CHAPTER 3

How Do You Design So Others Can Learn?

Chapter 2 laid out research and theories about how you learn. This chapter builds on that foundation of research. I will also address several other learning concepts and show you how to use all of them to design an effective training program. First, let’s take a look at designing participant materials and learning activities.

Designing Materials

This section presents considerations for designing materials you will use. We’ll discuss learning objectives, visuals, and learning styles.

Are Learning Objectives Necessary?

Learning objectives are written to specify the performance (knowledge or skill) that is desired after the training has been completed. I think you will be surprised about the “science” I present about learning objectives. I include it here because learning objectives are valuable. What purpose do learning objectives serve? They:

• Ensure clarity between designer and customer.

• Clearly communicate purpose to learners.

• Keep you focused on designing for requirements and eliminating anything that is just nice to include.

• Ensure that your course balances independence with guidance (Eberly 2008).

• Connect content and assessment to learning.

• Guide the selection of learning activities that will best achieve objectives.

• Give learners a clear picture of what to expect and what’s expected of them.

• Form a basis for evaluating trainer, learner, and curriculum effectiveness.

What Constitutes a Good Learning Objective?

Learning objectives are written to specify the desired performance (knowledge or skill) of the learner once training has been completed. You should use the information gathered during the assessment stage to write learning objectives. An objective should meet several criteria:

• Specific: It should be specific so that there is no question about what you mean, and it should use words that can be observed or heard.

• Measurable: It should be measurable, which means you can either count it or determine that it was or was not completed.

• Attainable: It should be attainable. It should not be too difficult, yet it should not be too easy.

• Relevant: It should be relevant to the organization and to the change that is desired.

• Timely: It should be time bound; that is, it should have a limit that states when the participant is expected to achieve the objective.

The first letter of each of these spells SMART. Objectives should be SMART. An objective can easily be written by filling in the blank to this easy-to-remember question:

Who will do what, by when, and how well?

For example, “You will be able to write effective learning objectives by the end of this module 100 percent of the time.” This addresses Robert Mager’s (1997) “Three Parts of a Performance-Based Objective”: a performance or action, conditions under which the learner must perform, and criteria (by which the performance is evaluated by another; or, in other words, how well the action must be completed).

Remember Bloom?

In chapter 1, you read about Bloom’s Taxonomy, the hierarchy of learning outcomes. This is the point in the training cycle during which Bloom’s Taxonomy comes in handy: specifying exactly what the learner will know or be able to do at the end of the training experience. Bloom’s Taxonomy is useful for writing learning objectives.

Bloom’s Taxonomy divides the way people learn into three domains: cognitive, psychomotor, and affective (Bloom 1968). Each is presented in a hierarchical order in which the skill requires more complex skills. The cognitive domain, which emphasizes intellectual outcomes, is presented in Table 3-1. This domain is further divided into categories or levels. The key words used and the type of questions asked may aid in the establishment and encouragement of critical thinking, especially in the higher levels.

Table 3-1: Bloom’s Cognitive Domain

Skills in the cognitive domain revolve around knowledge, comprehension, and critical thinking on a particular topic. Traditional education tends to emphasize the skills in this domain, particularly the lower-order objectives.

Using Bloom’s various domains can assist you to find the most descriptive verb to write your objective.

Another Perspective on Objectives

Will Thalheimer, a consultant who uses research-based insights to help organizations improve performance, presents another perspective on learning objectives. In a short video he presents the idea that it is more important to select nouns that help learners focus than worrying about the right verb. He also reminds us that Robert Mager’s original work with objectives was focused on developing objectives for designers and facilitators.

Because learners have a limited working memory capacity it is critical that designers select very specific words—both verbs and nouns—when writing objectives to help learners focus their attention on the correct items (Britton et al. 1985; Rothkopf and Koether 1978). Select words that learners will connect to the most important content.

