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On several projects lately, I’ve been spearheading developing competency models. Competencies enable learners to successfully perform their jobs by achieving outcomes or successfully performing tasks.

​To develop a competency model, you need:

• A description of the competency (what knowledge, skills, and attitudes are part of the competency)
• ​A way to assess the competency
• ​A standard by which someone is judged to be competent (a bit like a rubric or evaluation checklist, could be formalized by certification)​

(NPEC, 2002).

In the healthcare profession, people tend to be quite comfortable with the overall concept of knowledge, skills, and attitudes. But often, there’s a tendency to list knowledge needed rather haphazardly, with little attention paid in any systematic way to the skills and attitudes that are the linchpins of any competency domain. Indeed, it’s often difficult to get stakeholders to articulate with any specificity the necessary skills and attitudes associated with a particular domain. ( When asked to describe a skill, stakeholders typically come up with “I want my learners to understand x,y,z..”.)

As an instructional designer with an eye on creating learning experiences that lead to performance improvement, this is where I can frame the conversation.  The figure below illustrates my current, evolving model of competencies.

Starting with the conceptual model shown in this figure, I try to focus stakeholders first on the desired organizational goals. I then ask how do you know when these goals are achieved? What do you view as proof that a person actually is competent in any given domain? This is where I try to focus them on performances and behaviors that shape these performances. However, it’s also where I try to manage expectations that learning experiences by themselves will lead to desired performances. Success in putting competencies into play depends on the environment and the current organizational incentive system.

Only after this initial understanding is fleshed out, do I try to move to KSA’s but typically I flip the order, asking stakeholders to consider skills and attitudes before knowledge. Important to consider is that the adaptive framework (attitudes, values, believe–collectively, “attitudes” in the image above) will shape success in developing a particular skill, just as confidence in a particular skill can impact attitudes.

Before getting to information needs, I try to focus stakeholders on the types of practice activities that are needed to help learners be successful at getting to desired skills/attitudes. Only then do I ask, “What knowledge will help learners be successful in applying skills and new-found attitudes to a variety of relevant situations?” In this way you avoid the problem of the “content dump” that plagues many training efforts, focusing on the need- to-know vs the nice-to-know information.

When considering KSA’s (or SAKs), it’s again necessary to be mindful that organizational influences (the environment and incentive systems that are part of the organization’s culture) will influence how easy or hard it is to develop a desired competency.

These are very tough conversations to have with stakeholders because it tends to flip their mental models of how the design of training should work/traditionally has worked (but not on my watch :)). It’s been a tough haul trying to get folks to move past training as a one-and-done event that let’s you check off a box on your to-do list to consider training as part of a system of aligned solutions. But I think it’s an important challenge to tackle to get to the learning trifecta–developing learning that’s engaging, relevant, and useful. My mission is to focus on outcomes with an eye towards operationalizing and sustaining needed behavior changes.  And along the way, to develop experiences that are hard fun and memorable. Because that’s what learning is.

New HEFCE data out today shows how higher education participation has changed over time and by region. Speaking to the Telegraph Libby Hackett, Chief Executive of University Alliance, said:

“This is further evidence that the increase in fees may be driving down aspiration in certain communities, which warrants serious investigation.

“The often quoted statistic, that more people from poorer backgrounds are attending university under the new few regime, masks important variations in participation such as the 40 per cent decline in part-time entrants.

“This evidence suggests there has also been a decline in participation in areas of the country that have been hit particularly hard in current economic climate.”

Read the full telegraph article here.

Libby Hackett also features in a number of articles today including The Evening Standard, Daily Express and Yorkshire Post.

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Brighton-based learning technologies provider is the subject of a £16.3m reverse takeover bid by In-Deed Online

The current Learning Executive Confidence Index (LXCI) surveyed learning executives (LXs) about their confidence and expectations in key learning and development indices

Folders and SharePoint 2013

Last month I attended a crash course on SharePoint basics.  As we were setting up our library*, the instructor informed us that creating folders was not advantageous as they could interfere with the effectiveness of metadata assigned to the documents. 

Initially I accepted this as a customization one has to make when setting up the SharePoint platform.  As I thought more about this idea, I started to wonder if we still need folders now that so many options exist with metadata.  Are folders the best option for organizing electronic information?

A folder is an intellectual construct that allows us to group like things together, or an aggregate of related things, so that we can find them easily later.  This system worked in the physical world where few other options existed as finding aids to locate items.  Creating systems to find and locate items could also be extremely time consuming in the physical world.  However, in the digital world where we have more of everything to contend with, folders seem antiquated. 

