C2 Workshop's E-Learning Blog

Learning On When Commitment On!

"Do you know whether the apple actually fell on Newton's head, while enlightening him on the law of gravity?"

What if I were to be just glaring at this question without committing my answer to it? Poor you! You keep lookin' at me, expecting me to answer, so you could tell me more. You look at my lips. They're glued tight. No way you could open 'em up, even with some smart tools! What do you do?

Many a time, mind you, this happens, 'cos, I don't want to be wrong. I don't want you to catch me wrong.

You give me a text book on Isaac Newton. I'll tell you whether the apple fell on his head or not. You see, I know the answer. I just need to confirm.

That's the wonderful thing about text books. They have all the info... only thing, I need to flip back to wherever I could find the answers. So, the questions play a dangerous role here. They could mislead me into thinking I know the answers, when in fact, I may not.

That's one of the key differences between a printed book and its electronic version. Instructional Designers would do well to appreciate the Edge e-learning has over insructor-led training on this score - getting to have the learners commit on what they know and not what they could refer. And, make good use of that Edge!

What, of course, needs a special mention is this. The underlying intelligence in smartly eliciting the learner's commitment in answering the question! Possible?

Yep! By identifying another key advantage of e-learning! The learners are ALONE, when they're confronting the question. They're not gonna hear stifled chuckles, ridiculing their ignorance. So, they don't care a heck. They have the licence to kill!

But, the commitment factor, on its part, is very much intact. Psychologically, when I commit my answer and subsequently realize it was wrong, I automatically seek the right answer (especially when I don't have anyone else around).

The only thing that's important is, I need to have absolute fun in going wrong and in being told I'm wrong. That's where instructional 'designing' makes its entry. It's all upto the IDs to make their content presentation as exciting and interesting as possible. Then, the simple mathematical formula comes alive...

Learning is on, when commitment is on!

(Nirmal Ranganathan, Instructional Designer, C2 Workshop)

ID's Identification Code: Learners

Deadlines could have a lethal effect. They DO!

They invariably succeed in seeing us, the Instructional Designers, succumb to their pressure! "Hey... what do you think you're doin', lookin' at the ceiling? Waitin' for inspiration, is it? Boy, time's up. Get up and run. Get me the material before EOD today. Got it??"

And, there we're, sprinting to catch up the 'dead'lines. And, just about manage to catch them late into the night! Press Enter on the content. It goes. Relief!!

And, what? The Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) are DELIGHTED, 'cos, the content they're lookin' for, is all there. Perfectly chunked and sequenced well! They, in fact, give us a Thumbs Up!

"Gr8 job done! We see brilliant work here. Lookin' forward to working with you in future." THEY'VE WON!

The thing is, they're talkin' about 'work'. Not about 'instructional designing'! But, we're delighted gettin' that much-awaited feedback and are 'happy and contented'. 'Contented'. WE'VE LOST!

Where're the learners - the learners, the way they've to be approached from the instructional designing perspective - here? Completely absent! Perfectly understandable. 'Cos, they're not the ones commissioning the project... they're not the ones overseeing the content. If at all, they're at the receiving end. They better look after themselves!

Boy! Instructional Designing, in the purest sense of what it stands for, stands there, orphaned.

Mind you! Nothing's wrong with the SMEs here. They're perfectly placed on their expectations. As long as they get what they want, they're happy. They are the subject matter experts of their subject, not of  instructional designing. We can't expect them to know and appreciate how it works. They go scot-free on the issue we're discussing.

That said, the ball comes back to IDs' court. What are we doing? With all due respect to deadlines, are we not supposed to be extremely sensitive to the learners' needs? Are we not supposed to be thinking for them? Is that not what instructional designing is all about?

The answer to all these questions lies in our realizing that the learners are our protégés. We can't, at any cost, let go of our dharma of 'identifying' with them. If only we get it right, we would well be on our way to infusing a different 'language' into our storyboards.

(Nirmal Ranganathan, Instructional Designer, C2 Workshop)

E-Learning: The Motivation Angle!

"Oh, that was funny. My being put on to a Counselor. He was tryin' to 'reach' me from all possible angles. Very encouraging, so to say! If I could excel in my marathon, why not in studies? Is not my doin' well in academics good for me? Ya, but, so what? Anything that's got to do with academics, I'm just not for it. Sounds strange? Ya, I know. But, don't ask me to explain it. I just can't."

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Zero motivation! That perfectly explains it.

Marathon is, by no means, an easy feat by itself. So much sweat followed by a sapping tiredness could send a lazy soul lookin' for a safe cover.

What makes the girl run for miles? Something MOTIVATES her to get into the act. It's as simple as that.

Great teachers are, first and foremost, concerned about sowing into the minds of their students, the seeds of motivation and seeing them sprout, before they could unfold the treasure of knowledge for them. Done in this sequence, students lapping up the knowledge happens spontaneously. And, when that does happen, all that the teachers have to do, is to stand next to their students and 'guide' them. That's how they become great, not just 'cos they 'know'.

Now, the tougher part!

E-learning and instructional designing are much more precariously positioned on the motivation angle, for the simple reason that  creating motivation is a much tougher proposition for them, given that students are not gonna be physically around for the instructional designers to talk to, in person.

So, what could motivate them is the way the content is handled, followed by all other things such as interactivity, color schemes used in the layouts, and fonts employed, to name a few.

All these fall in place with the help of instructional designers' ability in 'reading' the minds, before proceeding to address them.

(Nirmal Ranganathan, Instructional Designer, C2 Workshop)