Learning and training are, of course, inextricably linked. Whatever the goals, the quality of the learning will rely largely on the quality of the training. The role of the trainer will also have a huge effect on the outcome of a course for the learner. However, training and learning are unique aspects of any educational process and perform distinct roles.
Let’s look at the characteristics of each, and how they support each other to make an eLearning environment work.
The characteristics of learning
Learning is the process of absorbing information and retaining it to increase the skills and abilities an individual needs to achieve set goals. But it’s more than that. Learning is what we go through when we want to be equipped for non-specific and unexpected situations, too. While you learn to do something precise, you are also inadvertently equipped with the knowledge and/or skills to face future challenges. In essence, learning is all about equipping a person to tackle not just today’s issues, but also preparing them to creatively come up with ways to tackle tomorrow’s issues.
The characteristics of training
Training is the giving of information and knowledge, through speech, the written word, or other methods, in a manner that instructs the trainee. Training focuses more on the development of new skills or skill sets that will be used. It’s traditionally, the process each new employee goes through when joining a company to learn how to carry out their day-to-day responsibilities and operations, know how their department works, and how job-specific tools operate. In essence, through training, we aren’t looking to reshape the behavior of an individual, but rather teach the employee or learner how things are done so that they can then carry out a process on their own.
Ideally, an eLearning environment uses both learning and training principles. This allows instructors/trainers to provide their learners with the tools to tackle current issues, develop life-long skills, improve their problem-solving skills, and deploy resources to the best of their abilities.