Precedents are prior instances that set the tone for how to proceed in future instances. They’re like unwritten rules that people will follow, often without conscious effort. Here’s a list of precedents you can set in your training that can produce a better learning climate:

Start on time: If there’s one thing I’ve noticed that incites people to show up on time is the idea of walking in after the session has started.

Take breaks as scheduled: The temptation to finish a lesson before the break is strong. But if it’s time for a break, just take it. It doesn’t matter where it occurs within any particular lesson. This will help people have confidence in your ability to manage time.

Accept all learner input: How you react to people’s comments affects their willingness to continue commenting, and therefore, participating.

Handle problems promptly: If you show a willingness to resolve problems as they appear, learners will have more confidence in you and be more willing to follow your directions.

Minimize the role of slides: Most people hate “Death by PowerPoint” training. If you create opportunities to share experiences, compare opinions, and try out new ideas, you set a tone that makes people excited to be there.

What precedents have you set for your training that have proven to be successful?

Alan

As the first class approached, I felt excitement and enthusiasm. It then slowly turned into anxiety and nervousness. What if I wasn’t able to get it? What if it was too difficult? I found myself going through the stages of learning that we discuss in our How Adults Learn Workshop. How crazy is it when your work life transfers into your personal life?

We arrived early to our first class (hey, I’m not going to be one of those late attendees) and took our seats. The class was set up in a U-shape and two other people were already seated. I had no idea that one of them was the instructor! She didn’t welcome us or introduce herself. I was somewhat disappointed.

She started the class (not on time, mind you) and jumped right into the content, without any type of introduction. No objective, benefits, or agenda for the session. The class just seemed to be without structure and very disorganized. My disappointment grew into annoyance.

I tried to stay calm and remain focused, but with each faux pas, that became increasingly difficult. The instructor distributed handouts and told us there were mistakes on them. She couldn’t remember our names (there were 10 of us in class and no tent cards to be seen). At one point she left the room without saying why. Apparently, the markers weren’t working so she left to get one. We also went past the 8:30 p.m. finish time.

When I thought it couldn’t get any worse, the instructor told us she wouldn’t be returning as our teacher, because of personal problems, and we would have a replacement for the remainder of the classes.

I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Has Langevin set my expectations so high that I cannot tolerate less than perfection in other trainers? Is this good or bad? I decided to come back and see the replacement instructor before I made any harsh judgments.

The second instructor didn’t greet us or start on time. He seemed young and somewhat nervous. I was willing to cut him some slack, but that ended when his phone rang and he actually checked the message, during class!

I realized that Langevin has made me tough and I do expect the best whenever I attend a session. The good news is that I’ve spoken with the Director of the School and offered suggestions to improve their instructors’ performance. Who knows, I may have found a new client for Langevin so it’s a win-win for everyone.

As for my Spanish? Not sure if I could survive, just yet. Discuple, donde esta el bano? Buenos noches.

