Customer Reviews

The Accelerated Learning Handbook: A Creative Guide to Designing and Delivering Faster, More Effective Training Programs

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... if not the best. Rather then rehash a lot of theories about accelerated (or brain-based) learning, the author, Dave Meier succinctly defines the concepts and provides a wealth of real-world examples. The book is targeted at trainers and facilitators who want to create truly effective, collaborative learning experiences. It's refreshing, well-written, and offers a realistic appraisal as to why accelerated learning works (vs. traditional forms of "education"). If you're interested in the subject, this book is a must read.

I am a subject matter expert who was occassionally requested to make training presentations. I began to realize that training was my calling. I was then hired to plan training programs. By chance, I ran across this book. After reading the book, I was so inspired I wanted to read it again to ensure that I didn't miss anything important. Here is what happened next. I needed to plan training for professionals in a country I had never visited -- truly a risky venture! Relying on the principles in this book, I designed a program that really involved the participants (the students). For example, in the afternoon of the first day of the workshop, students were meeting with each other in breakout sessions, identifying "promising practices" and "best practices" and making presentations to the whole group. The workshop lasted three days. My supervisors really liked the design of the program. The instructors/facilitators loved participating in the program. And, most importantly, the students/participants loved it so much that I am told to expect twice as many students/participants at the next session. As one instructor/facilitator put it, if the goal of the program was to both create joy and share knowledge, the goal was achieved. Without the information in this book (about how the brain works, about the importance of joy to successful training, about the importance of giving the students/participants the opportunity to create knowledge, etc., etc.), my program would not have been the success that it was. To the author -- Dave Meier (whom I have never met) -- I have these words: "Your book inspired me. It inspired me to design a great training program ... a training program even better than I could have imagined. Because of the importance of the training program, I will look back at the program as one of the great achievements in my life. And I owe it to you. Thank you."

The Accelerated Learning Handbook provides wonderful insight to the different senses that must be stimulated in order to create an optimum learning environment. A.L. Theory advocates a very interactive approach that requires less prep time by the trainer while various topics are explored and cooperatively self-taught by participants. Learning is a full body experience. This book seeks to change the ideas in teaching that were developed in the 1800's and never changed. Although the book tends to get repetitive in convincing the reader that American learning has been wrong for 150 years, the book has many very good thought provoking and eye-opening points. Some of the latest brain research (very simplified for those who aren't neurosurgeons) helps to psychologically justify the innovative new ways of teaching and explains how and why certain methods work particularly well while others do not. Large emphasis is placed on how to get away from standard methods of teaching that bombard the student with verbal or written information, expecting them simply to regurgitate that information. Filled with wisdom in the first part of the book and full of creative applications in the latter part, this book is an excellent well-formatted resource that is very easy to read.

I was getting ready to prepare a training program for 44 persons when I read this book. Immediately! after I used the guidelines to prepare my session. Preparation was fast and easy -and fun! I really couldn't believe that it was that easy to apply and it has been one of my best sessions to date. I refer to it when I need a refresher or a new perspective. I definately reccomend this book for trainers who need to keep their material fresh and interesting (esp. in-house trainers).

Finally, teachers and administrators have a useful tool to recharge their classrooms/schools. We have become so test oriented that many times we forget that the process of learning comes from the doing. The statement comes to mind that we utter with new approaches," When do I have the time to get it all in?". That is where the problem lies! We are so pressured with these new demands that we loose sight of what is important, the process. This book will give us a clearer picture of how we can recharge our teaching and can provide the key so we can use the ideas to change the way we teach or approach the students' learning who are in our care.

I am not a professional trainer by trade. However, I was recently appointed training coordinator for my department. The Accelerated Learning Handbook has definitely helped me approach my job with a fresh perspective. The information, ideas, and techniques presented have enabled me to more effectively train those in my department as well as those in other functions. Before reading the AL Handbook, I thought all that was needed to effectively teach someone was simply to make sure all of my PowerPoint slides were logically put together. I now have a broader view of how people learn and a sold framework to use when putting together training materials on any topic. I highly recommend this book to anyone that wants to engage the audience and create meaningful, effective training presentations.

I have worked with adult learners for more than fifteen years and have always tried to incorporate whole-brained, participative learning. This book provided some excellent theoretical background as well as a lot of new instantly usable ideas. I wasn't even all the way through before I applied a couple of the techniques and got an excellent response from my client.

This book is IDEAL for anyone who is going to train or teach anything. How to cut the fluff and deliver the required facts.

Length:: 1:37 Mins

What do you and everyone else in this world have in common? In the book you will have the answer to this question!

Husband purchased the book for teaching Motorcycle safety training
He loved the book & it was a help to him & the students.

ann marie