Thalheimer makes several excellent points; the most important is that trainers have forgotten some of the excellent foundational research that supports what we do. For example, he differentiates between learning objectives and design objectives. When I started in the training profession trainers were expected to write both kinds of objectives. Up until about 10 years ago, I always had two formally written lists of objectives. Now, my clients rarely want to see the design objectives, so I keep them in my personal notes. What’s the difference? Learner objectives are those that you are most familiar with: performance, content, and motivation. Design objectives focus on organizational objectives, evaluation, design issues, and at times the transitional situation. I encourage you to view Thalheimer’s video at www.work-learning.com/2015/01/video-on-lobjs.html.

Selecting and Planning to Use Visuals

You have numerous visual choices available—everything from computer displays to paper. Visuals support your training session and make it easier for the learner to acquire the skills or knowledge intended. Visuals also improve retention (Clark 2015). If you are conducting a virtual instructor-led training, you may be limited in your options. On the other hand, if you are conducting a video conference, all the options could be used.

Creating and planning how you will use visuals is a lot of work! Is it really worth it? The benefits of visuals to you and your participants are clear. Your participants learn through their five senses. Tap into them. Many people prefer to learn in a certain way, which means that adding visual support to your verbal message is a major benefit to your participants. By using visuals in your training sessions, participants grasp the information faster, understand it better, and retain it longer.

Ruth Clark, author of Evidence-Based Training Methods (2015), states that with regard to visuals, evidence demonstrates that trainers should heed these four lessons based on experimental evidence accumulated over the past 15 years:

• Use relevant visuals to illustrate your content, especially for learners who are new to the content.

• Keep visuals simple depending on your goal. Simple line drawings often result in the best learning. Match the details to the level of detail you are imparting.

• Explain complex visuals with brief audio narration—either your voice or a recorded message, depending on the type of learning event.

• Avoid seductive visuals. They are distracting to the learners even if they are related to the topic.

Remember that our brains love pictures and visuals enhance learning retention in many ways. They also help us make sense of complex, abstract, or unusual content. At least 50 percent of the cortex is used for visual processing and only around 10 percent for auditory processing (Snowden, Thompson, and Troscianko 2012).

 

 

Ensure That the Visual Adds to the Learning

You are a professional. Using visuals can enhance your image and increase the confidence participants have in you. On the other hand, if you don’t have professionally designed visuals, if you haven’t practiced, and if you don’t know the best way to use them, your participants may lose all confidence in you. Visuals are only effective when:

• They are relevant to the subject.

• They are visible and understandable to the participants.

That may seem like common sense, but sometimes we just don’t think about all the details required. These additional guides will make your visuals the best they can be:

• Orient the visuals for your learners. Imagine that you are one of the participants and are seeing the visuals for the first time. Tell learners what they are looking at: “Here are four criteria for listening actively.” A good visual may not need words to describe it.

• Be well practiced. It should be comfortable and natural to use your visuals. That comes with practice.

• Ensure that your visuals enhance your performance rather than replace it. Your visuals should not take center stage, but they should help to explain or clarify the concepts you are presenting. This is what Ruth Clark means when she refers to avoiding “seductive” visuals!

• Prepare for an emergency. Emergencies that occur during the presentation don’t have to be a complete disaster. Being prepared if you can’t use your slides or your handouts aren’t delivered reduces the effect on your participants.

• Select a visual theme. Your audience has probably seen every template available from PowerPoint. Go online to find other PowerPoint designs or create your own. Use color to enhance your theme, but use it judiciously. A light background with dark lettering is generally better.

• Add interest. Use bullets, graphics, and a layout that is attractive. Even changing your bullets to triangles adds a new twist. Remember, pictures say it best and graphs explain numbers best. On the other hand, avoid too much moving text or graphics. It may look like fun, but overdone it can be distracting and annoying to some members of your group. Use it when appropriate or to help make your point.

• Check for accuracy. Give your slides to someone else to proof. Make sure that all information is complete, correct, and current.

And finally, in the words of that famous trainer, Anonymous: “Keep it simple, keep it simple, keep it simple.”

What’s Available?

PowerPoint presentations have become ubiquitous in the training world. They are easy and fast to create. The tools to design them reside inside everyone’s laptop. They can be changed or updated on the spot. They add color automatically and may include animation and sound effects, or video clips.

