3 High-Tech Trends in On-the-Job Training

Employee training is critical to any business. Poorly trained employees can result in production errors and customer complaints. But traditional classroom training is ineffective, especially for younger employees. Millennials expect high-tech, flexible learning solutions. Corporate trainers are increasingly turning to advanced technology to educate twenty-first-century workers. Let’s look at three prominent industry trends.

Personalization

Understanding that there are multiple learning styles and that everyone learns at a different pace, smart human resources directors have moved away from training regimens that require students to all meet at one time and sit in a classroom. Training has moved online, using videos and computer applications to reach trainees in ways that allow them to work at their own pace, and using the learning style that appeals to them.

Interval Learning

Traditional study methods call for hours of reading or listening to lectures, but a white paper published by Better Ways to Study shows that people actually learn better when they study in intervals. Spaced repetition produces greater memory retention than a single lengthy blast of information.

Immersion

Simulators and virtual reality devices have long been used to train pilots. In recent years, use of this technology has expanded to include surgeons and others. But the most immersive experience you can give workers is to put them in the field and let them work on real equipment. The problem with this hands-on approach is, traditionally, that an expert trainer would have to shadow the trainee in order to provide the necessary knowledge and guidance.

To solve this problem, developers at [tp lang=”en” only=”y”]Tech In Systems produced the TG3[/tp][tp not_in=”en”]Tech In Systems produced the TG3[/tp], which combines a hard hat with Google Glass to provide a heads-up display. Glass also has a built-in camera. Plugged into the TG3 onboard computer, the system can improve training in ways that leverage all three of these trends.

In addition to Google, Tech In Systems teamed with Better Ways to Study to provide individualized training. Either through the Glass or through a smartphone—and better yet, though a combination of the two—the system delivers lessons that are keyed to the trainee’s needs and learning pace. The Glass camera can record interactions, which the student can play back to review their performance.

Learn Everywhere, an app by Better Ways to Study, uses interval learning to feed lessons to trainees at optimal times. Retaining information the traditional way—transferring information learned in a classroom onto the factory floor—was often inefficient and ineffective. The Learn Everywhere system feeds study information through the TG3 to workers on site, creating deeper engagement. When lessons come while the worker is on site doing the job, it boosts comprehension and retention.

With the TG3, the trainee has access to all the knowledge he needs, and an expert trainer anywhere in the world can be called on at a moment’s notice. This saves the trainers time and gives the trainee greater autonomy.

The industrial applications in which TG3 is currently being used are just a start. The hardware and software behind the system could easily be adapted for training in health care, sports, and other fields. The possibilities are endless.