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Technology Learning Services: Making technology easier to learn and use

By Kathy Burgess and James Gist

Technology Learning Services (ISC-TLS), a new group within the Office of Information Systems and Computing, was established to better address current and future learning needs in the rapidly expanding technological environment at Penn.

The primary focus of TLS is to provide you with opportunities to learn the technology you need to do your job. TLS services include delivery of a wide variety of technology learning resources and assistance in selecting the type of learning appropriate for you. TLS also helps offices develop technology learning programs to anticipate and address future needs.

Formerly called CRC Training, TLS is housed in the Computing Resource Center facility at 3732 Locust Walk. TLS courses, seminars, tutorials, and learning materials cover CRC-supported hardware and software.

TLS services

Instructional tip sheets. Tip sheets are available from PennInfo (keyword "tip sheet"), from kiosks at the CRC, or by contacting TLS at 573-3102 or crc@a1.relay.

Video training and presentations. The Video Library (4040 Locust Walk) rents a variety of computer videos for $1.75 per day. A list of titles can be obtained at the Video Library, at the CRC, or from PennInfo (keyword "video").

Self-directed tutorials. These tutorials let you learn at your own pace using audio instructions, practice disk files, and workbooks. To reserve a machine and tutorial at the CRC, call 898-9090. A list of tutorials is available at the CRC or on PennInfo (keyword "tutorial").

DOS/Windows tutorial labs. Self-directed tutorial sessions are scheduled regularly in the TLS DOS/Windows lab. These sessions are a good option for training a group of people from the same department. Basic, intermediate, and advanced tutorials are available in various formats (audio, disk-based, and text-based).

Off-campus training vendors. TLS has evaluated courses offered by several training vendors in the Philadelphia area and negotiated discounts of approximately 35 percent for Penn affiliates. Register directly with the vendor. You can obtain vendor information at the CRC or on PennInfo (keyword "vendor").

Courseware. TLS courseware (along with practice disk files where appropriate) covers most CRC-supported software. You must supply blank disks for practice files, and there is a modest fee to cover the cost of copying the materials. Call 573-3102 or send e-mail to crc@a1.relay to request courseware or information about pricing and availability.

Instructor-led classes. TLS seminars and hands-on courses are held in the TLS labs; they are open to members of the University with a valid PENNcard or HUP ID. All hands-on courses and some seminars require registration. For scheduling and registration information, see the calendar section of Penn Printout or PennInfo (keyword "course").

Facilitated learning sessions. Self-paced tutorial labs on many CRC- supported applications are offered regularly. A facilitator is present to get you started and provide assistance as necessary. Skill-building exercises are included for reinforcement and self-testing. For scheduling and registration information, see Penn Printout or PennInfo (keyword "course").

Services for departments. TLS assesses the current and future technology learning needs of departments and designs and delivers programs to meet those needs. Call 573-3102 for more information.

Help us help you!

Sidebar: The case for computer training

Every year, 1.2 million people are expected to begin using computers in their jobs. And every day, systems change, job descriptions change, and people change jobs. Every time a computer system is developed, implemented, or changed; every time a piece of hardware or software is purchased or updated; every time a new employee begins a job that involves computer use; every time a department's work flow is reorganized--in every one of these situations, people have to learn computer skills.

In all those situations, some degree of learning is inevitable. What is not inevitable is learning that allows people to make optimum use of the computer in their jobs, with minimal loss of productive time and minimal frustration. That requires some forethought on the part of management. It requires a conscious attempt to answer the question, "How are people going to learn to use computers?" When that question is taken seriously, the answer usually has something to do with training.

About 20 to 30 percent of the time, people learn to use computers in situations that are readily recognizable as training--in formally organized classes offered by in-house training departments and information centers; hardware, software, or training vendors; or colleges, universities, and their continuing education divisions.

But people also learn to use computers through on-the-job training informally and individually, usually with a colleague as instructor. Sometimes learners are left on their own with self-study materials such as computer-based tutorials, videotapes, audiocassettes, and special manuals taking the place of an instructor. And sometimes they are left on their own with only the vendor's documentation for reference.

Not all managers recognize the importance of providing employees with some structured experience for learning about computers. Some managers seem to assume that people will learn by osmosis, simply by having hardware and documentation on their desks. Others leave training to the systems themselves, invoking the myth of user-friendliness. "You don't need training," they say. "The instructions are right there on the screen."

Unfortunately, few people learn by osmosis, and "user-friendliness" is not quite as functional a concept as its popularity suggests. The phrase is typically understood to mean "easy-to-use," but that means little without a clear sense of the user's skills and needs. The qualities that make a program appropriate or easy to use change as a user gains knowledge. A feature that tells new users what to do may also limit what they can do. A driver making his or her first trip to a new destination welcomes explicit directions; several trips later, they are superfluous. Similarly, a software feature that is helpful on Day 1 may be unnecessary on Day 2 and annoying by Day 7.

Managers often ignore the importance of training in the name of saving money. But not training and training insufficiently have their own costs. In the extreme, people don't use their computers, and the organization's investment in hardware and software begins to go to waste. Or people use the systems, but inefficiently and with excessive dependence on support from their peers or from a formal support function like the information center. Every time a user relies on a formal support function, the organization pays at least $25 in overhead and salaried time. Every time a user goes to a colleague for support, it costs from $15 to $100.

Insufficient training can also lead to retraining, and sometimes it leads to the unnecessary replacement of software or systems. Certainly some of these system modifications are warranted. No matter how many new training approaches are tried, the amount of time spent in trying to master a particularly complex set of screens may far exceed the resources needed to simplify the screens. But just as often, lack of use or inefficient use is a training problem, and not a system problem.

--reprinted with permission from The Computer Training Handbook: How to Teach People How to Use Computers, Elliott Masie and Rebekah Wolman, National Training & Computers Project, 1989.