One Avenue I could go down - the journey looks exciting!

So now it's time to start planning. What would I like to achieve on this Advanced Moodle Course that I have just enrolled on?

I am considering a number of options that I would like to investigate to improve my skills in facilitating learning. Some of these options are related to my work in a leading anti-malware company. Another option is based on idea I have to teach and coach in my spare time.

But here's more on my work-related project.

Work-related project

My first idea is based on my desire to improve the learning environment for new starters at my company. The world of anti-malware is complex and the learner is faced with many challenges. He or she has to contend with the following fast-changing landscapes:

the internet threat landscape changes as cyber criminals constantly develop new ways of infecting and controlling private computers for financial gain;

the anti-malware company responds to these threats by developing new techniques, strategies and products, with the added challenge of deploying detection engines and patterns to an ever-increasing range of computers of different types;

these computers themselves have specific architectures that need to be fully understood for the anti-malware to be effective.

The last point is perhaps the toughest challenge for the new starter in an anti-malware company. Leading hardware and software manufacturers are always producing new products to satisfy user needs and wants, using new design technologies. Every new technology has actual or potential vulnerabilities which could lead to problems for the user and could be exploited by hackers.

Implications for learning

The three factors above have significant implications for anyone working in this environment but especially for the new-starter. The one relatively fixed area of knowledge is the internet itself and the protocols which govern it. The new-starter at my company is tested for this skill set when being interviewed for the position in the first place.

Having said that the technical specialist at the company can always improve on and enhance these skills.

On top of this the specialist has also to develop his “professional” skillset which is his ability to think on his feet and solve problems for the customer. In a sense all his other skills or knowledge areas are secondary to this.

All of this implies that the specialist can be described as having 5 learning “sensors” all working with various degrees of sensitivity but being lead by the problem solving sensor.

There might be more sensors that the technician is using. Part of my work on Moodle development will be to delve deeper into how these sensors work, how they need to be nutured, and what controls them.

All of this analysis will I hope lead to some understanding of how individuals with their sensors can nuture the sensors of their colleagues and thus turn the team into a learning organisation.

This is a big topic about which much knowledge has been developed over the last 20 years. From looking at the credentials and experience of my fellow students on the Advanced Moodle Course, I am clearly in a good place to advance my understanding of this area.