subject: 5 Ways To Make Your Cna Inservices Memorable [print this page] It's a factIt's a fact. Continuing education is an annual requirement for nursing assistants. It's also true that ongoing education reduces turnover and enhances job satisfaction among CNAs. But, how can you know that the information you're giving your aides is "sticking?" Here are some staggering statistics about adult learners. Over a span of three days, adults retain:
* 10% of information that is read
* 30% of information that is seen
* 50% of information that is seen and heard
* 90% of information that is said and done (applying learning to real life situations)
Many factors affect adult learning retention including age, level of prior education and motivation. It's a tall order for any educator to motivate learners, accommodate different learning styles and keep his or her teaching fresh and interesting. Here are five strategies for ensuring that your nurse aides actually retain the information you are giving them.
1. Focus on several different learning styles. If possible, give your learners a choice between interactive group study and contemplative self-study. Make sure that aides who are studying solo know who they can approach with any questions about the material. Or, add a visual component, such as PowerPoints, to capture the attention of people who learn by seeing.
2. Encourage nurse aide participation. For each of the required annual inservices, ask a different nursing assistant to help you teach the materials. After the topic has been presented, ask each participant to tell the class something new that they learned. By saying it aloud, the learning will be reinforced!
3. Create excitement. A few days before your inservice meeting, get your CNAs talking by handing out a word puzzle or pre-test for their review. Or, tape a $1 bill in two or three copies of the inservice materials each month. Your CNAs will look forward to attending class to see if they are lucky "winners!"
4. Promote active learning. Use real-life situations relating to patients at your workplace to stimulate discussion and enhance critical thinking skills. When relevant, bring in patient care equipment and allow each participant to practice using it. Or, divide the participants into two groups. Ask each group to pose a discussion question to the other group.
5. Review job performance. Check for knowledge retention by making sure your caregivers are applying what they have learned. But, don't wait for annual review time. Give continuous feedback about their work and address learning needs as they come up.
Add some zing to your CNA continuing education with these 5 tips and you'll start seeing daily proof that your nurse aides are not only remembering what they learn--but are putting it into practice.
