Facilitating Skill Acquisition

The Future of Education: Upgrading Teaching Methodologies and Empowering Educators As we navigate the complexities of the 21st century, it's become increasingly clear that our education system needs to evolve. With technological advancements, shifting workforce demands, and diverse learning styles, schools must adapt to prepare students for success. One crucial aspect of this transformation is upgrading teaching methodologies and supporting teachers' professional development. By doing so, educators can create engaging, personalized, and effective learning experiences that cater to the unique needs of each student. Here are a few ways schools can upgrade their teaching methodologies: 1. *Incorporate technology*: Leverage digital tools, such as learning management systems, educational apps, and virtual reality, to enhance student engagement and accessibility. 2. *Personalized learning*: Implement tailored learning plans that cater to individual students' strengths, weaknesses, and learning styles. 3. *Project-based learning*: Encourage students to work on real-world projects that foster critical thinking, creativity, and collaboration. 4. *Collaborative learning spaces*: Design classrooms that promote interaction, flexibility, and comfort, allowing students to work together effectively. 5. *Continuous teacher training*: Provide educators with ongoing professional development opportunities to stay updated on best practices, technologies, and pedagogies. For example, a school in Finland implemented a project-based learning approach, where students worked on real-world challenges, such as designing sustainable communities or developing innovative products. This led to improved student engagement, motivation, and academic performance. By upgrading teaching methodologies and empowering educators, we can create a more effective, inclusive, and inspiring education system that prepares students for success in the 21st century. What are your thoughts on the future of education? Share your insights and experiences in the comments below! #school #teaching #teachers #emotionalintelligence #education #learning

If you’re building LLMs for reasoning or agentic behavior - understanding how to train them with reinforcement learning is becoming an essential skill. After pre-training, most LLMs go through post-training to align with human preferences - this is where RLHF (Reinforcement Learning with Human Feedback) comes in. It helps models become: → more helpful → less toxic → better at following instructions → more aligned to business goals But the field is moving beyond simple human feedback toward Reinforcement Learning with Verifiable Rewards: → structured, reliable reward signals → improved reasoning and multi-step behavior → more factual and controllable outputs Here’s how it works - and why methods like PPO, GRPO, and DPO matter. ✅ PPO (Proximal Policy Optimization) → The classic RLHF loop used widely today. → You collect preference labels → train a Reward Model → fine-tune the LLM with PPO. → PPO allows stable updates by constraining large policy shifts. → KL regularization ensures the model stays close to the base. Cycle: Policy → Output → Reward Model → Update → Repeat. ✅ GRPO (Group-based Reinforcement Policy Optimization) → A newer approach focused on group-level optimization. → You optimize over groups of outputs, not just individual samples. → Rewards and KL regularization are computed batch-wise → enabling more stable and scalable RLHF. → Useful when optimizing for complex reasoning and verifiable tasks. Example: teaching an LLM to follow logical proofs or multi-step reasoning chains accurately. ✅ DPO (Direct Preference Optimization) → The simplest and fastest method. → No separate reward model needed. → You directly optimize the policy to prefer outputs ranked better by humans. → DPO compares likelihood of preferred vs. rejected outputs and adjusts the model. Ideal when: → You have good preference data. → You want a lightweight, scalable fine-tuning method. → You don’t want full RL infra. 𝗦𝗼 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗻𝘂𝘁𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗹: → PPO - classic RLHF with Reward Model + PPO optimizer. → GRPO - group-level optimization with verifiable rewards. → DPO - direct preference-based optimization, simple and fast. 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿❓ LLMs are moving from simple chatbots toward: → deeper reasoning → multi-step agents → long-context understanding → real-world tool use To get there, we need alignment with more verifiable reward signals - not just polite answers, but grounded, reliable, and accurate behavior. Methods like PPO, GRPO, and DPO are key tools in the evolving LLM training stack. ------ Share this with your network to spread the knowledge ♻️ Follow me (Aishwarya Srinivasan) for more AI educational content and insights to keep you up-to date about the AI/ML field.

