Self-directed learners need learning ecosystems, not courses

12 | AUGUST 2017 | TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT WWW.AITD.COM.AU
T
he world of work and learning is
changing. The term digital disruption
is becoming one of the most overused
words in business. We are entering a
new era that could be called a digital
renaissance, where the way we work
and live is fundamentally shifting. GE,
the 125-year-old multinational whose
core business is industrial machines, is
planning to become a software company
by the year 2020. This transformation is
a perfect example of the shifts that are
happening. In GE’s case this means two
things: a recruitment drive for software
engineers and a massive internal
training program to upskill technical staff
in the application of artificial intelligence
to their industrial machines.
For modern workplaces to survive
and thrive into the future employees
need to be constantly learning,
constantly improving, and developing
the capabilities that enable the
near future of the organisation. The
separation between work and learning
is disappearing. Employees need to be
learning while they work, which means
they need to become self-directed
learners.
The idea of the self-directed learner is
not new, but it is more commonly talked
about in education than in workplace
learning. In some ways our modern
education system is preparing people
to be self-directed learners, but our
highly-structured (often compliance-
driven) approaches to learning in
our workplaces actually inhibit the
curiosity that self-guided learners have
developed.
A strong, mature self-directed learner
is able to:
• self assess and identify learning needs;
• find resources and people to assist
them;
• practise and trial new behaviours
and skills and gain feedback on
performance;
• articulate and reflect on what they
have learned;
• evaluate and measure their own
learning.
A self-directed learner doesn’t need
a traditional linear course in which to
learn. They need a learning ecosystem.
I often introduce the idea of learning
ecosystems and the 70:20:10 learning
model to people by asking them to
think about the last time they learned a
new skill, and then consider how they
learned that skill. The answer is often
from YouTube or from a peer, or simply
by trial and error. The natural way to
learn isn’t through structure, it’s through
experience, often with others, and
we use a wide range of resources that
have not necessarily been designed for
learning.
SELF-DIRECTED
LEARNERS
NEEDLEARNING
ECOSYSTEMS,
NOTCOURSES
BYROBINPETTERD
Attributes of a self-
guided learner
Learning strategies and features of the learning ecosystem the
support these behaviours
Able to self assess
and identify learning
needs
Providing employees with tools and systems to self assess themselves in
key areas that relate to their jobs is a great way to foster self awareness
and self-directed learning.
These types of tools can also be used by employees to organise their
learning around areas they are weak in.
Able to find resources
and people to assist
them
Performance supports and job aids are the foundation of a learning
ecosystem.
Collections of answers and questions and examples of good practice are
useful resources.
Mentoring, coaching and peer support groups are useful methods to help
support self-guided learners.
Able to practise and
trial new behaviours
and skills and
gain feedback on
performance
If formal learning experiences are organised around activities, not knowledge
transfer, then they can present opportunities to practise new skills.
Project-based learning is another strategy that is common in education but
not often used in workplaces that enables employees to practise new skills in
a supported way.
Able to articulate and
reflect on what they
have learned
Two powerful strategies for helping employees to reflect on and articulate
what they have learned are:
• learning conversations with their managers
• learning logs and journals, where the employee records what they have
learned recently.
Able to evaluate and
measure their own
learning
The same types of tools and systems used for self assessment might also be
used for evaluation and measurement.
Also, learning logs can be a useful tool for measuring learning.
XXXXX

TRAINING DEVELOPMENT | AUGUST 2017 | 13WWW.AITD.COM.AU
Learning ecosystem for self-
guided learners
The table below outlines some of the of
learning strategies and resources that
help support self-guided learners.
A staged maturity model for
learning ecosystems
The reality is that most organisations
and employees are not ready for
learner-driven ecosystems, so a staged
approach may be used to help them on
the journey.
Stage 1: Courses as blended ecosystems
In this approach a course might begin
and end with self assessments that help
to define pathways. The learning design
is focused on practising new skills, and
includes peer support, and the learning
design requires a learner to reflect on
what they have learned.
Stage 2: Employees are given choices
about how they learn
The learning ecosystem allows
employees to make choices about how
they learn. What they need to learn is
still structured. The learning ecosystem
still includes all the features of Stage 1
but the learner is given more autonomy.
They might be given suggested
pathways that help them to organise
their learning.
Stage 3: Self-directed learning
ecosystems
In a fully mature approach to learning
ecosystems a learner defines what
they need to learn to improve their job
performance and how they are going to
develop the new skills and knowledge.
Then the organisation puts in place all
the elements of the learning ecosystem
to help them gain, practise and share
these new skills and knowledge. Often
the new knowledge that an employee
needs is actually a new practice for the
organisation, and the employee must go
outside to resources such as MOOCs.
The mindset of designing learning
ecosystems instead of courses offers a
powerful means to foster and build your
people into being self-guided learners.
Dr Robin Petterd is a principal
consultant at LearnD, where he helps
organisations cut through inefficiency
and complexity by architecting a
learning and knowledge ecosystem. He
is also the founder and director of Sprout
Labs. Sprout Labs develops learning
experience platforms that enable
learning and knowledge ecosystems.
Contact via robin@learnd.com.au
Time to take your training online?
Looking to work with an Australian company?
LET REDBACK MANAGE YOUR WEBINARS
www.redbackconferencing.com.au1800 733 416

Self-directed learners need learning ecosystems, not courses

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