Reflecting on Lifelong Learning, Gomada, and Loom

On March 28, 2023, we met online using Zoom to discuss lifelong learning and the applications of Gomada and Loom. First, let's discuss lifelong learning. There is no exact definition of the term. So, I would define lifelong learning as learners learning beyond the standard required learning of Pre-K-12th grade and college, it usually involves learning new skills for career or personal development.

There have been challenges regarding lifelong learning, especially for people who work inside companies. In 2019, 80% of CEOs believed employees needed new skills (Newman, 2020). Opportunity for development is the second-most important factor (Andersen et al., 2021). Learning becomes a luxury (Andy, 2019). Employees waste 1/3 of their day on emails (Torres, 2021). The traditional corporate learning portal is rarely used (Bersin & Zao-Sanders, 2019). Novice employees take 5 minutes out of the day to learn (O’Donnell, 2017). Of 780 million knowledge workers, 6.5 hours are spent every day on the computer. Of the 6.5 hours, 28% is on emails, 19% on gathering information, and 14% on meetings. Collectively, knowledge workers spend 61% of their time at work (Probstein, 2019).

Some individual perspectives to increase learning throughout your daily life is by practicing mindfulness, maintaining a to-learn list, using tech-enabled tips as you work, scheduling dedicated learning time, subscribing to a small number of high-quality, hyper-relevant newsletters, and contributing actively, expertly, and to a learning channel where work actually happens. Some of the tips that helped me on an individual level are creating a to-learn list, practicing mindfulness, and using tech-enabled tips to work. For example, when it came to creating a to-learn list, I had put on my list to learn beginner's American Sign Language over the summer through these free online courses offered by the University of Oklahoma. Also, another tip I would say to help with putting learning in your everyday life is by finding a reason to actually want to learn. My reason for wanting to learn American Sign Language was that I was reunited with my twin brother and I discovered that he is deaf, so the only way to communicate with him is through sign language. The reason why I mentioned this tip is that I know sometimes we can create a list, then get busy and forget about the list we created. So, if you find a reason to learn, then it would be less likely you would forget the list.

Moreover, some HR leaders' perspectives to increase learning within the workplace are by making sure that corporate knowledge systems are accurate and easy to use, sharing content internally within the organization, devoting a channel in your communications to learning, considering conversations and chat interface, and placing learning in the inbox. Organizations such as P&G and Sainsbury have made learning efficient for employees.

Lastly, two peers within the class presented their learning tools or method to the class. The first presentation was on Gomada and the second was on Loom. Gomada is an app that allows virtual teams to get to know each other through many different team activities. For example, we did communication master and work buddies. Communication master consisted of us individually drawing an objective based on listening to one of our peers describe the objective. Then, we had to individually vote for the drawings that we felt represented the objects that were being described. Based on the votes, Gomada will then tell us the rate of our communication as a team. We did this for three rounds. For all three rounds, we were low in communication as a team. We reflected and realize that asking questions is important when it comes to communication because there were many times when someone was describing an objective, we could have asked for clarification about what they meant when it came to some descriptions. While Loom is an app, but also a web extension that allows the user to record themselves presenting their presentation which gets transformed into a video that can be sent to other people for easy use. For example, the presenter presented a presentation on creating vegan spaghetti. On each slide, a recording of the presenter explaining the steps would play. Also, the presenter went through some of the tools on Loom's website that can help us record our presentations.

References

Andersen, E., Davey, L., & Valcour, M. (2021, August 27). Making learning a part of everyday work. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved April 3, 2023, from https://hbr.org/2019/02/making-learning-a-part-of-everyday-work

Andy. (2019, December 4). Is learning a luxury? Collective Impact. Retrieved April 3, 2023, from https://www.ciacic.com/post/is-learning-a-luxury

Bersin, J., & Zao-Sanders, M. (2019, February 19). Developing employees making learning a part of everyday work. DEVELOPING EMPLOYEES Making Learning a Part of Everyday Work. Retrieved April 3, 2023, from https://www.open-mind-academy.ch/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Making-Learning-a-Part-of-Everyday-Work.pdf

Newman, D. (2020, July 29). Upskilling Initiatives: Tech leads the investment in the workforce of Tomorrow. Forbes. Retrieved April 3, 2023, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/danielnewman/2020/07/29/upskilling-initiatives-tech-leads-the-investment-in-the-workforce-of-tomorrow/?sh=707081944262

O’Donnell, R. (2017, October 17). When it comes to training, timing is everything. HR Dive. Retrieved April 3, 2023, from https://www.hrdive.com/news/when-it-comes-to-training-timing-is-everything/506971/#:~:text=Employee%20training%20is%20big%20business.%20Companies%20spend%20billions,5%20minutes%20per%20day%20in%20a%20normal%20workweek.

Probstein, S. (2019, December 17). Council post: Reality check: Still spending more time gathering instead of analyzing. Forbes. Retrieved April 3, 2023, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2019/12/17/reality-check-still-spending-more-time-gathering-instead-of-analyzing/?sh=3106d73d28ff

Torres, M. (2021, July 13). We waste 17 hours every week on pointless work email. Ladders. Retrieved April 3, 2023, from https://www.theladders.com/career-advice/17-hours-week-work-email#:~:text=A%20recent%20Carleton%20University%20study%20found%20that%20people,people%20answered%20them%20quickly%20and%20where%20they%20stood.