Kineo Learning Models: Blueprints for Learning Designers

Editor's Notes

• #6: But as eLearning continues to grow (in 2011 it’s a $50 billion + industry!) more and more people within organizations are being thrust into the role of eLearning designer. Is it realistic to expect these newbiesto deliver polished well-designed eLearning? Probably not (unless, of course, they’re just that good).
• #8: So, how can we help those relatively new to the field deliver effective learning solutions as soon as possible? Rather than approaching every new project as a shot in the dark, roll-up-your-sleeves and-start-from-scratch initiative, we’ve identified a core set of learning design models to help. Even inexperienced practitioners can quickly understand these models and easily apply them to the vast majority of learning requirements that come their way.These models combine some of the best principles and leading practices gained from our years of research and experience. They can give your internal teams a shared vocabulary and point of view and ensures every program has a solid instructional design strategy at its foundation.
• #9: Whatever learning model you choose to use, there are some components that we think should always be present in the most effective learning experiences: the Start and the Finish.Sandwiched between this beginning and end you’ll find our learning models – where the core learning takes place. It’s the filling that you choose that makes each learning experience fundamentally different from each other.
• #10: All the best learning experiences should start by engaging the learner (the ‘what’s in it for me?’ element) and then providing the information they need to get the most out of the learning experience (setting the direction).
• #12: AIDA = Awareness, Interest, Desire, Action
• #14: All the best learning experiences should start by engaging the learner (the ‘what’s in it for me?’ element) and then providing the information they need to get the most out of the learning experience (setting the direction).
• #16: You then need to finish the experience by making sure the learner goes away with the key learning points clearly summarized and, most importantly, with their next actions laid out—what they need to do to apply what they have learned in the real world. (Of course, it should rightly be pointed out that learning never finishes, but formal more structured learning experiences do have some form of end, often a launch pad to start applying those skills and ideas in the workplace.)
• #18: Just in time eLearning or performance support is a great example of information-based learning. Give the people what they want, when they want it. Users of these programs don’t want banks of check questions when all they wanted was to dip in and get some short tips or recall some key principles or steps.
• #20: Search and find: the ‘Google’ philosophy in which there is no architecture to the information but instead you use a search engine to present nearest matches as links to relevant information objects (like documents, videos, articles and presentations).
• #21: in this model we embed the information along the path of a task flow e.g. the timeline of a project (for a program on project management techniques) or the steps taken to manufacture a car. Here is a menu from an information-based module for the European Union on a particular process surrounding Excise Duty. Each section explains the process graphically with illustrative animations but at no time is the user asked to confirm their knowledge through questioning.
• #22: Topic categories: this model follows an interactive manual approach. Information can always be categorized (often done best by a simple brainstorming/pattern note exercise). Those categories naturally become sections for a menu or hierarchy of menus for short presentational sequences. This example from a financial institution on Fund types displays a two level hierarchy—the overall fund levels e.g. Retail funds and then a sub menu (shown here) which provides access to information on those specific funds. This was never a learning program, it was always designed to be just-in-time information. However, repeated review of the information pages (helped by good use of graphics and animations) can lead to knowledge retention
• #23: borrowing from other media, an e-Magazine style for presenting information in a structured, indexed format can work well.
• #24: If your brief is to ensure that the audience actually learns and retains some core knowledge or builds up new skills, then you may need to go with a more complex learning architecture. You need to ensure the learner comprehends the material and provide them with the mechanisms to retain this knowledge or skill.
• #25: This model is generally seen as being the most straightforward and simple format to follow. With this model, we can follow a standard sequence in order to systematically build knowledge and get learners to demonstrate understanding.The base entry point and time-honored approach is the classic tutorial structure: Make Present, Exemplify, Explore and Test (PEET).
