Chunks of Learning
What exactly is a learning Object? – The best way to describe it is a small chucnk of learning that can stand alone or be added to other learning objects to create a more extensive learning experience. With the E-Learning phenomenom booming organisations are seeking more flexible ways to deliver their leraning. The ability for learners to retrieve the “chunks of learning” that are relevant to them and complete in a way that is most suitable to the learner is highly appealing.
David Wiley defines a learning object in the following way “instructional designers can build small (relative to the size of an entire course) instructional components that can be reused a number of times in different learning contexts. Additionally, learning objects are generally understood to be digital entities deliverable over the Internet, meaning that any number of people can access and use them simultaneously.”
Why Learning Objects are such a Hot Topic
Learning objects have become a “hot” topic in recent years for two main reasons:
First, many educators see learning objects as a viable alternative to the traditional instructor-led course format. The problem with the “course” is that it is not very flexible and it is difficult to re-purpose. Learning objects stored in a database and properly tagged for easy searches, are designed specifically for flexibility and re-use.
Second, we now have the computing power and network infrastructure that we need to conveniently share and distribute learning objects between public institutions and private corporations.
