CROSS THE RIVER
It was Friday afternoon at 3:15 p.m. I called Mark. Mark is an executive in the training division of a large financial services company. I opened our conversation by letting him know of our past work for his company and having been referred to him by another executive at the organization. I then shared with Mark our work helping the individuals in their company improve their work speed through training from subject experts (on software applications).
How do you think Mark responded ?
Do you think he responded like countless other managers have responded when a new idea is brought to them ?
Mark said
"we do all our training on software applications for end users through e-learning".
I said "All of your training?". He said "Yes".
Makes you wonder.
I once met a man who had lived all his life (over 4 decades) in Covington, Kentucky. For any readers who are not familiar with this region, Covington is just across the Ohio river from downtown Cincinnati. It is close enough that you can walk across a bridge to get to downtown Cincinnati (1/2 mile). He told me he had never been to Cincinnati. He had never crossed the bridge over the Ohio river. He had rarely been out of Covington. I asked him why. He said he saw no reason to go anywhere else. While his contentment is enviable, his global perspective (even if he is an avid reader about other places in the world) leaves much to be desired.
The same may be true of Mark.
E-learning effectiveness has proven to be lower than
many other methods for developing new skill.
Below is one source's (Corporate Universities by Jeannie Meister) summary of learning methods and retention.
Rate of Retention Learning Method
80% Teaching others
80% Immediate use
75% Practice by doing
50% Discussion
30% Demonstration
20% Audio-Visual
10% Reading
5% Lecture
My experience with e-learning (which I use almost daily) is that it is primarily a combination of reading, lecture (watching someone talk on a video or listening to an audio source), audio-visual and demonstration (watching a demonstration / film clip - e.g. YouTube), and practicing by doing (assuming I clearly understood what I read, saw, or heard). The good news is that elearning is a good combination of several of the above learning methods. The other news is that the overall rate of retention and skill development is low. The other other news is that most employees don't use elearning. Many said they lack the time (a euphemism for lack of discipline).
The other good news is that this can be an efficient use of my time. I use e-learning for a few minutes at a time. I have the time freedom to do it when I can fit it in to my 11-12 hour work days. That works well for me.
The frustration I run into are:
- It takes longer to learn (because the rate of retention is lower and , as such, the "lessons" need to be repeated)
- The content is not detailed enough for what I am trying to learn and I am unable to easily find a source / an expert to help me figure out how to do the skill I am trying to learn
- Some sources of content have outdated information
- It takes strong discipline
My suggestion: Cross The River. Don't stay in Covington (i.e. don't just use one tool for learning).
To improve your retention:
- Teach others
- Make immediate application (and perform it seven times in a row if feasible) after you work with a person who showed you how to do something
- Like you did in learning a skill when you were younger (e.g. playing the violin, gymnastics, chess), use labs and practice before "performing".
- Minimize the amount of lectures (including television) you consume for the purpose of education
- If you enjoy reading, highlight actions you will take based upon what you read and create a task to take that action
- Be aware of the limited retention you will have from demonstrations and presentations and keep these options for learning to a minimum
- The "new" 3 - 5 minute video clips use for learning are in the audio-visual retention category
Beth
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