Training & Development

RANCHI
Established by Jharkhand state legislature by
Jharkhand Act No 03 of 2012 as per Section 2f of UGC Act
Subject: TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT Credits: 4
SYLLABUS
Conceptual Framework of Training-I
Introduction to Training Development and Education, Objectives of training, Areas of training, Drawbacks and
problem of training, Significance of Training, Training Manual, Learning and Learning Styles, Learning
process : A Few Good Learning Theories.
Conceptual Framework of Training-II
Adult Learning, Learning styles elements and profiles, Principles of Effective Training and Learning, Effective
Training, Collection of Articles.
Approaches to Training
Approaches to Training, Training Procedure, Training Need, Assessment, Training for Performance, Training
Room Design, Role and responsibilities of HRD and Training specialist.
Designing Training Plan
Objectives of Designing Training Plan, Competency Based HRM/Training, Competency Psychology Designing
& Conducting Specific T & D Programmes, New Employee Training.
Methods and Styles of Training I
Introduction to Training Methods and Techniques, Sensitivity Training, On the Job Training, Basic Teaching
and Presentation Skills.
Methods and Styles of Training II
Training Methods, Criteria for Method Selection, Relationship between principles of teaching and learning
methods, Computer Based Training (CBT)
MANAGEMENT OF TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT
Evaluation of Training
Introduction, concept and principles, Evaluation of Training, Evaluating Training and Results
Methods of Evaluation & Training Assessment
Program Evaluation, Planning the Program Evaluation, Levels of Evaluation Methods of Evaluation, Feedback
and Assessment, Evaluating Training Staff, Assessing the ROI of Training, Tutorial.
Management Training & Development
Management Development, Employee Training & Coaching, Mentoring and Coaching, ROI of Management
Training, Training Practices, Train the Trainer, Training For Diversity.
Suggested Reading:
1. Management of Human Resources, Dr A. K Saini and Sanjay Kumar Pathak,
Publisher: Gullybaba Publishing
2. Human Resource Management by K. Ashwa Thapa, Publisher: Himalaya
Publishing House
3. Human Resource Management by V. S. P Rao, Publisher: Excel Publishing House
4. Human Resource management by L. M Prasad, Publisher: Sultan Chand
Publishing House.
5. Training, Needs, Analysis and Evaluation by Frances and Roland Bee, Publisher:
IPD London
6. Art of Training and Development in Management by Leslie Rae, Publisher: Crest
Publication.
i
MANAGEMENT OF TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT (MBA)
COURSE OVERVIEW
Human Resource Development practices plays crucial role in
success of any ogranisation and for any Manager. Specially for
HR practitioner it is mandatory to understand and practice
principles of Management of Training and Development.
The aim of this subject is to develop students understanding
of the concepts of Training and Development. In particular the
subject is designed to develop the underpinning knowledge and
skills required to Manage, organize and conduct Training &
Development. This subject introduces the student to the
concepts in the Training and Development. It familiarizes the
students with the various methods and techniques of training
and Development.
The students on completion of the course shall develop the
following skills and competencies:
a. Concept of Training and Development.
b. Practice Systematic Approach towards Training and
Development.
c. Knowledge of various methods and styles of training for
their effectiveness
d. Evaluation of methods and styles of training for their
effectiveness
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Lesson No. Topic Page No.
Lesson 1 Introduction to Training Development and Eduction 1
Lesson 2 Significance of Training 12
Lesson 3 Training Manual 17
Lesson 4 Learning and Learning Styles 26
Lesson 5 Learning process : A Few Good Learning Theories 40
Lesson 6 Adult Learning 47
Lesson 7 Principles of Effective Training and Learning 56
Lesson 8 Effective Training 67
Lesson 9 Collection of Articles 76
Lesson 10 Approahces to Training 82
Lesson 11 Training Need Assessment 86
Lesson 12 Training for Performance 95
Lesson 13 Training Room Design 104
Lesson 14 Designing Training Plan 119
Lesson 15 Competency Based Hrm/Training 130
Lesson 16 Competency Psychology 143
Lesspn 17 Designing & Conducting Specific T & D Programmes 167
Lesson 18 New Employee Training 180
Lesson 19 Introduction to Training Methods and Techniques 19
Lesson 20 On the Job Training 197
Lesson 21 Basic Teaching and Presentation Skills 207
Lesson 22 Training Methods 214
Lesson 23 Criteria for Method Selection 223
Lesson 24 Computer Based Training (Cbt) 227
Lesson 25 Evaluation of Training 239
Lesson 26 & 27 Evaluating Training and Results - I 246
Lesson 28 Evaluating Training and Results - II 267
CONTENTS
MANAGEMENT OF TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT
7 Lesson 25 Evaluation of Training 239
v
Lesson No. Topic Page No.
8 Lesson 29 Methods of Evaluation
Lesson 30 Feedback and Assessment 282
Lesson 31 Evaluating Training Staff 299
Lesson 32 Assessing the ROI of Training 303
Lesson 33 Tutorial 315
9 Lesson 34 Management Development 316
Lesson 35 Employee Training and Coaching 330
Lesson 36 Mentoring and Coaching 340
CONTENTS
MANAGEMENT OF TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT
Lesson 37 ROI of Management Training 346
Lesson 38 Training Practices 351
Lesson 39 Training Practices 358
Lesson 40 Train the Trainer 378
Lesson 41 Training for Diversity 395
8 Lesson 29 Methods of Evaluation 275
9 Lesson 34 Management Development 316
1
LESSON 1 UNIT 1
INTRODUCTION TO TRAINING
DEVELOPMENT AND EDUCTION
Dear Friends,
Management of Training and Development is an elective
subject for HR specialist. This is your first lesson to the subject.
After going through this lesson you will be able to :
1. Explain Training and Development
2. Differentiate between Training Development and Education
3. Explain significance of Training and Development
Department in any organization.
Introduction
Organisation and individual should develop and progress
simultaneously for their survival and attainment of mutual
goals. So every modem management has to develop the
organisation through human resource development. Employee
training is the important sub-system of human resource
development. Employee training is a specialised function and is
one of the fundamental operative functions for human
resources management.
Human Resources are the most important resources of any
organization. Trained Employee is a price less stone.
Meaning
After an employee is selected, placed and introduced he or she
must be provided with training facilities. Training is the act of
increasing the knowledge and skill of an employee for doing a
particular job. Training is a short-term educational process and
utilising a systematic and organised procedure by which
employees learn technical knowledge and skills for a definite
purpose. Dale S. Beach define the training as ... the organised
procedure by which people learn knowledge and/or skill for a
definite purpose.
In other words training improves, changes, moulds the
employees knowledge, skill, -behaviour, aptitude, and attitude
towards the requirements of the job and organisation. Training
refers to the teaching and learning activities carried on for the
primary purpose of helping members of an organisation, to
acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, abilities and attitudes
needed by a particular job and. organisation.
Training is the art of increasing knowledge & skills of an
employee for doing a particular job.
(By Flippo)
Training is the intentional act of providing means for learning
to take place.
(By Planty)
Training tries to improve skills or add to the existing level of
knowledge so that the employees is better equipped to do his
present job or to prepare him for a higher position with
increased responsibility and are also able to cope with the
pressures of a changing environment.
Training is a systematic process of changing the behaviour,
knowledge and attitude to bridge gap between employee
characteristics and organsiation expectations.
Thus, training bridges the differences between job requirements
and employees present specifications
Objectives of Training
Generally line managers ask the personnel manager to formulate
the training policies. The personnel Manager formulates the
following training objectives in keeping with the Companys
goals and objectives:
a. To prepare the employee both new and old to meet the
present as well as the changing requirements of the job and
the organisation.
b. To prevent obsolescence.
c. To impart the new entrants the basic knowledge and skill
they need for an intelligent performance of definite job.
d. To prepare employees for higher level tasks.
e. To assist employees to function more effectively in their
present positions by exposing them to the latest concepts,
information and techniques and developing the skills they
will need in their particular fields.
f. To build up a second line of competent officers and prepare
them to occupy more responsible positions.
g. To broaden the minds of senior managers by providing
them with opportunities for an interchange of experiences
within and outside with a view to correcting the narrowness
of outlook that may arise from .over specialisation.
h. To develop the potentialities of people for the next level job.
i. To ensure smooth and efficient working of a department.
j. To ensure economical output of required quality.
k. To promote individual and collective morale, a sense of
responsibility, co-operative attitudes and good relationships.
Areas of Training
Organisation provide training to their employees in the
following areas:
Company policies and procedures;
Specific skills;
Human relations;
Problem solving;
Managerial and supervisory skills; and
Apprentice training.
1. Company Policies and Procedures: This area of training is
to be provided with a view to acquainting the new employee
with the Company Rules, Practices, Procedures, Tradition,
UNIT I
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
OF TRAINING
2
Management, Organisation Structure, Environment Product!
Services offered by the company etc.
This acquaintance enables the new employee to adjust
himself with the changing situations. Information regarding
company rules and policies creates favourable attitudes of
confidence in the minds of new employee about the
company and its products/services, as well as it develops in
him a sense of respect for the existing employees of the
company and the like. The company also provides first hand
information to the employee about the skills needed by the
company, its development programmes, quality of
products/services and the like. This enables the new
employees . to know his share of contribution to the
organisations growth and development. .
2. Training in Specific Skills: This area of training is to
enable the employee more effective on the job. The trainer
trains the employee regarding. various skills necessary to do
the actual job. For example, the clerk in the bank should be
trained in the skills of making entries correctly in the edge,
skills and arithmetical calculations, quick comparison of
figures, entries and the like. Similarly, the technical officers are
to be trained in the skills of project appraisal, supervision,
follow-up and the like
3. Human Relations Training: Human relations training
assumes greater significance in organisations as employees
have to maintain human relations not only with other
employees but also.with their customers. Employees are to
be trained in the areas of self-learning, interpersonal
competence, group dynamics, perception, leadership styles,
motivation, grievance redressal, disciplinary procedure, and
the like. This training enables the employees for better team
work, which leads to improved efficiency and productivity of
the organisation.
4. Problem Solving Training: Most of the organisational
problems are common to the employees dealing the same
activity at different levels of the organisation. Further some
of the problems of different managers may have the same
root cause. Hence, management may call together all
managerial personnel to discuss common problems so as to
arrive at effective solutions across the table. This not only
helps in solving the problems but also serves as a forum for
the exchange of ideas and information that could be utilised.
The trainer has to organise such meetings, train and
encourage the trainees to participate actively in such meetings.
5. Managerial and Supervisory Training: Even the non-
managers sometimes perform managerial and supervisory
functions like planning, decision-making, organising,
maintaining inter-personal relations, directing and
controlling. Hence, management has to train the employee in
managerial and supervisory skills also.
6. Apprentice Training: The Apprentice Act, 1961 requires
industrial units of specified industries to provide training in
basic skills and knowledge in specified trades to educated
unemployees /apprentices with a view to improving their
employment opportunities or to enable them to start their
own industry. This type of training generally ranges between
one year to four years. This training is generally used for
providing technical Knowledge in the areas like trades, crafts
etc.
The importance of human resource management to a large
extent depends on human resource development. Training is
the most important technique of human resource develop-
ment. As stated earlier, no organisation can get a candidate who
exactly matches with the job and the organisational require-
ments. Hence, training is important to develop the employee
and make him suitable to the job.
Job and organisational requirements are not static, they are
changed from time to time in view of technological advance-
ment and change in the awareness of the Total Quality and
Productivity Management (TQPM). The objectives of the
TQPM can be achieved only through training as training
develops human skills and efficiency. Trained employees would
be a valuable asset to an organisation. Organisational efficiency,
productivity, progress and development to a greater extent
depend on training. Organisational objectives like viability,
stability and growth can also be achieved through training.
Training is important as it constitutes significant part of
management control.
Let us go through some benefits of training as below:
Drawbacks of the Training
The training could be a failure due to the following factors:
Unrealistic goals
Input overloads
Alienation of participants
Linkage failures
One of the methods for helping the trainees in the posts
training period, i.e. while they are on the job is to encourage
trainees to refer back their problems, which however, could be
done only in consultation with the authorities of the imple-
menting- agency organisation.
Problems of Training
The training exercises/effort may suffer due to the absence of:
1. fully qualified, experienced and oriented trainers
2. facilities for trainers training
3. poor budgetary allocations for training
4. flexibility
5. action-research on training
6. field exposure and staff development
7. adequate incentives to the trainers
8. general apathy towards training
9. proper physical infrastructure.
10. proper arrangements for evaluation of the training
programme.
Training Risks
A training programme may suffer from the following risks:
Design risk. Among the several reasons leading to inappropri-
ate design are the following:
Training to deal with some symptoms and causes;
Training content and targets influenced by prejudice;
3
Internal and external trainers preferences;
Limited search in the choice of materials and methodology.
Conduct rise: In the actual conduct of the training, even with a
good design, the following may be some of the possible risks:
cancellation of some or more of the planned training
events;
failure to get nominations;
failure of the nominees attending the course;
non-availability of faculty members of theirsubstitutes;
absence of inability of the Course director in
integrating the inputs by different speakers towards the
achievement of the goals; and
administrative lapses.
Learning risks: The level of learning could be at risk from the
following factors:
lack of interest in learning;
no perception of either awards for learning or
punishment for not learning;
negative attitudes arising from personal and work role
experience.
complacency and resistance to self-change;
Sense of helplessness about self and others in the
organisation in utilising training inputs.
Transfer risks: The stage of transfer may be found to suffer
form the following difficulties:
lack of interest of the individual trainees;
lack of support form his superiors;
partial or no implementation by group of joint
commitments to action.
turnover of the trainee:
wrong posting of the trainee;
lack of coordinated approach in strategy, organisation and
systems; and
other environmental crises.
A view-point is sometimes past forward that often the trainers
have great difficulty in determining the kind of training needed
for and what they expect it to accomplish. At the same time, it is
extremely difficult to evaluate the results of such training.
The evaluation in respect of training as related, to trainers has
been ignored more; than are other area in training. Methods of
training have not been always properly evaluated. The fact that
this evaluation like any other evaluation is a complex effort
should not be a deterrent for making all reasonable efforts in
evaluating whether or not such training is worth the corre-
sponding effort of the trainer. Evaluation of a training
programme/course is very important not only form the point
of improving training but also to help the participant trainees
and trainers to function more effectively. Evaluation can be
involving the total programme or it can be partial aiming at
appraisal of some salient aspects.
Training and Development
Employee training is distinct from management development
or executive development. While the former refers to training
given to employees in the areas of operations, technical and
allied areas, the latter refers to developing an employee in the
areas of principles and techniques of management, administra-
tion, organisation and allied areas. Following are the differences
between training and development:
Difference Between Training &
DevelopmENT
Training
It is a short term process
It utilises systematic and organised Procedure
Managerial personnel acquire skill of .training subordinates
Non-managerial personnel acquire technical skill &
knowledge for a definite purpose.
It is primarily related with the job technical skill learning
Development
It is a long term process
It utilises systematic & organised proce-dures
Managerial personnel get conceptual & theoretical knowledge
& skill or manag-ing. It is rarely used.
Non managerial personnel acquire tech-nical skill and
knowledge for a long term purpose
It is mainly useful for long term manage-ment development
process.
Relationship Between Training
Development and Education
Education
Development
Training
Training and Education:
Purpose of training is to supplement education.
Training goes hand in hand with education.
Learning is modification behaviour through training.
In all training there is some education and in all education there
is some training . These two processes cannot be separated
from development.
4
Training is concerned with increasing the technical skills and
knowledge and operative skills in doing a particular job. Hence,
mostly employers train their employees for a particular job. But
the scope of education is broader. It includes acquiring not only
technical skills and knowledge, but also behavioural skills and
knowledge, general knowledge, social knowledge and the like.
Thus, the purpose of education is to develop individuals. It is
concerned with the changing environmental, political and social
developments. Education is not only through formal instruc-
tion in the educational institutes, but also through training,
observation, awareness and so on and so forth. Training
normally has a more immediate and specific utilitarian purpose
whereas education has 10ng-n1n and general utility. Though it
is difficult to differentiate training from education as they are
closely interrelated, it can be said that training is part of
education. According to Dale Yoder, The use of the terms
training and development in todays employment setting is far
more appropriate than training alone since human resource can
exert their full potential only when the learning process goes far
beyond simple routine.4
Difference Between Training and
Education
Areas Training Education
Areas Training Education
Orientation Application Theoretical
conceptual
Emphasis Technical Technical general
Learning On the job and off the jobClasss room
Scope Specific Tasks General Concepts
Payment Trainee is paid to learn Student pays to
learn
Also see functional classification between training and
personnel Management
Personnel Management Training & Development
Set Goal
Decide strategies
Developmentof
culture
Process manpower
Provide facilities
Staff the deptt
Apprise man
power
Identify
trg.need
Plan/design
T&D Prog.
Evalute
Appraise
Competence
Arrange
Mgt.Devplans
Dvelop &
maintain HR
Evalute System
ORGANISATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS
Corporate Education
Corporate education has become a strategic function as we enter
this century. In the best organizations, education is no longer
the first to be cut back in a downturn. Rather, best-in-class
corporate education is making a difference to the bottom line.
Good corporate education has an impact on:
Retention
By providing employees careers paths and on-going
development, they are less likely to leave for another
employer. Many organizations are encouraging on-going
academic development and paying for advanced degrees,
both as a way to build capability and as a retention tool.
Capability
When organizations know they have a broadly educated
employee base, they are more willing to enter new
product areas and expand business to new geographies.
Productivity
Better educated employees with up-to-date skills are more
likely to work efficiently and have good morale.
Article
Training vs. Education
A Distinction That Makes
A Difference
Its tough to manage a bank these days. Restructuring has
stretched our staffs incredibly thin. More and more of our
employees are part-timers. Cut-throat competition has un-
leashed a torrent of new and complicated products. Our
bankers must become extroverted sales professionals. Many of
our people lack the skills to do their jobs effectively. In short,
banks are facing a crisis of competence. And what are bank
managers doing to prepare their staffs to meet these challenges?
How are they managing the crisis? Not well, I fear. Last week
the president of a major banks investment subsidiary told me,
Our banks platform staff have already been educated about
mutual funds. They had attended a half-day sales seminar from
our third-party provider four months ago, learning the features
and benefits of their mutual funds. Not only that, the program
was free.
Allow me to explain five places where I think he was going
astray.
Training is not education
First of all, training is not education. Education is generally
measured by tenure: you spent a day in the seminar or four
years in college. Training, on the other hand, is measured by
what you can do when youve completed it. Think of it this
way. If your sixteen year-old daughter told you that she was
going to take a sex education course at high school, you might
be pleased. What if she announced she was going to take part
in some sex
training at school? Would that elicit the same response?
Training is doing. Training improves performance. Seminars
dont train
Second, while seminars are entertaining, theyre generally not the
best way to change behavior. Most of the content in a tradi-
tional seminar flows in one e ar and out the other. Researchers
report that people remember 90 percent of what they do, 75
percent of what they say, and 10 percent of what they hear.
Three hundred thousand bankers have participated in Omega
training. They have learned to sell and to make sound decisions.
Not one has attended an Omega seminar. Platform bankers
who attend BSA/Omega workshops do a lot more than warm
chairs and listen. They inherit play money so they can identify
with wealthy customers, they leave the workshop to shop the
competition, they demonstrate their mastery of product
5
information in mock-Jeopardy games, and they practice probing
and selling skills on one anot her. Theyre active. They learn by
doing.
What do you want them to do?
Third, for training to work, you must be clear about what you
want people to accomplish when its over. After all, the only
reason to train people is to help them meet specific objectives.
You cant afford to leave those objectives unstated or to
delegate deciding your peoples objectives to others.
A good objective will be actionable, for example increase the
number of relationships with each customer. A bad objective
often describes knowing something rather than doing some-
thing, for example, gain more product knowledge. You must
also decide whether a performance deficiency is really a training
problem. The classic instructional
designers test is to ask, If he had a gun to his head, could he
do it? If the answer is yes, youre facing a problem of motiva-
tion, not a t raining problem. If you do have a training
problem, you must explicitly describe the behaviors you expect
after training.
To hammer the message home, you must tell the trainees how
you expect them to perform at its conclusion. For example,
participants in the BSA/Omega workshops are told that,
When you have completed this module and the corresponding
classroom experience s, you will be able to:
Profile the full range of needs during customer interactions,
paying particular attention to investment needs
Explore customer investment needs upon noticing
appropriate customer cues
Determine appropriate referral destination
Introduce your banks investment alternatives to customers
Convince customers that they should meet with Investment
or Trust Representatives, arrange the actual meeting
Handle obstacles to effective investment referrals
Participate effectively in joint meetings with customers and
Investment and Trust Representatives to facilitate close of
sale and to gain increased product knowledge
Follow up with customers to confirm referral and expand
the relationship
Beware of freebies
Fourth, in training as in life, there is no free lunch. Free
training is often more expensive than no training at all. Putting
aside trainee salaries, consider the opportunity cost of people
who are not performing at their best. The cost of effective
training pales in comparison to the bottom-line benefits it
provides. Consider this: a platform person at one bank had
never made an investment referral in her career. Interviewing a
customer a few weeks after taking an Omega workshop, she
asked, How much money are we talking about? She almost
slid out of her chair whe n the customer responded, $1.1
million. She made the referral and the Trust Department has
booked the business. Now theyre working on her second
referral of the monthfor $630,000 worth of business. Or
consider this: within six months of conducting Omega
workshops, one bank was startled to find that the average
platform banker had generated referrals that led to $100,000 of
new mutual fund business.
The moral of these examples is that effective training is not a
cost at all. It is an investment that pays substantial returns. It
never ends
Fifth, training is not a one-shot deal; its a process. Positive
behaviors must be reinforced if they are to be retained. Did you
study a foreign language in college?
You pore over the books and log time in the language lab.
Maybe even travel for a month in France. You become profi-
cient, if not fluent. As the years go by, and you never have an
opportunity to speak or write the language, your skills atrophy.
You cant remember anything except how to ask where the
toilet is and how to count to ten. Maybe you did practice that
language. In that case, tell me, how much geometry do you
remember from high school? Bank training is no different. It
takes practice. It takes a pat on the back. It takes a mentor who
encourages the good behavior and discourages the bad. It takes
a manager who sets realistic goals and monitors performance.
Individual training programs are not enough to create success
over time. Success requires a sustained performance improve-
ment system. Most things are easy to learn but hard to master.
My advice to the senior banker that started me on this rant:
Dont mistake action for results. In the course of helping
bankers improve their performance over the past two decades,
weve found that the only thing worse than learning from
experience is not learning from experience.
If your staff is grappling with a crisis of competence, youre
hardly alone. Be assured that your organizations performance
will improve if your people are properly trained and coached. As
Mark Twain once said, There is nothing training cannot do. No
thing is
above its reach.
Article
A Look to the Future of Training and Development
Peter Senge popularized the concept of learning organization in
his book The Fifth Discipline. He described them as places
where people continually expand their capacity to create the
results they truly desire, where new and expansive patterns of
thinking are nutured, where collective aspiration is set free, and
where people are continually learning how to learn together
Learning organizations appear to be proficient in a number of
activities: systematic problem solving, experimentation with
new approaches, learning from their own experience and history,
learning from the experiences and best practices of others, and
transferring knowledge quickly and efficiently throughout the
organization ( Garvin 1993). Learning in firms such as General
Electric, Pittsburgh Plate Glass (PPG), and Xerox has been
traced using a learning perspective that involves three stages: (1)
cognitivemembers are exposed to new ideas, expand their
knowledge, and begin to think differently; (2) behavioral
employees begin to alter their behavior; and (3) improvement
of performancechanges in behavior lead to measurable
improvement in results ( Howard 1992).
6
In an organization dedicated to creating a learning environment,
training is a top priority. Learning organizations do not simply
appear. They are fostered by devoting time, energy, and
resources on a continuous basis to the training and develop-
ment of employees. Taking steps to encourage learning through
training and development activities and forums is essential to
improved understanding, performance, and effectiveness
Humour in Training
A Personnel Officer had a head injury. The doctor operated and
removed his brain and kept it aside while repairing his skull. A
crow took away the brain. The doctor quietly repaired the skull
and sent away the P.O asking him to come after one week for
checkup. In the meanwhile, the doctor procured another brain
for the P.O. but the P.O did not turn up. Doctor emquired of
P.O. after one week why he did not turn up for brain replace-
ment. The P.O. replied that he was working in HPCL and
therefore it matters little whether he has brain or not. (You can
use any company name for the joke)
A union leader thought that anybody can perform the duties of
a Personnel Officer and therefore applied for the post of a P.O.
The selection committee went through his bio-data and were
very much impressed by it. particularly for his experience in
dealing with the management. Therefore the Committee put a
question:
What do you understand by Collective Bargaining? .
It means, management bargains and union collect he replied
At a farewell party to a retired officer. the boss commented: He
has retired now, but he stopped working since long.
In the Rashtrapati Bhavan. there w~s presentation ceremony of
the .Parama Vir Chakra medals. Everyone was asked to narrate
his story of bravery for receiving the PVC medal. One lean and
thin soldier came forward. and said that he cut the leg of the
enemy. When asked why he did not cut the head, the soldier
replied that the enemy did not possess a head.
Four persons were travelling by train and (heir conversation
went like this:
First: I am a brigadier. I am married. I have (hree sons and
they are all doctors.
Second: I am also a brigadier. I am also married. I have three
Sons and they are all engineers.
Third: How remarkable. I am also a brigadier. I am also
married. I have three Sons and they are all lawyers.
The Fourth passenger was rather reticent. However, after much
prompting, he started: I am not a brigadier. I am not married.
But I have three sons, and they are all brigadiers.
A foreign consultant came across a clerk in an office doing no
work. He asked him Why asked him Why dont you Work?
Why should I asked the clerk.
So that you can get promoted and make more money said the
foreigner.
What is the point of earning more money asked the clerk.
So that you can retire early if you Want and wont have to
work replied the consultant.
I am not working now pointed out the clerk.
One day a teacher was teaching geography in a government
aided school when the School Inspector came for a visit. The
teacher said to the students that the river Ganga starts in the
Himalayas and flows into the Arabian sea. When the School
Inspector pointed our the mistake, the teacher replied that they
were not gelting their salaries since last six months and until
they receive their salaries, the Ganga will continue to flow into
the Arabian sea.
Indias most famous sitarist, Ravi Shankar, who once asked
whether he practiced sitar daily. Shankar replied; I believe in the
saying that if you miss one day, you notice it. If you miss two
days, the critics notice it. If you miss three days, the audience
notice it.
A man had a one-rupee coin and wanted to know whether it is
genuine. He met a lawyer on the road and asked him whether it
was genuine or a counterfeit coin. The lawyer turned the coin
one way and the other, tossed it in air, and caught it spinning
down, looked hard at it and ultimately declared that it was a
good coin. So saying, the lawyer pocketed the coin and said.
you asked for my opinion and I have given you that. This
rupee is the . fee for my legal opinion.
There was once a famous musician who sang before a Nawab
and got land gift from the Nawab. The Court Officer was not
happy with the Nawabs generosity. But he could not go against
the orders of the Nawab. So he wrote out a deed and handed it
over to the musician. The document mentioned one hectare in
Kashmir, once hectare near Ujjain, one hectare in Assam and so
on to make up his hundred hectares. The mu~ician found it
impossible to cultivate the land so scaltered. He therefore
complained to the Nawab against the Court Officer that the
officer had wrilten the title deed of lands far off. The Officer
explained to the Nawab: Sir, he is wrong, see how closely I
have wrilten. If I write stiH closer, no one can read this
document. The Nawab looked at the document and agreed
with it. He called the. musician and said: you have misled me
and the one hundred hectares of land which I gave you as gift is
cancelled.
A man helped a Minister and requested something in return.
What do you want asked the Minister. I want to be a
postmaster replied the man. But you can neither read nor
write.. How can you work in a post office? enquired the
Minister. Who is talking of work? I do not want to be an
Assistant Postmaster. I want to be a Postmaster insisted the
man.
A counterfeit note manufacturer took a 15 rupee note to a re-
mote village where he thought he could exchange it with ease.
He asked a Pan Shop Wa1lah whether he has change for the Rs
15. The Pan Wallah readily exchanged it with two Rs 7.50 notes.
St. Peter went to Heel and found that in the dining hall a long
table was spread with good food. On either side were rows of
persons but their hands were tied with long wooden ladles.
They were unable to feed for themselves. St. Peter then went to
Heaven. He saw there a similar scene in the dining hall, but here
each person was feeding the one opposite to him thus helping
each other for mutual benefit.
7
Zuben Mehta was garlanded with roses at one concert. With the
garland round his neck, Zuben started conducting the orchestra
but the rose petals were falling down. In the audience a. person
wispered: By the time the concert is finished he will be Left
with the thread. His wife, silting by his side, said But he will
stand on rose petals after his successful concert.
Now try to think and write about this:
Points to Ponder
SOME THOUGHTS
ON TRAINING
The cost of training is paid
once, value is realized every
time that knowledge or skill
is applied
The value of a worker is
directly related to their
functioning capability
which is directly related to
training
Success breeds success.
Structure training programs
so it is easy to learn. Each
question or problem
successfully answered,
builds self confidence and
increase one's enthusiasm for
learning
8
Success breeds success.
Structure training programs
so it is easy to learn. Each
question or problem
successfully answered,
builds self confidence and
increase one's enthusiasm for
learning
The value of a worker is
directly related to their
functioning capability
which is directly related to
training
The use of Self-study training
materials on fundamentals prior
to on site classes or outside
seminars is a low cost way to
help insure a successful outcome
Utilize purchased training
programs to teach
fundamentals so resources
can be conserved for the
development of plant
specific equipment and
procedure training
9
Training should be part of a risk
management strategy for reducing the
probability of personal injury, property
loss and environmental incidents. A
single incident can result in costs
thousand of times the combined cost of
a good training program, proper
equipment selection and safe work
practices.
Training in maintenance
fundamentals is essential
to competing is a
worldwide economy
More new employees with
no practical exposure to
basic tools are joining the
work force, An
understanding of basic tools
is an essential part of
mastering basic mechanical
tasks
Training is an investment,
not a cost. Benefits include,
improved productivity,
higher yields, improves
safety, reduced chance of
environmental incidents,
more process up time and
improved employee moral
10
"There is nothing training
cannot do. Nothing is above its
reach. It can turn bad morals to
good; it can destroy bad
principles and recreate good
ones; it can lift men to
angelship."
The Value of Training The duration of an
athletic contest is only a few minutes, while the
training for it may take many weeks of arduous
work and continuous exercise of self effort. The
real value of sports is not the actual game played
in the limelight of applause, but the hours of
dogged determination and self discipline by the
exacting conscience.
The applause soon dies away, the prize is left
behind, but the character you build is yours
forever.
1. Distinguish between training and education?
2. Are you trained or educated in your college.
3. What purposes does training serve?
4. Explain the ingredients of a good training programme for
the employees at various levels.
5. What are the objectives of training?
11
6. Identify those organisational problems which cannot be
solved by training?
7. What are the training inputs? Identify the areas of training .
Basic Terms in Training
Information
At its most basic form, a piece of information about some-
thing is a unit of awareness about that thing. (A field of
philosophy, epistemology, includes analysis of what is really
information and what isnt. This field might visit the question:
If a tree falls in the forest, does it make a sound?) Some
people think that this awareness occurs only in the brain and,
therefore, usually comes from some form of thought. Other
people also accept information as a form of realization from
other forms of inquiry, e.g., intuition.
Knowledge
Knowledge is gleaned by organizing information. Typically,
information evolves to knowledge by the learners gaining
context, perspective and scope about the information.
Skills
Skills are applying knowledge in an effective and efficient
manner to get something done. One notices skills in an
employee by their behaviors.
Task
A task is a typically defined as a unit of work, that is, a set of
activities needed to produce some result, e.g., vacuuming a
carpet, writing a memo, sorting the mail, etc. Complex posi-
tions in the organization may include a large number of tasks,
which are sometimes referred to as functions.
Job
A job is a collection of tasks and responsibilities that an
employee is responsible to conduct. Jobs have titles.
Role
A role is the set of responsibilities or expected results associated
with a job. A job usually includes several roles.
Learning
Typically, learning is viewed as enhancing ones knowledge,
understanding or skills. Some people see learning as enhance-
ment to ones knowledge, awareness and skills. Some
professionals view learning as enhancing ones capacity to
perform. Some view learning as a way of being that includes
strong value on receiving feedback and increasing understand-
ing. Its important to note that learning is more than collecting
information more than collecting unreferenced books on a
shelf. Depending on the needs of the learner, knowledge is
converted to skills, that is, the learner knows how to apply the
knowledge to get something done. Ideally, the skills are applied
to the most appropriate tasks and practices in the organization,
thereby producing performance results needed by the
organization.
Continuous Learning
Simply put, continuous learning is the ability to learn to learn.
Learning need not be a linear event where a learner goes to a
formal learning program, gains areas of knowledge and skills
about a process, and then the learning ceases. If the learner can
view life (including work) as a learning program, then the
learner can continue to learn from almost everything in life. As a
result, the learner continues to expand his or her capacity for
living, including working.
Training
This term is often interpreted as the activity when an expert and
learner work together to effectively transfer information from
the expert to the learner (to enhance a learners knowledge,
attitudes or skills) so the learner can better perform a current
task or job.
