This training manual provides guidance for using social media tools to enhance instruction and social learning in organizations. It is structured in four units that will help learners understand social learning strategies and how to effectively incorporate social media tools into training. The goal is to equip trainers with the knowledge and skills to deliver social learning instruction that can connect employees both locally and globally.
1. SOCIAL MEDIA TRAINING
MANUAL
M. Christian, E. Fisher, B. Sims, E. Soskin,
C. Strowman, and L. Weaver
Social Media for Professional Learning/AET 562
July 11, 2016
Dr. Sean Spear
(sdsujms408f10gp5.wikispaces.com)
2. TRAINING MANUAL OVERVIEW
Description of the Training
Knowledge
Skills
Training Goal/Objective
Use of Social Media
Connect and Collaborate
Locally and Worldwide
Grow Individually
Target Audience
Basic knowledge
Comfortable Level
Motivated
Summative Assessment of Training
Practice Skills
Social Media Integration
(www.orionrepair.com)
3. MAIN LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Four Main Learning Objectives
Social Learning Dire
Problem Solving for Social Learning
Business Issues and Strengthening Relationships
through Social Learning
Social Media Tools for Social Learning
(www.phf.org)
4. UNIT 1 – SOCIAL LEARNING DIRE
Barriers to Effective Social Learning and Strategies to
Overcome those Barriers
Inappropriate communication
Leisure Activity
Cannot be measured
Squander business hours
Face-to-face
Knowledge on how to use social media tools
(med511-6.wikidot.com)
5. UNIT 1 – SOCIAL LEARNING DIRE
Ethical Considerations Associated with Social Learning
Respect diversity
Share and embrace differences
Build Trust
Promoting Social Learning in the Workforce
Management demonstrate social learning
Modeling
Organizations create their own social media tools
(asd.-hs.wikispaces.com)
6. UNIT 2- PROBLEM SOLVING FOR
SOCIAL LEARNING
Role of social learning in addressing business problems
How social learning affects employee perceptions of a problem
Differences between formal learning and social learning when
addressing problem solving processes
(clares-inquiry-learning.wikispaces.com)
7. UNIT 3 – BUSINESS ISSUES AND
STRENGTHENING RELATIONSHIPS THROUGH
SOCIAL LEARNING
Social learning affects goals and objectives
Indicators of success
a. Learning
b. Organizational engagement
c. Organizational opportunities
(getmespark.com)
8. UNIT 3 – BUSINESS AND STRENGTHENING
RELATIONSHIPS THROUGH SOCIAL LEARNING
CONTINUE
Resource allocation
Accountability and policy considerations
Organizational hierarchy
Staff relationships
(red-social.wikispaces.com)
9. UNIT 4- SOCIAL MEDIA TOOLS
FOR SOCIAL LEARNING
Benefits and limitations of social media tools
(yoryoterapiadospuntocero.com)
(onlineinternetmarketinghelp.com) (www.grazynet.com)
(dcyadeelenal.blogspot.com)
10. UNIT 4 - ORGANIZATIONAL
APPLICATION OF SELECTED SOCIAL
MEDIA TOOLS
Adobe Connect, Periscope, Facebook Business and
Google+ are excellent tools for adult learning and
training.
These tools are great for organizations that have
branches all over the world and can be used on
mobile devices.
(1977voltios.blogspot.com)
11. SUMMARY
This training manual is designed to provide trainers
with information, techniques, and strategies
associated with using social media tools as part of the
organization’s instructional delivery practices. It is
structured so that the learner’s knowledge will
increase and be equipped to deliver instruction with a
social learning strategy.
(blogs.lse.ac.uk)
12. REFERENCES
Bhalla, R. (2008). Using Adobe Acrobat software to facilitate global
collaboration in the enterprise-interview with Rak Bhalla of Adobe Systems
Incorporated. Journal of Digital Asset Management, 4(3), 150-157. Retrieved
from http://doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/dam.2008.23
Bingham, T., & Conner, M. (2010). The new social learning: A guide to
transforming organizations through social media. San Francisco, CA:
Berrett-Koehler.
Bozarth, J. (2010). Social media for trainers: Techniques for enhancing and
extending learning. San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer.
Fisher, S. L. & Ford, J.K. (1998). Differential effects of learner effort and goal
orientation on two learning outcomes. Personnel Psychology. 51(2), 397-
420.
Ivec, S. (2013). Social learning best practices for the workplace. Retrieved
from https://elearningindustry.com/social-learning-best-practices-for-
the-workplace
13. REFERENCES CONTINUE
Korte, R. (n.d.). The Socialization of newcomers into organizations: Integrating
learning and social exchange processes. Retrieved from
http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED504550.pdf
Pacalin, L. (2011). Why Organizations Need Social Learning. Association for
Talen Development. Retrieved from
https://www.td.org/Publications/Newsletters/Learning-Circuits/Learning-
Circuits-Archives/2011/01/Why-Organizations-Need-Social-Learning
Schubert, C. (2014, July 14). Which factors are key for successful social
learning? Retrieved from http://www.iied.org/which-factors-are- key-
for-successful-social-learning
Shervington, M. (2016). What is Google Plus? A complete user guide.
