E-Learning Council

ELC: Could you tell our readers a little bit about your background?

Ralph: I am Chief Warrant Officer in the Canadian Forces; my background is technical, both fixing and flying on aircraft. During the course of my 32 years, I’ve spent about 14 of them instructing aircrew, in the class, simulator, and air. I’ve always loved tech (geek alert) and interested in how it shapes a learning environment and the culture of the organization it impacts. I’m presently developing a professional development architecture for Non-Commissioned members of the Canadian Forces using modern learning technology and methodologies… It’s important to note that these are my views and thoughts on these topics.

ELC: What got you interested in social learning?

Ralph: It’s the purest form of learning, it’s learning unencumbered by the official learning structures and policies..

ELC: That gives bureaucrats shivers.

Ralph: Yes! And in vertical organization like ours we fear social learning. How do we control it, ensure the replication of standardized learning.. it forces us to move from a rules and procedures-based learning to a responsibility-based learning.

ELC: Doesn’t that mirror the concept from management theory of managing for outcomes and results rather than for work?

Ralph: Yes, but in organizations where standardization of knowledge and training in core to team behavior (air crew and technical tradepersons, etc.) we have instituted many layers of checks and balances with our learning organizations… we have separated the learner from the teacher with layers of complexity and standards.. social learning (some people call it water cooler learning) comes with risks that we haven’t learnt how to accept (yet).

ELC: That is a fascinating problem. How to ensure that necessary knowledge is transferred in a social learning environment, especially when failure is not acceptable (air crews). Ralph: What I’ve been advocating is that we need to empower our learners by teaching them to question and self-learn rather than just accept what is delivered to them in a social learning environment.. cognitive agility vice information memorization. That is core to my “responsible learner” concept. Also we may need to construct safe social learning environments, to enable this type of interaction (inward facing SL networks)

ELC: That’s a strong concept – the responsible learner. We expect our employees to be responsible in other areas of their work life, but when it comes to learning we feel we have to micro-manage and spoon feed.

Ralph: We trust aircrews with multi-million dollar aircraft, we trust soldiers to act on behalf of our country on the battle field, but we don’t trust them to learn responsibly.. I think that is just wrong..

ELC: @JaneBozarth often talks about “application not acquisition”. Do you believe that social learning helps mastery and application of information that is acquired – by more traditional learning methods?

Ralph: That is not to say rule based learning is dead, it has a place and an important one in my organization,, but we don’t need to make all learning happen that way.

ELC: That was my follow up question, how do you blend traditional learning methods with social learning?

Ralph: At the coal face, learning is essential to translating the acquired learning into practical use. I think we need to move to a hybrid model of learning that identifies the no fail learning and we control the delivery of that part of the learning environment, but for much of the supportive knowledge that will be best delivered in a social learning environment at the point of need…

Ralph: The other part of social learning that interests me, and at some level concerns me, is its impact on organizational culture and ethos… social learning happens at the foundation of your organization where culture and ethos are reinforced and transferred.

ELC: Ralph, this is a fascinating topic and I could keep this conversation going all day. I look forward to continuing this conversation at ELS 2011 Houston.

 

To hear more from Ralph Mercer and Sanjay Nasta, along with fellow social learning expert, Jane Hart, register today to attend E-Learning Symposium on Tuesday, October 25th! 

E-Learning Council’s Linda Warren sits down with E-Learning Symposium 2011 Houston presenter Flint Buchanan to hear about his work with The Glass Horse, a thrilling interactive training tool for the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine.

 

ELC: Thanks for agreeing to be a presenter and doing this interview. We are very excited about your session at the E-Learning symposium!

Flint: Thank you. It is certainly an honor and I am looking forward to it!ELC: Great! Can you start by giving us a little bit of background about yourself – what you do at the University of Georgia?

Flint: Sure. I’m the instructional designer for the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine. I work primarily with Large Animal Medicine, but do consult with other departments. My duties include creating and evaluating learning tools for the professors. This includes anything from shooting video of a surgery to developing 3D models of anatomy to developing test questions. The Glass Horse Project was born at the vet school, and really has grown organically out of need for effective teaching.

ELC: The Glass Horse is one of the most impressive training tools I have ever seen. Can you describe it for someone who is not familiar with the product?

