Page 230 - Nutrition Counseling and Education Skills: A Guide for Professionals

Preventive measures Preventive measures Preventive measures

For food service workers, the term “germs” may be more meaningful and easier to store into memory than
“pathogenic bacteria,” since the latter term may be unfamiliar. It will be easier to add new information into an
existing network if terms are recognizable and build upon previously learned concepts. Adding a new term
such as “E. coli” (Escherichia coli) or “hepatitis A” will be more meaningful than a newer, broader term if a
framework exists.

Nutrition educators need to spend time finding out what a person already knows, actively listening to the
words he or she uses, identifying the topics in the knowledge networks, probing with the use of questions, and
assisting the person with integrating new information into the existing network. Material that is organized
well is much easier to learn and remember than material that is poorly organized. Our motivation to learn is
intrinsic or internal as we seek to make sense of what is happening in our world.6

Organizing around concepts also helps the learner to categorize vast amounts of information into
meaningful units. The following is an example of organizing information around the concept of meals:

Breakfast Meals Dinner
Time/place Lunch Time/place
Time/place
Menu Menu Menu
Recipes/foods Recipes/foods Recipes/foods

Posing questions helps people learn by asking them to examine what they are hearing or reading.
When teaching about concepts, one needs to use a lot of examples. What mental picture or ideas does the
client or employee have if the professional discusses “cholesterol,” “saturated fatty acids,” “blood glucose,”
“microorganisms,” “grams” as a weight, “ounces” of meat, “quality improvement,” and the like? Finding out
what words or terminology people use in the content of their current knowledge network helps when selecting
examples to use with them.

CASE ANALYSIS 3

What principles from the chapter would you use to enhance his memory of the changes you plan to tell him
about?

Transfer of Learning

In human resource management as well as in other situations, the question frequently asked is “Did the
training transfer?” In other words, can an individual take the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and abilities learned
in the training situation, remember them, and apply them effectively on the job in a new situation or in a
dissimilar one?2,7 Transfer of learning cannot be assumed. It depends partly on the degree of similarity

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