Retrieved from http://www.martinshervington.com/what-is-google- plus/
Notes de l'éditeur
Description of the Training: This training is designed to provide the learner with the knowledge and skills required for teaching training staff how to incorporate social learning into their learning programs.
Training Goal/Main Training Objective: The goal of this training is to educate trainees on the use of social media for professional growth and learning. Trainees will be able to use appropriately and efficiently social media tools to connect and collaborate with others, locally and worldwide, to grow individually and help improve the organization as a whole.
Target Audience: The learner should have at minimum a basic knowledge of how to use Microsoft Office tools such as Word, Excel, and Power point. The learner should be comfortable using multimedia tools used for online conferencing. Examples of these tools are Skype, GoToMeeting, and Web Ex. Learners should be motivated and seeking self-development.
Additionally, the learner should be/have:
Sufficient computer skills in which they could easily understand the structure and navigate the online training environment
Good communication skills, both written and oral. Learners need to understand online communication etiquette.
Learners should not just look at this experience as one for learning but also to collaborate and mentor
Good organizational skills that are needed to use an online training environment for both learning and teaching
Have good time management skills to effectively participate in training
Social skills that are conducive to communicating with diverse groups of people
This training is designed to be based on small group instruction with a minimum of 5 students and with a maximum of 10 (per session).
Summative Assessment of training: Trainees will have the opportunity to practice skills learned, using a variety of social media formats. Assessment will be based on the trainee’s proficient demonstration of social media integration, including all of the following:
Creating a plan for social media integration within their classroom.
Posting status updates that are appropriate to the desired audience, peers or learners.
Writing a blog post about what learning is occurring in their adult classroom.
Including opportunities for learner discussions and posts.
Sharing a valuable resource with other adult educators.
Sharing resources that are related to content with learners.
Creating an online pre-assessment for learners, including what they hope to learn during the course.
Creating an online post-assessment for learners that assesses learning and asks for feedback regarding the course.
Participating in a content discussion with other adult educators.
Unit 1 will cover Social learning dire and the effective social learning, barriers and strategies, and training the workforce with social learning strategies.
Unit 2 will cover Problem solving for social learning and the role of social learning in addressing business problems, social learning and employee perceptions, and comparing social and formal learning while problem solving.
Unit 3 will cover Business issues and strengthening relationships through social learning, technology tools for student collaboration, accountability and policy considerations, and social learning and institutional relationships.
Unit 4 will cover Social media tools for social learning and will focus on the benefits of social media tools, and the limitations of social media tools
Barriers/Strategies
Social learning participants may say things that are inappropriate or that reveal private information about the organization (Bingham & Conner, 2010, p.23). Strategy: Learners should be properly educated on how to appropriately use learning tools. They should be provided with proper training and guidelines to ensure the safety of employees and the organization. Setting guidelines will help promote participation in social learning, and it will also help protect classified information.
Some believe that using social media is more of a leisure activity rather than an effective training (Bingham & Conner, 2010, p.24). Strategy: While social learning can be interesting, it is an excellent way to gain knowledge and different perspectives that trainees may not otherwise receive. People must be informed that workplace success is shifting away “from individual accomplishment to teams, communities of practice, and collaboration” (Bingham & Conner, 2010, p.24).
Social learning cannot be measured (Bingham & Conner, 2010, p.26). Strategy: Social media actually makes it simple to observe what is happening because of its transparency. When monitored, it can provide an idea of the knowledge that is being gained.
People will squander their time during professional business hours (Bingham & Conner, 2010, p.49). Strategy: Management must take into consideration the time that people may otherwise spend on personal phone calls or sending e-mails. Management should address those that are trying to “look busy rather than get their work done” (Bingham & Conner, 2010, p.49). However, even a small amount of personal Internet browsing time has been known to be beneficial for employees’ concentration.
The belief that communicating and learning in face-to-face environments is more effective (Bingham & Conner, 2010, p.72). Strategy: Many messages are actually better delivered visually. Viewers can see gestures, hear sincerity and tone of voice, and presenters can add visual images and other media to enhance the meaning of the message.
Not everyone knows how to use the tools needed for online social learning (Bingham & Conner, 2010, p.99). Strategy: Tutorials are available for all types of social media, so anyone, no matter what age or experience with these tools, can quickly learn how to use them. If the tools seem to be overwhelming, users can simply concentrate on reading messages and replying until they feel as though they can take on more the tools’ features.
