It is tempting to believe that instructional designers have no control over a comprehensive approach to designing a learning solution. Often, we focus on the structured learning experience: an e-learning course, face-to-face workshop, or another instructional format of instruction. 

Yet, what happens during the creation of a learning program, as well as what happens before and after a learning experience, are crucially important to the learner’s ability to acquire and apply new knowledge and skills back on the job. 

As an instructional designer, have you heard yourself or others in your organization voice the following opinions? 

• There is no point to assigning pre-work; participants won’t do it.

• Employees perceive training as taking away from their real jobs.

• Organizations are too busy to include games or application exercises in training programs.

• Why can’t we offer mentoring or coaching post-training—we know it significantly improves application of new knowledge and skills?

• Managers discourage on-the-job application of learning because it usually means a lack in normal productivity until the employee is proficient.

• Learning and development loses all control after the completion of the formal learning experience.

• The instructional designer’s role is to design the best learning experience. What happens before and after is someone else’s job. 

I’d like to hear from you regarding these statements. Are they facts or assumptions? 

In my next blog post, I’ll discuss tools and techniques included in the ATD Master Instructional DesignerTM program that help shift the opinions listed above to create an environment conducive to learning transfer.