Marsha

1. Start off with a brainteaser. Have it displayed on a slide, as a handout, or on a flipchart. Explain, as people come in, that the brainteaser will be the first activity of the day. Encourage learners to talk to each other; this puts the emphasis on them, not on the instructor, and fosters participation. If brainteasers are not typically used in your organization, make it content-related; this lessens the likelihood that anyone will push back on the use of the brainteaser.
2. Follow the brainteaser with a welcome statement. You want your participants to know they are welcome in your classroom; the welcome statement formally acknowledges that they are valued. It also goes hand-in-hand with the adult learning principle of self-esteem.
3. Provide an overview statement. Give a one- or two-sentence statement that provides an overview of the training program. This addresses the adult learning principle of self-direction. The welcome and overview statement, when combined, might sound something like, “Welcome, and thank you for attending Langevin’s Web-Based Training workshop—a three-day workshop that will help you design web-based training that is instructionally, functionally, and graphically effective.”
4. Give them an icebreaker early on. Again, if there is any pushback to an icebreaker, make it content-related. For example, “Introduce yourself to the person on either side of you. Be sure to include your name, job within the organization, and expectations for today’s class.” This once again puts the emphasis on the learners, possibly allows you to identify their expectations, and sets them up for increased interaction during the course.
5. Give an instructor credibility statement. Some participants will always wonder who you are and why you are conducting the class. It can be a challenge when people have a lot of experience or when they really don’t want to listen to you. Stating where your expertise lies will preclude some issues before they arise. Do it factually, without bragging. Part of your instructor credibility statement might sound something like, “I have faced some challenges with this new process; let me share with you what I have found to be a great way of overcoming implementation issues.”
6. When appropriate, acknowledge the experience of the participants. Again, one of the adult learning principles states that people want to have their hard-won experience recognized; it’s also reality. Some training programs depend heavily on the experience of the participants which may be much broader than the trainer’s.
7. Cover housekeeping. Remove any logistical distractions by preemptively answering:
8. Clearly display and/or state the course objectives. Identify the specific objectives to be covered during training for a “big picture” look at the training. (This also speaks to the adult learning principle of self-direction.) Langevin’s take on objective statements is that they should be brief statements reflecting what we expect the participants to do back on the job after training.
9. Survey the participants. This will help identify which of the objectives are most important to them—as well as anything else they may want covered during the session.
10. Give a more detailed overview of the class. Tell the learners what, in general, is going to happen throughout the day, or days, ahead. A central graphic is useful to illustrate this concept, perhaps supplemented by a brief description explaining the graphic. For example, in our three-day Instructional Design for New Designers workshop, our central graphic is the Design Cycle. It provides the “big picture” that guides the design process. The graphic is redisplayed throughout the course as it is a road map of the entire training program.

After this type of set-up, you can launch into your well-designed class. How long, exactly, do the first few minutes represent? The standard trainer answer—it depends. For a half-day class it might take ten or fifteen minutes; for a week-long class, maybe a little over a half-hour.

In any case, getting off to a good start is a great way for a class to go well—and for you to enjoy the first few minutes regardless of your experience level or content expertise.

What are your “tried and true” techniques for starting your classes on the right foot?

Paul

Select a Year

Ask a volunteer to select a year from anytime after the year of the earliest song on your player. For example, if the earliest song on your MP3 player is from 1971, then the participant could select any year from 1971 and beyond. Once selected, go to your music list, pull it up by year, and click the chosen year. If you don’t have any music from that specific year, advance forward to the next available year. Now, you and your participants can reminisce in the music and the memories of that year.

Select a Letter

Ask a volunteer to select any letter of the alphabet. For example, a participant may select “K.” Once selected, you can go to your music list, pull it up by song title, and click the chosen letter. If you don’t have any titles starting with the specified letter, then go to the next letter in the alphabet. For example, if I had no songs beginning with “K,” I’d move to “L” and play “Lake Shore Drive” and all the other songs on my MP3 player beginning with “L.” Now, your participants can have some fun trying to think of song titles that begin with that letter.

Select a Style (Genre)

Ask a volunteer to select any genre from the list on your MP3 player. For example, a participant may select “Country.” Once selected, go to your music list, pull it up by genre, and click the chosen style. Now, your participants can enjoy a specific musical style from a variety of artists.

I used to be a radio announcer, and I loved taking requests. Now we can all play DJ when we facilitate. The request lines are open to your participants, so cue up the music in your classroom.

Jim

Do’s and Don’ts in India

• Do be punctual! Indians appreciate punctuality but may not reciprocate it.
• Do schedule training for late morning or early afternoon between the hours of 11 and 4.
• Don’t rush deadlines, as impatience is seen as aggressive, rude, and disrespectful. Making a decision is often a slow and thoughtful process in Indian culture.
• Do greet trainees with friendly small talk. In turn, you may be asked questions about your family – it’s seen as a way of building rapport and trust.
• Do wait for a female trainee to initiate the greeting if you’re a man. Ladies, Indian men do not generally shake hands with women out of respect.
• Don’t refuse any food or drink offered to you, as this may cause offense. In addition, Indians are traditionally vegetarians and do not drink alcohol.
• Don’t point your feet (or the soles of your shoes) at anyone. Feet are considered unclean!

