Chapter 9 – Herbert & Smith

Learning Technologies, Professional Development, and the perspectives of Higher Education Administrators and Managers

This chapter explores the historical research of learning technologies and how various technologies have changed the way administrators and managers in Higher Education think about Professional Development (PD).  Professional Development has many different definitions. This chapter will share some general history regarding PD and the integration of learning technologies, focusing a portion of the chapter on PD at The Ohio State University (OSU).  At OSU, PD is often spoken synonymously with terms such as employee development, career development, on the job training, learning and development, education, and many more terms. Professional Development for purposes of this chapter is the training, knowledge, and skills provided to university employees to help them in their current positions and future opportunities.

Learning technologies can be defined in many ways. At OSU, various types of learning technologies are utilized including learning management systems, video learning, webinars, online learning, and more. We define learning technology as “tools to assist them in educating others…using their era’s state- of- the- art technology” (Ferster, 2014). We will discuss learning technologies broadly, as well as specific to their use at OSU.

In this chapter, we hope to discover that learning technology has been leveraged in PD in Higher Education, but fear the reverse may be true, as much of the readily available research suggests that learning technology has been leveraged primarily in formal education. We provide a brief history of PD and share a “snapshot” of the different technologies developed and utilized throughout history.  In discussing PD, it’s critical to explain how technology has evolved and been utilized to support PD.  We address the status and impact of professional development in higher education, share “lessons learned,” and provide differing perspectives from administrators and managers in the fields of technology and learning in Higher Education.

History of Professional Development

Professional Development (PD) is the “…opportunity for people to gain skills, knowledge, and experience.  It is (typically) related to an individual’s current job or to future pursuits with regard to how someone wants to grow in their profession and/or a passion of interest…” (Driscoll, 2017)  Over the last decade, there have been divided views on the importance of PD ranging from “mission-critical” to “limited support for PD.” (Mrig et. al, 2014).  PD is available for various levels of faculty and staff, includes a broad range of activities, and can be presented and accessed in a variety of ways. Options range from short- to long-term and can be accessed during or after work hours, in person and online, through individual course participation, group learning, webinars, videos, mentoring, coaching, action research and networking.  Desimone (2009) mentioned that the characteristics (such as content focus, active learning, coherence, duration and collective participation) of a PD activity are more important than the type of activity.  If faculty and staff are engaged and invested in their professional growth and development, it will likely have a positive impact on the students and colleagues with whom they work, which supports institutional growth and goals.

History of Learning Technology

Learning Technologies have existed longer than most people realize. For a quick snapshot of the historical timeline associated with learning and eLearning, click the infographic below.

An investigation into the history of learning technologies finds several interesting quotes from learners:

“…teaching machines…applied technology that could potentially scale, and they provided the feedback that their designers’ theoretical frameworks suggested were critical to learning.”  (Ferster, 2014)

“Over the centuries, each significant shift in educational values, goals or objectives has led to diverse technologies of instruction.” (Seattler, 2004)

“Digital learning can be broadly defined as any set of technology-based methods and practices that can be applied to support learning and instruction.” (Egloffstein and Ifenthaler, 2017)

Professional Development and Learning Technology in Higher Education

As mentioned by Noe et al. (2014), current workplace learning calls for a reconsideration of the form and design of learning environments, with a special focus on learning technologies.  Using technology in professional learning can provide numerous solutions to support work and work-related learning activities (Littlejohn and Margaryan, 2014).  At colleges and universities across the country, there are centralized offices for distance learning, that employ instructional designers to assist with course development and support.  In addition to these offices, information technology (IT) professionals are housed in various units and colleges to teach staff and Faculty how to effectively use new technology and troubleshoot when challenges arise.  Resources such as Lynda.com, Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), Cornerstone, AdobeConnect, TED Talks, YouTube Videos, and webinars make information accessible at the click of a button with very little instruction.  These resources can be accessed at work or home, “meet” each learner at his/her comfort level, are user-friendly and extremely beneficial due to the level of accessibility and flexibility.  According to Egloffstein and Ifenthaler (2017), professional learning is becoming more and more important, with self-regulated learning (at or near the workplace) becoming commonplace and necessary for success.

To learn 8 different ways to connect Learning Technologies and PD, visit a blog by clicking on the photograph below:

“In addition to the ideas presented by Emily Davis’ blog, Winston and Creamer (1998) make the following recommendations: “For maximum effectiveness, staff development activities should be integrated with the staff supervision and performance appraisal processes.  Staff development should focus on the following:  enhancement of (individual) professional and personal knowledge and skills, organizational functioning, and accomplishment of the institution’s mission.  Staff development must be approached with an understanding of each individual staff member’s level of personal development, career anchor, educational background, breadth and depth of professional experience and the level of maturity, stability, and structure of the institution and its organizational culture.”

The traditional literature and research provide historical insights, while new learning options such as video learning and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) present engaging options for learners. Click the picture below to hear a TedTalk by Anant Agarwal.

Having obtained a solid understanding of the history of learning technology and professional development, it was important to learn the role of both with the staff community at The Ohio State University.

History of Professional Development and Learning Technology at OSU

Over the past two decades at The Ohio State University, there have been significant changes in how PD is viewed/embraced, the types of PD offered, and technology use with regard to PD.  In 2006, there was very little technology utilized in PD that was widely available for OSU employees (Driscoll, 2017).  As new staff members sought to learn more and advance their careers, the options for PD were to take classes or to join organizations.  Mentorship and networking were possibilities, however, it was a rare occurrence to be paired with someone who shared the same educational and career pathway, as well as the time and willingness to help a novice in higher education.

