Learning Science and Technologies Brief ADL is an applied Science and Technology (S&T) organization for the exploration of learning science and learning technologies. Established in 1999, ADL’s goal is to serve as the thought-leader for facilitating learning for our nation’s Warfighters, government agencies, and beyond. Through research, development and collaboration, ADL is working on next generation strategies, best practices, and innovations to advance the way we learn. ADL’s mission is to develop and advocate open source software, tools, and specifications; as well as create and accelerate the establishment and utilization of technology-driven learning standards that prepare and enable our nation’s learners, both military and civilian. ADL operates in two laboratories in Alexandria, Virginia, and Orlando, Florida, and organizes a partnership of  their collaborative labs (co-labs), including two US-based academic partners, the Academic ADL Co-Lab at the University of Wisconsin and the ADL Center for Intelligent Tutoring Systems Research & Development at the University of Memphis in Tennessee, and 10 international partnership labs in Canada, Latin America and Caribbean Regions, NATO ACT (in Virginia), New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. Learning Science and Technologies Brief

00 00-6D 73 62 6C 6A 75-73 74 20 77 20 4C-4F 56 45 02 00 00-01 6C 75 AF The essential nature of war remains unchanging, although both its features and the world, in general, continue to evolve at an increasingly rapid pace. Globalization Megacities Ever-increasing computing power Proliferation of low-cost advanced technologies Ubiquitous Global Surveillance The rise of social collaborative technology Increasingly fluid notion of “nation” and “identity” Digital communities form and take action, before it even appears on the mainstream radar. In short, the ways we learn, live, and collaborate are all shifting. Whether you’re coming from a business or military perspective, I think it’s pretty clear that our professional world is become more complexity. We’re overloaded by too much information, buffeted by constant change and volatility, and faced with increasingly complex problems for which no “playbook” exists. We work under incredible pressure, at an increasingly rapid pace and under high scrutiny. The business literature calls this a VUCA context (which stands for Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity). Whatever word you want to use, the question is… what do we do about it?

Develop technology and systems Simplify Develop technology and systems Prepare personnel to cope with VUCA What do we do about all this complexity (or all this “VUCA”, if you prefer)? Yeah, we can try to simplify our own lives, our own organizations, as much as possible. We can also develop technologies and systems that help us cope with the increasing complexity. …but we can also help military personnel and business leaders apply (and continuously refresh) a broader, and more sophisticated set of cognitive, affective, and relational skills (CARS)

From the HD Concept: The U. S From the HD Concept: The U.S. Army Human Dimension Concept provides a framework for how the future Army must select, develop, sustain, and transition Soldiers and Army Civilians to prevent, shape, and win in the 21st century. This concept redefines the parameters of the human dimension as encompassing the cognitive, physical, and social components. It includes all aspects of Soldier, Civilian, leader, and organizational development and performance essential to raise, prepare, and employ the Army in unified land operations. …Ultimately, the Army must apply human performance optimization—the process of applying knowledge, skills, and emerging technologies to improve and preserve the capabilities of Department of Defense personnel to execute essential tasks.

Develop technology and systems Simplify Develop technology and systems Prepare personnel to cope with VUCA What do we do about all this complexity (or all this “VUCA”, if you prefer)? Yeah, we can try to simplify our own lives, our own organizations, as much as possible. We can also develop technologies and systems that help us cope with the increasing complexity. …but we can also help military personnel and business leaders apply (and continuously refresh) a broader, and more sophisticated set of cognitive, affective, and relational skills (CARS)

Develop technology and systems Simplify Develop technology and systems Prepare personnel to cope with VUCA More Skills Higher Order More Agile One to do this is through training, education, and development. But the old way of doing things isn’t viable; we have to become more effective, more efficient, more agile and reliable. In other words, we need to teach (train, educate, instruct, coach, interact) better.

Imagine a world where… Learner centric / technology enabled = System flexibility, efficiency, interoperability, JIT access, blending of training/learning/ops Data driven = Adaptive system tailors training experiences to what, where, when, and how you need them; measuring performance meaningfully Learning science = Learning is driven by best practices, monitored and continuously improved Social Learning = Technology enables action from self, teachers/trainers/commanders, and peers (social learning) Learning Organizations = Organizations learn (don’t just capture) lessons and disseminate them effectively Learner-centric, technology-enabled: Flexibly, efficiently, and seamlessly (truly blended)

Imagine a world where… Learner centric / technology enabled = System flexibility, efficiency, interoperability, JIT access, blending of training/learning/ops Data driven = Adaptive system tailors training experiences to what, where, when, and how you need them; measuring performance meaningfully Learning science = Learning is driven by best practices, monitored and continuously improved Social Learning = Technology enables action from self, teachers/trainers/commanders, and peers (social learning) Learning Organizations = Organizations learn (don’t just capture) lessons and disseminate them effectively Data-driven learning tailored is to what, where, when, and how learners need it