LEARNING AND HRD
By
Prabhashini Wijewantha
Department of Human Resource Management
Faculty of Commerce and Management Studies
University of Kelaniya.
Foundations Of Human Resource
Development
Session Outline
• Introduction
• Learning and Instruction
• Maximizing Learning
• Individual differences in the Learning Process
• Learning Strategies and Styles
• Recent Developments in Instructional and Cognitive
Psychology
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Introduction -Agree or Disagree?
• For learning to take place, the most important variable to consider
is whether or not the individual learner has sufficient ability to
learn what is being taught.
• In general, people learn best and remember the most when they
can spread out the time spent on learning new material.
• Adult learners typically respond best to a lecture-style approach to
training.
• Learning something to the point of “over learning” is generally a
waste of time, and should be avoided.
• If training has been effective, then it really doesn’t matter whether
there is support in the work environment or not.
• Trainers should always seek to match the type of training delivery
methods to the characteristics of the individuals being trained.
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Learning Defined
Learning is a relatively permanent change in
behavior, cognition or affect that occurs as a
result of one’s interaction with the environment.
( Werner and Desimone,2007,p77)
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Learning and Instruction
• Focus is upon change
• Change must be long-lasting
• The focus of learning can be cognitive, behavioral, or affective
• Results from the individual’s interaction with the learning
environment
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Basic Learning Principles
• Contiguity – things taught together become associated with
each other
• Law of Effect – a behavior followed by pleasurable experience
is likely to be repeated.
• Practice – repetition increases association and knowledge
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Improving Training Design
• Task Analysis
• Component Task Achievement
• Task Sequencing
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The Impact of Instructional and
Cognitive Psychology on Learning
Research
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The Impact of Instructional and
Cognitive Psychology on Learning
Research
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Maximizing Learning (Training)
• Trainee Characteristics
• Training Design
• Transfer of Training
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Trainee Characteristics
• Trainability –
Motivation
Ability
Perception of the work environment
• Personality and attitudes
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Training Design
• Conditions of practice
- Active practice
- Spaced versus massed practice
- Whole versus part learning
- Over-learning
- Knowledge of results (feedback)
- Task sequencing
• Retention of what is learned
- Meaningfulness of the material
- Degree of original learning
- Interference
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Transfer of Training
13
Baldwin & Ford’s Transfer of
Training Model
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Maximizing Training Transfer
• Identical elements
• Physical fidelity
• Psychological fidelity
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Individual Differences in the
Learning Process
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Types of Learning Curves
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Cognitive Resource Allocation
Theory (How Brain is Used)
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Cognitive Resource Allocation
Theory (How Brain is Used)
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Three Phases of Learning a Skill
• Declarative knowledge
• Forming a mental picture of the task
• Knowledge compilation
• Integrating knowledge and motor skills
• Procedural knowledge
• Ability to perform task automatically, paying little
attention to it
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Training Adult and Older
Workers
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Adult Learning Theory
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Andragogy (Malcolm Knowles)
• Adults are self-directed
• Adults already have knowledge and experience
• Adults are ready to learn relevant tasks
• Adults are motivated to learn
• Adults expect to apply learning immediately
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Dimensions for Assessing the
Trainee
• Instrumentality
• Skepticism
• Resistance to Change
• Attention Span
• Expectation Level
• Dominant Needs
• Absorption Level
• Topical Interest
• Self-Confidence
• Locus of Control
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Gerontology
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Learning Strategies and Styles
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Kolb’s Learning Styles Inventory
• Among most popular tests used
• Proposes four modes of learning:
• Concrete Experience (CE)
• Abstract Conceptualization (AC)
• Reflective Observation (RO)
• Active Experimentation (AE)
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Kolb’s Learning Styles
• Convergent
• Thinking and Doing
• Divergent
• Feeling and Watching
• Assimilation
• Thinking and Watching
• Accommodative
• Feeling and Doing
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Five Learning Strategies
• Rehearsal strategies
• Elaboration strategies
• Organizational strategies
• Comprehension monitoring strategies
• Affective strategies
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Another Strategy
• Identify assumptions
• Test assumption validity
• Generate and test alternatives
• Decrease likelihood of errors
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Perceptual Preferences
• Print
-Reading and writing
• Visual
-Graphs, charts, pictures
• Aural
-Listening
• Interactive
-Discussing, asking questions
• Tactile/manipulative
-Hands-on, touching
• Kinesthetic/psychomotor
-Role playing, physical activity
• Olfactory
-Smell, taste
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Expert Performance
Consistently superior performance on a specified set of
representative tasks for a domain.
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Gagne’s Theory of Instruction
• Verbal information
• Intellectual skills
• Cognitive strategies
• Motor skills
• Attitudes
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Instructional Events
1. Gain attention.
2. State the learning objective.
3. Stimulate recall of earlier lessons.
4. Present new material.
5. Provide learning guidance.
6. Have student perform.
7. Provide feedback.
8. Assess performance.
9. Enhance retention and training transfer.
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