Metadata is King

I’ve heard this expression a number of times.  Metadata is King, but actually I think it only deserves this exalted status when it is done properly.  Things like hashtags often exemplify what I consider to be poorly executed metadata.  When metadata is properly and consistently defined, it can be extremely effective for both searching and browsing depending on how it is set up and used. 

When I worked with Content Server, folders were seen as advantageous because they could be prepopulated with metadata.  Any document saved in the folder would automatically inherit the metadata.  In a perfect world, because that’s the best place to do records management, the folders would be set up and prepopulated with about 50 - 80% of the metadata.  Then the user only has to save the document to the right folder and fill in a minimal amount of information.  Obvious advantages are that:

• The document is described properly and can be searched for.
• The user has virtually nothing to fill out.
• And it seems to be kind of a win-win.

Seems to be…except for this idea with SharePoint that folders hinder the effects of the metadata.  And with the Content Server method, the potential for documents to get buried in layers of folders exists.  How can folders and metadata function in a way that is advantageous to us as users and information professionals?

Browsing vs. Searching

I am a browser.  This means that I prefer to find content by clicking through hierarchical levels to find what I need.  Searching means that people find content by running queries on keywords or metadata elements.  Then the user must scroll through the list of results to find what s/he needs. 

I’m so accustomed to browsing through folders that initially my brain couldn’t figure out how to browse without folders even though I experience it all the time. Folders are a convention that came from the paper world.  This method was maintained in the electronic environment as a way to group things together, the same as it was supposed to be doing in the paper world, but folders can be problematic for some of the following reasons:

• They lengthen the document name causing problems later.
• Documents get buried in layers and layers of folders making them difficult to find.
• Users stop putting things there because they can’t be bothered with all the clicking.
• Security and access can be difficult to monitor and maintain. 

So why do we still use them?  If I could figure out a way to browse through all my documents with metadata on my laptop, I wouldn’t bother creating folders at all.  The folder name could easily be a piece of metadata, which hopefully could be turned into a browseable facet.  

If you’re still working in a shared network environment I can see the rationale for folders because options are somewhat limited.  But if you’re in an ECM (or EDRMS or EIM system) I think properly defined metadata with browseable facets and established search queries could be just as effective while obviating the need to maintain an extra layer of stuff (i.e. folders) in the system.

Users can browse with facets.  This is already a popular feature on a number of websites, like libraries, or as part of an app like iTunes.  I browse through my music completely by metadata elements attached to the albums such as artist and genre. 

I know in the end setting up folders and metadata is entirely dependent on the platform being used.  And I can already hear my readers thinking, “users would never fill out that many metadata fields.”  I say, let the users figure it out.  A lot of people are happy to slap hashtags on posts and pictures.  They would quickly see the benefit of filling in metadata in a professional capacity when they can’t find their stuff. 

It’s a good exercise to consider the unique advantages the digital age offers us in organizing and managing information more effectively.  Maybe if we started thinking about how to organize electronic information based on its properties, we could get away from replicating systems used in the paper world because clearly better options now exist. 

*SharePoint name for the area containing documents. 

Establishing A Twitter Routine In Your Classroom Last year, we took a shot at understanding how twitter could be used across a range of “cognitive actions,” which yielded the “twitter spectrum.” langwitches.org has done something similar–albeit...

The post Establishing A Twitter Routine In Your Classroom appeared first on TeachThought.

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We love having fun with infographics so the eFront team put together an infographic on LMS demographics with data collected over a two year period!

Here are some highlights:
1. Regarding global interest, LMSs still dominate in English speaking countries with interest from parts of Asia and, surprisingly, Europe lagging behind.
2. The LMS is still largely considered a solution for educational institutes however corporate usage is catching up!
3. More than 50% of institutions prefer to host their LMS internally and small installations dominate.

LMS Demographics

Less than a year after purchasing the struggling textbook, reference, and professional business of McGraw-Hill (now known as McGraw-Hill Financial), the private equity firm Apollo Global Management (AGM) may be looking to slim down its purchase. Reports indicate the management group is shopping the professional components of McGraw-Hill Educational (MHE), which focuses on publications and digital resources for workers looking to improve their skills and continue their education.

