In my Foundations of Learning and Technologies (LRNT 523) course, I have been assigned to research an individual whose work and contributions has had an impact on the field of learning and technology. I have chosen Lynda Weinman was the co founder of the popular online learning platform Lynda.com. Starting from humble beginnings, she took her passion for being a life long learner, teacher, and educator, and channeled it into creating easy to understand instructional videos. Eventually, her idea evolved into creating an online platform that featured video-based courses taught by industry experts ranging from software, creative, and business skills that could help people achieve their personal and/or professional goals.
As someone who struggles with school, but also loves learning, I found this format to be incredibly helpful as a professional development resource. Lynda.com was a subscription based platform, but I was able access through the Toronto Public Library for free. Through that opportunity, I was able to access an incredible collection of courses right at my finger tips. I most recently taught myself how to use the instructional design software, Articulate. The videos ranged from beginner to advance, and provided me with the flexibly to learn at my own pace. Weinman was able to utilize the rise of the internet back in the 90’s and made learning easily accessible to anyone that was willing to learn at a fraction of the price. She connected industry experts to learners by providing timely content that was relevant for their needs. Weinman was able to utilize the technical capabilities of the internet, while channeling her passion for teaching and learning to help revolutionize the ways others required new knowledge and skills.
In 2015, Lynda.com was purchased by LinkedIn. Since then, it has been re branded as LinkedIn Learning. With the acquisition of the platform comes new changes and difference challenges. I hope that it can continue to be a useful learning hub, and Weinman’s core values and principals can be tastefully preserved.
Resources & Useful Links
Benoit, Andy. (2016, June 27). Evaluation of Lynda.com at Lethbridge College. Retrieved September 11, 2019, from EducauseReview website: https://er.educause.edu/articles/2016/6/evaluation-of-lynda-dot-com-at-lethbridge-college
Foley, M. J. (n.d.). Microsoft is moving Lynda.com users to LinkedIn Learning and not everyone’s happy about it. Retrieved September 13, 2019, from ZDNet website: https://www.zdnet.com/article/microsoft-is-moving-lynda-com-users-to-linkedin-learning-and-not-everyones-happy-about-it/
Lynda: Online Courses, Classes, Training, Tutorials. (n.d.). Retrieved September 11, 2019, from Lynda.com—From LinkedIn website: https://www.linkedin.com/learning
LinkedIn Learning. (2013, January 18). The lynda.com story | Lynda’s profile—YouTube. Retrieved September 11, 2019, from YouTube website: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7oabxru6t10
September 15, 2019 at 3:01 pm
While I have heard of Lynda.com, I have never had the need or opportunity to use the lessons (though I understand there are some really great MOS certification tutorials on the site). Co-workers and friends still refer to the site as Lynda.com, but I see in your post that the purchase occurred in 2015, it makes me wonder if this is a name that stuck in the field, or if the branding has not been changed to LinkedIn Learning yet. I think it’s time I check it out. Thank you for putting it back on my radar and introducing it’s inventor!
Kathy
September 16, 2019 at 8:06 pm
Hi, Eunice. I, too, have used Lynda.com. While I believe there is potential in education for video to expand beyond simply broadcasting, broadcasted video lessons have been, and continue to be, a useful and convenient learning resource, especially when combined with networking opportunities between the student and teacher or among students. I recall helping my left-handed niece to learn crocheting by showing her videos (as I’m right-handed). As a teacher, I have used Khan Academy videos to supplement my class materials and, for my own learning, I’ve purchased several effective video courses from craftsy.com and rouxbe.com to expand my cooking and baking knowledge. Especially when combined with an interactive questions and answers forum or other networking opportunity, videos have helped millions of people learn anytime and anywhere. When I was researching for this assignment, I found multiple sources stating positive results from video including Chan, O’Connor and Peat (2016) who found “a statistically significant positive correlation between students’ activity on Khan Academy, particularly the number of mastery exercises completed, and their course grade” (p. 3). Of course, broadcasted video shouldn’t be the sole teaching method and it doesn’t work for all students, but it is a highly successful learning tool for many.
Reference
Chan, M., O’Connor, T., & Peat, S. (2016). Using Khan Academy in community college developmental math courses: Results and lessons learned from developmental math demonstration project. New England Board of Higher Education. Retrieved from https://s3.amazonaws.com/KA-share/impact/Results_and_Lessons_from_DMDP_Sept_2016.pdf
September 25, 2019 at 9:38 pm
Hi Eunice,
I didn’t realize that Lynda.com was named after a founder. I wonder if some of the success of the site was about timing – it seemed to be the first really well-rounded, informal education site out there as the internet was proliferating and becoming more available. I used it when it was Lynda.com, but have not made use of it since its acquisition by LinkedIn. I made assumptions about what that shift would mean for the platform (mostly that it would be limited by the new branding). I appreciate you highlighting this – I plan to take a look at the current iteration and see what it looks like now.