In the Mastering Training Design program, we explore the differences in how learners process information. When we “watch”, we make sense of new information through reflection. We ponder the meaning and listen to our inner voice. When we “do”, we make sense of new information through action. We take action and move out into the real world. Some of us prefer to linger in watching and some of us prefer to move quickly to doing.
The trainer’s role is to guide the learner through this movement from inner reflection to outward action. The 4MAT model outlines specific steps that address what the trainer does and what the learner does to create this movement.
Here’s a quick 4MAT video I created in response to questions our last group of trainers posed about how to address watching and doing in training design:
Last week, I facilitated our Mastering Training Design course. In this 4MAT train the trainer workshop, one of the things we explore is the difference between sharing information from an experiential (feeling) place versus a thinking (intellectual) place.
By the second day of this course, participants are digging in and developing their own training designs using the 4Mat 8-step model. Before we work on the real-world course content that participants bring with them, we ask the trainers in our workshop to create a training design on one of two community awareness topic: “be physically active” or “quit smoking”. I am amazed at how quickly trainers can move into designing truly experiential learning. Designing experiential learning involves much more than adding activities. It is the art of eliciting and, sometimes creating, powerful personal experiences in the learner.
I discovered a video created by the Sussex Safer Roads Project on Nancy Duarte’s blog. The commercial is a powerful example of how an experience can be created in seconds. When I watched the video on my living room couch, my 6-year old asked “What’s wrong, Mommy?” You should know that I can be moved by a good dog food commercial. Emotional reaction is not uncommon in my living room. Even knowing this, I was surprised by the universal reaction of the trainers in the room.
Before you watch the video, take a look at the slide presentation below that I found on www.slideshare.net. This is a typical way that any trainer might approach this subject from a “thinking” place. Then, watch the video and experience what information sharing feels like from a experiential/feeling place.
In the 4MAT model for training design, there are four parts of the learning cycle that the trainer leads the learner through. In the third part, Practice, the trainer is focused on building learner skills that directly link to the desired business impact of the training course. Let’s take a look at what is happening in this step:
Part of the 4MAT Cycle
Learning Goal
Learning Climate
Learning Method
You Know It’s Effective When
Trainer’s Role
Practice,
The question is “How?”
Learners practice what they learned from the experts
Active with a focus on hands-on, real-world application
Learner demonstration and coaching
Learners are taking the lead, practicing new skills, and figuring out how to use the information
Coach
Source: McCarthy and O’Neill-Blackwell, Hold On, You Lost Me! Use Learning Styles to Create Training that Sticks, ASTD Press, p 25.
In Practice, the trainer invites the learner to move into application of the information presented in Share. The learner is doing and the trainer is observing and coaching. Activities that encourage the learner to apply, adapt, practice and/or problem-solve work in this part of the learning cycle.
Here are some examples of activities that fit well in Practice:
Craft a Story vs Report a Story Objective: Reprocessing activity which requires learners to develop a story around the information being shared. Learners are divided into two reporting groups: creative story-telling and “just the facts” reporting.
At Your Finger Tips Resource Guide Objective: Participants will build a personal, reference guide of the content using index cards and a ring binder.
The Law of Three Objective: Action planning activity which encourages learners to identify 3 key learning focuses and plan specific actions around these ideas.
Download the facilitator guide with complete instructions:
In the 4MAT model for training design, there are four parts of the learning cycle that the trainer leads the learner through. In the second part, Share, the trainer is focused on delivering new knowledge required to deliver desired performance. Let’s take a look at what is happening in this step:
Part of the 4MAT Cycle
Goal
Learning Climate
Learning Method
You know it’s effective when:
Trainer’s Role
ShareThe question is “What?”
Learners understand expert information related to the content.
Organized, focused, and reflective with a n opportunity to ask questions.
Lecture and interactive discussion on the content.
Learners are recording, noting and questioning. They are asking clarifying questions and seeking to better understand the bigger ideas.
Presenter
Source: McCarthy and O’Neill-Blackwell, Hold On, You Lost Me! Use Learning Styles to Create Training that Sticks, ASTD Press, p 25.
How do we, as trainers, create this desired climate? What kind of activities should we use to generate insights and create meaningful dialogue? Here are 6 Share training activities that work with any content.
