NYNP blog post 4-28-09

E-learning training that matters

"It doesn't matter what people know -- it matters what they do and say."

Last week I attended a free lunchtime webinar hosted by Chief Learning Officer magazine (www.clomedia.com). The presenters were from respected e-learning provider Allen Interactions: Scott Colehour, solutions architect and co-founder, and R. John Welsh, Jr., vice president.

The webinar was called "Performance Learning Filter: Are Your Learning Designs Increasing Organizational Performance?"

Performance-based E-learning
Colehour and Welsh presented a filter for evaluating e-learning design that they called CCAF -- Context, Challenge, Activity, Feedback. Context refers to the framework for the e-learning, which should be relevant to the learner's workplace and job; challenge refers to a stimulus to take action within the given context; activity refers to the action taken to solve the challenge; and feedback refers to letting the learner know when they make mistakes and when they are correct.

When an e-learning incorporates all the elements of CCAF, it moves past simply making the learners aware of information, to actually changing their behavior. This is key, as the presenters' statement at the beginning of this post suggests.

The bottom line: e-learning that simply makes staff aware of information doesn't necessarily translate into improved service for our clients. To make a difference, we need to create e-learning that changes employee performance by helping them master the skills that will help them improve our clients' lives.

See for Yourself
If you'd like to see the webinar for yourself, the free recording and powerpoints are available at the links below. (Note: sometimes the blogging software adds spaces, so if you try the link and it doesn't work, just delete any extra spaces.)
* Recording: http://www.webex.com/web-seminars/view_recording/660672486?sid=CLO042309rec
* PowerPoints: http://try.webex.com/meet/pdfs/CLO_042409.pdf