If I were a venture capitalist, I’d invest in applications and companies that attack the problem of curating content.Content used to be king. The best content attracted attention, consumption and dollars. The quality of your content determined your success.But today, our brains are in a state of constant cognitive overload. I used to struggle to create my content network, whether I was writing a paper in school or looking for news. Now I’m overloaded with blogs, news sites, social networks and all kinds of email. ... [more]
Productivity, project management and time management are persistently recurring topics in the learning and development field. We want to promote these skills with learners but we must set the examples ourselves.Herewith, I set forth my top techniques for getting stuff done. I will happily admit that what works for me may not work for you -- but maybe you’ll find some new ideas. Tune out the world. Creating elearning or writing a blog post or managing an elearning system requires sustained focus, creative thought and both independent and team work. ... [more]
The annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is right up there with ComicCon and Steve Jobs' annual “And one more thing” for exciting geek news. The 2011 CES is no disappointment – tech companies large and small are unleashing innovative devices with great learning applications. Goggles for More than Snowboarding Recon Instruments is showcasing LCD goggles with an Android operating system – enabling developers to create nimble augmented reality apps. The goggles will display Android apps and use BlueTooth capacity to sync communications with mobile devices. ... [more]
Right before the holiday weekend, I joined Quora -- another social network to which I will inevitably become addicted. I have been enjoying prowling through the thoughtful discussions going on there, and particularly enjoying running into Twitter friends there (hey, @mrch0mp3rs!).A recent Quora discussion has prompted me to think about how fragmented the elearning market is, and the implications for all of us working hard to provide better access to learning and development activities.The eLearning Market Is Fragmented First, some numbers. ... [more]
We are proud to use the OpenSesame blog platform to showcase diverse perspectives on the present and future of elearning. We have shared some insightful guest posts from elearning rock stars like Nicole Fougere and Steve Nguyen in this space in the last few months, and we've got some more great ones coming up.Now it's your turn. We invite you to use our blog platform to share your thoughts on these topics, or any others you're thinking about:What tools do you use?What tools would you use, if they only existed?What instructional design theory do you put to use in your day-to-day wor ... [more]
The OpenSesame team believes in collaborating with our technology partners to solve problems and create elegant features for elearning professionals. To that end, we are thrilled to announce the release of the OpenSesame API. Our new read-write API will enable LMS developers to add value to their products through direct integration into the OpenSesame marketplace. Integration for LMS Developers The API will make it possible for LMS developers to integrate the OpenSesame catalog into any LMS. This will create two new opportunities for end users. ... [more]
OpenSesame is using Yammer. I confess that I didn’t think we needed a tech solution to communication and collaboration. After all, we’re a relatively small and very collaborative team. When I have a question, I say it out loud and someone answers me. But we are strong believers in understanding emerging technologies by using them. Clearly, social learning is an emerging technology: So we decided to test-drive Yammer for starters. We like it a lot. For the uninitiated, Yammer looks, acts and feels like Facebook, but is built within a separate domain for your workplace. ... [more]
OpenSesame is building an online marketplace for buying and selling off-the-shelf elearning courses. As we work with course developers, the most common question we hear is, “What courses are in demand?” Here is the product of our latest research. ... [more]
Good design and user interface is only half the battle of creating memorable and effective elearning courses. The other half is making sure that your course contains meaningful information that will produce results for learners. We have some tips on editing and organizing content for course creators who are partnering with subject matter experts or doing independent research. Research Like You Mean It Research begins with needs assessment. Your mission is to identify the problems and challenges your target audience encounters. ... [more]
