Leveraging Synergies between Learning Objects

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Leveraging Synergies between Learning Objects
Knowledge Management
Association for Learning Technology
September, 2006
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Learning Objects
Knowledge Management
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• Both require
• Structured processes
• Support of web-enabled technologies
• Both focus on
• Disseminating best practices to create optimum
  and consistence job performance.

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What is Knowledge Management?
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Knowledge Management

• Consists of
• Tacit
• Explicit
• Individual
• Structural, and
• Organizational Knowledge
• Business Imperative is to
• Identify the most critical knowledge, codified
  it, managed it, and disseminated it to the people
  who can make the most effective use of the
  knowledge.

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Knowledge Management

• Focus is on converting individual knowledge into
  organizational knowledge by applying systematic
  processes technology to
• identify
• capture
• manage and
• disseminate the knowledge required to support
  quick and decisive problem solving.
• Challenge is to ensure performers can access the
  knowledge they need, in a format that makes sense
  to them.
• Note knowledge is often captured and formatted
  as best practices.

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Knowledge Management

• Requires
• A robust database to store and manage the
  knowledge assets
• Web-enabled technology that supports
• Authoring
• Tagging
• Archiving
• Submission of knowledge assets to the database
• Searching, and retrieval of knowledge assets from
  a performers work site.

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Knowledge Management

• Four Main Aspects of Knowledge Management
• Collection of the best thoughts, practices and
  wisdom
• Use of a system (technology) that makes both
  tacit and explicit knowledge readily accessible
• Open and generous contribution to the knowledge
  base by employees
• An understanding on the part of Managers that
  knowledge workers cannot and should not be
  coerced into sharing their knowledge.

(Rossett, 1999)
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Knowledge Management

• Supports
• Learning by providing access to information on an
  as needed basis.
• Development of a corporate vision and action by
  pushing important information to targeted groups
  of performers.
• The corporate memory by being a storehouse of
  intellectual capital.
• Task accomplishment by providing productivity
  tools.
• Creativity by encouraging and supporting
  collaboration and communities of practice.
• Integration of knowledge between and across
  groups allowing for greater leverage.

(Rosenberg, 2001)
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What is a Learning Object?
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Learning Objects

• A digital entity, deliverable over the internet
  that is
• A collection of assets covering a topic or
  complex task as described by a terminal
  objective.
• A self-contained, context independent unit.
• Reusable and transportable.
• A meaningful division of learning that can be
  accomplished in one sitting.
• Made up of assets which are also reusable and
  transportable.

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Metadata Tags
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Learning Objects Benefits

• Flexibility
• Ease of Updates, Searches and Content Management
• Customization
• Interoperability
• Increased value of Content

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• Both Knowledge Management and Learning Object
  initiatives
• Support business goals and are oriented toward
  performance presenting information in a
  performance context
• Require that employees be convinced to
  participate
• Create artifacts, be they knowledge assets or
  learning objects
• Rely on a repository (database), a tagging
  schema, technology that facilitates management,
  searching for, distribution, and display
• Are more effective when templates, standards, and
  processes are put in place to standardize and
  prioritize contributions to the repository and,
• Require a shift in corporate attitude from
  restriction of access to information to rewarding
  performers, groups, and departments for sharing
  information.

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• Both have been known to fail
• When not updated regularly with obsolete
  artifacts removed.
• When they are not integrated into normal working
  practices
• If the technology is to complicated or if
  performers are not trained to use the technology
  or,
• If performers do not garner any personal or
  professional benefit from contributing or
  extracting from the repository.

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• What Barriers Exist to Building on the Synergies
  between Knowledge Management Learning Objects?

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• Barriers
• Different backgrounds and language of the two
  groups
• The two initiatives are managed by different
  functions with different funding, priorities, and
  business directives
• The two groups often use similar but different
  methodologies and technologies.

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Key Differentiator between Knowledge Management
Learning Objects Knowledge Management has a
social aspect as well as a management of
artifacts aspect. It is intended to facilitate
dialogue between performers, and to promote
action learning. communities of practice, and
problem solving.
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• To reap the benefits organizations would need to
  
• Recognize that the end goals are to safeguard
  intellectual capital and to promote superior and
  innovative performance throughout the
  organization
• Place responsibility for the policy, budget, and
  resources related to these goals under one locus
  of control at the executive level (to ensure
  sufficient influence)
• Establish an implementation team comprised of key
  skills from both the strategic business and
  learning groups
• Identify technical and procedural requirements
  that meet the needs of both initiatives and
  invest in a common technological infrastructure
• Create and implement integrated processes,
  procedures, standards and templates and,
• Implement an approach to reward and recognition
  that clearly demonstrates corporate commitment to
  knowledge mining and sharing.

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Thank You!
Joanne Mowat 416-694-2510 herridge_at_herridge.ca