1-Group Interviews
Overview: Learners interview each other on questions related to the information being shared.
2-Questions and Answers
Overview: To engage learners before or during lecture, learners generate key questions related to the content.
3-Craft a Story vs Report a Story
Overview: Lecture processing activity which requires learners to develop a story around the information being shared. Learners are divided into two reporting groups: creative story-telling and “just the facts” reporting.
4-Lecture Translator
Overview: Presenter pauses periodically during lecture and learners translate lecture into their own words to reinforce key concepts. This works particularly well with high-level technical information lecture.
5-Essence
Overview: Participants summarize lecture with the intent of identifying the core concepts being shared.
6. Content Voting
Overview: Participants generate a list of questions for the session. Participants vote on the questions they are most interested in exploring, related to the topic.
Download the facilitator guide with complete instructions:
What does a great opener to a learning experience look like? The 4MAT design model defines four critical parts of the learning cycle: Engage, Share, Practice and Perform. What does success look like in Engage? First, let’s look at what it is happening in this critical step of the training experience:
Part of the 4MAT Cycle
Goal
Learning Climate
Learning Method
You know it’s effective when:
Trainer’s Role
EngageThe question is “Why?”
Learners connect personally to the content being delivered.
Easy, open and inviting; focused on listening
Dialogue, discussion and reflection
Learners are sharing personal and meaningful insights related to the content. The learners are engaged and ready to learn.
Facilitator
Source: McCarthy and O’Neill-Blackwell, Hold On, You Lost Me! Use Learning Styles to Create Training that Sticks, ASTD Press, p 25.
How do we, as trainers, create the desired climate? What kind of activities should we use to generate insights and create meaningful dialogue. Here are 6 activities that work with any content.
1. Expectations (or Big Questions) Exercise
Ask learners to reflect on their expectations for the course. In small groups, have teams share their expectations. Prepare a large flip chart on a visible wall. Record all responses. Link responses to the agenda for the day.
2. Expectations Exercise (Elearning)
You can lead an expectations exercise in an online course. Using a whiteboard with a numbered grid, assign participants to write expectations in an assigned grid section.
3. Timelines
Using a visual timeline, learners plot experiences that have shaped their perception or current understanding of the content being shared.
“Think about the people, events and experiences that have shaped your definition of effective leadership. On the timeline, make note of these events and be prepared to share in your table group.”
4. The One Thing
Show “The One Thing” clip from the movie, City Slickers. Encourage participants to reflect on:
-The one thing which, if accomplished, would generate the biggest results.
-The one thing we should be talking about today.
-The one question which, if answered, would make the biggest impact.
5. Partner Interviews (Elearning)
In the chat, participants interview an assigned partner with the task of discovering key areas of interests and past experiences around this topic. On the whiteboard, partners write down what they discovered about their partner’s interests in the course topic.
6. Visual Metaphors Ask the participants to create a visual metaphor which relates to the concept using an item in the room. For example, if you are teaching a course on leadership development, you might choose the concept of “empowerment”. Learners will reflect on “empowerment” and pick an item in the room that illustrates the concept of “empowerment” to them. A learner might choose a light bulb in the room (“illuminating the way”) or a cup of coffee (“energizing others”) to share their understanding of the concept.
In the 4MAT learning model, the trainer designs a learning experience that taps into what the learner already knows about the subject. Thousands of years ago, Socrates was putting 4MAT into action. Socrates believed that every learner brought knowledge into the learning experience. And, it was the teacher’s responsibility to bring forth that knowledge.
Here’s a training activity idea to put the Socratic teaching method into action. You might try this to liven up Inform, the lecture portion of the 4MAT training design model:
Socratic Circles
Socratic circles can be used with any subject matter. Typically, learners first read information with an eye toward critically analyzing the content. Then, learners form into two concentric circles. First, the inner circle explores and discusses the text while the outer circle makes notes and later comments on the quality of the dialogue. Next, the two circles switch places and roles. The process is repeated, based on the dialogue of the second group. Each group is quiet while the other group shares.
Socratic circles are effective in developing the critical thinking skills of the group. Through this process, the learners develop shared meaning around the content being presented.
