What is effective learning? Well, that’s the million-dollar question, isn’t it?visit here
Every educator, corporate trainer, instructional designer, and learner strives for effective learning. But in many instances, it remains out of reach and clouded in confusion.
A thorough understanding of what is effective learning requires combining cognitive and psychological knowledge with a healthy dose of compassion. Humans are complex beings, so effective learning is not a simple recipe that one can perfect and follow repeatedly. Each learner requires a unique blend of approaches.
Instead, think of effective learning as a set of tools that can be utilized to build customized learning experiences and training paths. While it is impossible to know every educational situation you will encounter, you can be confident that a well-stocked toolbox will provide you with all the engaging elements and informational formats you need for effective learning in any educational environment.
In this post, you will find answers to the following:
- What is effective learning?
- Why does effective learning matter?
- What prevents effective learning?
- How can you promote effective learning?
What is effective learning?
To answer what is effective learning you must first understand what is learning. And defining learning is trickier than it sounds. Every educator or training program will have different learning outcomes that they seek, however, rarely do desired learning outcomes get explicitly defined. Even in educational research, there is a lack of clear definition for the term “learning.” Learning has functional, behavioral, psychological, and even genetic implications that must be considered when determining what learning is and how it can be effective. In essence, learning can be generally defined as “a process that leads to change, which occurs as a result of experience and increases the potential for improved performance and future learning.”
Let’s break down each component for a more thorough understanding:
- Process: The emphasis on learning as an ongoing continuum is crucial for setting expectations around learning outcomes and designing learning experiences that build on one another.
- Leads to change: Most often, learning shows up as a change in behavior, critical thinking abilities, and application of new knowledge to novel situations.
- Result of experience: This is where educators and instructional designers focus their craft. The experiences designed to promote learning should be carefully constructed for effective results.
- Increase in potential: This focus on “potential” reminds educators and instructional designers that their work is never static. Each learning experience is part of a dynamic whole that makes up a learner’s lifetime set of experiences — both formal and informal.
- Improved performance: The neutral language of “performance” keeps this definition applicable across all disciplines. Performance will look different for various careers and industries, but all improvement should be measurable within disciplinary standards.
- Future learning: Focus on the ongoing nature of learning as a lifelong process. Today’s learning experiences serve as the foundation for tomorrow’s growth.
