Outstanding E-Learning
Acción International case study
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“It was an amazing experience to work with the Monarch Media team. They got what we were looking for and got what we needed. They created an eLearning course that’s simple to use, but tackles some really challenging content.”
— Lynne Curran, head of Human Resources and Training
ACCIÓN International
To overcome this challenge, ACCIÓN has begun using eLearning courses that allow its staff to access educational materials on their computers. Leadership development, however, has traditionally been difficult to present online. “Leadership training involves trying to orient people to share a common language and exercise an ability, rather than simply gaining some knowledge,” says Claire Schneeberger, CEO of Monarch Media. “You’re not just trying to get people to understand the definition of leadership or to grasp and memorize new factual information. You’re really trying to develop and practice some pretty advanced skills.”
Because the leadership development curriculum provides so much value to ACCIÓN’s staff, Curran wanted to see if the challenges of turning it into an eLearning course could be overcome. She decided to start with the program’s first module, which sets the stage for the other nine. “It really helps people become aware of what they’re doing and why they’re doing things the way they are,” she says. “It helps them understand and better work with others, which also improves their leadership abilities.”
Creating the Course
When presented in person, the first module of ACCIÓN’s leadership development program includes participation in a DISC (Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness) assessment, a psychological inventory that examines how individuals behave in their environments. DISC assessments are frequently used in workplaces to help employees understand their own and their teammates’ work styles and preferences. The module also included substantial time for participants to discuss their beliefs and feelings about leadership.
Feedback from training participants has shown that these two activities are the ones that provide the greatest value. But they are also very difficult to accomplish in an eLearning environment. “I thought it might be impossible to put this course online because of the self-awareness pieces,” Curran says. “How do you include them without doing it in the classroom?”
Schneeberger points out that in most eLearning courses, developers can recreate some of the feeling of classroom discussion by using Web-based community tools, such as discussion boards and blogs. But because some ACCIÓN staffers don’t have regular access to the Internet and must take eLearning courses on CD-ROM, Monarch Media’s developers couldn’t use these tools.
To overcome these challenges, Monarch Media’s team of instructional designers and Web developers created a virtual discussion group as the first activity in the training. They used a diverse team of voiceover actors to record dialog taken from various sessions of the in-person leadership development training. This allows learners to gain insight by hearing the perspectives and thoughts of other ACCIÓN employees, just as they would during a face-to-face discussion session. “We tried to bring in real voices,” recalls Schneeberger. “We’re capturing and simulating that experience of being in a room with 10 other people. “
Monarch Media also used a number of interactive exercises that help course participants conduct self-assessments based on DISC methods. “The training asks a lot of people,” says Schneeberger. “It’s very reflective and asks a lot of questions. It asks people to demonstrate their knowledge of the DISC framework.”
To create these segments and assessments, Monarch Media’s team used Articulate’s suite of eLearning authoring tools. This software allows developers to rapidly build interactive, Flash-based pages and activities. By leveraging these tools, Monarch’s programmers were also able to keep development costs low.