Flint: Thank you. We are always humbled to hear how someone appreciates what we’ve created. The Glass Horse is essentially, an interactive, self driven, learning tool. It is designed to give a clear picture of the underlying anatomy,and resultant diseases, of the horse’s gastrointestinal tract. It has 3D VR models that can be manipulated in all directions. It has movies that present situations which have a ‘linear’ component …such as diseases which have a progression. And it has still imagery and, when appropriate- ultrasound examples. The package is designed so that it can serve as both a teaching tool, and as a review tool for students. It’s main goal is to demonstrate the very difficult to describe conditions of “colic”. About 15 years ago Dr. Jim Moore, a professor in Large Animal Medicine, decided he wanted to find a better way to teach colic. Traditionally the disease state was taught through didactic lectures which used still imagery. however, many of the diseases of colic were not conducive to such a methodology. And it was difficult for the students to transfer their text and still image based learning into clinical situations. So Dr. Moore began investigating using animation and the nascent technology of 3D animation in particular. I could keep rambling if you want…

ELC: This is terrific. Could you comment on how your 3D learner-driven models make learning transfer to a clinical situation better than traditional teaching methods?

Flint: Our theory is that learning with the 3D models translates into clearer visualization by the student. And this clearer visualization is one key to freeing up their problem solving skills (which is what we’re really after). For example- if the student is both trying to identify the anatomy, as well as trying to create a diagnosis from all of the information presented, then they are taxed more than if they have a clear understanding of the anatomy. It frees up that bit of working memory. Why this works is certainly an area of study we’re interested in. I have my own belief that it has to do with spatial cognition — i.e. the students functional knowledge of the anatomy. Others might contend that it’s the fact that the animations, and particularly the VRs, are a ‘richer’ learning experience that engage multiple learning modes. Of course it’s probably both.

ELC: It seems if the subject has complex 3D relationships, a 3D model is the most effective way to represent the subject.

Flint: That was our belief.

ELC: What do you hear from students who use The Glass Horse?

Flint: It’s been really well received by the students. It’s a bit insular for us, because we work with it every day; but when we hear from someone asking if we have ever thought about translating it into Mandarin, we get really moved. It’s certainly been one of the most impactful projects I’ve ever worked on.

ELC: That’s great! At the symposium, we’ll look forward to seeing a demonstration of the The Glass Horse. I hope we’ll hear about the technology you use to create it, what challenges you have faced, and where you see your work going in the future. Thank you for sharing information about your terrific work!

Flint: Thank you. I’m looking forward to it!

To learn more about Flint and The Glass Horse project, register for E-Learning Symposium 2011 Houston on October 25th!

Allison Crow is a principal at Crow Hill Conversations, a visual thinking company. She was one of the highest rated speakers at E-Learning Symposium Austin and we are pleased to have her back for E-Learning Symposium Houston and her September 28th workshops at MicroAssist. 

ELC: Allison, can you tell me a bit about yourself?

Allison: I am creative professional and I own a visual thinking company that specializes in capturing and delivering information that can be processed with the whole brain for enhanced learning. I’m sure you’re asking, “WHAT the heck does that mean?”

ELC: Actually that was my question, what is visual thinking?

Allison: Simply put, it is using pictures to make meaning and to organize information. People can be visual, auditory, or kinesthetic learners — or a combination of those. 86% are visual first. And often, in learning situations, people are delivering information in auditory or text formats. Visual thinking is about using pictures to help people solve problems, draw out ideas, think about complex issues, and communicate more effectively.

ELC: That makes sense. How do you go about capturing information and transferring it to a visual format?

Allison: I work a few different ways. Often, I work in a live large scale format. I have HUGE paper, at least 4 ft high and 8 ft or longer. I have a set of fancy markers and I listen, then synthesize what is being said and “throw” that on to the paper. I also have been recently working on the iPad. Using drawing apps, I can do the same process on the small screen with a stylus and my fingers. This can be cool, because some of the programs actually record my strokes so I can make a cool video of the entire process.

ELC: I’ve seen you do that. It’s impressive how quickly you can abstract the essentials of a message and display it visually.

