OMDE 608 Learner Support in Distance Education and Training
An introduction to the theories and concepts of support for learners in distance education and training. The various types of learner support—including tutoring and teaching; advising and counseling; and library, registrarial and other administrative services—are examined. Discussion addresses management issues such as planning, organizational models, staffing and staff development, designing services to meet learner needs, serving special groups and evaluation and applied research. Assignments include designing a learner support model for a particular context (e.g., public or private educational institution or corporate or military training).
Course Attendance: Fall Semester 2008 (September - December)
Professor: Jane Brindley
Final Grade: A
Papers: Annotated Bibliographies on Learner Support in DE and Training
Tait’s (2004) article on the Management of Services to Students
General Motors : A case study on Distance Education (Group)
Professor: Jane Brindley
Final Grade: A
Papers: Annotated Bibliographies on Learner Support in DE and Training
Tait’s (2004) article on the Management of Services to Students
General Motors : A case study on Distance Education (Group)
Annotated Bibliographies of Learner support in Distance Education September 28th 2008
Berge, Z. L. (1995). The role of the online instructor/facilitator. E-Moderators.com. Retrieved September 18th, 2008, from: http://www.emoderators.com/moderators/teach_online.html
This article discusses the role of online instructors, and offers recommendations for successful online instruction. The author stresses the importance of the instructor creating an environment in which interaction with content and interpersonal interaction occurs. The roles and responsibilities of the instructor are categories into four areas: pedagogical, social, managerial, and technical. Within each of these areas, the article provides a brief definition and a list of specific recommendations to create a successful online instructional environment. This article provides both new and experienced online instructors with some excellent practical tips in creating an effective online teaching environment.
Blaschke, L.M. (2004). Sustaining online collaboration: Seven lessons for application in the Volkswagen AutoUni. In U. Bernath & A. Szücs (Eds.), Proceedings of the 3rd EDEN Research Workshop Oldenburg, March 4-6, 2004, (pp. 388-394). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
This paper presents the current research and best practices in e-learning and online collaboration for the Volkswagen’s AutoUni training organization. The author defines seven important lessons for sustaining collaborative efforts in online environments. Each lesson is described clearly, founded on scholarly literature, and linked to organizational benefits. This paper offers the reader a comprehensive set of practical principles that can be used to ensure successful collaboration within an online environment.
Brindley, J. E. (1995). Learner services: Theory and practice, In Distansutbildning I itveckling, Rapport nr. 11 (pp. 23-34). Umea, Sweden: University of Umea.
This paper presents a theoretical framework for developing learner support services. A systematic approach is taken by integrating learner support services into the learning process as oppose to an “add-ons” to the system. The development of the framework includes a systematic identification and evaluation of the contextual considerations, establishing the goals of intervention, which leads to the intervention services offered. The author recognizes the complexities of building an intervention model, yet offers a sound and comprehensive framework of strategies and issues, from which a model can be developed. The paper succeeds in achieving its objective of provoking a thoughtful discussion of the link between theory and practice in learner services, and encouraging practitioners to make the transition to teaching/learning models which are truly learner centered.
Brindley, J.E., Walti, C., & Zawacki-Richter, O. (2004). The current context of learner support in open, distance and online learning: An introduction. In J.E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online environments (pp. 9-27), Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssytem der Universität Oldenburg.
This article is the introductory chapter to the book: Learner support in open, distance and online environments. The chapter is composed of three sections; the first section provides an overview of the history and scope of learner support activities. The second section provides a definition and description of a comprehensive set of distance learning and support terms. The third section provides a synopsis of the book chapters and the three keynote addresses in the 3rd European Distance Education Network (EDEN) Workshop which is attached in a DVD. This chapter provides an excellent overview of learner support and builds a solid foundation to the discussion topics in the book.
Johnson, M. (2004). Enhancing study skills: Developing self-help materials for distance learners. In J. E. Brindley, C.Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online learning environments (pp. 117-124). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
In a discussion of the study skill needs of distance education students, this chapter argues that institutions should offer study skills material in addition to, and separate from, course material. The author described the successful introduction of UK Open University Student Toolkit project which introduced, free of charge, printed booklets of ten unique study skills to aid their students. The author maintains that a web-based version should be developed, although the format would need to be modified into small pick and mix bite-sized chunks. This chapter offers a convincing argument to the need for self help study skills material and is a good introduction into the subject.
George, L., & Frank, I. (2004). Beyond books - Library services to distance education students. In J. E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online learning environments (pp. 135-143). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
This chapter stresses the need for students to develop information literary competencies. Information literacy is defined as the ability to identify an information need, and the ability to locate, evaluate, and effectively use the information. This competency is strongly linked to critical thinking skills, and viewed as an essential component of life-long learning skills. The chapter discusses some of the challenges of teaching information literacy to students, and offers UMUC’s library as an excellent array of instructional resource material that are aimed at distance education students. There is an additional discussion of the need for the library to market their services and partner with faculty. This chapter offers a convincing argument for the need to develop information competency skills and provides some tangible suggestions to accomplish this task.
Granger, D., & Benke, M. (1998). Supporting learners at a distance from inquiry through completion. In C. C. Gibson (Ed.), Distance learners in higher education (pp. 127-137). Madison, WI: Atwood Publishing.
This chapter offers strategies for supporting distance education learners from their enrollment through to graduation. The suggested strategies are founded on the principle that student support services be adaptive to the unique goals of students. As such the recommendations are based on the concepts of knowing your students, supporting their decision to return to education, and preparing them to be successful learners. The article provides the reader with practical ideas and strategies to develop a comprehensive, student-centric, learner support system.
LaPadula, M. (2003). A comprehensive look at online student support services. American Journal of Distance Education, 17 (2), pp. 119-128.
This article describes a quantitative research study conducted at the New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) to determine student satisfaction with online support services. A literature review of a wide range of online services is presented in three categories: academic advising/career counseling, personal/mental health counseling, and services that promote a sense of community. The research study which consisted of a survey of NYIT online students found that the students were generally satisfied with their support services but that they would like additional support services in areas such as social services, academic advising/career counseling, technical assistance, and personal/mental health counseling. The article provides a good discussion of online services in comparison with campus-based student support services. However the survey is suspect as it provided students’ interest in online services but not there likelihood of use, plus no financial consideration were addressed.
Lefoe, G., Gunn, G., & Hedberg, J. (2002). Recommendations for teaching in a distributed learning environment: The students' perspective. Australian Journal of Educational Technology, 18(1), 40-56. Retrieved September 19th, 2008, from http://www.ascilite.org.au/ajet/ajet18/lefoe.html
This paper presents a qualitative case study of students’ perceptions of the implementation issues in the inaugural year of a distributed learning environment at the University of Wollongong. The emerging issues were categorized into four major themes: pedagogical, technological, learning support and administrative issues. For each of the four issues, a table is presented of the specific issue, the students’ comments, and the action required resolving the issue. The paper provides some insight into the challenges of implementing a new distributed learning environment, however because the case study is limited to a small population of students in Australia, it may not be a comprehensive representation of the issues in a North American or European environment.
Naidu, S. (2004). Supporting learning with creative instructional design. In J.E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online environments (pp. 109-116), Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssytem der Universität Oldenburg.
