10 practical points to take home, for aspiring E-Learning professionals
10 Key E-learning Competencies
Competent E-learning Experts are always in demand
According to an article by Eminent Educational, experts Harden and Lilley there are 8 different type of Roles an E-learning Expert must display. In terms of competencies, there are 5 that every E-learning expert must possess. Hence, it is crucial for us to have a comprehensive idea on the different competencies. Therefore, along with the list of Harden and Lilley’s 5 competency we have added another 5 more.
E-learning Competencies
- Effective Communication in the online world
- Technology competency of E-learning
- Designing and developing courses
- Engaging the learners
- Assessing the learners educational levels
- Consistency in Energy and Enthusiasm
- Creating a enjoyable learning experience
- Strong in Research and resourcefulness
- Project Management ability
- Creative a healthy competitive gamified environment
Hence all we need to focus on, is to understand our own competency level in all the above mentioned points. I am sure all of us have these competencies co-existing in all of us in different degrees. Once we are aware, we then need to be agile enough to strive towards making those remarkable changes to gain and increase in these competencies to stay competitive and relevant in the E-learning industry.
10 Habits to unlearn
As we, all are aware that any change requires us to unlearn certain outdated, irrelevant practices in order to stay meaningful in the domain that we prefer to excel. Similarly, E-learning has evolved exponentially in this last two years. Hence it is crucial for the all the E-learning teachers/trainers/course developers etc. to unlearn certain habits. Below are 10 habits we must unlearn in order to excel in E-learning.
10 Habits to Unlearn
- Unlearn the habit of trying to control the learners
- Unlearn the habit of sticking to content without preparation
- Unlearn the habit of having your favorite learner
- Unlearn the practice of having just a monologue
- Unlearn the habit of being authoritative and dominating
- Unlearn the habit being self conscious
- Unlearn the and disable the mental block that i am not a tech savvy
- Unlearn the habit of giving the answers all the time
- Unlearn being impatient with the learners
- Unlearn rigidity
As we, all know the popular learning process of Learn – Unlearn and Re-Learn. The first step is to shrug off the existing outdated methods in us. Once we do that, we are well within the reach of re-learning new concepts to improve our E-learning abilities.
10 new e-learning habits
Our Habits, influence our behavior and our behavior helps us to reach our destination
Successful people are simply those with successful habits – Brian Tracy. Hence, in order to be successful as an E-learning Expert, we need to develop certain new E-learning habits in order to make the difference.
10 New E-Learning Habits
- Get comfortable in front of the webcam.
- Conduct many live and virtual sessions in comparison to recorded programs
- Embrace the technology
- Learn some thing new every day
- Dedicate time to do research
- Learn from other experts
- Start designing your own courses end to end
- Dedicate a lot of time to preparation
- Keep all communications to the point and simple
- Prompt and productive with your time management
The above 10 habits are derived from a collection of research reports initiated by E-learning industries. Needless to stay that possessing these habits in an increasing measure will certainly propel our performance as an E-learning Expert in multiple capacities. There is no auspicious, ideal time for us start these new habits. If you ask me, it has to be right now.
The E-Learning Expert of this New Era
I hope you found the articles on 10 competencies, 10 habits to unlearn and 10 new e-learning habits insightful. As i mentioned earlier, what and how must result in making the changes here and now. Right here, Right now must be our slogan in order to cope up with increasing demand for E-learning professionals in the days to come.
Keeping on top of what your learners are consuming through social media and other sites, is an important way of keeping up with and ahead of trending design concepts and ideas. For example, younger learners in their teens are likely to use Instagram while older groups in their 30s to 40s will use Facebook. Seniors might require an email campaign or advertising on specific sites or blogs. Consider how you can incorporate your courses with the social media your learners are most likely to use. Can you sponsor ads there? Have your learners access courses through it?
Learn from what others are doing with their sites, courses, and blogs and be open to trying new things. Look at what’s being done and what isn’t being tried already with their marketing and design. Remember that your competitors, fellow designers, team members, friends, and clients are all potential resources as well.
To make this step most effective, you’ll need to know your target market and industry standards. This is true for much of what you’ll do as an E-learning expert in any domain pertaining to your line of work.