Education
This term seems to be the most general of the key terms in
employee training. Some professionals view education as
accomplishing a personal context and understanding of the
world, so that ones life and work are substantially enhanced,
e.g., Go get an education. Others view the term as the
learning required to accomplish a new task or job.
Development
This term is often viewed as a broad, ongoing multi-faceted set
of activities (training activities among them) to bring someone
or an organization up to another threshold of performance.
This development often includes a wide variety of methods,
e.g., orienting about a role, training in a wide variety of areas,
ongoing training on the job, coaching, mentoring and forms of
self-development. Some view development as a life-long goal
and experience.
12
Significance of Training
Dear Friends,
After understanding the concept of training, development and
education. In this lesson you will be exposed about the need
and significance of training in industry .
Benefits of Training
How Training Benefits the Organisation
Leads to improved profitability and/or more positive
attitudes toward profits orientation
Improves the job knowledge and skills at all levels of the
organisation
Improves the morale of the workforce .
Helps people identify with organisational goals
Helps create a better corporate image
Fasters authenticity, openness and trust
Improves the relationship between boss and subordinate
Aids in organisational development
Learns from the trainee
Helps prepare guidelines for work
Aids in understanding and carrying out organisational
policies
Provides information for future needs in all areas of the
organisation
Organisation gets more effective decision-making and
problem solving
Aids in development for promotion from within
Aids in developing leadership skill, motivation, loyalty, better
attitudes, and other aspects that successful workers and
managers usually display
Aids in increasing productivity and/or quality of work.
Helps keep costs down in many areas, e.g., production,
personnel, administration, etc.
Develops a sense of responsibility to the organisation for
being competent and knowledgeable.
Improves labour-management relations
Reduces outside consulting costs by utilising competent
internal consulting . Stimulates preventive management as
opposed to putting out fires.
Eliminates sub-optimal behaviour (such as hiding tools)
Creates an appropriate climate for growth, communication
Aids in improving organisational communication
Helps employees adjust to change
Aids in handling conflict, thereby helping to prevent stress
and tension.
Benefits to the Individual Which in Turn Ultimately
Should Benefit the Organisation
Helps the individual in making better decisions and effective
problem solving
Through training and development, motivational variables
of recognition, achievement, growth, responsibility and
advancement are internalised and operationalised
Aids in encouraging and achieving self-development and
self-confidence. Helps a person handle stress, tension,
frustration and conflict
Provides information for improving leadership knowledge,
communication skills and attitudes
Increases job satisfaction and recognition
Moves a person toward personal goals while improving
interactive skills . Satisfies, personal needs of the trainer (and
trainee)
Provides the trainee an avenue for growth and a say in his/
her own future . Develops a sense of growth in learning
Helps a person develop speaking and listening skills; also
writing skills when exercises are required.
Helps eliminate fear in attempting new tasks.
Benefits in Personnel and Human Relations, Intra and
Intergroup Relations and Policy Implementation
Improves communication between groups and individuals
Aids in orientation for new employees and those taking new
jobs through transfer or promotion
Provides information on equal opportunity and affirmative
action
Provides information on other govemmentailaws and
administrative policies . Improves interpersonal skills
Makes organization policies, rules and regulations viable
Improves morale
Builds cohesiveness in groups
Provides a good climate for learning, growth, and co-
ordination
Makes the organisation a better place to work and live.
The increasing competition, among other things increases the
significance of training. Training matches the employee with the
job from time to time. Further, the trained employees invite
organisational change and ready to take up any type of assign-
ment. The success of any organisation, to a greater extent
depends on the amount, qualitative and timely training
provided by an organisation.
Further the importance of training can also be viewed from the
need for training and the advantages of training.
LESSON 2
SIGNIFICANCE OF TRAINING
13
Advantages of Training
The contributions of imparting training to a Company should
be readily apparent. The major values are:
i. Increased Productivity: An increase in skill usually results
in an increment in both quality and quantity of output.
However, the increasingly
technical nature of
modern jobs demands
systematic training to
make possible even
minimum levels of
accomplishment.
ii. Hightened Morale:
Possession of needed
skills help to meet such
basic human needs as
security and ego
satisfaction. Collaborate
personnel and human relations programmes can make a
contribution toward morale, but they are hollow shells if
there is no solid core of meaningful work down with
knowledge, skill and pride.
iii. Reduced Supervision: The trained employee is one who
can perform with limited supervision. Both employee and
supervisor want less supervision but greater independence is
not possible unless the employee is adequately trained.
iv. Reduced Accidents: More accidents are caused by
deficiencies in people than by deficiencies in equipment and
working conditions. Proper training in both job skills and
safety attitudes should contribute toward a reduction in the
accident rate.
v lncreased Organisational Stability: The ability of an
organisation to sustain its effectiveness despite the loss of
key personnel, can be developed only through creation of a
reservoir of employees. Rexibility, the ability to adjust to
short-run variations in the volume of work requires
personnel with multiple skills to permit their transfer to jobs
where the demand is highest.
Traiining is Service to Management
PRODU
CTION
Training
Aid
Need for Training
Every organisation big or small, productive or non-productive,
economic or social, old or newly established should provide
training to all employees irrespective of their qualification, skill,
suitability for the job etc. Thus, no organisation can choose
whether or not to train employees.
Training is not something that is done once to new employees;
it is used continuously in every well run establishment. Further,
technological changes, automation, require up-dating the skills
and knowledge. As such an organisation has to retrain the old
employees.
Specifically, the need for training arises due to the following
reasons:
i. To Match the Employee Specifications with the
Job Requirements and Organisational Needs
An employees specification may not exactly suit to the
requirements of the job and the organisation irrespective of
his past experience, qualifications, skills, knowledge etc.
Thus, every management finds deviations between
employees present specifications and the job requirements
and organisational needs. Training is needed to fill these gaps
by developing and moulding the employees skill,
knowledge, attitude, behaviour etc. to the tune of thejob
requirements and organisational needs.
ii. Organisational Viability and the Transformation
Process
The primary goal of most of the organisations is their
viability is continuously influenced by environmental
pressure. If the organisation does not adapt itself to the
changing factors in the environment, it will lose its market
share. If the organisation desires to adapt these changes, first
it has to train the employees to impart specific skills and
knowledge in order to enable them to contribute to the
organisational efficiency and to cope with the changing
environment. In addition, it provides continuity to the
organisation process and development. The productivity of
the organisation can be improved by developing the
efficiency of transformation process wnich in turn depends
on enhancement of the existing level of skills and
knowledge of the employees. The achievement of these
objectives mostly depends on the effectiveness of the
human resources that the organisation possess. Employee
effectiveness can be secured by proper training.
iii. Technological Advances
Every organisation in order to survive and to be effective
should adopt the latest technology, i.e., mechanisation,
computerisation and automation. Adoption of latest
technological means and methods, will not be complete until
they are manned by employees possessing skill to operate
them. So, organisation should train the employees to enrich
them in the areas of changing technical skills and knowledge
from time to time.3
iv. Organisational Complexity
With the emergence of increased mechanisation and
automation, manufacturing of multiple products and by-
14
products or dealing in services of diversified lines, extension
of operations to various regions of the country or in
overseas countries, organisation of most of the companies
has become complex. This leads to growth in number and
kind of employees and layers in organisation hierarchy. This
creates the complex problems of co-ordination and
integration of activities adaptable for and adaptable to the
expanding and diversifying situations. This situation calls for
training in the skills of co-ordination, integration and
adaptability to the requirements of growth, diversification
and expansion. Companies constantly search for
opportunities to improve organizational effectiveness.
Training is responsible for much of the planned change and
effectiveness in an organisation as it prepares the people to
be the change agents and to implement the programmes of
effectiveness. Thus, training solves the problems of
organisational complexity.
v. Human Relations: Trends in approach towards personnel
management has changed from the commodity approach to
partnership approach, crossing the human relations
approach. So today, managements of most of the
organisations has to maintain human relations besides
maintaining sound industrial relations although hitherto the
managers are not accustomed to deal with the workers
accordingly. So training in human relations is necessary to
deal with human problems (including alienation, inter-
personal and inter-group conflicts etc.) and to maintain
human relations. .
vi. Change in the Job Assignment: Training is also necessary
when the existing employee is promoted to the higher level
in the organisation and when there is some new job or
occupation due to transfer. Training is also necessary to equip
the old employees with the advanced disciplines, techniques
or technology.
The need for training also- arises to:
Increase productivity.
Improve quality of the product/service.
Help a company to fulfil its future pel5onnel needs.
Improve organisational climate.
Improve health and safety.
Prevent obsolescence.
Effrct the personal growth.
Minimise the resistance to change.
The factors discussed above are mostly external factors and they
are beyond the personnel managers control. These factors often
determine the success of training objectives as shown in
following figure:
Purpose Relationship in Training
Factors Purposes
Technological Advance
Improved Productivity
Organisation Complexity
Prevention of Obsolescence
Job Requirements
Preparation for Higher Level
Human Relations
Top Management Support
Learning Principles
Improved Morale
Personnel Funcions
Integration of Various HRD Functions
Roles Of HRD
For Individual Development
To help him/her know himself/herself
To help him/her develop himself/herself.
To help to cure him/her from disfunctions
15
To encourage innovation and creativity
To inspire him/her to contribute more to his/ her
organization
For Organlsatlonal Development
To help to learn self management.
To help to learn the art of managing others.
T C? help individual to understand organisation
To help to build inter-personnel relationship
To help to build social and brotherly atmosphere
To encourage to solve groups problem
Words Worth In Training
Telling is not Teaching
The best written and most important book fails to communi-
cate if it is never opened.
However dark may be the night, sure there will be a morn.
Nature gave people two ears but only one tongue-to listen
more and talk less.
Listening requires two ears-one for meaning and the other for
feeling.
Every employee is a diamond in the rough Training makes him
priceless stuff.
Coming together is Beginning
Staying together is Progress
Living together is Success.
- Winners always make it happen
Losers always let it happen.
We plan today we get encouraging results
We dont plan, we get discouraging consequences.
Those who want to achieve will find a way
Those who do not will find and excuse.
People who stay in the middle of the road get run over.
You can take a horse to a pond, but you ,cannot make it drink.
We cannot teach anyone anything. We can only help them to
learn.
We define genius as the capacity for productive reaction against
-Bernard Berenson
Teach a person how to catch a fish, rather than give him a fish.
-Chinese proverb
Ask not what your country can do for you
Ask what you can do for your country.
-John F. Keenedy
How do I know what I think, until I see what I say.
-E P Foster
What we hear, we forget, What we see, we remember, What we
do, we know.
-Confucius
Theory without practice is sterile, Practice without theory is
blind.
-Lenin
I keep Six honest serving men, They taught me all I know
Their names are What and Why and Where And How and
When and Who.
-R Kipling
Everyone is a potential winner, Some people are disguised as
losers, Dont let appearances fool you.
-Kenneth Blanchard
I can live two months on a good complement.
-Mark Twain
Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and
they, Will surprise you with their intergrity
-Gen Patton
Conclusion
This lesson has given exposure towards the Need and Signifi-
cance of training and development in Industry and Trade.
Training is a tool which solve many problems.
Coming lesson will give exposure towards training.
Now think, discuss and write your conclusion about following:
16
1. What is employee training?
2. Explain the important techniques of training.
3. Discuss how the group discussion can be treated to be a
helpful method of employee training.
4. What are the various tangible benefits of training in Indian
organizations.
Notes -
17
Friends,
After reading this lesson you will be able to
1. Know what training manual is.
2. Explain Crucial contents of Training manual
3. Design Training Manual
4. Prepare training budget
Training manual of any organization consists of following
information about training.
Training Policy
Policy is a written Statement expressing companys vision
mission regarding training.
Policy is guideline for action.
A Training policy includes training needs identification process,
Training budget, people to be trained and areas of training,
types of training, responsibility for training.
Training policy should be in align with Business strategies in
past few years.
Training Budget
A financial and/or quantitative statement prepared prior to a
defined period of time of policy to be pursued during that
period for the purpose of attaining a give objective.
Estimated prepared in financial terms regarding:
WHO
WHAT
WHEN
WHERE
WHAT
HOW
Budgeting & Controlling
The T & D Functions
Management Policies
The top management always looks at the loss and profit for any
activity. The objectives of the strategies are only divided on the
basis of cost justifications or viability aspect of the activities jn
terms of resources. Though the return on investment of
Human Resources Development is still controversial in view of
time variable in achieving desired change and effectiveness in the
employees, management does want some portion of the cost
format and its return patterm to decide how much to be
invested and what will be the benefits to the organisation in
terms of rupees or increase in profitability or reduction in
wastage etc. Otherwise it may jeopardize the entire organisation.
No doubt, HRD is the key area in bringing out excellence in
organisation and in fact this has been observed in sixth and
seventh five year plans also as this costs to the organisation, it
should be viewed carefully in relation to the organisations size,
turn over, total budget and the percentage or part of budget
used for HRD.
General Considerations On Hrd Budget
General 1.5 to 25% of the total employees salary (with few
exceptions) could be allotted for HRD activities as per the
various studies and researches done in this context. However
the new establishment do need much higher allocation for few
months & for which the justification or viability report can be
put up to the management with expected benefits (in terms of
rupees) in coming years like R01 plan for new establishment.
Unusual circumstances, when office or entire plants may be shut
down for T & D to implement, new technology etc. cannot be
overruled. In such cases the costs may vary as high as 100%
during this period.
Budget Allocation
Basically there are two methods of allocating the budget on
HRD, T & D activities
All cost on HRD, T & D activities observed by HRD depart-
ment are recorded at one place in corporate office.
All the cost is assigned to HRD department who has to record
and control it.
Though both the methods may have the same results; the
method used may greatly influence the decisions making
process. There may be Pros & Cons of both the methods but
within the frame work of the organisational policies and
philosophy, the methods are decided for acceptable input.
The HRD budget normally covers the following:
Cost of staffing
Cost of planning
Cost of TNI &. TNA
Cost of appraisal
Cost of recruitment or selection
Cost of feed back system
Cost of updating competence
Cost of testing progress
Cost of trials
Cost of running programme
Cost of valediction
Cost of trainig materials & training aids Cost of revising and
re-testing
Cost of publishing or awarding
budgeting process
Business is and always, has been the number game, the game
of data statements etc. With the advancement of the technol-
ogy and management information system, the executive/
LESSON 3
TRAINING MANUAL
18
manager has an easy access to these data on-sales, productions,
material and facilities planning, cost control, loss and profit etc.
Further the computer has made it more easy to coordinate one
function to another and easily compute the performance or the
comparison etc.
The cost of running HRD organisation
The cost of T & D activities
The cost of change achieved
The cost of conflicts avoided
The cost of material, man hour & machine hour saved
Types of Training
The companies training policy should also have the types of
training company will offer after the deification of training
needs.
The types of training can be categorized in following ways as
per the prevailing practice in industry:
Based on Technology
Technical training
Non technical (soft skills training)
Based on type of employee
For Skilled staff
For Semi Skilled staff
For Unskilled employees staff
Based on employee life cycle
Induction Training
In process Training
Value Added Training
All these types of training will be discussed with you in detail in
the next lesson.
Role of T & D in HRD
Training contributes to all attributes of HRD AND HR
Management T & D accelerates the acquisition of desired
competence as it is one of the sub system of HRD system.
Role of HRD In Organisational Development
INPUT PROCESS OUTPUT
Human Resource Role clarification Perception
Role Description Widenning Perception Moral improvement
Organisational
Structure
T & 0 process Rise in self-esteem
Cost input Group dyanamism Improved productivity
Harmonious work
Organisational Climate Development
HRD functions also take care of modifying the organisational
culture to create hygenic & motivated work environment, look
after the welfare of employees and help the organisation to
design and conduct organisational development plans Cleanli-
ness, adequate illumination and relevant help to individual to
concentrate and so the organisational health to its employee
HRD Model
SKILL + KNOWLEDGE +
ATIITUDE DEVELOPMENT
WORK CULTURE+ DEV.
PLANS + FACILITY
TRAINED AND DEVELOPED EMPLOYEE IN
SATISFACTORY WORKING CLIMATE
ORGANISATION EFFECTIVENESS
HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT PLAN
INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT
PLAN
ORGANISATIONAL
DEVELOPMENT PLAN
Training Planning
To plan training that links to organizational performance
improvement you must first identify the organizational
performance needs, gaps, and priorities. These are examples of
RESULT BEHAVIOUR ORGANISATIONAL
VALUES
MANAGERS SUPERVISORS OTHERS/EVERY
ONE
a) Optimistic and
Constructive
b) Approach
c) Mutual trust &
Support
d) Allowance for Risk
and mistakes
e) High Standards
f) Personal
growth/career
g) Plans
h) A growth Vs
Maintenance
Perspective
i) Personal pride &
respect to others
j) Loyalty Awards
Delegate and
support most of
their subordinates
Set levels of
performance and
get bet out of it
Train &
Development their
Subordinates for
succession plans
Get ready to take
more and more
challenges
Give careful thought to
task
Take initiative and
work hard
Self challenges personal
goals
Put corporate efforts to
achive goals
Learn to delegate
Refrain from open
Criticism of others
mistakes
Speak well of
Respect others and
the job
Develop
belongingness
19
typical training drivers which give rise to training needs. It is rare
to use all of these aspects in determining training needs - select
the ones which are most appropriate to your own situation, the
divers which will produce the most productive and cost-effective
results, in terms of business performance and people-develop-
ment:
Examples of Training Drivers
Customer satisfaction surveys
Business performance statistics and reports.
Financial reports and ratios.
Competitor analysis and comparision, eg SWOT analysis.
Management feedback on employee needs, including from
appraisals.
Training audits, staff assessment centres.
Staff feedback on training needs.
Director-driven policy and strategic priorities.
Legislative pressures.
Relevant qualification and certification programmes.
Use the results and indicators from the chosen driver(s) to
produce prioritised training needs per staff type, which will
logically enable staff and management to achieve improvements
required required by the organization.
Policy
Definition: Policies provide the framework within which the
decision-makers are expected to operate while making decisions
relating to the organisation. They are a guide to the thinking
and action of sub-ordinates for the purpose of achieving the
objectives of the business successfully.
According to George R Terry-Policy is a verbal, written or
implied overall guide setting up boundaries that supply the
general limits and directions in which managerial actions will
take place.
Further, according to Koontz and 0 Donnell Policies were
identified as guides to thinking in decision-making. They
assume that when decisions are made, these will fall within
certain boundaries.
From these two definitions it is clear that policies are a guide to
thinking and action of those who have to make decisions. They
also lay down the limits within which decisions have to be
made for accomplishing the enterprise objectives. They are the
basis for executive operation and provide ready answers to all
questions faced in running the enterprise. Some of the example
of policies are an enterprise may follow a policy of selling its
products only on cash basis or may adopt a policy of employing
only local people or may have a policy not to employ any person
over sixty years of age.
Characteristics of a Good Policy
The characteristics of a good policy are:
a. Policy should help in achieving the enterprises objectives. (b)
It should provide only a broad outline and leave scope to
subordinates for interpretation so that their initiative is not
hamphered.
b. It should provide only a broad outline and leaves scope to
subordinates for interoretation so that their intiatives is not
hampered.
c. Policy should not be mutually contradictory and there
should not be inconsistency between any two policies, which
may result in confusion and delay in action.
d. They should be sound, logical, flexible and should provide
guide for thinking in future planning and action. Further,
they should provide limits within which decisions have to be
made.
e. Policies should reflect internal and external business
environment.
f. Policies should be in writing and the language of the policies
should be intelligent to the persons who are supposed to
implement them and to those who are to be affected by
them.
g. Policy may originate at any level such as division level,
department level, section level,etc. A manager may formulate
policies within the limits of his authority and also within the
limits of the policy laid down by his superiors.
h. Policy starts with description of subject matter it covers, so
that there may be common understanding of the policy
among those who are to implement it.
i. Policy must be reviewed periodically and modified according
to the changed circumstances. It may be replaced by a new
policy. Periodical review of the policy makes it more
adaptable and acceptable.
Nature of Policy
1. It Serves as Broad Guides to Decision-making in a Firm-The
first step in planning is setting objectives. The next step is
formulation of policies and strategies. Policies prescribe the
most desirable ways and demand for the accomplishment of
a given objective. They may be described as plans to serve as
broad guides to decision-making in a firm.
2. It is a Continuing Decision-A policy is a continuing decision.
It remains in force and provides the answer to problems of
recurring nature till it is changed. For Example-If it is the
policy to management to fill vacancies in the organisation
from within, departmental heads need not consult or take
approval of the top executive again and again.
3. It is a Dynamic Plan-There may be so many ways to reach the
end point and the management chooses only one along
which the managers and sub-ordinates are expected to move
to reach the goals of the enterprise. Policy is not rigid like
role. It has room for discretion on the part of those who are
to be guided by them. It may be changed at anytime and
replaced by a new policy at the particular level in the
organisation at which it was originally framed.
Kinds or Types or Classification of Policies
Policies may be of different types. They can be classified on the
following basis:
20
On The Basis Of On The Basis Of On The Basis Of
a) Original
Policies
b) Appealed
Policy
c) External
Policy
(a) Production
Policies
(b) Marketing
Pollicies
(c) Financial Policy
(d) Personnel Policy
(1) Basic Policy
(2) General
Policies
(3) Departmental
Policy
1. Originated Policies-These policies are formulated by top
managers. They till sub-ordinates how to act in a given
situation and these policies have the support of
organisational authorities and the subordinates can be asked
to follow them strictly. Thus, they are basic policies.
2. Appealed Policy-If on any matter, the sub-ordinate is not
clear and has a doubt about his authority to handle a
situation and if that subject-matter is not already covered by
the existing policies, he may refer the matter for his superiors
verdict. Superiors verdict generates appealed policy and thus
becomes a guide for future action of the subordinates.
3. External or Imposed Policy-Sometimes outside agencies like
Government, trade associations, trade union etc., may also
be instrumental in the formulation of the policy by the
enterprise. For Example-If the government imposes a
condition on the enterprises to reserve a certain percentage of
jobs for the backward sections of society or for the persons
within the state.
4. Functional Policies-Policies which are formulated for various
functional areas of management are known as functional
policies.
They are-
i. Financial Policies;
ii. Production Policy;
iii. Marketing Policy;
iv. Personnel Policy.
5. Policies on the Basis of Levels-Policies formulated on this
basis may be basic policies meant to be used by top
managers, general policies meant to be used normally by
middle managers and departmental policies meant to be
used by the departmental managers or group leaders etc.
Formulation of Policies
The formulation of policies takes place at various organisational
levels.Some basic and important policies are developed by the
top management while some are developed at middle level,
management level. Following are some important consider-
ations which should be taken into consideration while
formulating the various policies:
1. Policies should be based on facts and not on guess work or
intuition
2 To ensure successful implementation of policy, joint
participation in policy-making should be encouraged. It
means before formulating policies top manager in the
organisation must consult the persons who are likely to be
affected by them and are supposed to implement them.
3. It should be broad, general and basic not specific because
they are guide to thinking and action. They should not lay
down the detailed procedure of doing activities.
4. It must reflect the internal and external business
environment. There must be an element of stability in them.
It does not however, mean that they must not be changed.
If there is a change in conditions on which these policies
were based. Rigidities should be avoided to make policies
realistic.
5. Policies should be in writing and the language of the policies
should be intelligible to those who are supposed to
implement them.
6. Different policies in the organisation should support one
another. The must be in conformity with and not conflict
with one another.
7. Policies should have general social objectives. They must not
be detrimental to the interest of society, otherwise their
implementation would be difficult.
8. Policies should be taught. Organisation members must
understand them. Policies become meaningless if they are
not endorsed by the person who are to be affected by them
Factors Influencing Policy Determination
There are internal and external factors which influence the policy
determination and they are as follows:
A. The Internal Factors
1. The Organisational Goals and Strategies: policies must be
consistent with and contribute to organisational goals and
strategies. Infact, policies are meant to operationalise and
implement organisational goals and strategies.
2. Managerial Values: organisational policies are influenced to
a great extent by the way in which managers perceive realities
as also managerial reliefs of what is good and what is not.
Managers, are considered as prime movers of organisations
half their own systems of personal values (for example
honesty and truth in advertising) perceptions and
preferences.
3. Organisational Resources: this resources, like finance,
manpower, physical equipment and so on determine the
capabilities and constraints of the organisation and they
provide a basis for determination of policies. For Example-
A competent managerial team is able to formulate a bold
and dynamic set of policies and cut through obstacles in
their implementation.
4. Organisational Structure: it provides the basis for all
managerial process including policy determination, by
delimiting activities and authority roles and relationships and
by providing needed staff support for exploration and
development of policy options.
5. Organisational Politics: it has been seen that human
organisation cannot escape from being affected to some
extent from internal power, dynamics and politics, rivalry for
authority, status, influence, scarce resources, as also
personality clashes, vested interests, jealousies and so on.
Policy determination in organisation is also a political process
21
of sub-optimisation, compromises tight-rope walking and
so on.
B. External Factors
1. Socio-Political Factors: several groups in society are directly
and indirectly interested in and affected by the functioning of
organisations. They tend to exert some influence directly and
through their representatives in government on
organisations in their policy determination. For Example
Groups which advocate environmental safety, may pressurize
manufacturing enterprises .to go in for an antipollution
policy. Government may bring in legislation to ensure
product, safety and quality.
2. Product Market Factors: every organisation,whether
business or non-business, has something to offer to society
and has its own own clientele group of users. The policies
determined by the individual organisation have to reflect the
needs and expectations of its clientele group as also the
conditions and behaviour of the product-market
environment. For example-In the case of a business
enterprise, the characteristics of its product market nature of
demand and competition. type of customers, structure of
industry and so on; influence its marketing policies in
particular and other policies in general.
3. Resource Market Factors: organisations draw their input
requirements from society and the external environment.
Therefore, the nature and behaviour of markets for the
organisations resources tend to behave an unmistakable
influence on policy determination, for example, personnel
policy, financial policy, purchase policy and so on.
Case Regarding Policies
Functional Policies Relating to East India Hotels
Limited.
The case relates to a hotel namely East India Hotels Limited
which own the Oberoi group of Hotels in the country. Within a
very short period of time this hotel became number one hotel
company in the private sector, because he followed and adopted
the growth strategy and following policies.
1. Locational policies: the locational policy suggests that
hotels should be located in the busy area of the city. But the
hotel located in the busy part of the city may involve higher
limited costs and will be beneficial from long-term point of
view. Further its policy should be to construct or acquire
hotels of having rooms within the range of 300 to 550.
2. Foods and Beverages: it should be the policy of the hotel
company to serve foods and beverages of high quality with
right blending. Its basic policy should be to keep or to attach
at least one foreign cook or chef to each hotel to cater needs
of foreign tourists. .
3. Servicing: as we are aware that hotel is a service industry
therefore, the company should adopt the service of
personalised service. Every person who comes to the hotel
be treated as the guest of the hotel. It is essential that an
attempt be made to develop sense of belongingness among
the customer by emphasising the concept of Our Hotel
instead of my hotel
4. Policy regarding room charges: it should be the policy of
the company to keep the room rent high in which 70 to 80
percent rooms should be let out at lower price and the
remaining to individuals be at higher prices.
5. Financing: it should be the policy of the company to do
business without involving financial institutions. The right
thing will be to work first with its own money and them to
get public money in the form of deposits and debentures.
In order to avoid interest burden the policy should be to
collect dues if any at a faster rate and paying the outstanding
if any.
6. Personnel: selection of Personnel: The company should
form a policy of selecting the best available personnel and
training and developing them into the best suitable way.
Therefore, the selection procedure of the company should be
rigorous and in training, the person must be taught tricks of
the trade; and the right type of attitude may be inculcated in
the person towards the business to make it popular and
profitable.
Employee will have to go through 2 weeks of Induction
program after joining.
Appraisals will be done 6 monthly and Head of department
will be responsible for appraisees performance and
Identification of training needs
7. The company must adopt the policy of decentralisation
and delegation: as the hotel in headed by a general manager
who enjoys various authorities including the financial
authority, each Hotel is considered as an independent unit
and the general manager can make any decision within the
overall framework of the hotel management and hotel rules
and laws. Each hotel manager is delegated with the authority
to spend 5 to 7 percent of revenue from his hotel over the
essential expenditure of the hotel. To keep hotel neat, clean,
tidy and attractive.
Potential Conflict Between HR/Training Function
And Business Management
Typically conflict needs managing between HR or training
departments and performance management functions within
the business. This is caused simply by the different aims of the
departments, and needs understanding and cooperation on
both sides in order to achieve successful training needs assess-
ment, training design, planning, delivery and optimal take-up
and implementation.
most relevantly- management resisting release of staff for
training due to day-to-day work demands
culturally - short-term needs of performance management vs
long-term outlook of HR
HR have no line authority over trainees therefore cannot
control training take-up
Training is rarely well followed-through once delegates are
back in jobs, despite HR efforts to achieve this via managers
HR budgets are often cut if profits come under pressure
22
Points to Ponder
Design Learner-Friendly
Training Manuals
1. Reproduce visuals, and provide space
to take notes
Difficult to copy a visual and absorb key
messages.
Reproduce visual image on paper
Trainees can have more time to listen and to
take notes
Intro
Everyone knows a presenter has to dress to
conduct a class. And why?
The appearance of presentation materials is
important as well
Computers, color monitors, high-quality laser
printers
Documents that were considered acceptable
several years ago.
Here are some ways (10) training professionals
can enhance the look of their handouts and their
own image at the same time.
2. Use charts and graphs to reinforce key
messages
Graphics improve the comprehension of underlying
principles and maintain a viewers interest.
Modern word-processing programs support most common
business graphics.
Bar charts
Pie charts
More detailed line drawings and photos images can be
imported
Example: Service and operations manuals
23
3. Design training materials to be convenient
reference tools
Important that the manuals organization
and indexing method are easy to look up
specific subjects.
Most training materials will be used for
subsequent reference beside during the
course
4. Use color to accelerate learning
Color is the ideal companion to all training materials.
Market research: color can increase learning and retention by u to 78%
It also increases readership by 40%
Color can be costly
It does not mean to produce full-color images on every page of the
document.
Intelligent way of using color can achieve all benefits at an affordable,
incremental cost.
Example: printing chapter headings in a color.
Or highlight key sentences in a single color so viewers
can easily find the key points.
5. Customize content as much as possible
Each training manual should contain materials
specific to the topic or employees responsibilities.
Modem network printing options make it possible
to generate high-quality materials in extremely
small quantities
With todays desktop PC make it fast and easy to
cut and paste content electronically
Remember in the case of training materials, bigger
is not better!
6. Put the recipients name on the cover
Put Attendees name on the cover of a manual or booklet
Make attendee value and use the manual more.
Send messages that the company views each participant as
an individual.
Personalized approach is especially important for middle and upper
level managers.
24
7. Develop a guide for presenters
A separate guide for facilitators provides helpful prompts
and ensures that all presenters use a consistent approach.
Facilitator guide should occupy two-thirds of the page with
visuals.
Remaining third lists prompts and key messages to
accompany each visual
Participant workbook is created from the facilitator guide
bye eliminating the prompts to allow space for notes.
8. Make manual covers distinctive
Many employees have several
manuals on their desk.
The cover and spine marking
should quickly distinguish the
content of each manual
Example: Home depot, cover
designs and color-coded
spine markings distinguish
one type of manual from
another.
9. Choose a binding method thats durable and
convenient
Companies are switching from
three-ring binders to spiral
binding for smaller booklets.
Participants say.. Spiral-bound
books are lighter and easier to
use.
Large manuals binders are
still the favorite choice because
they last longer.
10. Make sure your supplier can
accommodate last-minute changes
Digital printing systems let presenters make changes to
materials up to a day or hours before a class is held
Allowing a week for production is no longer necessary.
In general, suppliers should be able to support one or two-
day turnaround on routine jobs
25
Conclusion
Successful trainers use modern technology like the digital
printing systems to improve the content and appearance of
training materials. By putting in a few more dollars, a
company can earn respect of internal and external
customers by having a professional manuals and handouts.
Activity and Assignments
1. Explain various types of training.
2. What is Training Manual.
3. You are HRD Manager employed in BPO. The Company
undergoing expansion plans. And going to employ about
1500 employees in near future. Your CEO had Design
Training Manual.
26
Dear Friends,
This following lesson is going to explain you
What is Learning?
What are various styles of learning
What is the process of learning.
What are various theories of learning.
What are principles of learning.
And how learning can be made more effective.
And hence you will be able to apply the above for live training
session.
Introduction
Before we discuss about learning and learning styles let us first
understand how does knowledge of learning going to effect the
training.
Now we already know the TRAINING IS LEARNING
PROCESS so understanding learning in detail will let us know
how training can be more effective. By the end of this session
you will be able to apply the concept of learning for training.
What is Learning?
Learning has been defined as a relatively permanent change in
behavioral potentiality that occurs as a result of reinforced
practice. The following elaborates on this basic definition:
Learning is indexed by a change in behavior, which must be
translated into observable behavior. After learning, learners
are capable of performing something that they could not do
before the learning experience.
This change is relatively permanent, it is neither transitory
nor fixed.
The change in behavior need not occur immediately
following the learning experience. Although there may be a
potential to act differently, this potential may not be
translated into a new behavior immediately.