Do’s and Don’ts in China

• Do give and receive business cards with both hands. One side should be printed in English and one in Chinese (present with the Chinese side facing up). Never place a business card that you’ve just received in your back pocket, as it is considered extremely disrespectful!
• Don’t give a firm handshake. While handshakes are the most popular form of greeting in Chinese business, make them limp and brief.
• Do expect punctuality from your Chinese trainees. Punctuality is considered extremely important and being on time is essential.
• Do maintain eye contact with your Chinese trainees. Avoiding eye contact is considered untrustworthy. Conversely, in crowded public places, the Chinese avoid eye contact to give themselves privacy.
• Don’t assume that a nod is a sign of agreement. More often than not, it signifies that the person is simply listening.
• Do address your Chinese trainees with a title and their last name (that would be very formal in North America). If they want to move to a first name basis, they will advise you which name to use.
• Do be conscious of your non-verbal behavior. Since the Chinese strive for harmony and are group-dependent, they rely on facial expression, tone of voice, and posture to tell them what someone feels.

It is sometimes the simple mistakes we make when dealing with other cultures that can ruin a relationship built on months of hard work. Learning the simple cultural do’s and don’ts can help you avoid this and help generate respect and understanding. I’d love to hear about your experiences training abroad. Feel free to share!

Melissa

One thing that really stood out in our losing streak was a lack of fitness; we couldn’t keep up with our opponents. So we decided to bring in a fitness coach – a specialist in fitness and conditioning for soccer players.

In my soccer coaching career I have taken many courses and certifications that were extremely general. I learned to coach goalkeepers, defense, midfield, and forwards. I also learned the basics of fitness, nutrition, psychology, and tactics. I coached everything from soup to nuts, but was being a coaching generalist enough? Apparently not! As such, the coaching staff decided to bring in a fitness coaching specialist. After a few sessions, it really made a difference to our overall performance.

So back to training. I am often asked by participants in Langevin workshops, “Should I be a training generalist or training specialist?” It really is a difficult question in today’s training climate. There are still opportunities to be a one person training shop where you assume all the roles pertaining to needs analysis, design, delivery and evaluation. The caveat is that, as a training generalist, you might be able to cover a range of roles but you might also be sacrificing the depth of knowledge and skill needed in a particular area of training. And, just as we had to do for our soccer team, you may have to hire in the special expertise you need.

It can be very difficult to be all things to all people in the training world. Remember, if you chose to specialize by being an instructor/facilitator, you may need to be able to facilitate all types of instruction from traditional instructor-led classroom training (ILT) and on-the-job training (OJT) to a range of online solutions including asynchronous and live synchronous virtual classroom training.

If you chose to specialize by being an instructional designer, you may need to be able to design the full range of training strategies – ILT, OJT, job aids, and web-based training. So even if you decide to specialize in facilitation or design, you will still need to have a range of skills within that particular role.

Whichever path you decide to take, Langevin offers a variety of certification programs to meet your needs, from our Certified Instructor/Facilitator to a Certified Instructional Designer/Developer, to a Training Generalist Certification that combines the two specialties.  Which path will you take?

Steve

Some great instructional techniques used for building rapport with your target audience before your class even starts is to have a well organized classroom and to get to know your participants as they enter.

Here’s what I do:

