[Additional examples that neeeds to be added to datagrid above]

Traditional Training RMC techniques Example
Including instruction on how to do something technical inside of a paragraph (See ASP.NET 4.0 and WordPress books for examples) Use a number list and/or bullut list to instruction in a logical sequence.  
No picture to decrible technical data Add pictures with highlights  
Place picture anywhere on the page Place picture adjacent to text that it is describing.  
State the obvious when communicating with the reader Does not state the obvious when communicating with the reader If you ask the viewer, "What is your favorite rainbow color?" and then have a dynamic text field say, "Your favorite rainbow color is red."
 Then the viewer will think, "I know that already. That is what I entered. Stupid computer." Instead, have the dynamic field say something like, "You choose red as you favorite color. Fifty-eighgt percent of the other viewers have similar taste." You provided more information that the user gave.
Defining similar terms Similar terms are defined with no regard to similarities or differences Similar terms are constructed so that the learner can SEE the similarities and differences between them to aid in remember them. For example, A BITMAP is a set of PIXELS that is used to defined and image. A VECTOR is a set of POINTS that is used to define an image.
No test points. Code is sometime given with too much information without see the progression of one object to the next???/ So test points as you test to see the progression of logic. First, show how to create a button using a class file, then show how to use another class to create those button, then show yet another class to show how to loop around that button to create a horizontal or vertical nav bar.

 

 

These are some things that students have said that make a great teacher:

William Arthur Ward Quote:

"The mediocre teacher tells.
The good teacher explains.
The superior teacher demonstrates.
The great teacher inspires."

I have read many technical manuals and while they have a lot of information that is helpful, many of them are not designed with students in mind. They focus on data but not necessarily how the data is presented, what is the correct order to present the data and including check points alone the way to reinforce knowledge.

As an instructor myself, I have to recognize that students have different learning styles.  Most students are visual learners with a propensity for kinesthetic (hand-on learning) and Auditory (hearing learners). What I attempt to do is to provide MULTIPLE styles so that what I am teaching can appeal to all students.  In the end, I have all students involved in the learning process. There is an adage that says, "Tell me and I will forget, teach me and I will remember (for a while) but involve me and I will learn."  Below is a list of learning other learning styles:

Sequential learners – tend to gain understanding in linear steps, with each step following logically from the previous one.
Global learners – tend to learn in large jumps, absorbing material almost randomly without seeing connections, and then suddenly "getting it."
Active learners – tend to retain and understand information best by doing something active with it—discussing or applying it or explaining it to others.
Reflective learners – prefer to think about it quietly first.
Sensing learners – tend to like learning facts; often prefer discovering possibilities and relationships.
Intuitors learners – like innovation and dislike repetition.
Visual learners – remember best what they see—pictures, diagrams, flow charts, time lines, films, and demonstrations.
Verbal learners – get more out of words—written and spoken explanations.

– Learning styles taken from Strategies by Kateri M. Drexler and Gwen Garcelon pg. 61-62.