What's the best way to evaluate the effectiveness of leader development initiatives like coaching, mentoring and training? If we take a common framework like the Kirkpatrick Model, it clearly guides us to measure: 👉 Reaction: Did participants find the experience valuable or engaging? 👉 Learning: Did they acquire new knowledge, skills, or insights? 👉 Behavior: Did their actions or habits change as a result? 👉 Results: Did these changes lead to measurable organizational outcomes? The visual below provides us with a few more evaluation ideas and methods, which are helpful! I particularly like the focus on measuring success with objectives set at the start of the coaching programme (because it guides us to make sure the objectives are clear and realistic). The one I struggle with is "Impact on business performance In my experience, evaluating the direct link between leader development and business results (e.g., profits, savings, or productivity) is difficult and often misaligned with the true purpose of these initiatives. Leader development fosters long-term growth, enhances team dynamics, and shapes organizational culture—outcomes that don’t always translate into immediate business metrics. It’s also essential to manage expectations. If the primary goal of leader development is to see immediate improvements in business performance, it’s worth asking if those expectations are realistic. Initiatives like coaching and mentoring often result in intangible but powerful outcomes, such as: ✔️ Increased self-awareness ✔️ Improved team communication ✔️ Strengthened confidence and competency While these outcomes may not directly show up in quarterly metrics, they lay the foundation for sustained organizational success. This is why setting clear, measurable objectives at the start is so important. If the intended outcomes include changes like better communication or a shift in culture, these should be the focus of evaluation—not solely traditional business performance indicators. Leadership development IS NOT a quick fix for the bottom line. It IS an investment in the people and culture that drive long-term success. What methods or frameworks have you found helpful for evaluating #leadershipdevelopment? Leave your comments below 🙏 Image Source;: Jarvis J (2004) Research Gate

An innovative approach to teaching economics that puts student learning first! As an economics educator, I've redesigned my ECO 100-semester project to embrace Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles, offering students multiple pathways to demonstrate their understanding of macroeconomics. I was encouraged by Jeni Al Bahrani and her summer project on UDL as part of her doctorate degree to bring back this project. Students can choose from three engaging options: * Create a physical art piece interpreting economic concepts through visual expression * Compile an "EconSelfie" diary connecting real-world observations to classroom theories * Write a critical book review analyzing contemporary economic literature. This semester’s choices were Kyla Scanlon’s “In this Economy?” or Scott Galloway‘ “Algebra of Wealth”. This flexible approach: * Accommodates different interests * Empowers student choice and engagement * Maintains academic rigor while fostering creativity * Makes economics accessible and relevant to everyday life The results? Students are more engaged, demonstrate deeper understanding, and develop unique perspectives on economic principles. Seeing how different creative approaches can unlock complex economic concepts is amazing! I'm particularly proud of how this project breaks down barriers in economics education while maintaining high academic standards. Each option requires critical thinking and authentic application of course concepts. I am appreciate the innovative business education environment we have created at NKU Haile College of Business What innovative teaching methods have you implemented in your classroom? Let's share best practices! You can read more about my research in this area in my newsletter. Link in comments. #TeachEcon #UniversalDesign #HigherEducation #TeachingInnovation #StudentSuccess #UDL #EconomicLiteracy

User Feedback Loops: the missing piece in AI success? AI is only as good as the data it learns from -- but what happens after deployment? Many businesses focus on building AI products but miss a critical step: ensuring their outputs continue to improve with real-world use. Without a structured feedback loop, AI risks stagnating, delivering outdated insights, or losing relevance quickly. Instead of treating AI as a one-and-done solution, companies need workflows that continuously refine and adapt based on actual usage. That means capturing how users interact with AI outputs, where it succeeds, and where it fails. At Human Managed, we’ve embedded real-time feedback loops into our products, allowing customers to rate and review AI-generated intelligence. Users can flag insights as: 🔘Irrelevant 🔘Inaccurate 🔘Not Useful 🔘Others Every input is fed back into our system to fine-tune recommendations, improve accuracy, and enhance relevance over time. This is more than a quality check -- it’s a competitive advantage. - for CEOs & Product Leaders: AI-powered services that evolve with user behavior create stickier, high-retention experiences. - for Data Leaders: Dynamic feedback loops ensure AI systems stay aligned with shifting business realities. - for Cybersecurity & Compliance Teams: User validation enhances AI-driven threat detection, reducing false positives and improving response accuracy. An AI model that never learns from its users is already outdated. The best AI isn’t just trained -- it continuously evolves.

