrong problem, losing talented individuals, or being unable to lead change or move a project successfully forward.

Good interactions also enable you to build human relationships of trust, which you need to effectively give and receive feedback, mentor and coach, and sustain and build business relationships.

In the learning context, some forms of learning content rely on the use of interaction to enhance the experience of learning. Good interaction can also trigger a brain response that aids learners in their ability to absorb and retain content.

The meaning of the term interaction changes depending on the type of learning content experienced. For example, in an in-person class, it might be defined as exchanges between learners, such as group work, role playing, or simulation practice. In a self-paced learning context, it is defined by the way the learner uses or experiences the interface, including interactions such as completing the content in the order that they choose, responding to items or questions, or providing feedback upon completion.

References

About Patrice Torcivia Prusko

Photo of Patrice Torcivia Prusko

Patrice Torcivia Prusko is Director of Learning Design, Technology and Media within the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She leads the design, development and project management of online and technology-enhanced courses, including the school's first fully online degree program. Patrice holds a BS degree in mechanical engineering, an MBA from Union College, and a PhD in curriculum and instruction from the University at Albany - State University of New York. She researches and presents on compassion fatigue, supporting women in STEM, equitable and inclusive design practices, and global education.

Term: Interaction

Email: patrice.torcivia@gmail.com

Website: edtechisgorges.com/

Twitter: @profpatrice

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/patrice-torcivia-prusko/

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What is it?

Using traits of games (e.g., rules, goals, effort, rewards, competition, etc.) to immerse learners in engaging and risk-free settings that allow and encourage learning by experimentation. Game-based learning presents learning content in a game format, in contrast with gamification, which applies gaming principles to more traditional learning methods.

Why is it important?

Game-based learning processes are dynamic and personalized. Properly implemented, game-based learning that uses emotions, cooperation, or competition has the potential to engage busy and easily distracted learners.

Why does a business professional need to know this?

The steady growth of the game industry demonstrates that the level of engagement triggered by games is in high demand worldwide. Well-designed games immerse people in an experience where time passes by without notice. In this state, learners are engaged, which improves the efficacy of learning.

Gamification applies gaming principles to traditional learning methods to engage and motivate the learners to learn and retain the learning.

Game-based learning presents learning content in a game format. Learners engage with the learning content while playing a game.

The deep concentration and motivation that game-based learning can provide following benefits:

  • Supports progressive learning
  • Helps personalize the learning experience
  • Helps learners evaluate from various perspectives (sometimes even in an unconscious way)
  • May increase memory capacity by helping trainees remember more and in a deeper way
  • May help improve more complex skills, like decision making, strategic thinking, etc.
  • Promotes teamwork and collaboration
  • Helps improve the ability to cope in a highly competing and demanding environment
  • May help improve hand-eye coordination
  • May reduce stress levels by creating a safe environment for learning about failure

The organization also benefits in the following ways:

  • Cost optimization: digital games can be used anywhere, anytime—​just for fun, too
  • Employer branding: the fun factor positively influences perception
  • Effectiveness: games can make it easier to tie learning goals to the business environment and the company’s organizational goals
  • Efficiency: optimization of costs through personalized delivery

References

About Marek Hyla

Photo of Marek Hyla

Since 1999, Marek has worked with over 100 companies in learning strategies, learning environment development, and instructional design. As a thought leader he manages the network of people involved in innovative initiatives at Accenture. He is the author/co-author of four books (3 in Polish, 1 in English) on the topics of learning technologies, instructional strategies, and design. He is also the creator of learning and development (L&D) industry solutions: supermemo.net, Learning Battle Cards, and Moments that Matter in Learning.

Term: Game-based Learning

Email: marek.hyla@accenture.com

Website: learningbattlecards.net/

Twitter: @marek_hyla

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/marekhyla/

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What is it?

Gaining knowledge by actively doing something, reflecting upon the experience, allowing these reflections to change your thinking in some way, and then applying this new understanding.

Why is it important?

