Video for learning: don't let the techies faze you
Martin Addison, Video Arts CEO, writes for Training Journal.
Recently we conducted some research that suggested many trainers were far behind the technology adoption curve - laggards you might say - when it came to adopting technology for learning. In my February blog: Are trainers learning laggards? I made the case that trainers don't deserve the laggard label that's often attached to them. This got me thinking though about some of the hurdles that in-house, and independent training consultants, have to overcome to make learning technology work for them: after all we've all been in a training session when the technology's gone wrong in one way or another. So, what can we do to mitigate that? This month I' m going to look specifically at video (whether we're licensing it, making it or finding it on the web) and how we can give ourselves a stress-free experience when we use it.
We recently ran a webinar session on this topic and a straw poll we conducted in it showed that nearly 90% of our attendees were using video in their learning programmes. On the plus side it engages the audience, it appeals emotionally through story-telling, and it's the next best thing to a learner trying out a new skill for themselves. On the downside, whether we're buying it in, sourcing it on the web or making it ourselves, we are going to have to interact with technology to get it.
So, what technology is involved in video for learning (assuming that we're moving on from DVDs in the classroom) and should we be scared of it? In our webinar we explored some of the potential IT barriers you might come across…
- Firewalls that don't let you stream video
- Bandwidth issues
- If you have to learn how it works then it's not working
Technology really doesn't need to be a barrier to using video: whether you source it yourself, from a training provider or make it. There are easy ways to deploy it and fail-safe means to make sure it works when you need it so don't let the perceived technological barriers put you off and use what you have already to get the most out of your video for learning.
