Section 4: Human Performance Technology

Chapter 14 discusses the concept of the evolution of human performance improvement. Several sections of chapter 14 present a variety of non-instructional solutions to performance problems. Identify a performance problem in your area of work and provide a non-instructional solution to solve the problem.

As an ESOL teacher, one of the problems that I saw in the teaching of LEP students was a disconnect between what the teacher expects the student to learn and what the student takes as value from the lesson.  Several years ago, as part of a cadre of professional development designers and presenters, I attended a SIOP (Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol) training workshop presented by the authors of the model.  One of the key elements of the model was the explicit written expression of both language and content objectives. This concept intrigued me.  Thus when I returned to my classroom, I began posting the both language and content objectives, having the students write them down in their journals, and reviewing them at the close of class.  This simple activity proved extremely successful.  My students were then able to make a connection between what I wanted them to learn and what the lesson was. 

Chapter 15 presents several definitions of electronic performance support systems. In addition to these definitions, locate a few more and indicate your preference explaining why you prefer it. Additionally, describe why you believe EPSS have not been widely used and if they are more likely be become more prevalent in the future. 

A computer system that provides quick assistance and information without requiring prior training to use it. It may incorporate all forms of multimedia delivery as well as AI techniques such as expert systems and natural language recognition.   Taken from PC Mag.com

An integrated electronic environment that is available to and easily accessible by each employee and is structured to provide immediate individualized on-line access to the full range of information software guidance advice and assistance data images tools and assessment and monitoring systems to permit job performance with minimal support and intervention by others. –Gloria Gery

I prefer the Gery definition of EPSS because it is a clearer explanation of what is actually expected of the system.  The PC Mag definition leaves the potential user believing that no prior training is required.  This thinking is fundamentally flawed and assumes a technical knowledge that the end-user may not possess. 

The most obvious deterrent to implementing an EPSS is the resistance to change.  The process requires, as stated in the text, a change in both productivity and management style.  Additionally, lack of wide-spread knowledge may preclude users from envisioning the potential positive impact on performance.

As the world becomes more and more entrenched in technical design, I believe that EPSS will ultimately gain in popularity and become more accepted. 

Knowledge management is the way we manage information, share that information, and use it. Organizations, such as schools, are full of information/data and we must organize that data in a way that we can make sense of it. We use data to make decisions and good data=good decision-making. Identify a real or hypothetical problem in your line of work. How might a blended learning approach, including the use of a knowledge management system, be use to solve the problem? 

The inability to effectively manage our collective knowledge within public schools is a systemic shortcoming in most schools.  Often the issue is not that no one knows what to do, but that the information is divided, much like random puzzle pieces.  The function, therefore, of the Knowledge Management System is to put the pieces of the puzzle together in a central location, so that the parts create a cohesive whole. 

An easy example of this in my department comes in scheduling.  As LEP students have different needs than other students, the ESOL department has created a curriculum that deviates from that of the general education student.  Scheduling of students, however, is done by the Counseling department.  Often times, the goals of the Counseling department, to graduate a student in four years, is in juxtaposition to the goals of the ESOL department, to assure that students have adequate language skills to be successful in general education courses.  The effective implementation of a Knowledge Management System could create an environment where the information held by and the goals of both departments are combined. 

Describe the types of informal learning you have been exposed to in your adult life. What was the purpose? What was the experience like? Was it engaging? Social? What role did you play? What role did the instructor play? 

Informal learning by definition is self-motivated.  When teachers share knowledge and expand their horizons in a natural environment they create a more valued work experience.  A reverse example of this happened in my school.  There are several departments that met informally to discuss shared students, both superior and problem students.  The administration found that those departments had an overall better relationship with their students, and consequently the students performed better.  Thus, they wanted to formalize the experience.  In doing so they created mandated times and forms and specific learning objectives to be covered in each meeting.  The result was that teachers were resentful and ultimately spent more time understanding the process than they did brainstorming effective strategies for their students.   As stated in the text, there is a time and place for both formal and informal learning and sharing of information.  It is important to value the benefits of each.