However, they may also be boring and overused. If you aren’t careful they can be less effective than other forms of media and visuals that are available. To guard against this, I like what Becky Pluth (2016) says: “I prefer to view my PowerPoint slide as a billboard. As you drive past a billboard, at a glance, do you get the main point?” Think of your visuals as support to help your learners stay focused and to keep you on track. The following are just a few of the media and visuals available to you:

• Videos. Use them to demonstrate a skill, illustrate behavior, or to have an expert deliver content in a way that you could not.

• Participants’ devices. Tap into the many resources your participants bring: laptops, iPads or other tablets, phones and watches that connect to the Internet, wearable devices, pens that record action, and many other tools.

• Flipcharts. Flipcharts can create visuals in the moment or compile learners’ ideas. They work well for creating on-the-spot lists, capturing ideas generated by the group, and creating real-time plans. There is a sense of immediacy and spontaneity to the information presented. Flipcharts are helpful when you’re asked to do spur-of-the-moment facilitating.

• Blackboards, whiteboards, magnetic boards, felt boards, electronic whiteboards. All of these are useful for small group recording of ideas.

• Props. Props usually don’t plug in, turn on, make sounds, show animation, or have glitches. They may include samples, models, demonstrations, or any article that a trainer holds to drive a point home.

After reviewing a number of studies about media and technology, Ruth Clark advises us to select a mix of media, such as pairing video clips with slides or demonstrations with flipcharts, that supports core human psychological learning processes (2015).

The Learning Style Concept Is a Neuromyth

A neuromyth is a word used to describe the inaccuracies and fallacies we are discovering about how our brain functions. One of the most commonly held myths is that we all have specific learning styles. Numerous researchers have weighed in on learning styles—including Allcock and Hulme (2010); Choi, Lee, and Kang (2009); Kappe et al. (2009); Kozub (2010); Martin (2010); Sankey, Birch, and Gardiner (2011); and Zacharis (2011)—but none are more adamant than Ruth Clark. She’s reviewed the studies and states that there is no evidence for the validity of learning styles. There is no evidence that knowing or diagnosing your participants’ learning styles will lead to optimal learning, if you do not know that piece of data. Experts on the topic such as Harold Pashler and Doug Rohrer (2008) state that any minimal existing data is weak and there is virtually no evidence to support using assessments to identify learning styles. That’s the science half.

The art half is more exciting. Consider that you have many different people in your learning events. Your learners are all visual learners; they are all auditory learners; they are all kinesthetic learners. They all bring with them their own preferences. Wouldn’t it seem logical to try to provide techniques and tools that support all of these learning modes and preferences? Be careful that your training preference doesn’t interfere. If you truly believe it’s all about the learner, then you have an obligation to tailor your training style to address your learners. Learning and how our brain processes information is much more complex than you may have considered.

In addition, the most effective way for us to learn is based not on our individual preferences but on the nature of the material we’re being taught. The existence of learning styles can’t be proven from the science perspective. On the other hand, from an artist’s perspective, it is important to design training that taps into all senses: visual, auditory, and of course hands-on whenever we can.

Designing Activities

This section presents considerations for designing activities. It includes discussions about how to apply Knowles’s adult learning principles, practice guidelines, chunking, and taking time for invisible learning.

Applying Adult Learning Theory

Let’s begin by reviewing Knowles’s assumptions. Knowles’s andragogical theory is based on four assumptions that differ from those of pedagogy: changes in self-concept, the role of experience, readiness to learn, and orientation to learning. Theory and principles are great, but it is more important to know how to apply the information. It is not enough to just know adult learning principles. You must be able to apply them unconsciously. They should become a part of your basic makeup as a trainer. If you recall, Knowles’s assumptions lead to questions participants ask themselves when entering a training session. How can we respond to the following six questions during the design?

1. “Why do I need to know this?” Adults have a need to know why they should learn something before investing time in a learning event.

Share the purpose. You could incorporate these into your design:

• Plan time at the beginning of the course to address the purpose of the session.