The change in behavior results from experience or practice.
The experience or practice must be reinforced.
Learning a subject seems to involve three almost
simultaneous processes:
First, there is acquisition of new information - often
information that runs counter to or is a replacement for what
the person has previously known.
A second aspect of learning may be called transformation -
the process of manipulating knowledge to make it fit new
tasks. Transformation comprises the ways we deal with
information in order to go beyond it.
A third aspect of learning is evaluation - checking whether
the way we have manipulated information is adequate to the
task.
Also, there is more than one type of learning. A committee
of colleges and universities studied learning behaviors and
broke learning into three main domains or Taxonomies.
Knowing the type of knowledge, skill, or attitude that is
discussed in the taxonomy will assist you in determining the
instructional strategy.
Learning Styles
Just as every person is unique, so is every learner. But how
much this uniqueness matters has been a great debate among
educators, trainers, and psychologists. A learning style is a
students consistent way of responding to and using stimuli in
the context of learning. Some say that each student learns best
using a learning strategy or method that best matches his or her
need. While others say that what matters the most is the
learning process, not the style. The research tends to favor the
latter group. Achieving a solid learning environment that meets
the students need, rather than their styles seems to be the most
important key for effective learning.
The Learning Process
While learning styles show that we are all different, the learning
process shows how and why we learn something. This,
perhaps, is even more important than addressing the various
learning styles. Although people have a preferred style, they can
still learn under almost any style. While various learning styles
can make it easier or harder for a person to master a subject, if
the learning process is not in place, it makes that subject almost
unachievable.
Choose Delivery System
The instructional and support material that will provide the
most effective learning stimulus are specified in this step. Care
should be taken not to select materials just because they are
available. For example, there are probably several hundred VCR
instructional tapes floating around that were developed, not
because it was the best media for the instruction to be pre-
sented, but because a camera and VCR were readily available.
The purpose in this step is not to show your mastery of the
latest whiz-bang technology, but to select media that will best
magnify the learning process. When determining the media best
suited to train the objective consider:
The instructional setting: What type of setting is required?
Is it up to date or does it have to be modified? If the
instructors and learners have to travel to the sight, what
materials must they bring?
Media characteristics: What is the best media for this type
of instruction? How must the media be obtained? Must we
produce it? If so, do we have the technical expertise?
Instructional material: Can it be developed within the
proposed budget? What are the constraining factors for
producing this material? Will the technology likely change
before the proposed training material can be produced?
LESSON 4
LEARNING AND LEARNING STYLES
27
Time: What are the critical time factors involved? When and
how many learners must be trained by a given time? Is there
more than one group to be trained and how closely will each
group follow?
Instructors: Are they qualified for this type of instruction?
Must a Train The Trainer class be given to bring the
instructors up to par? How long will it take to bring them
up to par? How many instructors are available for this
instruction?
Each type of instructional material has certain points to
consider:
Job Performance Aid: Do people just need simple
reminders or a list of steps for performing a task?
Technical manual: Is the manual already available? If so,
must additional material be developed to enhance the
manual for instructional purposes?
Decals: How big? What color? Where exactly must they be
placed? Must briefings be given about the decal?
Flowcharts and schematics: Should these be decals? Where
must they be placed so that people will use them?
Self Teaching Package: Are books and manuals available?
Are they geared to the students educational level? Are the
workers motivated to learn on their own?
Programmed text: At what level must it be? Is additional
instruction needed?
Multimedia computer programs: This type of instruction
takes a great deal of time and resources to develop. What
must be done to complete it in time and within budget?
After it is developed, for how long of a time period will it be
valid?
Computer Aided Instruction: Do we have the authoring
tools available? Do we have training specialist who can
develop the instruction with the authoring tools or must
they be instructed in the new media?
Personalized Instruction: Are coaches readily available to
aid the learners. What goals need to be established and how
will the learners obtain them?
On-The-Job Training: Are the supervisors ready to take on
the task of providing training and coaching? Must they be
instructed in On-The-Job learning packages? Do they have
the time? Are trainers needed for this type of training? If so,
what will be their role?
Resident Instruction: in-house: Do we have instructors
who can perform this type of training? Contract Training:
Will it be given at our location or a separate location? What
sort of time frame is involved?
Lockstep or self pace: Self pace is generally consider better in
most cases because it allows each learner to proceed at her or
his own pace, but it is more difficult to manage than lockstep
and usually requires more instructors because of the wide
range of variables that take place within the learning
environment.
Develop Instruction
Only after all the preplanning has been accomplished, is it time
to start developing the instructional material. Developing
different forms of courseware requires a certain about of skill
and art.
Synthesize
When developing the training material and media, ensure that it
is synthesized into an integrated program. It should flow as
naturally as possible, with each lesson block building the
foundation for the next one. Provide variety that is conductive
to learning. Break practice periods up with instructional periods,
rather than having all the instruction in the beginning followed
by nothing but practice.
Time will have to be consider when synthesizing the complete
learning program. For example, if you have five, 3 hour blocks
of instruction, how do you break them down to run smoothly
in two days? Which one gets chopped to two hours one day
and one hour the next day. Will it have an effect on learning?
Must the blocks run in order or can you switch them so the
least difficult block gets broken apart. Will it be better to break
the most difficult one apart so the learners get a respite from the
toils of hard learning? Since most workdays are eight hours and
your program totals 15 hours, what should be done with the
one additional hour that will best benefit the organization?
In the U.S. Army Artillery there is a firing method known as the
bracketing process. Fire and adjust! Fire and adjust! This process
is continued until there is fire for effect, and then adjusted again
until the target is hit!
Developing effective courseware is the same. Train and adjust!
Train and adjust! Continue with the SAT process until the
training is no longer needed or until the training courseware is
the best piece of training material produced and then some!
Validate Instruction
The last step is to validate the material by using representative
samples of the target population and then revising the program
as needed. The heart of the systems approach to training is
revising and validating the instructional material until the
learners meet the planned learning objectives. Also, it should
not be thought of as a single shot affair. Success or failure is not
measured at a single point.
The initial validation will depend upon the complexity of the
training material and your resources. Listed below is a procedure
that provides an effective validation of a large training program.
Adjust it as needed to fit the size and complexity of your
program, but keep in mind that the closer your validation
follows this one, the less problems you will encounter during
your training.
Select the participants that will be in the trials. The participants
should be randomly selected, but they must represent all strata
of the target population, bright, average, and slow learners.
They should be clearly told what their roles are in the validation
process are. Let them know that they are helping to develop and
improve the lessons and that they should feel free to tell you
what they think about it. The participants should be pretested
to ensure that the students learn from the instructional material
and not from past experience.
28
Conduct individual trials. This trial is performed on one learner
at a time. The instruction is presented to the learner. The
separate pieces of instructions, tests, practice periods, etc.,
should be timed to ensure they match the estimated times. Do
not tutor unless the learner cannot understand the directions.
Whenever you help or observe the learner having difficulty with
the material, document it.
Revise instruction. Using the documents from the individual
trials, revise the material as needed. Closely go over any evalua-
tions that were administered. A large number of wrong
answers for an item indicates a trouble area. Conversely, a large
number of correct answers for an item could indicate the
learners already knew the material, the test items were too easy,
or the lessons over taught the material.
Repeat individual trials until the lesson does what it is sup-
posed to do. There is no magical number for individual trials.
From three to five times seems to be the usual number. Also, if
you are trialing a large course, you might only need to trial
specific troublesome areas of the course, rather than the whole
course itself.
Conduct group trial. After you are satisfied with the results of
the individual tryouts, move on to the group tryouts. These can
be of any size. It may consist of several small groups, one large
group, or a combination of both. The procedure is the same as
the individual tryouts except for one difference. At some point
in the trials you must determine if the program needs to be
accepted or if it needs major revision. Usually a minimum of
two successful tryouts are conducted to ensure the program
teaches. Minor problems should not hold up implementing the
program. As was stated earlier in this section, revisions do not
stop upon the first implementation of the program, but are
performed throughout the life of the program
Learning Styles
Or, How We Go From the Unknown to the Known
A learning style is a students consistent way of responding to
and using stimuli in the context of learning. There are various
instruments used to determine a students learning style. The
first style to be discussed is VAK (Visual, Auditory, Kines-
thetic), which is derived from the accelerated learning world, and
seems to be about the most popular model nowadays. Its main
strength is that it is quite simple, which appeals to a lot of
people. Its main weakness, is that the research does not really
support it.
Kolbs learning inventory describes a learning process and a
style, which makes it quite interesting. It can be thought of as a
simpler version of the MBTI which is based upon determining
the personality type. Kolbs version uses two dimensions, while
the MBTI uses two similar dimensions, plus two additional
ones.
Howard Gardners Multiple Intelligences seems to provide the
most promising outlook for diversifying learning.
Warning: These various learning styles or intelligences are
points along a scale that help us to discover the different forms
of mental representation; they are not good characterizations of
what people are (or are not) like. We should not divide the
population into a set category (e.g. visual person, extrovert).
What these various instruments are doing is allocating the
person along some point on a continuum (similar to measur-
ing height or weight). In other words, do not pigeon-hole
people as we are all capable of learning under any style or
intelligence no matter what our preference is.
Kolb Learning Styles
David Kolbs Learning Styles model
David Kolb developed this learning styles model in 1984.
Kolbs learning styles model is based on two lines of axis
(continuums): our approach to a task - (preferring to do or
watch), and our emotional response (preferring to think or
feel). The theory sets out these four preferences, which are also
possible different learning methods:
doing (active experimentation)
watching (reflective observation)
feeling (concrete experience)
thinking (abstract conceptualisation)
These learning styles characteristics are normally shown as two
lines of axis. The east-west axis is called the Processing Con-
tinuum (how we approach a task), and the north-south axis is
called the Perception Continuum (our emotional response, or
how we think or feel). This also describes four different learning
styles (and also methods):
The combination of where our preference lies on each axis
produces four possible learning style types:
activist (doing and feeling preferences, or concrete-active)
reflector (watching and doing, or concrete-reflective)
theorist (watching and thinking, or abstract-reflective)
pragmatist (thinking and doing, or abstract-active)
Knowing a persons (and your own) learning style enables
learning to be orientated according to the preferred method.
That said, everyone responds to and needs the stimulus of all
types of learning style - its a matter of using emphasis that fits
best with a persons learning style preferences:
activist - hands-on, relies on intuition rather than logic, uses
other peoples analysis, and likes practical, experiential
approach.
29
reflector (watching and doing, or concrete-reflective) - able
to look at things from different perspectives, sensitive,
prefers to watch rather than do it, gathers information and
uses imagination to solve problems.
theorist (watching and thinking, or abstract-reflective) -
concise, logical approach, ideas and concepts are more
important than people, requires good clear explanation rather
than practical opportunity.
pragmatist (thinking and doing, or abstract-active) - can
solve problems and will use learning to apply to finding
solutions to practical issues, prefers technical tasks, less
concerned with people and interpersonal aspects.
For instance - dont expect theorists to be comfortable being
thrown in at the deep end without notes and instructions.
Conversely, activists may become frustrated if unable to get
hands on experience as soon as possible.
As with any other model, this is a guide, not an absolute set of
rules.
VAK Learning Styles
The VAK learning Style uses the three main sensory receivers -
Vision, Auditory, and Kinesthetic (movement) to determine
the dominate learning style.
Learners use all three to receive information. However, one or
more of these receiving styles is normally dominant. This
dominant style defines the best way for a person to learn new
information by filtering what is to be learned. This style may
not always to be the same for some tasks. The learner may
prefer one style of learning for one task, and a combination of
others for another task.
Classically, our learning style is forced upon us through life like
this: In grades kindergarten to third, new information is
presented to us kinesthetically; grades 4 to 8 are visually
presented; while grades 9 to college and on into the business
learning environment, information is presented to us auditory
by lectures.
As trainers, we need to present information using all three
styles. This allows all learners, no matter what their preferred
style is, the opportunity to become involved. It also allows a
learner to be presented with the other two methods of
reinforcement. Just because we prefer one style, does not mean
that the other two do us no good. On the contrary, they help us
to learn even faster by reinforcing the material. Some hints for
recognizing and implementing the three styles are:
Auditory learners often talk to themselves. They also may move
their lips and read out loud. They may have difficulty with
reading and writing tasks. They often do better talking to a
colleague or a tape recorder and hearing what was said. To
integrate this style into the learning environment:
Begin new material with a brief explanation of what is
coming. Conclude with a summary of what has been
covered. This is the old adage of tell them what they are
going to lean, teach them, and tell them what they have
learned.
Use the Socratic method of lecturing by questioning learners
to draw as much information from them as possible and
then fill in the gaps with your own expertise.
Include auditory activities, such as brainstorming, buzz
groups, or Jeopardy.
Leave plenty of time to debrief activities. This allows them
to make connections of what they leaned and how it applies
to their situation.
Have the learners verbalize the questions.
Develop an internal dialogue between yourself and the
learners.
Visual learners have two subchannels - linguistic and spatial.
Learners who are visual-linguistic like to learn through
written language, such as reading and writing tasks. They
remember what has been written down, even if they do not
read it more than once. They like to write down directions
and pay better attention to lectures if they watch them.
Learners who are visual-spatial usually have difficulty with
written language and do better with charts, demonstrations,
videos, and other visual materials. They easily visualize faces
and places by using their imagination and seldom get lost in
new surroundings. To integrate this style into the learning
environment:
Use graphs, charts, illustrations, or other visual aids.
30
Include outlines, agendas, handouts, etc. for reading and
taking notes.
Include plenty of content in handouts to reread after the
learning session.
Leave white space in handouts for note taking.
Invite questions to help them stay alert in auditory
environments.
Post flip charts to show what will come and what has been
presented.
Emphasize key points to cue when to takes notes.
Eliminate potential distractions.
Supplement textual information with illustrations whenever
possible.
Have them draw pictures in the margins.
Show diagrams and then explain them.
Have the learners envision the topic or have them act out the
subject matter.
Kinesthetic learners do best while touching and moving. It also
has two subchannels - kinesthetic (movement) and tactile
(touch) They tend to lose concentration if there is little or no
external stimulation or movement. When listening to lectures
they may want to take notes. When reading, they like to scan the
material first, and then focus in on the details (get the big
picture first). They typically use color highlighters and take notes
by drawing pictures, diagrams, or doodling. To integrate this
style into the learning environment:
Use activities that get the learners up and moving.
Play music, when appropriate, during activities.
Use colored markers to emphasize key points on flipcharts or
white boards.
Give frequent stretch breaks (brain breaks).
Provide toys such as Koosh balls and Play-Dough to give
them something to do with their hands.
To highlight a point, provide gum, candy, scents, etc. which
provides a cross link of scent (aroma) to the topic at hand
(scent can be a powerful cue).
Provide highlighters, colored pens and/or pencils.
Guide learners through a visualization of complex tasks.
Have them transfer information from the text to another
medium such as a keyboard or a tablet.
Carl Jung and Myers Briggs Type
Indicator (MBTI)
During the early 1900s, Carl Jung established a field identifying
distinct personality patterns. Many theorists have since broken
these patterns into categories attempting to make them easier to
understand. Carl Jung was a contemporary of Sigmund Freud
and a leading exponent of Gestalt personality theory. Jung
developed a ground-breaking personality theory that introduced
two attitudes - extraversion and introversion (1933a). Later he
described human behavior as a combination of four psychic
functions - thinking/feeling and intuition/sensation (1933b).
Thinking and feeling are said to be rational functions because
they both require acts of judgments. Sensation and intuition
involve immediate experiences. The MBTI, Kolbs Learning
Style Inventory, Managerial Grid, and a number of other
instruments all use a form of extraversion/introversion. His
four other functions are also closely tied with these instruments.
The most widely used personality survey instrument is the
Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), followed closely by the
DiSC assessment (Carlson Learning). The MBTI can be an aid
in understanding the individual differences. This is why it is
more complicated than the other models discussed here, since
they are strictly learning models why the MBTI is a personality
model. However, our personality does play an important part in
determining our learning style. And it does tie in within the
other models so we will discuss its part in the the learning
process.
Scores obtained from the MBTI indicate a persons preference
on each of four dichotomous dimensions:
Extroversion (E) versus Introversion (I) [similar to two
dimensional behavioral models and Kolbs Learning Style
Inventory]
Sensing (S) versus iNtuition (N)
Thinking (T) versus Feeling (F) [similar to two dimensional
behavioral models and Kolbs Learning Style Inventory]
Judging (J) versus Perceptive (P)
1. Extroversion (E) versus Introversion (I)
This indicates whether a learner prefers to direct attention
towards the external world of people and things or toward the
internal world of concepts and ideas. This preference tells us
from where people get their energy.
Introverts find energy in the inner world of ideas, concepts, and
abstractions. They can be sociable but need tranquility to regain
their energy. They want to understand the world; they concen-
trate and the tend to be reflective thinkers. They think more
than talk. Introverted learners want to develop frameworks that
integrate or connect the information that they learn, this
becomes knowledge is the interconnection of the material and
to see a global view.
Extroverts find energy in things and people. They prefer
interaction with others, and tend to be action-oriented. They
also tend to think on their feet. They talk more than listen.
Extroverted learners learn by teaching others. They do not
normally understand the subject until they try to explain it to
themselves or others (working in groups). Problem Based
Learning and Collaborative Learning are good teaching tech-
niques for this group.
2. Sensing (S) versus iNtuition (N)
This indicates whether a learner prefers to perceive the world by
directly observing the surrounding reality or through impres-
sions and imagining possibilities.
Sensing people choose to rely on their five senses. They are
detail-oriented, they want facts, and they trust them. Sensing
learners prefer organized, linear, and structured lectures (system-
atic instruction or step-by-step learning).
Intuitive people seek out patterns and relationships among the
facts they have gathered. They trust hunches (sixth sense) and
their intuition and look for the big picture. They also value
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imagination and innovation. Intuitive learners prefer various
forms of discovery learning and must have the big picture
(metaphors and analogies), or an integrating framework in
order to understand a subject. They like concept maps or and
often compare and contrast tables.
3. Thinking (T) versus Feeling (F)
This indicates how the learner makes decisions, either through
logic or by using fairness and human values.
Thinkers decide things impersonally based on analysis, logic,
and principle. They value fairness - focusing on the situations
logic, and placing great weight on objective criteria in making a
decision. They naturally see flaws and tend to be critical.
Thinking learners prefer clear goal and objectives. They want to
see precise, action-oriented cognitive, affective and psychomotor
objective. They also want to know what they have to do to learn
the material.
Feelers value harmony by focusing on human values. They
focus on human values and needs as they make decisions or
arrive at judgments. They tend to be good at persuasion and
facilitating differences among group members. They value
empathy and harmony. Feeling learners enjoy the small group
exercises, especially harmonious groups.
4. Judging (J) versus Perceptive (P)
This indicates how the learner views the world, either as a
structured and planned environment or as a spontaneous
environment.
Judging people are decisive, self-starters and self-regimented.
They also focus on completing the task, knowing the essentials,
and they take action quickly. They plan their work and work their
plan. Deadlines are sacred as they see time as a finite resource.
Judging learners need tools that help them to plan their work
and work their plan. They want guides that give quick tips. They
can be encouraged by offering self-improvement.
Perceptive learners are curious, adaptable, and spontaneous.
They start many tasks, want to know everything about each
task, and often find it difficult to complete a task. Deadlines are
meant to be stretched while more information is gathered as
they see time as a renewable resource. They like to leave their
options open. Perceptive learners often postpone doing an
assignment until the last minute. They are not lazy, they are
merely seeking information up to the very last minute. Breaking
down a complex project into a series of sub-assignments and
providing deadlines will keep perceptive learners on target. Also
they are often process oriented (emphasis is on how the task is
completed) and will easily adapt as long as they know the how.
MBTI Model
The MBTI model would have two dimensions - height and
width, similar to Kolbs and other models, but it would also a
third dimension - depth. Extroversion/Introversion would be
on the horizontal axis, while Feeling/Thinking would be on the
vertical axis. This is represented by the model below.

MBTI Model
The depth (third dimension) of Extroversion/Introversion
(EI) would be Judging/Perceptive (JP). This might be thought
of as how much time (JP) we are willing to stick to a task (EI)
rather it be actively engaging in it or reflecting on it.
The depth (third dimension) of Feeling/Thinking (FT) would
be Sensing/iNtuition (SN). This might be thought of as using
our various senses, to include our sixth sense (SN) when
thinking or feeling (FT) about a subject.
although they are not necessarily dependent on each other,
these intelligences seldom operate in isolation. Every normal
individual possesses varying degrees of each of these intelli-
gences, but the ways in which intelligences combine and blend
are as varied as the faces and the personalities of individuals.
- Howard Gardner
Multiple Intelligences
Howard Gardner theorized that there are multiple intelligences,
and that we all use one or two for the most effective learning.
Our culture teach, test, reinforce and reward primarily two kinds
of intelligence: verbal/linguistic and logical/mathematical. His
theory proposes that there are at least eight other kinds of
intelligence that are equally important. They are languages that
most people speak, and that cut through cultural, educational,
and ability differences.
The mind is not comprised of a single representation or a
single language of representations. Rather, we harbor numer-
ous internal representations in our minds. Some scholars speak
of modules of mind, some of a society of mind, in this
case it is multiple intelligences. They include
Verbal Linguistic intelligence (sensitive to the meaning and
order of words as in a poet). Use activities that involve
hearing, listening, impromptu or formal speaking, tongue
twisters, humor, oral or silent reading, documentation,
creative writing, spelling, journal, poetry.
32
Logical-mathematical intelligence (able to handle chains of
reasoning and recognize patterns and orders as in a scientist).
Use activities that involve abstract symbols/formulas,
outlining, graphic organizers, numeric sequences, calculation,
deciphering codes, problem solving.
Musical intelligence (sensitive to pitch, melody, rhythm, and
tone as in a composer). Use activities that involve audio tape,
music recitals, singing on key, whistling, humming,
environmental sounds, percussion vibrations, rhythmic
patterns, music composition, tonal patterns.
Spatial intelligence (perceive the world accurately and try to
re-create or transform aspects of that world as in a sculptor
or airplane pilot). Use activities that involve art, pictures,
sculpture, drawings, doodling, mind mapping, patterns/
designs, color schemes, active imagination, imagery, block
building.
Bodily Kinesthetic intelligence (able to use the body
skillfully and handle objects adroitly, as in an athlete or
dancer). Use activities that involve role playing, physical
gestures, drama, inventing, ball passing, sports games,
physical exercise, body language, dancing.
Interpersonal intelligence (understand people and
relationship as in a salesman or teacher). learners think by
bouncing ideas off of each other (socializers who are people
smart). Use activities that involve group projects, division of
labor, sensing others motives, receiving/giving feedback,
collaboration skills.
Intrapersonal intelligence (possess access to ones emotional
life as a means to understand oneself and others exhibited
by individuals with accurate views of themselves). Use
activities that involve emotional processing, silent reflection
methods, thinking strategies, concentration skills, higher
order reasoning, centering practices, meta-cognitive
techniques.
Naturalist (connected to the intricacies and subtleties in
nature such as Charles Darwin and Meriwether Lewis of
Lewis and Clark fame). Use activities that involve bringing
the outdoors into the class, relating to the natural world,
charting, mapping changes, observing wildlife, keeping
journals or logs.
According to multiple intelligences theory, not only do all
individuals possess numerous mental representations and
intellectual languages, but individuals also differ from one
another in the forms of these representations, their relative
strengths, and the ways in which (and ease with which) these
representations can be changed.
Putting the Styles Together
First, it should be noted that no single measurement of style
ensures that a learners needs will be met. It is perhaps more
important to build an adaptable learning environment that
presents the material in a variety of methods than try to
determine each learners personal style. Likewise, recognizing
your own style will help to ensure you do not unintentionally
force one learning style upon the learners. The more styles you
address, the easier the instruction will be received by the learners.
This is because you will be striving to reach their needs, not
yours. Also, material presented in a variety of methods keeps
the learners interested and reinforces itself.
Learning styles come from three schools of thought: Perceptual
Modality, Information Processing, and Personality Patterns
(Conner & Hodgins, 2000).
Perceptual Modality are biologically-based reactions to the
physical environment. It refers to the primary way our bodies
take in information, such as auditory, visual, smell, kinesthetic,
and tactile. Learning style:
VAK - Notice that this style does not really worry about the
why of learning styles.
Information Processing distinguishes between the way we
think, solve problems, and remember information. This may
be thought of as the way our brain processes information.
Learning style:
The first part of Kolbs Learning Style Inventory in which he
describes the process of learning.
Personality Models are the way we interact with our surround-
ings. Each of us has a preferred, consistent, distinct way of
perceiving, organizing, and retaining information. This is due to
the way we were brought up (environment or nurture) and the
genes (DNA or nature) within us. This may be thought of as
the ego within us, or what makes us what we are. Learning
styles:
The second part of Kolbs Learning Style Inventory in which
he describes individual learning styles.
MBTI.
Howard Gardners Multiple Intelligences.
All of these models can be thought of as a Mandala - a Sanskrit
word for magical circle. It is one of the oldest religious
symbols and is found throughout the world. Although it is
normally circular in appearance, it can take on a variety of forms.
Jung found the mandala symbol occurring spontaneously in
the dreams and images of his patients. He thought of it as a
symbol of wholeness that can aid us in integrating our
personality. While several of the styles presented here are
33
represented by various forms of crosses and circles, all the styles
and models have one thing in common, they are an attempt to
minimalize the complexity of an extremely multifaceted subject.
It is only by slicing through behaviors one step at a time, such
as how we learn through these simple models, will we ever have
a chance of understanding our whole learning styles.
This is why these models do not fully explain how we learn and
at the same time are both right and wrong. Learning is an
extremely complex process. These models tend to simplify the
process (which is a starting point in understanding a complex
process). Also, each one tends to tackle something different in
the learning environment by taking a small slice out of it. It is
only by looking at these various slices and others will we ever
begin to understand the whole learning process.
Activity and Assignments:
1. Write what do you understand by learning.
2. Which learning styles as per you is the best.
3. Define learning? Explain the principles of learning.
4. List down in what styles do people learn.
Collection of Articles
Aspects of Learning
Modern Learnig Methods
E Learning
Reflections On e-Learning
The day is coming when the work done by correspondence will
be greater in amount than that done in the classrooms of our
academies and colleges.
William Rainey Harper,
distance-education pioneer
and president of the
University of Chicago.
The next big killer applica-
tion for the Internet is
going to be education.
Education over the
Internet is going to be so
big it is going to make
email usage look like a
rounding error. - John
Chambers, president and
CEO of Cisco Systems.
The first quote was
predicted by William
Harper in 1885. The second
was delivered by Cisco's
John Chambers in 2000 (of course, Cisco is not the company it
once was). It seems as if every new media winds up as training's
new darling. Trainers blame their present tools and readily
embrace a new technology.
But in reality, these same trainers do not define performance
problems and solutions in the required detail, hence, they go in
quest of a magical silver bullet...unfortunately, there is no silver
bullet at the end of the trail.
I do believe in the validly of e-learning, otherwise, why would I
post this document on the internet? Secondly, I'm sure you, the
reader, also believes in the validity of e-learning, otherwise, why
would you be reading this document?
But, there is great deal of hype, both on and off the internet,
of e-learning being the next great savior of training, develop-
ment, and education. This paper will look at both the hype and
the validity of e-learning.
The Three Views of e-Learning
Electronic
e-Learning (electronic learning), as defined by ASTD, covers a
wide set of applications and processes such as Web-based
learning, computer-based learning, virtual classrooms, and
digital collaboration. It includes the delivery of content via
Internet, intranet/extranet (LAN/WAN), audio- and videotape,
satellite broadcast, interactive TV, and CD-ROM.
Internet
But like the term training, different organizations and different
people have their own definitions. Some of the sources listed in
this report believe it is learning through the internet only. For
34
example, Cisco defines it as the "online delivery of information,
communication, education, and training.
In BEYOND THE PODIUM: Delivering Training and
Performance to a Digital World , by by Allison Rossett and
Kendra Sheldon (2001), they define it as: Web-based training
(WBT), also known as e-learning and on-line learning, is
training that resides on a server or host computer that is
connected to the World Wide Web (WWW) (p. 274).
They considers WBT or e-learning as falling under Technology-
Based Training: any training that is delivered partially or entirely
through electronic hardware, software, or both (p. 161).
And all of the above falls under training: what the organization
provides to help its people to become more effective and
satisfied individuals and employees (p. 9).
Mystical
Others have entirely different definitions. The Delphi Group's
white paper, Need to Know: Integrating e-Learning with High
Velocity Value Chains (12/14/2000), defines e-learning as "just
in time education integrated with high velocity value chains.
Whew! That that is some mouthful!
Elliott Masie defines the e in e-learning as "the EXPERIENCE
dimension of e-learning, which includes such factors as:
engagement, curiosity, simulation, and practice.
Which View is Right?
Since a definition for the term training has never been univer-
sally accepted, I doubt that we will ever have a universally
accepted term for e-learning. However, I believe that it probably
falls between the version of electronic and internet. The third
view, which I labeled mystical, tends to view e-learning as a
magical savior of learning. This is false. e-Learning is a method
for the delivery of a learning package. The designers, developers,
and implementers make or break the courseware. Whatever you
can do right or wrong with conventional courseware, you can
also do with e-learning courseware. There is nothing built into
e-learning that guarantees a perfectly designed piece of
courseware. e-Learning is simply a medium for delivering
learning and like any other medium, it has its advantages and
disadvantages.
Learning Domains or Bloom's Taxonomy
The Three Types of Learning
There is more than one type of learning. A committee of
colleges, led by Benjamin Bloom, identified three domains of
educational activities. The three domains are cognitive, affective,
and psychomotor. Since the work was produced by higher
education, the words tend to be a little bigger than we are
normally used to. Domains can be thought of as categories.
Cognitive is for mental skills (Knowledge), affective is for
growth in feelings or emotional areas (Attitude), while psycho-
motor is for manual or physical skills (Skills). Trainers often
refer to these as KAS, SKA, or KSA (Knowledge, Attitude, and
Skills). This taxonomy of learning behaviors can be thought of
as "the goals of the training process." That is, after the training
session, the learner should have acquires these new skills,
knowledge, or attitudes.
The committee then produced an elaborate compilation for the
cognitive and affective domains, but none for the psychomotor
domain. Their explanation for this oversight was that they have
little experience in teaching manual skills within the college level
(I guess they never thought to check with their sports or drama
department).
This compilation divides the three domains into subdivisions,
starting from the simplest behavior to the most complex. The
divisions outlined are not absolutes and there are other systems
or hierarchies that have been devised in the educational and
training world. However, Bloom's taxonomy is easily under-
stood and is probably the most widely applied one in use today.
Cognitive 1
The cognitive domain involves knowledge and the develop-
ment of intellectual skills. This includes the recall or recognition
of specific facts, procedural patterns, and concepts that serve in
the development of intellectual abilities and skills. There are six
major categories, which are listed in order below, starting from
the simplest behavior to the most complex. The categories can
be thought of as degrees of difficulties. That is, the first one
must be mastered before the next one can take place.
Knowledge: Recall of data
Examples: Recite a policy. Quote prices from memory to a
customer. Knows the safety rules.
Key Words: defines, describes, identifies, knows, labels, lists,
matches, names, outlines, recalls, recognizes, reproduces, selects,
states.
Comprehension: Understand the meaning, translation,
interpolation, and interpretation of instructions and problems.
State a problem in one's own words.
Examples: Rewrites the principles of test writing. Explain in
one's own words the steps for performing a complex task.
Translates an equation into a computer spreadsheet.
Key words: comprehends, converts, defends, distinguishes,
estimates, explains, extends, generalizes, gives examples, infers,
interprets, paraphrases, predicts, rewrites, summarizes, trans-
lates.
35
Application: Use a concept in a new situation or unprompted
use of an abstraction. Applies what was learned in the class-
room into novel situations in the workplace.
Examples: Use a manual to calculate an employee's vacation
time. Apply laws of statistics to evaluate the reliability of a
written test.
Key Words: applies, changes, computes, constructs, demon-
strates, discovers, manipulates, modifies, operates, predicts,
prepares, produces, relates, shows, solves, uses.
Analysis: Separates material or concepts into component parts
so that its organizational structure may be understood.
Distinguishes between facts and inferences.
Examples: Troubleshoot a piece of equipment by using logical
deduction. Recognize logical fallacies in reasoning. Gathers
information from a department and selects the required tasks
for training.
Keywords: analyzes, breaks down, compares, contrasts,
diagrams, deconstructs, differentiates, discriminates, distin-
guishes, identifies, illustrates, infers, outlines, relates, selects,
separates.
Synthesis: Builds a structure or pattern from diverse elements.
Put parts together to form a whole, with emphasis on creating a
new meaning or structure.
Examples: Write a company operations or process manual.
Design a machine to perform a specific task. Integrates training
from several sources to solve a problem. Revises and process to
improve the outcome.
Keywords: categorizes, combines, compiles, composes, creates,
devises, designs, explains, generates, modifies, organizes, plans,
rearranges, reconstructs, relates, reorganizes, revises, rewrites,
summarizes, tells, writes.
Evaluation: Make judgments about the value of ideas or
materials.
Examples: Select the most effective solution. Hire the most
qualified candidate. Explain and justify a new budget.
