Delayed feedback may lock in mistakes
If you don’t provide immediate feedback on a mistake – whether it’s the wrong answer on a quiz or a skill that’s being practiced incorrectly – it will be much harder for trainees to “unlearn” the...
View ArticleRecall, Compare, Apply: Give learners 3 ways to remember
In training, it seems that variety helps learners do a better job retaining and applying what they’ve learned. Reason: Changing things up builds multiple neural pathways to the information, so trainees...
View ArticleFinding Your Secret Sauce: The Training Challenge for SMBs
One thing RLI salespeople notice is that learning professionals at large companies insist that training be highly customized. One CLO said she loved our “off-the-shelf” (i.e., non-customized) safety...
View ArticleDon’t underestimate role of tech problems
Regularly ask trainees if they are having any problems with online learning software and if their computers are set up properly to handle it. A recent study showed that when people feel blocked by...
View ArticleVindicating the multiple-choice test as a reinforcement tool
Memory researchers have long known that it’s better for trainees to retrieve an answer than to recognize it. So if you’re using tests to reinforce learning and not just to assess it, the good old...
View ArticleWhen the going gets tough, make sure you end on a strong note
If material you plan to present is difficult, you might want to mix in stuff that’s a little easier and present it at the end of a training session. Here’s why: Researchers say there’s real science...
View ArticleWhy Informal Learning is Crowding Out Formal Learning
I saw an interesting graphic (the one on the right) from a presentation by Professional Development Group. It shows that as we become more experienced, we’re less likely to engage in formal learning....
View ArticleLearners think ‘I got it’ just a little too soon
There’s an old rule of thumb when cooking a steak: Just when you think you should cook it a little more, stop cooking it. When it comes to learning, it’s the opposite: When learners think they’ve “got...
View Article‘Desirable difficulties’: Too easy accelerates Forgetting Curve
If you’re getting high evaluations but low long-term learning retention rates, consider looking at how challenging the training was. Training that includes “desirable difficulties” – obstacles that...
View ArticleSpacing: Precise scheduling not needed
Yes, you want to space follow-up retrieval events such as quizzes and scenarios, because these “spacing effects” can dramatically improve long-term retention. The question becomes the schedule. Work...
View ArticleResearch: Training sticks better when trainees ‘self-explain’ it
Trainer: Is 90 decibels half again as loud as 60 decibels, or 1,000 times as loud? Trainee: It’s 1,000 times as loud. Trainer: Why? Trainee: Because decibels are measured on a logarithmic scale. This...
View ArticleTesting effect works with silent answers
You know about testing effects: that quizzing trainees will help them recall answers better on future tests. One set of researchers wondered: Does it matter if trainees just think of an answer, or do...
View ArticleE-mail follow-up engages learners
Go ahead – send out follow-up e-mails giving trainees a couple of questions. If your trainees are like those in a recent study, they’ll react positively to the electronic nudge, and engage the learning...
View ArticleDon’t be too quick to abandon traditional training methods
Many managers and employees are deeply skeptical of traditional training, such as lectures, reading assignments and training videos. Too theoretical. Not relevant. B-o-r-i-n-g. The best way to learn...
View ArticleLong-term, meaningful learning is more likely with ‘active retrieval’
Don’t Google it. Don’t reread source material. Don’t ask someone. Just try to remember. If you must, struggle with it for a while. Why? Because actively attempting to dig something out of your memory...
View ArticleThe right way and the wrong way: When to use negative examples
During training, do you want to show how to do it wrong as well as how to do it right? It depends on the trainees. Training that uses negative examples can be effective if the trainees are already on...
View ArticleTesting: Review material from previous sessions
Trainees who are struggling may not like cumulative testing, but they’ll learn more. That’s the takeaway from a recent study of psychology students. Researchers split a classroom into two groups. Both...
View ArticleThis simple technique can double how much trainees learn
How would it feel to have trainees come away with twice as much learning and much higher levels of engagement? It’s not a dream. Recent research shows that a simple teaching technique can double the...
View ArticleEmotional stress helps trainees remember
We’ve mentioned before the power of “desirable difficulties” – that learning sticks better when learners have to struggle to acquire it. Here’s evidence that some emotional stress during learning...
View ArticleOlder workers learn better when material is practical and relevant
Can’t teach an old dog new tricks? Not so, according to results from two studies on learning among older adults. But, the studies concluded, older people learn differently from young adults, and it...
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