Do modern learning strategies only address symptoms of the Ebbinghaus forgetting curve…

Every learning professional out there knows about the forgetting curve. "80% of what is taught is forgotten within a day." We've all heard it, we've all quoted it, we've all tried to counter it by implementing a variety of learning solutions. The Ebbinghaus forgetting curve has been one of the most quoted pieces of learning theory out there. We have built entire learning strategies around it, given rise to a myriad of interventions to combat it, and perhaps most ashamedly, used it frequently as an excuse.

 The Ebbinghaus theory of the forgetting curve holds true, however the measures put into place by most learning professionals to reduce the forgetting curve are no longer effective. The notion of putting into place multiple drops of information in a repetitive manner over time are no longer relevant in our modern VUCA world. You see the issue is that our strategy to reduce the knowledge loss is to re-enforce over time with additional initiatives. This is fine, if and only if, there is nothing else that you have to learn over that period of time and this makes the current strategies to mitigate the forgetting curve ineffective.

 You see even our strategy itself is flawed from the fact that we will continue to forget 80% at each interval of intervention. What is worse is if the participant feels that they already know it, then they will switch off and not listen to any of the intervention and come out worse than before they went in. The Ebbinghaus theory and the recognised strategies to reduce its effects were certainly correct for their time. However, in our modern age of digital disruption they simply now don't stack up. You see we are now exposed to so much information at such a rapid pace that our brains have started to function differently.

 We no longer have to rely on our knowledge, we now simply 'google it'. We have trained ourselves to forget even more information at an even more rapid pace all because of these little hand-held devices that give us access to the world. We are flooded with so much change, and so much new information at a pace that has never been seen before, so learning strategies that rely on multiple drops of learning over a period of time now simply do not stack up as effective. By the time we get to the second re-enforcement activity the world has moved on and none of it is relevant anymore, and yes, I do mean literally less than a month.

 The world has evolved, organisations have evolved, new practices like Agile have risen to popularity because they are adaptive and can move with the rapid pace of change that we are experiencing. Yet the learning function has not kept pace with all this change.

 It has held strong to its belief that there is a 'right way to learn' and as a result it has failed the entire system. By 2027 more than half of the entire workforce will be made up of freelance workers. For organisations that want to keep a permanent workforce the only employee value proposition that they will have is how they develop their staff. The learning function, the learning profession itself needs to evolve now to be ready for that challenge. So, what to do?

 I'm not disputing the Ebbinghaus forgetting curve, I'm disputing our short-sighted strategy to combat the curve which is only addressing the symptom of the curve and completely overlooking the systemic issue. The Ebbinghaus curve states that up to 80% of what is being taught will be lost within a day, if the content is not seen as important by the learner. It's this last part of the statement that is the issue that for years learning professionals have overlooked. The symptom is that people are forgetting what they learnt. The systemic issue is that people don't think it is relevant information.

 To address this our entire learning strategy needs to change. The wrong question has been asked for years, "How can we reduce the impact of the forgetting curve?" The right question is simple, "How can we make sure that all the content is seen as important by the learner?" The answer though becomes more complex.

 I have been evolving my approach to creating learning over time, continually refining what is and isn't needed, utilising elements of various learning theory to enhance the offerings. I have failed probably more times than I have been successful, yet it is through the failings that I have learnt more and evolved the offerings. So how can we make sure that all the content is seen as important by the learner?

 In summary the answer boils down to the following critical elements:

• Mindset: Headspace of the learner as they engage with the learning materials, the "why" of the learning has been provided prior to the learning itself. The behaviour of the learner’s leaders reflects the importance of learning and is supportive. The organisation has an active learning environment. The content was designed with the learner as opposed to for the learner, or even worse for the stakeholder.
• Timing: It is only ever delivered Just in time regardless of context, regardless of medium, regardless of any excuse you can give me as to why you are providing learning to someone at a time that they are not going to need to apply it.
• What and How: Specifically, what does the learner need to do and how do they need to do it. This is obviously simpler with something like system based or process based learning.

 What is important for you right now is to stop and reflect on each of these elements and what they all mean to you. Be aware of all the questions that come up, the challenges that you see with this, any missing information for you. Listen to all of your own thoughts on this and become very aware of them. It is through this self-analysis that you will gain the right insights for you. What do you agree with, what do you disagree with? What has left you wanting more information?

 Obviously, these need much deeper exploration and insight, and the positive news is that I have detailed tips/tricks and insights into each of these segments providing you with guidance on how to do each of these elements more thoroughly. I will publish these articles as follow ups from this one, so if you are interested in learning more about this then stay tuned.

 I hope that this has got you thinking about the core question and started your thinking on what is needed to change our learning landscape to ensure that the learning function can evolve…

Author: Ashley Spowart – Vanguard Learning