Keywords: appraises, compares, concludes, contrasts, criticizes,
critiques, defends, describes, discriminates, evaluates, explains,
interprets, justifies, relates, summarizes, supports.
Affective
This domain includes the manner in which we deal with things
emotionally, such as feelings, values, appreciation, enthusiasms,
motivations, and attitudes. The five major categories listed in
order are:
Receiving phenomena: Awareness, willingness to hear,
selected attention.
Examples: Listen to others with respect. Listen for and
remember the name of newly introduced people.
Keywords: asks, chooses, describes, follows, gives, holds,
identifies, locates, names, points to, selects, sits, erects, replies,
uses.
Responding to phenomena: Active participation on the part
of the learners. Attends and reacts to a particular phenomenon.
Learning outcomes may emphasize compliance in responding,
willingness to respond, or satisfaction in responding (motiva-
tion).
Examples: Participates in class discussions. Gives a presenta-
tion. Questions new ideals, concepts, models, etc. in order to
fully understand them. Know the safety rules and practices
them.
Keywords: answers, assists, aids, complies, conforms, dis-
cusses, greets, helps, labels, performs, practices, presents, reads,
recites, reports, selects, tells, writes.
Valuing: The worth or value a person attaches to a particular
object, phenomenon, or behavior. This ranges from simple
acceptance to the more complex state of commitment. Valuing
is based on the internalization of a set of specified values, while
clues to these values are expressed in the learner's overt behavior
and are often identifiable.
Examples: Demonstrates belief in the democratic process. Is
sensitive towards individual and cultural differences (value
diversity). Shows the ability to solve problems. Proposes a plan
to social improvement and follows through with commitment.
Informs management on matters that one feels strongly about.
Keywords: completes, demonstrates, differentiates, explains,
follows, forms, initiates, invites, joins, justifies, proposes, reads,
reports, selects, shares, studies, works.
Organization: Organizes values into priorities by contrasting
different values, resolving conflicts between them, and creating
an unique value system. The emphasis is on comparing,
relating, and synthesizing values.
Examples: Recognizes the need for balance between freedom
and responsible behavior. Accepts responsibility for one's
behavior. Explains the role of systematic planning in solving
problems. Accepts professional ethical standards. Creates a life
plan in harmony with abilities, interests, and beliefs. Prioritizes
time effectively to meet the needs of the organization, family,
and self.
Keywords: adheres, alters, arranges, combines, compares,
completes, defends, explains, formulates, generalizes, identifies,
integrates, modifies, orders, organizes, prepares, relates,
synthesizes.
Internalizing values (characterization): Has a value system
that controls their behavior. The behavior is pervasive, consis-
tent, predictable, and most importantly, characteristic of the
learner. Instructional objectives are concerned with the student's
general patterns of adjustment (personal, social, emotional).
Examples: Shows self-reliance when working independently.
Cooperates in group activities (displays teamwork). Uses an
objective approach in problem solving. Displays a professional
commitment to ethical practice on a daily basis. Revises
judgments and changes behavior in light of new evidence.
Values people for what they are, not how they look.
Keywords: acts, discriminates, displays, influences, listens,
modifies, performs, practices, proposes, qualifies, questions,
revises, serves, solves, verifies.
Psychomotor 3
The psychomotor domain includes physical movement,
coordination, and use of the motor-skill areas. Development
36
of these skills requires practice and is measured in terms of
speed, precision, distance, procedures, or techniques in execu-
tion. The seven major categories listed in order are:
Perception: The ability to use sensory cues to guide motor
activity. This ranges from sensory stimulation, through cue
selection, to translation.
Examples: Detects non-verbal communication cues. Estimate
where a ball will land after it is thrown and then moving to the
correct location to catch the ball. Adjusts heat of stove to correct
temperature by smell and taste of food. Adjusts the height of
the forks on a forklift by comparing where the forks are in
relation to the pallet.
Keywords: chooses, describes, detects, differentiates, distin-
guishes, identifies, isolates, relates, selects.
Set: Readiness to act. It includes mental, physical, and emo-
tional sets. These three sets are dispositions that predetermine a
person's response to different situations (sometimes called
mindsets).
Examples: Knows and acts upon a sequence of steps in a
manufacturing process. Recognize one's abilities and limita-
tions. Shows desire to learn a new process (motivation).
NOTE: This subdivision of Psychomotor is closely related
with the "Responding to phenomena" subdivision of the
Affective domain.
Keywords: begins, displays, explains, moves, proceeds, reacts,
shows, states, volunteers.
Guided response: The early stages in learning a complex skill
that includes imitation and trial and error. Adequacy of
performance is achieved by practicing.
Examples: Performs a mathematical equation as demon-
strated. Follows instructions to build a model. Responds
hand-signals of instructor while learning to operate a forklift.
Keywords: copies, traces, follows, react, reproduce, responds
Mechanism: This is the intermediate stage in learning a
complex skill. Learned responses have become habitual and the
movements can be performed with some confidence and
proficiency.
Examples: Use a personal computer. Repair a leaking faucet.
Drive a car.
Keywords: assembles, calibrates, constructs, dismantles,
displays, fastens, fixes, grinds, heats, manipulates, measures,
mends, mixes, organizes, sketches.
Complex Overt Response: The skillful performance of motor
acts that involve complex movement patterns. Proficiency is
indicated by a quick, accurate, and highly coordinated perfor-
mance, requiring a minimum of energy. This category includes
performing without hesitation, and automatic performance. For
example, players are often utter sounds of satisfaction or
expletives as soon as they hit a tennis ball or throw a football,
because they can tell by the feel of the act what the result will
produce.
Examples: Maneuvers a car into a tight parallel parking spot.
Operates a computer quickly and accurately. Displays competence
while playing the piano.
Keywords: assembles, builds, calibrates, constructs, dismantles,
displays, fastens, fixes, grinds, heats, manipulates, measures,
mends, mixes, organizes, sketches. NOTE: The key words are
the same as Mechanism, but will have adverbs or adjectives that
indicate that the performance is quicker, better, more accurate,
etc.
Adaptation: Skills are well developed and the individual can
modify movement patterns to fit special requirements.
Examples: Responds effectively to unexpected experiences.
Modifies instruction to meet the needs of the learners. Perform
a task with a machine that it was not originally intended to do
(machine is not damaged and there is no danger in performing
the new task).
Keywords: adapts, alters, changes, rearranges, reorganizes,
revises, varies.
Origination: Creating new movement patterns to fit a
particular situation or specific problem. Learning outcomes
emphasize creativity based upon highly developed skills.
Examples: Constructs a new theory. Develops a new and
comprehensive training programming. Creates a new gymnastic
routine.
Keywords: arranges, builds, combines, composes, constructs,
creates, designs, initiate, makes, originates.
As mentioned earlier, the committee did not produce a
compilation for the psychomotor domain model, but others
have. The one discussed above is by Simpson (1972). There are
two other popular versions:
R.H. Dave's (1970):
Imitation: Observing and patterning behavior after
someone else. Performance may be of low quality. Example:
Copying a work of art.
Manipulation: Being able to perform certain actions by
following instructions and practicing. Example: Creating
work on one's own, after taking lessons, or reading about it.
Precision: Refining, becoming more exact. Few errors are
apparent. Example: Working and reworking something, so it
will be "just right."
Articulation: Coordinating a series of actions, achieving
harmony and internal consistency. Example: Producing a
video that involves music, drama, color, sound, etc.
Naturalization: Having high level performance become
natural, without needing to think much about it. Examples:
Michael Jordan playing basketball, Nancy Lopez hitting a
golf ball, etc.
Harrow's:
Involuntary movement - reaction
Fundamental movements - basic movements
Perception - response to stimuli
Physical abilities - stamina that must be developed for
further development
Skilled movements - advanced learned movements
No discursive communication - effective body language
37
Growth of e-Learning
According to Interna-
tional Data Corporation
(Training choices and e-
learning, November 25,
2000), the total corporate-
training market is $66
billion, and this will
continue to increase at a
steady rate of 5 percent
per year for the foresee-
able future. The market
for Web-based corporate
training will increase from
$2 billion today to $11.5
billion in 2003.
CIO magazine (Alison
Bass, 12/01/00,
Trendlines - Learning
Creativity) reports that e-
learning is the fastest
growing segment of the corporate IT education market. It
captured $3 billion in revenues last year (I believe they only
report e-learning as internet training).
grok magazine (September 13, 2000) reports that most of
today's corporate training takes place in instructor led classes.
For the year 2000, internet-based training will reach $2.2 billion
(3% of a total training market of $66 billion). By 2003, the
online training market is expected to grow to more than $11
billion. (Note - grok was part of "The Standard" magazine
which folded in late 2001)
BusinessWeek's chart, U.S. Corporate E-Learning Market,
reports e-learning to grow to about $11 billion by 2003.
The October issue of TRAINING Magazine has their annual
Industry Report. Some of their latest findings for the year 2000,
include:
80 percent of all training is delivered by live instructors, but
sometimes the instructor isn't in the room with the students
(e.g. teleconference, videoconference - which would be
considered e-learning).
40 percent of all employer-sponsored training in the United
States today is devoted to teaching computer skills.
13 percent of all courses are delivered via computer-based
training with no instructor in the picture.
Of computer based training, 19 percent is delivered by the
internet.
Training Magazine's Latest Report is at Industry Report 2001.
Learning Technologies and Learning Soft Skills
Presently, the bulk of e-learning is used to instruct workers
about new technologies, particularly computers. For example,
The Department of Veterans Affairs has turned to online
courses for its employees. The e-learning company that it
signed, Learn2.com Inc., will provide online courses to the
agency's 5,000 employees in IT certification, Internet training, as
well as instruction on Lotus Notes, Microsoft Office, and other
office software (The VA Turns To Online Courses For Employ-
ees).
But is this really e-learning or is it just using the correct medium
for instructing the learners? Shouldn't we expect computer
courses to be delivered via computer technology?
As noted earlier, by the year 2003, the growth in e-learning is
expected to surge. This will mostly be due to employees
becoming more tech-savvy. According to the GartnerGroup,
corporate training falls into two major categories - 1) IT training
and 2) soft skills, each with roughly 50 percent of the total
market (Training Choices and e-learning, December 2000). As
workers begin to master computer technology skills, they will
then be able to use it for learning other skills. This means
organizations will refocus their budgets from training computer
skills to training soft skills such as management, communica-
tions, and professional development. For a related story, see
(Trend Watch: E-Learning Goes Soft).
The Three Sectors of e-Learning
There are three main sectors in the e-learning business ("The
Standard" Learning Potential 09/12/00):
Portals: These companies pool educational resources,
products, and services targeting their audience. They attracted
$458 million in private funds in 1999, nearly half that year's
e-learning investments.
Edu-commerce companies: These peddle items such as
institutional procurement services, books, clothing, and
merchandise. They attracted nearly 27 percent of total e-
learning venture capital in the six quarters beginning Jan 1,
1999.
Network platforms: These provide everything from Web-
based applications to full-service intranets. These accounted
for nearly half of private investment in the first half of
2000.
What We can Be Sure of
As shown, e-learning is definitely a growing field in the
educational and training market (The Evolution of Corporate
e-Learning). But exactly how much of the market share it will
eventually grab is anyone's guess. Proponents say those who
arrive first on the e-learning scene will profit the most, e.g.,
Yahoo, Amazon, etc. However, this was not always the case for
a lot of "dot com" companies, which have been failing in record
numbers. Brick and Motor companies may initially lack the
technology, but they have the resources and experience to
capture the market.
Education
The $96 billion for-profit education industry, is getting in on e-
learning. Last year's e-learning revenues were reported to be
about $500 million for this group, as reported by
Eduventures.com. And it is not just the for-profit educational
institutions that want a piece of the e-learning market. The
online entrepreneurs who first tapped the for-profit institutions
are now entering agreements with the not-for-profit institu-
tions. Note that U.S. education spending for not-for-profit
organizations is a huge market:
$340 billion for K-12
38
$250 billion for higher education
$63 billion for corporate training
Roughly two-thirds of this money pays for teacher salaries and
benefits. A growing number of universities and internet
entrepreneurs are betting that the virtual campus will do away
with costly annoyances like professors and classrooms. They
view the entire education field as a huge, and relatively untapped
market. Eduventures.com expects the e-learning revenues to
grow 10 to 15 times faster than overall education-industry
revenues in 2000. Such schools as Duke University's J.B. Fuqua
School of Business and Cornell University's are now selling
online courses (Duke's B-School Goes into Business and
Dartmouth College's Amos Tuck School of Business).
When academic institutions grow to closely involved in
commercial activities, "they appear less and less as charitable
institutions seeking truths and serving students, and more and
more as huge commercial operations that differ from corpora-
tions only because there are no shareholders and no dividends."
- Derek Bok, former Harvard president
However, some schools are taking a harder look at distance
learning. The University of Illinois believes that many other
campuses have taken a "baldly commercial motivation" in their
implementation of e-learning (Faculty Report at U. of Illinois
Casts Skeptical Eye on Distance Education).
Finally, it is not just educational e-learning that is on the rise.
The educational market as a whole is doing well due to the job
market being hungry for employees with technical and business
skills as reported in Business Week's Education Stocks Are
Getting A's Again.
Schools in Crisis?
Critics warn that our schools are in desperate need of repair.
They always seem to be declaring some sort of crisis in the
schools...but rarely bother to spell out what cataclysm is
imminent. For example, Jason Roberts, CEO of Panmedia
Corp. (the developer of Learn2.com) stated, "Classrooms kill
most learning before it can happen" (Go to the Head of the
Class!).
Roger Schank (The Shank Tank) also sees education in a crises
and his silver bullet is having most, if not all learning per-
formed via the computer.
However, in Scientific American's report, The False Crisis in
Science Education, the authors argue that we ought to be more
skeptical of claims of crisis and other educational experts agree
with them. There are three reasons to doubt that the educa-
tional system is in crises:
Past crises have led to lots of spending and legislation --
nearly 1,000 laws passed since the 1970s to force reforms on
schools, but have made little change in what students learn.
A close look at the statistical evidence reveals no sudden
decline in the science and math knowledge of those leaving
high school. In fact, scores on national tests have been
inching upward for more than a decade.
From 1980 to 1995 college enrollments swelled by 29
percent, despite a steady drop in the population of college-
age kids.
Clifford Stoll's High Tech Heretic, Why Computers Don't
Belong in the Classroom and Other Reflections (book excerpt)
lays a convincing argument against computers in the classroom.
He believes we need to spend more time on the human
elements that provide social interactions, rather than wasting
huge sums of money on technology. He says that for years we
have been claiming that "information is power." Yet who has
the most information in the average neighborhood? The
librarians -- and they are famous for having no power at all.
Two more perspectives on computers in the classroom can be
read at The Impact of Computers on Schools: Two Authors,
Two Perspectives.
Diploma Mills
Internet degrees can often be obtained quickly and easily. For
example, Columbia State University offered a degree for $2,000
and the summation of a $25 textbook. The American State
University gave a degree for $1,890 and a 2,000-word thesis (Is
the Internet Becoming a Bonanza for Diploma Mills? and
Schools for Scandal).
"Students will be able to shop around, taking a course from any
institution that offers a good one. Degree-granting institutions
will have to accommodate this," said Roger Schank (The Virtual
Classroom Vs. The Real One). He continues with, "They will
resist at first, but eventually society will realize that anyone is
entitled to the best courses, and barriers will fall. Quality
education will be available to all. Students will learn what they
want to learn rather than what some faculty committee decided
was the best political compromise."
However, some leaders in the educational field fear that higher
education will be splint into two sections (Mother Jones,
January & February 2001. Digital Diplomas, p.36):
Brick Universities for those that can afford them.
Click Universities that offer glorified education for everyone
else.
Professor Carole Fungaroli, a professor of English at
Georgetown University and the author of Traditional Degrees
for Nontraditional Students, says, "I see this as a class issue.
Who is going to end up in these distance-learning courses?
Single moms, working parents -- the very people who most
39
desperately need social contact as part of their educational
experience."
Watered Down Degrees?
A study (Online Degree Survey Results) conducted by
Vault.com found that 77% of human resource officers did not
consider a degree from an online only institution to be the
equivalent to a campus-based diploma and more that 60% were
concerned that online course students lacked social interaction
with peers. For a related article see Validating Online Degrees.
In addition, distance education professionals at universities
don't recognize the legitimacy of online discourse. If an article
has not appeared in print, it might as well not exist. To be
considered sufficiently academic, an article on distance education
must cite primarily, if not exclusively, print publications
(Distance Educators Before the River Styx) -- interesting, e-
learning about e-learning (such as this document) does not
exist... Even using the word "available" in citations suggests
that online presentation is an alternative and secondary mode
of access. In the article, Stephen Downes wrote that there are,
"major works about online learning do not cite a single online
source."
Distance Education does Multimedia
Distance Education - Various movies
Knowledge Management
e-Learning is closely related to knowledge management. While
knowledge management attempts to ensure that the survival of
the organization is guaranteed by capturing the knowledge of
its workers, e-learning attempts to ensure that the workers can
quickly retrieve the knowledge that they require and to help
them grow as individuals. Organizations and its workers are
synergic in nature, for when one grows, the others grows. On
the other hand, if one or the other fails to grow, then it most
certainly means failure for both in today's competitive environ-
ment.
A lot of organizations will waste money on knowledge
management and/or e-learning. Why? There is a lot of
knowledge and skills to be found in most organizations. So
much, that even the best knowledge management systems will
fail to capture even half of it. And the knowledge and skills that
they do go after and capture is a guessing game -- "will it help us
to grow or will a new paradigm emerge that changes the
knowledge structure?" Knowledge management is not just
about capturing the knowledge within its ranks, its about
capturing the correct knowledge and skills that will grow the
organization during present and future paradigm shifts.
e-Learning faces similar consequences. A lot of e-learning is just
conventional training delivered through electronic means. In
fact, it could be taught through e-learning with very little
consequences. But the type of learning that will help the
individual grow the most, and in turn, the organization, is
developmental in nature as discussed in Communities of
Practice.
Although e-Learning is Not Knowledge Management, they are
both going to grow into very similar concepts (E-Learning's
Straight Shooter). A lot of what knowledge represents involves
oral and dynamic experiences, so it never written down. This
has dire consequences. For example, people leave organizations,
and with them they take years of knowledge and skills. The day
a person says she is leaving the organization, her job should
immediately change from performing duties and tasks to
capturing what she knows so that the organization and her
successor knows what she is doing and how do do it. Even
better yet, the organization should capture the skills and
knowledge before a person even considers leaving. This would
be the convergence of e-learning and knowledge management
Notes -
40
Friends,
In previous lesson you have studied about learning styles. In
this lesson is going to give you exposure in following topic.
Objective:
1. To understand about Learning process
2. To be able to execute training in successful training process
3. To know about various learning theories
Introduction
Friends, In your previous semesters you have already been
introduces to learning and learning theories in Organisation
Behaviour. Few theories you have studied were cognitive
theory, Classical conditioning, and social learning. Here are some
interesting recent theories of learning.
The Three Representational Modes (TRiM)
All information that is perceived via the senses passes through
three processors that encode it as linguistic, nonlinguistic, or
affective representations. This is how we learn.
Note: This work only goes in to the major part of TRiM. For a
more detailed work, see Marzano (1998) (note that he does not
use this acronym).
For example, if you go to a football game for the first time you
encode information linguistically such as rules; retain mental
images nonlinguistically, such as mental images of the players
positioning themselves and then getting set (pose); and finally,
you have various sensations which are encoded affectively, such
as the excitement during a touchdown. Each representation can
be thought of as a record that is encoded and then filed away.
The Linguistic Mode
In the educational and training world, knowledge is most
commonly presented linguistically (the study of language), so
perhaps this mode receives the most attention from a learning
standpoint (Chomsky, 1988). The linguistic mode includes
verbal communication, reading, watching (e.g. learn the rule of
chess through observation), etc.
Discussions and theories around the linguistic mode can get
quite complex so I am keeping this fairly simple. Basically, the
linguistic processor encodes our experiences as abstract proposi-
tions.
Propositions are thought to perform a number of other
functions in addition to being the primary bearers of truth and
falsity and the things expressed by collections of declarative
sentences in virtue of which all members of the collection say
the same thing. Propositions represent the things we doubt
and know. They are the bearers of modal properties, such as
being necessary and possible. Some of them are the things that
ought to be true.
These propositions are organized into two networks:
1. The declarative network contains information about specific
events and the information generalized from them. These
are the what of human knowledge.
2. The procedural network contains information about how to
perform specific mental or physical processes. Often thought
of as IF and THEN statements.
These two networks are the main channels for interacting with
each other (communication). Communication is the main
functions of language. Language symbols are used to represent
things in the world. Indeed, we can even represent things that
do not even exist. Communication does not imply a language,
such as using hand signals. But a language does imply commu-
nication, that is, when we use language, we normally use it to
communicate.
A few linguistic definitions
The forming of language is done by syntax - putting sounds
together to form words, and the words, in turn, form sen-
tences. For example, English words require at least one vowel
sound. However, in Czech there are words that are all conso-
nants - no vowels. These sounds we put together are
morphemes - the smallest units of language that have meaning.
A word is morpheme, as is a prefix or suffix, also the s we
add onto the end of a word is a morpheme.
Semantics is the study of meaning. With semantic knowledge
we can often understand what people mean when they say
things that are syntactically unusual or even incorrect.
In transformational grammar, the meaning of a sentence is its
deep structure, and that meaning is transformed into the surface
structure, which is the actual sentence itself. The deep structure
of language is the meaning, and the surface structure is the
means by which that meaning is expressed. The rules that
translate the meaning into the deep structure are the phrase
rules, and the rules that translate the deep structure into the
surface structure are the transformational rules.
The Nonlinguistic Mode
This includes mental pictures, smell, kinesthetic, tactile, auditory,
and taste. At first, we might believe that they are entirely
different structures, however these representations are quite
similar to each other in that these nonlinguistic sensations
function in a similar fashion in permanent memory
(Richardson, 1983). That is, although we sense things differ-
ently, such as smell and touch, they are stored in mental
representations that are quite similar. They also lose a lot of
LESSON 5
LEARNING PROCESS : A FEW GOOD LEARNING THEORIES
41
their robustness once the experience is over and transferred to
memory. For example, picturing the smell of a rose from
memory is not as vivid as actually smelling a real rose.
Although we can realistically study linguistics, taste, hearing, etc.;
mental images are another matter...how do you study a picture
in someones mind? Hence, there are several models for the
nonlinguistic mode in the psychology world. However, there are
a few things we know for certain:
Mental images can be generated from two sources the eyes
(e.g., the after image of a light bulb) and from permanent
memory (picturing a tiger that has squares instead of dots).
Mental images are an essential aspect of nonlinguistic
thought and play an important part in creativity.
Due to the fragmented and constructed nature of mental
images, they are not always accurate pictures of whole
thought as compared to prepositionally-based linguistic
information. However, they can have a powerful effect on
our thoughts due to their intensive and vivid nature, e.g. the
power of storytelling, the images we create in our mind
when reading a powerful novel, metaphors, imagination,
creativity, etc.
The Affective Mode
This is our feeling, emotions, and mood (Stuss & Benson,
1983).
Feeling is ones internal physiological state at any given point
in time.
Emotion is the coming together of feelings and thoughts
(prepositionally-based linguistic data) that are associated with
the feeling.
Mood is the long-term emotion or the most representative
emotion over a period of time.
The affective mode can be thought of as a continuum of
feelings, emotions, and ultimately moods. The end points of
the continuum are pleasure and pain and we normally strive to
stay on the pleasure end of it.
The limbic system (pituitary gland, amygdala, thalamus,
hippocampus, etc.) is the physiological system that ties the
affective mode together. Since the limbic affects virtually every
part of our brain, it also has a very powerful affect on learning.
Plutchik theorized that each basic emotion occupies a location
on a circle. Blends of two basic emotions are called dyads.
Blends involving adjacent emotions in the circle are first-order
dyads, blends involving emotions that are separated by one
other emotion are second-order dyads, and so on. For example,
love is a first-order dyad resulting from the blending of adjacent
basic emotions joy and acceptance, while guilt is a second-order
dyad involving joy and fear, which are separated by acceptance.
The further away two basic emotions are, the less likely they are
to mix. And if two distant emotions mix, conflict is likely. Fear
and surprise are adjacent and readily blend to give rise to alarm,
but joy and fear are separated by acceptance and their fusion is
imperfect & the conflict that results is the source of the emotion
guilt.
TRiM Learning Theories
So what learning activities do we use if we follow the TRiM
model?
Linguistic Mode
The linguistic mode provides the way to the most accurate
method of learning, hence the reason for its impact upon the
education and training world. There are a number of ways for
increasing linguistic retention.
Note Taking
Note taking has a positive impact on this mode since it involves
the learners in the subject matter that is transpiring in class, it
cause us to reflect on the subject and then record our thoughts,
it helps us in interpreting the subject matter, and it provides an
additional linguistic reinforcer. You can help them with the note
taking by providing rough outlines and fill-in-the-blanks. But
do not just rely on one method. For example, fill-in-the-blanks
can also be concept or semantic maps (mapping) you provide
the lines and circles, while the learners fill them in.
Also, note that while mapping might seem graphic, we can
learn linguistically from visual representations (e.g. learning rules
and various strategies by watching a game, the procedures for
picking up a load with a forklift). Use visual outlines to fit the
subject, for example, give them an outline of a pyramid when
discussing Maslows hierarchy of needs.
Vary the methods to fit the subject e.g. give them a rough
draft, then a fill-in-the-blank, then a mapping outline.
Pascarella & Terenzini (1991, p.98) reported that the greater the
learners involvement or engagement (which includes note-
taking) is in the learning process, the greater the knowledge
acquisition.
Charting
While the above mostly refers to the declarative network, the
procedural network can be reinforced with such tools as
flowcharts, diagrams, and maps. Providing tools that directly
support procedures or processes helps in explaining the task.
Again, you can give them the skeletons of the flowchart, and
then having them flesh it together in order to use the learning
transfer effectiveness of note taking.
Cueing
Use cueing to provide the abstract propositions, which is
then expounded on to turn it into a complete, long-term
memory network. Cues can be thought of as a brief preview or
skill that is to be presented. It can be as simple as saying, I
wonder what will happen if I push this button, to using
slides to cue. Most of us have head of the 6-6 (or 7-7) rule of
slides no more than six lines and each line should have no
more than six words. If you have ever sat through a presenta-
tion where the presenter read the slides, you know how
ineffective and annoying that method is. This is partially because
our reading speed does not match our listening speed; hence,
they confuse instead of reinforcing each other. So, the better
method is to use the slides as cues. The slide should give a brief
outline to cue the students on what they are about to learn.
Also, do NOT cover each line and then show it when you are
about to speak about it this defeats the whole purpose of
42
cueing by taking away the skeleton outline that the learners need
in order to build upon.
Teachers will recognize this concept as a miniature
scaffold (building upon a framework)
Note that when we learn, we build upon what we previ-
ously know
Marzano (1998, p.89) reported an effect size of 1.13 (which
indicates that achievement can be raised by 37 percentile points)
when cueing is used.
Models
Models (as in people, drawings, and three-dimensional) will
also help to reinforce both the declarative and procedural
network by giving them a visual source.
The combined use of drawings, flowcharts, mappings,
instructions, etc. can be combined to produce knowledge maps,
rather than linear readings.
Marzano (1998, p.91) reported an effect size of 1.48 (which
indicates that achievement can be raised by 43 percentile points)
when graphic representations are used.
Active Learning
Use activities (manipulatives) to engage the learners. While we
can learn the basics of football, chess, leading, ______(name
your task), etc.; we do not really understand it until we actually
do it.
Placing the learners in small groups allows them to not only
receive and express linguistic information, but to also manipu-
late it in various forms to gain a full understanding of it.
Cooperative learning is very effective due to give and take of
various linguistic forms. It involves cooperation, in that learners
work in small groups on an assigned project or problem under
the guidance of the trainer who monitors the groups. On the
other side is collaborative learning that is a more radical
departure in that it involves learners working together in small
groups to develop their own answer through interaction and
reaching consensus, not necessarily a known answer.
Also, the use of good questioning techniques, fishbowls, case
studies, etc., gives the same benefits as groups.
Again, Pascarella & Terenzini (1991, page 98) reported that the
greater the learners involvement or engagement is in the
learning process, the greater the knowledge acquisition.
Marzano (1998, p.91) reported an effect size of 0.89 (which
indicates that achievement can be raised by 31 percentile points)
when manipulates (engaging the learners) are used.
Marzano (1998, p.93) reported an effect size of 1.14 (which
indicates that achievement can be raised by 37 percentile points)
when experimental learning is used and an effect size of .54 (a
percentile gain of 21 points) by using problem solving pro-
cesses.
Nonlinguistic Mode
While various linguistic methods are used in many classrooms,
the nonlinguistic and affective modes are often omitted, as
trainers do not realize their importance. Remember, we have
three processors, when you deny or do not reinforce anyone one
of them, you actually lengthen the learning process instead of
shortening it.
Mental Images
Use the power of mental images to increase nonlinguistic
retention. Provide metaphors, reflection time and activities,
short videos of powerful images, storytelling, etc. To truly
understand a subject matter we need to be creative with it on
order to adapt it to our workplace. It is through the power of
mental images that we are able to change our mental representa-
tions of how things work to how we can make them work for
us.
Have the learners practice the task in their minds
(visualization)
43
Marzano (1998, p.102) reported an effect size of 1.13 (which
indicates that achievement can be raised by 37 percentile points)
by using techniques that enhance visual memory.
The Other Senses
Also, do not forget the other senses. Although VAK would tell
us to let the learners play with a koosh ball, I believe this has
more to do with personal satisfaction than actual learning. What
really needs to happen is to allow them to touch, move, listen
and/or smell the subject mater if at all possible...sort of what
Zen is built upon become one with the subject matter).
Affective Mode
Use the power of feelings and emotions to reinforce the
affective mode.
Nonlinguistic Mode
While various linguistic methods are used in many classrooms,
the nonlinguistic and affective modes are often omitted, as
trainers do not realize their importance. Remember, we have
three processors, when you deny or do not reinforce anyone one
of them, you actually lengthen the learning process instead of
shortening it.
Feedback and Praise
Provide them with explicit feedback on how well the goals or
objectives were met. You want to keep the feedback positive as
the goal is to reinforce their drive to perform better, not to beat
them down in utter defeat.
Also, it is important not only to provide feedback that im-
proves performance, but also give praise or positive
reinforcement that is focused and accurate.
Marzano (1998, p.95) reported an effect size of 0.74 (which
indicates that achievement can be raised by 27 percentile points)
when praise is used. While providing feedback (p.108) on the
type of strategy to use and how well the learner uses it had a
effect size of 0.61 (percentile gain of 37 points).
Learning Objectives
Most of us know that providing the learning objectives
increases the chance for learning to occur, but if you then allow
the learners to adapt the objectives to meet their personal goals,
you further increase the chance as they now start to own the
objectives.
Marzano (1998, p.94) reported an effect size of 0.97 (which
indicates that achievement can be raised by 34 percentile points)
when goal specification is used. When students have some
control over the learning outcomes, there is an effect size of
1.21 (39 percentile points).
Note that providing a learning objective is similar to cues or
scaffolding in that it provides a framework for the learners to
build their skills and knowledge upon.
Arousal
Use arousal (emotions) to increase learning. A certain amount
of arousal can be a motivator toward change (with change being
learning). But too much or too little will have a negative affect.
You want a mid-level point of arousal to provide the motiva-
tion to change (learn). Too little arousal has an inert affect on
the learner, while too much has a hyperactive affect. Each type
of learning has its own optimal level of arousal. The more
intellectually or cognitive a task is, then the more lower the level
of arousal should be so that you do not overload the
learners. On the opposite end of the scale are tasks that require
less mental activities or tasks requiring endurance and persis-
tence. They require higher levels of arousal to fully engage the
learners in the learning process. Some learning should be fun,
some should be dry, some learning requires an emotional
charged classroom, and some require an emotionless state.
Self, Metacognition, Cognition,
Knowledge (SMCK)
While TRiM (Three Representational Modalities) describes the
components that show how we take in information, SMCK
(Marzano, describes the domains of knowledge. One of the
first and best known knowledge domains is Blooms Tax-
onomy. However, since then we have learned quite a bit more
about how we learn.
Note: Again, this work only goes in to the major part of TRiM.
For a more detailed work and set of references on TRiM and
SMCK, see Marzano (1998) (note that he does not use the two
acronyms).
The chart below shows how TRiM fits in with SMCK
We receive information linguistically, nonlinguistically, and
affectively through our senses. This information or present-
ing task then passes through four human thought operating
systems:
Self-System: What value do we place upon the presenting task
(we will do it or not)?
Metacognitive System - Designs strategies for accomplishing
the presenting task. How do we go about solving a
complicated task?
Cognitive System - Process the presenting task so that we
may learn it.
Knowledge Domain - The cognitive domain draws upon
our knowledge domain for information that helps us to
solve the presenting task.
Self-System
The first domain the presenting task passes through is our self-
system. If we consider the presenting task or information of
high value, then we will put some effort into learning it.
Otherwise, we will steer our efforts to other interests (Harter,
1980 & Markus & Ruvulo, 1990). This self-system is an
interconnected network of beliefs that helps one makes sense
of the world and decides what goals to pursue.
44
If the presenting goal or task is judged as important and
doable, then the learner is motivated to engage in the presenting
goal or task. However, if the task is presented as low-relevance
or a low probability of success, then a negative effect is gener-
ated and motivation for task engagement is low.
For example, a student in a leadership class might be thinking
about the upcoming weekend. The instructor might say
something similar to, it is important to pay attention to this
part of the lesson, as the rest of the material is closely based
upon it. The learner can either pay attention to the instructor,
or continue with her thought about the upcoming weekend. In
either case the learner makes a choice through her self-system
which then determines how her metacognitive system, cognitive
system knowledge domain will be utilized.
Our self system guides us in what we need to learn
Most of us, beginning in childhood, have an intrinsic ability to
judge our own progress. This is a natural aspect of our ability
to learn. But schools and workplaces subjugate that natural
assessment to the judgment and ranking of teachers, supervi-
sors, and other experts, whose appraisals can determine our
tracking, promotion, opportunity, wealth, status, and ultimately
even self-esteem. Business assessment systems such as Manage-
ment by Objectives (MBO) tend to institutionalize a destructive
process where bosses propagate the same measures and
assessments of which they are also victims. Thus, assessment is
not emotionally neutral territory. Inherent fear and resentment
diminishes the quality of any assessment effort particularly
those involved with assessing organizational learning. - Roth
and Kleiner (1995):
Metacognitive System
Next, the presenting task goes through the metacognitive
system. This system helps us to plan, set time lines, allocate
resources (Schank & Abelson, 1977). It also designs strategies
for accomplishing goals once they have been set. Its main
categories are:
Goal Specification: Note that it does not decide to
engage in a goal, that is the function of the self-system, its
job is to help to determine when the goal has been
completed.
Process Specification: Identifies and activates the skills,
tactics, and process used to accomplish a goal.
Process Monitoring: Monitors the effectiveness of skills,
tactics, and process used to accomplish a goal.
Disposition Monitoring : Monitors how one approaches a
task.
The megacognitive system is continually interacting with the
cognitive system throughout the task.
Metacognition is another important aspect of childrens learning
(see Brown, 1978; Flavell and Wellman, 1977). The importance
of prior knowledge in determining performance, crucial to
adults as well as children, includes knowledge about learning,
knowledge of their own learning strengths and weaknesses, and
the demands of the learning task at hand. Metacognition also
includes self-regulationthe ability to orchestrate ones
learning: to plan, monitor success, and correct errors when
appropriateall necessary for effective intentional learning
(Bereiter and Scardamalia, 1989).
Metacognition also refers to the ability to reflect on ones own
performance. Whereas self-regulation may appear quite early,
reflection appears to be late developing. If children lack insight
to their own learning abilities, they can hardly be expected to
plan or self-regulate efficiently. But metacognition does not
emerge full-blown in late childhood in some now you have it,
now you dont manner. The evidence suggests that, like other
forms of learning, metacognition develops gradually and is as
dependent on knowledge as experience. It is difficult to engage
in self-regulation and reflection in areas that one does not
understand. However, on topics that children know, primitive
forms of self-regulation and reflection appear early (Brown and
DeLoache, 1978).
Cognitive System
The presenting task next passes through the cognitive system,
which processes the information that is essential to learning the
task (Anderson, 1995). This process includes the effective
execution of steps for solving problems. It also creates novel
ideals for the construction of new concepts. It also:
stores and retrieves knowledge into permanent memory.
processes knowledge by manipulating so that it can be used
for specific tasks
inputs and outputs information by communicating with
others
uses knowledge to accomplish specific tasks
It accomplishes these processes by drawing upon the knowl-
edge domain.
Knowledge Domain
The knowledge domain consists of information, mental
processes, and psychomotor processes.
Information
Information can be thought of as the library within us that
organizes how we store information. All information can be
broken down as elements, as shown in the chart below.
Elements In The Information Domain
Hierarchy
(going from the lowest to the highest)
Vocabulary Terms - The meaning of a word at a very general
level.
Facts: Information about specific persons, places, events, etc.
These are very specific, such as the United States has fifty states.
Time Sequences: First one thing happened, then another
thing happened. These are important events between two
periods in time. For example, Columbus discovered America in
1492 and America declared itself a free nation in 1776.
Cause/Effect Sequences (If/Then): One event effects
another. It can be simple, such as a blown-out tire caused the
accident or complex as there were a number of events that led
to the Civil War.
Episodes: Events that have a setting, participates, duration, and
effects (e.g. Word War II).
45
Generalizations: Statements in which examples can be
provided (e.g. love is one of the most powerful human
emotions).
Principles: Generalizations that deal with relationships (e.g. the
increase in lung cancer is directly proportional to the increase in
smokers) .
Concepts: A general category which a number of principles,
generalizations, time sequences, cause/effect sequences,
episodes, and vocabulary terms fall (e.g. learning, democracy).
Notice that in the information domain, each element builds
upon the other. For example, you must understand the
vocabulary terms before you can understand a fact. At the top
of the domain are Concepts, which are the most difficult
elements for a learner to extrapolate.
Mental Processes
The Mental Process domain are methods for accomplishing a
task, such as the steps for picking up a load with a forklift or the
steps for solving an algebra problem.
Mental Process Hierarchy
(going from the lowest to the highest
Single Rule - Does not have a list of steps. It consists of one
IF/THEN statement. e.g., if it is the beginning of a new
sentence, then capitalize the first letter.
Algorithms - Has very specific steps which leads to specific
outcomes. e.g., performing a math calculation
Tactics - Normally, these do not consists of a set of steps that
must be performed in specific order. e.g., reading a histogram (it
has rules for reading, but it does not have to be done in order).
Macro Process - A process that has a diversity of possible
outcomes and involves the execution of many interrelated
subprocesses. e.g., writing a term paper, using laboratory
equipment
Psychomotor Process
The psychomotor domain are our physical skills and abilities
Other Supporting Theories
Feedback
B.F. Skinner theorized that learners need to make active
responses, and to do so regularly. These responses need
immediate feedback and differential follow-ups; depending
upon whether or not they are correct. Without immediate
feedback, especially when the response is wrong, invites the
student to learn a wrong response. These wrong responses then
have to be unlearned. Critical training time is wasted by having
the students unlearn wrong responses instead of learning new
behaviors. When designing the learning activities, consider how
to apply immediate feedback. Small student to instructor ratios,
programmed learning, and well designed learning environments
are just a few of the ways to accomplish this.
Practice
Guthries study breaks skills into acts. Acts are defined as
complicated behavior patterns usually involving some goal
accomplishment. Acts are made up of many individual
movements. Movements are specific responses to specific
stimuli. Acts are composed of muscular contractions that are
the response to specific stimulus and are not dependent upon
practice. But the learning of an act does depend on practice.
Learning an act requires practice so that the proper movement is
associated with its own cues.
Once acquired, associations are permanent (Good & Brophy),
but they may not appear in every performance due to weak
associations. These weak associations cannot be retrieved
because of strong interference from other associations. Short
practice periods develop weak associations which learners are not
able to magnify into stronger ones.
Adams theorized that if we practice long enough we develop a
mental image. For example, professional players are often
known to utter sounds of satisfaction or expletives as soon as
they hit a tennis ball or throw a football, because they can
instantaneously tell by the feel of the act what the result will
produce. Not having balanced practice periods prevents learners
from becoming fully comfortable with the feel and use of the
skill they are attempting to acquire. Learners must have enough
time to develop a complete mental image of the sequence of
correct responses. Often we see learners who could perform in
the classroom and then not be able to perform when they
return to work. When designing the learning activities be sure to
include realistic practical exercise and enough time for these
exercises!
Distributed Practice
Hull discovered that when practice periods are spaced apart
(distributed practice), performance is superior to what it is when
practice periods are close together (massed practice). Also, during
practice periods, the learners performance will gradually
improve until some asymptotic (maximal) level is reached. If
the learners are allowed to rest, and then resume practice, their
performance will tend to exceed their previous asymptotic level
(reminiscence effect). Learners that are provided rest or some
other form of diversion between practice periods will reach
higher levels of performance than learners who practice straight
through without rest or diversion.
Cognition
Wertheimer contrasts rote memorization with problem solving
based on the Gestalt principles. In the former, the learner has
learned facts without understanding them. Such learning is rigid
and can be applied without truly understanding them. Learning
in accordance with the Gestalt principles, however, is based on
understanding the underlying principles of the problem. This
type of learning comes from within the individual and is not
imposed on by someone else. It is easily generalizable and is
remembered for a long time. When one performs upon
memorized facts without understanding them, one often
makes stupid mistakes.
Werthemimer told this story to illustrate the point: A school
inspector was impressed by the children that he had observed,
but wanted to ask one more question before departing. How
many hairs does a horse have? he asked. Much to the amaze-
ment of both the inspector and the teacher, a nine year old boy
answered 3,571,962. How do you know that your answer is
correct? asked the inspector. If you do not believe me,
answered the boy, count them yourself. The inspector broke
46
into laughter and vowed to tell the story to his colleagues when
he returned to Vienna. When the inspector returned the
following year for his annual visit, the teacher asked him how
his colleagues responded to the story. Disappointedly he
replied, I wanted very much to tell the story but I couldnt. For
the life of me, I couldnt remember how many hairs the boy
had said the horse had.
Reaching an understanding, according to Wertheimer, involves
many aspects of the learners, such as emotions, attitudes,
perceptions, and intellect. In gaining insight into the solution
of a problem, a learner need not be logical. Rather, the learner
should cognitively arrange and rearrange the components of the
problem until a solution based on understanding is reached.
Exactly how this is done will vary from learner to learner. In one
experiment a piece of paper with the following 15 digits was
handed to a group of subjects with the instruction that they
study it for 15 seconds: The paper contained these digits: 1 4 9
16 25 36 49 64 81. After the subjects studied the digits, they
were asked to reproduce the sequence of numbers. Most
subjects were able to reproduce only a few of the numbers.
After a week most of them remembered none of the digits.
Another group of subjects were asked to look for a pattern
among the digits. After studying them, some of the subjects
were able to determine that the numbers are the squares of the
digits from 1 to 9. These subjects were able to reproduce the
series perfectly not only during the experiment, but weeks and
months afterward.
Learning Environment
Other pointers to consider for an effective learning environ-
ment:
The Gestalt point of view emphasizes that
the whole is more than the sum of the parts.
For example, the whole (producing a
document) is more than the individual acts:
1. Turn on the computer
2. Start the word processor
3. Type information into the word
processor
4. Check the spelling
5. Look up customers names and addresses
6. Insert columns into the document
7. Print a letter
8. Print envelopes
The above eight steps are meaningless unless the learner can
put all of them together to produce a whole document ready
for mailing. Help the learner to see that facts and ideas are
part of a larger concept. Learners who are able to recite facts
without seeing their interrelationship is meaningless.
Induce ambiguity by introducing problems and then help
clarify the ambiguity by suggesting strategies for solving the
problems. This is based on Spences (1966) work which has
emphasized anxiety (arousal) as a drive to learn. Encouraging
some anxiety in learners that is subsequently reduced by
success aids the learning environment. Too little anxiety
results in little or no learning because there is no drive to be
reduced (the Why Bother? syndrome). Too much anxiety
is disruptive. Therefore, learners who are mildly anxious are
in the best position to learn and are therefore easiest to reach.
Learning proceeds most rapidly if the information is
presented in small steps (chunks), the learners are given rapid
feedback, and the learners are able to proceed at their own
pace.
Significant learning is acquired through doing. The best
instructional material allows the learner to participate in the
learning process. Learning is best acquired by doing and
practicing the desired task. This does not mean to make it a
mimic session. A mimic session is used to show how a task
is accomplished. Talking them through the task step-by-step
provides a good feel for performing the task. After talking
them through once or twice, use real life examples that they
can work through on their own. A skill needs to be worked
repeatedly several times before it becomes rote or
comfortable. Coach, but ensure they work through the
problems on their own.
Activity And Assignments
1. Discuss among the group about the learning process.
2. Discuss about Linguistic and Non Linguistic Sensories in
Learning process.
Notes -
47
LESSON 6 UNIT 2
ADULT LEARNING
Dear Friends,
After reading previous few lessons you are position to explain
learning and training. After reading this lesson You will be able
to :
1. Understand and Explain Adult Learning
2. Differentiate between adult learning and Child learning
3. Apply the principles of adult learning for practical training.
Learning is a life-long activity; we are never too old to learn, but
we are frequently resistantto change, People often talk about
problems as if they safe-guarded their position, e,g, There are
so many problems I cannot change What they mean is do not
remove the problem or I might have to change. Learning is
change.
Adult Learning
Pedagogy
All formal education institutions in modern society were
initially established exclu-sively for the education of children
and youth. At the time they were established there was only one
model of assumptions about learners and learning - the
pedagogical model (derived from the Greek words, ped
meaning child and agogus meaning leader so pedagogy
means literally that art and science of teaching children.
This model assigned full responsibility for making all decisions
about what should be learned, how it should be learned, when
it should be learned. Students were given the . role of being
submission recipients of the directions and transmitted content
of the teacher. It assumed that they were depended personali-
ties, that they had little experience that could serve as a resource
for learning that they become ready to learn what they were told
they had to learn (to get promoted to the next level), that they
were subject -centered in their orientation to learning and that
they were motivated by extrinsic pressure or rewards, The
backbone methodology of pedagogy is transmission tech-
niques. As educational psychologists started researching
educational phenomena around the turn of the century they
were governed largely by these assumptions too. But they were
not really looking at learning; they were investigating reactions
to teaching and the more they found out how teachers could
control learners reactions, the more controlling teaching became.
Pedagogy was king.
When adult education began to be organized systematically in
the first quarter of this century, pedagogy was the only model
teachers of adults had to go on, with the result that until
recently adults were taught as if they were children. I believe that
this fact accounts for many of the troubles adult educators
encountered, such as a high drop-out rate (where attendance
was voluntary), low motivation, and poor performance. When
training began emerging as a speciality within the general adult
education movement almost half a century later, this was the
only model available to trainers, as well.
Then Came Andragogy
The first inkling that the pedagogical model may not be
appropriate for adults .1ppeared in a book by Eduard C
Lindeman, The meaning of Adult Education, in 1926. Based
on his experience as both an adult learner and a teacher of
adults, Lindeman proposed that adults were not just grown-up
children, that they learned best when they were actively involved
inning what, how, and when they learned But It was not until
1950 . When we began getting empirical research on adults as
learners, that the notion that there are differences between youth
and adults as learners began being taken seriously.
A seminal study by Houle spawned a crescendo of studies
(Tugh. Peter, Penland, and others) of how adults learn
naturally. (e.g. when they are not being taught\.These studies
document the fact that adults do indeed engage in more
intentional learning outside of formal instruction than in
organized programs and that they are in fact highly self-directed
learners. Meantime, Knowledge about adult learners was
coming from other desciplines. Clinical psychologists were
providing information on the conditions and strategies that
promoted behavioural change (which is what education should
be about too). Develop-mental psychogists were illuminating
the development stages than adults experience throughout the
life span, which are a main stimulus of readiness to learn,
sociologists were exposing the effects that many institutional
policies and practices have inhibiting or facilitating learning
(especially the inhibiting effects of rules and regulations,
requirements, registration procedures, time schedules and the
like) . Social psychologists were revealing the influence of forces
in the larger environment, such as social attitudes and customs,
reward systems and socio-economic and ethnic satisfaction
Early in the 1960 European adult educators were feeling a need
for a label for the growing body of knowledge about adult
learners that would enable them to talk about it in parallel with
the pedagogical model and they coined the term andragogy: It is
derived from the Greek word, ander, meaning adult (literally,
man, not boy). It was initially used to mean the art and
science of helping adults learn, but, as will be shown later, the
term has taken on a broader meaning. It is a term that is now
widely used around the world as an alternative to pedagogy.
What Do We Know About Adults As Learners
The research cited above leads to the following assumptions
about adults as learners on which the andragogical model is
based :
1. Adults have a need to know why they should learn
something. Tough found that adults would spend
considerable time and energy exploring what the benefits
would be of their learning something and what costs would
48
be of their not learning it before they would be willing to
invest time and energy in learning it. We therefore now have
a dictum in adult education that one of the first tasks of the
adult educator is to develop a need to know in the learning
what we have to offer. At the minimum this case should be
made through testimony from the experience of the trainer
or a successful practitioner; at the maximum by providing
real or simulated experience through which the learners
experience the benefits of knowing and the costs of not
knowing. It is seldom convincing for them to be told by
someone (like the boss) that would be good for them.
To practice-e-what t-preach; let me try to make a case for your
learning about Treating Adult learners as Adults. Let me
quote from an article I wrote for the Training and
Development journal of September 1976, Separating the
Amateurs from the Pros in Training.
When I first got into training in 1935 the assumption was
made that one didnt need to have qualifications much
different from any other administra-tive role to do a good
job as a training director. The role was defined essentially as
that of managing the logistics of organizing and operating
activities for various groupings of individuals. If one had
any experience in planning schedules, building budgets,
getting out promotional materials, hiring people, and filling
out reports, he (there were no shes at that time) was
qualified. We were all amateurs. But no longer. During the
intervening years there has been a body of knowledge about
how adults learn and a body of technology for facilitating
that learning that is changing the role of trainer and requiring
that he or she knows things few teachers know and probably
none of his or her associates know. The trainer must know
andragogy - the art and science of helping adults learn- and
how it differs from pedagogy - the art and science of teaching
youth. . . . This is the mark of the pro.
2. Adults have a deep need to be self-directing. In fact the
psychological definition of adult is one who has achieved a
self-concept of being in charge of his or her own life, of
being responsible for making his or her own decisions and
living with the consequences. At the point at which we arrive
at this self-concept we develop a deep psychological need to
be seen and treated by others as being capable of taking
responsibility for ourselves. This fact creates a special
problem for us in adult education and training in that
although adults may be completely self-directing in most
aspects of their lives (as full-time workers, spouses, parents,
and voting citizens) when they enter a program labeled
education or training they had back to their conditioning
in school and college and put on their hats of dependency,
fold their arms, sit back, and say, Teach me. The problem
arises if we assume that this is really where they are coming
from .and start teaching them as if they were children. We
then put them into an inner conflict between this intellectual
map-learner equals dependent-and their deeper psychological
need to be self-directing. And the way most people deal with
psychological conflict is to seek to withdraw from the
situation causing it. To resolve this problem adult educators
have been developing strategies for helping adults to make a
quick transition from seeking themselves as being dependent
learners to becoming self-directed learners
3. Adults have greater volume and different quality of
experience than youth.
Except in certain pathological circumstances, the longer we
live the more experience and more varied experience we
accumulate. The greater reservoir of experience affects
learning in several ways:
Adults bring into a learning situation a background of
experience that is itself a rich resource for many kinds of
learning for themselves and for others. Hence, in adult
education, the greater emphasis on the us~ of experiential
learning- techniques such as discussion methods and
problem-solving exercises, that tap into the accumu-lated
knowledge and skills of the learners, or techniques, such as
simulation exercises and field experiences, that provide
learners with experiences from which they can learn by
analyzing them.
Adults have a broader base of experience to which t. attach
new ideas and skills and give them richer meaning. The more
explicit these relationships (between the old and the new) are
made through discussion and reflection - the deeper and
more permanent the learning will be.
It is predictable that a group of adults, especially if there is
an age mix, will have a wider range of differences in
background, interests ability, and learning styles than is true
qf any group of youth. Adult groups are heterogeneous
groups. Accordingly increasing empha-sis is being placed in
adult education on individualized learning and instruction,
through contract learning self-paced multimedia mod-ules,
learning resource centres and other means.
But there is a potentially negative consequence of this fact of
greater experience - it tends to cause people to develop habits
of thought and biases, to make presuppositions to be less
open to new ideas. (How often have you heard somebody
react to a new proposal It wont work. We tried it five years
ago and it didnt work?) some techniques have been
developed to. try to counter this tendency -sensitivity training
open-mindedness scales, creativity exercises, and others.
But the difference in quality of experience adults bring with
them is also significant. Few youth have had the experience
of being full-time workers, spouses, parents voting citizens,
organizational leaders, and of performing other adults roles.
Most adults have. Accordingly, adults have a different
perspective on experience : it is their chief source of self
identity. To youth, experience is something that happens to
them. But adults define them selves in terms of their
uniques experience. An adults experience is who he or she is.
So if adults experience is not respected and valued, is not
made use of as resource for learning they experience this
omission not as a rejection of their experience but as a
rejection of them as persons. Evidence indicates that this
phenomenon is especially characteristic of under edu-cated
adults.
4. Adults become ready to learn when they experience in their
life situation a need to know or be able to do in order to
49
perform more effectively and satisfyingly. The pedagogical
model makes.the opposite assumption- that people become
ready to learn what they are told by some authority figure
(teacher, trainer, boss), that they have to learn becasue its
good for them or the authority figure demands it. Adults
experience being told as infringing on their adultness-their
need to be self-directing-and tend to react with resentment,
defensiveness, and resistance. Adults learn best when they
choose voluntarily to make a commitment to learn.
This principle is often difficult to apply in business and
industry since rightly or wrongly employer-provided training
tends to be perceived as employers required training. Indeed,
often attendance is compulsory. When I sense that there are
people in one of my activities who have been sent, I do
two things to try to reduce the resistance it induces. First, I
make it Iublir. that I realize that there may be some people
in the room who arent there because they wailt to be, and
that I am sorry this because it tends to get in the way of
learning. But, I explain, ther~ is nothing I or you can do to
change this at this time, so lets accept it as a given and see if
we cant have a pleasent and profitable time together anyway.
More importantly, I try to involve them in discovering for
themselves-through participation in simulation exercises self-
diagnosing their learning needs through competency-based
rating scales, observing role models of superior
performance-the value for their own lives of learning what
the progr~m ha~ to offer.
One of the richest sources of readiness to learn is the
transitions peopl,e make in moving from one developmental
stage to another. As Havighurst points out, as we confront
having to perform the development tasks of the next at age
of development, we become ready to learn those tasks; and
the peak of our desire to learn them he calls the teachable
moment. A typical sequence of developmental tasks in
work life would be (1) to begin a process of career planning
(2) to acquire the competencies required for a first job, (3) to
get a first job (4) to become oriented to the first job (5) to
master the competencies required to perform excellently in
the first job, (6) to plan and prepare for a next-step-up job,
and so through a cycle of career development. The final
development task would be to prepare for retirement from a
career. A main implication of this concept is the importance
of timing our educational offerings to coincide with the
workers developmental tasks. Indeed, some\of the great
goods of training have occurred as a result of
5. Adults enter into a learning experience with a task-centered
(or problem centered or life-centered) orientation to learning.
Children and youth have been conditioned by their school
experience to have a subject-centered orientation to learning;
they see learning as a process of acquiring the subject matter
necessary/to pass tests. Once that is done, their mission is
accomplished. This difference in orientation calls for different
ways to organizing the content to be learned. In traditional
education that content is organized into subject-matter
courses-such as composition II, in which sentence and
paragraph structures are memorized and composition III, in
which rules of outlining syntex and the like are memorized.
In adult education the content is organized around life tasks:
Composition II beomes
Writing for pleasure and profit and composition III
becomes Improving Your Professional Communications.
I have found that this principle is commonly violated in
orientation programs, in which the sequence of topic might
be (1) The History and Philosophy of XYZ Co., (2) The
Market and Products of XYZ Co., (3) The personnel policies
of XYZ., and so on, instead of starting with a census of
problems and concerns, along with problems and concerns
of the organization and - trainer. But I strongly urge trainers
to review their programs and restructure the units around
tasks, problems, or life situations. The participants will see
the program as such more relevant to their lives and they will
learn the content with the intention of using it.
6. Adults are motivated to learn by both extrinsic and intrinsic
motivators. One of the most significant findings of the
search into adult learning is that adults are motivated to
learn. Allen Tough, the researcher who has to date
accumulated the largest volume of information about how
adults learn in normal life, has yet to find a subject in his
research who had not engaged in at least one major learning-
project (a minimum of +hours of intentional learning) in
the preceding year, and the average number of learning
projects was over seven. The problem (and our challenge) is
that they may not be motivated to learn what we want to
teach them: hence the importance of following through on
the first assumption above- developing a need to know.
The pedagogical model makes the assumption the children
and youth are motivated primarily, if not exclusively, by
extrinsic motivator-pressures from parents and teachers,
competition for grades, diplomas, ,and the like. Adult
learners respond to extrinsic motivators - wage raises,
promotion, better working conditions, and the like- up to
the point that they are reasonably well satisfied but the more
potent and persistent motivators such intrinsic motivators as
the need for self-esteem broadened responsibilities, power,
achievement, and the like. The message here as I read it, is to
appeal to both the desire for job advancement and life
enrichment in promoting your programs.
Duplications For Practice
The assumptions of pedagogy and andragogy have a number
of implication for what we do as human resource developers.
One basic implication is the importance of making a clear
distinction between a content plan and a process design.
When planning an educational activity, the pedagogy thinks in
terms of drafting a content plan, and he has to answer only
four questions to come up with a plan. {1) What .content needs
to be covered? (the assumption being that they will only learn
what he transmits, and therefore he has to cover it all in the
classroom). So he draws up a long laundry list of content
terms. (2) How can this content be organized into manageable
units ? (1- hour, 3 -hour, etc. units). So he arranges the units in
a sequence according to chronology (history, literature, political
science) or from simple to complex (science, math). (4) What
would be the most effective methods? Choice will probably be
50
lecture and assign reading; if unit 2 involves skill performance,
the method of choice will probably be demon-stration by him
and drill, drill, drill by them. By answering these four questions
he ends up with a content-transmission plan.
The andragog, on the other hand, when she (get the gender
change?) undertakes to plan an education activity, sees her task
as being twofold: first, and primairly so design and manage a
process for facilitating the acquisition of content by the learners;
and only secondarily to serve as a content resource (she perceives
that there are many content resources in addition to her own-
peers, supervisors, specialists and a variety of materials in the
learners environment, and that an important part of her
responsibility is to keep up to date as to what these resources
are and to link learners with them).
So the andragog has to answer very different kinds of questions
to come up with a process design. (Notice that it is not a matter
of the pedagogs being concerned with content and the
andragogs not being concerned with it; rather, the pedagog is
concerned with.transmitting the content and the andragog is
concerned with facilitating the acquisition of the content by the
learners
The questions raised by the andragog have to do with imple-
menting the following elements of an andragogical process
design:
1.Climate setting: A prerequisite for effective learning to take
place is the es-tablishment of a climate that is conducive
to.learning. Two broad aspect of climate must be considered:
institutional climate and the climate of training situation.
Among the questions that might be raised a regarding institu-
tional climate are: Do the policy statements of the institution
convey a deep commitment to the value of human resources
development in the accomplishment of the mission of the
institution? Does the budget of the institution provide
adequate resources for the support of significant human
resources devel-opment (HRD) efforts? Is the HRD staff
involved in the decision-making process as regards personnel
poticies- and programs? Are adequate physical facilities for HRD
activities provided? Does the reward system of the institution
give credit for the achievement of personal growth on the part
of individuals and their supervisor?
As regards setting a climate in a training situation, these are the
conditions that I think characterize a climate that is conducive to
learning, and the questions that might be asked in creating a
process design to achieve those conditions:
2. A climate of mutual respect: I believe that people are more
open to learning if they feel respected. If they feel that they are
be talked down to embarassed, or otherwise denigrated, their
energy is diverted from learning to dealing with these feeling. I
do several things to try to bring such a climate into being: First,
I provide name tents-5 by 8 cards with their names printed on
them with bold felt pens-so that I (and they)can start calling on
them by name. Then I put them into small groups of five or
six persons (preferably sitting. around tables) and ask them to
share their whats (their work roles); their whos (one thing
about themselves that ~iII enable others to see them as unique
human beings); any special knowledge, skill, or other resources.
they would be willing to share with others; and any questions,
problems or concerns they are hoping will be dealt with in this
program. I ask one person in each group to volunteer to give a
high-point summary of this information about each group. I
feel that this hour is the most important hour in the whole
training event, since it starts the process of creating a climate
that is conducive to learning.
A climate of collaborativeness rather than competitive-
ness: The above sharing exercise causes the participants to start
seen themselves as mutual helpers rather than rivals. For many
kinds of learning, the richest resources are within their peers,
hence the importance of making these resources available.
A climate of supportiveness rather than judgementalness: I
think I largely set this climate by being supportive in my own
behaviour but the opening exercise also tends to establish peer -
support relationships.
A climate of mutual trust: In order to reduce the instinctive
mistrust with which people typically react to authority figures, in
presenting mYS8lf I emphasize who I am as a human being
rather than as an expert, and I urge them to call me by my first
name.
A climate of fun: Learning should be one of the most joyful
things we do and so I do everything I can to make the experi-
ence enjoyable. I make a lot of use of spontaneous (not
canned) humor.
A human climate. Learning is a human activity; training is for
dogs and 1 horses. So I try to establish a climate in which
people feel that they are being treated as human beings not
objects. I try to care for their human needs. Comfortable chairs,
frequently breaks. adequate ventilation and lighting availability
of coffee or cold drinks, and the like.
The first questions an andragog asks in constructing a process
design, therefore, is what procedures should I use with this
particular group to bring these climate conditions into being?
2.Creating a mechanism for mutual planning. A basic law of
human nature is at work here: people tend to feel committed to
a decision or activity to the extent that they have participated in
making the decision or planning the activity. The reverse is even
more true. People tend to feel uncommitted to the extent they
feel that the decision or activity is being imposed on them
without their having a chance to influence it.
In planning a total programme all the course workshops
seminars of an institution, the usual mechanism is a planning
committee, councilor task force.- To be effective, it is critical that
it be representative of all the constituencies the program is
designed to serve For a particular program, such as a course pr
workshop, I prefer to use teams of participants, with each team
having responsibility for planning one unit of the program.
The fullest participation in planning is achieved, however,
through the use of learning contracts, in which case the learners
develop their own learning plans.
The second question the andragog answer in developing a
process model therefore, is what procedures will use to
involve the learners in planning?
3. Diagnosing the participants learning needs: The HRD
literature is rich in techniques. Trainers can use for assessing
51
training needs as perceived by individuals, organizaticms and
communities. These needs are the appropriate source of goals
for a total program. But in a particular training event involving
particular individuals, a learning need is not a need unless so
perceived by the learner. One of the highest arts in training is
creating the conditions and providing the tools that will enable
learners to become awarl3 of their training needs and therefore
translate them into learning needs. A new body of technology
being developed for facilitating this process, with emphasis on
such self-diagnostic as simulation exercise, assessment centers
,competency-based rating scales, and videotape feedback
So the third set of questions the and agog asks in constructing a
process design is What procedures will use in helping the
participants diagnose there own learning needs
4. Translating learning needs into objectives: Having
diagnosed their learning needs participants now face the task of
translating them into learning objectives-positive statements of
directions of growth. Some kinds of learning (such as machine
operation) lend themselves to objectives stated as
terminal.behaviours that can be observed and measured. Others
(such as decision-making ability) are so complex that they are
better stated in terms of direction of improvement.
So the fourth question the androgen asks is What procedures
can I use for helping participants translate their learning needs
into learning objectives?
5. Designing and managing a pattern of learning experi-
ence: Having formulated the learning objectives, the next task
of the trainer and the participants is to design a plan for
achieving them. This plan will include identify the resources
most relevant to each objective and the most effective strategies
for utilizing these resources. Such a plan is likely to include a
mix of total group experiences including input by the trainer,
subgroup (Iearning teaching team) experience, and individual
learning projects. A key criterion for assessing the excellence of
such a design is, how deeply involved is the participants in the
mutual process of designing and managing a pattern of
learning experiences?
So the fifth question the androgen asks is What procedures can
I use for involving the learners with me in designing and
managing a pattern of learning experiences?
6. Evaluating the extent to which the objectives have been
achieved: In many situations institutional policies require some
sort of objective (Quantitative) measure of learning out-
comes. But the recent trend in evaluation research has been to
place increasing emphasis on subjective (Qualitative) evalua-
tion- finding out what is really happening inside the participants
and how differently they are performing in life. In any case, the
andragogical model requires that the learners by actively involved
in process of evaluating their learning outcomes.
The sixth question, therefore, that the andragog asks is What
procedures can I use to involve the learners responsibly in
evaluating the accomplishment of the learning objectives?
By answering these six sets of questions the learning facilitator
emerges with process design- a set of procedures for facilitating
the acquisition of content by~ learners.
But Not Andragogy versus Pedagogy
When I first began conceptualizing the andragogical model I
perceived it as being, antithetical to the pedagogical model. In
fact, in the book in which I first presented the andragogical
model in detail, The Modern Practice of Adult Education, I
used the subtitle Andragogy versus Pedagogy. During the
next few years I began getting reports from elementary and
secondary school teachers saying that they had been experiment-
ing with applying the andragogical model in their practice and
finding that children and youth also I learn better in many
situations when they are involved in sharing responsibility. And
I got reports from teachers of adults that they had found
situations in which they had to use the pedagogical model. So
when I revised the book in 1980.1 used the subtitle, From
Pedagogy to Andragogy.
