Visual Learners vs Verbalizers: Eye-tracking Study

This assignment involves an in-depth analysis of two key studies: 'Visualizers versus verbalizers: Effects of cognitive style on learning with texts and pictures' and 'When do global leaders learn best to develop cultural intelligence?'. Additionally, it includes a methodological reconstruction and validation of the Kolb Learning Style Inventory. The assignment aims to understand how visual learners process information differently from verbal learners, the moderating role of experiential learning styles in developing cultural intelligence, and the effectiveness of working memory training. It also examines the roles of learning style and strategy on academic performance.

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AT SUN COURT LIMITED
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Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
LO 1 Understand learning theories and learning styles...................................................................3
1.1 Comparison of different learning styles............................................................................3
1.2 Role played by learning curve and the importance of transferring learning to the
workplace setting.........................................................................................................................4
1.3 Estimate the contribution played by learning styles and theories when a learning event
is planned in the organization......................................................................................................5
LO 4 Understanding of government-led skills development initiatives..........................................6
4.1 Role played by government in training, development and lifelong learning of the
employees of Sun Court Limited.................................................................................................6
4.2 Explain how competency movement has impacted on public and private sector of UK......6
4.3 Assess how contemporary training initiatives introduced by UK government leads to
development of human resources in Sun Court Ltd....................................................................7
LO2 planning and designing of training and development.............................................................8
2.1 Provide a comparison of varied training needed for staff who are at different levels in Sun
Court Ltd......................................................................................................................................8
2.2 Assess the advantages and disadvantages of training methods used in at Sun Court Ltd.....9
2.3 Use a systematic approach to plan training and development for training event within Sun
Court limited..............................................................................................................................10
LO 3 Be able to evaluate a training event......................................................................................11
3.1 Prepare an evaluation of a training event using suitable techniques...................................11
3.2 Carry out an evaluation of a training event.........................................................................12
3.3 Review the success of the evaluation methods used...........................................................12
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................13
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................14
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INTRODUCTION
Human resource development or HRD is all about developing the overall quality of employees
working in an organization so that they can be made competent enough for a given job. This is a
vast area and includes many parts where one such is the training and development efforts for the
employees (Goma and et.al., 2014). The present study has thus been made on conducting training
sessions for employees of Sun Court limited which is care home service provider that is making
an attempt to serve specific individuals being the one who are suffering from dementia. The
report has thus given emphasis on different learning styles as well as discussing about learning
curve and importance of transferring the gained knowledge to the workplace. Focus has also
been given on finding out how UK government supports the organization in conducting the
training program so that overall performance can be improved. The report further talks about
different kinds of training methods; their importance and judging the overall effectiveness of
training staff members of Sun Court limited.
LO 1 Understand learning theories and learning styles
1.1 Comparison of different learning styles
There is a presence of various theories that depict the learning style used by people to
enhance their overall learning. One such style is Vark model given by Fleming and Mills in the
year 1992 which can be used by Sun Court limited while it changes itself from a generalist to
specialist care home. As per Visual style, the learners feel an overall ease of learning if visuals
are presented in front of them (Sparrow, Brewster and Chung, 2016). The learners here prefer to
see the information in a visual format rather than a written one. Hence graphical representations
can be used by the trainers in form of bar charts, diagrams, illustrations, video etc. There is also a
presence of auditory or aural learners who are the one who learns best if the information is told
to them which can then be heard. They are able to grasp a good amount of information if lectures
are presented in front of them (Dal Bello-Haas and et.al., 2014).
