The medium not only controls how things are communicated, but what things are communicated.
In health care, information technology has already made a fabulous impact. In education, its impact will be greater. However, attempts to put ordinary college courses on the Internet are a mistake. Marshall McLuhan was correct. The medium controls not only how things are communicated, but what things are communicated. On the Web, you must do it differently.
You must redesign everything. Firstly, you must hold student’s attention. Any good teacher has a radar system to get the class’s reaction, but you don’t have that online. Secondly, you must enable students to do what they can do in a college course, which is to go back and forth. So, online you must combine a book’s qualities with a course’s continuity and flow. Above all, you must put it in a context. In a college course, the college provides the context. In that online course you turn on at home, the course must provide the background, the context, the references.
ACTION POINT: Think about your organization’s online services, from Web-based learning to health benefits to compliance. Ask a few employees who use these services whether they are satisfied with them. Hint: Bring earplugs!
Managing in the Next Society
* Source: The Daily Drucker by Peter F. Drucker