Is your organization meeting learner needs? – The learning triangle

No two learners are the same, yet most of the time learning is approached through a singular lens. Up until recent years, all employee training needed to be done in person through live classroom sessions. This required a lot of time for learners and instructors, sometimes eight-hour blocks, in order to complete a full day of training. I don’t know how long it’s been since you sat in a classroom for 8 hours listening to a lecture, but it gets boring. You get restless, and naturally no matter how important the training content is, your attention span is gonna start to waver. This, among other reasons, has caused organizations to rethink their approach to training.

ELearning and remote training through web-based Learning Management Systems (LMS) opened a world of opportunities to better reach learners wherever and whenever they are comfortable. Employees can access training modules and approach learning in a self-paced manner. As an organization, this also solves your timing, scheduling and attendance issues that come with in-person learning. But how are you guaranteeing your learners are engaging with content remotely? In order to best reach your learners remotely, you need to understand how people best learn information. There are four core ways people learn (Fleming, 1987).

Four types of learners

Visual learners

Your doodlers, list makers, diagram creators, these are the people who need to see it in order to learn. They need to visualize how things work. Dynamic content that is picture heavy and illustrates concepts would help them most.

Auditory learners

They learn best by hearing and sometimes repeating new content out loud. These learners may enjoy lectures, webinars and recorded presentations. Hearing and repetition help them with retention.  

Kinesthetic learners

The doers of the group. Tactile learners use their hands and movement to practice what they are learning. They are more likely to take breaks or move around while learning. This is the most common type of learning style (VARK, 2020).

Reading/writing learners

This is the easiest of the four learning styles to cater to. These learners like to read and write. They have no problem with text-heavy modules or reading through training protocols, documents or PowerPoints.    

Does your organization’s learning cater to all four types of learners?  

In 2020, a study found that 2/3s of people reported being multimodal. This means they fall into multiple categories of learning and learn best when they use a mixed content approach. The below graphic best illustrates how people retain what they learn.  

Why is teaching to The Learning Triangle important?

Content variety breeds content retention.

Building a remote based training program with variety is the best way to ensure every learner is engaged and prepared for work . This study combined active and passive learning strategies to figure out the best way to help learners retain information. They found by starting with passive learning to familiarize their learners with concepts and information, the learners were more likely to succeed when it came to active learning activities. But the key element here is that active learning is crucial, especially in the workplace (Forbes, 2019).  

Now ask yourself, does your organization’s remote learning content include active learning opportunities? Does each course blend learning types together to ensure a well-rounded learning experience? Your remote training program needs to be built around your learners’ needs. Not around the confines of your learning platform’s capabilities.

If you’re a healthcare organization, your workers are being certified in patient care tactics, ER care, safety procedures, proper handling of medication etc. These are not the kinds of courses you want your staff zoning out during or clicking through to complete quickly.  

Or maybe your organization focuses on public safety and hires specialized employees: fire fighters, EMTs, police officers, etc. These workers are held to a high standard and are required to keep their certifications up to date. They need to understand best practices when it comes to navigating life or death scenarios and be prepared to act. It’s one thing to log into a remote training, listen to a presenter and take a quiz. But how are you providing content that forces workers to actively practice scenario-based learning? Can your LMS even do that?

The right LMS will make any content type accessible, not just stale PowerPoint slides and training documents. Learn how Learnsoft is built to serve communities, by meeting the needs of any workforce.