As retirement has reduced the ranks of baby boomers (identified as ages 53 to 71) in the workforce, generation X (ages 35 to 52), and generation Y (also known as millennials, ages 18 to 34), now make up the majority of the professional workforce.
person in a way that inspires and entertains. Training is the act of imparting a particular skill or knowledge to another person, using methods that are interesting and engaging. However, there are some differences. As the book Telling Ain’t Training points out, there is more to training adults than telling a great story or reading the DOT rules and regulations. A training curriculum must incorporate the principles of adult learning, which includes addressing different adult learning styles. Additionally, training curriculum and methods must address generational differences in order to maximize training effectiveness.
Principles of Adult Learning Here is a list of five principles of adult learning that every training course should consider: 1. Personal Benefit: Adults are motivated to learn if they see how the information
20 datia focus
will personally benefit them: solving a problem, allowing for professional growth, satisfying a need, etc.
2. Experience: Adults want their unique experience to be acknowledged, and to build on their expertise.
3. Self-Direction: Adults learn best if they have some control over their learning.
4. Application and Action: Adults learn best when they have an immediate application for the training and can practice the skills during the training.
5. Learning Styles: Not every adult learns the same way. Training should accommodate the three styles of adult learning—auditory, visual, and kinesthetic.1 Te personal benefit to adult learners in the drug and alcohol test industry is fairly easy to address. Te botom line for drug and alcohol testing is safety: for the public, for the employee, as well for fellow employees. Most any course, be it a specimen collector course or BAT course, has safety as the primary goal. Explaining how the training relates to safety is one way of establishing the personal benefit of training. Allowing students to use their
experience and knowledge in the learning process is a very effective way to engage students. Adult learners are motivated to learn if the learning experience allows them to share what they know, builds on what they know, and validates their expertise. In a classroom setting this is easily facilitated through group discussion, collaborative exercises with other students, and having students answer questions posed by the instructor and other students.
Learning Styles Adults tend to fall into one of three primary learning styles: auditory, visual and kinesthetic. Auditory learners learn best and can retain information by simply hearing. Instructor lecture is a preferred
method of learning for this group. Visual learners take in information best by watching or reading; they prefer to read rather than being read to or lectured. Visual learners use phrases like, “I can or can’t see that working.” Terefore, it is important instructors offer compelling visual references and content to complement a lecture environment. Kinesthetic learners like to do or touch things and are oſten referred to as “hands-on” learners. Tese individuals need to connect with a task or physical item in order to understand it.2
To
keep these learners engaged, instructors need to incorporate tactical exercises intermitently throughout a training class. To engage students and maximize knowledge retention, instructors of classroom and online training must address all three learning styles.
Generational Differences: Baby Boomers,
Gen-Xers, and Millennials If appeasing three unique adult learning styles isn’t challenging enough, there are generational preferences and considerations when planning effective adult training. A growing body of knowledge finds there are real differences in how adults from different generations learn. As retirement has reduced the ranks of baby boomers (identified as ages 53 to 71) in the workforce, generation X (ages 35 to 52), and generation Y (also known as millennials, ages 18 to 34), now make up the majority of the professional workforce. Whereas baby boomers are oſten lacking in the use of technology, gen X-ers and millennials expect to use technology, which typically means computer-based online training, in an instructional environment. However, on-line training programs that present material in the form of a “talking head” lecture, or present the course material only in the form of text that students must read, fall short of some specific generational learning traits and expectations for gen
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