I chose to tackle the training needs
associated with example 3. This
particular example has several obstacles to overcome. First, all staff members from every shift
need this safety training. Second, the
safety training needs to include step-by-step processes that are easy to
understand and follow. Third, the shift
supervisors need some guarantees that the staff members are engaged and
actually learning the content enough to be able to demonstrate their learning. I do believe that technology can help
overcome these obstacles. “Emerging
technologies not only enable customization of content, but also customization
of the level of interaction by allowing the learner to choose when and how to
interact” (Beldarrain, 2006, p. 147).
The solution needs to be one that allows users to not only be engaged,
but also choose when and where they want to learn. After considering all of these obstacles, I
thought of one tool that would deliver the results that the manufacturing plant
needs. I say that this is a job for
Brainshark. Allow me to explain what
Brainshark is and how Brainshark will deliver the best training experience.
In short, Brainshark is “the leader in online
and mobile video presentations” (Combined Insurance, 2012). Brainshark is a cloud-based tool that will
allow anyone to develop fully functional and engaging training modules at their
desk. Even with the basic features of
Brainshark, anyone can sit at their desk and create learning modules that
include your own voice as the narrator, your own videos as the instruction and
your own tests and questions to evaluate knowledge gained. In the real world, a company named Combined
Insurance used Brainshark to solve some of their training woes that had
developed due to the mobile nature of their business. As a result of using Brainshark, Combined
Insurance reported that employee engagement and feedback increased (Combined
Insurance, 2012).
“Effective communication requires an active
audience” (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright and Zvacek, 2012, p. 91). By using Brainshark, the manufacturing plant
will be able to communicate the training messages effectively due to the active
nature of the training modules developed in Brainshark. I recently came back from a training
conference that stressed that some of the best training is peer-to-peer
training. I propose that the shift
supervisors film a series of step-by-step video clips that would take employees
through the proper safety procedures for each piece of machinery. The instructional designer could aid and
train the supervisors on how to upload the videos into Brainshark. In addition to the step-by-step video clips,
each supervisor could personalize the training even more by adding their own
voice as the narrator. With a simple
microphone hooked into the pc, Brainshark captures audio and places it directly
into the module. By teaching the shift
supervisors on how to use Brainshark, each supervisor could be in charge of the
training modules in the future. If they
see a training need, they could create an additional Brainshark training module
or modify the current modules to fit the need.
Since Brainshark is a cloud-based system, it
will not drain the bandwidth or technological components of the manufacturing
plant. “Cloud computing provides datacenter computing power and storage”
(Butoi, Tomai and Mocean, 2013, p. 27).
Since the storage and full Brainshark system is on the cloud, the
manufacturing plant has little to no functionality to loose at the plant level. With all the extra power that Brainshark
provides, detailed tests can be created with full videos to test knowledge
gained, allowing supervisors to see knowledge gained. Brainshark also has a very
robust tracking component that would really help the plant supervisors evaluate
the learning process. In addition to
adding tests and questions to evaluate learning, supervisors can track the use
of modules on Brainshark. Supervisors
can view who has taken the modules, how long it took them to view the entire
module and even how long they viewed each part of the module. Within Brainshark, employees would have the
ability to rewind and view any part of the training module. So if they did not understand a certain step,
they could easily go back and review the step again. So supervisors could get a clear picture as
to who really took the time to review the content and who just opened it up and
quickly ran through the module without spending much time.
The training modules created in Brainshark can
be viewed on the cloud at any time and through many different ways. If employees have an Internet connection of
some sort, they can view the modules on a computer or many of the handheld
mobile devices that are out on the market today. So mobility and access to the training
material is not a problem with Brainshark.
In fact, the plant supervisors may even find more uses for Brainshark
past the safety modules being created. I
can see many uses for Brainshark such as rolling out new policies or
introducing new team members to the corporation.
In conclusion, I have no doubt that Brainshark
is the tool for the job. I know this for
a fact because I have used Brainshark to create modules. I have seen the results that Brainshark can
deliver. Brainshark is not a free
service, but I believe you get what you pay for. Brainshark is easy to use and understand. The modules are rich and engaging. Staff members will enjoy using Brainshark to
learn. When learning is fun or
enjoyable, what is there to complain about?
Beldarrain, Y. (2006).
Distance education trends: Integrating
new technologies to foster student interaction and collaboration. Distance
Education, 27(2), 139-153.
Butoi,
A., Tomai, N., & Mocean, L. (2013). Cloud-Based Mobile Learning. Informatica Economica, 17(2), 27-40. doi:10.12948/issn14531305/17.2.2013.03
Combined
Insurance Uses Brainshark Video to Train Mobile Sales Force. (2012). Insurance Advocate, 123(18), 16-18.
Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S.
(2012). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance
education (5th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.