Did you know that, simply by reflecting on what you have learned, you can enhance learning by 18% according to four researchers (Di Stefano of HEC Paris, Gino and Pisano of Harvard Business School and Bradley Staats of the University of North Carolina)?
They propose that effective learning is a dual process…doing (or experiencing) as well as reflecting (intentionally thinking about and analyzing the lessons taught by experience). Their results have important implications for the transfer of training on the job.
As you design a learning program that includes practice and application, you should also include time to synthesize, abstract and articulate what has just been learned by the experience. Action learning can be far more effective and lasting if you simply build in exercises that give learners the time and opportunity to reflect upon what they have learned and thus integrate that learning into their ongoing behavior.
Though it would be nice to do it at leisure in a pool as above, reflection can be easily accomplished in the classroom as long as it is part of the program design.
Chris Argyris of MIT called this process double loop learning. We describe the process in four steps:
- Decide what you are going to do
- Do it
- Reflect upon what worked and what did not work
- Connect your insights and lessons to your next decision to make it better
