Clips/ Cover Story

Web-Based Training: An Interactive Approach
By Richard Trombly | The SDP Documentor: Fall 1999

I hear and I forget, I see and I remember, I do and I understand. — Confucius

For many people, using Web-based training is like using a library to learn to perform brain surgery. Sure, all the information is there, and the librarian can point out where it is, but it's still no substitute for medical school.

The Online Learning Revolution

Fortunately, quite a few people are working to improve Web-based training and Kevin Oakes, Chief Learning Officer for Asymetrix, is near the head of the pack. Oakes has a relatively long history in computer-based training industry. In 1992, he founded Oakes Interactive, which developed into one of the largest technology-based training firms. In 1997, Oakes Interactive merged with Asymetrix. Oakes is also the president of Massachusetts Interactive Media Council.

"I really think there is a revolution occurring around online learning," he said. This revolution is well funded. According to Oakes, Michael Milken and Larry Ellison have recently invested one billion dollars into Knowledge Universe, a collection of companies designed to drive lifelong learning.

Ninety-two percent of large organizations plan to implement Web based training in the near future, thereby providing a wide range of opportunities for documentation professionals, graphic artists and programmers, said Oakes. In addition, educational institutions such as the University of Phoenix are rapidly expanding by providing Web-based distance-learning options that weren't conceivable just a few years ago.

Overcoming Online Boredom

The biggest obstacle to computer based learning - boredom - is also being addressed, as Oakes demonstrated to a captivated SDP audience last spring. Oakes explained that Asymetrix had developed a training program to prepare investment brokers for their licensing exams. This may not be the most exciting field of study, but the way the program was designed kept users engaged and alert. The key to this particular training program was the interactivity.

In the first case study, the user played the role of a supervisor who received a complaint about this employee who was managing a client's money. The customer was irate, the employee was a potential crook, there was tension in the air as Oakes had the supervisor make a series of poor decisions. Live actors played the roles of the major characters, but the scenery was computer generated to save money as well as memory.

Four Components of Web-Based Training

This training program also demonstrated four concepts that Oakes said are crucial to a successful Web-based training program. The program must be:

• Measurable
• Motivational
• Realistic
• Relevant

Of the four, the hardest criterion to meet is measurability, Oakes said.

"The biggest bane of training has been trying to measure the return on investment," he explained. "It's always difficult to figure out. Did the training matter? Did it make a difference to the student? Did it make a difference to the organization?" One way to determine if the training made a difference to the student is to build testing into the training program. Oakes said that a student could answer multiple-choice questions or actually demonstrate the ability to perform certain tasks. "In manufacturing environments, the trainee can demonstrate assembling various parts in proper order," he said.

Another example he used was a training program for Microsoft Word, where a student might be asked to make a word boldface, and then be scored by choice of method(s) used to perform this task.

In another Asymetrix product, one creative way of scoring was to have the user accumulate "booster crystals" in a science-fiction adventure game for the Prudential insurance company.

According to Oakes, that particular product was very successful in the male-dominated world of insurance.

The game was fun to play, and because agents competed against each other they were motivated to use the training program, he said.

The training program for investment brokers motivated users because it was very realistic, and very engaging.

Another motivational tool is to produce training material that the user actually needs - "just in time" instead of "just in case." "We have too much of the lengthy 'just in case' training," Oakes said. "Online learning allows you to learn what you want, when you want it, and access it right away, even on the job."

Traditional vs. Web-Based Learning

Web-based and computer-based training is particularly amenable to "just in time" learning, Oakes said. With many programs, users can study at their own rates and in convenient locations - all without the high cost of having instructors on-call, ready to fly to the side of the person needing help.

However, there will still be a need for human instruction in the future, Oakes added. "The last thing we want to say with online learning is that everything has to be online learning," he said, "Traditional classroom trainers who have technical skills will be more relevant than ever in the future."

Web-based training does have several advantages over traditional instructor-led training. With instructor led training, there are delivery costs of instructor and materials, travel costs, scheduling conflicts, unequal knowledge base of class participants, and different learning rates.

But even Web-based training costs money. Oakes said that a typical price for one hour of "seat time" can range from $10,000 to S 100,000. "It's similar to creating a 30-second TV commercial," he said. "You can have a guy talking into the camera for 30 seconds for a political commercial, or you can light Michael Jackson's hair on fire and spend $1 million."

There are also places to find free training on the Web. Two popular sites include the Tech Online University at tolu.com, and Ziff Davis University at zdu.com.