At 09:49 AM 10/17/98 -0500, you wrote:
>In The Age of Paradox, Charles Handy writes the following:
>
>"...the McNamara Fallacy: The first step is to measure whatever
>can be easily measured. This is OK as far as it goes. The second
>step is to disregard that which can't be easily measured or to
>give it an arbitrary quantitative value. This is artificial and
>misleading. The third step is to presume that what can't be
>measured easily really isn't important. This is blindness. The
>fourth step is to say that what can't be easily measured really
>doesn't exist. This is suicide."
Great point. Motorola found in their programs that education ROI could not
be measured and just decided to educate their employees constantly. That
does not mean they didn't evaluate the course methods and content and try
to make them better but they did not try to specifically measure the
return on learning. It does not mean they ignored ROI but they looked at
in a macro sense. Their rate of improvement was high (I do not have the
data though) with
There are two parts to learning. One what is taken from the class room by
students. The second part and much more important part is about
application of the ideas to work life. Is the knowledge used to change the
organization. The use of formal class room teaching depends more on the
culture the organization than the quality of the class. Does the culture
encourage risk taking and new ideas or does it encourage conformity etc.
The same teaching can be a total waste in one culture and of great value
in another. In one case it results in some learning on another it
encourages action the real measure of education.
Gene
Eugene Taurman
interLinx ilx@execpc.com http://www.execpc.com/~ilx
What you are is determined by the thoughts that dominate your mind.
Paraphrase of Proverbs Ch 23 vs 7 KJV
--Eugene Taurman <ilx@execpc.com>
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>