Welcome to the Summary page!

This is where we'll post notes from each Instructional Design Learning Lab. Even if you only attend one of our sessions, you'll still be able to read the thoughts and ideas from other sessions. If our technology behaves, we may even be able to post audio files for downloading.

In the meantime, please keep the following questions in mind as you peruse the Schedule Builder.

What are your biggest challenges related to instructional design?

What tools or processes do you wish you had or wish you could change?

What sessions at TechKnowledge® are you planning to attend to help you answer these questions?

NOTE: You may download handouts for most sessions on the TechKnowledge Speaker Handouts page.

When you post, please remember to preface your comment with your name and the date. Thank you!

Let's start the conversation!

Michelle, co-moderator, 2/9/07:

Wednesday – Lunch Session

After introductions, one individual presented a problem to the group: The individual was not from the training field but yet was suddenly responsible for converting some existing PPT's to eLearning. The courses needed to be tracked by their LMS and multilingual. The individual was dead set on finding a single company to do all the work. Both a moderator and another individual in the room strongly recommended addressing the strategy separate from the content, and that finding a company that did both may 1) prove limiting and challenging and 2) not really be relevant to success. Find a good eLearning strategy company and then design and implement the content based on that strategy. Any content company worth their salt should be able to follow an existing, well-thought out strategy. The individual was seemed unmoved and may possibly take the hard way, finding out later the value of the wisdom expressed in the room. Regardless, the discussion was lively, varied and interesting.

Thursday - Lunch Session

In Thursday's lunch session, we discussed sessions that had raised questions or had an impact on us:

Session TH101 (download handout): Learning Styles. We all seem to have problems addressing different learning styles within a course.

We need to accept that we can only address two or three different styles within one course.  What are the best ways to do this?

Is it possible to teach learners more aware of learning strategies that work well for them individually? Can we teach learners how to ask the right kinds of questions?

TH101.pdf 

Session W306/Th106 (download handout): Podcasting. How effective is podcasting for all learners? The session delved into appropriate uses for podcasting, leading to our own brainstorming session. Podcasts can be effectively used to generate excitement about training or about a new product. Podcasts can also be used for pre-work and are a wonderful benefit as marketing tools before a conference or large event. Podcasts are an effective way to disseminate information easily to a large amount of people. What are the legalities for using podcasts? Can you ask employees to listen to podcasts outside of work? During their commute? Will all employees be willing? 

W306.pdf

Sometimes marketing is needed to generate excitement for training and for podcasts. Never undervalue a marketing campaign.

Michael Allen, Lance Dublin (W106), & Informal learning. A discussion of Michael Allen led to a conversation on collaborative learning tools, including blogs, wikis, and RSS feeds. Is content really king, as suggested by Tony Bingham? Most of us were told over the course of the day that content was not king, which was an interesting contradiction. Lance Dublin suggested we stop using the "course." Do we still need the course, or learning module? Can we effectively train people through the use of collaborative tools? He used the ATM machine as an example. Did anyone train you on how to use an ATM machine, or were you able to simply figure it out. Should we rely on our intution and the shared knowledge of the group? 

W106.pdf 

Thursday - Evening Session

Mark & I were about to give up when a lone participant wandered into the room. "Are you instructional designers?" was the question. He had several more questions, very persistent. Mark & I walked him through the basic Instructional Design process. We were impressed with his ideas and plans for the future, and led him towards several tools, including Adobe Premiere Elements and Articulate, that might help him accomplish his goals. One important point is to always ask, as many large companies have little inter-department communication. You never know what licenses or even learning management systems might already be purchased. We wish our new friend all the luck!

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Now it's your turn! Use this space to add, change, or comment on what parts of the Learning Lab - or of the overall conference - impacted you.