Learning at Work Week returns next month, highlighting continuous learning and development in the workplace. This year’s theme is ‘many ways to learn’, celebrating the idea that there are many paths to growth, and that learning is most effective when it reflects the diversity of how people think, absorb, and apply new skills.

As training designers, we know this instinctively. While learning style theories continue to be debated, it is widely accepted that people do have learning preferences. Designing with this in mind helps boost engagement, deepen understanding, and ultimately deliver more impactful training.

The most referenced styles are from the VARK model, which stands for Visual, Auditory, Reading/Writing, and Kinaesthetic. These refer to learning from images, spoken word, text, and by physical activity and doing. In recent years, the VARK styles have been referenced with separate styles. Useful to know of these are social and solitary learners, who learn better with others and alone, respectively, for providing the right environment to engage learners.

At SkillGate we developed our learning solutions accordingly. Our online courses are designed to engage all four VARK styles. For visual learners, there are videos, diagrams, photos, and image-led interactions throughout, all designed to convey information and educate. For auditory learners, our courses can be fully voiced, and videos also feature voiceover narration, meaning the course’s entire information content can be taught aurally. For reading/writing learners there is information in text form throughout, and transcripts are provided for all videos. Interactive exercises also feature text, and many courses include open-ended textual exercises where learners must type out their answers. For kinaesthetic learners there are extensive interactive exercises such as imagemap pop ups, drag/drop questions, and true or false exercises, and interactive games and activities. Again, these are designed to convey information and teach as learners work through them.

Our online courses engage all four of the VARK styles, but the various course types also support additional preferences. Within our course library, the main course types are SmartBites, Tutorials, and Certificates. These allow learners to pick the amount of learning they want to do at once. SmartBites are a microlearning course type that delivers specific lessons, supporting anyone who prefers learning precisely. At the other end of the spectrum, Certificates provide long, structured courses that progress sequentially through a larger topic. These support learners who prefer to learn progressively. In between these, tutorials take 15-25 minutes and provide a more detailed overview of topics than SmartBites do, but a less extensive sequence than certificates. These allow people to gain a comprehensive understanding of smaller topics. While separate from the standard course library, linked is the SmartCafé, which provides short, daily lessons through SmartBites. SmartCafé’s exclusively microlearning format also supports learners who prefer to learn in short, concentrated bursts.

The course library offers a strong learning environment for solitary learners, with its plethora of courses in a variety of topics, without the potential distraction of others. However, by not enabling group learning, the course library may be less engaging for social learners who may rather learn surrounded by others with group studying, peer discussions, and any learning exercise that forces learners to work together. At SkillGate, we also offer the Classroom Booking System, MyMentor, and CoachAssess, which all facilitate in-person training. The Classroom Booking System enables the widespread booking of in-person courses and webinars, making those group techniques possible.

Another way to learn is during the course of work, which many individuals may prefer to prescribed training, especially as this naturally incorporates repetition to allow for practice and retention. The widely recognised 70-20-10 model also suggests that 70% of workplace learning takes place through exactly these on-the-job tasks, which CoachAssess can report on, and, crucially, enable sign-off of. This can also suit social and solitary learners, as initially this is more heavily assisted by a trainer, before transitioning to more solo practice.

Another way of learning is via mentoring, long regarded as an excellent way to impart knowledge and improve workplace culture. This high regard is evidenced by the many famously successful people who took mentors, such as Yves Saint Laurent being mentored by Christian Dior and both Marlon Brando and Robert De Niro being mentored by Stella Adler. The highly tailored and personalised insights provide professional aid while commonly also leading to higher job satisfaction, more promotions and raises, and a wider professional network for the mentee. The long, conversational sessions typical of mentoring also provide a good environment for social learners to engage with. To this end, we offer MyMentor, which matches prospective mentors and mentees and allows for mentoring to be signed off.

Some solutions engage solitary learners effectively, others engage social learners, which leads us to the integrated, comprehensive element of SkillGate’s approach. The most effective approach is to use these solutions in combination to match individual preferences. No matter how widely appealing your teaching tool, there will be preferential variations that make it more or less effective for some, so we must use every tool at our disposal to engage our learners and deliver training that works.

Whatever the style, SkillGate can support it. There are many ways to learn – find what works for you!