Imagine someone at work perceives a problem and thinks a new training program might resolve it. For example, maybe the production manager says that her workers need to be more efficient and create more units of a product.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom before anyone rushes off, creates training materials, and conducts the training, it’s a good idea to take a step back and assess the situation.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom that’s what the training needs assessment is for.

Don’t provide training if it’s not clear why you’re doing it, or if it doesn’t directly support a business goal.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom business goals include things like increasing revenue and efficiency, decreasing costs and waste, supporting a new product, teaching a new or changed production process, or complying with regulations.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom for example, a business goal might be to train employees to create a new product. Determine the tasks workers need to perform:

Once you’ve identified the business goal, ask yourself what your employees have to do if the company is to reach that goal.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom during this phase, you’ll identify the “performance gap” between what your workers can do now, and what they must be able to do. To keep with our new product example, the workers might need to know what the new product is, how the product is produced, and (most importantly) the tasks the workers must perform on the job to make the product.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom determine the training activities that will help workers learn to perform the tasks:

You’ve identified what the workers need to do, so now you have to identify the training activities that will help them learn to do those tasks.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom to continue our example, this may include a quick and short explanation of the product, an equally quick and short overview of the production process, and demonstrations mixed with hands-on practice of the tasks they’ll have to perform on the job.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom determine characteristics of workers that will make the training more effective:

Finally, consider the characteristics of your workers to determine the type of training that will be most effective for them.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom in a perfect world, you’d cater training to each individual, but that’s not always possible and you may have to consider the average characteristics of the group as a whole.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom consider these kind of things: are they more comfortable with computer-based training or instructor-led training; do they like self-guided or self-paced learning, or would they struggle in that environment; are they youngish or older; are there cultural issues that may factor in; do they learn better from reading, listening, or doing; etc.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom and because it’s hard to create one-size training that fits all, consider training that blends different aspects so you’ve got a better chance of reaching everyone.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

Learning objectives are a list of things the workers must be able to do after the training is completed. They are the “north star” that all aspects of your training should be pointed at.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom once you’ve created your learning objectives, create content that covers the objectives—and nothing but. In addition, any quizzes, tests, case studies, or hands-on exercises performed during training to evaluate your worker’s comprehension of the training should assess only the workers’ understanding of the objectives.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom and finally, any observation of workers when they’re back on the job to evaluate the effectiveness of the training should also focus on the performance of these objectives.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

A learning objective may address things that your learners can “know,” such as how product flows through a machine; skills that your learner’s can perform, such as threading materials into a machine; and attitudes that your employees can hold, such as the importance of threading materials into a machine properly in order to create the best possible product.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom make them SMART:

When you write an objective, it should have five characteristics, known collectively by the acronym SMART. The objective should be specific, meaning it’s very clearly stated and its meaning is equally apparent to everyone.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom it should be measurable, meaning everyone can agree if the learner satisfies it or not. It should be achievable, meaning the learner truly has a chance to satisfy it.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom it should be relevant, meaning it’s important for the worker’s job. And it should be time-bound, meaning it will be clear when the learner must be able to satisfy the objective (typically, after training).Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

A learning objective should include four parts, which you can remember with the letters ABCD. It should include an actor who will perform the objective (the employees you’re training).Cognitive learning theory in the classroom it should include a behavior that the actor must perform (this behavior should be stated as a verb that defines the workers’ behavior, such as “recite” or “turn”).Cognitive learning theory in the classroom it should include conditions under which the employees must perform the behavior (for example, “given a wrench, the employee must…”). And it should include the degree to which the employee must perform the behavior (for example, “90 times an hour”).Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

One thing to keep in mind is that a learning management system (LMS) can play a big role in helping you during this step. An LMS is a software application used assign, deliver, track, and report on training.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom if you use an LMS at work, it’s easy for your employees to log in and see the list of training they’ve been assigned. Many learning management systems even include notification systems that send emails to the workers when new assignments are made or due dates are approaching.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom in short, an LMS can automate a lot of the clerical, scheduling, and notification procedures you’d have to do yourself in this step (and they do a lot more than that, too).Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

Moving forward to the actual training, the implementation can take a variety of forms. It may be classroom instruction; practice opportunities such as role-playing exercises, focus groups, case studies, or small group assignments; on-the-job skills-based training; the delivery of paper-based hand-outs for individual reading and study; the completion of e-learning modules on a computer; a combination of some or all of these; or more.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

If your training includes a classroom instruction component, there are a number of things you can do to make this more productive. Although the key things involve letting the employees be active participants instead of passive and bored listeners, more mundane things like room temperature, lighting, table and chair set-up, visual aids, and the instructor’s presentation style also play a role.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom there are a number of good books and websites that can you help you with this; the american society for training & development’s website is a good place to start looking.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

If your goal is to deliver effective training that changes your worker’s behavior on the job—and this SHOULD be your goal—then you need to confirm that the training was effective.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom the standard way to do this is to use kirkpatrick’s four levels of evaluation. As you may have guessed, this method involves evaluating the effectiveness of your training at four different levels.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom those four evaluations are: employees’ reaction to training:

Did the employees like the training? Did they feel like they learned? You can find this out by observing the employees during training, asking their opinions, or handing out surveys.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom you can hand out paper-based surveys after training if you want, but you may get better results if the survey is online and anonymous. Survey monkey provides free online tools to help you do this.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

After you’ve performed these four levels of evaluation, you may determine that the training was as effective as you hoped, or even more. If so, congratulations and job well done.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom now you can pat yourself on the back. On the other hand, these evaluations may show that your training wasn’t all you hoped it would be. If so, it’s time to revise the training and get things up to snuff.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom

Readers with long memories may have read about kirkpatrick’s four levels of evaluation and felt the familiar tingle of déjà vu. If so, that’s because kirkpatrick’s four levels map directly to the four steps of the training needs analysis described at the beginning of this article.Cognitive learning theory in the classroom check it out for yourself in the table below. KIRKPATRICK’S FOUR LEVELS OF EVALUATION