Can't we all just get along?

Founded in 1999 as the Silicon Valley eLearning Network, the eLearningForum is fast becoming recognized as a thought leader on e-learning trends and best practices. The members, who include corporate chief learning officers, e-learning executives, investment analysts, researchers, and developers, meet each month to discuss the latest e-learning trends.

The January 2001 meeting focused on the human side of e-learning. Seeding the meeting with provocative (and opposing) views were Clifford Stoll, astronomer and author of High Tech Heretic: Why Computers Don't Belong in the Classroom and Other Reflections by a Computer Contrarian, and founder and CEO of Metacourse and co-author of Computers, Teachers, Peer Sherry Hsi.

The meeting started well: the stage was set and the seats were full. Sherry Hsi recounted six years of Metacourse research which offers guidance on online pedagogy, design, and facilitation.The research demonstrates that

• learning is a social process, and the Internet is a social place
• discussion groups and online moderators are a necessary ingredient of improving e-learning
• e-learning must be facilitated.

Announcing that he was far from ready to break into small discussion groups, Cliff Stoll caught everyone's attention by loudly proclaiming, "E-learning is a fraud!" Unquestionably, Stoll took control of the floor. He asked the group, "If you were hiring a plumber, which would you choose: one with an online degree in plumbing or one who learned firsthand?" He continued his argument by recounting how he learned from a caring professor, saying that nothing can replace individualized, face-to-face encounters between teacher and learner.

Jan Bourret, senior e-learning analyst with Hurzwitz Group, entered the fray. Reminding Stoll that the topic was corporate learning, she noted that within some companies it's not always feasible for employees to attend classes and that one-on-one teaching doesn't scale. Bourret emphasized to the group and Stoll that the real question is how to motivate and facilitate to achieve the best outcomes.

"Facilitation has no meaning to me," said Stoll, noting that living in Berkeley habituated him to the term long ago. Stoll then promised to be quiet and listen. But he quickly recanted as another idea occurred to him: "For 100 years, educators have been in love with technology. In 1922, Edison said motion pictures would revolutionize schools. In 1952, David Sarnoff said that educational television would replace mediocre teachers. There are other examples. They're all flops." Then, while jumping about the room, he asked, "Is the problem that learners aren't getting enough television?"

Susan Duggan, CEO of the Silicon Valley World Internet Center, tried to redirect the discussion by asking, "What's the value of e-learning? What should we be offering our clients? How can we capture passion for learning? Learners can access one person or two or 20 or 1000, but what can we do with that power?"

Stoll's reply, "E-learning is a terrific way to get a third-rate education."

Prompted by that remark, Mark Cavender, senior partner of The Chasm Group, asked Stoll what he thought about using flight simulators to train pilots?

Muttering that simulations were a great way to avoid the person sitting next to you, Stoll said that the designers of flight simulators spent more time making the clouds look right than getting to what the pilots really need. Plumbers were mentioned once more.

Finally, another participant suggested to Stoll that he was setting up a straw man that no one cared to defend. E-learning is more than replacing teachers with computers. It can include classroom learning; informal learning; OJT; learning in complex organizations, corporate settings, and across physical boundaries.

Whew. Everyone agreed it was time for a break.

The group reconvenes

In a noble effort, Sherry Hsi tried to get the meeting back on track by asking the group where they thought technology could make the best contribution. Hsi pointed out that the industry already knows a lot about what makes learning work, such as prompting reflection, multiple-linked representations, self explanation, and building trust through community.

Eilif Trondsen, director of SRI's Learning on Demand consultancy, chimed in that this paralleled the work of an early forum member, Doug Engelbart.

Consultant Lance Dublin said his interest was in doing things we couldn't do before. For instance, Napster for learning.

Stoll resumed his devil's advocate persona, scribbling in red ink over the points that Hsi had just made. Rather than reflection, we need gut feelings. Community stifles creativity.

While Stoll held his contrarian stance, participants kept trying to defend e-learning. Many were starting to squirm in their seats and roll their eyes. Some looked for the proverbial silver lining, stating that sometimes online learning is superior to classroom learning.

One participant noted that in an experiment at Stanford, an online group proved more innovative than its face-to-face peers. Eliminating biases of gender, age, and race apparently allowed the online learners to work together more effectively. Another anecdote illustrated that online learning is sometimes better for individual learners, especially in global businesses that must overcome language barriers, cultural prejudice, and learning styles. And one participant made the point that the Internet economy's need for speed challenges many companies to keep their sales and service teams ahead of the game; classroom learning can't keep pace and one-on-one learning doesn't scale.

At some point, Stoll began to list the seven deadly sins, "Sloth, avarice, lust, pride…." Pause. "E-learning," whispered a voice from the back, bringing down the house.

Finally, the discussion refocused on eLearningForum's domain: the corporate sphere. Participants agreed on the need to design balanced learning structures that include access to mentors, face-to-face instructors, and group interaction. In a phrase: real people. In business, learning is an investment in human capital. It's not financially sound to deny the potential of face-to-face learning or of computer-augmented learning. The objective is to do the best you can with what you have.

Everyone left unharmed, for the most part.

The End.

Editor's note: Visit eLearningForum for more discussions.