• #26: Most of us are pretty used to this model. We get the key things we need to know clearly explained (and, if it’s face-to-face, you even get the chance to immediately clarify any confusion you have). There are many subjects in a corporate environment that just simply need to be explained and this is often where eLearning pays dividends, as complex topics can be explained graphically and can be viewed and reviewed as many times as the learner needs
• #28: Most of us are pretty used to this model. We get the key things we need to know clearly explained (and, if it’s face-to-face, you even get the chance to immediately clarify any confusion you have). There are many subjects in a corporate environment that just simply need to be explained and this is often where eLearning pays dividends, as complex topics can be explained graphically and can be viewed and reviewed as many times as the learner needs
• #29: Much of the knowledge in an organization is held in the heads of a few experts. So, an alternative or complementary approach is to directly interview these experts and the subsequent vodcasts or podcasts can form a key part of the presentation of your main learning points. Here is an example from a program on life skills and health and fitness which used top sports people sharing their views on how to achieve excellence:
• #30: Although we believe that most learning designs should include elements of storytelling, the Guided Story model builds the entire course around the theme. The course might unfold the content through a “day in the life” or a “year in the life” format, providing an opportunity to learn through observation.
• #34: The second step of this model then moves the learner to an ‘explore’ mode in which they can consolidate their learning with case studies or stories. For many, this is where they truly begin to ‘get it’, especially those learners who struggle with pure ‘concepts’.In the classroom situation, this can be through ‘war stories’ or role-plays or discussions with peers around ‘challenges’. With eLearning, it can be a scenario in which they are asked to reflect upon or suggest what the main protagonist should do.
• #35: If you have the time and budget, there is one approach that crosses over both Knowledge and Skills based projects and, as you will see later, attitude or behavior change-based learning requirements, this is the use of Goal-Based Scenarios.If you’re trying to teach a more complex problem-solving skill, you can immerse the learner in a situation and have them make decisions along the way to drive the action forward. You may provide them with access to supporting documents and job aids that will help inform the decision-making process. These types of tasks feel more like on-the-job simulations.
• #36: This is similar to the full branching simulation approach but the model is designed so that should the learner make a mistake in the scenario they get shown to a discrete relevant section of the tutorials. Once they complete the relevant module they can then return to the choice they got wrong and see if they can continue with the scenario without making further mistakes. The appeal of this approach is that learners have that extra degree of motivation to absorb the learning points, as they have just confronted that particular learning gap.
• #37: Use these when it really matters to provide people with real choices, consequences, and the opportunity to change direction and recover from mistakes, or try different approaches. The learner makes choices, sees consequences and gets feedback at the end on what they did right and wrong. The complexity and depth of the simulation is only limited by the patience of the designers in creating the different branches until it reaches a natural conclusion. You can provide different levels of help along the way to cater for different audiences
• #38: One other approach is to bill the branching scenario as an opportunity for the learner to change how a story unfolds. Here, you can change the nature of a conversation with a manager and team member by choosing a range of different leadership styles:
• #39: These tests are useful for learners to confirm that they have reached those levels of knowledge or skills. This, in its own right, builds confidence. It is also useful for the learner and the organization to know if they have acquired the necessary levels of knowledge or capability and decide what needs to be done to resolve this. From an organizational point of view, it is also a good way of checking if the overall program has delivered the agreed learning goals.
• #40: An overall Present, Exemplify, Explore and Test model that has been the mainstay of process and systems training for many years (both online and face-to-face) is usually referred to as Show Me, Try It, Test Me. In this model, you give the learner the chance to learn through observation (show me), then practice it on their own with guided prompts and feedback from the program. The final section (test me) lets the learner run through the process on their own with little input from the system – more of a simulation or sandbox environment.
• #41: An overall Present, Exemplify, Explore and Test model that has been the mainstay of process and systems training for many years (both online and face-to-face) is usually referred to as Show Me, Try It, Test Me. In this model, you give the learner the chance to learn through observation (show me), then practice it on their own with guided prompts and feedback from the program. The final section (test me) lets the learner run through the process on their own with little input from the system – more of a simulation or sandbox environment.
• #42: As explained earlier, a scenario-based learning (or learn-by-doing or goal-based task) approach is a great way to explore a topic more fully for a knowledge or skills-based learning experience. It is also though especially useful in changing attitudes and behavior as well. If you see the consequences of gaps in knowledge or an inappropriate mindset, you are more likely to see the logic of changing.
