L&D TRAINERS SINGAPORE HR EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
Singapore - When it comes to learning, Singapore professionals are still a passive bunch that prefer taking notes to active participation, which hinders their ability to become effective employees.
Gail Heidenhain, a trainer specialising in accelerated learning for Delphin International, thinks it's time local HR "create a more holistic approach in a carefully designed learning environment". The traditional way of learning which usually focuses on the trainer imparting the curriculum-based content, often via PowerPoint, might not always be easily absorbed by the learner. Accelerated learning, on the other hand, focuses on the learner, the interaction and their involvement.
"It doesn't mean it [knowledge] comes out of my mouth, it goes into their brains. I can lecture and people can leave learning nothing or very little," says Heidenhain. "But when learners are actively involved in their learning process, they learn and apply everything that happened immediately."
The good thing is HR can create a sense of ownership for employees to feel the "pull" and enthusiasm for learning. First, change the language from a forceful "you must comply and attend the course" to a persuasive "this will help you achieve your goals". Heidenhain calls it the "self-concept" shift where people no longer enter a workshop thinking they can't learn or they aren't creative. Instead, they feel confident of their creativity and responsible for their career development.
Citing one of her workshops, Heidenhain says each delegate received a personalised letter addressed to them upon their arrival. The letter commended on the quality of the delegate's work and the difference he or she has made in the company. It added that the workshop hopes the individual would continue to build and expand on their knowledge and be a role model to others.
Next, avoid the usual classroom setup, says Heidenhain, which is a row of chairs facing a podium where the speaker and the PowerPoint presentation become the focus. "When people walk into the room, it's like going back to school."
Programmes should also have a variety of activities in one session to appeal to different learning styles. Activities can include mini and elaborate role plays, jigsaw puzzles about key points, board games that answers questions and writing about simulated situations.
Besides boosting the training quality, Heidenhain believes accelerated learning can reduce learning time and save money in the long run. She once redesigned a 150-hour long English course into 50 hours with accelerated learning for a group of Siemens' German engineers and their scores were similar to control groups which took the regular course. "I can do that with three times the results or one third or half of the time."
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