Page 392 - The Creative Training Idea Book Inspired Tips and Techniques for Engaging and Effective Learning

lucas chap 10 11/20/02 1:11 PM Page 381
REINFORCING WHAT IS LEARNED Celebrating Successes 381

In addition to reinforcing key elements of your material throughout a session, it is
important to do a comprehensive review at the end. This is one of your last opportu-
nities to emphasize the main points of the program and to clarify anything that you may
need to. As you read earlier in the book about memory, learners are more likely to retain
what is learned if the brain continues to experience the information or stimuli through
different senses a number of times. Such reinforcement helps solidify images and data
in various parts of the brain. This allows more opportunity and likelihood that recall
can occur when the material is needed by the learner later.
As I do with activities throughout my sessions, I try to incorporate novelty, variety,
and an element of FUN into end of session reviews. The following are some ideas for
reviewing program material. The techniques can be adapted to virtually any program
topic or format.

A Learning Wall
Depending on your group size, either hang a number of flip chart pages or unroll a
length of newsprint onto a wall. Spray the paper with artist’s adhesive (see The Trainer’s
Warehouse in Resources for Trainers in the appendices) before hanging to prevent get-
ting it on the wall. Also, prepare these pages before participants arrive in case someone
has a respiratory condition. Give learners a stack of various activity shapes (see Com-
municating with Graphic Images in the Tools for Trainers in the appendices) and tell
them that they have 10 minutes to write briefly one major lesson or point learned in the
session per shape. After 10 minutes, have each person, in turn, go to the paper and post
their shapes. Have them read and explain the one idea that they think is most impor-
tant. After everyone is finished, have them give a round of applause for what was learned
during the day.
This activity reinforces what was covered as each person reviews notes and memory
to create their shape responses. It also reinforces again when each person searches their
memory for the best thing learned and then says and hears it again as they tell their peers
what they thought was best. They also have material reinforced one more time as they
listen to what others say was the best idea.
After participants leave, you can review what they wrote to discover if they got all the
key points offered during the program. If something was missed or not listed, consider
either strengthening your delivery of the point next time or dropping it because learners
do not see it as important.
Allowing time for learners to recall creatively program elements in groups and make
them visual is an excellent way to reinforce their learning. It also helps to ensure that
points were not missed or misinterpreted because learners can discuss the issues as they
develop mindmaps. To accomplish these goals, have learners form groups of three to
five participants. Give each group a sheet of flip chart paper, randomly select leaders and