eLearning Patterns

Challenges

When it comes time to put together a learning solution that involves an interesting blend of delivery types, it can be challenging.

Some of the challenges are technical:

• How do you integrate the different technologies to make the experience as seamless and easy to use as possible?
• How do you track what learners are doing so that you can make sure they are using the blend appropriately?

But by far, the bigger challenges are in design and implementation:

• How do I design a blend that engages learners and achieves the goals at the end of the day?
• What are the keys to making this successful?
• What works for other people? What hasn't worked?

In reality to answer the second set of questions, we need to understand and have a broad experience base in eLearning patterns.

eLearning Patterns are combinations of delivery types composed together to form a learning experience. This concept is based on Design Patterns in Computer Science. We've been exposed to many delivery patterns over our lifetime, and a couple of trivial examples include:

• Semester long course in college - 15 weeks, finals at end, various office hours, etc.
• Blended learning with Asynchronous Online Learning piece followed by Synchronous Instructor Led Online Learning.

Much of the question about eLearning 2.0 is what patterns will emerge and will these work.

Other Sources on Patterns

RSS Ideas for Educators - Lots of good ideas on using RSS - Really a whole series of patterns

Specific Patterns

Communication Patterns

Basic Content Delivery Patterns

HybridReferenceTraining

Collaborative Learning Patterns

Teaching Social Software with Social Software - Design Patterns of Social Software - Course and related discussion of using Social Software

Collaboration in Leadership Training - MoreInformationOnLeadershipExample

Collaboration in Claims Management Training

Collaboration in Peformance Management Training

AskAQuestion

SocialBookmarking - Have your students collect interesting links.

Follow-up Patterns

Great overview: E-Performance at Work: eFollowUp

Possible Tools Involved

Manual

LMS Reminders

Calendar Systems

To Do Lists

WorkflowTools

Follow-up Tools (e.g., Fort Hill Company - Friday Five's)

Action Plan Mapper

Will's Review

To Do Lists - Have students create an ongoing series of action items as part of the learning and then have it reviewed and tracked.

Comments on other learners work

Jams

Composition Approaches

One of the interesting challenges for more complex patterns is how you compose together the solution into a whole. In many of the examples above, the composition is based on specific work done to composed the tools in that case.

LAMS - An interesting composition approach

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