Adult learning

Learning styles

/ Susan Hendrich / 1 Comment

Looking for information on learning style inventories?

After years of facilitating learning styles workshops, I offer you the following perspectives/ideas:
 1. The Learning Styles Online inventory is good. The “Learning and techniques” section that they provide as feedback for the quiz results is solid, and the detailed combinations of style results are powerful.
2. The Hay Group has developed the robust “Kolb Learning Style Inventory,” based on David Kolb’s ground-breaking thinking, doing, experiencing, reflecting. The inventory and detailed individual and group feedback reports cost $15.00 per participant. This inventory is empirically validated and is widely used among corporate training groups. Check out the PowerPoint pdf they have on their information page.

3. A free quiz offered by AES does a very nice job of targeting participants’ learning styles and offering concrete action steps to help optimize learning.

4. VARK (Visual, Aural, Read/Write, Kinesthetic) is an often-used system that provides good feedback and tangible recommendations. A very detailed and more instructive feedback report is available for $28/participant. Whether you use VARK or not, the FAQ page (http://www.vark-learn.com/english/page.asp?p=faq) on the vark-learn site has some useful answers to common questions your participants may be asking.

One suggestion, regardless of the inventory you choose…

“Map out” participants’ results on a chart the whole class can see. People love to compare their own learning styles to that of their peers. This referential data provdes an answer to the eternal “how do I fit in to this human puzzle?” question. I have used PowerPoint slides to map out peoples scores as data points. You also can take a sheet of newsprint and draw a grid to map out scores using participants’ initials. It can be instructive for trainers to see any trends that a particular group might demonstrate.

I would be delighted to visit with you further about learning styles if you think it might be useful. Feel free to contact me at any time to discuss.

Take care, and happy learning!

Susan Hendrich 

 

 

 

Visual storytelling

/ Susan Hendrich / 5 Comments

Connect Using Visual Storytelling

It’s time for another golden e-Learning design tip! Today we’ll focus on visual storytelling. 

We’ve heard over and again that the power of visual imagery is unbeatable in instructional design. Yet, we struggle to find and use images that accurately capture and evoke the kind of emotion that connects audiences with the story we are trying to tell.  Perhaps you’ve seen the famed YouTube video series, “In Plain English,” where the CommonCraft geniuses show us (rather than tell us) the essence of Web 2.0 technologies. It is this kind of visual storytelling that captures our attention and ignites our imagination.

So, how can you show, rather than tell, your story?

Now, here’s your homework:

Take a look at Veronica Rusnak‘s Article on “Visual Storytelling and Moments in the Human Condition.”

“Remember: story, not data. Rather than talk about your topic, find a way to show it.”

Looking forward to your ideas!

Susan Hendrich

Information Overload

/ Susan Hendrich / Leave a comment

“All at once vs. Piecemeal: How shall we deliver training?” 

Help me answer a question, Dear Reader…

What is your formula for choosing a timeline to roll out a new training initiative?
 
  • Should all modules be delivered/presented in one fell swoop?
  • Should we roll out training components on a basic-intermediate-advanced continuum?
 
Too often we gauge our training delivery timelines on business needs, meaning, “We need this training now, and I mean business!”  But how often do we carefully plan the rollout of a new course or set of learning materials based on instructional design principles of graduated introduction?
 
Many learning experts would agree that rolling out training over time usually is optimal, and allows learners to integrate, apply, and assimilate new information more readily than by “cramming.” However, I wonder if a training series can be rolled out effectively in a short period of time if proper measures are taken.

 

Share your thoughts!

Below are a few references that may be useful:

 

Thanks,


Susan Hendrich

Words matter

/ Susan Hendrich / 2 Comments

Here is a shining example of the difference words can make:

1. Tina writes the following on her Think Simple Now blog:

Do you find yourself saying the words I’m sorry or I don’t know often? Did you know that this over-sighted language pattern is actually limiting our potential to happiness and ultimately getting what we want?…

The language we use is incredibly powerful. It is a direct command into our unconscious mind. Whether we realize it or not, or it was spoken casually or not, our unconscious mind is listening. Your unconscious mind takes notes even when you’re not paying attention.  Read Tina’s post

2. Then, people make comments on Tina’s post, like this one from Kannan:

Hi Tina,

Great Article.
I think you did lot of work to write this one.
One may wonder how even these simple words can influence our life.
Just like a garden, if we eliminate all the weeds and feed only the plants, our life will be a beautiful garden with wonderful results. Thanks for sharing.

Best Wishes,
Kannan Viswagandhi
http://www.growing-self.blogspot.com

3. Other people read Tina’s blog post and Kannan’s response, and start to think…

Hey maybe I need to consider my words more carefully. Yeah, in fact, I will make a change today in some small way.  Wait…by thinking that, I just did made a change! Let me write about that change.

4. And the beautiful cycle continues…

Think well!

Susan (Hertzenberg) Hendrich

Spotlight on…

/ Susan Hendrich / 2 Comments

Sharon Bowman

Looking for tips and articles to help you energize your training sessions? Check out Sharon Bowman’s sparkly site: http://www.bowperson.com/articles.htm.  Sharon’s site is chock full of web site links, newsletters, catalogs, and books that will help you become a master at “teaching it quick and making it stick!”  Here are two of her latest examples:

Stand, Stretch and Speak: Using Topic-Related Energizers.
From: Preventing Death by Lecture!
Author: Sharon L. Bowman
Format: Adobe Acrobat PDF

The Gallery Walk: An Opening, Closing, and Review Activity.
From: How To Give It So They Get It.
A more detailed version is found in: The Ten-Minute Trainer.
Author: Sharon L. Bowman
Format: Adobe Acrobat PDF