This chapter presents five instructional design models which integrate proactive cognitive strategies to provide an effective and supportive learning environment for students. The author draws on a literature review of “learning scaffolds” to guide and develop desirable cognitive skills in students. This discussion leads to a presentation of five cognitive strategies: story-centered learning, problem-based learning, critical incident-based learning, design-based learning, and role play-based learning. While each of these strategies are each based upon the principle of ‘learning by doing’. The article suggests that supporting student learning needs to be seen as a proactive process rather than a reaction to learning problems that are encountered by students. Each of the models presented are clear, easy to follow, and well supported by scholarly literature.
Rekkedal, T. (2004). Internet based e-learning, pedagogy and support systems. In J.E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online environments (pp. 71-93), Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssytem der Universität Oldenburg.
This chapter provides a scholarly review of internet based e-learning literature specifically related to defining and integrating student support services. The review topics included definitions of online education, e-learning pedagogical issues, student drop-out research and student support. The pedagogical issue discussion centered on three distance education theory groupings: theory of autonomy and independence, theory of industrialization and the theory of interaction and communication. Three models of student drop out were discussed, and the results of early research studies of the reasons why students drop out were presented. These discussions led to a review of student support services highlighted by a comprehensive virtual university student support services reference model. Rekkedal’s article provides an excellent literature review of pertinent theories and models in distance education and online student support services.
Shea, P., & Armitage, S. (2003). Beyond the administrative core: Creating web-based student services for online learners. The Western Cooperative for Educational Telecommunications (WCET). Retrieved September 14th, 2008, from the World Wide Web: http://www.wcet.info/services/studentservices/beyond/index.asp
This website provides a model for developing web-based student services for online learners that extend beyond those solely within the administrative core. The presentation is the outcome of a three year collaborative project between three educational institutions, a corporate software developer and an educational government association. The website provides a comprehensive review of the project’s guiding principles, methodology, results, and lessons learned. The project partners present a comprehensive and visually powerful graph illustrating the broad spectrum and interconnectivity of student services for online learners. In addition, the website provides a broad array of links to articles, presentations, and conferences discussing a wide variety of online student services.
Simpson, O. (2004). Retention and course choice in distance learning. In U. Bernath & A. Szücs (Eds.), Proceedings of the 3rd EDEN Research Workshop Oldenburg, March 4-6, 2004, (pp. 381-387). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
Based upon the assertion that course choice is an important factor in student retention, this article explores various means by which students make course choices. The course choice methods discussed in this article are being based upon course titles and descriptions, course choice advisors, other student opinions, course preview material and diagnostic materials. The article maintains that the two methods most predominately currently used, course descriptions and advice from course choice advisors, are not very effective. Alternative methods discussed were inviting past students to post their comments on the course in an open website, providing sample course “taster” packs to prospective students, and utilizing diagnostic assessment tools to determine the student’s suitability to a particular course. The article provides the reader with alternative ideas to effective course choice selection but is not very conclusive.
Tesch, P.C. (2004). Ethics in distance education. In U. Bernath & A. Szücs (Eds.), Proceedings of the 3rd EDEN Research Workshop Oldenburg, March 4-6, 2004, (pp. 481-484). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
This paper discusses some of the ethical challenges associated with distance education. The ethical challenges discussed are plagiarism, participant integrity, and the importance of articulating values and respecting the learner participants. The author argues that while the ethical standards for distance education students compared to classroom students are not different, the ethical standard and norms for distance education students are still in their infancy and require much more attention. The paper argues that the teacher must clearly define the rules, reinforce ethical behaviors and react to non-ethical behaviors. While this article provides a general discussion of some general ethical challenges in distance education, it is poorly written, and the mélange of potential ethical issues are based on minimal, to no, academic research.
Walti, C. (2004). Implementing web-based portfolios and learning journals as learner support tools: An illustration. In J. E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online learning environments (pp. 157-168). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
This chapter presents the educational benefits and implementation challenges of introducing web-based learning portfolios and learning journals within the Master of Distance Education (MDE) program at the University of Maryland University College (UMUC). Learning portfolios are defined as a goal driven, collection of items (artifacts) that demonstrate the learner’s expansion of knowledge and skills over time. Learning journals are an intentional reflection to facilitate and support the development of insight, cognitive awareness and critical thinking. The author asserts that these two tools enable students to develop meta-cognitive skills, build self-confidence, and become independent self-directed learners. The MDE program experiences have highlighted the need to encourage students to maintain a portfolio throughout the program, and to introduce additional support initiatives including a portfolio tutorial. The chapter provides the reader with a strong case to implement web-based learning portfolios and learning journals into an educational program, although the implementation challenges appear to be daunting to a prospective course student.
This article discusses the role of online instructors, and offers recommendations for successful online instruction. The author stresses the importance of the instructor creating an environment in which interaction with content and interpersonal interaction occurs. The roles and responsibilities of the instructor are categories into four areas: pedagogical, social, managerial, and technical. Within each of these areas, the article provides a brief definition and a list of specific recommendations to create a successful online instructional environment. This article provides both new and experienced online instructors with some excellent practical tips in creating an effective online teaching environment.
Blaschke, L.M. (2004). Sustaining online collaboration: Seven lessons for application in the Volkswagen AutoUni. In U. Bernath & A. Szücs (Eds.), Proceedings of the 3rd EDEN Research Workshop Oldenburg, March 4-6, 2004, (pp. 388-394). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
This paper presents the current research and best practices in e-learning and online collaboration for the Volkswagen’s AutoUni training organization. The author defines seven important lessons for sustaining collaborative efforts in online environments. Each lesson is described clearly, founded on scholarly literature, and linked to organizational benefits. This paper offers the reader a comprehensive set of practical principles that can be used to ensure successful collaboration within an online environment.
Brindley, J. E. (1995). Learner services: Theory and practice, In Distansutbildning I itveckling, Rapport nr. 11 (pp. 23-34). Umea, Sweden: University of Umea.
This paper presents a theoretical framework for developing learner support services. A systematic approach is taken by integrating learner support services into the learning process as oppose to an “add-ons” to the system. The development of the framework includes a systematic identification and evaluation of the contextual considerations, establishing the goals of intervention, which leads to the intervention services offered. The author recognizes the complexities of building an intervention model, yet offers a sound and comprehensive framework of strategies and issues, from which a model can be developed. The paper succeeds in achieving its objective of provoking a thoughtful discussion of the link between theory and practice in learner services, and encouraging practitioners to make the transition to teaching/learning models which are truly learner centered.
Brindley, J.E., Walti, C., & Zawacki-Richter, O. (2004). The current context of learner support in open, distance and online learning: An introduction. In J.E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online environments (pp. 9-27), Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssytem der Universität Oldenburg.
This article is the introductory chapter to the book: Learner support in open, distance and online environments. The chapter is composed of three sections; the first section provides an overview of the history and scope of learner support activities. The second section provides a definition and description of a comprehensive set of distance learning and support terms. The third section provides a synopsis of the book chapters and the three keynote addresses in the 3rd European Distance Education Network (EDEN) Workshop which is attached in a DVD. This chapter provides an excellent overview of learner support and builds a solid foundation to the discussion topics in the book.
Johnson, M. (2004). Enhancing study skills: Developing self-help materials for distance learners. In J. E. Brindley, C.Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online learning environments (pp. 117-124). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
In a discussion of the study skill needs of distance education students, this chapter argues that institutions should offer study skills material in addition to, and separate from, course material. The author described the successful introduction of UK Open University Student Toolkit project which introduced, free of charge, printed booklets of ten unique study skills to aid their students. The author maintains that a web-based version should be developed, although the format would need to be modified into small pick and mix bite-sized chunks. This chapter offers a convincing argument to the need for self help study skills material and is a good introduction into the subject.
