My daughter plays softball. Actually, she’s a softball star, though perhaps that’s a not-so-objective assessment from a proud mom! As a former softball player and someone for whom sports was a big part of my environment growing up, I understand what it takes to be a star on the field on game day—PRACTICE. Behind the scenes of any great team are hours and hours of drill after drill. The reward for all that effort? The crack of the bat, the ball sailing toward the outfield, the cheer of the crowd, and the ecstatic faces of your teammates.
All of these stimuli serve to reinforce learning—they are phenomenal motivation to continue to show up to practice and improve your game.
While we can’t arrange to have cheering squads appear at the desk of every learner, we can use some of these principles to reinforce learning when we develop e-learning. Here are a few key concepts to keep in mind:
Active Involvement
Adults need to be actively involved in the learning process—they want to do more than simply sit and receive information passively. Just like softball stars, they need practice! If you give learners an active role in the training process, they’re much more likely to take responsibility for their learning and have a personal stake in internalizing and then using what they’ve learned.
Active involvement can be achieved through a variety of techniques. For example, hands-on activities give learners real work to perform. Learners are asked to complete tasks that allow them to learn new skills and practice in a safe environment.
I recently discussed this topic in depth in my article “Incorporating Real-World Experiences in E-Learning.” From software simulations to immersive environments where learners can interact with the same types of tools and people they work with day to day, active involvement ideally mimics the real world, which reinforces learning.
Feedback
Tom Chatfield, a gaming theorist who presented the TED Talk, “7 Ways Games Reward the Brain,” believes the reason people play video games is because of the rewards: emotional, individual, and collective. These elements reinforce the behavior of playing the game. In e-learning, we can entice learners to not only continue “playing” (i.e., completing the e-learning course), but also to reinforce the behaviors we want them to learn and apply back on the job.
For example, Chatfield suggests providing clear feedback rapidly and frequently in games. “It’s very, very hard for people to learn if they cannot link consequences to actions,” he says.
Feedback is also an essential tool to reinforce learning in e-learning, and it goes hand-in-hand with active involvement. You do something, and the e-learning tells you right away if you’ve performed correctly or incorrectly. Providing feedback beyond a simple “You did it!” or “Sorry, better luck next time!”—that is, writing feedback that explains the why behind both correct and incorrect actions—deepens understanding.
WIIFM
WIIFM, or “What’s in it for me?” is a critical part of e-learning design. Don’t be the instructional designer who focuses on your client’s needs while overlooking the learner’s perspective. (Though, of course, they are both important.)
Ask yourself: “What will learners gain from this experience? How will it affect their careers, and even their lives?” These questions get to the heart of the long-term rewards for learners. If you can clearly articulate these benefits, you will reinforce both their desire to learn and their desire to internalize and use what they have learned.
In developing this video to announce our client’s new sales training program, we did exactly that—defined and focused on the WIIFMs for learners. In this case, one of our challenges was that the training is not mandatory for the audience, so we had to entice them to show up. The video uses animation, humor, and honesty as tools for engagement, and it clearly states what the learner will get out the training program.
As you design your e-learning program, consider how you can reinforce learning using active involvement, feedback, and articulating the WIIFMs. If you do, there’s no doubt you’ll hit one out of the park!
Kerri Simmons is Solution Architect at SweetRush (http://www.sweetrush.com). With a Master’s degree in instructional design, Simmons brings a strong background in adult learning, solution design and development, learning management systems, project management, vendor relations, performance management, learning programs, and working in and designing for virtual environments. Simmons knows every side of the training business: She’s been the client, the vendor, the business owner, and the independent consultant. E-mail her at kerri@sweetrush.com or contact her via social media: Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook
