Brain-Based Learning: Matching LMS Technology to the Way People Learn Best

Recent research on human psychology and the brain has put the design and development of learning technology at an intriguing crossroads.

Old learning management systems (LMS) already use simpler applications of brain science, such as presenting knowledge in bite-sized chunks so it can be consumed by the brain’s limited-capacity short-term memory cup. In addition, these systems are able to enable repetition, which also helps the brain ensure storage in long-term memory.

But these more superficial principles are only the beginning of brain-based learning. With new technology, we can now match desired learning with how the brain learns best at a much deeper level.

The following three brain-based learning approaches can change the way your organization functions:

1. Gamification and learning

By lowering stress, the act of play helps the brain feel rewarded and can, therefore, promote it to attend and act more clearly. But you should not automatically make knowledge into a game. This alone will not guarantee success.

Specific competencies can be built into the play to increase the brain’s learning capabilities. For example, predictive timing is a skill that involves timely execution. At its height, it is spontaneous, automatically executed, and precise. In business, predictive timing may be relevant in a negotiation or a merger. However, both are very different contexts. Learning should be tailored to the business function and not just generically gamified.

In general, your brain maintains its energy level by switching between the focus and unfocused circuits. In my recent book, Tinker Dabble Doodle Try, I explain why the brain needs this cognitive rhythm. Gamification turns the unfocused circuit off in the brain. As a result, the brain becomes consumed by focus. And too much gamification will exhaust the brain. This needs to be taken into consideration when designing learning and training methods.

Gaming can also provide feedback, reward, and flow states. Each of these elements may enhance learning through technology. Rather than simply providing generic gamification, providing growth and even flow opportunities through virtual reality can add meaningful gaming elements.

2. Internal rewards: It’s not just about kudos

Feedback from others is not the only way we learn. In fact, we learn from ourselves through self-monitoring. Including such self-monitoring systems on learning platforms is valuable, but internal or intrinsic rewards involve more than self-monitoring. These rewards require being curious, interested, and challenged to the point that people will act in the absence of external rewards.

When people are engaged based on intrinsic rewards, they weigh their spontaneous interest and enjoyment. On the other hand, extrinsic rewards involve assessing whether that reward has social value.

Both rewards help learning, and technology may be designed to measure the impact of each type of reward to help fine-tune learning for any given individual. Sometimes, extrinsic rewards cancel out intrinsic motivation. Learning technology should be built to detect this.

3. Making learning relevant: Implement storytelling

During conditions of heightened uncertainty, the brain requires a level of confidence that shows learning is relevant. To do this, technology must provide some level of feedback, not only on the learning, but also on whether the learning matters. This can be done by helping people be confident that the learning is significant.

Some forms of storytelling have more value than others. For learning to feel relevant it is not just others’ stories that matter. Technology should be designed to document and allow for the story of the user to unfold.

Also, expressive or emotional storytelling is likely to be more helpful than flat storytelling in which emotion and intonation do not factor in. Expressive storytelling helps people concentrate and engage more. Podcast interviews, for example, may be more constructive than telling a generic story.

Based on the key ideas expressed above, the following table can help learning designers take the brain into account when designing technology. Use this as a checklist:

The new possibilities for training processes and programs that stem from brain-based learning technology are exciting. By matching how the brain learns to technology that fuels drive, utilizes play, and makes learning relevant, the future of training and onboarding has the potential to be diverse and more impactful. By letting go of old LMS principles and integrating brain-based technology, your HR and talent management team can be one step ahead of competitors.