This document discusses various topics related to how adults learn, including brain development and function, memory, learning styles, attention span, and accelerated learning. It provides information on how the brain works, how we remember and forget, and factors that influence learning like stress and emotions. It also discusses the three levels of memory (sensory, short-term, and long-term), different learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic), the average adult attention span of 15-20 minutes, and techniques for making learning memorable like teaching others or using audio/visual aids.

1. How Do Adults Learn?

2. The Big Picture….outcomes
Refresh knowledge and encourage CPD:
• Inside the brain – mysteries of learning
• How we remember and forget
• Making learning stick
• Dominance
• Styles
• Pyramid
• Attention span
• Accelerated Learning

3. Link to your training experiences
1. Three things you could do to enhance the
delegate’s learning?
2. Two things you could do that would reduce
the delegate’s learning?

4. Brain Quiz…..
Brain numbers answers: 18, 100,000, 75, 25, 100 billion, 300+
1. Number of ? miles of blood vessels
2. Your brain is ? % water
3. It uses ? % of your energy
4. Number of neurons ?
5. Speed ? mph info. passes around your brain
5. It stopped growing at ? age but is constantly rewiring itself
6. When is your brain more active? Awake or asleep?
7. Always creates true memories?
8. Your brain can not feel any pain?
9. When you’re asleep it creates a hormone to paralyse you?
10. Japanese researches may soon be able to put your
thoughts and dreams onto a screen?

5. Brain Development
* higher order
thinking
* problem-
solving
* understand
meaning
* emotions
* long term
memory
* basic survival

6. The effect of stress and emotions
on the brain…?
Stress:
• Causes the brain to go Reptilian…
• Blocks the Neo-Cortex and Limbic Systems
Emotions:
• The on/off switch to accessing higher learning
• Produces creativity….or anxiety

7. Memory - welcome to the Neuron…..
You have 100,000,000,000 of them in your
brain

8. Memory
Three levels of memory
1. Sensory:
Holds information for a few seconds or less
2. Short-term:
Hold information up to a minute
Q: How many items can ST remember at any
one time?
Let’s test it…….

9. Memory
How Many Words Can You Remember?
Plugs Lamp Apple Table Sway Plugs
Army Bank Fire Hold Worm Army
Clock Horse Colour Baby Sword Clock
Desk Hold Find Bird Rock Desk
Nine Swap Cell Ring Lust Nine

10. Memory
3. Long-term:
• Capacity to hold information is
immeasurably large
• Information can be retained indefinitely

11. Forgetting Curve

13. Making Learning Memorable
• Demonstration
• Reading
• Teach others
• Lecture
• Discussion
• Audio-visual
• Practice doing
5%

14. facts
feelings
maths
tune of songs
arts
imagination

15. Left or Right brain Dominance?

16. Learning Styles
Flat Pack ….
How do you go about assembling it?

17. Learning Styles
Visual Learners:
• Think in terms of pictures
• Visual tools effective;
• Handouts, text, slides, graphs etc
Auditory Learners:
• Learn best by listening or speaking
• Lectures, discussions, reading aloud etc

18. Learning Styles
Kinaesthetic Learners (tactile):
• Learn best through touching, feeling and
experiencing that which they are trying to
learn
• They remember best by writing or physically
manipulating the information

19. Your Attention Span
Question:
How long is the average delegates attention span?
15-20 minutes…..
In a session, when is learning at the best:
Start, middle, end ?
BEM
What are the Implications for training?

20. Chunking
• Break up the session into 15-20 minute mini-
sessions
• Separate the mini sessions by something
active or different (ie review learning) lasting
only 2-5 minutes
• To refresh the attention span

21. Accelerated Learning Cycle