• Set up the night before. Especially in a new classroom, doing an unhurried set-up well before the training starts allows me to make the space mine. Many of the courses I conduct are in hotel space venues. The banquet staff does a great job of set-up, but I almost always do a little tweaking. I may move the flipchart stands, change the AV table, or make minor changes to the locations of tables or chairs. These are little things, but they make the room just the way I want it to be.
• Instructor’s table. I like having a table where I can have my handouts organized, place my references, keep my class list, or have my give-aways available. Of course, this doesn’t necessarily look as well organized as I would like it to as the day wears on. So, I’ll often position some of the flipchart stands in front of it. I can see the instructor’s table, but my participants probably can’t.
• Materials. My set-up includes one set of materials for each participant, placed on the tables where I want them to sit (i.e. in a room where multiple tables are available). This is a subtle way of positioning the participants just where I want them without being overtly directive. Our hotel sites are typically set for the number of participants registered, but this works especially well in a fixed training facility. If there is a classroom that will hold 30 people and I only have 11 learners, I place 11 sets of materials on the tables or work stations at the front of the room. I also place the materials in a very organized and uniform manner which sends the message to the participants that the class will be well organized which in turn enhances participation and control.
• Supplies. I like to have a clear plastic envelop with extra highlighters, pencils, an eraser, colored dots, and post-its on each table. Again, the message should be that everything the learners need to be successful is available to them. There are no road blocks because a participant lacks their favorite learning tool.
• Greetings. As the participants begin to arrive, I’ll either be at the door or move to the door to greet them if I’m doing last-minute classroom tweaking. I’ll welcome them and introduce myself. We usually have snacks and coffee available. I don’t use assigned seating, so I’ll encourage them to help themselves to the food and drink and take any open seat.  I also make sure they know where the washrooms are as some of them have been on the road for awhile to get to our training site. If I have the opportunity, I’ll have a brief, social conversation with the newly arrived participant to put them at ease. Greeting the participants as I’ve described makes them feel like a welcomed visitor in a home.  It’s a very nice way to start a class. It puts them at ease and puts me in the position when the class starts of not speaking to a room full of total strangers.

I have occasionally experienced challenges from participants during the first morning of a class. When I reflect on why the challenge occurred, I realize that, in some cases, the challenger was a participant who arrived late. I believe that, in many of these instances, having missed the climate setting just described may be why they were in a less receptive mood.

Just like in many sports, if the ball starts rolling well, it keeps rolling well. What other instructional techniques have you used to “get the ball rolling” well in your training programs?

For more tips on building rapport and establishing a positive climate for learning, check out our Advanced Instructional Techniques workshop. And for some great tips on how to “wow your learners and start big” check out Marsha’s blog.

Paul

The use of stories in the learning environment can be one of the most powerful instructional techniques in your arsenal. It can help you get the learners’ attention and aid with the retention of course information. You can use storytelling at the beginning of, during, or at the end of training. Yet, in order to have the greatest impact, you need to know your purpose in telling a story and keep some purpose-related guidelines in mind.

At the beginning of a course, use stories to:

1. Help set the tone for the course.
2. Establish rapport.
3. Help create a comfortable /safe environment.

During the course, use stories to:

4. Help make a connection between the old and the new.
5. Create a link between complex concepts/ideas.
6. Increase learners’ attention.
7. Appeal to different learning styles.
8. Aid in the retention of information.

At the end of the course, use stories to:

9. Aid in the retention of the information.
10. Illustrate what has been learned.

Guidelines for Storytelling

• Know your audience and select stories that are appropriate to that group.
• Check your story for anything that may make someone uncomfortable. Even true stories can embarrass someone if they were around when it happened. For example, telling a story about an associate who made a foolish mistake that cost the company a lot of money may be very risky if the incident is relatively recent, the name of the associate who made the mistake is known, or if s/he has a friend, colleague, or relative in the class.
• Be especially wary of stories that accidently make fun of a culture or belief.
• Make sure the story makes sense and is relevant to the course content. If not, why tell it? Make sure the connection between the story and the course content is clear for the learners.
• Make the story short and to the point. Even a good story that goes on too long loses steam.
• Find a way to get the learner involved in the storytelling. For example, give them the beginning of the story and let them finish it. Provide them with clear instructions on what you would like them to produce as it relates to the course.

Regardless of when you tell a story, there are several other delivery guidelines to keep in mind:

• Be real; tell stories that fit who you are.
• Pay attention to your tone, pace, volume, and non-verbal cues.
• Use the story to teach, not preach. This can be a turn-off for the adult learner.
• Practice, practice, practice your delivery beforehand.

With thought and planning storytelling can be a powerful tool to grab learners’ attention and help with the retention of course information. So go ahead, enhance your presentation skills by telling a story!

