Franklin Covey Co. Releases New Book for Training Professionals, The Learning eXPLOSION: 9 Rules to Ignite Virtual Classrooms in Any Organization

ASTD 2011 International Conference & Exposition--Franklin Covey Co. (NYSE: FC) today announced the release of a new book for training professionals, The Learning eXPLOSION: 9 Rules to Ignite Your Virtual Classrooms, co-authored by Matt Murdoch, global director of online learning, Franklin Covey and Treion Muller, chief e-learning architect, Franklin Covey. The new book is published by Franklin Covey Publishing and is available for purchase on Amazon.com for $14.99, in audio CDs for $24.99, in the iBookstore for $7.99, as a digital download and on the following readers for $8.99: Kindle, Nook, Sony, Kobo and Google. It is currently being translated into Chinese, Russian and Korean.

Resources:
Preview book: www.franklincovey.com/le/preview
Purchase book and audio: http://www.amazon.com/Learning-Explosion-Ignite-VirtualClassrooms/dp/1936111217
Blog: http://thelearningexplosion.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/learningexplosn
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/posted.php#!/pages/The-Learning-Explosion/161714333851771

The premise of The Learning eXPLOSION is that technological advances are taking the traditional learning model, known as classroom learning, and breaking it up into billions of pieces and scattered bits of information and knowledge known as learning fragments. These fragments are being created and discovered constantly by learners across multiple generations who access them through mediums such as social media sites, online training workshops, video documentaries, online communities, wikis, blogs, podcasts, tweets, e-books and mobile apps.

This learning explosion is resulting in the worldwide distribution of ideas, innovation and education. Training professionals, educators and the organizations for which they work must adopt this new mindset and deliver information and knowledge to learners in a manner in which they wish to receive it and through their desired medium of choice. The Learning eXPLOSION lays the foundation for a new mindset and rule-set, which introduce the best practices and tools necessary to move traditional training to virtual classrooms.

Stephen Covey, bestselling author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, who wrote the forward and endorsed The Learning eXPLOSION, said, "The speed and demand for learning is ever-increasing and a wealth of information is now available to quench the thirst for knowledge and connect people for information sharing. Learning is now far beyond the corporate classroom with all of the technological advances. This ever-changing dynamic requires that training professionals and their organizations deliver learning to their employees in the way they want to learn, like to learn and choose to learn. If they fail to embrace this new paradigm, they will not be prepared for the changes which are constantly occurring and eventually will be left behind.”

Research in The Learning eXPLOSION supports this premise, as follows:

• In 2011, Internet users will surpass the 2 billion mark, of which 1.2 billion will be in developing countries
• Between 2005 and 2010, the number of Internet users doubled
• Since 2006, worldwide Wi-Fi coverage has grown more than 155 percent
• In 2010, there was an estimated 5.3 billion mobile cellular subscriptions worldwide
• Access to mobile networks is now available to 90 percent of the world population and 80 percent of the population living in rural areas
• The use of virtual-classroom tools increased from 45 percent in 2008 to 59 percent in 2009 (See page 168 of The Learning eXPLOSION for research sources)

The Learning eXPLOSION was written to serve as a resource and guide for training professionals charged with the task of introducing virtual learning into their corporate environment, specifically through the use of virtual classrooms. The concepts in the book were developed by the authors who have been responsible for transitioning Franklin Covey’s own world-renowned content from the live classroom to the virtual classroom. They attended numerous online events, spoke with many experts, applied the best of what they heard and read, conducted research and omitted the ineffective practices they experienced firsthand. They have continued to test, modify and fine-tune Franklin Covey’s virtual classroom programs, as well as sharing their experience and expertise with Franklin Covey clients who are transitioning their organization’s training initiatives.

Matt Murdoch, co-author of The Learning eXPLOSION, said, "While traditional instructor-led training will continue to be an option for organizations training employees, research and trends indicate that online learning is steadily replacing it. Organizations are seeking ways to cut costs in travel, time and resources and increase their reach without sacrificing the quality of training. The challenge for training professionals is in knowing exactly how to go about transferring live in-person training to a live online experience that creates the desired results for which they are accountable.”

"We have experienced many of the challenges we discuss in the book as we were launching Franklin Covey’s virtual classroom initiatives. In this process, we discovered nine time-tested rules which we found are required to create a high-quality, highly-engaging training experience. These rules, resources and tools in the book will help those in corporate training learn how to transfer in-person classrooms to live online classrooms. We hope the book serves as the spark that ignites virtual training in organizations across the world,” said Treion Muller, co-author of The Learning eXPLOSION.

Whether incorporating a blended learning approach or creating virtual classroom training, the authors share nine rules in The Learning eXPLOSION that can help any corporate trainer in any organization transition into today’s new learning environment, as follows:

1. The Rule of Continual Change: The way people learn will always change. If you wish to embrace the learning explosion, you must change as well.
2. The Rule of Knowledge Transfer: Transitioning from instructor-led training to virtual classrooms requires a new approach to content, length, instructional design and delivery.
3. The Rule of Learning Circuitry: There are five steps to creating learning circuits within your organization. Use them to successfully launch and administer your virtual classrooms.
4. The Rule of Overcoming Bias: Many people have biases toward new ways of learning. You can overcome them by eliminating fears and filling knowledge gaps about technology.
5. The Rule of Virtual Accountability: To facilitate effective behavior change and learning, you must hold learners virtually accountable—verbally, visually and kinesthetically.
6. The Rule of Personal Practice: You may already know that you need to practice, but do you know how? Proficiency, observation, imitation and personalization are keys.
7. The Rule of Thumbs Up: People like leaving their mark and giving feedback if you make it easy for them to do. Use this feedback to improve your virtual classroom.
8. The Rule of Global Positioning: Reaching a global audience of learners is easy and getting easier. But there are many barriers to be aware of before you apply for a visa.
9. The Rule of Sustained Orbit: Getting your new virtual classroom off the ground is one thing. Achieving a sustained orbit is quite another.

"The learning explosion is moving faster and faster and shows no signs of slowing. It has no boundaries and is all-encompassing, which allows for limitless opportunities to learn, grow and increase in knowledge. Organizations that choose to offer informal, self-directed, just-in-time learning in the new virtual classroom will be those who will be successful and will thrive. The Learning eXPLOSION will help every organization to accomplish this mission,” said Covey.

The authors, Murdoch and Muller, are available for consulting, as well as speeches and keynotes on any number of topics related to online learning and training and are listed on the Franklin Covey Speakers Bureau at www.franklincoveyspeakersbureau.com.

About Franklin Covey Co.

Franklin Covey Co. (NYSE: FC) is the global consulting and training leader in the areas of strategy execution, leadership, customer loyalty, sales performance, and individual effectiveness. Over the Company's history, FranklinCovey clients have included 90 percent of the Fortune 100, more than 75 percent of the Fortune 500, thousands of small- and mid-sized businesses, as well as numerous government entities and educational institutions. FranklinCovey has 42 direct and licensee offices providing professional services in 155 countries. For more information, please visit www.franklincovey.com.