• Build in time to respond to questions about the need to know.

• Be prepared to respond to questions about the organization’s “ulterior” motives.

• Ensure the objectives are clear and directed at what the participants will learn.

• Decide if a listing of expectations is required for the session.

• Create a self-evaluation.

2. “Will I be able to make some decisions or are you going to re-create my grade school memories?” Adults enter any learning situation with a self-concept of themselves as self-directing, responsible gown-ups.

Maintain self-concept. You could incorporate these into your design:

• If a self-assessment has been designed, be sure to allow time for participants to process their results by themselves or in pairs.

• Avoid words in materials that hearken of “school.” For example, do not use words—such as students, teachers, workbooks, lessons, education, report card, grade, test, or desk—that remind participants of their school experience.

• Design a bright ideas board in which participants can post names of books or ideas that can help other participants with their unique concerns.

3. “Why am I here? How do I fit? What do they think they can teach me?” Adults come to a learning opportunity with a wealth of experience and a great deal to contribute.

Acknowledge experience. You could incorporate these into your design:

• Interview participants prior to designing the session to identify typical participant expertise and experience.

• If something has changed, identify ways to allow participants to “let go” of the old and welcome the new. Sometimes journaling or self-guided questions address this concern.

• Build in time for discussion.

• Design an icebreaker that allows participants to get to know each other and what they have to contribute.

4. “How is this going to simplify my life? How will this make my job easier?” Adults have a strong readiness to learn those things that will help them cope with daily life effectively.

Make it relevant. You could incorporate these into your design:

• Address issues participants face on the job.

• Develop case studies, critical incidents, and role plays that focus on real daily work issues.

• Interview participants before designing to obtain specific examples.

5. “Do I want to learn this? Do I need to learn this?” Adults are willing to devote energy to learning those things that they believe will help them perform a task or solve a problem.

Deliver solutions. You could incorporate these into your design:

• Build in a problem-solving clinic in which participants bring up their own problems that need solving.

• Allow time in the design for self-reflection so participants can revise their thought process or adapt the material to their own situations.

• Design experiential learning scenarios that link the material to why a participant might either want to or need to invest the time to learn the content.

6. “Why would I want to learn this? Does this motivate me? Am I open to this information and if not, why not?” Adults are more responsive to internal motivators such as increased self-esteem, than to external motivators such as higher salaries.

Respect self-motivation. You could incorporate these into your design:

• Plan activities that help participants explore their own motivation—journaling or small group discussions may be useful.

• Participants can be intrinsically motivated if they know how they fit into the bigger plan, organizationally.

• Write materials in a conversational manner using first and second person and polite phrases. A study completed by Moreno and Mayer (2000) found that using first- and second-person language resulted in greater learning.

• Design certificates.

• Design ways for participants to explore their personal growth and development needs.

Plan how you will incorporate Knowles’s principles into your future designs.

Practice Guidelines

Practice is essential to learning new skills, but all practice is not equal (Ericsson, Krampe, and Tesch-Romer 1993). What are the inequalities? As you build it into your design, you will want to consider three features of practice: type of practice, amount of practice, and the spacing of practice.

Type of Practice

It is usually best to practice realistic events and apply actions rather than simply repeat content. If you anticipate different responses to different categories of problems you will want to mix practice options.

Amount of Practice

The amount will depend entirely on the topic. Ruth Clark (2015) suggests that you base the amount on these elements:

• More practice if the consequences of error are serious.

• Less practice if using a job aid is acceptable.

• More practice if the work is complex, to ensure automation.

Spacing Practice

When you distribute practice throughout your session rather than cramming it all in at once, you give participants a better chance of absorbing the information. For example, you could start with a discussion of the topic in which learners uncover problems they have, incorporate the information in an activity, and later in the day combine several topics in a practice role play.

