I Told Them, So Why Don’t They Know It?Pamela B. Pfeifer, MS, RN-BC Manager, Clinical Training, NM Academy,

Northwestern Memorial HealthCare

What Research Tells Us About the Learning Process• Cognitive neuroscience explains basic brain physiology

concepts for basic learning processes:

o Humans are genetically coded to learn to adapt

to the environment

o New skills mastery creates new neural pathways

Short-term memory can hold 5 +/- 2

“chunks” of information at a time

Endocytosis causes new information

(short-term memory) to decay rapidly

(within 10 to15 seconds)

Repetition reinforces neural

pathways and moves working (short-

term ) memory into long-term memory

o Incremental steps of skills mastery stimulate

dopamine release (pleasure)

o PET images show decreased glucose

metabolic rates after several weeks of practice

(less energy needed to maintain new learning)

o Stimulation of the limbic system makes

emotionally charged events easier to remember

o Neurotransmitters are depleted after 8 to 10

minutes of stimulation (cognitive overload)

o Stimulating more than one area of the brain at a

time increases memory by increasing the number

of neural pathway connections

However, if multisensory input is not

well integrated it can have a

decremental effect by overwhelming

information-processing capabilities

(task switching vs. multi-tasking)

How Can You Be a Better Trainer? • Getting learners to learn

o Move away from telling them WIIFM (What’s

In It For Me?) to showing them WCIDWT

(What Can I Do With This?)

• A model for creating terrific learning sessions:

Making Learning Research Work• Useful training approaches and learning activities

o Design with a bias for learner-centered

methods

o Minimize lecture-driven experiences; encourage

learners to collaborate, elaborate, verbalize,

draw and share what has been learned

o Insert frequent practice to allow repetition

o Chunk “like” concepts

Condensing several pieces of

meaningful information into one

“chunk” reduces short-term memory

overload (e.g. use acronyms such as

NEWS or HOMES)

o Link concepts to previous knowledge

Scaffold information to allow

incremental skills mastery (gaming

strategies)

o Design training sections to be no longer than 20

minutes in length with planned “brain breaks”

between sections

o Ensure learners are focused on one task at a

time, but vary the learning format through active

engagement:

Facilitation

Simulation

Games

Role play

o Use emotion to activate learning:

Ask learners to share successful as

well as difficult learning experiences

Use reflection

o Use terms such as “learning check” or “practice

exercise” to decrease the stress associated with

the words “exam” or “test”

Testing is important to verify if

training objectives were met and to

identify opportunities for feedback

• The bottom line on training activities:

o Don’t just transmit information but transform

learners

o Focus on a “learner-centered, performance-

based” approach

o Focus on meaningful interactions to transform

learners

References• Doolittle, Peter (2009). Multimedia learning and working memory capacity. In Cognitive Effects of Multimedia Learning, , IGI Global,

Publisher.

• Quinn, Clark N. Engaging Learning, 2005, Pfeiffer Publishing

• Stolovitch, Harold D. and Keeps, Erica J. Telling Ain’t Training, 2002, ASTD Press.

• Silberman, Mel. Active Training: A Handbook of Techniques, Designs, Case Examples, and Tips, 3rd Ed., 2006, Pfeiffer Publishing

• Schell, Jesse The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses ;2010, Elsevier, Inc.

• Sawyer, RK, ed. (2006). The Cambridge Handbook of the Learning Sciences. New York: Cambridge University Press.

• VanDam, Nick (2013). Inside the Learning Brain. T+D ; April ,67(4): 30-35.

AbstractEducation specialists struggle to find ways to make

learning engaging and memorable, yet so many are

unsuccessful in their attempts. Why? How many

times have you heard this statement: “I told them what

they should do, so now they should be able to do it?”

The purpose of this poster is to explore how education

specialists can prepare effective, engaging learning

activities based on basic brain physiology concepts

that explain the learning process.

fMRI illustrating the difference in brain

activity during interactive play and passive

exposure

Rationale

Objectives

Activities

Evaluation

(corrective) Feedback

OK?(confirming) Feedback

Yes No

Why Learning is Not Easy• There’s usually a disconnect between what trainers say

about how they learn and how they try to help others learn

• Trainers try to transmit information, without remembering

that learning is about change/transformation

• The bottom line on adult learning principles

o Readiness—focus on your learner’s needs

o Experience—connect to what they already know

o Autonomy—allow time to explore new concepts

o Action—connect to immediate application

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/3/prweb9293984.htm