Experiential learning goes beyond involving students with real-world projects. It uses a cycle of doing something, taking time to observe and reflect, considering how to adjust, trying a new approach, and then reflecting again(Kolb & Kolb, 2017). It is excellent for mentoring, service learning, project-based learning, action learning, adventure education, case studies, simulation, and gaming, and it has been shown to have a positive impact on learning(Burch et al, 2019)(Kolb & Kolb, 2017).

Why does a business professional need to know this?

As a business professional, you may have the opportunity to engage with employees who have experience with experiential learning, giving your business the benefit their knowledge of new theories and practices in this area. You can look forward to these employees bringing fresh ideas and perspectives into your team as well as providing the opportunity for junior staff to develop mentorship skills(Hoessler & Godden, 2021).

It may also be helpful to understand that potential new employees who have completed experiential learning have some practical experience, but more than that they have been encouraged to deeply reflect on and learn from this experience. This structured reflection can be very valuable(Burch et al., 2019).

If you are involved in experiential learning projects, it is important for you to understand enough about the term to position yourself for success. It is critical for experiential learning to be set up in a methodical way that aligns your business goals with student learning objectives and course assessments. Otherwise, you may not see the benefits you were hoping for(Hoessler & Godden, 2021). Additionally, it is important for you to understand the role you will play in the experiential learning process(Hoessler & Godden, 2021)(Kolb & Kolb, 2017).

References

  • (Burch 2019) A Meta-Analysis of the Relationship Between Experiential Learning and Learning Outcomes: Burch, Gerald F., Robert Giambatista, John H. Batchelor, Jana J. Burch, J. Duane Hoover, and Nathan A. Heller. Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education 17, no. 3 (July 2019):239–273. Subscription or paid download required. This journal article analyzes studies that compared experiential learning activities to traditional learning environments and concludes that learning outcomes are greater when experiential pedagogies are used.
  • (Hoessler & Godden 2021) Outcome-Based Experiential Learning: Hoessler, Caroline, and Lorraine Godden. (2021). Higher Education and Beyond. ISBN: 978-1777626020. This book is an excellent practical guide for anyone involved in setting-up experiential learning. It provides straightforward guidance relating to a process that can be used to structure the experiential learning as well as identifying specific things that stakeholders should discuss.
  • (Kolb & Kolb 2017)  Experiential Learning Theory as a Guide for Experiential Educators in Higher Education: Kolb, Alice Y., and Kolb, David A. Experiential Learning Theory as a Guide for Experiential Educators in Higher Education 1 no. 1, Article 7. (2017):7–44. Downloadable in PDF format.

About Lorraine Weaver

Photo of Lorraine Weaver

Lorraine Weaver is currently working as an instructional designer at Thompson Rivers University (TRU). Prior to TRU, she completed 20 years of work in the Canadian Forces as an Aerospace Engineering Officer. Her work included engineering, personnel management, mentoring, and training and development. She has completed degrees in BSc (math), MSc (human factors), a graduate diploma in technology-enhanced learning and design, and an MEd.

Term: Experiential Learning

Email: lweaver2008@gmail.com

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/lorraine-weaver-812745150

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What is it?

The name given to theories of learning grounded in the notion that meaning is imposed on the world rather than extant in it. Constructivists hold that meaning is constructed in our minds as we interact with the physical, social, and mental worlds we inhabit and that we make sense of our experiences by building and adjusting the internal mental structures that collect and organize our perceptions of, and reflections on, reality.

Why is it important?

Constructivism is important because it points to the types of activities that support robust learning, namely activities that are learner-centered, social, and active and which incorporate authentic contexts.

Why does a business professional need to know this?

A business professional should know what constructivism means because it is the learning theory most commonly accepted by educators worldwide. It not only describes how we believe people learn, it suggests pedagogical strategies to support learning.

Although there are a variety of constructivist theories—​cognitive constructivism, constructionism, social constructivism, situated learning, distributed cognition—​such theories basically represent different points of view on shared assumptions about the nature of learning and the construction of knowledge.

