Bottom-Line Performance

Jennifer’s last blog post makes the excellent point that it’s important to resist getting overwhelmed by the cool factor with Web 2.0 tools. An evaluation process, like the one she references, is critical.

When Sharon and I were working on documenting our evaluation process, we had a recurring argu… discussion over the first step in the process. Is it best to start by scanning the horizon for new technologies, so that you could find ways to integrate them into your corporate learning? Or is the correct approach to set your technology priorities and look only at those products that meet a defined need?

There are argu…discussion points on both sides. If you don’t have your priorities defined, wandering around the internet looking for tools can eat tremendous amounts of time. On the other hand, if you don’t widen your focus a little past your immediate needs, you risk being blindsided by new technology.

The end result of our conversations we decided the key is to balance some awareness of the general technology landscape with a more pointed focus on technologies to meet specific, project-driven needs. So, whether it’s your or your second step, looking for tools will be a part of your process at some level.

There are literally thousands of online tools that can be used for learning. Jane Harts’ E-Learning pick of the day blog has one of the most comprehensive lists out there. Since she started her learning tools directory in 2006, she has cataloged nearly 2,000 tools. Nearly 1,400 of them are free, which is a benefit. (Note: Don’t get too excited about the possibility of free tools. The hard cost of software may be zero, but learning to use the tools always takes time).

ZaidLearn has also put together a tools list, here.

Remember that the tools are only ever the means to an end. They won’t ever replace good design, or good content. But they can make it more fun to put together.

One of the biggest of getting into virtual world and simulation learning is the huge gap – both real and perceived – that separates the minds of the gamer and the non-gamer.  Patrick Dunn makes the excellent point in this recent post that the mindset of a game designer is very different from the mindset of an instructional designer. Game or virtual world designers attempt to focus on experiences, and figure that their players will learn as they experience. Learning designers attempt to break experience down into content first, present the content and then hope the learners will be able to translate that information back into experience.

Clearly, some topics are better suited for a content-focused approach…and there’s lots of great info on this blog’s backlog on that approach. But I’ve been focusing recently on trying to learn more about game design so that I can create better experiences for my learners. To do this, I’ve aspired to become more of a gamer. And it’s harder than I thought it would be.

As Chris Brooker says in this article in the Guardian, most gamers (including those who play massively multiplayer online role playing games , or MMORPGs like World of Warcraft – which is similar in many ways to virtual worlds like Second Life) have trouble explaining the experience to non-gamers.  So I was very excited to read at the end of his article a list of games he suggests people start with. The first one, which you can play for free online right now, is Canabalt  Portal , another game on his list, was also recommended to me by a gamer friend.

Of course not all virtual experiences are games. This post by B.J. Schone highlights 25 Awesome Virtual Learning Experiences Online. Imagine the technology involved in any of the tour experiences being applied to teach new employees how to find things on a corporate campus. Here, Eric Tremblay talks about how one professor of biology has created Genome Island one of the most popular educational islands in Second Life - and all because her husband suckered her into playing World of Warcraft one summer while she wasn’t teaching.

This last link isn’t exactly the type of learning application we generally get to design for – but I found it so interesting I couldn’t resist putting it in for you. Apparently a virtual environment is being used to treat PTSD – with some fairly significant success.

What cool applications have you seen for virtual or game technology?