A Learning Technologies Framework

How does information technology improve management education: through improving pedagogical processes tied to teaching and learning or through enhancing the interactions between individuals in private and professional networks? How can your institution “learn” from implementations of learning technologies in other organizations and other markets? A Learning Technologies Framework can be applied to help faculty and administration alike understand how learning technologies can potentially enhance their institution’s value proposition in management education.

The axes of the Learning Technologies Framework can serve as optical frames to elucidate specific value propositions. The “value” of learning technologies in management education can’t be seen solely in either simple processes or complex networks. Learning processes are the result of both an institutional desire to formalize learning, and managerial desire to automate transactions and generalize value propositions to individuals and in the market. Learning networks are the result of how individuals interact in different learning places: whether they are inside the classroom, in workgroups or in communities. Since the introduction of learning technologies inherently impact patterns of behaviour in both formal processes and informal networks, value propositions need to take into account the specifics of learning paths, organizations and markets.

The different processes we’ve identified (profiling, administration, development, delivery, assessment, and placement) form the horizontal axis of the Learning Technologies Framework. The generic typologies of learning networks (based on the individual, the traditional classroom, the university experience and social networks) provide the vertical axis. In mapping the current use of learning technologies along one axis and then the other, institutions can gain insight into how information technology affects organizational behaviour in any one institution. In comparing this map with the generic possibilities of learning technologies in management education as a whole, faculty and administration can identify and discuss opportunities for potential value in the future.

Figure 3 The Learning Technologies Framework – generic opportunities

	Profiling	Admin	Development	Delivery	Assessment	Placement
Individual	Psychometric testing interview questionnaire		case studies / virtual groups / discussion boards	self-teach eModules / website addresses / electronic articles / webcasts / telephone pres'n	combination of methods used moth virtual and face-to-face.
Classroom	"Open Day's"	case studies / work groups	case studies / work groups	lectures / videos	Attendance, participation, submitted assignments, live presentations
Programme or University Experience	testimonials Online newsletter Smart advertising	contact database sync and asynch communication, file sharing, online calendars, photo galleries		webcasts	Self-assessment, coaching, and collaboration with place of work	on-line chats / discussion boards
Social networks	Demo courses. Virtual "Open Day" Action based learning activities.	participant management system Social communication and announcements	virtual groups / discussion boards	self-teach eModules / website addresses / electronic articles / webcasts / CD ROM	online testing  Participation tracking iAssignment submissions. coaching, self-assessment. feedback. Commenting tools

After Alan Rushton,

Adam Mendelson

Cranfield

University

The two axes of the Learning Technologies Framework are not road maps for driving organizational change forward, but rather a pair of reading glasses to help faculty and administration understand what choices make sense in the context of specific value propositions. The juxtaposition of maps of current use and benchmarks from other institutions doesn’t represent “current” and “future” states of the organization, but a storyline for discussing the characters, the vision, the challenges, and the moral of the story of using learning technologies to improve management education. Particular stores will ring “true” when they mirror and enhance institutional strategy, beliefs, and resources.