7 Career Growth Truths Every Working Professional Should Know!!! If I could sit down with you over coffee and talk about career growth, this is exactly what I’d say. No sugarcoating. No corporate jargon. Just real talk that can save you years of frustration. 1️⃣ Your Career Growth is YOUR Job Stop waiting for your boss to notice your potential. Stop hoping your company will magically create opportunities for you. Take ownership. Learn, adapt, and make things happen. 2️⃣ Hard Work ≠ Promotions You can work 12-hour days and still get overlooked. Why? Because companies don’t reward effort. They reward impact. Ask yourself: Are you just staying busy, or are you actually moving the needle? 3️⃣ Nobody Notices Invisible Effort You might be the hardest worker in the room… But if no one sees your contributions, do they even exist? Speak up. Share your wins. Advocate for yourself. 4️⃣ Feedback is Your Secret Growth Hack Think of feedback like a career cheat code. The more you ask for it, the faster you improve. Don’t wait for an annual review—seek input now and adjust accordingly. 5️⃣ Trust Opens More Doors Than Talent Skills matter, but trust is the real currency. Be reliable. Keep your word. Own your mistakes. When people trust you, opportunities chase you. 6️⃣ Your Network is a Goldmine—Use It Stop thinking networking is just for job hunting. Your next big opportunity? Probably within your own company. Connect beyond your team, build relationships, and watch doors open. 7️⃣ Promotions Aren’t Given—They’re Earned Working hard won’t get you promoted. Understanding what’s expected at the next level will. Clarify the path, track your progress, and make sure the right people know about it. 💡 Growth isn’t about luck—it’s about strategy. Which one of these hit home for you? Drop your thoughts below! 👇🔥

Here’s what most people get wrong about career growth: 👇 Climbing the corporate ladder is supposed to be about getting a prestigious title, a heftier paycheck, and a seat at a higher-level table—right? Maybe so, but here’s an often-dismissed secret: Real career growth isn’t just about moving up. Sometimes, it’s about moving strategically. One of my clients recently faced this dilemma. She was approached for a new opportunity within her company, but on paper, it looked like a lateral move—same level, similar responsibilities. So, she hesitated. She enjoyed her current position, though the promotion potential was limited. But would this look like stagnation on her resume? Would it set her back from reaching her goals and long-term career vision? As we explored the opportunity together, something shifted. She realized that this move could actually accelerate her growth in ways a direct promotion might not. Here’s why: 📌 Increased Visibility – The new role would place her in a high-priority division working on mission-critical projects, giving her access to key stakeholders and company leadership she didn’t yet have. 📌 Greater Autonomy – Unlike her current role, where she reported to a highly directive leader, this position would allow her to own initiatives, drive innovation, and make strategic decisions. 📌 Expanded Skill Set – This role would challenge her to develop cutting-edge strategies, expand her skill set, and strengthen her resume—making her an even stronger candidate for future leadership roles. 📌 Promotion Potential – The new role has greater opportunity for a clear promotion path than her current position, and the new manager valued her ambition. Ultimately, my client recognized that career growth isn’t just about a title. It’s about gaining experience, new skills, strategic connections, and greater influence. Sometimes, the best move isn’t up—it’s sideways. A strategic shift can better align you with your values and set you up for the next big leap. Have you ever taken a lateral move that turned out to be a game-changer for your career? ⬇️ Share your story in the comments to inspire others considering a strategic lateral move. #CareerGrowth #JobSearch #LeadershipDevelopment #CareerDevelopment #EmpoweredByAnne

𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡: 𝐈𝐬 𝐈𝐭 𝐚 𝐋𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐋𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐞? When we think about career progression, the image of a ladder often comes to mind – climbing rung by rung, always striving for the next promotion. But what if we shifted our perspective? What if, instead of a ladder, we envisioned career growth as a lattice, with opportunities to move not just upwards, but also sideways and diagonally? I've witnessed firsthand how embracing lateral moves and diversifying skills can lead to richer, and 𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 fulfilling careers. It's not about abandoning ambition, but about recognizing that growth is multidimensional. Lateral moves can offer fresh perspectives, broaden our skill sets, and open doors to unexpected opportunities. For instance, I worked with a client who felt stuck in her career because she hadn't received a promotion in a few years. We explored her long-term goals and realized that a lateral move to a different department would provide the experience and skills she needed to advance. The result? Renewed energy, an expanded network, and ultimately, a stronger foundation for leadership. This shift in perspective – from ladder to lattice – can be challenging. We're often conditioned to view upward progression as the sole measure of success. But coaching can help individuals: 𝐆𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 on their strengths, interests, and how they align with diverse career paths. 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐬 that deepen their skills and broaden their perspectives. 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 to include growth in all directions, not just vertical promotions. In today's dynamic workplace, adaptability is key. By encouraging a lattice mindset, we create a workforce that's not only skilled but also resilient and versatile. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭'𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐫 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐝𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐥𝐲 "𝐮𝐩" 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐫, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡? #CareerGrowth #Careercoaching #Quintessadvisors #Coaching #HRStrategy

