EDITOR’S COMMENT


The 21st century alchemists


e.learning age magazine ISSN 1474 – 5127 Published by CloserStill Media


Commercial Clive Snell clives@elearningawards.co.uk


Kate Vose katev@elearningawards.co.uk


Tel: +44 (0)118 380 0350


Editorial Peter Williams


peterw@darkhillmedia.co.uk Melanie Williams


melaniew@darkhillmedia.co.uk


Designer Jane Denton


janedenton3@gmail.com


e-learning industry having a collective moment of madness? And therefore will we see a retreat from some of the dizziest claims as other voices – such as the business, budget holders, perhaps even learners – start to suggest the limitations that the industry isn’t seeing? A recent report by Unicorn and Amuzo – published in association with e.learning age – surveys the state of play. The report – based on commissioned research called ‘Serious Games Market Assessment’ from Bournemouth


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University Faculty of Media and Communication – unpicks the various terms flying around: gameful design, gamification, serious games and simulation and it also issues a stern warning to the e-learning sector: games development is a specialism and any e-learning company tempted to quickly respray itself as a learning games developer may be in danger of producing less than optimal outcomes. Overall though the report concludes that there are considerable benefits to learning through games when compared to other forms of learning and training, and there is a large, fast-growing market for serious games for business applications driven by the rise of smartphones, tablets and apps. So the excitement is justified, especially as Generation Y grew up with technology and are now establishing themselves in the workplace and find it hard to imagine any other way of learning. The irony is that games can create that most serious and necessary learning quality – persistence. However, the key question still remains; can the e-learning industry be a 21st century intellectual alchemist truly combining fun with serious learning. To read the report see http://tinyurl.com/z4bgz28


Peter Williams Editor, e.learning age


Contents


News 02 City & Guilds joins in $2.5 million seed funding action


07 The Learning Technologies Awards: New name, new categories


Published by:


CloserStill E-Learning Awards Ltd, George House, Coventry Business Park, Herald Avenue, Coventry CV5 6UB


Tel: +44 (0)118 380 0350 www.elearningawards.co.uk www.elearningage.co.uk


Columns 10 Vaughan Waller: Scripts and storyboards 13 Fiona Leteney: buyers need convincing technology can drive employee performance


14 The analyst’s corner looks at buyers’ views of the future of learning technologies


16 Clive Shepherd; why micro learning works 33 Chalkface: team work, perking up


Features 08 Performance support can help weather the information storm


12 Firing up the learning platform as the engagement engine


18 Organisational blend: supporting social learning


APRIL 2016


24 Glaxo Smith Kline combines technology, game mechanics and experiential learning 28 Shedding light on industry chatter


Cover story 26 Play and comply


30 Marketing for better learning 31 Software as a Service learning management system LMS


33 Exploring the benefits offered by learning through games


E-Learning Awards 20 Case study: driving major cultural change at London’s transport authority


Careers 22 E-Learner: considering the bigger picture 32 Job Like Mine E-Learning Awards winner Rod Knox wants to reach 20 million


t the moment it seems that e-learning is games-based learning. Games seem to have taken over. Even topics that once may have seemed way beyond the capability of gamification – such as compliance – are now set to succumb. So is this just a recognition that games as the way of learning is the only real future for technology-enabled learning or is the ever enthusiastic

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