Personalization makes remote learning more effective than you think
When you blend cognitive science and artificial intelligence, remote learning can increase engagement, and improve performance versus traditional learning practices.
So you’ve moved your course content online—that’s a good start. Now, it’s about making that training as effective and engaging as possible.
The traditional Learning Management System (LMS) allows you to make content available, and distribute it to your learners. But it falls short when it comes to the learning and retention component—that part is left entirely up to the individual.
As has been well established by the scientific community going back to the 19th century, we humans forget what we learn at a predictable rate (Hermann Ebbinghaus’s forgetting curve). Also, it’s common sense that we all enter into a given course or training program with varying levels of aptitude for the subject matter, or preexisting knowledge.
That means following up with the appropriate materials, and at the right time, is the secret to making memories stick.
If your goal is to build long-term knowledge and stable memories (that is, if you want your team to actually remember what they learn) and the system you’re using to manage your courses only presents the information to the learners, then it falls short. You need to add an engaging, effective, adaptive dimension to your LMS, that provides insights regarding learner proficiencies and competencies, and that creates a learning experience tailored to the needs of each individual.
The 3 keys to building an effective remote learning program are:
- Ensuring everyone, everywhere has the same base of knowledge, so that group discussions are meaningful and impactful
- Identifying and helping those who are struggling early on, before they take a test or have to perform (in other words, before its too late)
- Structuring follow-up materials to build stronger, more lasting memories, which is the most important factor in making knowledge available when it’s needed
While the first two items in this list can be applied in a traditional classroom setting as well as in a remote learning context, the third element is actually enhanced by using digital learning tools, since the forgetting curve will vary for each person.
Using a combination of cognitive science and A.I., it’s now possible to personalize the learning experience automatically. If the learner engages consistently with the platform, taking quizzes and actively putting knowledge to use, the system begins to understand that learner’s strengths and weaknesses. Given this information, advanced learning platforms can then schedule tailored reviews for the best possible times to build stable memories:
Along that forgetting curve, there is an optimal time for review, which helps strengthen your retention of the material. That sweet spot is the key to what is known as ‘desirable difficulty’ — the moment in time when it is difficult, but not impossible to recall the information. This is has been well established by the research of UCLA’s Robert Bjork.
And the thing is, when the platform responds to the needs of the learner — they actually like it.
As the remote-access world of education and training rapidly evolves and expands, the next phase in remote learning will be an emphasis on real impact.
Knowing that your remote team has actually engaged, learned, and retained the information they’ve been presented means being confident that they’ll be able to readily use that information when they need it. That means better performance, better outcomes, and more confident and skilled leaders and teammates.
If you need a way to optimize your remote learning for long-term retention and behavior change, you can try Cerego for free for 30-days here.
