Help When You Need it: Performance Support Tools

By Vanessa Aller

Taken from LearningGuide Solutions Bob Mosher’s Informal Learning Workshop

I know I read the information I’m looking for somewhere...where was it?

Performance Support Tools

1. Learning and Knowledge Retention

Have you ever gone over to your colleague’s workstation to ask them about how to do something? We all have.

This eLearning is a brief learning on Performance Support Tools: Information where and when you need it.

2. Training, Performance Tool and Knowledge Loss

3. Task Analysis: Determine who needs what

Click here to begin

Learning and Knowledge RetentionIn this first part, you will learn about how much information can we retain and identify that learner’s needs vary.

Like a glass, you brain can only contain a limited amount of information at a time.

Any more information won’t stay in.

Vanessa Aller

Knowledge and It’s Retention

WMLTM

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In the eLearning “How to Use PPT for Presentations, I mentioned the rule 7 +/- 2 which is the number of concepts the human mind can remember.

This is important to determine the type and volume of content to use in a training.

The definition of these “Concepts” vary from person to person.Click next to get a specific example of what this is about.

There was a research done about chess players and how many moves they could remember.

Knowledge and It’s Retention

For each of the groups of players the type of chess information was different, but the number of content they could remember in their own level of expertise was still 7 +/- 2.

Beginner Chess Player Advanced Chess Player

The beginners could only remember 7 +/- 2 moves.

The more experts could remember 7 +/- 2 games which are a cluster of moves.

Knowledge and It’s RetentionImagine you had to train those players. Knowing how they view information and knowledge retention. Would you train them the same way or differently?

This is why it is important to know who your audience is because their content needs are different.

If you had to teach a beginner about multiple games, they would only remember the first 7 moves of the 1st game while the advanced group would be able to master more games because of they way they cluster chess concepts.

Information What to do with it?Customer Service

Training, Performance Tool and Knowledge Loss

In this second part, you will learn to:1.List the 3 the types of training.2.Explain the importance of Performance Support Tools.3.Define Performance Support Tools.4.Describe the timeline of knowledge loss.

The Training We Didn’t Know

We are more familiar with Formal Training which is the one we usually receive during onboarding and Informal Training which is the one where we ask a colleague about a process or task. But we are missing a key part of informal training: Performance Support.

In case of emergency...

What happened was an airplane was less that 3 min in the air when birds hit it and caused the pilot to loose control of the airplane.

The pilot was able to land the airplane safely in the Hudson River in New York. He did it using a performance support tool.

We all know that we can be more efficient if we spend less time looking for information on how to do our job.

Let me illustrate this with a story that recently shocked the aviation industry: Airplane crash-lands into Hudson River; all aboard reported safe

If you don’t use it, you forget it100%

60%

20%

0%30 Min.

58%

33%

48Hrs.

3 weeks

Performance SupportStrategy

We retain 100% of what we learn the day of the training. We remember only 58% after 30 min, 33% after 48 hrs and 0% in 3 weeks if we don’t use the information.

Captain Sully had his training on emergency landing, but he didn’t do it every day. When he assessed the situation, he reached under his chair to a job aid to help him remember how to proceed. He had 2.5 min to save everyone. He did it with the help of his performance support tool.

What is a Performance Support Tool?

“Performance Support is providing intuitive, tailored aid to a person at his or her moment of need to ensure the most effective performance.”

The Fire Extinguisher: The user doesn’t have to search for instructions. They are right on the label.

Rapid Task Analysis - RTA

RTA or Rapid Task Analysis is the method used to determine not just the task needed to perform a job but who does what in the process and to what level of detail do they need to know information:

In this third part of this eLearning you will learn:- How to determine training needs- How to determine the type of training/training materials needed.

...about the types of paint and

brushes needed ...

Oh no..I don’t do

that

Here’s a RTA ExampleProcess Tasks Rating

Maintaining Your

Engine Fluids

Monitor Fluids from Your Dashboard

Maintain a Safe Oil Level

Check and Add Transmission Fluid

Check and Add Brake Fluid

Check and Add Radiator Fluid

Add Washer Fluid

ConceptsMotor Fluid Safety Guidelines

Recommended Fluid Maintenance Schedule

Engine Oil Requirements and Guidelines

Other Fluid Requirements and Guidelines

You are going to teach a class. Above are the tasks and concepts. Rate them using the scale from 1-5: 1 being Not Critical at All to 5 Very Critical. You are teaching your grandmother.

Determining Training Using Ranking

Task Impact ILT eLrn PS Other

Task 1 5

Task 2 5

Task 3 1

Task 4 3

Task 5 4

Failure Impact Rating: 1= not critical at all; 5= critical impact

Once you complete your rating, you can put it on the Impact column of a table like the one above. This will help you determine the type of training needed to teach grandma about the Maintenance of her Engine Fluids.

Choosing Delivery Methods

PaperPros: PortabilityCons: Maintenance

VideoPros: It can take you to places (i.e heart exploration)Cons: Resources availability (technology), maintenance

HumanPros: Adapts/Diagnoses. Empathizes.Cons: Inconsistent, needs location arrangements, cost (travel)

ComputerPros: Accessible, easy to maintainCons: Overload

AudioPros: Portability, mass producingCons: Resources availability (technology), maintenance

Another part of training to consider is the following pros and cons of deliverables:

This Concludes the eLearning. Remember...

Knowledge expires.

Tools like Performance Support Systems can help boost memory and improve performance.

Rapid Task Analysis will help you determine training needs and deliverables more easily.

To summarize....

"You can't teach people everything they need to know. The best you can do is position them where they can find what they need to know when they need to know it.“

Seymour Papert, MIT

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