session overview

Re-thinking content development

There is a shift in the way that organisational learning and development is controlled. And nowhere is that more keenly felt than in the production of learning content. In this thought-provoking session, Mark Berthelemy and Patrick Dunn take a big-picture view of what has been happening recently in learning materials' creation and sharing, and project an exciting future very different from what we've been used to. Andy Jones is already part of the way there. He describes how Thomson Reuters Technology Operations are developing their materials with a new, collaborative methodology.

P1: The learning ecosystem of the future

Patrick Dunn, Consultant, Networked Learning Design Ltd and Mark Berthelemy, Learning Solutions Architect, Capita

Decentralizing and democratizing the creation of learning resources is radically changing the way we produce learning content. A range of tools (including those for rapid development) have the potential to reduce costs and engage learners in ways that will finally deliver on e-learning’s potential. Taking lessons from the history of learning technology and software development, the speakers will shift the "rapidization" debate away from a short-term efficiency perspective, offer a vision for the learning eco-system of the future, and present a roadmap on how to get there.

• New, diffuse learning organisations
• Software cycles; what they mean for e-learning tools
• From 'few create, many consume' to 'many create, many consume'
• 21st Century knowledge management
• The roadmap, and the systems and cultural changes required          

P2: From e-learning to knowledge sharing

Andy Jones, Senior Learning Consultant, Thomson Reuters

Thomson Reuters Technology Operations has taken business-focused learning to a new level. In the 2,000-strong department, things move so fast that normal courseware production isn't viable. Instead, learning is built into each project though a unique L&D workshop engagement model: Content is produced by experts on the project  (facilitated by a learning consultant), published on the project SharePoint server, and the delivery medium decided by whether the content is conceptual or skills-focused. The result is learning at the point of need built by those who need it:

• The crucial set-up workshop that gets learning underway
• Shifting client engagement from consumer to active participant
• The discuss - create - publish model
• Training experts to move away from knowledge dumps
• L&D's new role: from course creator to organisational learning facilitator