Constructivism refers to a set of psychological theories that share common assumptions about learning and which collectively represent the most widely accepted beliefs about how people learn. According to constructivists, all learning involves mental construction, no matter how one is taught.

All learning occurs in our minds as we create and adjust internal mental structures to accommodate our ever-growing and ever-changing stores of knowledge. All knowledge is thus unique to the individual, and all learning is an active process, intimately tied to experience and the contexts of experience, no matter how or where that learning takes place.

Although constructivism is neither a pedagogical theory nor a theory of instruction, it does have implications for both. In particular, it suggests that education should focus on learners and learning and not on teachers and teaching.

References

About Karen Swan

Photo of Karen Swan

Karen Swan, who passed away in September 2021, was the Stukel Professor of Educational Research at the University of Illinois Springfield. For more than 20 years, she was a leading teacher and researcher in the field of online learning. She received the Online Learning Consortium (OLC) Outstanding Individual Achievement award, the National University Technology Network (NUTN) Distinguished Service Award, and the Burks Oakley Distinguished Online Teaching Award for her work in this area. In 2010 she was named an OLC Fellow and is a member of the International Adult and Continuing Education Hall of Fame.

Term: Constructivism

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What is it?

The process of learning a skill by performing that skill with consistent repetition and feedback. Also referred to as competency-based education.

Why is it important?

People learn by doing. Learning and development specialists often apply the 70-20-10 model, which says that 70% of what people learn is from job-related experience, 20% from interactions with others, and 10% from formal training or education(Training Industry 2014). This suggests that well over half of learning should be based on the learner performing a skill rather than an instructor or peer presenting knowledge about the skill.

Why does a business professional need to know this?

To keep pace with innovation and execute on transformative initiatives, organizations need to make skill development, and any needed re-skilling, a core component of the employee journey. And employees need to continue to master new skills as quickly as possible.

Competency-based learning is a key strategy to help companies meet these challenges. It helps ensure that training is relevant to the work by putting the tasks learners will do on the job into the learning content.

Competency-based learning begins with a needs analysis, which identifies the actual competencies required for mastery on the job. Equipped with information from the needs analysis, subject matter experts, and prospective learners, the learning and development team crafts learning content that challenges learners to perform aspects of the work as part of the curriculum.

Typically, competency-based learning allows individual learners to practice until they reach a designated mastery level before moving forward. Practice or repetition might take the form of simulation practice, scenarios, timed drills, etc. It might also include peer mentoring, coaching, and demonstration of mastery. This repetition and practice is especially helpful when the job tasks carry a risk of harm or injury.

Successful and effective competency-based learning provides learning content that is as close to real-world experiences as possible. This includes methods such as simulations, scenarios, hand-on exercises, timed drills, task observation with feedback, etc. Well-designed competency-based learning helps learners connect what they are learning to what they will be doing on the job.

References

About Dan McCann

Photo of Dan McCann

Dan McCann is an experienced and dynamic leader with a passion for lifetime learning, growth strategy, and innovation. Dan started his career in sales, co-founded FRONTLINE Selling where he successfully managed the business from start-up through 15 consecutive years of profitable growth. In 2018, Dan launched SymTrain, which is transforming the future of work by automating the process of situational learning. SymTrain customers train and assess sales, service, and support employees faster and better than they ever could using manual alternatives.

Term: Competency Based Learning

Email: dan.mccann@symtrain.com

Website: symtrain.com

Twitter: @symtrain

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/symtrain/

Facebook: facebook.com/symtrain/

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What is it?

A group of people pursuing mutual interests or endeavors who deepen their knowledge and skills through regular and ongoing interactions.

Why is it important?

Whether formally sanctioned or self-organizing, Communities of Practice (CoPs) provide an opportunity for individuals to share insights and innovate. Long before Jean Lave and Etienne Wenger(Wenger 2002) introduced CoPs and a series of best practices, these types of groups were an organically forming, ever-evolving phenomenon that supported knowledge management. Today, CoPs are hailed as a key strategy to support an organization’s competitive edge in a knowledge-based global economy.

