After A Internet convention: How To Reinforce Studying
Reinforce your learning with these 5 tips
If you recently hosted a training web conference, you have probably tried to make it as effective as possible. You invest time and resources in finding the right content and shipping method. They worked to make the experience exciting. But what about after the web conference? Did you do anything to improve learning after people checked out?
Imagine this scenario: You have planned and hosted the web conference of your dreams. Your presentation was engaging and the learners were keen participants. The course received good reviews and you are confident that you have taught everything that needed to be taught.
But back at work you don’t see the skills in action. People are engaged in the same old processes and the results remain unchanged. Why don’t employees eagerly show their newly acquired knowledge and have the hoped-for effect?
The answer? Because new learning requires reinforcement in order to last.
Why a web conference shouldn’t be a one-time event
Today’s eLearning solutions offer great advantages in motivating learners and conveying new information. However, your investment in employee development shouldn’t end in a single training course. Learning a concept once does not guarantee that it will last or be implemented. Too often people fall back on familiar work and behavior patterns even after the most exciting course. They don’t think about using the new skills, no matter how powerful the training experience was.
Web conferencing and eLearning can pose particular challenges for learning retention. Distractions in a virtual environment can prevent people from paying their full attention. Multitasking, constant online interruptions, and technical difficulties can also make it difficult to keep track of everything.
There are several reasons why skills are not transferred the way we expect. The biggest culprit, however, is likely what is known as the forgetting curve.
What is the forgetting curve?
In the 1880s, the German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus began to study memory. He found that people forget new information pretty quickly after learning it. Later studies supported Ebbinghaus’ discovery – today’s forgetting curve.
Research says that forgetting is exponential. When people learn something new, they forget about it almost immediately. The biggest decrease occurs on the first day after studying. Ebbinghaus’s curve shows that people forget about 70% of what they have learned within the first 24 hours of learning. After that, the memory leak slows down but continues over time.
To combat the forgetting curve in your training, you should reinforce learning early and effectively.
How to reinforce learning
Reinforcement training focuses on helping people retain knowledge. They are not trying to teach something new, they are helping them regain what they have already learned. They want them to be able to transfer the skills – to understand how and when to apply and put into action their new knowledge.
They work against the natural tendency of humans to fall back on old habits and practices in moments of high stress or tight deadlines. In short, the moment when they need their new knowledge most urgently. How exactly do you help people regain and cement what they have learned?
At the heart of good on-demand practice are three principles:
- Get started right away
The first few days after training are the steepest part of the forgetting curve. Therefore, it is important to start learning reinforcement immediately after exercising. Help learners keep their momentum by starting while the information in their memories is fresh. - Reinforce your learning regularly
Training shouldn’t just be a one-time event. Habits are built through repetition, and memories are strengthened when they are accessed frequently. Make sure your efforts are a recurring process. - Aim for an active callback
It is important to help learners work on their memories. Don’t just re-present the information. Use teaching strategies that allow people to actively remember what they have learned. Retrieving information helps the brain recognize that it matters and makes new knowledge more memorable.
Using these basic starting points, let’s examine how you can keep track of the content of your web conference.
5 tips to improve learning after a web conference
Combine web conferencing with additional training methods to improve training. Here are 5 strategies to strengthen learning early and regularly and to make it meaningful.
1. End the training with an action plan
You can start reinforcement before participants leave the training. Prevent premature loss of retention by ending a web conference with a schedule. Have learners brainstorm and record how they apply what they have learned on the job.
Writing down commitments and goals makes them more memorable. And people are more likely to remember new knowledge and apply it when they imagine it in a certain scenario.
A good action plan should contain specific measurable goals. It should also include a set time frame in which the skills are brought into play. Have students write down what they do, when they do it, and what results they hope for. You can keep your schedule handy so you can get back to the job quickly.
2. Send reinforcement emails
Periodic reminders prevent memory from fading. Consider creating a series of refresher emails to keep to a planned schedule.
The emails should complement the training and may contain:
- Memories or summaries of key concepts
- Suggestions where the skills can be used in the job
- Motivational quotes
- Case study examples of the skills in action
Help trigger memory by regularly introducing the key concepts to people. If you do this over a set period of time, the interactions with the information will be spread out and kept relevant.
3. Conduct follow-up training
Spaced learning strengthens memorability. A great way to follow a web conference is through ongoing training.
Schedule mini-trainings regularly after your conference or webinar. You can try to reconnect monthly or quarterly. Sessions can be synchronous or asynchronous. Create learning modules in your LMS at your own pace. Or schedule live meetings where everyone logs in together and conducts a discussion or role-play exercise.
You can also use a blended learning solution – a combination of online resources and real-time meetings. Schedule regular team meetings where everyone can come together to discuss questions or concerns. Have them practice skills or share how they used what they learned in training.
Regardless of how they are conducted, ongoing training options should focus on the application. Provide a quick review of what you have learned and dedicate the rest of the time to tests or exercises. Use continuous training to give learners more points of contact with the content and built-in opportunities for active recall.
4. Test the learners
Tests and assignments help people consolidate what they have learned. Increase long-term knowledge retention by adding quizzes to your ongoing training efforts.
To make the tests effective, give them at intervals over a set period of time. Incorporate quizzes into your follow-up sessions or email reminders. Strengthen the effects by challenging questions. It gets the learner to find the right answer. The more effort it takes to retrieve, the more memorable the answer will be – even if users don’t get the correct answer the first time.
Helpful tests can take many formats; B. Multiple choice or short answer thought questions. You can test the information directly or ask the learners how they would apply it in a given scenario. Anything that makes them search for the right answer.
5. Create a culture that supports new skills
Any new knowledge is only useful for employees when it has a job again. Boost memory and transfer by making the new skills a part of the company culture. To make the transition more seamless, try the following:
- Use the vocabulary and processes taught in the training in your meetings and internal communication.
- When attendees learn a specific problem-solving method, include the steps in your meeting schedule as you approach a problem as a team.
- Provide a discussion forum where people can ask questions or receive coaching from other learners.
- Add quarterly or annual reviews to goals from training.
Make your web conference content an integral part of daily life in your company. It’s hard to convince the brain that information is important if it is not related to the learner’s goals and purpose.
Conclusion
Even the most appealing and informative web conference does not guarantee a transfer of skills. Employees cannot apply what they cannot remember. Make the training an ongoing process. Start strengthening learning right away, continuing on a regular basis, and helping people actively remember what they have learned.
Training isn’t just a tick box. Continuing education is an investment in the performance of your company and in the experience of your employees. Guarantee success by continuously supporting your investment.
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