Giving Feedback

Follow practice with feedback. Ruth Clark has assembled evidence that suggests that giving feedback may be more complex than we originally thought. For example, giving feedback immediately and including not just an evaluation, but an explanation about what was wrong usually results in positive results. However, there are a few learners who actually get more depressed by the feedback due to how it is given, the timing, and their personality type (Butler et al. 2007). And when giving feedback we should elaborate on whether the task was completed correctly or incorrectly. Clark also tells us that it isn’t always necessarily important to provide feedback immediately. For example, if the task has a number of steps, it is sometimes better to wait until everything has been completed because the individual learns from mistakes. And you thought guidelines for giving feedback were clear!

Do you create activities in which participants provide feedback to other participants? Clark and others recommend that you are clear about the feedback other participants should give—not just on the outcomes, but also on techniques and processes. Feedback can be one of the most potent learning factors (Butler, Karpicke, and Roedige 2008; Paschler et al. 2005).

Be sure you allow enough time for practice and that the practice is experiential. In addition, be sure to allow time for processing the activities, and practice with questions such as “What?” “So what?” “Now what?”

Learn From Mistakes

Asking learners to identify mistakes can be powerful in making substantial progress in learning (Butler, Karpicke, and Roedige 2008). For example you could perform a task incorrectly. A study by McLaren et al. (2012) gave the same content to two groups—one group was given correct information to discuss, and the second group was given incorrect information and asked to find what was wrong. Follow-up tests showed that both groups raised their individual scores by about the same amount. However, a second follow-up test given six days later demonstrated that the group that reviewed the incorrect information scored 12 percent higher. They increased their personal scores even more! The other group scored about the same as they did for the original post-test. This is exciting research. Imagine what you can do with it. It tells us that learning from mistakes is better for the long term. By the way, I love the name of this study, “To Err Is Human; To Explain and Correct Is Divine.”

Chunk Away

Chunking is a strategy of breaking down content into bite-sized pieces so the brain can digest it more readily. This is necessary because the brain’s working memory holds a limited amount of information at a time. The concept was articulated by George Miller in 1956 when he stated that working memory could hold seven (plus or minus two) chunks of information (1956). Cognitive scientists know that the capacity actually depends on the kind of information and the ability of the individual. In addition, scientists now think that the number may be smaller than seven. How can you chunk information as you design a training program? Try the following tips:

• Start at the highest level. You can start with large portions of content and divide them as modules—much like a chapter in a book.

• Divide the modules into smaller related chunks, which become lessons and break the content down one more time to become topics and content or activities within the topics.

• Throughout the process, think in terms of working memory. How much information do you really need? Can you eliminate some of the content?

As a final check, review the program design. If the learners need to retain more than a few things in their memory at the same time, you may need to break it down again.

Take Time

Incorporate enough time for all the invisible learning. It’s probably not something that you’ve considered as a topic for designing training. It’s important to make sure we heed the research that informs us of the value of reflection, discussion, building rapport, and yes, even breaks. Edgar Schein (1983), MIT Sloan Fellows professor of management emeritus, who researches organizational culture, learning, and change, states that reflection is a key factor in adult learning.

 

 

Plan Individual Reflection Time

A study in the journal of Psychological Science reported that some of the most important scientific breakthroughs by people such as Einstein occurred when they allowed their minds to wander (Baird et al. 2012). Engaging in simple external tasks promotes creative problem solving. I like to add a “reflection” page at the end of each module to encourage learners to think about what they have learned and to process it.

Schedule Discussions

If you want your learners to discuss a topic, you will need to build it into your schedule. Be sure to plan questions that lead to a healthy give and take. You should also allow time for involvement from all who wish to be part of the discussion.

Build Rapport

Plan to create rapport with your learners, but also be a catalyst to build learner-to-learner rapport to facilitate shared ideas, networking, and social collaboration by designing small group exercises and competition.

Honor Breaks

Sometimes you will fall behind, so feel free to skip over content. More content is not always better. It’s just more. Besides, cognitive science tells us that breaks can be valuable spacing times. Breaks help your learners retain information.

How Much Time Does Design Require?

I’ve mentioned several times that you need to allow enough time for design. So how much time is enough? As you can imagine there are different opinions—even with research to back up the figures. Bryan Chapman (2010) of Brandon Hall found these average design times to create one hour of training content:

• 33:1 for PowerPoint to e-learning conversion.