Ethical Considerations Associated with Social Learning
When collaborating and discussing with others, it is essential that participants are aware and respectful of diversity. They must consider that they are sharing with people of various backgrounds, such as race, culture, and gender. Social learning involves collaborating with others, and it is likely that they have many differences. Participants must respect all learners and their experiences in order to maintain an open, honest, positive, and trusting atmosphere that is conducive to learning. Many organizations have connections internationally, and employees that are participating in social learning represent the organization when communicating with others, so they must do so appropriately and respectfully. Additionally, what is posted to the Internet is permanent, and it can be seen by everyone. It has the ability to damage, not only the individual’s reputation, but the organization that they represent. For this reason, organizations should set clear policies and guidelines for social learning and social media use, and implementing proper training for employees is also necessary to ensure that all employees understand how to use these tools responsibly.
Promoting Social Learning in the Workforce
In order to promote social learning, management must demonstrate social learning themselves. Modeling is key to showing hesitant employees that the new tools and strategies are productive. Management can even find “a respected, well-liked employee who believe in your cause and can get others to join in” (Ivec, 2013, para. 4). The organization can even create their own blogs, wikis, or Twitter accounts for employees to use for support and questions. By including specific tools and providing employees with a purpose, they will be more likely to engage in the social learning activities. Also, clear, specific guidelines should be provided, and employees should receive adequate training to create confidence and excitement about the learning process.
This section of the training manual provides information that is associated with using social learning to solve business problems and the affect on the employee perceptions of the problem and the difference between formal and social learning in the problem solving process. There are several social learning platforms that can be used to train employees online. They are Web Ex (video and audio conferencing); Periscope and Google + (collaboration of employees/ sharing training videos); Facebook Business (for networking with others in the company); Adobe Connect (collaboration and problem solving ). “The industry is aware that 70-80 percent of training budgets are spent on formal learning, but as studies indicate, nearly 80 percent of what people actually learn is achieved informally” (Pacalin, 2011). Social learning can affect how an employee perceive problems. Connecting employees by using social learning is a way for the company, leadership and the workforce to solve problems and learn how to fix problems within the organization. This will in turn help the employees to have pride in their work and make learning a priority. Differences between formal learning and social learning is that with formal learning it is about teaching and not about sharing of ideas. Social learning is an way for employees to continue learning using Facebook business, Google+ and Periscope. Social learning is an way to motivate employees to learn from each other and share concerns, ideas and experience freely.
This section of the training manual explains how social learning affects goals and objectives, indicators of success in social learning, and policy considerations asocial with employees using social media tools. Social learning promotes peer learning and collaboration. Indicators of success can be related to learning, engagement, and organizational opportunities (Schubert, 2014). When learning is used effectively there are assessments in place to assure employees have learned the new material. Organizational engagement is used to drive changes within the training programs. Organizational opportunities is a way that employee performance is determined to demonstrate learning.
Social learning requires learners to be more actively involved in learning, rather than being an involved recipient (Fisher & Ford, 1998). Therefore resources that are considered for training is in the areas of money, human capital, and time, and it is used to facilitate social learning. Accountability and policy considerations are based on achievement gaps, aligning resources, internal political influence, and developing human capital. Concerning organizational hierarchy encourages a collaborative approach to learning and goal achievement, therefore management is able to view the needs of the workforce and determine what actions are needed. Concerning staff relationships, social learning can lead to decreased turnover, improved employee behavior and attitude, transference and maintenance of organizational culture, and learning of organizational norms (Korte, n.d.).
This section of the training manual explains technological tools that help provide valuable learning experiences for the 21st century. It allow the user to share and collaborate from any location and at any time. The examples listed are Google+, Periscope, Adobe Connect, and Facebook Business. Some benefits of Google+ is that it is easy to connect with others that have the same interests, learners are able to organize and manage contacts, controlling which users they share with and receive information from (Shervington, 2016). Some benefits of using Periscope is that users can participate in trainings and seminars from any physical space, and live streaming sessions can be any length, from minutes to days. Some benefits of using Adobe Connect is that the user can share ideas and knowledge using tools such as web cameras and documents, and users can contribute to documents in real-time (Bhalla, 2008). Some benefits of using Facebook Business are that users can create open or closed groups and create polls and questionnaires to receive feedback. Some limitation for using social media tools are: Users cannot add administrators to the account (Google); recorded broadcasts is available for download for a 24 hour period (Periscope); audio features does not work for teleconferencing (Adobe Connect); and administrator must check each post to ensure that comments are appropriate (Facebook Business).
Adobe Connect and Periscope are great ways to conduct web conferences or virtual classrooms. Participants can access the conferences and broadcasts even if they cannot be in the office (Bozarth, 2010). Facebook is useful for building connections and relationships through the sharing of knowledge with others that have the same interests. This type of tool can minimize space or power issues between trainers and learners. Participants truly build a sense of community (Bozarth, 2010). Google+ allows users to connect with others that share the same interests. This tool allows for continuing conversations after training. It enables users to share media and documents to improve the collective knowledge of the community.
This manual includes how to overcome barriers to social learning, how to address business problems, how it affects the employee, and the benefits in using social media.