Daily Drop | How to Learn Anything 5x Faster Mastering a new skill or subject doesn’t always mean working harder — it means working smarter. These 10 evidence-backed learning techniques can dramatically improve how quickly and deeply you learn: 1. Feynman Technique • Pick a topic and explain it as if you’re teaching a 12-year-old. • Identify any gaps in your understanding and study them. • Refine and simplify your explanation. Why it works: Teaching forces clarity of thought and deeper comprehension. 2. Dual Coding • Combine verbal and visual information (e.g., notes + diagrams). • Describe visuals in your own words. Why it works: Activates different parts of the brain for better retention. 3. Spaced Repetition • Review material over increasing intervals (1 day, 3 days, 1 week, etc.). • Helps beat the “forgetting curve.” Why it works: Reinforces memory just before it fades, making it stronger. 4. Interleaving • Switch between related subjects while studying. • Apply knowledge across multiple contexts. Why it works: Improves critical thinking and transfer of knowledge. 5. Mind Maps • Start with a central concept, then branch into related subtopics. • Mimics how the brain organically connects ideas. Why it works: Visual mapping aids memory and helps organize thoughts. 6. Chunking • Group related bits of information into meaningful units. • Focus on one “chunk” at a time. Why it works: Reduces cognitive overload and makes complex material manageable. 7. Pareto Principle (80/20 Rule) • Focus on the 20% of content that delivers 80% of the value. • Identify the core concepts and prioritise them. Why it works: Efficiently allocates your time and attention. 8. SQ3R Method • Survey: Preview the content • Question: Ask what you expect to learn • Read: Engage actively with the material • Recite: Summarize what you learned • Review: Revisit key ideas Why it works: Builds deep comprehension and long-term recall. 9. Overcome “The Dip” • Motivation dips after initial excitement fades. • Push through the plateau by staying consistent. Why it works: True progress often follows persistence. 10. Chunked Practice • Not a label on the image, but implied: group sessions with breaks outperform long cramming. Why it works: Prevents fatigue and boosts cognitive endurance. Final Thought Learning is a skill in itself. When you master how to learn, you unlock anything you want to know.

📈 Unlocking the True Impact of L&D: Beyond Engagement Metrics 🚀 I am honored to once again be asked by the LinkedIn Talent Blog to weigh in on this important question. To truly measure the impact of learning and development (L&D), we need to go beyond traditional engagement metrics and look at tangible business outcomes. 🌟 Internal Mobility: Track how many employees advance to new roles or get promoted after participating in L&D programs. This shows that our initiatives are effectively preparing talent for future leadership. 📚 Upskilling in Action: Evaluate performance reviews, project outcomes, and the speed at which employees integrate their new knowledge into their work. Practical application is a strong indicator of training’s effectiveness. 🔄 Retention Rates: Compare retention between employees who engage in L&D and those who don’t. A higher retention rate among L&D participants suggests our programs are enhancing job satisfaction and loyalty. 💼 Business Performance: Link L&D to specific business performance indicators like sales growth, customer satisfaction, and innovation rates. Demonstrating a connection between employee development and these outcomes shows the direct value L&D brings to the organization. By focusing on these metrics, we can provide a comprehensive view of how L&D drives business success beyond just engagement. 🌟 🔗 Link to the blog along with insights from other incredible L&D thought leaders (list of thought leaders below): https://lnkd.in/efne_USa What other innovative ways have you found effective in measuring the impact of L&D in your organization? Share your thoughts below! 👇 Laura Hilgers Naphtali Bryant, M.A. Lori Niles-Hofmann Terri Horton, EdD, MBA, MA, SHRM-CP, PHR Christopher Lind