What other storytelling tips would you like to share with our readers?

Martha

“Life is Like a Box of Chocolates…You Never Know What You’re Gonna’ Get!”

You probably remember this famous analogy from the movie, Forrest Gump, but did you know that analogies can also serve as powerful teaching aids? Let me explain. An analogy is defined as comparing something known with something that is unknown. In our example, Forrest Gump’s mother used a box of assorted chocolates to teach him that life is often unpredictable and full of surprises. He learned the concept quickly because she compared something he knew well—chocolates—with something unfamiliar to him. Analogies are one of many proven instructional techniques we teach in our workshop entitled, How Adults Learn.

Analogies and their value in teaching are also mentioned in the book, Tales for Trainers, by Margaret Parkin. Andrew Ortony (1993) investigated the use of metaphors and analogies in everyday life.  He stated that there are three main reasons to use analogies not only in our daily lives but also in the context of learning:

1. To achieve “compactness” in how we communicate
2. To include vividness in our language
3. To help us express the inexpressible

As instructors we can capitalize on these three reasons to make our instruction more concise, memorable and effective. I use analogies often in my training classes and so can you! The other day a learner asked me where I get my analogies and how I create them. Well, here is the answer that I shared with her; I create my analogies in two steps:

1. I think about information sources relatable to everyone. For example, I use information from sports, current TV shows and movies, weather, home improvement projects, and food.
2. I then choose course content that I teach which is particularly challenging to learn and I ask myself, “Can I compare this new concept with something similar from the world of sports (for example) that everyone can relate to?” I brainstorm for a while in a quiet place and I can usually think of something. Once I think of the analogy I write it down and I use it in class to see how it works!

At Langevin we like to say that a good analogy can save you up to 60 minutes worth of lecture time. So, the next time you design your training sessions be sure to set aside some time to brainstorm some ideas in a quiet place, write some memorable analogies down, and incorporate them into your lesson plan. If you do, I promise you, your training will be more concise, memorable, and effective!

Lynne

Mobile learning, or m-learning as it is commonly called, has been around too long to be called a “fad”, but it has also been around long enough to expose its own challenges. I’d like to share three “speed bumps” or cautions regarding m-learning in an effort to help you make good choices when using it.

Generational Appeal

Just because they like it, it doesn’t mean it’s good for them. The newest members of the work force embrace technology, and they expect to be able to use it in many areas of the work place. But that doesn’t mean m-learning is the right solution for everything. The truth is that m-learning provides a great opportunity to deliver information quickly; however, that’s only one part of training. Presenting content makes up no more than one-third of the total training package. If learners need information, updates, or job aids, this delivery method is great.

Application Limitations

It is challenging enough to allow for realistic practice in a classroom setting. Practicing a new skill through m-learning will take participants even further from “reality.” This potentially “virtual” practice environment offers little opportunity for successful practice.

Speaking of little, the screen is little. This would require less text, more “close up” photo or video demos, and minimal information on each screen. The result could mean a more time-consuming training session which defeats the point of a quick solution. M-learning is intended to be short – no more than a minute or two to complete.

Distractions

In classroom training, participants are currently distracted by their own workload, their co-workers in the session, their personal situations outside of work and, oh yes, their phones. Now there is a desire to train people using the same technology that distracts them from training.

I know attention spans are getting shorter, the newest members of the work force are more tech savvy, and the technology is available; however, there is a time and a place for everything. Learners gather in a training room to focus on training. Imagine trying to hold an instructor-led training session in the call center or on the manufacturing floor. There would be too many distractions. Could you imagine trying to train while driving, or watching TV, or having a meal? People use their phones for calls, texting, and apps while doing lots of other things; that doesn’t allow for a focused training environment. (Also, what training department wants to be responsible for accidents caused by “training while driving?”)

In conclusion, m-learning is a powerful tool if it is used wisely. Short presentations, job aids, post-course resources, and networking opportunities can be combined to make this “virtual” solution a real training aid.

Jim