New tech, same brain: Why L&D must stay grounded

We don’t say this often enough in L&D. While technology keeps evolving, the fundamentals of how humans learn remain remarkably constant.

Our tools have changed from chalkboards to PowerPoint, to VR, and now AI. But the cognitive architecture of the human brain? It hasn't changed much in millennia.

We still learn best when:

• Attention is captured and sustained

• Information is meaningful and relevant

• New knowledge connects to prior knowledge

• We get opportunities to practice and receive feedback

But here’s the pattern. Every time a new technology enters the scene, like AR/VR, AI tutors, gamified apps, many L&D teams rush to adopt it without first asking:

• What are we really trying to help people learn or do?

• What’s the actual problem we’re solving?

• What does the science say about how people best learn this kind of thing?

Without that clarity, innovation becomes a distraction. Or worse, just a frill.

But when learning design is grounded in timeless principles, like Mayer’s multimedia principles, Bloom’s taxonomy, or Merrill’s First Principles of Instruction, then technology becomes what it should be. An enabler, not a gimmick.

Only then can innovation amplify learning, rather than dilute it.