About two weeks ago I finished a critical analysis of social learning for the members of the Brandon Hall Research Center. In it I remarked that
“learning through the use of social media is a set of implicit assumptions that if people are using something called “social media”, then “social learning” must be taking place. This is a confusion of the means with the ends.”
My colleague Janet Clarey wrote a long post reacting to this quote, and received 33 comments. It’s worth a read. In November 2009, Jane Hart wrote an article on How to Create a Social Learning Environment, which listed and described 10 well known social media “tools”. Abhijit Kadle has take Jane Hart’s article and her list of Top 100 tools for learning of 2009, and turned it into the diagram above.
What bothers me about the “tools” approach to learning is that 1) it says nothing about what is valuable or useful to learn and what is not (e.g., social media is a main conduit for all sorts of views that we would likely find dangerous or abhorent), and 2) it assumes that by having the tools in place, that learning (especially the learning intended by the training department that sets up the “learning environment”) will actually take place. We know that just because we teach people or facilitate their learning, much of what they learn can be things that we never intended them to learn.
I am as guilty as the next analyst in revelling in the wonders of technology. I think that it is time to shift the discussion of what uses we are making of social media, what negative consequences it might have, and whether or not it really works as well as we think it does for learning.
Elements for Constructing Social Learning Environments | Upside Learning Blog | Abhijit Kadle | 10 March 2010
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This is a great article. Just because something “looks like” it will teach, does not mean that it will actually teach, or that it is the most efficient, effective method for teaching that particular skill. Do not use technology just because, instead apply the appropriate technology for teaching those specific learning objectives.
I agree with you. Though I would say that Jane’s lists, if I recall correctly, simply emerged from the question “what are your top 10 tools for learning?”. So for me they never represented an “approach to learning”, but just an aggregated and categorized description of what tools people in her extended community are using for learning. I’ve found them really useful for meeting a need for a tool – largely to help my productivity & immediate task objectives, not necessarily for ‘learning’, and honestly I rarely even thought about the ’social’ nature of the tools.
So I completely agree, your questions are the necessary next steps:
1. What is the value of this tool/category for learning?
2. What other factors need to be considered if these tools/categories are to benefit learning?
Gary, I agree with the concern over social media snake oil. On the other hand, there are reasons to consider social learning that have been articulated. I’ll immodestly point you to an article I wrote trying to do just that: http://www.learningsolutionsmag.com/articles/57/social-networking-bridging-formal-and-informal-learning
In it, I try to articulate the outcomes we want, and then how social learning tools can facilitate them.
What is the source of the graph you show in the article? I find it interesting but question the notions displayed on both sides that novices learning informally at first and experts learn informally late in training.
Michael (I presume you’re asking me), it’s a conceptual representation of the transition as I’ve seen separately expressed by Tony O’Driscoll and Ted Cocheu. I’m not sure of your question, but do you doubt that novices get the most value from formal learning, and experts more from informal? I’d suggest that as you get more expert, you become the source of information for formal learning, and are generating new knowledge informally: collaboratively, creatively.
Thanks Clark, I was unclear of what the graph was showing. I do not doubt that novices benefit the most from formal learning nor that experts benefit from informal learning (applying thier knowledge and skills to novel instantiations of the content area). I misunderstood the dependent variable or the definition of value. Thanks for the quick response.
I am guilty of reveling in the wonders of technology too. Sometimes we do get carried away. While we may tom-tom technology, we have never failed to understand that its role is to enable learning. The tools are only as good as what you create with them.
‘Social Snake Oil’ is a meme that’s doing the rounds; I really doubt anyone out there is claiming ‘just implementing’ a set of tools will magically make learning happen. At Upside, while we’ve included a complete set of social networking tools within the LMS, our solution also includes pointers and tips on cultivating a learning culture. This type of culture cant merely be supplanted into a workplace environment; we ALWAYS like to work closely with HR and L&D in our customer organizations to help them make that cultural shift happen. Its only been a few quarters since we’re offering this type of support, we’re learning much as a result.
Abhijit Kadle´s last blog ..Global Self-Paced eLearning Market Forecasts
Very good point. We are too often focused on explaining how great this new “tool” is for learning, instead of focusing the actual goals and effects of these new tools. As a Social Learning consultant, I always repeat to my customers that “these tools” aren’t great in themselves. They are interesting learning options because our learners use them in their daily life. BUT before building a Social Learning experience based on that, we should ask, analyze, check with our learners. And then make tests and see what happens.
Thanks for stressing this essential point.
Marcello Rinaldi
@marcellorinaldi
http://conduciendoaciegas.wordpress.com (Social Learning Blog)
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