Do You 'Learn One, Do One, Teach One' at Work?

I've been thinking about how people learn things at work. Much of the time, we learn by apprenticeship: Someone shows us how it's done in a formal or informal way, and then we practice doing it under supervision or on our own until we do it right. And then we keep doing the task. Sort of like the shampoo bottle instructions: Wash, rinse, repeat.

But in certain fields -- medicine in particular -- this apprenticeship model has one important additional component: Teaching others while you are still learning. This idea is captured in the phrase "learn one, do one, teach one," which, a quick Google search shows, is a tenet not just of medical training but of the Boy and Girl Scouts, beading hobbyists, telescope building -- even turkey cooking. But what's remarkable about that Google search is that none of the short list of search results makes reference to learning common business activities such as sales or management skills.

Another approach to learning at work involves simulations. For some jobs -- think airline pilots, nuclear plant operators or soldiers -- the risks of the "learn one, do one, teach one" approach might be too high. But I wonder why, when we are told that most businesses should strive to be "learning organizations," the emphasis is usually on formal training programs or self-teaching and simulations rather than employees teaching each other?

A Google search on "sales simulation" yields hundreds of results, and for "sales training" they are in the millions. Self-service online learning tools like tutorials and simulations probably save money in the short run. But I wonder if the more dynamic the knowledge to be imparted -- the more it changes -- the more it will cost to keep packaged, programmed solutions up-to-date over the long term. What would it cost to make teaching a colleague something new a part of every employee's job description?

Here are more resources on learning at work:

• Blogger Gardner Campbell on "Learn One, Do One, Teach One"
• "The 'Hey, Joe' School of Learning"
• "Leading Knowledge Workers"
• "Learning About Careers Through Observation"
• "Managers as Mentors"
• "Overcome Criticism and Learn from Your Mistakes"

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