"Start with the customer." You hear it in sales, but you rarely hear it in training.
This is understandable. When it comes to learning, the "customer" can be confusing. Is your customer the buyer/boss who wants you to increase performance? Or is your customer the learner who needs to change their behavior?
The answer is both. To be successful, instructional designers must design solutions that deliver a clear business outcome. They must also change the behaviors of the participants to help them perform better in their jobs.
From a participant's perspective, there are four simple phases of successful learning that must be accounted for in every instructional design:
1. Getting new information.Learners want original and innovative content that will help them develop in their careers and improve their performance. This includes new theories, models, approaches, distinctions, materials, and tools that the learner was not previously aware of. Remember, when it comes to learning and changing behavior, less is more. Include only information that is relevant to current or future on-the-job success. Whittle down the content so that all the information you include meets the following guidelines:
? Meaningful (stories instead of data)
? Relevant (something that is important right now versus later)
? Leveled (not too advanced and not too remedial)
? Inspiring (motivating content drives retention and adoption)
? Required (ensure performance pressure exists to use it immediately)
2. Practicing new behaviors.Participants should practice using the new approaches as they relate to the top five-to-ten scenarios that they most often face back on the job. Ideally, 70% of your design should involve practice and feedback; no more than 30% should involve the sharing of new information.
3. Receiving performance feedback. To ensure that the practice is meaningful, participants should receive immediate feedback about their performance from each other and from a skilled facilitator. Improving the in-the-classroom performance through feedback combined with trial and error will increase their chances of adoption. Good instructional designs provide guidelines for feedback that focus on specific behaviors, not on the person or their intentions.
4. Providing Job Aids and Reinforcement.New information and practice are worthless unless participants integrate the new behaviors with their existing habits back on the job. That means designing the support tools and processes required to drive adoption before the workshop so that participants can hit the ground running when they are back at their desks.
It does not matter if you are training someone to ride a bike or to lead a high performance team; you need to pay attention to the same four phases to ensure the transfer of learning.
Do not fall into the trap of lecturing or death-by-PowerPoint. A learner who just hears information about how to ride a bike is likely to end up making a trip to the doctor after he climbs on a bike for the first time. Except in a few exceptional cases and with a handful of learners, people need practice, feedback, and reinforcement to change behavior and therefore positively impact the business.
This is understandable. When it comes to learning, the "customer" can be confusing. Is your customer the buyer/boss who wants you to increase performance? Or is your customer the learner who needs to change their behavior?
The answer is both. To be successful, instructional designers must design solutions that deliver a clear business outcome. They must also change the behaviors of the participants to help them perform better in their jobs.
From a participant's perspective, there are four simple phases of successful learning that must be accounted for in every instructional design:
1. Getting new information.Learners want original and innovative content that will help them develop in their careers and improve their performance. This includes new theories, models, approaches, distinctions, materials, and tools that the learner was not previously aware of. Remember, when it comes to learning and changing behavior, less is more. Include only information that is relevant to current or future on-the-job success. Whittle down the content so that all the information you include meets the following guidelines:
? Meaningful (stories instead of data)
? Relevant (something that is important right now versus later)
? Leveled (not too advanced and not too remedial)
? Inspiring (motivating content drives retention and adoption)
? Required (ensure performance pressure exists to use it immediately)
2. Practicing new behaviors.Participants should practice using the new approaches as they relate to the top five-to-ten scenarios that they most often face back on the job. Ideally, 70% of your design should involve practice and feedback; no more than 30% should involve the sharing of new information.
3. Receiving performance feedback. To ensure that the practice is meaningful, participants should receive immediate feedback about their performance from each other and from a skilled facilitator. Improving the in-the-classroom performance through feedback combined with trial and error will increase their chances of adoption. Good instructional designs provide guidelines for feedback that focus on specific behaviors, not on the person or their intentions.
4. Providing Job Aids and Reinforcement.New information and practice are worthless unless participants integrate the new behaviors with their existing habits back on the job. That means designing the support tools and processes required to drive adoption before the workshop so that participants can hit the ground running when they are back at their desks.
It does not matter if you are training someone to ride a bike or to lead a high performance team; you need to pay attention to the same four phases to ensure the transfer of learning.
Do not fall into the trap of lecturing or death-by-PowerPoint. A learner who just hears information about how to ride a bike is likely to end up making a trip to the doctor after he climbs on a bike for the first time. Except in a few exceptional cases and with a handful of learners, people need practice, feedback, and reinforcement to change behavior and therefore positively impact the business.