Moreover, reading out to themselves or other help them in remembering a great deal of
information. Hence lecture sessions can be held for these learners followed by group discussions
and web chats so as to make the team get aware of the various situations that they may face
while dealing with dementia patients. Group discussions can also be kept so as to enhance their
learning process about dementia patients. Then comes read and write style of learning where the
learners prefer to take information through the words (Philips and Philips, 2016). Learning
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material for them should basically be in form of text-based data. Such learners should be given a
lot of time in training sessions by which they can prepare the notes of what is being told by the
trainer regarding dementia. They can also be told to prepare PowerPoint sessions that can then be
presented in class. This style will not only benefit them but also other kinds of learners who may
prefer learning about dementia concepts through aural or visual style (Nichols and Edmondson,
2016). Kinesthetic or tactile learning style has presence of those learners who learn the best by
carrying out hands-on experience by a way of touch and doing things. In this regard, the trainers
can involve in these learners in role-playing sessions where the learners can play the role of
dementia patients, doctors and carers. Their own experience as well as the one depicted by others
will help in enhancing their process of learning. Overall it can be concluded that staff members
working in Sun Court limited have a presence of different learning styles which must be focused
on while training them.
1.2 Role played by learning curve and the importance of transferring learning to the workplace
setting
The learning curve can be defined as the process wherein individuals develop their own skill set
by learning from the mistakes committed by them. A steep curve is the one where learning takes
place quickly. The curve can be used in a great deal by the trainers for measuring the overall
learning capacity of learners about concepts that have been taught to them with respect to
dementia. This will help in planning for additional learning sessions so that the overall
performance of employees can be enhanced and they can work with the dementia patients in best
possible manner (Hwang and et.al., 2013). Learning curve can further be used by the trainers to
plot the amount of information required to be given in a single session for enhancing overall
knowledge of the learners.
Transferring the overall learning to workplace is of huge importance as it will aid in adding value
to sun court limited. This is as knowledgeable individuals are likely to give their best efforts and
also inspire others to do good work which will improve overall environment of the workplace.
Moreover, the firm will be spending a huge amount of money on training its employees. Hence if
learning is not transferred then the amount will not be utilized in a proper manner (Koć-Januchta
and et.al., 2017). It will further aid the staff members to come up with a new environment so that
challenges can be faced as well as overcome by them in best possible manner. Issues are likely to
occur as they are dealing with aged patients who may be in the acute stage of dementia.
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1.3 Estimate the contribution played by learning styles and theories when a learning event is
planned in the organization
There is a need to plan as well as design learning event where the staff members will be taught
about how to deal with senior citizens who are in the acute stage of dementia. This can be done
by application of Kolb's experiential learning style theory that depicts four stages of learning.
The description and its application to current situation is given in the below mentioned section.
 Concrete experience – This situation is most likely to occur as to as the specialist units
start in order to deal with dementia patients (MacLeod, 2017). A new situation of an
acute dementia sufferer may come in front of them which can be dealt by actively
involving the employees rather than just simply watching others or reading about it in
books.
 Reflective Observation – this stage is of a huge importance as the learner may find a great
deal of inconsistency in what is being experienced by him while dealing with a live
dementia sufferers and what was actually understood by him when he attended the
training session. This stage is likely to open up a lot of questions in the mind of staff
members which can then be clarified by involving in discussions with the doctors or
senior staff members (Manolis and et.al., 2013).
 abstract conceptualization stage – this stage will give rise to new thoughts in the mind of
staff members which will bring a huge modification to existing abstract concept. The
need here will be to make a comparison about what was actually taught to them in
training session and what has been done by them while they dealt with dementia patients.
 Active experimentation – the learners in this stage will lay a deep emphasis on how can
they apply there learning on dementia patients so as to see what is the result. This will
involve a lot of planning so that proper and correct steps can be taken by them so as to
handle the dementia patients who are in the acute stage (Kolb's Learning Styles and
Experiential Learning Model. 2017).
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LO 4 Understanding of government-led skills development initiatives
4.1 Role played by government in training, development and lifelong learning of the employees
of Sun Court Limited
A very essential role is being played by government of United Kingdom in training, developing
as well as ensuring towards lifelong learning the staff members who are a part of any
organization. Government in this regard arranges for training sessions by providing the firms
with expert trainers who can make the employees knowledgeable about dementia patients. The
main aim of government here is to ensure that the employees have a presence of basic knowledge
so as to reach at minimum possible service standard (Hwang and et.al., 2013). There is further a
presence of Lifelong learning UK which is a sector skills council that renders support to the
employers so that they can invest in developing the skill set of the employees (Lifelong learning,
2017).
