eLearning - December 2008/January 2009 - (Page 33) LETSI and the Future of SCORM HOW 2.0 IS BEING GROOMED BY A WIDE-RANGING COALITION OF STAKE-HOLDERS B Y AV R O N B A R R The International Federation for LearningEducation-Training Systems Interoperability (LETSI) has established a goal of assuring that the next wave of on-line learning is based on open software standards. For technology to have the kind of impact on education and training that it has had in other sectors, dramatic changes will be required — changes to vendors’ product lines, to publishers’ business models, and to the institutions themselves. In corporations, one might deliver new product training to an international sales force or offer instructions for filling out the new travel expense voucher. The cost effectiveness of on-line training versus classroom instruction is driving growth. In public schools, e-learning adoption has been slow. However, there is an exploding use of e-learning in home schooling, private schools, and for-profit online programs. These innovators use technology to offer a broader curriculum that they otherwise could, and to assure that their offerings meet specific state requirements. These new educational institutions are finally starting the technology-driven revolution in schooling we’ve expected for 30 years. It is ironic that technology has changed every other aspect of our lives, from shopping to finding a mate, but has yet failed to realize its full potential to improve learning throughout the world. Amazing technical innovations are being explored in different parts of the learning industry: >> simulation-based learning activities in aviation and health-care training; >> game-based learning scenarios in military training; >> talent management systems and skill’s portfolios in corporate HR; >> virtual worlds as educational forums for employees and customers; >> Web 2.0 technologies for collaborative learning in college courses; >> catalogs of on-line learning activities from textbook publishers; >> One Laptop Per Child and wireless networks for the developing world. TAKING ANOTHER STEP But technological innovation alone will not ensure that e-learning finally realizes its potential. Schools and their supporting industries must evolve, or else succumb to competition that uses technology more effectively. Trying to protect the status quo by tying up key intellectual property won’t work any better in education and training than it did in the music industry. And yet major software companies, textbook publishers, and institutions of higher education are tempted to define proprietary software standards that attempt to lock in their current business models. LETSI is not a typical trade association. It is a coalition of e-learning vendors, adopters, associations and policymakers who believe that open standards and an open source software community are key to realizing technology’s promise in education and job training. It sees the unrealized potential of learning technology and believes that a modern, open Elearning! December 2008/January 2009 33
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