There
are several concepts that were discussed in this weeks readings. In
Chapters seven, eight and nine there were several concepts that were
addressed. Important concepts that were retained from this weeks reading
include the following:
1) The redundancy principle is important, but not TOO important. Repetition
and redundancy are important for retention and learning in a
traditional or online setting. Including text narration, words on
screen and graphics create a learning environment that activates several
areas of the brain, and therefore stimulates learning from several
different modalities (Clark & Mayer, 2011). However, as
instructional designers, it is important to find an equitable balance
between redundancy and extraneous information, leading to a cognitive
overload. Animation and text or animation and audio can be paired
together, but when all three are combined retention decreases.
This
is important for JIT training for many reasons. It is important to
provide information that learners will respond to and activate their
interest and creativity. In my current position, as previously noted, I
have been assigned to devise a training manual for new hires on site.
We are expanding our practice and there will be an influx of new
employees so this is a vital task. While the training will include
video training opportunities and descriptions of information and
details, steps will be bulleted with specific criteria and videos will
be divided based on need and complexity. This separation will define
areas that require attention and avoid attention on things that are
irrelevant.
2) Coherence and understanding is important, so only include information that learners need to take away from the presentation. Designing
an e-learning presentation has several obstacles and opportunities for
creative expression. As a designer there are many opportunities to
showcase the information that you have acquired and include elements
that are funny and show incredible design skills. However, it is
important to only convey and include concepts that are meaningful to the
desired outcome of the presentation. For JIT training techniques this
is incredibly important. JIT training is geared towards learners that
have a reason to learn a specific skillset. It is important to focus
only on that material so that learners can maximize retention and
learning. Also, many learners that rely on JIT training are adult
learners that are limited on time. Instructional designers can optimize
time and the learning experience by only including material that is
directly relevant to the instructional goals of the lesson.
In
my current position, there is a great amount of information to be
learned, in a relatively short period of time. However, by including
segmented material by subject, learners will retain a lot more
information at one time and progress through the material with ease.
3) The Personalization Principle helps connect learners to the material. This
is one of most important elements of instructional design. Academic
scholars that transition to instructors often fill their lessons with
field specific jargon and formalities. Lessons and instruction should
be personal, interactive and reflect a conversation more than an
academic publication ( Clark & Mayer, 2011). This helps learners
connect concepts to prior learning and transfer knowledge to new
situations. Humans, by nature are social learners and collaborate and
learn from interaction. In JIT training this is important because in
most business situations, interaction and collaboration is vital. The
designer or instructor should find a personal level to connect with
learners so that they feel as though they are learning from a friend
instead of an expert. Psychologically, information is better received
when the pressure of the circumstance is removed. Creating a personal
tone can provide substantial results in learning and retention.
My
current position is interactive and creative, but the employees that I
train do not often have that flexibility. However, several of the women
that work here have been here for decades, and myself only a few years.
We are in a small office and everyone knows everyone personally, so I
treaded lightly when initiating my training programs. By using a
personal approach, and interacting with learners on a personal level I
was embraced with grace and interest.
References
Clark, R. C. & Mayer, R. E. (2011). E-Learning and the science of instruction (3rd ed). San
Francisco. Pfeiffer