George, L., & Frank, I. (2004). Beyond books - Library services to distance education students. In J. E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online learning environments (pp. 135-143). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
This chapter stresses the need for students to develop information literary competencies. Information literacy is defined as the ability to identify an information need, and the ability to locate, evaluate, and effectively use the information. This competency is strongly linked to critical thinking skills, and viewed as an essential component of life-long learning skills. The chapter discusses some of the challenges of teaching information literacy to students, and offers UMUC’s library as an excellent array of instructional resource material that are aimed at distance education students. There is an additional discussion of the need for the library to market their services and partner with faculty. This chapter offers a convincing argument for the need to develop information competency skills and provides some tangible suggestions to accomplish this task.
Granger, D., & Benke, M. (1998). Supporting learners at a distance from inquiry through completion. In C. C. Gibson (Ed.), Distance learners in higher education (pp. 127-137). Madison, WI: Atwood Publishing.
This chapter offers strategies for supporting distance education learners from their enrollment through to graduation. The suggested strategies are founded on the principle that student support services be adaptive to the unique goals of students. As such the recommendations are based on the concepts of knowing your students, supporting their decision to return to education, and preparing them to be successful learners. The article provides the reader with practical ideas and strategies to develop a comprehensive, student-centric, learner support system.
LaPadula, M. (2003). A comprehensive look at online student support services. American Journal of Distance Education, 17 (2), pp. 119-128.
This article describes a quantitative research study conducted at the New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) to determine student satisfaction with online support services. A literature review of a wide range of online services is presented in three categories: academic advising/career counseling, personal/mental health counseling, and services that promote a sense of community. The research study which consisted of a survey of NYIT online students found that the students were generally satisfied with their support services but that they would like additional support services in areas such as social services, academic advising/career counseling, technical assistance, and personal/mental health counseling. The article provides a good discussion of online services in comparison with campus-based student support services. However the survey is suspect as it provided students’ interest in online services but not there likelihood of use, plus no financial consideration were addressed.
Lefoe, G., Gunn, G., & Hedberg, J. (2002). Recommendations for teaching in a distributed learning environment: The students' perspective. Australian Journal of Educational Technology, 18(1), 40-56. Retrieved September 19th, 2008, from http://www.ascilite.org.au/ajet/ajet18/lefoe.html
This paper presents a qualitative case study of students’ perceptions of the implementation issues in the inaugural year of a distributed learning environment at the University of Wollongong. The emerging issues were categorized into four major themes: pedagogical, technological, learning support and administrative issues. For each of the four issues, a table is presented of the specific issue, the students’ comments, and the action required resolving the issue. The paper provides some insight into the challenges of implementing a new distributed learning environment, however because the case study is limited to a small population of students in Australia, it may not be a comprehensive representation of the issues in a North American or European environment.
Naidu, S. (2004). Supporting learning with creative instructional design. In J.E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online environments (pp. 109-116), Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssytem der Universität Oldenburg.
This chapter presents five instructional design models which integrate proactive cognitive strategies to provide an effective and supportive learning environment for students. The author draws on a literature review of “learning scaffolds” to guide and develop desirable cognitive skills in students. This discussion leads to a presentation of five cognitive strategies: story-centered learning, problem-based learning, critical incident-based learning, design-based learning, and role play-based learning. While each of these strategies are each based upon the principle of ‘learning by doing’. The article suggests that supporting student learning needs to be seen as a proactive process rather than a reaction to learning problems that are encountered by students. Each of the models presented are clear, easy to follow, and well supported by scholarly literature.
Rekkedal, T. (2004). Internet based e-learning, pedagogy and support systems. In J.E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online environments (pp. 71-93), Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssytem der Universität Oldenburg.
This chapter provides a scholarly review of internet based e-learning literature specifically related to defining and integrating student support services. The review topics included definitions of online education, e-learning pedagogical issues, student drop-out research and student support. The pedagogical issue discussion centered on three distance education theory groupings: theory of autonomy and independence, theory of industrialization and the theory of interaction and communication. Three models of student drop out were discussed, and the results of early research studies of the reasons why students drop out were presented. These discussions led to a review of student support services highlighted by a comprehensive virtual university student support services reference model. Rekkedal’s article provides an excellent literature review of pertinent theories and models in distance education and online student support services.
Shea, P., & Armitage, S. (2003). Beyond the administrative core: Creating web-based student services for online learners. The Western Cooperative for Educational Telecommunications (WCET). Retrieved September 14th, 2008, from the World Wide Web: http://www.wcet.info/services/studentservices/beyond/index.asp
This website provides a model for developing web-based student services for online learners that extend beyond those solely within the administrative core. The presentation is the outcome of a three year collaborative project between three educational institutions, a corporate software developer and an educational government association. The website provides a comprehensive review of the project’s guiding principles, methodology, results, and lessons learned. The project partners present a comprehensive and visually powerful graph illustrating the broad spectrum and interconnectivity of student services for online learners. In addition, the website provides a broad array of links to articles, presentations, and conferences discussing a wide variety of online student services.
Simpson, O. (2004). Retention and course choice in distance learning. In U. Bernath & A. Szücs (Eds.), Proceedings of the 3rd EDEN Research Workshop Oldenburg, March 4-6, 2004, (pp. 381-387). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
Based upon the assertion that course choice is an important factor in student retention, this article explores various means by which students make course choices. The course choice methods discussed in this article are being based upon course titles and descriptions, course choice advisors, other student opinions, course preview material and diagnostic materials. The article maintains that the two methods most predominately currently used, course descriptions and advice from course choice advisors, are not very effective. Alternative methods discussed were inviting past students to post their comments on the course in an open website, providing sample course “taster” packs to prospective students, and utilizing diagnostic assessment tools to determine the student’s suitability to a particular course. The article provides the reader with alternative ideas to effective course choice selection but is not very conclusive.
Tesch, P.C. (2004). Ethics in distance education. In U. Bernath & A. Szücs (Eds.), Proceedings of the 3rd EDEN Research Workshop Oldenburg, March 4-6, 2004, (pp. 481-484). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
This paper discusses some of the ethical challenges associated with distance education. The ethical challenges discussed are plagiarism, participant integrity, and the importance of articulating values and respecting the learner participants. The author argues that while the ethical standards for distance education students compared to classroom students are not different, the ethical standard and norms for distance education students are still in their infancy and require much more attention. The paper argues that the teacher must clearly define the rules, reinforce ethical behaviors and react to non-ethical behaviors. While this article provides a general discussion of some general ethical challenges in distance education, it is poorly written, and the mélange of potential ethical issues are based on minimal, to no, academic research.
Walti, C. (2004). Implementing web-based portfolios and learning journals as learner support tools: An illustration. In J. E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online learning environments (pp. 157-168). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
This chapter presents the educational benefits and implementation challenges of introducing web-based learning portfolios and learning journals within the Master of Distance Education (MDE) program at the University of Maryland University College (UMUC). Learning portfolios are defined as a goal driven, collection of items (artifacts) that demonstrate the learner’s expansion of knowledge and skills over time. Learning journals are an intentional reflection to facilitate and support the development of insight, cognitive awareness and critical thinking. The author asserts that these two tools enable students to develop meta-cognitive skills, build self-confidence, and become independent self-directed learners. The MDE program experiences have highlighted the need to encourage students to maintain a portfolio throughout the program, and to introduce additional support initiatives including a portfolio tutorial. The chapter provides the reader with a strong case to implement web-based learning portfolios and learning journals into an educational program, although the implementation challenges appear to be daunting to a prospective course student.
