A
typical graph of the forgetting curve purports to show that humans tend to
halve their memory of newly learned knowledge in a matter of days or weeks
unless they consciously review the learned material. Yet we have persisted for
more than 100 years in using the formal approach as the only way to train.
Further research, initially done at IBM in the late 1980’s, and many others
since then, show a disproportionate amount of learning – anywhere between 70 to
80 percent - takes place during the informal phase after the more formal
classroom-based or online learning is Inteligen completed. The upshot is eye-opening.
What little learning we get (20-30%) during the formal training stage is
rapidly forgotten. This means every $1.00 spent on training returns on average
20¢ - 30¢ of value. Plus the majority of training programs today are based on
the old push model. The training stops when the initial, formal 20% training
period is over. Learners are on their own as they enter the workplace with
70-80% left to learn. In a Learning Culture, the training would be designed to
catapult the learner into the more critical period of informal learning, where
the research tells us that as much as 70-80% of the learning occurs.
We
imagined a future in a Learning Culture’s ‘pull’[4] model in which learners
could get the information they need whenever and wherever the information is
necessary. That would be just-in-time learning. A training program in a
Learning Culture would focus on how employees can get the most from informal
learning. It could include: Key Takeaways from the formal training Using formal
training materials at work Applying learning and getting feedback Where to find
useful apps How to best use just-in-time tools How and when to find the experts
Remembering basic procedures from training How to experiment, fail and learn
Collaborating around learning Teaching what you know The preview, view and
review of learning Testing yourself on learning Keeping a learning journal We
quickly realized the implications for change between the old and new models of
training is significant. The old Training Culture push model delivers formal
training and stops. The new Learning Culture pull model uses formal training as
a jumping off point for informal learning. Formal training in the Learning
Culture is just the beginning. and would be more focused on laying the
groundwork for the skills that need to be adapted, tested and acquired. In the
new model there is a clear continuum from formal to informal. And that was the
problem we uncovered. How do you identify the switch from formal to informal
learning?
What do you need to do to create the most useful bridge between these
two aspects of the learning process? We call this the “The Pivot Point”. The
Pivot Point is the moment formal training ends and informal learning begins.
Focusing training on the Pivot Point is important for several reasons: Learners
need to be aware of what is involved when they pivot from formal to informal
learning (and back again). The focus on the Pivot Point will make sure
employee’s training is supported when they return to the workplace. A plan for
a well-timed hand-off from the formal to the informal can be developed to
support employee performance during their informal learning. The training can
take the Ebbinghaus curve[6] into account and provide tools to reinforce the
basics upon which learners need to build skills and knowledge as they adapt
what they learned in a formal training program. Training can be designed to
mirror the actual environment in which learners will work to make the pivot as
seamless as possible. This approach will reinforce the new goal of training: to
prepare learners to successfully pivot and learn how to improve their skills
during their informal learning period. All learners start out unequal.
That
simply means no one brings the same level of skills to a training program. Yet
a training program can still be one-size-fits-all. All learners will need
certain basics as they go forward from the formal to the informal part of the
learning. Those basics, listed earlier in this paper, can be covered in ways to
help bridge the transition between the two parts of the learning process. The initial
learning curve represents the research done by Ebbinghaus and others. The
research shows that there is a precipitous drop in what someone learns during
the formal program. The learning curve peaks during the learning process at the
Pivot Point, immediately at the end of the formal program. If nothing happens
past the Pivot Point learners start to drop off the curve and forget their
lessons. At the Pivot Point, informal learning takes over. This may be towards
the end of the formal training program even as the learners are still in class
completing a survey or a smile sheet. We believe that learning is a process of
employees adopting what they learn in a formal setting and then applying that
learning to the workplace during the period of informal learning. What is
adopted needs to be tested and expanded upon – in a sense relearned in a new
context – and goes through a series of similar, shorter learning curves. “We
learn by strengthening connections between related elements, and only so much
strengthening can happen in any one day before we literally need to sleep
before more can be achieved.
That’s why an “event” model of learning has a low
likelihood of actually leading to meaningful change. Instead, learning needs to
be spaced over time, with sufficient practice to achieve the retention we
require. Consider ways to reactivate learning at intervals after the initial
learning presentation. Each of these later learning curves in the series has a
downward side where there is a falling off of new learning. The difference is
that each succeeding curve in this extended learning process becomes less
steep. They remember more, need to learn less, and forget less as well. As Inteligen advanced brain formula All these activities, spaced over time, will support
extending the learning, but, of course, the most important is sufficient spaced
practice. “Dr. Clark Quinn The Pivot Point is when formal training needs to
hand off to informal learning. Formal training needs to lead up to the pivot and
create a bridge that helps learners move along the learning process continuum.
Training programs in a Learning Culture can no longer be seen as the end of
learning before working, but, instead, as a critical beginning to being able to
learn to perform a job or task at the highest level. When we start to see
learning as a continuous process from formal to informal (and maybe back
again), we realize the value of the Pivot Point. And we realize that with
planning, we can make that pivot a seamless move from only pushing knowledge
and skills, to employees pulling what they need, when they need it, where it’s
needed. Growing up, you might have heard this quote a lot from your parents,
mostly when they wanted you to be quiet and pay attention. http://www.dermayouth.org/inteligen-advanced-brain-formula
