Essential Learning Strategies

Learning Strategies to optimise the training process are as follows:

1. Bite-Sized Learning: Bite-sized learning involves breaking down the whole session into different small sessions. Arranging only one session to give a lot of information can be cumbersome, rather it is preferable to break down the session into various small-sized sessions. People can feel distracted learning about a topic at one time, instead, small portions made from one topic can attract their attention.

2. Lateral Learning: Lateral learning is concerned with the perception of employees. When employees are given training in any aspect, they are trained to think differently, go beyond the boundaries, and introduce change to the previously existing techniques with their creative thinking. In today’s time, learning only bookish strategies would not be so helpful, instead, strategic thinking is important.

3. Metacognition: Metacognition is concerned with the activity of thinking about life and work in general. How employees in the workspace think about their life, their goals, strategies, and paths to be followed to achieve their goals. Metacognition is different from other learning strategies, yet so important.

4. Dual Coding: As there are so many distractions which can distract employees while learning anything at the workplace, it is the tutor’s responsibility (the one responsible for knowledge transfer) to minimise these distractions and ensure that employees are learning. For this purpose, a dual coding technique is used at the workplace. Under this technique, various methods and mediums are being followed by the tutors to ensure that the employees are absorbing the knowledge.

5. Examples: When it is difficult for the employees to relate any strategy that how a particular strategy can be applied in real life, the tutor or the person who is to transfer knowledge to the employees must give existing real-life examples to make employees understand about the strategy. Employees can feel connected with the topic, and it will be easy for them to retain knowledge when the topic is connected to their real life.

6. Interleaving: Interleaving is the strategy used to make employees retain knowledge most effectively. The tutor or the person who is to transfer knowledge to the employees must divide the lesson into various concepts. These concepts must be interlinked to retain the knowledge in the minds of employees. Interlinking the topics together can form a trail, thus completing the whole topic.

7. Elaboration: Elaboration is the concept of promoting learning by connecting theoretical knowledge to real-life experience. No one can retain knowledge for a longer time unless some real-life experience is connected with such knowledge.

8. Retrieval Practice: There is a difference between learning information and retaining it. Unlike school, where the students can re-learn the information from notes or several types of videos, the employees are made to use their memory to retain the information and not rely on the notes. This practice is termed as ‘Retrieval Practice’.

Learning is a lifelong journey, and these days, acquiring abilities efficiently is more critical than ever. Learning is important in every field, whether it is personal life or corporate life. In the corporate world, various kinds of strategies are introduced to make employees learn, know, and retain knowledge and information. There are various learning strategies to optimise the training process. The main objectives of learning strategies are to increase engagement, promote effective learning, retention, etc.