Learning Methods A to Z

There are SO many ways to approach learning. This post is the beginning of a learning methods A to Z, based on ideas I have been collecting and discussing in various conferences and workshops… If you have ideas, please comment and I will add them!

 

A

• Agenda tracking (time-tracking – see when you are most productive etc..)
• Allowing mistakes
• Asking auestions
• Assessment

 

B

• Back-channel learning (eg using Twitter # to support non-present learning participants or see for example, LnDDave‘s ASTD2012 ICE back-channel blog page)
• Blogs (like this one… or related to specific topics, lessons…)
• Books
• Bottom-Up Innovation (eg: Kluwer Inspiration Market)
• Brainstorming
• Brown Paper Sessions
• Buddy System (as originally used in diving, climbing etc.. now used in onboarding and induction)
• Business Games (see also “Serious Games”)

 

C

• Case Studies
• Challenge (something to stretch you out of your comfort zone)
• Coaching (defined here as “helping other people to find their own answers to their own questions” – in contrast to “mentoring”)
• Collaboration (just working together leads to learning too!)
• Conferences
• Conversation
• Curating content (maybe using tools like Paper.Li or Pearltrees)

 

D

• Digital libraries, virtual bookshelf (like Shelfari.com)
• Discussion
• Documents (templates, company processes)

 

E

• e-Learning
• Emailing (communication updates, tips and tricks…)
• Exercise (eg security drills, fire alarms)
• Experience
• Evaluation (thus improving self-knowledge…)

 

F

• FAQs
• Feedback
• Flipped Classroom
• Forum
• Free time

 

G

• Gamification

 

H

• Hot-desking

 

I

• InfoGraphics (like this one.. you can stick them on walls like posters, email or share via SoMe sites…)
• Info Sessions (basic knowledge sharing sessions)
• “In my shoes” (another name for “job rotation“)
• Innovation (maybe using a tool like “IdeaScale“)
• Internet
• Intervision (like “supervision”, but between peers)
• Intranet

 

J

• Job-aids (eg posters, quick reference guides, cheatsheets and other things on or near the place of work to remind processes or important behaviours)
• Job rotation
• Job shadowing
• Job sharing

 

K

• Knowledge pool (or competence matrix (per person))
• Knowledge management
• Knowledge sharing sessions (also known as “info sessions”)

 

L

• Language Lunches (native speakers of one target language eat lunch with non-native speakers in order to improve language skills)
• Learning Narration
• Learning Tracking
• Lecture
• “Lunch and Learn”

 

M

• Meetings
• Member associations
• Mentoring (defined here as “giving people expert answers to their questions” – in contrast to “Coaching“)
• (Meeting) Minutes
• MOOC – get some MOOC tips here, courtesy of @elearningPosts
• Mystery caller (common method in retail/call-centre environment for assessing service and (later) giving feedback)

 

N

• Networking
• Note-making; note-taking (maybe done socially by a group of people)

 

O

• Observation
• Onboarding
• On-the-Job training
• Outplacement

 

P

• “Parrainage” (when joining a company, a “godfather” is assigned to a new joiner who can tell you simple things like, for example, where the photocopier is or who to speak to about your car expenses…)
• Peer Coaching (like Coaching, but done in groups between people in similar functions or levels)
• Personal Knowledge Management
• Podcast
• Portfolio sharing – (eg Dribbble)
• Posters
• Practice
• Presentations (which might be shared online using tools like SlideShare or Prezi)
• Problem solving

 

 

Q

• Q+A sessions
• Quality monitoring (common in call-centres, for example)

 

R

• Reading
• Report(ing)
• Roleplay
• Round Table events
• RSS readers or RSS feed

 

S

• Satisfaction Surveys
• Search engines
• Self-reflection
• Serious Games
• Simulations
• Social Learning (learning that takes place with other people, via connectivity and sharing)
• Social Media (web 2.0 sites like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn)
• Social Networking (often done using “social media”, a connected network of people who share and work together)
• Scrum Meetings
• Supervision

 

T

• Team Building Events
• Teaching
• Television
• Thinking
• Time out
• Tinkering (thanks @rotanarotana for this idea)
• Trade magazines
• Traineeship
• Training
• Trial and Error

 

U

 

V

• Video (eg YouTube or other platforms as used, for example, in “BT Dare to Share“)
• Virtual reality 5platforms like, for example, “”Second Life“)

 

W

• Walking around
• Water-cooler chatting
• Webinar
• Whiteboard sessions
• Wiki-creation
• Workshops

 

X

Y

Z

 

Thanks for reading!

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