• 34:1 for instructor-led training (ILT), including design, lesson plans, handouts, and PowerPoint slides.

• 220:1 for standard e-learning, which includes the presentation, audio, some video, test questions, and 20 percent interactivity.

• 345:1 for third-party courseware—the time it takes for online learning publishers to design, create, test, and package third-party courseware.

• 750:1 for simulations from scratch—creating highly interactive content (Chapman 2006).

The eLearning Guild states that approximate development times to create one hour of e-learning for each type of delivery can vary:

• Simple asynchronous (static HTML pages with text and graphics): 117 hours.

• Simple synchronous (static HTML pages with text and graphics): 86 hours.

• Average asynchronous (above plus Flash, JavaScript, animated GIFs): 191 hours.

• Average synchronous (above plus Flash, JavaScript, animated GIFs): 147 hours.

• Complex asynchronous (above plus audio, video, interactive simulations): 276 hours.

• Complex synchronous (above plus audio, video, interactive simulations): 222 hours.

Karl Kapp (2009) begins one of his blog posts by saying, “Designing training is as much of an art as it is a science.” He goes on to say that it is still important to try to figure out approximately how much time design requires. He conducted research and provides a “low” and a “high” number of hours to give you the range provided in Table 3-2. For more about his research, you can check out the link to his blog, which is listed in the resources.

Table 3-2: Number of Hours Required for Design

Type of Training per 1 Hour	Low Hours per Hour of Instruction	High Hours per Hour of Instruction
Stand-up training (classroom)	43	185
Self-instructional print	40	93
Instructor-led, web-based training delivery (using software such as Centra, Adobe Connect, or WebEx-two-way live audio with PowerPoint)	49	89
E-learning Developed Without a Template
Text-only; limited interactivity; no animations	93	152
Moderate interactivity; limited animations	122	186
High interactivity; multiple animations	154	243
E-learning Developed Within a Template
Limited interactivity; no animations (using software such as Lectora, Captivate, ToolBook, TrainerSoft)	118	365
Moderate interactivity; limited animations (using software such as Lectora, Captivate, ToolBook, TrainerSoft)	90	240
High interactivity; multiple animations (using software such as Lectora, Captivate, ToolBook, TrainerSoft)	136	324
Limited interactivity; no animations (using software such as Articulate)	73	116
Moderate interactivity; limited animations (using software such as Articulate)	97	154
High interactivity; multiple animations (using software such as Articulate)	132	214
Simulations
Equipment or hardware (equipment emulation)	949	1743
Softskills (sales, leadership, ethics, diversity, etc.)	320	731

You can see that investment in course design can add up to a great deal of time. Part of the reason is that there are so many elements to consider as you design the participant materials and learning activities.

What We Know for Sure

Science tells us that we can rely on several proven facts:

• There is little research around learning objectives, but it would be inane to think that they are not useful when designing training.

• We need to use the research completed by Bloom when writing objectives to help us focus on the accurate result.

• Visuals are valuable and we can ensure they are optimal if we follow a few evidence-based guidelines.

• Research does not support learning styles; however, that does not mean you should treat everyone the same. We are all different. The key is to include enough variation in your designs to appeal to everyone.

• Incorporating Malcolm Knowles’s adult learning principles into your training will actually lead to some exciting and practical activities.

• Practice is critical.

• Giving feedback and learning from mistakes are both important in how we learn.

• Chunking is a strategy to break down content into bite-sized pieces so the brain can more easily digest them.

• Ensure that you have enough time for invisible learning to occur.

• “Down time” is a key to learning.

The Art Part

Your success will depend upon how well you adapt to the situation and your learners’ needs. Tap into some of these ideas to help your learners grow, to develop yourself, and to add your personal creative touch.

Props are a surprising treat. Props include a diverse assortment of three-dimensional items that participants use to discuss or practice with. They may be used as practical, hands-on support to:

• Display samples of product, errors, and so on for participants to examine.

• Introduce models of actual equipment, locations, and buildings.