As I see it now, whereas for 13 centuries we had ~nly one
model of assumptions and strategies regarding education-the
pedagogical model. Now we have two models. So we have the
responsibility now checking out which set of assumptions is
realistic in which situation and using the strategies of whichever
model is appropriate for that situation. In general the pedagogi-
cal assumptions are likely to be realistic in those situations in
which the content is totally strange to learners and in which
precise psychomotor skills are involved as in machine operation.
But even in these situations, elements of the andragogical
model such as climate setting, might enhance the learning. And
I use elements of the pedagotical model such as reinforcement,
in my andragogical practice. So my stance now is not either-or,
but both-as appropriate to the situation.
Preparing for the Future
In the third quarter of this century we accumulated more
research based knowledge about adults as learners than was
known in all of previous history. In the past decade the body
of knowledge had at least doubled I am confident that the
present body of knowledge will at least double in the next
decade. My colleagues in the biological sciences assure me that
their disciplines will contribute some of the major break-
throughs, especially as regards the physiological, chemical and
neurological (such as right-:brain, left-brain) processes involved
in learning. The technology of making resources for learning
available is already in a state of revolution, especially with the
development of computer and communications . satellites. My
own conviction is that by the end of this century most educa-
tional services will delivered electronically to learn at their
convinces in terms of time place and pace.
What a challenge we in human resources development face if we
are to avoid the obsolescence of our work force. I can foresee
this challenge requiring that we reconceptualize a corporation (or
any social system) as a system of learning resources as well as
production and service delivering system and redefine the role
of HRD away from that of Managing the logistics of conduct-
ing training activities to that of managing a system of ;earning
resources. We would then ask a very different set of questions
from those we have traditionally asked in training and develop-
ment. The first question would be, What are all of the
resources available in this system for the growth and develop-
52
ment of people? We might come up with a chart that iooks
something like this:
Managing a system of learning
Resources Strategies for Enhancing
their Utilization
Scheduled training activities Revise time schedule so as to
(course, workshops, seminars) make more accessible to
employees
Revise programs so as to make
them more congruent with
adult learning principles.
Train presenters in adult
education methods.
Line supervisor and managers Building responsibility for
(the most ubiquitpus resources people development into
for day-in-and-day-out their job descriptions.
employee development) Build into supervisory and
management training pro
grams, sessions on principles
of adult learning and skills in
facilitating learning.
Give credit in personnel
appraisals for performance as
people developers.
Libraries, media centres Arrange to be open during
(printed materials, audiovisual hours accessible to all
and multimedia programs) employees
Make information about
resources available to all
employes.
Provide help in using them.
Individual employees,specialists Store this information in a data
make it and technicians bank and available to employ
(many people in organizations ees through an educational
have knowledge and skills brokering center.
others would like to learn
Community resources (courses, Include in the above data bank.
workshops, specialists, etc.,
in colleges and universities
community organizations,
professional associations
commercial providers etc.)
If nothing more is done than has been described so far the
quality of human resource development in a corporation would
probably be improved. But learning would still be episodic,
fragmented and disconnected. It can be made more systematic,
incremental, and continuous through the use of learning
contracts or development plans.
A contract simply specifies what an individuals objectives are for
a given learning project, what resources will be used in fulfilling
the objectives what evidence will be collected to demonstrate
that the objectives have been fulfilled and how that evidence will
be validated. In one corporation the contract is negotiated
between the individual and the HRD staff.; in another it is
between the individual and his or her supervisor; in another it
is between the individual and a team consisting of the supervi-
sor, a representative of the HRD department, and a peer.
Progress toward fulfilling the contract is monitored, and the
evidence is validated by these same parties. Several corporations
with a management -by objectives program have incorporated
the contracting process into the MBO process.
Several things happen when a systems approach is adopted. A
heavier responsibility is placed on the line supervisors and
managers for the development of their personnel than
traditionally has been the case. This integrates tHe HRD
function more closely with the operating function. and ~ine
supervisors and managers derive added self-esteem and job
satisfaction from their developmental role once they have
become adept at it.
Employees find that their personal and professional develop-
ments are more integrated with their work life. A much wider
range of resources for learning are available to them and
employees are involved directly involved in planning and
achieving their own development-adding to their self-esteem
and satisfaction.
For HRD professionals, the systems approach represents a
major shift in role. They are less concerned with planning,
scheduling and conducting instructional activities, and are more
concerned with managing a system. One of their major
responsibilties is to serve as consultants to the line-a closer and
more functional relationship, and one more centre to the
operation of the business.
How much more fulfilling a role!
Learning Styles, Elements And Profiles
Learning Styles
Learning styles can be defined as the way in which a participant
processes information be taught and have a profound effect on
the way in which a participant will respond to a trainers teaching
methods. The following types of learning styles have been
identified.
Auditory - The auditory learner best processes new
information when it is heard. The auditory learner does well
with listening to instructor lectures or pre-recorded lectures
on tape.
Visual - This type of learner processes information most
effectively when it is presented by reading, demonstrations,
illustrations, slides, transparencies and posters.
Kinesthetic - Kinesthetic learners learn best by touching or
manipulating new information as in hands-on exercises or
lab situations where they perform tasks appropriate to the
material being presented. The kinesthetic learner does best
when working along with a demonstration or by taking
notes while listening to a lecture.
Environmental - The environmental learner finds it difficult
to learn unless the learning environment is one in which they
are physically comfortable and they can concentrate.
Distractions such as temperature, lighting and noise level
must be suited to their individual tastes. Keeping a check on
53
light, noise and temperature levels in the classroom will
lessen obstacles to learning for the environmental learner.
Some participants with learning differences that interfere with
concentration and material retention can be thought to be
environmental learners.
Any class you teach will have a combination of participants with
different learning styles. You may notice that some learners use
a combination of learning styles as opposed to one predomi-
nate learning style. For instructor-led training, be sure to you
mix your material delivery to accommodate all learning styles by
alternating lecture with visuals and hands-on activities. Keep a
check on environmental factors such as light, noise and
temperature levels.
It is common fact that any given class of 10 participants has 1 or
2 participants who will have difficulty learning your material, 1
or 2 participants who will have an extremely easy time learning
your material, and 6 to 8 participants who will fall somewhere in
the middle of the two extremes.
Also remember that most people learn 20% of what they hear,
30% of what they see and 80% of what they do. Teach your
material in a way that it can be best understood and digested by
all participants and vary your delivery methods between lecture,
visuals and hands-on exercises.
Exercise - Understanding Learning Styles
Refer to the instructions shown in the Appendix for Exercise 2.
Complete the questionnaire shown in Exercise 2 and then refer
to the Summary section to gain insight to the types of learning
styles. A few of you will be asked to share your findings with
the rest of the class.
Solution - Understanding Learning Styles
Answer each question below. When finished, refer to the
Summary section at the end of the questionnaire. This is a
short exercise aimed at making you aware of some of the
characteristics of the different types of learners and by no means
is intended to be a comprehensive analysis of your personal
learning style.
1. I prefer classes in which the instructor
a. uses films and videos
b. lectures and answers questions
c. lets us participate in group activities
d. opens the windows so I can have fresh air
2. To learn more about the operation of printers I would
prefer to
a. read the user guides
b. listen to someone tell me how they work
c. do some hand-on work with printers
d. take a computer-based tutorial in a private, quiet setting
3. To remember things best, I
a. create a mental picture
b. repeat what Im trying to remember several times out
loud to myself
c. write it down
4. Assembling a bicycle from a diagram and instructions would
be
a. a piece of cake for me
b. absolutely impossible unless I had someone to read
the directions for me
c. OK if I had a chance to experiment with the parts and
the tools first
d. a complete disaster unless I went to a quiet room with
lots of light, the right tools and no interruptions
5. I prefer training in which I
a. watch the instructor demonstrate new concepts
b. listen to the instructor lecture and give examples
c. handle equipment or work with models
d. am not too cold or hot, and the chairs are comfortable
6. To understand and remember how a machine works, I
would
a. read a diagram or illustration
b. listen to an audio tape on the machines operation
c. write notes on how it works
d. need to have some time in private and without
interruptions to study the machines operations
7. I prefer to learn new ideas by
a. reading and writing notes
b. speaking and listening
c. drawing or working with my hands
d. learning at home on my sun porch in my sweats
8. If someone is giving me directions, I prefer that they
a. draw me a map or write down the directions for me
b. simply tell me how to find the place I am looking for
c. write down the directions myself while the person
gives them to me
Summary - Understanding Learning Styles
If your responses to the above questions were mostly:
as - you predominantly depend on visual learning style
bs - you predominantly depend on auditory learning style
cs - you predominantly depend on kinesthetic learning style
ds - you predominantly depend on environmental learning
style
Learning Elements
Most learners, especially the adult learner, tend to do well when
they are actively involved in their own learning. Since most
adults come to a training event with well established values,
beliefs and opinions, they generally consider themselves to be
strong participants in their own learning process. The effective
trainer is wise to recognize this.
Adults also prefer to be given problem solving opportunities as
opposed to being given solutions to problems. The instructor
who simply states solutions without providing a problem
solving environment will be less effective with adult learners.
54
Adults prefer training that is personalized and addresses specific
needs. Job-relevant information where the adult is able to see a
correlation with material presented to their own job responsi-
bilities is most desired by adults.
Adults as Learners
(Adult Learning Styles: A Foundation For Staff
Development)
Stephen Lieb, Senior Technical Writer and Planner for the
Arizona Department of Health Services and Part-time Instruc-
tor at South Mountain Community College has identified a
profile and some common attributes for the adult learner. Any
trainer who understands these attributes will be more effective
when training the adult learner. Its a simple fact that adults do
learn differently than teens and children, but any teacher would
serve those being taught well by applying these concepts to any
audience.
The field of adult learning was pioneered by Malcom Knowles.
He identified the following characteristics of adult learners:
Adults are autonomous and self-directed: They need to be
free to direct themselves. Their teachers must actively involve
adult participants in the learning process and serve as facilitators
for them. Specifically, they must get participants perspective
about what topics to cover and let them work on projects that
reflect their interests. They should allow the participants to
assume responsibility for presentations and group leadership.
They have to be sure to act as facilitators, guiding participants to
their own knowledge rather than supplying them with facts.
Finally, they must show participants how the class will help
them to reach their goals (e.g., via a personal goals sheet).
Adults have accumulated a foundation of life experiences
and knowledge that may include work-related activities,
family responsibilities, and previous education: They need
to connect learning to this knowledge/experience base. To help
them do so, they should draw out participants experience and
knowledge which is relevant to the topic. They must relate
theories and concepts to the participants and recognize the value
of experience in learning.
Adults are goal-oriented: Upon enrolling in a course, they
usually know what goal they want to attain. They, therefore,
appreciate an education program that is organized and has
clearly-defined elements. Instructors must show participants
how this class will help them attain their goals. This classifica-
tion of goals and course objectives must be done early in the
course.
Adults are relevancy-oriented: They must see a reason for
learning something. Learning has to be applicable to their work
or other responsibilities to be of value to them. Therefore,
instructors must identify objectives for adult participants before
the course begins. This means, also, that theories and concepts
must be related to a setting familiar to participants. This need
can be fulfilled by letting participants choose projects that reflect
their own interests.
Adults are practical, focusing on the aspects of a lesson
most useful to them in their work: They may not be inter-
ested in knowledge for its own sake. Instructors must tell
participants explicitly how the lesson will be useful to them on
the job.
As do all learners, adults need to be shown respect:
Instructors must acknowledge the wealth of experiences that
adult participants bring to the classroom. These adults should
be treated as equals in experience and knowledge and allowed to
voice their opinions freely in class.
Adults are people with years of experience and a wealth of
information: Focus on the strengths learners bring to the
classroom, not just gaps in their knowledge. Provide opportu-
nities for dialogue within the group. Tap their experience as a
major source of enrichment to the class. Remember that you,
the teacher, do not need to have all the answers, as long as you
know where to go or who to call to get the answers. Students
can be resources to you and to each other.
Adults have established values, beliefs and opinions:
Demonstrate respect for differing beliefs, religions, value
systems and lifestyles. Let your learners know that they are
entitled to their values, beliefs and opinions, but that everyone
in the room may not share their beliefs. Allow debate and
challenge of ideas.
Adults are people whose style and pace of learning has
probably changed: Use a variety of teaching strategies such as
small group problem solving and discussion. Use auditory,
visual, tactile and participatory teaching methods. Reaction time
and speed of learning may slow, but the ability to learn is not
impaired by age. Most adults prefer teaching methods other
than lecture.
Adults relate new knowledge and information to previ-
ously learned information and experiences: Assess the
specific learning needs of your audience before your class or at
the beginning of the class. Present single concepts and focus on
application of concepts to relevant practical situations. Summa-
rize frequently to increase retention and recall. Material outside
of the context of participants experiences and knowledge
becomes meaningless.
Adults are people with bodies influenced by gravity: Plan
frequent breaks, even if they are 2-minute stretch breaks.
During a lecture, a short break every 45-60 minutes is sufficient.
In more interactive teaching situations breaks can be spaced 60-
90 minutes apart.
Adult have pride: Support the students as individuals. Self-
esteem and ego are at risk in a classroom environment that is
not perceived as safe or supportive. People will not ask ques-
tions or participate in learning is they are afraid of being put
down or ridiculed. Allow people to admit confusion, ignorance,
fears, biases and different opinions. Acknowledge or thank
students for their responses and questions. Treat all questions
and comments with respect. Avoid saying I just covered that
when someone asks a repetitive question. Remember, the only
foolish question is the unasked question.
Adults have a deep need to be self-directing: Engage the
students in a process of mutual inquiry. Avoid merely transmit-
ting knowledge to expecting total agreement. Dont
spoon-feed the participants.
Individual differences among people increase with age:
Take into account differences in style, time, types and pace of
55
learning. Use auditory, visual, tactile and participatory teaching
methods.
Adults tend to have a problem-centered orientation to
learning: Emphasize how learning can be applied in a practical
setting. Use case studies, problem solving groups, and participa-
tory activities to enhance learning. Adults generally want to
immediately apply new information or skills to current prob-
lems or situations.
Some Contemporary Principles of Adult Learning
The process of action learning, founded by Reginald Revans
about 50 years ago in England, is based on contemporary views
of adult learning. Action learning asserts that adults learn best
when:
1. Working to address a current, real-world problem
2. They are highly vest in solving the current problem
3. They actually apply new materials and information and
4. Exchange ongoing feedback around their experiences
In addition, adults often learn best from experience, rather than
from extensive note taking and memorization
Learning Strategies
Learning strategies refer to methods that students use to learn.
This ranges from techniques for improved memory to better
studying or test-taking strategies. For example, the method of
loci is a classic memory improvement technique; it involves
making associations between facts to be remembered and
particular locations. In order to remember something, you
simply visualize places and the associated facts.
Some learning strategies involve changes to the design of
instruction. For example, the use of questions before, during or
after instruction has been shown to increase the degree of
learning Methods that attempt to increase the degree of learning
that occurs have been called mathemagenic.
A typical study skill program is SQ3R which suggests 5 steps:
(1) survey the material to be learned, (2) develop questions
about the material, (3) read the material, (4) recall the key ideas,
and (5) review the material.
Research on metacognition may be relevant to the study of
learning strategies in so far as they are both concerned with
control processes. A number of learning theories emphasize the
importance of learning strategies including: double loop
learning ( Argyris ), conversation theory (Pask), and lateral
thinking ( DeBono ). Weinstein (1991) discusses learning
strategies in the context of social interaction, an important
aspect of Situated Learning Theory.
Activities and Assignments
1. What are various types of learning.
2. What is adult learning.
3. How is adult learning different than other types of learning.
4. How does adult learn.
5. How does knowledge of adult learning helps trainer.
56
Dear Friends,
Now you already know about training& development as well as
its significance .
In this lesson we will go through some principles of training
and learning.
You will also be able to correlate how it contributes in
making training success.
As defined by a famous author training is learning process.
Hence to make training effective and successful one must
understand about learning and training principles. In previous
chapters you have studied about learning, learning styles &
strategies, types of learning , learning process.
Learning and Teaching
The training programme will not be effective if the trainer is
poorly qualified or ill-equipped with the technical aspects of the
content or if he lacks aptitude for teaching and teaching skills.
Training comprises of mainly learning and teaching. Training
principles can be studied through the principles of learning and
principles of teaching.
Learning Principles
1. Learning requires purposeful activity.
2. Learning is a process of the whole individual.
3. Learning is problem solving. Challenging problems
stimulate learning.
4. Learning is based on past experiences.
5. Learning results from stimulation through the senses.
6. The more vivid and intense the impressions, the greater
the chance of remembering.
7. Interest is essential to effective learning. Learning requires
motivation.
8. Friendly competition stimulates learning.
9. Recognition and credit provide strong incentives for
learning.
10. People learn more when they are held to account and made
to feel responsible for learning.
11. Knowing why makes learning more effective.
12. Knowledge of the standards required makes learning more
effective.
13. Things should be taught the way they are to be used.
14. Teaching should be logical or orderly.
15. The most effective learning results when initial learning is
followed immediately by application.
16. Early successes increase chances for effective learning.
17. Repetition, accompanied by constant effort toward
improvement, makes for effective development of skill.
LESSON 7
PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE TRAINING AND LEARNING
18 Feelings of both teacher and student affect learning.
19. Students learn many things in addition to skills and
information (attitudes, interests, appreciations, etc.).
20. Continuous evaluation is essential to effective learning.
Learning Patterns
Trainers need some understanding of the patterns in which
new skills are learned. The employee is likely to find himself
unusually clumsy, during the early stages of learning. This can
be called discouraging stage. After the employees adjusts
himself to the environment, he learns at a fast rate. A plateau
develops after the lapse of more training time due to a loss of
motivation and lack of break in training schedule and time. The
trainee reaches the next stage when he is motivated by the
trainer and/or some break or pause in time and training process
is given. The trainee at this stage learns at a fast rate.? Special
repetition of the course leads the trainee to reach the stage of
over-learning as shown in below diagram.
LEARNING CURVE








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Training Time
Thus, it is clear that, learning rarely takes place at a constant rate.
It varies according to the difficulty of the task, ability of the
individual and physical factors. However, the rate of learning
varies from one individual to another.
Characteristics of Learning Process
1. Learning is a continuous process.
2. People learn through their actual personal experience,
simulated experience and (rom others experience (by using
the knowledge which represents experience of others).
3. People learn step by step, from known to unknown
and.simple to complex as shown in following figure.
57
4. There is a need for repetition in teaching Ito improve skill
and to learn perfectly.
5. Practice makes a man perfect. Hence, oppo~nity should be
created to use, transfer the skills, knowledge and abilities
acqjUired through learning. It gives satisfaction to the learner.
6. Conflicts in learning: Conflict in learningarise when the
trainer knows or has developed some habits which are
incorrect in terms of the method being learned.
The Climate for Learning
Conducive climate is highly essential for serious participation,
attentiveness, creation of interest, and sincerity of learner.
Climate (pr learning consists of working conditions, relation-
ship with other trainees, and traitl1ers/instructors, conditions
for relaxation, freedom, scope for social interaction, and.
formation of social groups. Conducive climate for learning
should be provided in view of its significance in training. It
consists of ideal physical and psychological environment. Ideal
physical environment, consisting of suitable location with
space, adequate accommodation, audio-visual aids, air condi-
tioning, ventilation, lighting and other facilities like canteen,
facilities for relaxation, should be provided. Ideal psychological
environment, consisting business atmosphere, friendly
environment, frequent communication, follow-up regarding
performance and progress, enthusiastic, helpful and broad
binded trainer etc., should be created and provided. Provision
for measuring teamers progress through tests should also be
made in order to regulate, correct and follow-up the training
programmes.
Learning Problems
The instructor should have the knowledge of the possible
learning problems. He should identify the problems of trainees
and take steps to solve them. The possible learning problems
are:
a. Lack of knowledge, skill, aptitude and favourable attitude.
b. Knowledge and skill not being adopted.
c. Existence of anti-learning factors: Most tJperational
situations contain. A number of elements which will restrict
the development of learning regardless the methods
employed.
d. Psychological problems like fear and shy,
e. Inability to transfer of learning to operatiton situation.
f. Heavy dependence on repetition, demonstration and practice.
g. Unwilling to change.
h. Lack of interest about the knowledge of results.
i. Absence of self-motivation.
j. Negative attitude about involvement and participation.
Teaching Principles
In addition to learning principles, teaching principles should
also be taken care for effective training:
a. The employee must be taught to practice only the correct
method of work.
b. Job analysis and motion study techniques should be used.
c. Job training under actual working conditions should be
preferred to class room b:aining.
d. Emphasis should be given more on accuracy than speed.
e. Teaching should be at different time-intervals.
f. It should be recognised that it is easier to train young
workers than old workers due to their decreasing adaptability
with the increase in age. Exhibit 8.6 shows principles of
teaching basic skills and Exhibit 8.7 shows principles of
teaching basic Physical Movements.
Principles of Teaching Basic Skills
1. The worker must be taught and must practice only correct
methods of work. This is the basic principle.
2. First establish the best way of doing a job - use job analysis
and/or time and motion study techniques.
3. Follow the principles of best movements in work.
4. Job training under actual working conditions is superior to
classroom and formal training.
5. Emphasise accuracy first - speed second.
6. Training is more efficient when distributed over short
periods of time.
7. Remember the practice aims - efficiency increases with
repetition of the task. However, you should expect learning
plateaus when no apparent progress is made, followed by
additional spurts of improvement.
Therefore, you should carry out distributed practice over
longer period than is commonly believed (otherwise workers
settle down at production speeds lower than their real
abilities).
8. When a plateau is reached, use incentives and other devices to
get more improvement.
9. Age and learning: You can train older workers as well as
younger ones.
Learning ability does not deteriorate rapidly with age - in stead,
older workers have learned more bad habits and therefore need
retaining. .
.
Basic
Knowledge
Skills
Simple
Knowledge
Skills
Complex
problems
More
Complex
problems
Departmental
review
Organizational
Development
problems
58
Principles of Teaching Basic Physical Movements
1. Successive movements should be so related that one
movement passes easily into that which follows, each ending
in a position favourable for the beginning of the next
movement.
2. The order of movements should be so arranged that little
direct attention is needed for passage from one to another.
In other words, they should be so arranged that the mind
can attend to the final aim or end of the operation instead
of being distracted by the work of initiating successively the
several movements which are involved in a task.
3. The sequence of movements is to be so framed that an easy
rhythm can be established in the automatic performance of
the various elements of operation.
4. From the principles which have been stated follows the
corollary that a continuous movement is preferable to
angular movements involving sudden changes in the
direction of movement.
5. The number of movements should be reduced as far as
possible within the scope of limitations suggested above. In
general, reducing the number of movements will facilitate a
rhythmic method of working and automatisation as a
means of reducing the volitional direction of work.
6. Simultaneous use of both hands should be encouraged.
7. When a forcible stroke is required, the direction of
movement and placement of material should be so arranged
that, as far as practicable, the stroke is delivered when it has
reached its greatest momentum.
Principles of Training
Providing training in the knowledge of different skills is a
complex process. A number of principles have been evolved
which can be followed as guidelines by the trainees. Some of
them are as follows:
1. Motivation: As the effectiveness of an employee depends on
how well he is motivated by management, the effectiveness
of learning also depends on motivation. In other words, the
trainee will acquire a new skill or knowledge thoroughly and
quickly if he or she is highly motivated. Thus, the training
must be related to the desires of the trainee such as more
wages or better job, recognition, status, promotion etc. The
trainer should find out the proper ways to motivate
experienced employees who are already enjoying better
facilities in case of re-training.
2. Progress Information: It has been found by various research
studies that there is a relation between learning rapidly and
effectively and providing right information specifically, and as
such the trainer should not give excessive information or
information that can be misinterpreted. The trainee also
wants to learn a new skill without much difficulty and
without handing too much or receiving excessive
information or wrong type of progressive information. So,
the trainer has to provide only the required amount of
progressive information specifically to the trainee.
3. Reinforcement: The effectiveness of the trainee in learning
new skills or acquiring new knowledge should be reinforced
by means of rewards and punishments. Examples of
positive reinforcement are promotions, rise in pay, praise etc.
Punishments are also called negative reinforcements.
Management should take care to award the successful
trainees.
The management can punish the trainees whose behaviour is
undesirable. But the consequences of such punishments
have their long-run ill effect on the trainer as well as on the
management. Hence, the management should take much care
in case of negative reinforcements.
4. Practice: A trainee should actively participate in the training
programmes in order to make the learning programme an
effective one. Continuous and long practice is highly essential
for effective learning. Jobs are broken down into elements
from which the fundamental physical, sensory and mental
skills are extracted. Training exercises should be provided for
each skill.
5. Full Vs. Part: It is not clear whether it is best to teach the
complete job at a stretch or dividing the job into parts and
teaching each part at a time. If the job is complex and
requires a little too long to learn, it is better to teach part of
the job separately and then put the parts together into an
effective complete job. Generally the training process should
start from the known and proceed to the unknown and
from the easy to the difficult when parts are taught.
However, the trainer has to teach the trainees based on his
judgement on their motivation and convenience.
6. Individual Differences: Individual training is costly, and
group training is economically viable and advantageous to
the organisation. But individuals vary in intelligence and
aptitude from person to person. So the trainer has to adjust
the training programme to the individual abilities and
aptitude. In addition, individual teaching machines and
adjustments of differences should be provided.
Article
What Can I Do To Increase the Effectiveness of the Learning
Experience?
Affective Behaviors
Getting someone to change their affective behavior is one of
the hardest tasks to accomplish. That is because the training
often threatens the learners self-image. So, it becomes impor-
tant to affirm the learners core values, such as moral, social,
religious, family, political, etc. Learners who attend training in
which their beliefs or values are supported are much more likely
to let down their guard and accept the learning points.
If you confront the learners with learning points that suggests
they may have acted in a foolish or in a dangerous manner, they
become resistant to change. No one wants to be told that they
59
did something stupid. Thus, it is important to remind them of
their goodness in order to make the various learning points
easier to digest. The learning will not be so threatening because
thinking about an important value will have affirmed each
learners image of himself or herself as a smart and capable
person. This also points out the invalid concept of a learner as
an empty vessel. You have to draw them into the learning,
not simply pour the learning into them.
Why is safety so hard to train?
(Note: The following example uses safety, but this method
works with a wide variety of affective behaviors.
Unlike a lot of other tasks, it is often easier to do something
the unsafe way, rather than the safe way. For example, if I run
out of charcoal lighter, it is much easier and quicker to use the
can of gasoline in the garage than drive two miles to the nearest
store; it is much quicker to cross in the middle of the street than
walk to the corner-crosswalk; it is faster and easier to jump on a
piece of equipment and start operating than to perform some
checks beforehand.
Getting someone to act safely requires that they not only gain
the required knowledge and skills, but that they also change
their attitude (affective domain). Otherwise, they will know how
to act, but will not do so as their self-systems kick in and
convince them to do it the fast and easy way.
We all perform calculated risks (which in reality are unsafe acts to
various degrees), e.g., I might never use gasoline to start a
barbecue (unless I was starving and had no means to get fluid),
but I might cross the street outside of the crosswalk if it was
not busy.
This is why organizations have safety class after safety class -
they never getting around to changing the attitudes of the
learners. They hope that drilling the same old knowledge and
skills into the learners with various methods will eventually pay
off and produce safe learners. However safety requires that we
know the rules (knowledge), know how to act (skills), and have
a proper attitude for it (affective).
One Solution
A learning program might go something like this (I am keeping
this simple so that you can add, remove, or adjust the steps for
other behaviors):
Have each learner explain three or four safety rules or principles
that they value dearly and why. Also, have them record their
selections on a flip chart.
This helps to internalize the belief that they are good
persons, which makes them more receptive to change. This is
best done in small groups (mix the groups up throughout the
various activities).
Sort of like cheerleading.
Gather the groups back together and have them discuss their
values or principles. Tape these values to the walls so that they
may be used for further reminders.
Discuss the concept of the difficulty of getting people to act
safely (e.g. it is often quicker and easier not to act in a safe
manner).
Again, using small groups, have them discuss calculated risks
(unsafe acts) that they have performed, e.g., not coming to a
complete stop at a stop sign. Have them record the reasons on a
flipchart.
Next, have them confront the inappropriate behaviors by asking
why we take these risks when they might clash with our core
values and principles. (Note: You can have them discuss a
number of other things depending on your desired outcome -
e.g. discuss if the reasons they listed for taking the risks are
the same reasons other employees might use. If not, what
might some of their reasons be?)
Gather them back together and using their input, extract the
central themes of their discussions.
Have them brainstorm some activities or solutions that they can
use in their workplace to make it a safer place (this allows them
to become part of the solution). For ideals on brainstorming
activities.
Changing Affective Behaviors is not Easy
Note that changing affective behaviors is generally not a one
shot activity. But, going to the core of the matter is better than
repeating the same old skills and knowledge that they already
understand. Building a wide variety of these cheerleading
activities will give you the three required building blocks of
learning difficult behaviors:
Gaining new skills,
learning new knowledge,
and changing Affective behaviors.
Now think , discuss and write your conclusion about
following:
1. What are learning priciples?
2. Explain the important Learning and training priciples.
60
3. Discuss how teaching is different that training.
4. List down the principles of training.
Points To Ponder
The Learning Organization:
Has its time REALLY come?
Perspective #1
"He who wants milk should not
sit on a stool in the middle of
the pasture expecting the cow
to back up to him."
A Definition
Discuss amongst yourself
what a TRUE Learning
Organization is
Traditional View of Learning
Learning Event Learning Event Learning Event
Learning Event Learning Event
HIRED!! RETIRED!!
Career with the company:
REAL LEARNING!!
Poorly supported
61
Learning Org.s View of Learning
HIRED!! RETIRED!!
Career with the company:
Learning Event!!!
Structured Event
Structured Event Structured Event
Structured Event
REAL LEARNING!!
Well supported
Perspective #2
The organizational
problems we face today
can not be solved by the
same level of thinking
that created them
Cultural Issues
Cultural Change: Top down
Internet speed
Managers!!!
Learning begins when they start and
NEVER ends This means time to learn!!
Changing roles Are we ready? What has
to change to become true change agents?
Perspective #4
The best way to predict your
future is to make it!!
62
Educational Issues
Expanding Learn To Learn
Let modalities/tools do what they do best.
Reinventing the classroom
With and without walls!!!
Self Study
Technology based
Paper based
Learning objects
Knowledge, learning, and process
management
REAL
Learning
Total Learning Systems
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A
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L
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Introduced
& Taught
Self-Paced
Learning Sys.,
Manager
as Mentor,
Super
User,
Knowledge
Repositories
Life Long Learning Process Instructional Time
Peers
Support
Materials
Technology
Aided Learning
I
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A
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L
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n
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O
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a
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A
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L
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n
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Introduced & Taught early!!
Learn to Learn: Classroom
Ramp Up/Ramp Down
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Instructional Time
Peers
Support
Materials
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A
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L
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Technology
Aided Learning
Introduced and taught early!!
Perspective #5
Nothing will ever be
attempted if all possible
objections must first be
overcome
63
Technology Issues
Stop talking about Technology and start
talking about learning
Design based on Instructional models not
technology capabilities
Give Synchronous a chance Build
communities
True Portable computing ebooks??
Where should it be and NOT be
Were becoming invasive!!
Perspective #6
Its good to remember that
the tea kettle, although up to
its neck in hot water,
continues to sing
Lets begin in our own
backyard
Visit a school and see the computer labs
What is the local funding and curriculum
for technology INTEGRATION K-12 in
your district?
Offer inservice programs for teachers
Talk to local business about funding and
internship programs
Speak to kids about the REAL IT world
Final Perspective
A ship in a harbor is safe,
but thats not what ships are
built for
64
Results Orientation
Learner-Centered
Engaging
Effective Learning . . .
Job-Based
Organized
Accountable
Media supports methods
Results Orientation
Choice
- What they learn
- How they learn it
Active!
- 60% or more of training time spent in over
LEARNER activities
- Meaningful guided and unguidedpractice
- Meaningful examples and analogies
Learner-Centered
Attention
Relevance
Confidence
Satisfaction
Engaging
65
Creativity and Imagination
Interaction and flow
Interface design
Experience Design . . . Making sure the
experience leaves the user wanting more
Dont assume one approach is best for all in all
situations
Be willing to change perspective on traditional
approaches/products
Integrate for Blended Learning
Consistent and Systematic approach
Concrete criteria and guidelines
Consistent training, evaluation & feedback
Integration of processes for blended solution delivery
(online and offline)
How is it done?
Assessment Authoring
Learning Objectives
Task Analysis
Needs Analysis
Implementation
Try out/Revision
Development
Analysis
&
Design
Development
E
V
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U
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T
I
O
N
66
Analysis
&
Desi gn
evel opment
Creati on of Desi gn Document
Outl i ne Event
Proj ect Ki ckoff
Needs Anal ysi s
Compl ete Devel opment of
Cont ent ( Bat ches)
Storyboard Activities and
Introductions
Devel opment Acti vi ti es
Produce Mul ti medi a El ements
and Assembl e
Storyboard compl eted batch
cont ent
Storyboard Review
Acti vi ti es Event
Desi gn Anal ysi s
Revi ews and Edi ts
Revi ews and Edi t s
QA
67
In previous lessons of this unit you were explained about
Conceptual background of training, education and develop-
ment. You now know how important training is if an
organization has to survive in long run.