Earlier this year, AGM purchased MHE, which was formed in 2012 when the publisher decided to build a fence between its educational division, which publishes textbooks and other educational resources for kindergartners and college students alike, and its financial information arm. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) filings regarding the decoupling of the companies suggested the educational portion of McGraw-Hill’s business had been struggling in recent years. The company posted a $200 million profit in 2010; by the end of 2012, it represented a $62 million loss for the company. Separating the textbook business from the company’s financial information arms, which include the credit-rating agency Standard & Poors, set the stage for MHE to be acquired by AGM early this year, for around $2.5 billion. As part of the deal, the original company changed its name to McGraw-Hill Financial.

The move marked a refocusing of both businesses, allowing MHE to drill down on educational services, said spokesperson Brian Belardi. “One hundred percent of the investment in the company now goes to education,” Belardi said. Since the sale, MHE has set up a new research and development hub in Boston and acquired the e-learning resource company ALEKS in June, moves Belardi said the company wouldn’t have been able to make while dividing its attention between education and financial services.

A potential sale of McGraw-Hill Professional–which focuses on learning tools for mid-career professionals looking to hone their job skills or garner new certifications, rather than traditional textbooks and school resources—would likely include the subscription-based medical reference service AccessMedicine, which provides medical students and doctors around the world with access to resources like Harrrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine, as well as annual publications like Current Medical Diagnosis and Treatment. The professional wing also produces both print and digital study guides for tests like the GRE and SAT, as well as language resources and some of the company’s textbooks for subjects like engineering and business.

According to the company, the potential sale of McGraw-Hill Professional was brought about less by a desire to shed the properties, than as a response to some interested suitors. In a statement on the company’s website, Belardi said in part:

MHE isn’t the only textbook provider testing market waters at the moment. Publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) filed plans to go public with the SEC earlier this year. But the state of the industry is by no means rosy, as was demonstrated earlier this year when textbook and education resource publisher Cengage went into bankruptcy. State governments and universities alike have taken aim at rising textbook prices, with open source and digital alternatives have putting traditional publishers under increasing pressure to provide more value in their products. California has created an open source textbook library to control costs for the 50 most popular courses at state colleges, while Washington State has introduced digital open source textbooks for community colleges.

Running to stay in place

While new roles offered higher compensation opportunities as well as excitement, that growth did not extend to the full range of new librarians. Overall, starting salaries were flat, and placements decreased in school libraries. The overall average starting salary growth was lackluster, holding steady at $44,503, $62 less than in 2011. (Though this varied widely by region, as is explained in more detail below.)

Small signs of improvement were uncovered in a declining rate of reported unemployment among LIS grads, dropping a full percentage point from 6.8 percent in 2011 to 5.8 percent for the current class. The average length of the job search held steady at just under five months, ranging from 4.3 months in the Midwest to six months in the West. Graduates most frequently reported a job search lasting approximately three months, though some continue to search out LIS placements as long as 18 postgraduation.

Specialties by the numbers

As indicated by new job titles and redefined roles, the LIS professions are evolving. Reference and information services, for example, have slowly decreased from the highs of the early 2000s, when reference librarians comprised 25 percent to 27 percent of placements. In 2012, these positions made up 13.1 percent of the reported placements, drifting downward even further from 14.7 percent in 2011. For public libraries, the news is positive, as placement in children’s and youth services continues to rise—from a combined 7.1 percent in 2011 to 11.1 percent in 2012. The number of children’s librarians rose from 4.1 percent of reported placements in 2011 to 7.5 percent in 2012, while those reporting their jobs as YA/teen services went from 3.1 percent to 3.5 percent. Adult services librarians, meanwhile, are seeing their growth in salaries: they reported a 5.9 percent improvement in starting salaries, increasing from $37,765 in 2011 to $40,130 in 2012.

Approximately 10.1 percent of the graduates accepting jobs in academic institutions took positions in academic units outside of the library. Some work in campus technology initiatives, while others provide information services—data management and research—for academic departments, such as music or medicine. Working outside of the academic library improves earning potential, with nonlibrary salaries averaging $50,802 compared to $42,599 annually in the library. The salary differential appears to be driven by the focus on data science and technology.