Support of Tait (2004) article on the Management of Student services October 21st 2008
Introduction
Moore & Kearsley (2005) assert that “we are in the middle of a Copernican revolution” (p.20) as open and distance learning (ODL) creates a shift from teacher centric to student centric education. In recognizing this shift, Tait (2004) argues that education institutions now need to be viewed within the framework of the service industry, and in doing so, operate under sound customer-focused business practices. This paper supports this premise, and provides a synopsis of Tait’s (2004) article followed by a discussion and critique of the three major article sections: distance education as part of the service industry, management of staff, and the management of systems.
Synopsis of Tait (2004) Article
Tait (2004) argues that although education and business have historically not been linked together, there has been a deliberate shift by governments over the past 20 years to “diminish the autonomy of education as an activity which exists for its own sake, and to bend it more closely to serving a purpose, generally economic, of the state” (p.205). This shift is resulting in education being viewed as a part of the service industry where students are seen as consumers or customers, and less as students of knowledge.
Given this business perspective, Tait discusses at a number of key attributes of successfully managing an open and distance learning (ODL) service business. First, he asserts that interaction with the customers (students) is invisible to the higher management, and thus the selection, training, mentoring, and supervision and appraisal of the staff (faculty, tutors, support staff), is critical to the success of an ODL business. Second, as with any business entity, efficiency is essential, as such an ODL business managers needs to be able to manage systems. This management capability encompasses expertise in managing technologies, record keeping and data management, communication management, complaint procedures, and audit and inspection.
Distance Education as part of the Service Industry
Nunam et al. (2000) asserts that “universities are moving from scholarly ivory towers to information corporations….this paradigm shift is described as a shift from a culture of production to one of consumption” ( p. 87). This is especially true in the area of ODL where there is a higher degree of competitiveness due to the fact that technology enables access to students anywhere in the world, and the students are generally adults who are paying for their education. The shift to a student centric environment has led to the learner being the center of the universe where “teaching no longer drives learning: instead, teaching responds to and supports learning” (Moore & Kearsley, 2005, p.20).
The competitive nature of education has resulted in “student in ODL being constructed as the customer” (Tait, 2000, p. 288). The student, as a consumer of education, has now started to question the return of investment for their education dollars (Nalewaja Van Vorhiss & Falkner, 2004) demanding a high quality of education and support services, at an affordable price.
A student centric educational environment supports Tait’s (2004) assertion that ODL should be set within a framework of a service industry, where student needs are the primary objective. This service industry mindset requires the application of good business practices in creating management processes to deliver effective and useful services to students. As Tait (2004) article indicates the core of good business practices is the management of staff, and the management of systems.
Management of Staff
Tait’s (2004) discussion on the management of staff provides a good discussion on a number of important human resource management practices, however there are two serious omissions. The first omission is the importance of leadership. Beaudoin (2007) argues that “the future of distance education is ultimately not so much about enhancing technology or improving pedagogy, but rather about managing change” (p.92). The change to a student centric service environment requires leaders who are transformational and “provide clear energizing visions and define or redefine the core values and goals of their organization” (Latchem and Hanna, 2001, p.57). This transformational leadership style is especially important in a service industry where the staff, who are the point of contact with students, are not visible to management. The university leadership “defines the vision, mission, goals, and objectives for the institution or program regarding distance learning” (Moore & Kearsley, 2005, p.187). These policies and directions set the tone for facilitating effective student learning in all aspects of the educational experience by committing the organization to support the student (Moore & Kearsley, 2005; Holmberg, 2005). This direction is put into place by:
The second area of omission by Tait (2004) is student class/faculty evaluations. As in any service industry business receiving feedback from the customer is an essential component of understanding how one is doing, and the areas for further attention. While some faculty members have negative views of student evaluations, “research has found that student evaluations of faculty teaching are reliable measures” (Obenchain et al., 2001).
Management of Systems
Tait’s (2004) discussion of management of systems reflects an application of sound business principles and models to the ODL business. Heskett et al. (1997) outlines a strategic service vision which enables companies to link profit and growth to customer loyalty, satisfaction, and value. The strategic model is founded on the premise that business needs and results should be defined in terms of the needs of the customer, which require “operating strategies comprising of controls, operating policies, and processes that leverage value to the customer” (p.8). The Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award links customer value through a series of system process which starts with leadership and flows through a holistic set of business process: information & analysis, strategic quality planning, human resource development & management, management of process quality, and operational results (Gale, 1994). Table 1 provides an analysis of the Tait (2004) article against the Malcolm Baldridge criteria.
Malcolm Baldridge Quality Process
Tait’s (2004) Analysis
Leadership Not covered
Information & Analysis Record keeping & Data Management
Strategic Quality Planning Management of Systems
Tailoring systems to technology
Human resource management Management of Staff: appointment, induction, training, mentoring,
supervision & appraisal, teamwork, value driven management.
Management of process quality Communications Mapping & Management
Audit and inspection
Operational results Not covered
Customer focus & satisfaction Complaint procedure
No direct customer feedback.
Table 1: Comparison of Tait (2004) article against the Malcolm Baldridge criteria
The analysis in Table 1 indicates that the Tait (2004) covers most of the Malcolm Baldridge Quality criteria with the exception of leadership, operational results, and a complete feedback mechanism on customer satisfaction. Leadership which was discussed in the previous section is essential in setting the tone of the organization through creating and reinforcing values, setting goals and expectations, and in reviewing overall performance (Weimerskirch, 1996). In a non-profit educational environment, operational results could include student enrollment, student retention, percentage of student who graduate, percentage of graduate students who find jobs in their fields, financial grants and educational awards. As in any business, it is essential that educational institutions set specific goals and objectives and consistently measure themselves against these expectations. Tait (2004) indirectly touches on gathering customer (student) feedback through his discussion on institution-student communications, and the complaint procedure, but does not discuss the development of a comprehensive customer feedback system. In order to create and maintain customer value, a business in the service industry needs a proactive customer focused system to gather feedback from its customers and employees. Such systems incorporate customer and employee satisfaction and dissatisfaction surveys, environmental scanning of customer trends, competitive comparisons, and direct customer comments and complaints.
Conclusion
Tait’s (2004) article reflects the current realities of education, and especially open and distance education, which is highly competitive with a demanding customer (student) base. These realities mean that ODL education institutions must be founded on sound business practices that have been defined and developed by successful companies within the service industry. These business practice all focus their organizational practices and process around developing customer value. This analysis found that Tait’s (2004) article discussed many of the good business practices required to be a successful ODL educational institution. The key omission’s being leadership, setting and measuring operational goals and developing a holistic system to gain customer feedback. However with these exceptions, this paper provides a good foundation for the development of sound ODL business practices.
Reference
Beaudoin, M. (2007). DE Leadership - Appraising Theory & Advancing Practice, In M Beaudoin, Reflections on Research in Distance Education (pp. 91-101). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
Heskett, J.L., Sasser, W.E., Schlesinger, L.A. (1997). The service profit chain: How leading companies link profit and growth to loyalty, satisfaction, and value. New York: The Free Press.
Holmberg, B. (2005). The evolution, principles and practices of distance education. Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
Gale, B.T. (2004). Managing customer value. New York: The Free Press.
Latchem, C. & Hanna, D.E. (2001) Leadership in open and flexible learning. In Latchem, C. & Hanna, D.E. (Eds,), Leadership for 21st century learning: Global perspectives from educational innovators (pp. 53-62). London: Kogan Page Ltd.
Moore, M. G. & Kearsley, G. (2005). Distance education: A systems view. (2nd ed). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Nalewaja Van Vorhiss, S., Falkner, T.M. (2004). Transformation of Student Services: The process and challenge of change. In J. E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online learning environments (pp. 205-217). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
Nunan, T., George,R., McCausland,H.(2000). Rethinking the ways in which teaching & learning are supported: the flexible learning centre at the University of South Africa. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, Vol. 22 (1), 85-100.
Obenchain, K.M., Abernathy, T.V.,Wiest, L.R. (2001). The Reliability of Students' Ratings of Faculty Teaching Effectiveness. College Teaching. Vol. 49 (3) p.100-108.
Tait, A. (2004). Management of services to students. In J. E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online learning environments (pp. 205-217). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
Tait, A. (2000). Planning Student Support for Open and Distance Education. Open Learning, Vol. 15 (3), 287-299.
Weimerskirch, (1996). Baldridge for the Baffled: A friendly guide to the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Criteria. Honeywell Inc
Moore & Kearsley (2005) assert that “we are in the middle of a Copernican revolution” (p.20) as open and distance learning (ODL) creates a shift from teacher centric to student centric education. In recognizing this shift, Tait (2004) argues that education institutions now need to be viewed within the framework of the service industry, and in doing so, operate under sound customer-focused business practices. This paper supports this premise, and provides a synopsis of Tait’s (2004) article followed by a discussion and critique of the three major article sections: distance education as part of the service industry, management of staff, and the management of systems.
Synopsis of Tait (2004) Article
Tait (2004) argues that although education and business have historically not been linked together, there has been a deliberate shift by governments over the past 20 years to “diminish the autonomy of education as an activity which exists for its own sake, and to bend it more closely to serving a purpose, generally economic, of the state” (p.205). This shift is resulting in education being viewed as a part of the service industry where students are seen as consumers or customers, and less as students of knowledge.
Given this business perspective, Tait discusses at a number of key attributes of successfully managing an open and distance learning (ODL) service business. First, he asserts that interaction with the customers (students) is invisible to the higher management, and thus the selection, training, mentoring, and supervision and appraisal of the staff (faculty, tutors, support staff), is critical to the success of an ODL business. Second, as with any business entity, efficiency is essential, as such an ODL business managers needs to be able to manage systems. This management capability encompasses expertise in managing technologies, record keeping and data management, communication management, complaint procedures, and audit and inspection.
Distance Education as part of the Service Industry
Nunam et al. (2000) asserts that “universities are moving from scholarly ivory towers to information corporations….this paradigm shift is described as a shift from a culture of production to one of consumption” ( p. 87). This is especially true in the area of ODL where there is a higher degree of competitiveness due to the fact that technology enables access to students anywhere in the world, and the students are generally adults who are paying for their education. The shift to a student centric environment has led to the learner being the center of the universe where “teaching no longer drives learning: instead, teaching responds to and supports learning” (Moore & Kearsley, 2005, p.20).
The competitive nature of education has resulted in “student in ODL being constructed as the customer” (Tait, 2000, p. 288). The student, as a consumer of education, has now started to question the return of investment for their education dollars (Nalewaja Van Vorhiss & Falkner, 2004) demanding a high quality of education and support services, at an affordable price.
A student centric educational environment supports Tait’s (2004) assertion that ODL should be set within a framework of a service industry, where student needs are the primary objective. This service industry mindset requires the application of good business practices in creating management processes to deliver effective and useful services to students. As Tait (2004) article indicates the core of good business practices is the management of staff, and the management of systems.
Management of Staff
Tait’s (2004) discussion on the management of staff provides a good discussion on a number of important human resource management practices, however there are two serious omissions. The first omission is the importance of leadership. Beaudoin (2007) argues that “the future of distance education is ultimately not so much about enhancing technology or improving pedagogy, but rather about managing change” (p.92). The change to a student centric service environment requires leaders who are transformational and “provide clear energizing visions and define or redefine the core values and goals of their organization” (Latchem and Hanna, 2001, p.57). This transformational leadership style is especially important in a service industry where the staff, who are the point of contact with students, are not visible to management. The university leadership “defines the vision, mission, goals, and objectives for the institution or program regarding distance learning” (Moore & Kearsley, 2005, p.187). These policies and directions set the tone for facilitating effective student learning in all aspects of the educational experience by committing the organization to support the student (Moore & Kearsley, 2005; Holmberg, 2005). This direction is put into place by:
- Hiring faculty, counselors and general administration staff who are student centric and empathic.
- Providing an effective student support infrastructure to offer such services as student counseling, course registration, financial aid, distribute course material, and administer assignment and examination logistics.
The second area of omission by Tait (2004) is student class/faculty evaluations. As in any service industry business receiving feedback from the customer is an essential component of understanding how one is doing, and the areas for further attention. While some faculty members have negative views of student evaluations, “research has found that student evaluations of faculty teaching are reliable measures” (Obenchain et al., 2001).
Management of Systems
Tait’s (2004) discussion of management of systems reflects an application of sound business principles and models to the ODL business. Heskett et al. (1997) outlines a strategic service vision which enables companies to link profit and growth to customer loyalty, satisfaction, and value. The strategic model is founded on the premise that business needs and results should be defined in terms of the needs of the customer, which require “operating strategies comprising of controls, operating policies, and processes that leverage value to the customer” (p.8). The Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award links customer value through a series of system process which starts with leadership and flows through a holistic set of business process: information & analysis, strategic quality planning, human resource development & management, management of process quality, and operational results (Gale, 1994). Table 1 provides an analysis of the Tait (2004) article against the Malcolm Baldridge criteria.
Malcolm Baldridge Quality Process
Tait’s (2004) Analysis
Leadership Not covered
Information & Analysis Record keeping & Data Management
Strategic Quality Planning Management of Systems
Tailoring systems to technology
Human resource management Management of Staff: appointment, induction, training, mentoring,
supervision & appraisal, teamwork, value driven management.
Management of process quality Communications Mapping & Management
Audit and inspection
Operational results Not covered
Customer focus & satisfaction Complaint procedure
No direct customer feedback.
Table 1: Comparison of Tait (2004) article against the Malcolm Baldridge criteria
The analysis in Table 1 indicates that the Tait (2004) covers most of the Malcolm Baldridge Quality criteria with the exception of leadership, operational results, and a complete feedback mechanism on customer satisfaction. Leadership which was discussed in the previous section is essential in setting the tone of the organization through creating and reinforcing values, setting goals and expectations, and in reviewing overall performance (Weimerskirch, 1996). In a non-profit educational environment, operational results could include student enrollment, student retention, percentage of student who graduate, percentage of graduate students who find jobs in their fields, financial grants and educational awards. As in any business, it is essential that educational institutions set specific goals and objectives and consistently measure themselves against these expectations. Tait (2004) indirectly touches on gathering customer (student) feedback through his discussion on institution-student communications, and the complaint procedure, but does not discuss the development of a comprehensive customer feedback system. In order to create and maintain customer value, a business in the service industry needs a proactive customer focused system to gather feedback from its customers and employees. Such systems incorporate customer and employee satisfaction and dissatisfaction surveys, environmental scanning of customer trends, competitive comparisons, and direct customer comments and complaints.
