{"id":3516,"date":"2023-04-27T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-04-27T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost:10054\/?p=3516"},"modified":"2023-04-27T08:00:11","modified_gmt":"2023-04-27T08:00:11","slug":"map-it-by-cathy-moore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/maestrolearning.com\/blogs\/map-it-by-cathy-moore\/","title":{"rendered":"“Map It” by Cathy Moore\u2014Why We Love It and Why You Will Too"},"content":{"rendered":"

Map It<\/em> by Cathy Moore might be just what you need to grow the perspectives and skills of your learning team as you create training to support business outcomes. Let\u2019s consider a scenario.<\/p>\n

One way or another, it\u2019s been decided: your department needs some training. You do what you\u2019d normally do: boot up Storyline<\/a>, create some slides packed with great content, throw in a few assessment questions (how else will you know they actually learned something?), and send it out into the world \u2026 only to hear crickets in response.<\/p>\n

Maybe you get some course completions\u2014perhaps some learners even ace the assessment\u2014but a few weeks later, it\u2019s like nothing ever happened. You might wonder, Why did I spend so much time creating this training? And so the existential learning and development crisis begins.<\/p>\n

It happens. And while things had never been that drastic for our team, years ago we started looking for a little learning inspiration. (After all, we\u2019re always itching to take a step back and think more strategically about how we can help our clients.) As we looked for resources to dig into, one name kept popping up: Cathy Moore.<\/p>\n

Moore, a training designer and thought leader within the learning space, is known for creating the action mapping process<\/a>, which provides a framework for analyzing learning problems and providing the right solutions to those problems. Map It by Cathy Moore summarizes that process, and based on what we read\u2014including stellar reviews\u2014we knew we\u2019d found a must read. Book club, anyone?<\/p>\n

Because our team believes in true cross-functionality\u2014and continuous learning\u2014we opened the club up to the whole company. In Map It, Cathy Moore is writing primarily for instructional designers, but many of our team members (from designers to account managers) decided to join in, all looking to get inspired by her ideas.<\/p>\n

Over the course of a couple months, our team met every few weeks and engaged in truly fruitful discussions. Here\u2019s what we learned, what we loved\u2014and what we\u2019re doing differently as a result.<\/p>\n

What we learned from Map It<\/i> by Cathy Moore<\/h2>\n

We\u2019re not about to give away all the secrets in <\/span>Map It<\/span><\/i> by Cathy Moore\u2014seriously,<\/span> buy the book<\/span><\/a>!\u2014but we left with some great takeaways. Ultimately, our favorite concepts came down to two things: learning isn\u2019t always the best solution and well-written scenarios are powerful.<\/span><\/p>\n

Learning isn\u2019t always the best solution<\/h3>\n

It feels almost blasphemous to admit it, but sometimes, the thing your learners need most isn\u2019t a learning solution. Shocking to think about, isn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n

But think about it, how many times do you push training out just because it feels like it\u2019s the right thing to do, not necessarily because there\u2019s a solid reason for the learning?<\/p>\n

For instance, you might have a new product launching. Having your sales team undergo training to learn the ins and outs of the product might feel like the right thing to do. But, Map It by Cathy Moore challenges this assumption.<\/p>\n

Instead of forcing a learning situation, take a step back and look at your business as a whole. Identify the business problem and brainstorm all the ways you could solve that problem.<\/p>\n

For example, consider what\u2019s affecting the learner: is it their environment, their motivation, or their knowledge that\u2019s getting in the way of your goal? These questions might reveal that learning should be part of the solution. Or that it shouldn\u2019t. That sales force responsible for selling the new product? Maybe they don\u2019t need a 30-minute eLearning course. Maybe they could get by with sales aids and a quick group huddle. The point is\u2014figure out the real problem, then find the right solution to that problem.<\/p>\n

Related<\/h5>

What Is Adult Learning Theory? And How to Use It to Get Better Learning Outcomes<\/p><\/path><\/svg><\/a><\/div><\/span><\/p>\n

When learning is the answer, go for scenarios<\/h3>\n

What should you do when you\u2019ve decided learning is indeed the right solution for your audience? Moore recommends opting for a scenario-driven experience rather than the typical \u201ccontent dump\u201d so many learners often work\u2014and, many times, suffer\u2014through.<\/p>\n

There are a few benefits to the scenario approach. It helps the learner apply the knowledge they\u2019re learning to the real-life context they\u2019ll be expected to perform in. Also, scenarios are great for engagement. They\u2019re interactive and allow learners to take a more active role in their learning, in contrast to passive learning experiences, which have become commonplace.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also not enough to just write a few multiple-choice questions and call it a day. A truly great scenario question meets a number of criteria:<\/p>\n