• Practice skills using actual tools, equipment, or materials.

• Demonstrate a correct process or procedure.

• Use as a metaphor to make a point visually.

• Make a closing statement.

Skype the CEO. Have your organization’s president or CEO welcome learners to a class in real time.

Creative objectives. Instead of presenting learning objectives, create a game quiz. Based on their performance, learners determine their gaps and write their own objectives.

Art and Science Questions You Might Ask

These questions provide potential challenges for your personal growth and development:

• What design skills do you need to ensure learners effectively interact with new knowledge?

• How can you chunk content into digestible bites?

• Do you build in enough time for reflection and practice?

• What techniques can you use to review content?

• What job aids or checklists can you design for continued learning on the job?

• How can you use physical movement to engage learners?

• What can you do during the design that enhances your relationship with the learners?

• What questions can you ask that will inspire, influence, and encourage dialogue?

• How could you use incorrect information to train?

How Do We Design So Others Can Learn?

A huge amount of research has been conducted about the best way to design training. As long as you are logical and don’t do anything that is inaccurate, I doubt that you can do any harm. And of course your learners will tell you whether you hit the mark during your first delivery. I suggest that you start your design and then go back to check some of the research and compare how you did. You can always make changes before you deliver the class.

Finally, take all the advice and read all the research. You will find research that contradicts other research, which is not surprising. All learners are unique (Jensen 2008), they all have different brains, and they all learn differently. You will be successful if you use your common sense.

Resources

Allcock, S., and J. Hulme. 2010. “Learning Styles in the Classroom: Educational Benefit or Planning Exercise?” Psychology Teaching Review 16:2.

Baird, B., et al. 2012. “Inspired by Distraction: Mind Wandering Facilitates Creative Incubation” Psychological Science 23(10): 1117-1122.

Biech, E. 2007. 90 World-Class Activities by 90 World-Class Trainers. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

———. 2011. The Book of Road-Tested Activities. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

———. 2014. ASTD Handbook: The Definitive Reference for Training and Development. 2nd ed. Alexandria, VA: ASTD Press.

———. 2015. 101 More Ways to Make Training Active. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

———. 2015. Training and Development for Dummies. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Bloom, B. 1968. Learning for Mastery. Los Angeles: The Center for the Study of Evaluation of Instructional Programs, University of California.

Britton, B., S. Glynn, K. Muth, and M.J. Penland. 1985. “Instructional Objectives in Text: Managing the Reader’s Attention.” Journal of Reading Behavior XVII(2):101-113.

Butler, A.C., J. Karpicke, and H.L. Roedige III. 2007. “The Effect of Type and Timing of Feedback on Learning From Multiple-Choice Tests.” Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied 13(4):273-281.

———. 2008. “Correcting a Metacognitive Error: Feedback Increases Retention of Low-Confidence Correct Responses.” Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition 34(4):918-928.

Chapman, B. 2010. How Long Does It Take to Create Learning? Chapman Alliance, September. http://www.chapmanalliance.com/howlong/.

Choi, I., S.J. Lee, and J. Kang. 2009. “Implementing a Case-Based E-Learning Environment in a Lecture-Oriented Anesthesiology Class: Do Learning Styles Matter in Complex Problem Solving Over Time?” British Journal of Educational Technology 40(5):933-947.

Clark, R. 2015. Evidence-Based Training Methods: A Guide for Training Professionals. 2nd ed. Alexandria, VA: ATD Press.

Dirksen, J. 2012. Design for How People Learn. Berkeley, CA: New Riders Publishing.

Duarte, N. 2008. Slide:ology: The Art and Science of Creating Great Presentations. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media.

Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence. 2008. “The Educational Value of Course-Level Learning Objectives/Outcomes. Carnegie Mellon Unversity. www.cmu.edu/teaching/resources/Teaching/CourseDesign/Objectives/CourseLearningObjectivesValue.pdf.

eLearning Guild. 2002. “The e-Learning Development Time Ratio Survey.” The eLearning Development www.elearningguild.com/pdf/1/time%20to%20develop%20Survey.pdf.

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