Novices and Experts – the Learning Difference

In the second edition of Perfect Time-Based Productivity, I emphasize the fact that adult learners require an androgogical vs. pedagogical approach.

In other words, adult learners of time-based productivity have self-taught themselves some key skills by the time they exit their teens. Therefore, they enter a new learning environment with different levels of expertise.

In this article, When do Novices Become Experts?, David Didau argues that Novices behave very differently from Experts, especially as they react to Cognitive Overload. His message is right in line with the thinking here at 2Time Labs and it shows in the chart he shares comparing the two levels of skills for most behaviors.

But he also makes the point that Experts see patterns where Novices don’t, leading the latter to engage in hit-or-miss problem-solving.

In the Special Report – Superpowers You Need to Survive Improvement Fatigue – I examine one such example through the lens of three experts. Sherlock Holmes, Dr. House and Roger Federer know what to do when others flounder to detect the need for change, know what changes to implement and make small changes which add up over time. These are critical skills in time-based productivity because, as I mentioned before, every adult already possesses some hard-earned skills.

Their move from Novice to the next level doesn’t require a wholesale revamp… just a focus on the 5% of behaviors which are necessary for improvement.

But the Didau article says even more.

If you try to instruct the Expert in the same way as the novice, you end up actually “increas[ing] cognitive load for experts.” In other words, you make things worse.

Novices need:  “detailed, direct instructional support…preferably in integrated or dual-modality formats”

Experts need:  “minimally guided problem-solving tasks…provide cognitively optimal instructional methods

Most folks, who lie between the extremes, need a progressive blend which helps them transition to greater expertise.

This is a great affirmation of the direction we advocate!