When it comes to training learners about health and safety protocols in their field, providing a lot of information all at once can make sense but not necessarily sink in. While it may be beneficial that the learner is hearing all of this information, it’s ideal for the learner to absorb the content so that they’re able to apply it to their job role. Understanding this dilemma is one thing, but, in order to be a successful trainer, it’s imperative to fully understand how to make training stick.
Safety Mentor’s team of training professionals is no stranger to finding ways to help learners grow within their career path. Here are some tips for how to make training stick:
Create an Action Plan
After presenting a new lesson, ask your learners what value they gleaned from the content, and also provide your own thoughts about how they can use this new material on the job. While the content is still fresh on their minds, ask your learners to create an action plan so that they can easily implement their new skills in the workplace.
Encourage Teamwork
Oftentimes, when an employee takes a class for their job, their coworkers are taking the class, too. Since they’re learning the same concepts, using a buddy system can be helpful for those who benefit from working in pairs. Learners may pair up on their own, or, as an instructor, you may opt to create teams based on learning behaviors and needs. Teamwork allows learners to help hold one another accountable and provide a way for learners to quiz one another and practice skills and concepts outside of the classroom.
Be Supportive
While some learners absolutely love adding new knowledge to their skillset, some people aren’t very thrilled about being in a learning environment. That’s why it’s important for instructors to provide encouragement and support as much as possible. Showing that you care conveys a message to learners that the subject matter is important and that they should care about it as well.
Provide Feedback
Tracking the progress of learners and providing feedback is one of our biggest tips for how to make training stick. By tracking progress, you’re able to easily see if and how learners are progressing and retaining material throughout the course. Instructor feedback is key for allowing learners to understand what they may need to change in the learning process as well as provide ideas on how to approach the changes that need to be made. You may also consider implementing peer feedback so people in the class can get tips from other learners while fostering a healthy team environment.
Give Real Life Examples
Sometimes concepts can be difficult to grasp - so providing real life examples is another way to help make training stick. While planning lessons, consider acting out, illustrating, or directly explaining an example of the concept within the real life work environment. This not only reiterates the learning material in a different way, but it also allows learners to visualize how to implement new skills while on the job.
Offer Mentorship
Plenty of learners may do well in the classroom without any extra help along the way. However, there are certainly other learners who may need to be guided through each lesson. Offering mentorship or coaching to learners in and out of the classroom can make a difference in how someone absorbs information and deals with setbacks while trying to implement new learned skills.
Use Reminders
Employees have a lot to worry about on a day-to-day basis, but remembering to do their coursework shouldn’t be one of those things. Setting reminders for learners is a great way to keep them engaged and hold them accountable for showing up and getting work done. Some ideas for setting reminders include: using visuals within the course or session and online learning platform; sending out emails to individuals or the entire class; or sending out notifications through your learning management system or simply Slack, Google Chat, or another messaging service your organization may use.
Still have questions about how to make training stick for your learners? Safety Mentor is here to help with our learning experience platform (LXP) and other services. Contact us to learn more today!