• #43: In this next example, a module we produced for a retail bank, the program opens by putting the learner in the position of a salesperson meeting with a customer who wants to open a savings account. One hidden objective was to make the learners aware that no product should be sold without an adequate fact find, even something as simple as savings account. The learner decides how the salesperson handles the customer conversation. When they (as many will do) simply open the savings account (on little examination of the customer’s needs), the program abruptly points out that they have breached the organization’s compliance rules and encourages them to try it all again but now with that key learning clearly understood.So, what makes a goal-based scenario designed specifically to change behaviors or attitudes different from a standard knowledge and skills-based version?The key is the choice of situations that learners confront and the way you set up and support those situations. Creating plausible ‘attractive’ mistakes takes time, as does creating the branched options and the feedback for each option. In the case of the above example, it was by giving them no upfront learning objectives and explaining that the bank branch was very busy (thus implying they should conduct a brief transaction with the customer).
• #44: The core of the learning experience should now be complete; the ‘filling’ of the sandwich. So, we need to return to the second piece of bread in the sandwich. The end of the program needs to provide a summary and then launch the learner onto the next phase in their journey.
• #45: SummarizeWhen constructing a learning program you need to provide a chance for learners to get the key messages again—traditionally referred to as the ‘tell them what you told them’ part of the process. Obviously, much of the learning they have acquired will be their response to the ideas or activities within the core learning sessions. So, you need to summarize the key learning points you want them to go away with but also leave space for the learner to reflect.A good way to do this is encourage them to think of what they will now do differently which leads us to the last step of a formal training program.
• #47: Learning in a training environment without enacting change is an incomplete exercise. You must challenge the learners to reflect on their current way of doing things and make a commitment to change where necessary. A simple ‘What are you going to start, stop and continue?’ question is a great starting point. Other options could involve Action Plans or Affirmations or new SMART goals.In our programs, we try to build in line manager follow ups or review sessions within 3 months of the formal completion of a program.There will often be a wealth of further information to explore (sometimes what your stakeholders wanted you to cover but you persuaded them not to include in the main program). This is where you can provide the links and give recommendations for further exploration. As you probably know, most learning takes place on the job. The current popularity of Lombardo and Eichinger’s 70/20/10 model shows that learning professionals recognize this as an important factor in designing effective learning programs. (70% of learning happens on the job; 20% through coaching and direct feedback; 10% through formal courses).So as a learning designer, we want to set the learner up in that 10% formal course time so that they’ve then got ample space to try things out in the real world (the 70%), while leveraging and building upon that extra 20% of on the job feedback or coaching. The Next Steps section of your eLearning should help the learner develop that game plan to take back with them on the job. It could involve a refresher module, or a webinar or an interactive coach (which by asking the right questions and responding to answers helps them carry out their own reflections and tweaks to their action plan).
• #49: Now that we’ve gone through the models, how do you decide what to use? Sometimes time and budget may win out and you have to choose the simplest path to get the need met most quickly. But many of these design models don’t have to involve lots of heavy lifting on a technical end - it’s often more typically about spending time thinking about the design challenge and selecting suitable mix to achieve the desired outcomes with the resources you do have.So, how do you decide which model or mix of models is appropriate?Start by asking yourself what you’re trying to achieve with each stage of your program (and remember there might be multiple things you’re trying to achieve!) As we discussed, there are three main reasons we’re typically asked to design a learning experience:To inform or raise awarenessTo improve knowledge and skillsTo change attitude or behaviorMap out what you’re trying to do, then sort through the models. You’ll make some judgment calls as you drill down more deeply – for example, if you’re working out the right models for a Present sequence, some content areas may be better suited to an ‘ask the expert’ type model than others. If you’re trying to teach a complex problem solving skill, do you have the expertise and time to build that in-house? Consider working with an outside partner to help you deliver the right program for the problem.If you’ll be designing a blended program, think about which elements can be delivered through eLearning and which you might want to supplement with performance support tools like job aids, classroom role plays, or one-to-one coaching with a manager.
• #54: http://www.kineo.com/us/elearning-reports/free-guide-e-learning-design.html