Sharon Boller, President of Bottom-Line Performance, has authored a new white paper: When Remembering Really Matters: Learning Strategies for Long-Term Retention. It’s full of research, case studies, and advice for learning professionals ready to reduce the amount of information learners forget from all types of training.
Here’s what is covered in the white paper:
What will learners remember?
The question is not asked often enough in most organizations. Research shows us that most of what we learn is forgotten after a learning event, so what can we as learning professionals do to combat this in our designs?
The Cost of Not Remembering
Managers, Directors, and VP’s are painfully aware of what happens when critical training concepts are forgotten. ASTD estimates that in 2012, organizations invested $164.2 billion in employee training. How much of your training investment goes to waste?
Remembering is hard; forgetting is easy
You’ve probably heard of Herman Ebbinghaus’ famous “Forgetting Curve,” based on research done in the late 19th century. While the curve can approach 90% in terms of total information forgotten, more recent research shows that the Forgetting Curve is highly variable. Regardless of the exact percentage, What percentage of what we learn do YOU think is okay to forget?
Four Strategies to Foster Long-Term Retention
Sharon introduces four proven strategies that inhibit forgetting and enhance remembering. You’ll learn more about how to apply these strategies, and the research behind them, in the white paper:
- Provide frequent, spaced intervals of learning instead of “glops” or “unrepeated waves.”
- Provide multiple repetitions.
- Provide immediate feedback for mistakes, and make sure learners get it right before moving forward.
- Use stories to drive the learning experience.
All of these strategies are explained in detail within the white paper.
Learning comes before remembering
While the first part of the white paper focuses on remembering, part two is all about the learning. If employees never truly learn new knowledge or skill, they certainly will not remember it. Sharon introduces four strategies for learning that, coupled with the strategies for remembering, will lead to long-term retention.
- Balance the use of multimedia.
- Limit learner control in the course design.
- Personalize the experience as much as possible.
- Be ruthless in eliminating content.
Putting it all together
Perhaps most importantly of all, the white paper closes with a summary of five business challenges we solved for our clients using a combination of these strategies for learning and remembering.
Ready to change the way you design and deliver learning? Download the white paper now!
