Why Don't You Teach the Way That I Learn?

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"Learning is not attained by chance; it must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence."
Abigail Adams, Wife of John Adams
1744 - 1818

Why Don’t You Teach The Way That I Learn?

Learn/ing: to gain knowledge, understanding, or skill by study or experience; to find out.

It is generally agreed that knowledge is now doubling in months, not years, and that learning is a foundational value that individuals and organizations must embrace. Otherwise, success is -- and will be -- limited.

So, if continuous learning is an imperative, not an option, how do we pro-actively embrace it, both personally and corporately?

Successful learning has many components that we need to consider. Here are a few items.

1. Determine Learning Objectives
In today’s fast-paced world, sometimes "frantic" can overtake "grounded." Many times we have witnessed corporations thoughtlessly throw training and learning at individuals and organizations without careful consideration of the goals they want to achieve.

2. Link Learning and Strategic Business Results
What good is learning (in a business setting) if it has nothing to do with strategic business results? If you can’t make a business case for the learning, why should it be done? Training and learning for the sake of doing something are shallow, a waste of money, and counterproductive to our busy schedules.

3. Confirm Return on Investment
So, you know what needs to be done with whom, why, and where but now how do you intend to measure your results and confirm a return on investment? It is possible to be aligned in items 1 and 2 (above), but if they cost you more than your ROI, why would you continue with the learning program? Decision-makers need to be accountable for delivering results that pay, rather than simply being tracked on activity.

4. Validate Long-Term Behavioral Change
Include in your mandate the measurement of long-term behavioral change. It’s easy to do a short-term review but, months later, did the learning stick? Long-term changes will require regular follow-up and ongoing interventions. This is a continuous process, not an event.

5. Establish Preferred Learning Styles
This critical step should be established before anyone attends training or learning. In the past, learning failures were seen as the fault of the learner when, in fact, more and more evidence is pointing the finger back to the instructor or the instructional method.

Significant amounts of investment could be wasted by not addressing this single item first. All learners should know their own preferred learning style and have their learning personalized or customized (as much as possible) to meet their needs.

Learners should be intentional when selecting programs and options so that their preferred learning-style needs are met. If individuals are too young to understand, then parents or others can complete a learning-style assessment with them to help them build a personalized approach to learning.

6. Document Instructional Styles and Effectiveness
As mentioned in item 5 above, in the past learning failure was directed more toward the learners and less toward the instructors presenting the information. Many of us have attended university classes where professors were more interested in hearing themselves talk than in student success. They would drone on for hours, with half the class asleep.

Learner success must also be the responsibility of the Instructor -- from corporate trainers and educators to parents and everyone in between. Instructors should be aware of their instructional style and its related strengths and limitations. Building Instructional style flexibility should be an expectation to which all instructors are held accountable.

7. Implement Various Learning Methodologies/Options
Now that you know what to teach and the preferred learning styles of the students, you can creatively apply blended learning strategies. With technology today, there are many possible ways to deploy your content, from the traditional in-person seminars to teleseminars, webinars, board games, computer games, one-on-one coaching, to distance and interactive learning and many other possibilities.

A few years ago, it was predicted that e-learning would dominate the learning platform, but that did not happen. Why? Not everyone learns well in front of a computer screen. Hence the term "blended learning" was coined as a critical instructional and learning strategy.

Success rarely happens by accident. Learning success is no different.

Never in the history of mankind has continuous lifelong learning been more important. With this added requirement for more and more information, we must be diligent in providing the best possible environment for both the learner and the instructor.

"Learning is not compulsory . . . neither is survival."
W. Edwards Deming, US Business Advisor and Author
1900 - 1993

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

Ken Keis, MBA, CPC, is an internationally known author, speaker, and consultant. He is President and CEO of CRG Consulting Resource Group International, Inc., Many professionals herald CRG as the Number One global resource center for Personal and Professional Development.

For information on CRG Resources, please visit crgleader.com

For information on Ken’s Training and Speaking Programs, please visit Please Rate this Article

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