Allison: Thanks. The tricky part is LISTENING and then converting to visuals. Over time, I’ve built up my visual vocabulary. ANYONE can learn visual language.

ELC: Our audience is focused on creating E-Learning? Can your methods translate to that medium?

Allison: I think that they can. First of all, everyone is tired of the same old PowerPoint message, don’t you think? Our eyes have become to familiar with the format and so for learning application, information is likely to get glossed over. Using visuals, even hand drawn ones, triggers BOTH sides of the brain.

ELC: What are the distinguishing features between “visuals” and what most of us create in PowerPoint?

Allison: Well, I know many people use clip art and images in PowerPoint… and that is a start. I’m a huge fan of photos because they too trigger more action in the brain that just plain type. Hand drawn images have this sneaky little appeal. They are “human” and people are often drawn to the imperfect nature of them.

ELC: True. Hand drawn implies that I have to learn to draw! I haven’t really gotten past grade school stick figures.

Allison: Ah yes. This is the biggest obstacle to overcome, and I say, NONSENSE! In grade school, most ALL of us loved to draw. We had no fear and then this inner critic crept in. There are some pretty easy tricks that I help my students learn. Funny thing is, they already know them…I guess I just show them and remind them how to use them. The artistic quality of one’s pictures isn’t the point! In fact, ugly works GREAT!

Allison: Can you draw a stick figure?

ELC: Yes, I’ve taken your class. I can draw a stick figure, card people, and even diamond figures. I am still working on developing a visual language — translating concepts to pictures.

Allison: Wanna great cheat for that?

ELC: I was going to ask you for tips.

Allison: First, there are many books out there that can help. And when I want a fresh idea, I use the Google image search feature.

ELC: Ah that’s a cheat I do use. Allison: And it most often works! ELC: It does take time and practice.

Allison: And when it doesn’t, we use lettering, bullets, arrows, or call out boxes for visual tracking. I still use tons of WORDS in my graphics. And I’ve learned (and now teach) ways to make those words stand out, demand attention!

ELC: I have to tell you, since I took your class I have a set of Sharpie’s at my desk and 11×17 paper. I do a lot of my thinking and communicating for meetings using that larger canvas. It has helped me solve some very complex problems. The large canvas alone is a help.

Allison: Exactly!

ELC: We use the methodology to create the concepts for our E-Learning, long before we create the E-Learning.

Allison: Story boarding….that is a well known visual method. Another huge value of visual thinking…..

ELC: True but for me this is a step before that. Storyboarding is often about specific steps in a learning process. We’ve used visual thinking to create the overall concept for the course. What are the important ideas we want to convey? Who is the audience? How do we communicate these complex concepts with them?

Allison: Yes! It helps you organize your information, for sure! ELC: The other way we have used visual thinking is to help us decide the direction of proposals.

Allison: That makes me happy to hear! How does YOUR brain jive when thinking that way vs. standard note taking or brainstorming with a word-processing doc or notepad?

ELC: The method jives well with my brain. My training is as an engineer. Very visual thinker.

Allison: Most people really respond to the hand drawn visuals, whether they are seeing them presented by another, or creating them themselves. Here is why: Visuals trigger the part of the brain that FEELS. And when we FEEL, things in the THINKING & LEARNING part of our brain tend to STICK.

ELC: There is a lot of research from the software development folks that “imperfect prototypes” also turn off the inner critic and people focus on the essence of the message instead of details. Perhaps this applies to hand drawn images as well.

Allison: Absolutely. I just would love other people to experience the magic of visual thinking. Either for professional use or personal. My dream would be for everyone to have a set of markers and blank 11×17 paper at their desk! I can help teach anyone the basics….and that is all anyone needs!

ELC: Allison, I look forward to seeing you at E-Learning Symposium Houston. I have to say, your workshop was the most fun workshop I’ve attended. I noticed a lot of students came for a half-day session and decided to stay all day.

Allison: Thank you. I’m looking forward to teaching it again! Markers UP, folks! Let’s draw!

Allison: And leave the inner critic on the side of the road somewhere.

Interested in more info on visual thinking? Register for Allison’s workshops on September 28th in Austin and come see her present in Houston at E-Learning Symposium 2011 Houston on October 25-26.