Conclusion
Tait’s (2004) article reflects the current realities of education, and especially open and distance education, which is highly competitive with a demanding customer (student) base. These realities mean that ODL education institutions must be founded on sound business practices that have been defined and developed by successful companies within the service industry. These business practice all focus their organizational practices and process around developing customer value. This analysis found that Tait’s (2004) article discussed many of the good business practices required to be a successful ODL educational institution. The key omission’s being leadership, setting and measuring operational goals and developing a holistic system to gain customer feedback. However with these exceptions, this paper provides a good foundation for the development of sound ODL business practices.
Reference
Beaudoin, M. (2007). DE Leadership - Appraising Theory & Advancing Practice, In M Beaudoin, Reflections on Research in Distance Education (pp. 91-101). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
Heskett, J.L., Sasser, W.E., Schlesinger, L.A. (1997). The service profit chain: How leading companies link profit and growth to loyalty, satisfaction, and value. New York: The Free Press.
Holmberg, B. (2005). The evolution, principles and practices of distance education. Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
Gale, B.T. (2004). Managing customer value. New York: The Free Press.
Latchem, C. & Hanna, D.E. (2001) Leadership in open and flexible learning. In Latchem, C. & Hanna, D.E. (Eds,), Leadership for 21st century learning: Global perspectives from educational innovators (pp. 53-62). London: Kogan Page Ltd.
Moore, M. G. & Kearsley, G. (2005). Distance education: A systems view. (2nd ed). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Nalewaja Van Vorhiss, S., Falkner, T.M. (2004). Transformation of Student Services: The process and challenge of change. In J. E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online learning environments (pp. 205-217). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
Nunan, T., George,R., McCausland,H.(2000). Rethinking the ways in which teaching & learning are supported: the flexible learning centre at the University of South Africa. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, Vol. 22 (1), 85-100.
Obenchain, K.M., Abernathy, T.V.,Wiest, L.R. (2001). The Reliability of Students' Ratings of Faculty Teaching Effectiveness. College Teaching. Vol. 49 (3) p.100-108.
Tait, A. (2004). Management of services to students. In J. E. Brindley, C. Walti, & O. Zawacki-Richter (Eds.), Learner support in open, distance and online learning environments (pp. 205-217). Oldenburg: Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem der Universität Oldenburg.
Tait, A. (2000). Planning Student Support for Open and Distance Education. Open Learning, Vol. 15 (3), 287-299.
Weimerskirch, (1996). Baldridge for the Baffled: A friendly guide to the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Criteria. Honeywell Inc
General Motors: A case study on Distance Education November 25th 2008
Authors: Carter, K.C., Ruddek, C.,Smith D.,Suarez, C., Sudol, T., Tippe, R.W.
Introduction
Founded a century ago, General Motors (GM) is a global automobile production company that employs over 250,000 workers . GM requires substantial occupational training to maintain operations and has developed a variety of ways to train its employees including ‘subcontracting’ to private universities and the creation of a self-contained learning institution, General Motors University (GMU). Global collaboration is currently a top priority for GM. Through ICT, the company can recruit, hire, and train, a culturally and educationally diverse workforce worldwide. This workforce can help GM to meet its goals of engineering and manufacturing for a “greener” GM, maintaining employee and public safety, and effectively cutting costs during these challenging times (GM Corporate Responsibility, 2007). GM’s philosophy surrounding workforce learning and development is, “Learning enables business performance through the development of mission-critical skills and capability” (Corp Resp Report, para. 2).
GM Learner Characteristics
GM’s size and scope place heavy demands on the GM training department to meet a broad spectrum of learner needs. The learner characteristics breakdown into three general categories:
1) Employees with a strong educational background (graduate and undergraduate) who need to continuously learn leading edge-techniques to enhance their personal and organizational effectiveness; these employees are very comfortable with learning and utilizing educational technology.
2) Employees with a solid educational background (undergraduate and high-school) who GM wants to train in company management, process and technology techniques; these employees are typically at the first or middle-management level and fairly comfortable with learning and utilizing technology.
3) Employees with high-school or lower education whom GM wants to train in job-specific tasks; these employees have limited educational and technological skills and thus require a high level of support.
GM Training
Key learning outcomes for GM employees are focused on areas such as: foundation skills training, job-specific/process-related training and techniques, management/leadership development, and on-the-job training (GMU, para. 8). GM’s longstanding commitment to employees has resulted in an extensive array of employee training resources. On a broad scale, GM has three mechanisms for facilitating education and training to its global workforce:
1) An in-house university.
2) Partnerships with top-ranked universities around the world.
3) A partnership with the United Workers of America (UWA) union to provide lifelong learning opportunities to current employees, their families, and retirees; and also to retrain laid-off workers.
GM University
The GM University (GMU) is one of the largest corporate educational programs in the world having 14 colleges that facilitate GM’s technical/managerial training programs (GMU, para. 3). In total, GMU offers 3,200 courses to its employees. The 2005/2006 corporate responsibility report explains that:
“In 2005, more than 600,000 participants, including GM employees and dealers, received approximately 1.7 million hours of training with 23 percent of the hours spent in traditional classrooms, 34 percent on web-based learning, and nearly 43 percent on DL. By increasing the use of e-learning and DL, GM saved approximately $8 million in productivity costs.” (GM Corporate Responsibility, 2007)
GMU Partnerships & Joint Development Programs
To augment its educational infrastructure, GM has built many strategic alliances. Such alliances have been formed between “global networks of leading universities, e-learning companies, and technology companies,” and contribute greatly to the company’s success (Clarke & Hermens, 2001, p. 257). Examples of these alliances are those between GM and: Georgia-based Gwinnett Technical College (GTC), Grantham University (GU), United Auto Workers (UAW), Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC), and Ellis College. Gwinnett’s website (2008) advertises several programs for potential GM mechanics to attend in order to become certified repair technicians or to prepare for various other employment opportunities with GM.
In the case of the UAW, GM has developed a joint program allowing workers, families, and retirees to access a variety of lifelong learning opportunities. This program is aimed at helping employees strengthen basic scholastic skills, earn college degrees, better apply their technical skills and knowledge at work, and strengthen employee job security (UAW-GM Education website, 2008). Through various training courses, each of these colleges seeks to help employees build professional skills that can be linked to improved individual performance and increased business results.
GMU Europe
GMU Europe has developed 600 e-learning courses in multiple languages which can be accessed through GM’s internal intranet, Socrates. GMU intranet, Socrates, provides training and information 24/7 and allows employees access to communications and self-service applications from anywhere in the world. Since its creation in 2001 this tool has been providing a fully-personalized portal into every GM key process (Castiglione, 2008). Other distance learning formats include live one-way video, two-way audio and interactive keypads for quiz sessions (GM 2005/2006 Corporate Responsibility Report).
