I’m trying to wrap my head around the relationship between elearning, knowledge management, and electronic performance support. I’ll start with general definitions of each:
Elearning: Learning enabled by technology…improving accessibility and effectiveness…placing the learner in control…the model of learning for today’s societal/organizational needs (linked, connected, open)
Knowledge management: the blending of technology, people, information, processes to create organizational awareness of what is known/exists…and to utilize the “known/exists” to create value for the organization. (KM is tough to identify…if you don’t like my ad hoc definition…feel free to suggest a different one…:). More KM definitions: What is KM).
Electronic performance support systems (EPSS): Electronic help/support available to employees/students when it is needed. More info: What is EPSS?
Okay, so elearning is basically about learning, KM is about generating organizational value from “what is known/exists”, and EPSS is focused on providing support for people at the time of need.
To align them by strategic role in an organization: elearning is created to ensure staff/student competence in a certain area…knowledge is captured and placed into the “system” to ensure information is “fresh”/current…EPSS delivers the blend of elearning/KM to people when needed. Currently, they are not at all integrated in most organizations. I think they should be…they should all feed off the same database…any thoughts?
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I see eLearning, KM, and EPSS as a continuum, not separate entities.
The “blended” sandwich of alternating slabs of online learning and instructor-led training will soon be seen for the oversimplification it is. Its replacement? I call it bouillabaise learning. You can pluck out a piece of this fish or that, a knowledge nugget, a real-time support tip, a fact from Google, or a chunk of instruction, whatever seems appropriate at the moment.
The best-selling book at the ASTD Bookstore is “Telling Ain’t Training.” Sad. Since I’m concerned with results, not semantics, I really don’t give a damn if it’s training or not. I favor whatever it takes. Same goes for “Information is not instruction.”
Sometimes a worker needs to learn in order to perform. Sometimes all the worker needs is a little information. Sometimes an automated prompt will get the worker over the hump. If information gets me where I want to go, why should it matter if it’s not instruction?
eLearning, KM, and EPSS are the Three Musketeers, one for all and all for one.