7 Predictions for Technology Enabled Learning

As 2012 comes to a close, it is a good time for looking backward and looking forward.  As such, here are things I see on the horizon for technology enabled learning.  How much research went into this list?  None – and lots.  While there were no academic studies, taking a look at what I’m seeing start to present itself with what I’m reading, what I’m seeing learning professionals doing (and being asked to do) in large companies, and what is going on with outside influencers of workplace learning.

1.) It’s all about people

As people in the workforce (as well as pre and post workforce) are neck deep in social media, they are used to actively participating in the conversation.  Learners will no longer be content to sit by and soak in eLearning.  Instead, it must engage them, call them to interact, and provide them a learning experience that wouldn’t otherwise be possible. 

In a world of YouTube and Instagram, people have a strong desire to share their own materials.  Be it a photo they took that can be incorporated into a module or a Screenr video, community created content will be on the rise.  As learning professionals, it will be our responsibility to set up systems for storage, organization, and curation of the content to help people find what is relevant to their situation.

2.) Content is king

It’s not the 90s anymore.  If your eLearning is getting by on high quality stock photography, a beautiful interface, or slick video production standards, people will disengage.  While this used to be enough to make your eLearning professional enough to hold someone’s attention for the duration, that is no longer the case.  Two contrary forces are influencing this.  First, with YouTube, Screenr, and blogs, people are very tolerant of less than pristine content.  No longer is the expectation that something is only useful or trustworthy if it is flawless.  Second, anyone can now make content that looks spectacular and legitimate without being useful. 

3.) Faster

Learners aren’t looking for a four-hour course on something (well, some will be, and some content will necessitate it).  They want a blog post, a PDF, a mobile site, and a two-minute video.  They won’t want to travel to a session, they’ll want it convenient to their busy schedule.  Again, social media in the form of YouTube, Screenr, and blog articles have created the expectation that content can be delivered concisely.

4.) Thoughtful Design

Playing off the increasing popularity of gameful design, learning design will need serious consideration.  Instead of slapping all the content you are given into an eLearning module or an instructor-led session, a myriad of options will be available to help meet the requirements of the content and your learner population.  eLearning modules may need to be created as games, instructor led sessions may move online, interactions between a learner and a facilitator may need to happen outside of the scheduled class session or in a different location.  In short, designing a high-quality learning experience, bridging the gap between the needs analysis and development of the content, will see an increased emphasis and priority.

5.) Formalizing experiential learning

With the democratization of learning thanks to user-generated content, there will be a rise in organizing, establishing, and quantifying learning that wasn’t created by the learning department.  Engagements such as peer mentoring and on the job training will be on the rise as people are becoming more comfortable “officially” learning from others instead of learning from a certified trainer.  As the value of these experiences rises for learners, it will be important to provide the support (often through technology) for these programs.

6.) Mobile – BYOD

Taking a note from education, there will be a rise of bring your own device (BYOD) requirements.  Although some companies already live in this world with computer hardware, the demand in most companies will initially come from smart phone users who are so tethered to their device they have physical reactions when separated.  With a two-phone culture, learners will begin to demand that they can access content on their own devices (typically Android and iPhone) as opposed to being tethered to a lousy corporate-approved Blackberry experience. 

This will be an adjustment to IT departments, security departments, and learning departments.  From a technical nature, there are many considerations to allow people to utilize personal equipment to access company information.  From a learning perspective, there will no longer be consistent standards for screen sizes or hardware.  Instead, this will lead to a rise in the creation of a variety of mobile-friendly, ePub, and PDF content that will run on any device. 

7.) Certificates of completion

Does the piece of paper matter?  No.  However, learners will want to see what they have completed.  They will want to feel like there is a path with various achievements along they way.  They will want to be assured they are making progress toward a goal that has been set in front of them.  The prevalence of video games with addicting reward cycles, expectations of reassurance from parents and an educational system, and an innate desire to be successful will drive a large faction of the workforce to want this type of reassurance that they are progressing, they are developing, and they are better.

Conclusion

The evolution of the workforce, the technology integration, and the connectedness of people are changing society in major ways.  As people’s expectations and proficiencies are evolving, corporate learning will need to evolve, too.  Because of the learners’ proximity to technology in their everyday lives, the technology enabled learning space will be an exciting one for years to come.  Will these changes happen in 2013?  2015?  2020?  Who knows.  Then again, who’s to say that there won’t be another major disruptor like Facebook (surely there will be, it’s just a matter of time) that will modify the entire trajectory?