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Allison Rossett Program: Part One
By Christine Martell | January 15, 2008
Strategies: Out of the classroom and into everywhere else
Dr Rossett presented a program in two parts for the ASTD-Cascadia chapter on January 11, 2008. This post is about the first part of her presentation.
In the past, transfer of learning was a large focus for workplace learning professionals. If learners were able to come to our class and then go back to their workspaces and do what we taught them, we had created a successful training program. As an industry, we are moving away from this model and toward creating pervasive learning that can be reached for in the time of need. Just how can we create value everyday?
Five Strategies for Converging Learning and Work
1. Performance Support Tools
This category includes things like job aids, planners to help you think though a task, how to’s or even a spell checker. When we make really effective tools, people can fall in love with them because they do what you want, when you need it and can adapt to changing circumstances.
Classroom learning might be a part of performance support, but it is more likely to be training on what the challenge is, why should we care, and how to use the tool to solve the problem.
Allison joined Lisa Shafer to write a book, Job Aids & Performance Support: Moving from Knowledge in the Classroom to Knowledge Everywhere. There is an online tool associated with the book to help you decide if performance support is right for your project , Performance Support for Performance Support and a tool to help you decide between a few software choices.
2. Coaching
Coaching offers support and expertise to help you do your job better. The coach delivers training, integration and motivation in the context of a personal relationship to increase performance. Coaching can be delivered live, online or over the telephone.
3. Knowledge resources
Online resources are provided so you don’t have to remember things, but you can reach for them when you need them. They can be provided for a specific topic or be an aggregate of resources. This is where the web moves from read only to read/write. Content is pooled from a variety of sources.
4. Communities of practice
Learning comes through a combination of content and relationships. Individuals interact with multiple perspectives. People learn by reflecting and responding to controversy and opinions.
5. Nagware
This category uses technology to actively encourage performance and persistence. It combines information with targeted messages focused on increasing volunteers performance.
What happens to knowledge transfer?
Many of us start developing training by asking what do the learners need to do as a result of this training? We are looking for behaviors that will show us the knowledge has transferred from us to them. Using technology combined with other methods we can create systems where learning and support converge. In this new model, transfer is no longer a problem. The learning is delivered when and where it is needed and adapts to the individual.
Questions for you
- How does this change what you do?
- Do you have the willingness to realign your thinking?
- Do you have the skills to deliver and design learning in this new way?
- How will you find the time?
- How can we as a professional community support each other to shift?
I’d love to hear your answers or ideas about any of these questions. I’d also like to hear what stood out for you if you attended the program.
Other posts on similar topics- 2008 is a GREAT year to Learn
- SW Washington GIG Distance Education Discussion
- Five Worlds of Learning 2.0
- Getting to the roots of performance
- Free online tools for learning professionals
Topics: Programs |
January 18th, 2008 at 9:48 am
Christine, thank you for sharing some of the ideas from Dr. Rossett’s program with those of us not fortunate enough to be able to attend.
The one area you mention that intrigues me and that I have yet to be able to break into is communities of practice. I have read about organizations that have used them very successfully. It seems this tool requires an organization to have trust in its employees and their knowledge and skills. When I have brought up the subject of using this type of tool, I hear concerns about controlling the accuracy of information and that employees would abuse the tool as a forum to air their grievances. In other words, we can’t possibly let the inmates run the asylum. Whoops, did I say that in my outdoor voice?
I would love to hear from folks who have used communities of practice and how they overcame objections, especially in a “command and control” corporate culture.
Shari
January 18th, 2008 at 11:36 am
Hi to Christine and Shari,
I attended Allison Rossett’s program and, as usual, she was outstanding. I have seen her many times before and am always amazed by her ability to combine the theoretical and the practical while in a highly motivational presentation.
Having said that, I have a number of thoughts concerning the topic of training transfer and the need and logic of accessing training as needed.
First of all, everything I do in training is driven by the impetus of performance improvement and linking training to business needs. I realize that I am far from unique in using this perspective, but there are still MANY organizations whose upper management is old school in its perception of training as a stand alone tool for “fixing” employees. Therefore, it is easy, especially if one is a trainer in one of these organizations, (aka “dinosaurs”)to lose focus.
Along with this type of thinking comes something that you alluded to, Shari, around communities of practice. There are still those who find it very hard to understand that learning can take place in settings other than a formally structured classroom. For them, taking time to communicate with peers and learn from them may indeed seem like idle chatter and time wasting. Therefore, our job in the training industry broadens to more of an OD focus - which in my opinion is what training is anyway.
Beyond communities of practice, in my experience there are still many companies out there which do not have many of the electronic capabilities that just in time learning assumes. In fact, there are many employees, usually the more seasoned ones (read “older”) who feel they are shortchanged if they don’t have formal classroom training. They just don’t feel they have “learned” anything.
One thing we need to remember is that in anticipating and implementing new learning and initiatives, we may need to market these changes to an audience that may not be either ready, willing, or even able to take advantage of them.
I am not suggesting that any of these thoughts preclude our obligation to bring new insights and methodologies to field of employee development. As long as we anticipate and are ready to deal with these objections, then I see great things ahead for the training industry. They encourage us to be proactive rather than reactive, thus building our effectiveness and, ultimately, our credibility and professional status.
Pat
January 19th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
Pat and Shari,
As much as this stuff is where we are moving as an industry, getting people to invest the time to learn all the new things is really tough. It may give us better performance, but the fires are burning around us and the old ways work for many people.
I was also struck by watching Alison lecture us on using these new tools. Wasn’t she doing what we were talking about not doing anymore? (Shari, see what happens when we start talking in outside voices!)
January 22nd, 2008 at 3:00 pm
You know, Christine, you are right on with people’s having or taking time to learn new things. In most cases it’s not ability, it’s breaking the habits we are used to following. I am a good example of that when it comes to blogging. I either forget to check the blog or decide it will take too long for me to say anything and decide I’ll do it “later.” Therefore, I tend to put it on the back burner. My challenge is to modify my daily activities so that blogging becomes an entrenched part of my daily schedule.
Besides logistical or time challenges, changing from the old to the new also requires that we be convinced of the value of making that change. This is usually the biggest hurdle of all.
Pat
January 22nd, 2008 at 4:10 pm
[...] will be a great follow up to Allison Rosset’s program. On the same day, the new podcast episode will be posted featuring Michele Martin talking about [...]