Did Learning Happen? (Part III)

Third quick tip on validating knowledge transfer - almost more of an 'after the fact training patch.'

3.      Build a Job Aid

No matter how good training is while it’s running, only 30% on average of what is learned in the classroom will be retained… unless you reinforce it somehow.  One of the easiest methods for doing this is to create a small reference.

Soft Skill Examples:  business card size reminder for wallet, bookmark with key points

Computer Skill Examples:  create a template for the keyboard for quick keys, or a step-by-step reference with icons that tucks under the keyboard or attaches to the side of the monitor.

- SAC

Breakthrough Learning

A recent book by a former professor of mine had me thinking – there really are only a handful of core learning experiences that make an indelible mark on one’s personal and professional development – particularly as an adult learner.  A coaching client once asked this very question:  What learning experiences generated the biggest leaps in your professional development? I was surprised to discover that my answer was a relatively short list.  I have always believed in lifelong learning, but the degree of poignancy you can glean from any given learning opportunity wanes over time, and the breakthroughs come fewer and further between. 

One of the core breakthrough learning opportunities I have benefited from in my personal and professional development has been Stew Friedman’s Total Leadership course, which is now a book of the same name, Total Leadership: Be a Better Leader, Have a Richer Life.  Stew’s approach of building your life and work into an integrated woven pattern, and live as a whole person with everything you do, changed my whole perspective on “life versus work.” And with his Total Leadership methodology, I have learned to make small changes in how I live and work, as he calls them “experiments,” to see what works for me and the important people in my life.

Wouldn’t it be great if you could live as a ‘whole person’ in all the parts of your life, rather than the ‘1/2 work person’ at work, ‘1/3 parent or spouse’ at home, ‘1/8 community member’ in your neighborhood, leaving whatever is left for your ‘self’? I encourage you to crack the binding on Total Leadership. If it’s not your time for a breakthrough, you’ll still benefit from its pages.

What’s on your list? It would be interesting to see the breakthrough learning experiences of Leadership Headlights’ readers. Post yours, and see what other readers say.

For my next post, perhaps a discussion is in order on how to create these types of breakthroughs with learners.  -SAC

Did Learning Happen? (Part II)

Here's another entry on validating knowledge transfer:

2.      Have Students Perform

Based on your learning objectives, have students demonstrate that they can do what you have just taught them to do.  Key tenet here:  only expect a student to do outside the classroom what you have first observed them doing successfully inside the classroom.

This is true for soft skills, hard skills, behavioral training, you name it.  Certainly, a formal quiz or assessment is an excellent tool.  But even an informal assessment by peers or an instructor can go a long way.

Example: In the case of software training, have students perform operations on the actual software.  If this is not possible, have a simulation.  If this is not possible, have students describe the steps, one by one, and have peers and/or the instructor validate responses.