One area of distinct concern is school library specialization. Placements in school libraries plummeted from 13.5 percent of the reported jobs in 2011 to 8.9 percent in 2012. This was particularly noticeable in the Midwest, where the placement rate dropped from 40 percent of the reported school library positions in 2011 to 21.7 percent in 2012; in the West, similar placements fell from 17.5 percent to 7.6 percent between 2011 and 2012. Some graduates noted that there were issues related to the reciprocity of school media endorsements among states, requiring additional certification and coursework when moving out-of-state and complicating the job search process. Others reported that school districts were downsizing or eliminating the school media position altogether. On a positive note, however, school media salaries improved by nearly two percent, rising from $44,515 in 2011 to $45,376 in 2012. Across the board, school media specialists noted that their jobs revolve around direct instruction of information literacy skills and the use of technology along with collection management and acquisitions. Like many of the other job categories, phrases such as “digital initiatives” and “e-learning” were used to describe the school librarian’s changing role in the elementary and secondary school environments.

Placement in organizations other than library or information agencies held steady at 20.6 percent of the reported jobs. This encompassed government agencies at the state and federal levels, nonprofit organizations, and corporate environments. The trend in other organizations is data collection and analysis. Some of the intriguing roles include working for political campaigns and lobbyists, gathering data about issues, and report writing. Nonprofit organizations hired library and information science graduates to work in prospect research (identifying possible sources of donations and funding), grant writing, and community outreach and public relations.

Below are a few infographics that illustrate different ways that technology is impacting education for both students and teachers:

How are college students using technology?

Source Credit BachelorsDegreeOnline

What about ebooks?

Source Credit Schools.com

Interesting info on technology use:

Source Credit LearnStuff

Each of these infographics have shown how technology will continue to be a large part of learning and teaching.

Quite a lot, it appears!

Here are my top ten favourite “Einstein on KM” quotes, which I have roughly curated into a journey from information to knowledge, through to learning and simplicity, experimentation, failure, curiosity and imagination…

• Information is not knowledge.
• The only source of knowledge is experience.
• Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler.
• If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.
• We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.
• The only thing that interferes with my learning is my education.
• Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning.
• Knowledge of what is does not open the door directly to what should be.
• Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.
• The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination.

And for any of us who have ever been asked to create an accountant-proof business case for KM, there is always the classic:

• Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted, counts.

Far better than my quick top ten list is this  infographic (click to enlarge) created by IQMatrix on visual.ly, which does a brilliant job of mind-mapping most of the above quotes, and a number of others.

Original at: http://visual.ly/albert-einstein-mind-map

But one unexpected Einstein quote escaped the infographic – which has nothing to do with knowledge management,  demonstrates his humanity and humour and makes me smile…

Any man who can drive safely while kissing a pretty girl is simply not giving the kiss the attention it deserves.

Genius.

Follow @chris_collison

Pearson has announced the acquisition of GlobalEnglish, an international provider of cloud-based, on-demand Business English Learning Software through its corporate assessment arm Pearson TalentLens. Through this acquisition, Pearson will be offering  software product suite to businesses across India and enhance Business English skills of professionals to help them gain competitive advantage.

The acquisition is in line with Pearson’s strategy to become the leading player in English language training business worldwide through expansion into corporate markets. GlobalEnglish currently serves more than 450 corporate customers, including 20 percent of the Forbes Global 2000 companies such as General Electric, HSBC and Tata Consultancy Services and is well poised to further penetrate the India market. GlobalEnglish’s content is focused on the application of Business English to real life workplace situations such as composing e-mails and participating in conference calls and its effectiveness is highly rated by global companies and their employees.

On the occasion of announcement, Sushil Eapen, Managing Director of Pearson TalentLens said,“Pearson is now offering the award-winning GlobalEnglish online training program in India under the TalentLens umbrella of Pearson talent assessment division. This acquisition shall help us in meeting the emerging demand for improving Business English communication skills among employees in India. Pearson is delighted to offer both assessment and Business English training solutions to corporate customers in India.”

Mahesh Ram, Chief Executive Officer of GlobalEnglish, added, “The acquisition strengthens both businesses. It positions Pearson as a leader in providing the highest quality enterprise software offerings in Business English communications via cloud. With Pearson English’s commitment to ongoing investment in GlobalEnglish, we will be able to expand our unique strengths and competitive advantages, and ultimately better serve our clients.”

The GlobalEnglish product suite comes equipped with formal Business English learning coursework, informal and social learning capabilities, performance support tools, an enterprise collaboration platform, a mobile app, assessments and a premium one-on-one coaching service. Approximately 75 percent of GlobalEnglish’s more than 200,000 active subscribers are in fast growing economies in Latin America and Asia.

It seems to me that this is a good time to comment on the state of the Learning Content Management Systems (LCMS) market given the many changes in 2012.

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