Other than this, Care quality commission of United Kingdom is also present that inspires the
employers to render quality training and development sessions for staff members (Care
commission, 2017). In case any issue is found that instructions are given to the employers so that
remedial actions can be taken by the firm for improvement (Li, Mobley and Kelly, 2013). This
strategy was employed by CQC in the present case where it carried out inspections on care
homes and reported the quality of training sessions given to staff members. The CEO in the
present case is required to act as per the government regulation and change its belief that training
staff members is an unnecessary cost for the organization.
4.2 Explain how competency movement has impacted on public and private sector of UK
Competency can be defined as the overall ability of staff members to accomplish any job in the
best possible manner. Both the public as well as private sectors have been impacted by the
competency movement that started in the UK during the year 1960 by David Mc Clelland. In
past, there was a lack of proper knowledge about competency but with passage of time, it has
been acting as a huge point of discussion among experts. It has been crucial in public sector, as
employees have to maintain a high amount of competency standard in order to serve the public in
best possible manner (Melby-Lervåg, M. and Hulme, 2013). There is a presence of rigorous
competition in public sector jobs and the need is to provide the staff members with intense
training sessions so that they can be made more competent towards the job that is being done by
them.
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Competency is also important in private sector so as to ensure that quality services are given by
care workers for dementia sufferers. In this regard, it has been found that fall in overall
performance of employees’ results in diminished service quality as well as causing a decrease in
overall brand image of the firm which then pushes the management to conduct training programs
for them. In the present case, the need is to improve the competency of the staff members by
providing training on dementia so as to improve the overall working of the employees (Goma
and et.al., 2014). The need is further to encourage staff members so that they can work with
dedication, sincerity and give their best possible efforts.
4.3 Assess how contemporary training initiatives introduced by UK government leads to
development of human resources in Sun Court Ltd
There is a presence of various contemporary training initiatives that has been started by
government of United Kingdom so as to aid in overall development of human resources who are
there in Sun Court limited. The programs are as follows;
 Investors in people – this is a framework that provides a standard by which the
management can manage the human resource team working within Sun Court limited
(Investors in people, 2017). The standard further defines what it takes to lead, support as
well as manage the people in order to generate sustainable results.
 Apprenticeships – These are the training pragmas that can be conducted by Sun Court
limited so that fresher working on dementia people can be trained in best possible manner
(Apprenticeships, 2017).
 Connexions Service – this renders support to the staff members by providing them with
integrated advice and support so that their overall personal development takes place.
Al the above mentioned programs are there to help the firms in training its staff members so that
effective performance can be generated from them. This is required so that the employees are at
least able to work as per the minimum working standard. Other than this, there is also a presence
of vocational training initiatives that can be used by management of sun court limited for training
the employees (Bompa and Buzzichelli, 2015). All the approaches are likely to help sun court
limited in getting an edge over its competitors who are treating senior citizens suffering from
dementia. Staff members are likely to benefit by these initiatives as it will help them is faster
adaption with the market environment of their area of expertise being care homes. This is most
needed as the firm is moving from being a general care service provider to the one that deals
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specifically with dementia patients. Hence overall development is essential so that they are able
to make a smooth transition towards the new work role.
LO2 planning and designing of training and development
2.1 Provide a comparison of varied training needed for staff who are at different levels in Sun
Court Ltd
Training needs of employee differs at every level in the organization due to difference in job
roles and responsibilities. Hence the need on part of organization is to determine the training
needs of various employees working at different levels of Sun Court limited.
At management level At Middle level At Care worker or
lower level
As the firm is undergoing a lot of
changes due to movement towards
being a specialized care home
hence the senior managers are
required to be trained towards
strategic plans to be made for
organization.