After reading this lesson you will be able to
1. explain what is effective training
2. to identify the factors influencing training effectiveness
3. to conduct effective training sessions.
4. know the significance of humour in training
Introduction
Managing the social impact of the organization is the most
complex task of management. It is dependent on the manage-
ment s ability to think through the total effectiveness of the
organization . An organization can be seen as an effective
organization essentially at three levels.
Firstly, The organisation is productive i.e it is able to produce
the goods or services it is intended to produce,
Secondly, The organization is efficient i.e it produces the goods
or services with a minimum expenditure of resources particu-
larly the scars resources and
Thirdly, the organisation has reputation for excellence it it has a
public image that its goods or services are of a hight quality
audits management is alert to its responsibilitites within and
without the orgnaisation.
Managerial Effectiveness and Information
The effectiveness of a manager depends on four aspects
information skill, vision and motivation.
Information is what the manager learnt in his academic career in
training courses, by reading books and periodicals and by
listening to authorities and thinkers in the field. This covers
three types of information: Functional Information, organiza-
tional Information, and Environment Information.
Apart from these three types of information , the manager
requires two skills to ensure his effectiveness.
The first skill is the functional skill ie the ability to use the
techniques required for operating in his functional area Func-
tional skill differes from functional information. Information
can be obtained by reading or listening. Skill needs actual practice
over a minimal period of time.
Each functional area has its own skills, Sales manager must
know salesmanship, production manager must know machine
loading, materials manager must know inventory control and
so on. However there is one skill that all of them require and
that is interpersonal skill.
Interpersonal skill is the ability to deal with people. A typical
manager is working in a hierarchical set up, consisting of the
boss, collegues and subordinates. Most managers have also to
deal with people from outside the organization, i.e customers,
suppliers, government officials etc. The effectiveness of a
manager i.e his ability to get things done obviously depends on
how well he can tackle these people.
The effectiveness in T & D process will depend on the
accuracy of the following:
1. Training need identification
2. Training need assessment
3. Training need justification
4. Budgeting and controlling the cost.
5. Selection of learning process & training methodology
6. Planning, designing & conducting the process
7. Evaluation of programme, the trainee & the feed back
records.
Of course, the role of T & D specialist can not be ignored in
this process as he is the facilitator and motivator and his
perceptions, competence and attitude play an important role in
making T & D programme really effective and fruitful
In coming lesson you will be studying these aspects in
details:
How to Ensure Better Transfer of Learning
Anyone responsible for designing, managing or conducting a
program knows the frustration experienced when participants in
the program do not. cannot or will not apply what supposedly
They were taught. There are many reasons for this lack of
transfer, some of which are beyond the control of those who
provided the instructions. Often those who can help people
apply the learning in the real world do not know how, do not
agree with what is to be applied or in some other way inhibit
rather than support the application process.
Inspite of such real world conditions, certain factors inhibit
effective (proper and consistent) learning transfer that should be
dealt with in the formal (academic-clinical) instructional process.
These factors include: confirming clear concepts, proper use of
simulation and enhancing social transmission. Incorporating
these three elements into the learning and application process
can reduce the often severe loss of learning that occurs when
participants move into or return to their responsibilities.
Confirming Clear Concepts
In this day of performance oriented training/education it is
often overlooked that learners need to have clear mental pictures
associated with the tasks they are taught to perform or refine.
Many people complete a programme with the ability to
demonstrate certain desired actions. but with no real concept of
what they are doing, why the results and how their work relates
to other elements they will confront in the real world, When
they confront real situations, they are caught off-balance because
their mental picture of the situation is incomplete or fuzzy.
LESSON 8
EFFECTIVE TRAINING
68
The program designer and instructor should make sure that
participants have formed clearer, context pictures so that they
have all the needed elements in their minds to guide their future
actions. With concept-learning as opposed. to the more typical
information learning participants who have formed concepts
can recognize when, how and why to use their learning in
situations beyond the instructions
Take, for example a task or responsibility participants should
have learned. They should be able to confirm, before they
complete the instruction that they have clear concepts mental
pictures) of the desired results they are to produce; how such
results relate to broader outcomes and to results produced by
others; and what specific actions, resources and constraints are
involved in producing such results.
Of assume they should have learned how a particular system
operates. In that case they should be able to confirm that they
understand: the purpose of the system; the function of each
component; and when the system is and is not operating
properly. In Examples, if such concepts are incomplete,
insurance or fuzzy, proper transfer of the task or knowledge of
the system is in serious jeopardy.
A number of techniques exist for confirming concepts, most of
which involve the participants in some form of the thinking
process called classifying. This process requires a person to
identify and justify whether each of a number of given
situations is or is not an example of the concept he or she is
supposed to have learned. To do so, the person must use both
his or her current concept and data about each particular
situation. The value of this confirmation process is that it
provides valid evidence about the, accuracy and completeness of
the persons concept and his or her ability to apply it, so that if
either is found wanting remedation can be provided before he
or she leaves the learning environ-ment.
Multiple choice, true-false and yes-no answer objective tests do
not confirm concepts. Nor do explanations that do not include
application of particular concepts. For instance, a person has
not confirmed that he or she has a sufficient concept ofthe
operation of a machine by naming its parts or stating its use. If
he or she cannot identify situations in which the machine is and
is not operating as it should and then explain the structural and
operational relationships involved he or she will probably run
into difficulty in applying that
To summaries this issue, instructors and program developers
should ensure that participants have developed conceptual
knowledge of the task, procedures systems, etc
That makes up the content of the program. Without such
confirmed knowledge, performance on the job is likely to be
rote rather than intelligent and continued progress toward
competency is unnecessarily difficult. The most important
concept for participants to form is a clear, complete, accurate
mental picture of the end-result they are to produce. Too often,
competency is thought to be what someone does rather than
what someone produces. And if the person lacks the proper
concept of what is to be produced -consistently and under
varying conditions- he or she is not likely to realize that his or
her performance is incompetent, much less know how to
improve it.
Proper use of situation
In an ideal program application of learning is never left to
chance. Participants under the guidance of their instructor,
follow a cumulative-rotations process. That is, they rotate
between learning and application so that as each new task,
procedure, strategy and concept is learned, it is applied cumula-
tively to the real situation until the total desired outcome is
produced. fn this way not only does guided application take
place, but needed attitudes (and teamwork) can be built or
reinforced, because the focus is on the end-result rather than on
each isolated specific learning.
In many training education situations, it is possible with proper
planning to create the type of cumulative-rotation instructional
process described above. There are many situations however, in
which simulated (clinical) application is the only feasible means
to create such a process. With the advent of sophisticated
technology remarkable simulations of real situations can be and
have been developed. Unfortunately, instructors and program
In many training education situations, it is possible with proper
planning to create the type of cumulative-rotation instructional
process described above. There are many situations however, in
which simulated (clinical) application is the only feasible means
to create such a process. With the advent of sophisticated
technology remarkable simulations of real situations can be and
have been developed. Unfortunately, instructors and program
developers often become more intrigued with the Technology
of the simulations than with the learning results that could and
should be produced. the same means rather than ends
focus also dominates the participants .The key to effective
learning through simulation are the cumulative-rotation process
and the debrief that follows each application .Often debrief-
ing is the weakest linking in the instructional process .because
instructors do not know how to Involve participants in using
the particular thinking processes that maximize the application
of learning .the most essential is the need for a systematic
thinking process for identifying the critical similarities and
difference between the earlier academic situation( lecture film
demonstration ,etc.) the stimulated (clinical)situation and later
on, between both those and the real world situation
This thinking skill and those involved in projecting predicting
planning, assessing and critiquing (and the instructional
strategies that foster such thinking) need to be thoroughly
understood by both designers and instructors of simulation
exercises. Other-wise, the preparation for and the debriefing of
such experiences can be dominated by the ~instructor. There
should be opportunities for participants to properly use the
thinking processes involved in the transfer/application of
learning.
The term hands-on is often used to refer to real as
opposed to academic or class-room learning. Unfortunately,
many designers and instructors confuse real with concrete
experience, and this confusion can create unnecessary difficulties
in the transfer of learning. A simple example is training in the
CPE procedure-e. Usually, participants are exposed first to the
procedure through live or filmed demonstration, followed by a
hands-on experience with a life like dummy. The dummy
provides a concrete in the sense that people have physical -
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operational contact with what is to be learned. Without guided
practice however in how to determine the critical similarities and
difference between those experiences and the actual one, the
ultimate proper application of the hands-on learning to real
situations can be impaired.
As a general principle, simulation hands-on experiences and
the technology that creates them should not be designed or
used until the developers and instructors have accurately
identified and incorporated the thinking processes participants
need to achieve the desired earning result. in such clinical
activities, that result should be proper fusion and application
concepts cause-effect principles attitudes and skills, followed by
proper analysis and projection to the real world. Otherwise
participants can be lulled into a sense / of confidence that can
lead to trouble.
Enhancing Social Transmission
If the purpose of instruction is to lay the groundwork for
competency, then it needs to include more than knowledge
and/or skill development. Again, competency is what compe-
tency produces, and producing desire~ results consistently
requires certain attitudes and teamwork skills, as well as concepts
and technical skills The advent of instructional technology,
systems learning and individualized (self paced) instruction has
seriously impeded progress toward effective learning transfer
and competency building.
The reasons are many, but among the more important are lack
of attention to attitude-building; emphasis on atomized
rather than contexted learning and inadequate opportunities
for rather than contexted learning and inadequate opportuni.
ties for social transmission.
The term social transmission was used by the psychologist
Piaget to refer to the need for learners to consistently and
productively communicate what they are learning to other
people is research and that of other indicates that people learn
better, faster and retain longer when they have frequent and
appropriate opportunities to verbalize and share what they are
learning with other learners or with instructors. There is some
evidence to suggest that effective social transmission also plays a
critical role in the development of attitudes and self-confidence
In many programs particularly those that rely primarily or solely
on independent learning modules computer technology or
programmed instruction, the use of social transmission as a
technique for building and reinforcing learning is minimal.
Even in so-called group-learning situations, instructors often
do not know precisely what learners need to transmit why
and how best to help them. As a. result, discussions and
interactions do not lead to sustained productive learning that
when applied, creates competency
Because of technological advances, productive interaction
between work-term members will be more critical than it has
been in the past. The skills involved can and should.
Be built in as an essential element in any training/education
program, because the instructional environment can provide an
excellent opportunity to learning terms that. learn to use
interaction skills to produce better learning results- not just for
the team, but for each individual in the team. Then, when
individuals complete the program and move on (either to the
work situation or further training/education), they are better
prepared to work collaboratively to produce quality results.
Too often, organizations try to deal with need for good
communication and interaction skills by creating special training
programs that focus solely on these elements. It is far more
cost-efficient and results-effective to build them into new or
existing technical supervisory or management training programs
so that people learn to use these skills as an integral part of their
training and education
Educators and training professionals have almost complete
control over these three factor that affect learning transfer. They
can be incorporated without changing the content of programs
.Each factor focuses on what can be done by design and
instruction to assist the learner. Strengthening anyone or all of
these factors should better confirm that what was taught is
what was learned, and what was learned is more likely to be
applied -properly and consistently.
General Training Tips to Make Training
Effective
When planning training think about:
your objectives - keep them in mind all the time
how many people you are training
the methods and format you will use
when and how long the training lasts
where it happens
how you will measure its effectiveness
how you will measure the trainees reaction to it
When you you give skills training to someone use this simple
five-step approach:
1. prepare the trainee - take care to relax them as lots of people
find learning new things stressful
2. explain the job/task, skill, project, etc - discuss the method
and why; explain standards and why; explain necessary tools,
equipment or systems
3. provide a demonstration - step-by-step - the more complex,
the more steps - people cannot absorb a whole complicated
task all in one go - break it down - always show the correct
way - accentuate the positive - seek feedback and check
understanding
4. have the trainee practice the job - we all learn best by actually
doing it - (I hear and I forget, I see and I remember, I do
and I understand - Confucius)
5. monitor progress - give positive feedback - encourage, coach
and adapt according to the pace of development
Creating and using progress charts are helpful, and are essential
for anything complex - if you cant measure it you cant manage
it. Its essential to use other training tools too for planning,
measuring, assessing, recording and following up on the
persons training.
Breaking skills down into easily digestible elements enables you
to plan and manage the training activities much more effectively.
Training people in stages, when you can build up each skill, and
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then an entire role, from a series of elements, keeps things
controlled, relaxed and always achievable in the mind of the
trainee.
Establishing a relevant skill set is essential for assessing and
prioritising training for any role. It is not sufficient simply to
assess against a job description, as this does not reflect skills,
only responsibilities, which are different. Establishing a
behaviour set is also very useful, but is a more difficult area to
assess and develop. If you want more information or guidance
about working with Skill and Behaviour Sets, and advanced
assessment and training planning methods please contact us,
giving a brief outline of your situation. Using Skill-Sets to
measure individuals skills and competencies is the first stage in
producing a training needs analysis for individuals, a group, and
a whole organisation. You can see and download a free Skill-Set
tool and Training Needs Analysis tool the free resources page.
Psychometric tests (and even graphology - handwriting analysis)
are also extremely useful for training and developing people, as
well as recruitment, which is the more common use. Psycho-
metric testing produces reliable assessments which are by their
nature objective, rather than subjective, as tends to be with your
own personal judgement. Your organisation may already use
systems of one sort or another, so seek advice. See the section
on psychometrics or get in touch.
Some tips to make learning more enjoyable and effective:
keep instructions positive (do this rather than dont do
this)
avoid jargon - or if you cant then explain them and better
still provide a written glossary
you must tailor training to the individual, so you need to be
prepared to adapt the pace according to the performance once
training has begun
encourage, and be kind and thoughtful - be accepting of
mistakes, and treat them as an opportunity for you both to
learn from them
focus on accomplishment and progress - recognition is the
fuel of development
offer praise generously
be enthusiastic - if you show you care you can expect your
trainee to care too
check progress regularly and give feedback
invite questions and discussion
be patient and keep a sense of humour
Induction training tips:
assess skill and knowledge level before you start
teach the really easy stuff first
break it down into small steps and pieces of information
encourage pride
cover health and safety issues fully and carefully
try to identify a mentor or helper for the trainee
As a manager, supervisor, or an organisation, helping your
people to develop is the greatest contribution you can make to
their well-being. Do it to your utmost and you will be rewarded
many times over through greater productivity, efficiency,
environment and all-round job-satisfaction.
Remember also to strive for your own personal self-develop-
ment at all times - these days we have more opportunity and
resource available than ever to increase our skills, knowledge and
self-awareness. Make use of it all.
Tips for Assessing Organizational
Training Effectiveness
Look at and understand the broad organizational context and
business environment: the type, size, scale, spread, geography,
logistics, etc., of the business or organization. This includes
where and when people work (which influences how and when
training can be delivered). Look also at the skills requirements
for the people in the business in general terms as would
influence training significance and dependence - factors which
suggest high dependence on training are things like: fast-
changing business (IT, business services, healthcare, etc),
significant customer service activities, new and growing
businesses, strong health and safety implications (chemicals,
hazardous areas, transport, utilities). Note that all businesses
have a high dependence on training, but in certain businesses
training need is higher than others - change (in the business or
the market) is the key factor which drives training need.
Assess and analyse how training and development is organized
and the way that training is prioritised. Think about improve-
ments to training organization and planning that would benefit
the organisation.
Review the business strategy/positioning/mission/plans (and
HR strategy if any exists) as these statements will help you to
establish the central business aims. Training should all be
traceable back to these business aims, however often it isnt -
instead its often arbitrary and isolated.
Assess how the training relates to the business aims, and how
the effectiveness of the training in moving the business
towards these aims is measured. Often training isnt measured
at all - it needs to be.
Look at the details and overview of what training is planned for
the people in the business. The training department or HR
department should have this information. There should be a
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clear written training plan, including training aims, methods,
relevance and outputs connected to the wider aims of the
business.
Look also at how training relates to and is influenced by
appraisals and career development; also recruitment, and general
ongoing skills/behavioural assessment. There should be
process links between these activities, particularly recruitment
and appraisals, and training planning. Detailed training needs
should be driven substantially by staff appraisals. (It goes
without saying that there should be consistent processes and
application of staff appraisals, and that these should use
suitable job performance measures that are current and relevant
to the operations and aims of the business.)
Look particularly at management training and development.
The bigger the business, generally the bigger the dependence on
management training and development.
Look at new starter induction training - its critical and typically a
common failing in situations where anything higher than a low
percentage of new starters leave soon after joining.
Look for the relationships between training, qualifications, job
grades and pay/reward levels - these activities and structures
must be linked, and the connections should be visible to and
understood by all staff.
Look especially at staff turnover (% per annum of total staff is
the key indicator), exit interviews, customer satisfaction surveys,
staff satisfaction surveys (if they exist) for other indicators as to
staff development and motivational needs and thereby, training
deficiencies.
Look for any market research or competitor analysis data which
will indicate business shortcomings and weaknesses, which will
imply staff training needs, obviously in areas of the most
important areas of competitive weakness in relation to the
business positioning and strategy.
Look to see if there is director training and development - many
directors have never been trained for their roles, and often hide
from and resist any effort to remedy these weaknesses.
Base training recommendations and changes on improving
training effectiveness in terms of:
relevance to organizational aims
methods of staff assessment
training design/sourcing
training type, mix and suitability, given staff and business
circumstances (consider all training options available - there
are very many and some are relatively inexpensive, and
provide other organizational benefits; in-house, external
training courses and seminars, workshops, coaching,
mentoring, job-swap, secondment, distance-learning, day-
release, accredited/qualification-linked, etc)
remedies for identified organizational and business
performance problem areas, eg., high staff turnover, general
attrition or dissatisfaction levels, customer complaints,
morale, supplier retention and relationships, wastage and
shrinkage, legal and environmental compliance, recruitment
difficulties, management and director succession, and other
key performance indicators of the business (which should be
stated in business planning documents)
comparative costs of different types of training per head, per
staff type/level
measurement of training effectiveness, and especially
feedback from staff being trained: interview departmental
heads and staff to see what they think of training - how its
planned, delivered, measured, and how effective it is
Creating the Most Effective Training
By Mark Rose, University of Oklahoma Outreach Executive
Program - Team Quest
Im often asked what I do in my job. It usually goes something
like, What do you do for the University of Oklahoma?.I
help equip teams with skills and tools to become more
effective, I reply. My main focus is using experiential learning
for team development. This answer typically results in glassy
eyes, a nod of the head and a quick change of the subject.
To be fair, most people dont know the amount of work it
takes to be a trainer, much less care. But, to be a good trainer,
there has to be some structure to it. The good news is that there
is a model for the design of effective training. Most trainers
have learned that no matter what they are teaching, they have to
use different ways to meet the variety of learning styles of their
participants. Some trainers might intuitively use different ways
to cover their content but not know why it works - they just
know that it does. Good trainers know how and why using a
variety of delivery components can create the most effective
training.
The premise for creating the most effective training is built on
the foundation of Malcolm Knowles work (originally in 1973)
who was critical in developing the idea of Andragogy or Adult
Learning Theory. Andragogy is based on several assumptions:
Adults need to know why they should learn something.
Adults need to direct their own learning.
Adults have a variety of experiences that can be used as
resources for other adult learners, and they prefer experiential
techniques.
Adults are ready to learn when they have a need for a
knowledge or skill that can be applied to their life.
Adults have a life-centered orientation to learning.
Most adults are motivated to continue growing and
developing.
Using these assumptions of Adult Learning Theory, we
modified a common model for instructional design that uses
three different components for effective training. The model
shows that a relatively equal distribution of these three
components provides the most effective training for adult
learners.
Content-This is the subject matter as illustrated by notes in the
Participants Handbook, lecture, notes created by the learners,
etc. It relates to the competencies presented in the training.
Experience-This is the active learning that participants
experience which encourages their discovery of a learning point
or their practice of a new skill. It can be a game or physical
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activity, but it can also be a written exercise or group discussion.
A session should offer a variety of auditory, visual and kines-
thetic experiences, neither all games nor all discussions.
Feedback-This is the participants reflection upon a
competencys relevance, their personal application of the
sessions content or the significance of their own experience. It
is frequently facilitated by the trainer, but may also be facilitated
by the group.
For example, you might be providing training on stages of
group development with a newly formed work team. The
Content component could include a paper copy of Tuckmans
Stages of Group Development (1965). You would explain the
model and the characteristics of each stage. This would be a
brief overview so that the team members could have a com-
mon language about the model. Some trainers call this
frontloading which is a way to introduce a topic to your group
before an experience. The Experience component could be any
type of activity where the group is engaged in learning about
group development. Examples of this component could be
watching a video of another group interacting.
Finally, the Feedback component would include some type of
reflection about the activity they experienced. After watching the
video of another group interacting, the facilitator might ask
group members questions about what they saw and where that
fits into the stages of group development.
This is just one example of how a trainer might use this three
component model for designing effective training. An impor-
tant thing to remember is for the most effective training to take
place, the delivery of each major topic should include approxi-
mately equal proportions of all three components - Content,
Experience and Feedback. Throughout each training, the order
of the components should be varied so that each is modeled
introducing, exploring and summarizing a topic.
Significance of Training
Humour in Training
Many trainers feel that training is a serious business - and, to a
point, they are correct. Its true to say, we sometimes struggle to
show ourselves as a valuable, important part of the company
and in some cases are even seen as hippy do-gooders who waste
resources and money. The last thing I need, I hear you say, is
for the CEO to walk by and see us all throwing beanbags or
splitting our sides laughing.
In this article, though, I will share with you my philosophy on
humour that will argue the opposite - i.e. that training is indeed
serious, but the training experience neednt be! This philosophy
is summed up nicely with an Oscar Wilde quote, which Ill share
with you at the end of the article.
Im often inspired by quotes and sayings, so Ive chosen two of
them to illustrate my points to you today.
1. Laughter is the shortest distance between two people -
Anon
Almost all training sessions will begin with some sort of
icebreaker or game. The reason? As professional trainers, we
realise that it is our responsibility to make these people
comfortable, relaxed and open. These are pre-requisites to
adult learning and make the whole experience more pleasant
for all involved.
If your training programme requires participants to interact
or work as a team, then it is even more vital that there is a
rapport and a trust between them, if they are to derive
maximum benefit from the activities.
I tell you here and now there is no better way to achieve this
than to get them laughing together.
You dont believe me? Ask anyone who saw this years series
of Child of our time on BBC television. Professor Robert
Winston ran an experiment with two children of about 4
years of age. He sat one boy and one girl, who had never
met, in front of a funny video. While watching it together, it
was as though cupid himself crept into the room. They
laughed so much that all barriers between the unacquainted
children crumbled and the little girl couldnt resist the urge to
put her arm around the boy. He didnt complain and, shortly
after, the rapport was such that she planted a peck on his
cheek without a word of warning!
Lets hope your training participants show more self-control!
Still not convinced? Ask any waiter what is the single most
effective way to get a good tip. Its not the food and its not
pouring the wine every time the customer puts down their
glass. Get them laughing the waiter will say. Dont try to
be Billy Connolly or laugh at anyone, but if you help them
to laugh, theyll relax immediately and youll have your taxi
fair home from that one table. Im quoting myself there, by
the way - I was that waiter and there are more parallels to
being a trainer than youd realise!
So, in a nutshell, humour helps the group to relax and to
quickly and easily develop a feeling of unity, rapport and
trust. What more would you want for your group? Oh yes,
you want them to learn too. Youd better keep reading then.
2. Laughter is good for you - its like jogging on the
inside - Anon
In case you didnt already know, laughing is very, very good
for your health. A quick web search will back up my
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assertions that it lowers blood pressure, increases brain
activity, facilitates creativity, reduces anxiety and strengthens
the immune system. Rent the Robin Williams film Patch
Adams for more insight and you will really become a
believer. (Rent it on DVD and see the real life Patch Adams,
who the film is based on).
In the training room, it serves as a terrific energiser too. With a
little forethought and creativity (both of which, pro-trainers
ought to have in abundance), you can plan recaps or checks for
learning into your session that amuse your group as well as
stimulate them.
According to John Townsend, in the book The trainers
pocketbook, people easily and quickly recall facts or concepts
that stand out from the norm, or that are linked to something
else. Why not make these things humorous and make it even
easier for them to recall?
John Cleese did it. He created the company Video Arts and sold
training videos worldwide, using humour to convey his
messages. These proved to be very effective teaching aids and
the company was sold in the recent past for a reputed 50
million sterling, leaving Mr. Cleese, literally, laughing all the way
to the bank!
You will notice that I have not made any suggestions as to how
you can introduce this humour to your sessions. The reason for
this is that there are as many styles of training delivery as there
are people reading this article and no one prescription will work
across the board. The important thing is that the humour is
linked to your point and isnt just an irrelevant one-liner: your
group will quickly see through this obvious attempt to create
rapport. I am confident that you will find your own style of
humour, if you have a mind to.
Remember too, that you dont have to be funny yourself to
deliver a message using humour. You can use props, music,
other participants, handouts, slides and many other media to
lighten the tone.
I have attended the last 3 ISPCC conferences, where you would
expect the subject matter to be far from jovial. However, I have
had the pleasure on each occasion to witness the CEO, Paul
Gilligan, deliver his speech to the organisations staff and
volunteer body. Without fail, he manages to make the audience
laugh at least ten times in a 30-minute period. It seems odd,
but it shows that he agrees with the benefits I have outlined
above, but more importantly, it shows that he agrees with Oscar
Wilde and myself in believing that Life is too important to
take seriously.
See the following picture and comment about it.
What are you observations about it and In which type of
training can it be used.
Stress and Humour
Do your employees twitch uncontrollably when you walk by?
Have you found Postman Pat stress squeezers with the eyes
gouged out pinned to your notice board?
Perhaps your secretary is sobbing in the
filing cabinet. Its time to take action and
de-stress your workplace.
One of the biggest causes of employee
absence is stress, with many workers taking
at least one month off work because of a
stress-related illness. Reasons for stress can
include unrealistic targets, high work overload or underload, lack
of communication or lack of positive feedback on performance.
The gap between the worlds of home and work is also
narrowing. Employees bring their personal problems to work
and likewise work can affect home life. You can help ease their
troubled minds by providing mechanisms for them to resolve
both their personal and professional problems. Post the notices
about how to go about getting help in prominent areas - dont
make employees feel like they are letting somebody down by
availing of the system.
Practical de-stressing measures include introducing flexi-time
and providing help with childcare. Organising workshops on
managing stress can also help - employees learn coping strate-
gies and how to access their inner Ommm. If it is possible, an
74
open policy dress code should be introduced, along with the
encouragement of personal expression. It is of little conse-
quence that the Star Wars frieze above Eamons desk doesnt
float your boat. If it helps him use the Force, then why not?
A bit of bribery goes a long way. Competitive salaries with
regular reviews, a pension plan and health insurance schemes are
major factors that determine how happy workers feel in their
jobs. On-the-job stress is greatly reduced once people know that
they wont have to secure a second job to feed the family. Perks
such as mobile phones/company cars/pet elephants can also
help employees feel appreciated. Because above all, employees,
like every female cast member of Guys and Dolls, just want to
be loved.
Morale can be boosted with simple things like staff outings and
lunches. However, dont be afraid to get creative with your de-
stressing methods. If you feel that your employees would
become more productive with a neck rub every Tuesday, then
get thee to a masseuse.
Bad staff relations can be a major cause of stress. If certain
employees think that their manager makes Hannibal Lecter look
reasonable, then its time for action. A safe grievance procedure
should be put in place, where employees can air their concerns
without embarrassment. Training schemes for managers can
also help to nip potential problems in the bud.
So if you are tired of seeing shaking workers glowering at you
from behind the photocopier, its time to de-stress that
workplace. Look forward to improved productivity and lots of
smiling - and thats just from you. After all, you did get to
choose the masseuse
By David Granirer*
Introduction by Susan Heathfield
Ive featured David Granirer at the About HR site in the past
because he combines wit with useful information in an
approachable writing style. As I visit workplaces these days, I see
a lot of up-tight people who are worried about their futures
and their opportunities. In these uncertain times, David is right,
often the one thing we do control is our reaction to the work
situation in which we find ourselves.
Im a serious proponent of empowerment, as any of you who
have read this site for any time know. Consequently, choose to
be a cheerleader at work. Choose to have a say and make a
difference. Choose to contribute your best talents and skills.
Your workplace will be better for your contribution and that
will be a good thing for both you and your organization. David
Granirer tells you more.
Regards,
Susan
Humor for Retention
Picture this: a team of welfare workers on the front-lines of a
poor neighborhood, serving difficult, high-needs clients. And
if thats not tough enough, each has a caseload of about 300
and works for an organization undergoing massive funding
cuts, downsizing, and policy changes.
But every day after coffee its the same. The supervisor and two
workers appear in the reception area. What song do you wanna
hear? Do you wanna hear Jazz? Rock? Folk? Then, playing
accordion folders and staple removers as finger cymbals, they
launch into the worlds worst rendition of Across The
Universe by John Lennon, to the hysterical laughter of their
colleagues.
Its our way of keeping up morale, says a team member.
Were so overwhelmed, so stressed, so burned out. This is
how we keep our sanity.
As more and more organizations reengineer, merge, restructure,
downsize, rightsize, and even capsize, employees confront
uncertainty on an almost daily basis. The rules keep changing in
terms of what theyre supposed to do, how theyre supposed to
do it, who they do it for, and whether they get to do it at all.
And since most have little or no control over the making of
these rules, the result is often a sense of powerlessness that
translates into increased stress, decreased wellness, demoraliza-
tion, absenteeism, and lower productivity, all of which affect
rates of employee retention. And we all know that people are an
organizations number one asset, and losing them costs money.
So the big question for both individuals and organizations is:
how do you keep up spirits, continue to work effectively, and
maintain health and sanity in a crazy-making situation? The
team of welfare workers described chooses to laugh. They could
also choose despair, cynicism, bitterness, or negativity, but
instead team members choose laughter. As one worker states,
We could either cry, or we could laugh, but you can only cry for
so long. Wed had enough of crying, and it was time to do
something else.
So, how do you help employees, who have little or no control
over external events, survive a crazy-making situation? Organi-
zations need to encourage employees to take control over the
one aspect of the situation they do control - how they choose
to respond to it. And on those days where workers feel
overwhelmed, overworked, and have no idea whats going to
happen next, the only rational, life-affirming response is to go
find some colleagues, and break out the clown noses, kazoos,
and Groucho glasses.
Why Laughter?
Why is laughter such a positive choice? We all know that it
makes us feel good, but in todays bottom-line oriented
workplace, the term feel good is too nebulous to have much
impact on how people go about structuring their job interac-
tions and professional relationships. And most organizations
are not going to promote humor as part of their culture
because some touchy feely wellness devotee thinks that
having the boss come to work dressed as a chicken will create a
happy afterglow.
So any discussion of the benefits of laughter needs to be more
tangible and focused on addressing positive morale, a major
factor contributing to the retention of valued employees.
Remember though, humor is a coping mechanism to aid in
employee retention, not a cure-all for other systemic problems
affecting organizations.
75
Activity and Assignments
1. What is effective training.
2. What are major factors contributing in making training
effective.
3. High light significance of Humour in training.
4. What is the role of trainer in making it a success.
5. Why is it important for trainer to understand about effective
training.
76
Thoughts on Effective Training
One commonality found in Deaf-Blind Projects throughout the
county is the provision of training to both parents and service
providers alike. Although this training varies in its content,
format and delivery methods, it shares the common intent of
developing skills that will transfer into the classroom, home
and community.
Current literature in the field of school reform has identified
three concepts that influence professional development activities
and effective training.
Results driven education, meaning that the success of staff
development should be measured not only in changed
practioners behavior, but also in its impact on child
outcomes.
Systems thinking, the recognition that staff development
must be approached from a systems perspective, recognizing
that change to one part of a system impacts other parts of
the system.
Constructivism, the belief that learners build their own
knowledge structures rather than just receive them from
others. In response to constructivism, staff development
activities must involve practioners in the learning process and
include a variety of participatory activities.
One result of incorporating these attributes into project training
activities will be an increase in the likelihood of achieving
identified training outcomes and positively impacting training
recipients.
It is also important to recognize the unique needs of adults in a
learning endeavor. These include the need to have:
Meaningful information
Expectations known
Experience respected
Reinforcement provided
Feedback given
Diverse teaching styles used
A sense of relevancy
Self-direction
Freedom from anxiety
Immediate application
This Project is supported by the US Department of Education,
Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP). Opinions
expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily
represent the position of the US Department of Education.
Elements of Quality Training
Inservice training and professional development activities are
extremely resource intensive, both in personnel time and actual
dollars. Yet, the major activity of many training projects is the
provision of training to a variety of audiences on a multitude
of content and topic areas.
As such, projects must strive to provide training that is
meaningful, relevant and effective.
However it must acknowledge that on occasion trainings are not
what the participants had hoped for and occasionally the
training has missed the mark!
The current literature describes several key elements that are
critical to the design and implementation of effective inservice
training and professional development activities. These
elements consistently appear in time-tested professional
development models and contribute to both the models
effectiveness and longevity.
