Week 2: We've been world wide webbed!

Technology is everywhere. It always has been. Even though these days we may not give something as commonplace as a light bulb a second thought, at one time it was considered a HUGE technological advance. Most of us wouldn't consider a light bulb "tech" in the current sense of the word, but if it were 1879 I'm sure we'd think differently. I couldn't even imagine what it would be like to rely on gas lamps as the only source of interior light. Then again, I am prone to bouts of extreme clumsiness... for everyone's sake it's good that I don't have to rely on a flaming fuel powered accident waiting to happen!

Much like Edison's light bulb in the 19th century, The past couple of centuries have also brought technological advances and inventions that have changed our world forever - the personal computer, hybrid car, microprocessors, cell phones, fuel cells, the artificial heart, the Internet - the list goes on and on. We rely on so many inventions from the past every day and rarely give any thought to how things used to be.

While reading the first section in the book, one paragraph in particular stuck out. On the subject of E-learning, the author made a point about how technology (and specifically the Internet) has changed instructional design.

Before multimedia was so common, subject matter experts (SME's) were relied on very heavily while developing courses. If a SME was not available, it was common to spend a huge amount of time at the library researching. Now, instructional designers have an enormous amount of information readily available on the web.

Not only has multimedia affected how instructional designers do their research and analysis - it has opened the door to many options for course delivery. Options for e-learning have created a whole new ball game for the training industry.

While reading this section, I originally thought that it made the trainers job a whole lot easier. Having all that information, readily available, indexed and searchable must have opened up a lot of time in their daily jobs. Having access to all of this data is nice, but what I failed to realize (until I read later sections of the book) is that more time must be spent doing technology analysis and media analysis. There is no doubt that multimedia has helped the industry make progress, but I guess it has also complicated the process of instructional design.

So I wonder - how do people (like my mom) who have been in the training industry for years feel about the technological advances we have made? Is the increase in analysis worth the almost instant availability of subject matter data?

This is definitely something I need to ask my mother about to see what her take is. Then again, she does have the link to this blog... and with the topic at hand being multimedia, it seems appropriate that I pose this question to her via blog. Mom - your take?

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Just for fun - links found this week on the topic of technology in instructional design and e-learning in general:

• Jenna Sweeney's Corporate Training and E-Learning Blog:
  Today's Instructional Designer
• E-Learning Guild's Learning Solutions Magazine (login required):
  The Next Generation of Instructional Designers
• Tony Karrer - E-Learning Technology:
  Business of Learning
• The Learning Circuits Blog asks it's readers what workplace training will look like in 10 years:
  The Big Question (note: lots of interesting replies to this one!)
• Jay Cross - Internet Time Blog:
  E-Learning is Not the Answer