KM & e-Learning

The relationship between KM and e-L is closest when new knowledge is being created, assumptions are surfaced, questions are asked, groups reflect and insights are distributed.

Distance learning (DL) tools that support interactivity, feedback, annotation and communication between people (many to many) come closest to KM in my opinion. Both KM and DL need an ecology rather than a single way to allow information flows, where they cater for real time and asynchronous communications, annotations, simulations, using multimedia there are increased benefits.

Knowledge and learning increases when they occur in community, when there is the opportunity (and trust) to question, receive critique, view and interact in diverse ways with a diverse group. I do not think it is so much the bandwidth and the glitz that is important (does live streaming video really add so much more than quality text, audio and still graphics?), as it is the identities of the participants, their willingness to take risks, question others values and beliefs and reflect on ways things are done.

Tools that allow for fast building of prototypes, that make it easy to jot down comments, pass notes and draw on a simulated whiteboard together will help. I think KM is mainly about making new knowledge and about the verification of opinions, experiences and insights. So for me, DL and KM are close. I see a push to make all KM tools distance enabled, as this is the way to obtain scaling to larger numbers and leverage across time.

DL tools that fit here are: web conferencing, groupware with workflow, simulation, games, document annotation, i.e., any functions that facilitate communication, feedback and interactivity around a presentation medium. The key is participant to participant engagement rather than teacher to pupil push, or pupil pull alone. I do not think DL tools that simply allow a teacher to 'publish' an electronic copy and the students to read, can do the job.

Comments

[Pal Bbhogal]

I would suggest that one of the most comprehensive illustrations on the knowledge cycle is still that presented by Nonaka and Takeuchi. If you would like a summary of it, send me an email.

[Swinitha Nawana]

I agree that knowledge and learning increases when they occur in community, when there is the opportunity (and trust) to question, receive critique, view and interact in diverse ways with diverse groups. But, KM is not about new knowledge. From past knowledge and experience new knowledge can be innovated. This depends on the recipients, on how they use knowledge. Also, technology is the enabling tool. KM happens without technology.
Boundary between knowledge and information : Codified knowledge becomes information.

[David Locke]

Teaching may pass on knowledge and it may not. DL and eL and multimedia and any other teaching construct only incidentially passes on knowledge if the content happens to contain knowledge, otherwise all that is being offered is information. Any alleged value from this is going to be incidental. You will not create knowlege by holding a class.

The use of prototypes is good because they capture implicit knowlege without explication, but that doesn't mean that you will necessarily capture implicit knowledge. Comparing writing and prototypes is to compare again the boundary between knoweldge and information.

The problem with all these schemes is that they only incidentally, and accidentally capture knowledge or convey knowledge. Is that the best we can do? Apparently.