Other than this, the firm will also
be recruiting new candidates
hence the senior managers are
required to make themselves
aware about how induction
training is to be rendered to the
employees so that they get
familiar with new mission and
vision of the company (Goma and
et.al., 2014).
Moreover, there will also be a
development of new policies and
Training is to provide for employees
with respect to the skill set, knowledge
and expertise required by them in order
to handle the dementia patients in best
possible manner (Forehand and
Kotchick, 2016).
They should be trained about needs and
requirements of dementia patients, risk
factors involved in treating them.
They must also be trained for how to
supervise the care workers with respect
to the manner in which they are handling
dementia patients.
Training needs at the care
worker level is about having an
awareness of health and safety
needs; manual patient
handling; safeguarding the old
patients; proper
communication as well as
managing the challenging
behavior which is most likely
to arise in case of patients who
are in the acute phase (reece
and Walker, 2016).
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procedures for the company hence
training is required to be given in
this area as well.
The managers are further required
to be good leaders hence there
leadership skill set is required to
be developed properly.
2.2 Assess the advantages and disadvantages of training methods used in at Sun Court Ltd
Methods of
training
Advantage Disadvantage
Classroom
training
through
lecture
This method can be advantageous for
training the staff members towards
dementia as it can be given in large
numbers so as to save the overall time
of company and make it cost effective
(Awan and Saeed, 2014)
This training strategy may be devoid of
any practical session and thus get
monotonous for the staff members.
Nonetheless, this session can still be
used to train the staff about basics of
dementia.
Case study
method
Live cases about acute dementia
patients can be given to staff members
which can then be answered by them.
This will thus aid in enhancing the
overall decision-making power of staff
members and is also a cost effective
means (Agrawal and Sudhakar, 2017).
It may be difficult to find appropriate
cases that suit the needs of patients.
Case studies have further been found to
consume a lot of time and there is also a
presence of varied perception about
how the patient should be handled
(Sparrow, Brewster and Chung, 2016).
Role playing
sessions
Here the staff members can be trained
towards how various roe is to be
performed by them as per the situations
that are faced by them with respect to
dementia patients.
The role playing sessions are quite time
consuming and require all staff
members to be present to increase the
knowledge.
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It can act as a source of learning through
encouragement and enjoyment.
It may lead to funny situations with
respect to dementia which may thus
reduce the overall impact (Ajibade and
Ayinla, 2014).
It is very expensive in nature
Group
discussions
Carrying out healthy discussion with
respect to dementia patients can help in
solving the doubts as well as queries of
the employees.
This training can, however, be
beneficial when a situation has been
faced by the staff member so as to
understand the issues and work upon it.
It requires full-fledged attention and
active involvement of the employees so
as to deliver best results (Goma and
et.al., 2014).
Mentoring This training session may involve for
one on one interaction between
employee and trainer so as to develop
an overall understanding about dementia
(Sharma, Garg and Mittal, 2015).
Employees may not pay attention to
mentor or may be afraid to talk about
the issues faced by him or her.
The biases of mentor towards certain
employee may not deliver the needed
results.
2.3 Use a systematic approach to plan training and development for training event within Sun
Court limited
Analysis of training and development needs – In order to plan a training event for dealing with
female dementia patients the need is to identify areas where training may be needed. This can be
done by observing the overall performance of employees and evaluating the areas which are
required to be strengthened in all or a particular set of employees. For example, the training areas
may be manual handling of female patient and communicating with a soft tone (bin Atan,
Raghavan and Mahmood, 2015).
 Designing the event – this will require for setting the date, time, venue, trainer and the
employees for whom session is required to be held. A recent case with respect to issue
observed in treating female dementia patient can be taken.
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 Development – this stage involves for practical initiation of the training event as per the
plan that was done in designing stage.