GM has twenty-seven training employees based in different European countries who work with GMU North American to implement global curricula and training to GMU Europe. GM has also begun efforts to train its most reliable local parts suppliers in Europe for the purpose of expanding their technological capabilities (Mayer, 2007). By providing this training to suppliers in Europe, and increasing worker proficiency, GM theorizes it saves considerable time and cost by producing higher quality parts and subassemblies closer to the point of consumption.
An example of these online classes is GM's Technical Education Program, a global corporate-sponsored continuing education program. GM employees in the field of engineering and manufacturing are supported by the company which covers tuition, registration fees, admission costs and reference books. In addition, this program partners with nearly 24 universities around the world (GM Tech Education, 2008).
Another initiative to promote learning among GM employees is, “GM’s home for corporate blogs”. These blogs cover seven topics of interest in the area of vehicles, leadership, driving and more, some of which have been created by GM employees and others which allow public access (http://www.gmblogs.com).
Challenges
The major challenge that the GMU currently faces is financial resources. The significant competitive challenges in the automobile industry plus the recent global financial meltdown have resulted in a major organizational crisis (CNN, 2008). The expectation is that GMU’s financial budget will be extensively cut, requiring a lay-off of staff plus a significant overhaul of its complete program to reduce costs. The program overhaul is expected to significantly reduce the number of courses offered, to rapidly shift to the most cost-effective course delivery method, to reduce support facilities, and to reduce educational funding to universities and tuition assistance. These reductions will undoubtedly have a significant impact on the morale and motivation of both the training staff and learners.
In order to increase its chances of sustaining itself in the global marketplace, and maintaining a strong presence in the United States, GM must cut costs while increasing the functionality of its product. This can only be done by building a strong research base in automotive engineering and sharing this with the global marketplace. Pacepartners.org, which was initiated at Michigan State University in 1991, is involved in this process. Today, there are 20 schools in the United States and 20 international schools—with newly opened PACE institutions in China and India. Pacepartners.org is about GMs commitment to global technological advancement. Over the decades GM has developed an efficient training and leadership infrastructure that addresses the needs of employees with all levels of cultural and educational backgrounds. Given the current financial crisis, it would be wise for GM to focus on increased global education and networking through consortiums and partnerships. This may strengthen the company’s presence in the US.
Opportunities
GM identified an urgent need to develop leaders in key international markets who were capable of delivering exceptional business results within a short time of taking on profit and loss responsibility in their roles as Managing Directors. Their answer to this was a two-day course facilitated by the CEO and six members of the GM Strategy Board. During the two days, the Managing Directors are tasked with solving real-time business challenges. This program has met GM’s business goals better than the old program – which instead sent managers and executives to external universities (Managing Directors Summary, para, 2).
Conclusion
From the perspective of the DE professional, the development of GM’s expansive training enterprise to date is surely a success story – but how will the company maintain this training superstructure as it begins to face considerable financial challenges? While GM’s core learners are its employees and dealer partners, its global business strategies sometimes necessitate that GM provide training to new and different audiences or take different approaches to training its traditional learners. Due to contemporary solvency concerns, while GM constantly seeks to maintain its business in the US and abroad, it must do so in a manner that continues to produce measurable results and is cost-efficient to deliver. These initiatives must now be accomplished in a rigidly cost-effective manner (perhaps by decreasing the training hours spent in the classroom and increasing the hours spent using distance learning methods) – and the execution of this plan will certainly present corporate leadership with quite a challenge over the upcoming months/years.
References:
American Society for Training & Development. (2008). 2003 Award winners: Excellence in Workplace Learning and Performance. Retrieved November 03,2008, from http://www.astd.org/NR/rdonlyresBDC2ACD0-4FB1-440A-8B66- E4C645B9F70E/0/020404awardbook.pdf
Al-YamamahCollege. (2004). General Motors to set up auto-training centre in Saudi Arabia. Retrieved November 3, 2008, from http://www.alyamamah.edu.sa/newsdetail.php?nid=972
Bolch, M. (2006). Bearing fruit. Society for Human Resource Web. Retrieved November 03, 2008, from http://www.shrm.org/hrmagazine/articles/0306/0306bolch.asp
Clarke, T., Hermens, A. (2001). Corporate developments and strategic alliances in e-learning. Education + Training, 43(4/5), 256-267. doi10.1108/00400910110399328
Davenport, R. (2005). Listen up!. American Society for Training & Development Web. Retrieved November 03, 2008, from http://www.astd.org/NR/rdonlyres/7A17F103-17A2-4944-9396-B9456092F93C/0/Oct2005_trends_astdmember.pdf
General Motors Corporation. (2007). 2005/06 Corporate responsibility report. Retrieved October 30, 2008, from http://www.gm.com/corporate/responsibility/reports/06/700_ social/4_forty/740.html
General Motors University. (2008). Life at GM. Retrieved October 30, 2008, from http://www.gm.com/corporate/careers/life_at_gm.jsp?p=gmu
Grantham University. (2008). General Motors Approved Course List. Retrieved October 30, 2008, from http://www.grantham.edu/other/gm_courses.php
Gwinnet Technical College. (n.d.). General Motors ASEP program. Retrieved October 30, 2008, from http://www.gwinnetttech.com/auto/content.cfm?PageCode=programs_outline&ProgRamOutlineID=346
Gwinnet Technical College. (n.d.). List of programs and outlines. Retrieved October 30,2008, from http://www.gwinnetttechnicalcollege.com/content.cfm?PageCode=programs_list &keywords=&DepartmentID=75
Lerman, R. (2008). Building a wider skills net for workers. University of Dallas at Texas Web. Retrieved November 03, 2008, from http://www.issues.org/24.4/lerman.html
Lord, M. (2007). GM shifts gears. American Society for Engineering Education Web. Retrieved Nov 3, 2008, from http://www.prism-magazine.org/nov07/feature_GM- design.cfm
Mayer, B. (2007, December 03). GM and Ford train suppliers in Russia. Automotive News. Retrieved November 03, 2008, from http://www.autonews.com/
Next Generation Manufacturing. (2008). Mission critical. Retrieved November 03, 2008, from http://www.ngmanufacturing.com/currentissue/article.asp?art=26508&issue=160
Nixon, J., Helms, M. (2002). Corporate universities vs. higher education institutions.Industrial and Commercial Training, 34(4), 144-150. doi: 10.1108/00197850210429129
Terlep, S., Jones, D. (2008, November 03). GM's October sales slide likely to exacerbate cash concerns. CNN Money. Retrieved November 3, 2008, fromhttp://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/djf500/200811031559DOWJONESDJONLINE000545_FORTUNE5.htm
UAW-GM Join Activity System. (2007). Education & training. Retrieved October 30, 2008, from https://www.uawgmjas.org/j/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=14 &Itemid=44
UAW Local 909. (1999). Education committee report. Retrieved October 30, 2008, from http://www.uawlocal909.org/Standing_Committees/educom.htm
UAW-GM Join Activity System. (2007). UAW-GM Scholarship program for dependent children. Retrieved October 30, 2008, from https://www.uawgmjas.org/j/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_view&gi d=30
Zonneveld, J. (2007). GM Dealer Training Goes Global. Human Resource Management International Digest 15(4). Retrieved November 03, 2008, from Emerald database.