Directions:
1. Facilitator shares reading assignment (typically, prior to the session).
2. Learners analyze and take notes to prepare for dialogue.
3. Learners form two, concentric circles.
4. The inner circle shares their comments and observations for 10-15 minutes, while the outer circle silently observes.
5. The outer circle listens and evaluates the inner circle’s dialogue.
6. The outer circle provides feedback on the dialogue, emphasizing what they observed.
7. Learners switch circles and roles.
8. The new inner circle shares their comments and dialogues for approximately 10-15 minutes.
9. The new outer circle shares their observations on the inner circle’s dialogue.
A learner’s preferences indicate where the learner lingers in the learning cycle. Regardless of learning style, every learner moves through all four stages of the 4MAT learning cycle. In The Art of Changing the Brain, Dr. James Zull shares that there are four stages of the Learning Cycle:
Neuro-speak
Translation
1
We have a concrete experience.
Something happens
2
We engage in reflective observation and create new connections.
We watch and reflect.
3
We generate abstract hypotheses.
We think about it.
4
We do active testing of hypotheses, have a new concrete experience and a new learning cycle ensues.
We move into action, something happens and the cycle begins again
When we follow the 4MAT Learning model to design and deliver, we craft experiences that mirror the natural learning cycle.
The use of images is an integral part of the 4MAT training design process. We are constantly on the hunt for new ways to maximize the impact of the visual training tools we have at our disposal as trainers. In our 4MAt train-the-trainer workshops, powerpoint is often declared to be one of the most “painful” learning strategies.
Powerpoints should serve to punctuate knowledge sharing through high-impact visuals. We frequently look to graphic design and visual media artists for inspiration. Garr Reynolds is one of our visual design heroes. Check out his Top 10 tips for Powerpoint design.
Last week, I joined the ASTD Baton Rouge chapter to share a quick icebreaker on 4MAT Learning Styles in their “Show Not Tell” conference. Fellow speaker, Kent Blumberg, showed us how to assess the learning transfer before the learning is complete. This is referred to as “formative” assessment. In our 4MAT Train the Trainer programs, we call this “On the Way” assessment. On-the-way assessment is in-the-moment and provides the trainer with an opportunity to adjust, as needed. Here are four easy-to-use ideas shared by Kent:
One Minute Paper
Provide participants with an index card. In one minute, answer the following two questions related to the content shared:
“What’s the most important idea shared?”
“What questions do you still have?”
The feedback shared allows the trainer to assess if the big ideas are clear. The questions shared can be divided into two categories: “moving forward” or “moving backwards”. Moving forward questions indicate that the learner is thinking about what’s coming next in the learning process. For example, “How can I apply this to….” is a moving forward question and a good sign that the learning is on track. Moving backwards questions indicate that the learner needs to revisit content previously shared. For example, “Can you explain what you mean by ….?” is a moving backward question that indicates content needs to be revisited.
Application Cards
Provide participants with an index card. Encourage participants to write down two ideas for implementation of the content shared. Ask participants to partner up and share their application ideas.
RSQC2
At the end of a learning module within a larger course offering, you can use RSQC2*. Encourage participants to complete the following reflections:
Recall: Brainstorm key words or phrases of what you recall from this course. Choose three to five main points,
Summarize: Using as many of these 3-5 points, write a summary sentence that describes the essence of what you learned.
Question: Jot down one or two questions that remain unanswered, at this point.
Connect: Explain in one or two sentences the connections between the main points today and the overall objectives of the course.
Comment: What I enjoyed most (or least) about this session was….
Please share strategies you use to assess learning “on-the-way” in the comments below.
*Kent Blumberg shared the following source for this exercise:
Angelo, T.A & Cross, K.P. (1993). Classroom Assessment Techniques. (2nd ed., pp. 344-348). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Last week, I attended several train-the-trainer sessions at ASTD ICE 10. One session allowed time for participants to share best practices on elearning training design. One of our 4MAT design team’s favorite elearning resources is the Rapid Elearning Blog by Tom Kuhlmann of Articulate. I was surprised to find that many training designers in my best practice sharing group had not heard about Tom’s blog. If you are dipping your toe into elearning or deeply immersed, you will find value in the tactical tips that Tom shares. Here is a recent post on “Frequently Asked Rapid E-learning Questions”:
Tom has graciously agreed to conduct a free web session for the 4MAT Community. Stay tuned for announcements on dates through our eletter , Twitter or Facebook.