 Delivery – the training session in this stage will be actually delivered to the employees by
various strategies such as classroom sessions, role playing, mentoring, group discussions
among others (Sparrow, Brewster and Chung, 2016).
 Evaluation - this stage will involve for assessing as to how effective has the training
session carried on female dementia patients has been. This can be judged by asking for
feedbacks from employees, observing there working after training session and
distributing questionnaires to them.
LO 3 Be able to evaluate a training event
3.1 Prepare an evaluation of a training event using suitable techniques
Various techniques can be utilized in order to evaluate the overall performance of employees
with respect to the training event that has been held in terms of how female dementia patients
can be treated.
 Observation – The overall performance of employees is needed to be observed in order to
find out as to whether the training session has been successful or not. Observation thus
assists in forming a performance report for each and every employee which can be used
to determine the overall effectiveness of training.
 Feedback - It is necessary to take individual feedback both from the trainers as well as
employees to find out the overall position of training event. Positive feedback given from
trainer or employee may lead to a conclusion that training session has been worthy and is
most likely to deliver positive results.
 Comparison – An overall comparison with respect to the performance of employees can
also be done in order to find out gap between performance level. It will aid in finding out
the level of improvement needed followed by the overall effectiveness of training
sessions.
3.2 Carry out an evaluation of a training event
Evaluating a training session is all about measuring its overall effectiveness so as to find out as
to whether the training was worthy of conducting or not and if there has been an improvement in
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employee performance. This will help to find out how subsequent training sessions are require to
be delivered to staff members of Sun Court limited.
Hence the human resource manager has designed an overall plan to evaluate the effectiveness of
training event meant to increase the effectiveness of staff members while thy deal with female
dementia patients. The overall training program was first of all observed by the manager and
previous performance data of the employees was collected (Goma and et.al., 2014). The staff
members who underwent the training sessions were then observed for 1 month with respect to
how they handled dementia patients. Feedback was also collected simultaneously from the
employees about what they felt about the training sessions. An individual talk was also held with
them to find whether the training session has aided in improving the overall performance e of
employees with respect to their handling of female dementia patients.
Another method to be used for evaluating the training program can be a four-stage level that
includes steps being the reaction, learning, behavior as well as results. Reaction stage is the one
where employee reaction is noted while the training sessions are going on (Goetsch and Davis,
2014). This is followed by learning stage where feedback is taken from staff members and
trainers to find out the overall level of learning. Then comes behavior stage where employees can
be observed as to how they are dealing with female dementia patients. Then is the result stage
where overall effect of training program is observed and changes are made if required.
3.3 Review the success of the evaluation methods used
The four stage level used for evaluating the training program has been quite successful as it is
able to answer basic questions such as how was training event, what was the employee reaction
during and after the training session and how did the employee performance with respect to
female dementia patient change after training session (Kamal, Aghbari and Atteia, 2016). The
use of different methods such as observation, comparison of performance as well as feedback has
aided in finding out how have the employees performed and how the knowledge delivered in
training session has been implemented. Feedback from trainer as well as employee aids in
determining the drawbacks of program which can then be improved in the later stages. Carrying
out employee observation assists in finding out what is the preferred learning style of employee
while comparison stage aids in assessing as to whether an effective training event has been
delivered to care workers or not.
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CONCLUSION
From the above report, a conclusion can be drawn that different employees as per there way as
well as the purpose of learning adopts varied kinds of learning styles. The training to be given to
the individuals is thus based on overall learning styles of employees. In this regard, Sun Court
limited can make use of different training methods in order to train its employees in the best
possible manner. Every method has however got its own set of advantages as well as
disadvantages but still, these are beneficial in one way other in order to train the employees. The
overall effectiveness of training program can further be measured by the usage of various
methods such as feedback, observation as well as comparing the performance before and after
the training session. Other than this, various initiatives have also been taken by the UK
government in order to train the employee which is most likely to render support to Sun Court
limited in terms of carrying out the training programs and motivating the employees to deliver an
exceptional performance.
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