Word Cloud indicating different words to denote Professional Development

More recently, staff and Faculty enjoy greater access to and engagement with technology and PD. Colleges and units enhanced their PD offerings and the Office of Human Resources (OHR) is now a centralized “hub” for professional and personal development.  Offerings that promote the integration of learning technology and PD to employees such as the University Health Plan (Your Plan for Health), BuckeyeLearn, Gateway to Learning (the OHR Website), Lynda.com, TedTalks and CarmenConnect webinars are widely utilized.  However, with the plethora of new options and positive changes, there are still issues to address that include access to technology, language barriers, and adaptability for ADA compliance.  To learn more about how technology is used in PD at Ohio State, a cross-section of people with manager or administrator roles (tasked with the professional development of staff and Faculty) were interviewed in person, to discuss their insights.

• Molly Driscoll, 17 years, current Manager of Learning and Development, Office of Human Resources and one prior Higher Education role
• Justin Habash, 2 years (at OSU) and 7 years in administration at other entities, Program Director of the College of Pharmacy, Teaching, Learning and Assessment
• Teresa Gosser, 11 years, Training Manager for OCIO Communications and Training, first role in Higher Education

Ms. Driscoll’s office is responsible for the learning and development of OSU employees; this includes faculty, staff and student employees. She manages an office of five people, who are charged with interpersonal skill development, compliance learning, and supporting the training of managers and executives. She has one team member charged with online learning, one with instructor-led learning, one who administers the learning management system, and another who coordinates staff and management applications for learning grants.

Ms. Driscoll’s team works with learning technologies to reach staff and faculty at the places and times in which they need learning. She also indicated that courses such as digital storytelling and active learning are enabling traditional designers to reach new audiences in new and innovative ways.  She shared that in her role, (as a manager of the office tasked with providing professional development to the university) she has come to the realization that learning today is curated by the learners themselves. She and her team are constantly looking for ways to encourage learning among the community via social media.

Ms. Driscoll’s team is faced with multiple challenges that include:  limited staff and budget to facilitate the learning of all staff and faculty at OSU, needing to identify technology tools that can help their mission with limited time, development of engaging and active learning while keeping it accessible for differently-abled learners, and providing learning to a diverse audience.

Ms. Gosser came from the private sector and transitioned to OSU, which is her first role in Higher Education. While she has remained in the same position at OSU, she feels like it is ever-changing due to the evolving role of technology and learning.  Ms. Gosser’s team creates training and online documentation for staff on business systems to help them work more efficiently.  Examples include ASSIST, PeopleSoft HR, Financials, eRequest, and SIS. While this would be considered training for some, this is PD for others, as it helps (her) staff to become familiar with systems and processes they need to advance in their career or to secure a different position. Her team has (historically) delivered its learnings both as instructor-led and via online learning. In more recent years, the team has moved to developing completely online learning using Drupal, Adobe Captivate, Articulate Storyline, Dreamweaver, Photoshop, and HTML5. Technology has become a major focus for OSU staff, faculty, and students.

"Anytime we need to know something, there seems to be resources online...
I call this professional development". 
T. Gosser

For the PD of her team, Ms. Gosser shared that although they are a training department, they could benefit from additional development. She shared that Lynda.com is a great resource for her team to perform their daily duties. Some of her team has participated in workshops offered by the John Glenn College’s MAPS program.  However, Ms. Gosser mentioned that more development is needed outside of the learning needed for her employees’ day-to-day roles. Among the challenges she shared, Ms. Gosser identified developing online learning that is accessible and engaging. Many of the learning technology tools have improved, still promote engaging games, simulations, and questions in online learning.  However, additional changes need to be made, as these tools are not accessible for some individuals with disabilities.

Dr. Habash is in a unique position among the interviewees. His tenure at OSU has been the shortest (compared to our other interviewees), yet this is his third position in Higher Education, giving him insight into multiple institutions of higher education. One additional caveat is that Dr. Habash’s perspective of PD is focused on faculty versus staff development. The largest challenges he has dealt with at OSU is the hesitancy to change from traditional lecturing to active learning techniques, including the use of technology to engage learners. He feels that for the majority of faculty, technology is still a “stumbling block.” He works with faculty at OSU to convince them to use technology as a tool, not the most important part of the learning. He has attempted to show the pedagogy or the “design of the learning” and how they can use technology to share information with students. During the interview, an example he mentioned was teaching faculty to use TopHat as a tool to further the pedagogy. In terms of future connections with faculty development and technology, there is a discussion of whether SoftChalk (a rapid development tool for asynchronous learning) or eBooks may be of value to further learning.

Conclusion

The use of learning technologies has altered perspectives of (select) Ohio State University Administrators and Managers regarding the issue of Professional Development for staff and faculty. Interestingly enough, this perspective was pervasive throughout all interviews conducted.  When comparing all interviewees, the backgrounds are diverse in regard to level of management, higher education, as well as longevity at OSU. All interview subjects indicated the importance of using technology as a tool to engage learners. They advised that learners no longer want to rely solely on traditional lecture; instead, they seek just-in-time information via a multitude of technology tools.  As a result of conducting these interviews, it was determined that individuals who encourage others to pursue PD for growth opportunities need to think differently, realizing that learner needs vary more today than they did over the last decade or two. Technology can help to facilitate staff and faculty development in a variety of methods, whether just-in-time in an instructor-led class (via polling tools, for example) or by creating asynchronous modules that learners can review on their own time outside of traditional work hours. Administrators should continue their own professional development in an effort to understand that learning technology tools are here and will likely continue to evolve.

References

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Egloffstein, M., & Ifenthaler, D. (January 01, 2017). Employee Perspectives on MOOCs for Workplace

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https://www.efrontlearning.com/blog/2013/08/a-brief-history-of-elearning-infographic.html (infographic on history of eLearning)

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