The E-Learning Council would like to put out a call for articles and resources on the following topics.  We will compile the articles and resources into an online book on this website for use by our community.  We will of course give full credit and a link to your website if you wish.  If you have a resource or article to contribute (or would like to suggest a new topic) please contact us.

Getting Started with E-Learning

Defining E-Learning

• Fundamental Split Between E-learning for HR and E-learning for Business Units
• Informal Learning and Why It’s Important
• Blended Learning

Business Issues with E-Learning

• Assessing Your Company’s E-Learning Readiness – culturally and technologically
• What kinds of problems/business issues can e-learning address?
• Copyright, Intellectual Property, Digital Rights Management

Instructional Design for E-Learning

• ADDIE Process (Analyze, Design, Develop, Implement, Evaluate)
• What is Instructional Design?
• What does an Instructional Designer Do?
• Storyboarding
• Action Mapping
• Templates
• Converting Traditional Courses to E-Learning
• Design Considerations
• Learner Assessments
• Amount of Content Created
• Level of Interactivity
• Type of media used
• Data Tracking Requirements
• Technical Skill Level
• Ease of Updating
• Accessibility
• Technology mash-ups to create new learning environments

Rapid E-learning

• How fast is rapid?
• What are the different strategies for developing rapid capability in an organization?
• What projects are suitable?
• What’s the production model and implementation techniques?
• Which are the best tools?
• What’s a rapid project life cycle and who’s on the team?
• What are your experiences and challenges?
• How effective is rapid content versus traditional e-learning content?

E-Learning Development Technology

• Learning Management System
• Functional, technical and commercial requirements
• Content Creation Tools
• Rapid Development Tools

Games and Simulations

M-learning

• Getting Ready for Mobile Learning

Social Networking – Web 2.0 Technologies

• Explain technologies and their use in the classroom and professional development
• Tools: blogs, wikis, podcasts, etc.

Standards

• SCORM
• AICC
• Accessibility
• Usability
• Instructional Design

E-Learning Deployment

• Delivery Method—Internet, Intranet, CD Delivery
• Technical Considerations
• Bandwidth
• Browsers/OS
• Required plug-ins or players
• Setting minimum system requirements

Marketing Your E-learning

• Launching a program, creating continuous promotions
• Evaluation
• How to measure the value of learning
• Finding the right metrics

I was reading an interesting article Knowledge in Numbers:  Communities of practice enjoy renewed popularity by Jennifer J. Salopek in T+D magazine (July 2008 issue) which highlights the characteristics of a Community of Practice.  According to Etienne Wenger, who first used the term in 1988, communities of practice are defined by 3 characteristics:

1. Domain:  A community of practice depends on a shared domain of interest by its members and a committment to that domain–a community of practice is not just a neighborhood or network.
2. Community:  Interaction, discussion, information, sharing and mutual assistance are vital elements of a community of practice. 
3. Practice:  Wenger emphasizes that members of a community of practice a practitioners.  “They develop a shared repertoire of resources, experiences, stories, tools, and ways of addressing recurring problems–in short a shared practice.”

The article goes on to say that it is crucial to provide multiple platforms for interaction, such as face-to-face meetings, teleconferences, and video conferences. 

I believe the E-Learning Council can grow into a very successful community of practice.  However, to be successful, I think we need to increase the feeling of community–the desire to provide mutual assistance.   At the moment we have a few people contributing.  We need to dramatically increase the number of people and the depth of the contribution.

Companies across Austin are gearing up for the 11th annual Accessibility Internet Rally (AIR) competition. AIR-Austin brings more than 120 Web professionals together to create or improve web sites for Austin-area non-profits that serve health, human services, environmental and arts missions in Central Texas. Since 1998, more than 250 non-profits have received professionally designed websites through their participation in the annual web raising competition.

“AIR-Austin has made a huge difference over the past 10 years, providing countless people with disabilities better access to information and better use of the Internet as a tool for improving their lives,” said Andres Carvallo, Austin Energy Chief Information Officer and Chair of AIR-Austin 2008. “We encourage companies to get involved in this initiative. It is a great way to assist the community and to learn techniques for web site accessibility that can be applied universally.”

AIR-Austin is produced by Knowbility, a national non-profit organization working to improve the availability of accessible information technology so that those with disabilities have greater options to learn, work and fully participate as producers and consumers. Austin is home to about 75,700 individuals with disabilities between the ages of five and 64. This includes some 11,000 AISD special education students.

The number of online opportunities to work, to learn, to shop and to communicate have dramatically increased in recent years. Knowbility’s AIR-Austin program helps raise awareness of the need to include everyone in these critical opportunities. Technology volunteers learn how and why to design with accessibility in mind and nonprofit organizations gain professionally designed accessible websites and free hosting. Last year, web sites for 13 such non-profits were built or improved though the Austin event.

Over the past 10 years, local and national Austin companies such as Dell, IBM, TradeMark Media, Hoovers, Convio, Elemental Blend, and many others have returned each year to volunteer their time and skills to create rich, vibrant, accessible web sites for nonprofit groups. Nearly 250 non-profit organizations have participated and benefited from AIR-Austin including Capitol Reach Out and Read, the Central Texas Library System, the Nonprofit Center, Keep Austin Beautiful, the Ann Richards School, Texas TERA and the Austin Technology Council, just to name a few.

AIR-Austin 2008 will be held October 18, 2008. Registration for Web Development Teams and Non-profits is now open online.

Join AIR-Austin 2008. Your company will learn valuable new skills, improve access to information for all, and help to make this the most successful year ever.