Designing Learning That Actually Works
by Dr. Veldsman
In today’s fast-paced, distraction-filled workplaces, how we learn—and retain what we know—has become a business-critical issue. Leaders are rightly asking: How do we make learning stick? How can we ensure it translates to better performance? And how do we support learning without disrupting the flow of work?
Attention, Retention, and the Power of Spacing
Cognitive science is precise: People don’t learn best in long, one-off events. Research argues that attention wanes after about 20 minutes, and the brain needs repetition over time to retain new information. This is the spacing effect—one of the most robust findings in learning science. Learning will likely be encoded into long-term memory when it is spaced out and revisited.
Microlearning, refreshers, nudges, and follow-up practice are not just trendy tactics—they’re rooted in what we know about how the brain consolidates knowledge. If you want learning to last, stop cramming and start spacing.
Debunking the Learning Styles Myth
One persistent myth is that people learn best when taught in their preferred "style"—visual, auditory, kinesthetic, etc. But science doesn’t support this. The evidence shows that tailoring learning to so-called styles doesn’t significantly improve outcomes.
What does matter? Cognitive load. This is the amount of mental effort being used in the working memory. Learning fails when it’s too complex, abstract, or poorly structured. The most effective learning reduces unnecessary load and supports learners by chunking information, sequencing it appropriately, and linking it to what they already know.
Designing Learning for Performance
Great learning isn’t about consumption—it’s about application. That means designing with context, relevance, and immediacy in mind. People are more motivated to learn when the content connects directly to their current challenges or goals. "Just-in-case" training often falls flat. "Just-in-time" learning, on the other hand, creates pull: learners seek it out because they need it now.
To achieve this, tie learning outcomes directly to real tasks, provide examples from the learner’s environment, and design content that helps solve actual business problems.
From Classroom to Context: Learning in the Flow of Work
The future of learning lies in application-first design. Rather than separating learning from doing, the most impactful approaches embed learning into the daily flow of work. Think: job aids, how-to videos, AI assistants, communities of practice, and learning nudges triggered by behavior or task.
When learning is seamlessly integrated into people's tools and platforms, it becomes less of an interruption and more of an enabler.
Ecosystems Over Events
Finally, we need to shift our thinking from events to ecosystems. Traditional learning has been centered on one-off programs—workshops, courses, certifications—but these events rarely drive lasting change. Instead, we must build learning ecosystems that offer multiple touchpoints, support different formats (coaching, peer learning, digital content), and allow learners to navigate their own development time.
An ecosystem approach also embraces technology to personalize learning pathways, analyze learning impact, and create adaptive experiences that evolve as the organization does. Do you want to see how Dextego personalizes learning pathways? Book a demo here.
