Automotive Safety Training

Safety training is a vital and necessary part of employee learning and development as it can save employees from workplace injury and even fatality. Safety training is doubly important in the case of the automotive industry as it involves employees working with heavy machinery.

When employees are properly trained in keeping clear of safety hazards and following proper safety regulations, it creates a safe and healthy work environment. But, with advancements in the learning and development industry, just traditional eLearning for safety training is not enough. The automotive industry employs a multitude of employees, most of which are constituted as modern learners who need short, concise, and engaging learning, the likes of which simple eLearning cannot provide them. Thus, microlearning seems like the best digital learning approach to take when implementing safety training in the automotive industry.

In this article, we will discuss the necessary steps to take when doing so.

1. Base Each Microlearning Module Around A Safety Idea

Microlearning is narrow, concentrated learning with one module lasting not more than 5 minutes. Thus, it works best when each course is broken into many bits made up of 5-minute modules, each covering one safety idea. This is why microlearning is also often called “bite-sized learning”. Each safety idea should be centered on a certain organizational goal. For example, “there should be no electric shock-related incidents this year”, would be a good organizational goal, and to fulfill this goal, a microlearning module should be made on the safety regulations to follow to avoid shock-related incidents.

2. Microlearning Should Be Complemented With Full Safety Training

Microlearning is never meant to be the standalone or sole learning approach in any type of training. Training regulations can be pithy and involve tons of practical knowledge, concepts, and fundamentals, which can only be taught using the traditional way. Microlearning is only used for the purposes of support, as well as reinforcement. Employees should be given full safety training the traditional way using an instructor, after which microlearning modules should be provided to view on-the-job for just-in-time learning, i.e. before applying learned knowledge or to refresh knowledge at a moment’s notice if an employee is not sure of safety regulation at a time of need.

3. Microlearning Should Be Based On An Effective And Suitable Instructional Design Model

Safety training is a serious issue and should be implemented in a scientific and effective manner by choosing an instructional design model that suits its learning outcomes. These learning outcomes are often along the lines of employees recognizing and evaluating occupational safety and health hazards while determining the proper hazard controls to apply in times of need. Bloom’s taxonomy of cognitive processes seems like an appropriate instructional design model for automotive safety training, and thus, is often used. The microlearning course should be divided into six levels, each corresponding to the six levels of cognitive learning explained in the model.

4. Fit Microlearning Into The Characteristics Of Safety Training

What characteristics should a safety training program possess? Firstly, it should be close to reality so that employees can relate to it, put themselves at ground zero, and understand its importance; and secondly, it should include instances in the past where successful safety training resulted in an organization avoiding a workplace disaster, or instances where lack of proper safety training resulted in a disaster in an organization. Microlearning courses on safety training can be made to fulfill both these characteristics, by using strategies like storytelling, scenarios, video-based learning as well as interactivities to help employees relate to the knowledge being delivered to them, as well as to help them learn from previous case studies of other organizations.

Organizations need to learn to address the needs of the modern learner while saving time spent on training their employees. How successful microlearning-based safety training depends on how well it is implemented. Following the above-listed steps will ensure that your safety training is successful. If you belong to the automotive industry and are convinced that safety training in automotive manufacturing companies can significantly benefit from microlearning, consider implementing microlearning for safety training in your organization.

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