Formal e-learning is not enough, Jay Cross tells Kineo

While it would be easy for Jay Cross, as the person who invented the term, to ‘stay on message’ and discuss e-learning for ever more, he’s moving on – or at least, opening the doors to alternative and complementary approaches.

In the audio interview with Stephen Walsh, partner with Kineo, the leading e-learning consultancy, Jay explained why he believes the conversation needs to broaden: “A lot of [e-learning] has been formal learning with a set time and set curriculum…that’s not the way people learn how to do their jobs. 80% of the learning is on the job and there are ways we can get in and make that better. That’s why I’m moving away from the term e-learning and focusing on informal learning….it’s about empowering the learner to make choices.”

Informal learning, Jay noted, is designed to help people get what they need to know, and to go where they need to on their terms, rather than having to learn according to a fixed curriculum - think of it like “riding a bike compared to getting on the bus”. Both have their place, but the effort that’s gone into informal learning to date has been disproportionately low. “If you’re a novice and you don’t know the field, and you need a framework, getting on the bus is probably right…I’m saying we need to devote at least equal time to creating the bike paths”, he commented.

Speed to market is a key reason for changing the model – and the old model of formal learning development, including e-learning, is just too slow, Cross noted. In the coming months, Kineo will announce a new service to enable practitioners in learning to create rapid e-learning, formal and informal, in a new way. Announcements will follow shortly.

You can hear the interview in full on the Kineo website.


About Kineo

Kineo is a leading consultancy practice providing advisory services, research and niche e-learning products to support learning and development teams in the public and private sectors. Founded in November 2005 by Matthew Fox, Mark Harrison, Steve Rayson and Stephen Walsh, Kineo is a limited liability partnership with offices in Brighton.
Our client list includes six FTSE 100 companies and some of the best public sector and voluntary organisations in the UK.

We have a press centre for journalists on our site and are always happy to help with stories and provide commentary on the latest developments in e-learning and blended learning. Our Knowledge Centre provides monthly updates on the latest in learning. More at www.kineo.co.uk

For further information, contact:
Stephen Walsh 07799 064026
Stephen.walsh@kineo.co.uk
Registered Office:
24 Bavant Road, Brighton, East Sussex, BN1 6RD