Founded a century ago, General Motors (GM) is a global automobile production company that employs over 250,000 workers . GM requires substantial occupational training to maintain operations and has developed a variety of ways to train its employees including ‘subcontracting’ to private universities and the creation of a self-contained learning institution, General Motors University (GMU). Global collaboration is currently a top priority for GM. Through ICT, the company can recruit, hire, and train, a culturally and educationally diverse workforce worldwide. This workforce can help GM to meet its goals of engineering and manufacturing for a “greener” GM, maintaining employee and public safety, and effectively cutting costs during these challenging times (GM Corporate Responsibility, 2007). GM’s philosophy surrounding workforce learning and development is, “Learning enables business performance through the development of mission-critical skills and capability” (Corp Resp Report, para. 2).
GM Learner Characteristics
GM’s size and scope place heavy demands on the GM training department to meet a broad spectrum of learner needs. The learner characteristics breakdown into three general categories:
1) Employees with a strong educational background (graduate and undergraduate) who need to continuously learn leading edge-techniques to enhance their personal and organizational effectiveness; these employees are very comfortable with learning and utilizing educational technology.
2) Employees with a solid educational background (undergraduate and high-school) who GM wants to train in company management, process and technology techniques; these employees are typically at the first or middle-management level and fairly comfortable with learning and utilizing technology.
3) Employees with high-school or lower education whom GM wants to train in job-specific tasks; these employees have limited educational and technological skills and thus require a high level of support.
GM Training
Key learning outcomes for GM employees are focused on areas such as: foundation skills training, job-specific/process-related training and techniques, management/leadership development, and on-the-job training (GMU, para. 8). GM’s longstanding commitment to employees has resulted in an extensive array of employee training resources. On a broad scale, GM has three mechanisms for facilitating education and training to its global workforce:
1) An in-house university.
2) Partnerships with top-ranked universities around the world.
3) A partnership with the United Workers of America (UWA) union to provide lifelong learning opportunities to current employees, their families, and retirees; and also to retrain laid-off workers.
GM University
The GM University (GMU) is one of the largest corporate educational programs in the world having 14 colleges that facilitate GM’s technical/managerial training programs (GMU, para. 3). In total, GMU offers 3,200 courses to its employees. The 2005/2006 corporate responsibility report explains that:
“In 2005, more than 600,000 participants, including GM employees and dealers, received approximately 1.7 million hours of training with 23 percent of the hours spent in traditional classrooms, 34 percent on web-based learning, and nearly 43 percent on DL. By increasing the use of e-learning and DL, GM saved approximately $8 million in productivity costs.” (GM Corporate Responsibility, 2007)
GMU Partnerships & Joint Development Programs
To augment its educational infrastructure, GM has built many strategic alliances. Such alliances have been formed between “global networks of leading universities, e-learning companies, and technology companies,” and contribute greatly to the company’s success (Clarke & Hermens, 2001, p. 257). Examples of these alliances are those between GM and: Georgia-based Gwinnett Technical College (GTC), Grantham University (GU), United Auto Workers (UAW), Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC), and Ellis College. Gwinnett’s website (2008) advertises several programs for potential GM mechanics to attend in order to become certified repair technicians or to prepare for various other employment opportunities with GM.
In the case of the UAW, GM has developed a joint program allowing workers, families, and retirees to access a variety of lifelong learning opportunities. This program is aimed at helping employees strengthen basic scholastic skills, earn college degrees, better apply their technical skills and knowledge at work, and strengthen employee job security (UAW-GM Education website, 2008). Through various training courses, each of these colleges seeks to help employees build professional skills that can be linked to improved individual performance and increased business results.
GMU Europe
GMU Europe has developed 600 e-learning courses in multiple languages which can be accessed through GM’s internal intranet, Socrates. GMU intranet, Socrates, provides training and information 24/7 and allows employees access to communications and self-service applications from anywhere in the world. Since its creation in 2001 this tool has been providing a fully-personalized portal into every GM key process (Castiglione, 2008). Other distance learning formats include live one-way video, two-way audio and interactive keypads for quiz sessions (GM 2005/2006 Corporate Responsibility Report).
GM has twenty-seven training employees based in different European countries who work with GMU North American to implement global curricula and training to GMU Europe. GM has also begun efforts to train its most reliable local parts suppliers in Europe for the purpose of expanding their technological capabilities (Mayer, 2007). By providing this training to suppliers in Europe, and increasing worker proficiency, GM theorizes it saves considerable time and cost by producing higher quality parts and subassemblies closer to the point of consumption.
An example of these online classes is GM's Technical Education Program, a global corporate-sponsored continuing education program. GM employees in the field of engineering and manufacturing are supported by the company which covers tuition, registration fees, admission costs and reference books. In addition, this program partners with nearly 24 universities around the world (GM Tech Education, 2008).
Another initiative to promote learning among GM employees is, “GM’s home for corporate blogs”. These blogs cover seven topics of interest in the area of vehicles, leadership, driving and more, some of which have been created by GM employees and others which allow public access (http://www.gmblogs.com).
Challenges
The major challenge that the GMU currently faces is financial resources. The significant competitive challenges in the automobile industry plus the recent global financial meltdown have resulted in a major organizational crisis (CNN, 2008). The expectation is that GMU’s financial budget will be extensively cut, requiring a lay-off of staff plus a significant overhaul of its complete program to reduce costs. The program overhaul is expected to significantly reduce the number of courses offered, to rapidly shift to the most cost-effective course delivery method, to reduce support facilities, and to reduce educational funding to universities and tuition assistance. These reductions will undoubtedly have a significant impact on the morale and motivation of both the training staff and learners.
In order to increase its chances of sustaining itself in the global marketplace, and maintaining a strong presence in the United States, GM must cut costs while increasing the functionality of its product. This can only be done by building a strong research base in automotive engineering and sharing this with the global marketplace. Pacepartners.org, which was initiated at Michigan State University in 1991, is involved in this process. Today, there are 20 schools in the United States and 20 international schools—with newly opened PACE institutions in China and India. Pacepartners.org is about GMs commitment to global technological advancement. Over the decades GM has developed an efficient training and leadership infrastructure that addresses the needs of employees with all levels of cultural and educational backgrounds. Given the current financial crisis, it would be wise for GM to focus on increased global education and networking through consortiums and partnerships. This may strengthen the company’s presence in the US.
Opportunities
GM identified an urgent need to develop leaders in key international markets who were capable of delivering exceptional business results within a short time of taking on profit and loss responsibility in their roles as Managing Directors. Their answer to this was a two-day course facilitated by the CEO and six members of the GM Strategy Board. During the two days, the Managing Directors are tasked with solving real-time business challenges. This program has met GM’s business goals better than the old program – which instead sent managers and executives to external universities (Managing Directors Summary, para, 2).
Conclusion
From the perspective of the DE professional, the development of GM’s expansive training enterprise to date is surely a success story – but how will the company maintain this training superstructure as it begins to face considerable financial challenges? While GM’s core learners are its employees and dealer partners, its global business strategies sometimes necessitate that GM provide training to new and different audiences or take different approaches to training its traditional learners. Due to contemporary solvency concerns, while GM constantly seeks to maintain its business in the US and abroad, it must do so in a manner that continues to produce measurable results and is cost-efficient to deliver. These initiatives must now be accomplished in a rigidly cost-effective manner (perhaps by decreasing the training hours spent in the classroom and increasing the hours spent using distance learning methods) – and the execution of this plan will certainly present corporate leadership with quite a challenge over the upcoming months/years.
References:
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