Why does a business professional need to know this?

Communities of Practice (CoPs) are more than a knowledge management strategy in service of a larger business strategy. They are fluid, living repositories of tacit and explicit domain-specific knowledge. Knowledge can live within, without, or across personal and professional silos. CoPs codify shared knowledge and shape the identities of their members. Understanding what a CoP is and what it is not is critical to designing as well as nurturing this type of resource.

At the core of this term are two words: community and practice.

  • A community does more than bring diverse individuals together based on a set of collective attributes. A community meets the fundamental biological need to feel a sense of belonging.
  • A practice, on the other hand, can be a way of being or doing, a repeated effort to increase proficiency, or a convention that is routinely followed by others. The very nature of practice simultaneously embodies who we are, what we do, and how we do it.

Creating a CoP and assigning it a digital space is only the first step. How knowledge will be shared is equally important. Opportunities for storytelling, coaching, and apprenticeship must also be present.

Knowing about CoPs empowers a business professional to unite participants around a process of continuous improvement while reminding them that they are not alone.

References

About Rhoda Deon

Photo of Rhoda Deon

Rhoda Deon, PhD, is a healer, musician and educator. On a mission to normalize the struggle of being human, her frameworks weave mindfulness practices and data analysis techniques together with games of chance. She has served diverse, global learners in K-12, post-secondary, corporate, and non-traditional settings. Rhoda is a co-designer of Conscious Conversations, a card game that uses levity to help people talk openly about their organization's culture and business practices.

Term: Communities of Practice

Email: rhoda.deon@gmail.com

Website: rhodadeon.com

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rhodadeon

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What is it?

A learning theory that conceptualizes learning processes in terms of how the mind receives, organizes, codes, transforms, stores, rehearses, and retrieves information. Learning occurs when information is stored in memory in a meaningful and retrievable manner.

Why is it important?

Cognitive processing starts with the working memory, which has a limited capacity and duration in which it can hold information. Through various methods, you can move information from working to long-term memory. Once there, you can hold that information for longer periods of time. But you can only access that information if it has been stored in a way that is easy to retrieve.

Why does a business professional need to know this?

Knowing the science can help a business professional structure a better learning experience. How information is presented, the context in which it’s presented, and even the emotions of the individual at the time can all affect learning.

Far too often there is a tendency to dump information on learners in an unstructured way. This can lead to cognitive overload, meaning the brain has no way of focusing on what’s important. If you want your communication to have an impact, take these cues from cognitivism:

  • Keep topics short and focused, delivering only the most relevant information.
  • Set direction for the learners by helping them know what they can expect to get from your training. This acts as an advanced organizer for sorting the new information as they take it in.
  • Deliver information in a relevant context, such as a particular job setting. This helps learners tap into what they already know and add to that.

Making intentional decisions about the context, structure, and order may take extra time but doing so ensures a greater level of understanding and deeper levels of retention.

References

  • (Michela 2018) Cognitivism: Michela, Esther. (2018). In The Student’s Guide to Learning Design and Research. EdTech Books.
  • (Bates 2019) Cognitivism: Bates, A. W. (Tony). (2019). In Teaching in a Digital Age. 2nd ed. British Columbia/Yukon Open Authoring Platform. Open source textbook.
  • (Reynolds 2018) Implications Of Learning Theories On Instructional Design: Reynolds, Jon-Erik. (March 2018). eLearning Industry.

About Ashley Reardon

Photo of Ashley Reardon

Ashley Reardon is the Head of Design & Development for Culture Programs, Legal & Compliance at Meta, where she has been since 2020. For nearly 25 years, her passion has been in using technology to create better, individual-led, learning-by-doing experiences, and over the years, Ashley has been fortunate to develop experience and expertise in everything from eLearning to instructor-led training to performance support to blended solutions. Ashley has a BS in cognitive science from the University of California, Los Angeles, and an MA in learning sciences from Northwestern University.

Term: Cognitivism

Email: alafrenais@gmail.com

Website: kineo.com/

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/ashleyreardon