"The Truth About Social Learning" - presented by Jane Bozarth

Speaker: Jane Bozarth, Ph.D., eLearning Director of the State of North Carolina
Some of my webinar notes from today's session.


Helping us all to gain better understanding what is indeed Social Learning.

Hash to look for - #SocLrnTruth
Links and References - www.delicious.com/jbo27712/SocLrnTruth
http://bozarthzone.blogspot.com/


What is Learning?

We learn from others, we often don't know when we are learning.  We notice it more when it is not there.

Most decided we need to start social learning.  We are already doing this daily. The moment you are talking with someone else and are discussing any topic you are learning.

-Case studies,
-games
-role plays
-asking an expert
-book clubs
-group work
-etc.

Social MEDIA tools HELP US TO LEARN on a large scale.  The media is only the tool.  The tool has nothing to do with the social aspect.

As the training people it is our job to help people connect.  Find out what the similarities are between them.  What are they working on?  Are there things they can work together on?  Group them together.  Mentors and mentees. 

No need to teach them more, connect them so they can teach one another.

Any of the tools out there can be used to support these types of functions.
It is about supporting them rather than interfering them through the learning process.

From webinar particpant - Marie Sanguinetti - Companies that control it too much have lots of learning under the radar.  It goes underground.

Community

There are communities all around us.  We can help to set them up and utilize them.  Do no make them feel like they are mandatory or like committees.  They need to be nurtured within the community - not managed.

Typically don't have names.
Are about a certain practice or item of interest.
Are not classes.
Do not have agendas.

Fun
If it isn't fun, people will not do it.  You can't convince them they are having fun either.

Participation
Pay attention to what grabs people...what it is that keeps them participating.

Measuring
Some organizations are able to ROI on their social learning. (IBM, Ace Hardware, Caterpiller, Ford Sync).  Time savings, cost savings, etc.

You must engage in your community if you want help from your community.

Value can be found from:
The immediate interaction and quick response to questions and discussions.
Potential value comes from new skills, tools, perspectives.
Applied values comes from new innovation, new connections, new approaches.
Realized values come from personal and organizational performance improvement.
Reframed value comes changes in strategies and expectations.


What can you do?
Pay attention to what is happening in your organization.
Ask for Stories
Look for where the gaps and mistakes are happening.
Capture those moments of learning (share videos, share screenshots, etc)

The cost of not supporting social learning?

NOT THE TRUTH
Social learning = social meda
Social learning requires tools and social media
Social learning is new
It can be sold by a vendor
Depends on generations to adopt