One such nationally validated model, the Teaching Research
Inservice Model (TRIM), has combined these elements into a
sequential process, which has been successfully used for the
design and implementation of both short and long-term
training activities that have addressed a variety of content and
topic areas. The six elements that comprise the Teaching
Research Inservice Model are:
Identifying needs
Determining training outcomes
Determining training objectives
Developing training activities
Designing and implementing evaluation measures
Providing follow-up technical assistance and support
Incorporating these elements into training activities may not
only increase the participants skill acquisition, it will also
increase the effectiveness of the projects training activities
1. Identifying Needs
Identifying needs is the first step in designing effective training
activities. Needs assessments identify the specific topical/skill
areas that recipients of the training perceive as their greatest, or
one of their greatest, areas of need. Needs assessments should
be focused on specific skills or competencies identified as
relevant rather than being open-ended. Open-ended assess-
ments, or assessments designed for other programs, do not
provide the information needed to design effective trainings.
A thorough needs assessment builds consensus and ownership
in the training activities.
Training participants are most receptive and interested when the
content is relevant and meaningful to them. A needs assess-
ment approach relies heavily on the perceptions of practitioners
and does not counter balance or weight these responses with
the training needs perceived by others. As a balance to the
perceived needs of staff, it may be useful to also complete an
assessment using a tool designed to measure program perfor-
mance.
LESSON 9
COLLECTION OF ARTICLES
77
2. Determining Training Outcomes
In effective training activities the desired outcome(s) of training
is clearly conceptualized and articulated. A well-conceptualized
and articulated outcome is needed to drive the remainder of the
training plan. The outcomes impact the intensity and pedagogy
of the training activities, as well as the design of the evaluation
of the success of the training.
3. Determining Training Objectives
Effective training occurs when the expectations of training are
clearly defined. Your objectives should identify the expected
competencies or behaviors to be demonstrated by the partici-
pants at the conclusion of the training experience. Your
objectives should also prescribe the who, what and how in
observable and measurable terms. Your objectives should
logically lead to attainment of the desired outcome(s). When
the desired outcome is stated as knowledge, the objectives relate
to varying ways in which the participant can demonstrate his/
her increased knowledge, but since our ultimate outcome is only
knowledge, it would not be necessary to engage participants in
elaborate and time-consuming practica or role-play activities in
which they demonstrated certain skills.
4. Developing Training Activities
Training activities are the vehicle by which participants achieve
the desired competencies stated in your objectives. The activities
comprise the content and pedagogy of your trainings.
Training activities should be designed to accomplish one of
three possible outcomes:
Increased awareness of the
topic being taught
Increased knowledge of the
topic being taught
Mastery of the skills needed
to implement the topic
being taught
The outcomes you are attempt-
ing to achieve dictate the level of
complexity of your activities.
If the outcome is merely to increase awareness, a much simpler
activity may be offered than if the outcome is skill implementa-
tion. If the outcome of the training is skill implementation,
research confirms that the following four attributes should be
included within the training activities:
A knowledge of the theory supporting the content of the
training
Demonstration and shaping of the skills to be learned
Guided and independent practice of the skills
Feedback on the performance of the skill
Although it may be necessary to rely on the standard lecture/
listen format for parts of the training, participants will be far
more engaged in the content if varying methods of presenting
information are utilized. Adult learners have preferred modali-
ties for acquiring new information. Some find auditory input to
be the easiest way to learn, and they become confused by
visuals. Visual learners take in new information most efficiently
through their eyes and absorb minimally from auditory input.
Others prefer to see a concrete demonstration of the new
concept. Remember, our audiences will benefit most from
presentation of the new information in a variety of ways, one
building upon or reinforcing another.
5. Designing and Implementing Evaluation
Measures
Evaluation occurs at several levels and must go beyond the
traditional measure of satisfaction to demonstrate the trainings
effectiveness and to provide the information to revise and refine
your training activities. Evaluation systems should include:
Measures obtained during training
Measures obtained at the completion of training activities
Measuring implementation of the knowledge or skills
presented after the training has occurred
By carefully weaving your evaluation components before, during
and after training, it is possible to evaluate on an ongoing basis
the strengths and needs of your activities (both formative and
summative). Trainers are able to revise and adapt the training on
a timely basis and make necessary accommodations to assist
participants to successfully complete the objectives.
6. Providing Follow-up Technical Assistance and
Support
To be effective, programs must provide follow-up support to
participants as they implement newly learned skills. The
traditional, one-shot workshop continues to be utilized even
though we know that little implementation occurs without
follow-up TA and support. When the intent of training is
implementation of new knowledge and skills, specific plans for
providing follow-up support to the participants must be
woven into the training, not tacked on as an afterthought.
Effective training assumes that the support provided to assure
implementation is the second, but equally important, compo-
nent of the training activity.
How support is provided takes many shapes and depends
upon your outcome (awareness, knowledge or skill) and the
resources. A variety of approaches have been demonstrated as
effective and include:
On-site visits
Mentoring or coaching
Video review
Live video interactions
Product review and feedback
Observations
NTAC, Teaching Research Division, Western Oregon University,
345 N. Monmouth Avenue, Monmouth, Oregon, 973621,
(503) 838-8391, [email protected]
The Search for an Effective Training Model for Adults Moving
Off Welfare Moving families off welfare roles is just the
beginning of their journey into the mainstream work economy
and social system. For many heads of household, life manage-
ment skills and positive social and financial experiences are
needed to supply the courage and confidence to face such major
life changes.
78
Many educators both within and outside of Extension have
looked at ways to make this process more effective. Seaman and
Fellenz (1989) and Levine (1992) defined learning characteristics
distinctive to adults and suggested ways to engage the adult
learner. Griffore, Phenice, Walker, and Carolan (1999) looked at
life-issue priorities that might motivate learning. Van Tilburg
Norland (1992) identified individual characteristics associated
with Extension participation in learning processes. Jones (1992)
stressed the importance of creating a learning environment that
fosters critical thinking. Richardson (1994) noted the preference
of Extension clientele for learning through experience.
A number of additional researchers have focused specifically on
training methods for welfare audiences. Couchman, Williams,
and Cadwalader (1994) outlined process-related tenets for
successful community-based adult education programs
including the importance of understanding the audience.
DeBord, Roseboro, and Wicker (1998) noted the importance of
involving parents in their own learning in parenting education.
Borden and Perkins (1999) stressed the need for community
collaboration and provided methods for accessing that collabo-
ration. Lackman, Nieto, and Gliem, in developing an
instrument to evaluate programs for low-literacy audiences,
validated a number of teacher characteristics that generated high
reliability in teacher evaluation.
Finally, the theoretical framework for a collaborative effort
similar to PACE, the Montana State University Extension
Services EDUFAIM program (Duncan, Dunnagan, Christo-
pher and Paul, 2001) provides insight into theoretical and
practical issues in the learning process.
In general, extant writings support the work of Malcolm
Knowles (Knowles, Holton, and Swanson, 2000) andragogical
approach to adult learning. Andragogy is based on the follow-
ing assumptions:
1. Adult learners bring life experiences to the learning process
that should be acknowledged.
2. Adults need to know why they need to learn something, and
how it is relevant to their lives.
3. Experiential, hands-on learning is effective with adult
learners.
4. Adults approach learning as problem-solving.
5. Adults learn best with the topic is of immediate value to
them in their lives.
Although the PACE development team had access to a wealth
of information on adult learning, team members felt that they
lacked a clear mandate from the Department of Human Services
for training facilitators in the learning process. The University of
Tennessees PACE team had the following objectives for the
training model that would articulate that process.
The effective training model would be simple, so that upon
repetition and training over several months, facilitators could
commit it to memory.
The PACE team would need to be able to present the model
within the time constraints available for training
approximately 1 hour for the initial workshop.
The model would have the capacity to be developed and
expanded at future training sessions.
The practical application of the model would be easily
understood.
The model would be specific to, and build upon, the
insights of experienced Families First Facilitators.
The Families First program would feel ownership of the
model.
Methods for Developing the Training Model
Not long into the discovery phase of servicing the contract, the
Parenting and Consumer Education (PACE) Extension
development team realized that the Department of Human
Services had not yet formally identified or communicated to its
facilitators what it considered to be the characteristics of effective
training. One of the first tasks of the development team was to
develop consensus among administrators and experienced
facilitators on the characteristics of effective training and to
design a training model that represented that philosophy.
The PACE development team consisted of Extension state
specialists in family life, family economics, and staff develop-
ment. This team requested that TDHS administrators identify
groups of managers, specialists, case workers, and experienced
facilitators within the organization who reflected the best of the
departments intrinsic standards and training philosophies to
provide input into the development process.
Although the PACE team used a variety of methods to gather
information during the discovery process, the bulk of informa-
tion about training expectations and standards were gathered
using a group facilitation process called the Workshop
Method developed by the Institute of Cultural Affairs
(Spencer, 1989) and through a series of focus group sessions.
The initial workshop session was held with a group of TDHS
employees selected by TDHS administration. The group
included assistant administrators, state program specialists,
district managers, local managers, and case workers. An
Extension District Program Leader led the session.
In addition to the workshop session, focus group sessions
were held in each of the four Department of Human Services
districts across Tennessee. Participants were selected by the
district administrative staffs working with the DHS state staff
and members of the PACE training team assigned to each
district.
Focus group format and questions were designed to be
consistent among all four sessions. Sessions were led by state
Extension specialists and Extension PACE trainers, and were
videotaped for analysis by the PACE development team.
Questions centered on experienced trainers perceptions of the
characteristics of effective training. The PACE development
team also conducted both phone and written surveys of
contract providers and Extension field staff that had experience
working with similar audiences.
Extension Specialists on the PACE team integrated the findings
from the workshop and focus group into a model that served
as the basis of PACE curricula and training conducted under the
DHS contract.
79
Findings Regarding an Adult Training
Model
Basic Findings
Information collected during the discovery process supported
the assumptions of the andralogical approach of Knowles and
others regarding the training process. In addition, the following
basic premises were advanced.
1. The training process is important. Although quality,
accurate information and curricula are important to the
success of training, experienced Families First training
facilitators agreed that the training process itself is of equal
importance. Sessions with facilitators verified the importance
of not just delivering information to participants, but also
providing them with hands-on experiences in applying
new learning and practicing new skills.
2. Participants in training programs need experiences that
require progressively more active participation in, and
responsibility for, their own learning. Learning should
include opportunities for practicing decision making,
recognizing ones own learning needs, identifying resources
to meet those needs, and planning and organizing ones own
learning.
3. Participants need opportunities to broaden their
networks in the mainstream work community. This
includes development of social skills and strengthening self-
efficacy to broaden their comfort zone in a variety of
community work settings and volunteer activities.
Training Model
In addition to the basic premises above, Families First training
providers and staff identified specific criteria for good training.
The characteristics identified by facilitators and TDHS staff were
synthesized and organized into a model (Figure 1) by a member
of the state PACE leadership team. The resulting model of
effective training has four major criteria.
1. Effective training is learner focused. Effective training
identifies and addresses issues important to the learner,
while building on learner strengths. It includes opportunities
for active participation by the learner, while recognizing and
drawing on the knowledge and experience of the learner.
Learning is facilitated through peer exchange, and is culturally
and ethnically meaningful. All participants are drawn into the
discussion.
2. Effective training demonstrates productive behavior and
effective life skills. Effective training integrates decision-
making, planning, organization and implementation skill
building. It models and reinforces workplace ethics and
productive use of time. Local and community resources are
an integral part of the learning environment. Opportunities
for learners to expand social networks are provided. Learners
are challenged to take responsibility for their own lifelong
learning.
3. Effective training inspires and motivates. Effective
training increases the learners knowledge about the subject
matter, and reinforces worthwhile values and principles. It
provides opportunities for humor and fun during learning,
while maintaining a positive focus. Learners leave the session
with a feeling of accomplishment.
4. Effective training celebrates personal and group
achievements. Incentives to mark learning milestones are
incorporated into effective training. On-going assessment
and learner-based feedback is critical to the success of any
training session. Learners are acknowledged and recognized
for their contributions by the larger community.
Opportunities to include children and other household
members in the learning process are also made available.
Community leaders who can bring other resources to bear on
the issue at hand are included as an integral part of the
learning process.
Figure 1.
Training Model
Application
Experienced trainers develop their own effective strategies to
facilitate participant growth through innovative teaching
methodologies and group dynamics. As part of the training of
Families First PACE facilitators, the Extension PACE team gave
trainers an opportunity to share effective techniques they had
gained from their own experience, underscoring the value of the
knowledge, skills, and expertise they contributed to the learning
process.
Facilitators were then presented the training model. After a brief
explanation of the model, facilitators were asked to join a
discussion group focusing on one of the four model criteria.
After self-assignment to discussion groups, the groups were
given prompt posters (Figures 2, 3, 4, and 5) and asked to
brainstorm additional ways to implement criteria from the
model in their classroom.
Figure 2.
Prompt Poster 1
Effective training is learner focused. It:
Identifies and addresses issues important to the learner.
Identifies and builds on learner strengths.
Includes active participation by the learner.
Recognizes and draws upon the knowledge and experience
of the learner.
Facilitates learning through peer exchange.
Is culturally and ethically meaningful.
Draws everyone into the discussion.
80
Examples of specific ways to implement these criteria:
Ask participants to list issues which are particularly
important to them. List them on the board and explain
when and how you will address them in class.
Provide a question box for participants to drop in
questions or issues that are important to them, yet they are
hesitant to ask during class.
Have participants graph their family trees. Use these as a
basis of discussion about parenting or financial
management styles and practices.
Have a covered dish luncheon. Participants bring food they
consider an important part of their family culture.
Generate round robin answers in which everyone in the
group responds to a question or issue in turn.
Figure 3.
Prompt Poster 2
Effective training models productive behavior and
effective life skills. It:
Integrates decision-making, planning, organization and
implementation skill building.
Models and reinforces workplace ethics and productive use
of time.
Integrates local and community resources.
Provides opportunities for learners to expand social
networks.
Challenges learners to take responsibility for their own
lifelong learning.
Examples of specific ways to implement these criteria:
Start and end classes and activities on time.
Identify one or more days each week when participants wear
professional dress.
Ask participants to identify a topic theyd like to learn more
about. Help them develop a plan to research their topic
using community resources (people and information).
Follow up with a report to the class.
Ask participants to interview someone who works at a job
they would enjoy doing. Provide guidance in developing the
right approach and questions to ask.
Ask participants to make a time line from birth to age 80,
dividing the line into 8 segments representing 10 years each.
Have them list, in each segment, some new things they
needed (or will need) to learn to live well during that period
in life.
Figure 4.
Prompt Poster 3
Effective training inspires and motivates. It:
Presents accurate information.
Increases learner knowledge about the subject matter. o
Reinforces worthwhile values and principles.
Provides opportunities for humor and fun during learning.
Maintains a positive focus.
Gives the learner a feeling of accomplishment.
Examples of specific ways to implement these criteria:
If you have a permanent classroom, fill the walls with
inspirational posters and art. If not, write a new or funny
saying on the board before each class.
Collect inspirational or humorous stories pertinent to the
topics you discuss and share them with participants.
Collect amazing and interesting facts for generating
discussions.
Bring in an expert to talk with the class about a related
topic. Make sure that this visit involves discussion with the
class rather than a lecture.
Discuss how participants might tell the difference between
reliable information and hearsay.
Figure 5.
Prompt Poster 4
Effective training celebrates personal and group
achievements. It:
Incorporates incentives to mark learning milestones.
Provides for assessment and learner-based feedback.
Is acknowledged by the larger community.
Provides opportunities to include children and other
household members.
Include community leaders who can bring other resources
to bear for participants.
Examples of specific ways to implement these criteria:
Pin small ribbons on participants who have reached a
milestone or performed with excellence. Different colored
ribbons can denote different accomplishments.
Invite local officials or leaders to present graduation
certificates and attend a reception to mingle with participants.
(Candidates for political office are usually particularly eager to
do this.)
Recruit a committee of community volunteers to develop a
plan for incentives and awards.
Have a local civic or community club adopt your groups,
providing both support and incentives.
Involve community volunteers in planning a graduation
reception or tea.
Ideas were collected from groups in training sessions across the
state and compiled into a booklet for follow-up training
sessions. Input from the learners (facilitators) became an
integral part of the training process, leading to real buy-in
from most program participants.
Results
As the Extension training team developed training for PACE
facilitators, they were careful to model criteria identified for
effective training and include activities to increase facilitators
skills in training. The effective training model has been used in
14 training sessions with more than 300 PACE facilitators. The
use of the model as an inherent part of the PACE facilitator
process has resulted in successful outcomes for facilitators as
81
well as Families First clientele. The following quotes are
representative examples of reactions.
Thank you. This was one of the best training sessions I have
been to since I began my job.
The demonstration of facilitating activities and how to
implement them was one of the most helpful parts of the
training.
In regards to the PACE training...we thoroughly enjoyed the
atmosphere and training methods presented. This has been the
first training seminar in awhile that actually produced quality
results. If felt as though the University of Tennessee Extension
Service...actually feels the way we, as facilitators, do with regards
to our customers....We left this training ready and willing to
facilitate the PACE curriculum.
The ability to use hands-on activities and the excellent use of
communication skills was a most helpful part of the training.
The training was a wonderful example of teamwork.
Table 1 summarizes the evaluation response from Families First
facilitators at the first six sessions at which the training model
was used and presented. Additional data is currently being
collected to more completely evaluate the effectiveness of the
training methods.
Table 1.
Summary of Perceptions of Facilitators from 6 PACE Training Sessions as a
Percentage of Total Response (Ranked on scale of 1 to 5 with 1 indicating "Not at
all" and 5 indicating "To a great degree")
n = 216
Criteria 1 2 3 4 5
Training was learner focused 0 0 6.9 38.4 54.6
Training included active participation by
learner
0 0 2.7 29.6 67.6
Learning was facilitated through peer
exchange
0 0.4 9.2 29.2 61.1
Training was culturally and ethnically
meaningful
0 1.3 13.0 38.9 47.2
Training encouraged learner to assume active
responsibility for learning
0 0.4 5.5 36.6 57.4
Training modeled productive behavior and
effective life skills
0 0 6.5 39.3 54.6
Training inspired and motivated 0 0.4 9.2 26.8 63.9
Training acknowledged individual and group
achievements
0 0.4 7.9 34.7 57.4
Flow of learning was appropriate 0 0.4 10.2 36.6 53.2
Training addressed the needs of Families
First participants
0 0.9 6.9 30.5 62.0
Conclusions and Recommendations
It is naive for an Extension professional to feel that if informa-
tion is delivered during a learning activity, the educational
mission has been accomplished. The broader mandate that
learning generate change in behavior, practice, or belief requires a
much more sophisticated science and art. In todays informa-
tion-rich culture, Extensions store of information no longer
makes the organization unique. Rather, Extensions organiza-
tional strength and uniqueness lie in the experience and
capability of its professionals to motivate individuals and
groups to action.
It is important for Extension educators to develop and field
test useful models for program design and delivery that include
behavior change. It is equally important for the models to be
linked to sound educational theory that will be valued by
partnering agencies and understood by the targeted clientele.
The process described in this article accomplished these
objectives and resulted in information that now provides a
framework for quality training in a broad range of FCS pro-
gramming. The criteria in Table I list standards against which
training in a variety of subjects can be measured. Descriptions
of training model components in Figures 2, 3, 4, and 5 provide
practical ways that the findings can be applied in any training
situation. Further development of the model has resulted in
additional insights with practical application beyond the scope
of this article.
Notes -
82
Systematic Approach to Training
Dear Friends,
This lesson is going to expose you towards systematic approach
towards training.
The steps in training process.
After reading this lesson you will be able to
1. Understand the systematic approach towards training
2. Explain various steps in training process
3. Apply the systematic training procedure for training function
in your department
The Training Procedure
One of the better personnel programmes to come out World
War II was the Training Within the Industry (TWI) programme
of the War Manpower Commission. This was basically a
supervisory training programme to make up for the shortage
of civilian supervisory skills during the war. One of the parts
of this programme was the job instruction training course,
which was concerned with how to teach? The training procedure
discussed below is essentially an adoption of the job instruc-
tion training course, which has been proved to have a great
value.
The important steps in training procedure are discussed below:
a. Preparing the Instructor: The instructor must know both the
job to be taught and how to teach it. The job must be
divided into logical parts so thateach can be taught at a
proper time without the trainee losing plan. For each part
one should have in mind the desired technique
of,instruction, that is, whether a particular point is best
taught by illustration, demonstration or explanation.
A serious and committed instructor must:
i. know the job or subject he is attempting to teach,
ii. have the aptitude and abilities to teach,
iii. have willingness towards the profession,
iv. have a pleasing personality and capacity for leadership,
v. have the knowledge of teaching principles and
methods,
vi. be a permanent student, in the sense that he should
equip himself with the latest concepts .and knowledge.
b. Preparing the Trainee: As in interviewing, the first step in
training is to attempt to place the trainee at ease. Most people
are somewhat nervous when approaching an unfamiliar task.
Though the instructor may have executed this training
procedure, many times he or she never forgets its newness to
the trainee. The quality of empathy is a mark of the good
instructor.
c. Getting Ready to Teach: This stage of the programme is class
hour teaching
involving the following activities:
Planning the programme.
Preparing the instructors outline.
Do not try to cover too much material.
Keep the session moving along logically.
Discuss each item in depth.
Repeat, but in different words.
Take the material from standardised texts when it is
available.
When the standardised text is not available, develop
the programme and
course content based on group approach. Group
consists of employer, skilled employees. supervisors,
trade union leaders and others familiar with job
requirements. Group prepares teaching material.
Teach about the standard for the trainee like quality,
quantity, waste or scrap, ability to work without
supervision, knowledge or procedure, safety
rules, human relations etc.
Remember your standard, before you teach.
Planning Training Sessions
1. Every lesson should be planned.
2. Know how many and what kind of students you are
teaching?
3. Layout the subject-matter.
4. Select the best method of instruction.
5. Decide what the students need in the way of
preparation.
6. Make plans to capture and maintain student interest
7. Plan summary of points to be emphasised.
8. Plan for using of training aids, if any.
9. Have a rehearsal of the lesson?
10. Plan for examination questions.
Take periodical progress of the trainees, and application into
account.
d. Presenting the Operation: There are various alternative ways
of presenting the operation, viz., explanation,
demonstration etc. An instructor mostly uses these methods
of explanation. In addition .one may illustrate various
points through the use of pictures, charts, diagrams and
other training aids Exhibit 8.10 presents training aids.
Demonstration is an excellent device when the job is
essentially physical in nature. The following sequence is a
favorite with some instructors:
i. Explain the sequence of the entire job.
LESSON 10 UNIT 3
APPROAHCES TO TRAINING
UNIT II
APPROACHES TO TRAINING
83
ii Do the job step-by-step according to the procedure.
iii Explain the step that he is performing
iv Have the trainee explain the entire job.
e. Try Out the Trainees Performance: As a continuation of the
presentation sequence given above, the trainee should be
asked to start the job or operative procedure. Some
instructors prefer that the trainee explains each step before
doing it, particularly if the operation involves any danger.
The trainee, through repetitive practice, will acquire more
skill.
Training Aids
Films, Slides, Projectors, Movies, Stills.
Charts, Graphs, Rash Cards, Rannel Boards,
Pictograms..
Pamphlets, Brochures, Handbooks, Manuals.
Libraries andReading Rooms.
Teaching Machines, Closed Circuit lV.
Exhibits, Posters and Displays.
Notice Boards, Bulletin Boards, Enlarged Drawings.
Cartoons, Comic Books, Books.
f. Follow-up: The final step in most training procedures is that
of follow-up. When people are involved in any problem or
procedure, it is unwise to assume that things are always
constant. Follow-up can be adopted to a variable
reinforcement schedule as suggested in the discussion of
learning principles. The follow-up system should provide
feed-back on training effectiveness and on total value of
training system as shown in below
2
Training
programme
Employees
Performance
present job
Employee
identified for
training
Measurement of
actual job
performance
Employees for
new assignment
Emplo yees after
training
Measurement of training
performance
Suitability
for new
assignment
Training Procedure
Job and
organization
analysis
Evaluate
the
trainee
Identify the
training needs
Design
the
training
needs
Cost
Benefit
analysis
Design training
content teaching
methods and
media
Prepare the
instructor
Prepare
the
trainee
Get
ready
to
teach
Implementing
training
programme
Present the
operations
Gain the
acceptance of
the
programme
Try out the
trainees
performance
Evaluate the
results
Update the
programme
Training Process Flow Chart
High Yield Training Checklist
Before Training
1. What Are The Specific, Immediate & Important
Competencies You Seek? (What Must You Know & Be Able
To Do That Warrant The Training Investment?)
2. Is A Training Session The Best Way To Develop The Needed
Competencies? (Consider A Book, Coaching, Mentoring, A
Video On The Subject, etc.)
3. Does Your Boss Agree With The Need For The Targeted
Competencies & Is She Willing To Help You Follow
Thru? (Will She Prioritize & Hold You Accountable For
Each New Competency?)
4. Can You Identify A Training Program With Training
Objectives That Match Your Learning Objectives?
5. Will The Content And Activities Described In The Program
Agenda Clearly & Convincingly Produce The Targeted
Learning Objectives?
6. Is There Assigned Or Recommended Pre-Work To Improve
Program Effectiveness Or Efficiency?
7. Have You Prepared Need-Specific Work Situations To Work
On In Class?
During Training
1. Did You Arrive Early Enough To Meet The Instructor And
Discuss Your Learning Expectations?
2. Did You Review The Program Book Before The Class Began
To Identify Key Training Areas In Advance?
3. Did You Write Your Notes, Ideas And Comments In Your
Program Book To Avoid Loss & Make Later Access Easy?
4. Did You Ask Questions Whenever Key Point Clarification
Was Needed Or You Wanted To Know How A Particular
Skill Could Be Applied To Your Situation?
IDENTIFY TRAINING REQUIREMENTS
SPECIFY TRAINING OBJECTIVES
DETERMINE TRAINING CONTENTS
DESIGN TRAINING METHODS &
APPROPRIATE MEDIA
IMPLEMENT TRAINING PROGRAM
PROGRAM OUTPUT
Program
Input
84
5. Did You Stretch Out Of Your Comfort Zone When
Practicing New Skills During Group Role Plays?
6. Did You Maximize Practice & Feedback By Volunteering For
Whole Class Demonstrations?
7. Did You Enthusiastically Participate During Large & Small
Group Activities?
8. Did You Provide Thoughtful Feedback To Other Small
Group Participants?
9. Did You Develop A Realistic Follow Through Plan Before
Leaving?
After Training
1. Did You Meet With Your Boss As Soon As Possible To
Review The Program Experience & Follow Thru Plan?
2. Did You Solicit Coaching Help From A Boss Or Mentor To
Help You Stay On Track With Your Follow Thru Plan?
3. Did You Schedule Competency-Building Activities Into
Your Daily Planner?
4. Did You Offer To/Actually Lead A Brown Bag Overview Of
The Training Program High Points For Co- Workers?
5. Did You Review Your Levels Of Competency-Specific
Improvement At Two, Four And Six Months-After?
6. Did You Provide The Company, Your Supervisor And/Or
The Trainer With A Review Of The Programs Productivity-
Enhancing Impact?
Playbook for Coordination
1. What Is The Specific Outcome Or Activity That The Team Is
Responsible For? (Are They Solving A Problem (Solution),
Resolving An Issue (Agreement), Or Testing A New Method
(Preferable?)
2. Who Is The Team Sponsor & What Are The Performance/
Outcome Standards?
3. Does The Team Possess Or Have Access To Sufficient
Resources? (What New Equipment, Capital, Support, Etc.
Will Or Might Be Required?)
4. Is The Team Made Up Of The Right Players? (Are Team
Mates Skillful, Knowledgeable And Innovative Enough To
Produce The Desired Outcome?)
5. Do All Team Mates Have A Roster That Is Dedicated Solely
To Names, Numbers & Addresses Of The Team?
6. Has A Plan Been Prepared That Clearly Communicates
Expected Team Actions, Handoffs And Outcomes?
7. Does Everyone On The Team Use A Planner To Schedule &
Follow Through On Team Actions?
Fundamentals for Execution
1. Have All Team Mates Made Overt Commitments To Do
Their Individual Best & To Work For Team Excellence?
2. Do Bosses To Whom Team Mates Report Adjust
Workloads & Priorities To Allow For Team Participation?
3. Do Team Mates Look For Improvement Opportunities &
Bring Them To The Team For Consideration?
4. Do Team Meetings Include Only Those People Who Are
Required In Order To Accomplish The Meeting Objective?
5. Does The Team Leader Prepare & Distribute Team Meeting
Summaries To The Entire Team & Others Who Need To
Know?
6. Does The Team Practice Consensus When Considering
Issues, Opportunities Or Problems? (Everyones Opinions
& Options Are Voiced & The Best Team Action Is
Synthesized By The Leader.)
7. Do Team Mates Take Note Of & Comment On The Unique
Contributions Of Others?
8. Do Team Mates Ask For Help Only When It Is Absolutely
Essential?
Leadership for Direction
1. Does The Leader Establish & Maintain A Strong
Relationship With The Team Sponsor?
2. Does The Leader Schedule & Protect Enough Time To Do
All Of The Necessary Activities?
3. Does The Leader Make Team Decisions When Necessary &
Delegate Decisions When Appropriate?
4. Does The Leader Use Plans & Performance Information To
Anticipate & Pre-empt Problems Or Shortfalls?
5. Does The Leader Support, Encourage & Have Fun With
Team Mates?
6. Does The Leader Identify & Remedy Conflicts Between
Team Mates, Team Mates & Their Bosses & Others Who
Might Impact Team Success?
Before the Meeting
1. Is A Meeting The Best Way To Handle Your
Communication Need? (Consider A Memo, Conference Call,
E - mail, Video Conference, Presentation, etc.)
2. What Must You Leave The Meeting With (A Decision,
Commitment, Ideas, Consensus, etc.) In Order For It To Be
A Success? (After You Answer This, Revisit The Question
Above)
3. What Is The Sequence Of Topics That Must Be Addressed
In Order To Accomplish Your Meeting Objective?
4. In What Ways (Discussion, Brainstorming, Planning, etc.)
Must You Address Each Topic And For How Long?
5. Who Must Be Present At Your Meeting For You To
Accomplish Your Objective?
6. Where Should The Meeting Be Held In Order To Increase
Comfort And Reduce Influence? (i.e.. You Influence More In
Your Office)
7. When Should You Meet And For How Long?
8. Have You Prepared And Sent A Detailed Agenda To All
Participants?
During The Meeting
1. Did You Arrive Early Enough To Prep The Meeting Room
And Yourself?
2. Did You Start The Meeting On Time?
3. Did You Confirm That Everyone Received And Understood
The Agenda And Is Prepared To Work?
85
4. Did You Introduce The First Agenda Topic And Indicate
The Preferred Way Of Addressing It e.g. Generating Ideas
Is The Approach Id Like To Suggest With Our First Item,
Sales Initiatives.)
5. Did You Encourage The Less Talkative And Ride Herd On
Monopolizers?
6. Did You Alert The Meeting Members When Agenda Items
Were Within 2 to 5 Minutes Of Their Allotted Time? (e.g..
Weve Got Five Minutes Left With This Item, So . . .)
7. Did You Use A Concerns Flipchart To Capture Unfinished
Business?
8. Did You Summarize & Confirm Conclusions And
Commitments?
9. Did You Thank Participants?
10. Did You Take Notes?
After the Meeting
1. Did You Complete A Short, Clear Summary Of The
Meeting, With Emphasis On Decisions And Commitments
That Were Made?
2. Did You Distribute The Meeting Summary To Every
Participant And Anyone Else With A Need To Know
Within 36 Hours Of The Meeting?
3. Did You Begin And/Or Complete Any And All Of The
Actions That You Committed To During The Meeting?
4. Did You Follow Up With any Meeting Participant Who
Made A Commitment?
5. Did You Express Thanks To Any Participants Who Added
Superior Levels Of Value To Your Meeting?
Did You Probe Any Participants Who Were Unusually Quiet Or
Who Expressed Reservations With Topics Or Outcomes?
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
~ Chinese Proverb
Activity and Assignment
1. Write a note on systematic approach to training.
2. What are major steps in training process?
Game
Conducting Training Programme:
Problem: Train the superintendents of the administrative office
of your college university by identifying training needs,
formulating training programme, preparing schedule, writing
the training material, administering the programme and
evaluating the programme.
For this game, from five teams with your classmates. Each team
will play one activity as follows:
Team Activity
No.
1. Identifying the training needs on the basis of job
analysis, man-analysis, through questionnaire method,
observation method, interview method etc.
2. Formulating training programme and schedule by
analysing the tasks and/ or activities.
3. Writing the training material based on the operations,
training needs, skills, knowledge and attitude to be
imparted. Write the material according to the break-up
of the programme.
4. Administering the programme - Divide the team into:
(i) instructors, (ii) operators of audio-visual aids, and
(iii) secretarial assignments. Train the instructors and
other members of the team in doing their activities.
Allocate the lessons or sessions to the instructors based
on their experience and/or interest.
5. Evaluation and feedback: Divide the team into four
persons. One person evaluates the task of identifying
the needs, second person evaluates the task of
formulating programmes and schedule, third person
evaluates the task of administering the programme and
fourth person co-ordinates these four and provides
feedback information to the team concerned in time and
follows up the control, carrying out etc.
86
Dear Friends
Now you know the systematic approach to training and training
process.
In this lesson you are going to be exposed to the first step of
training process ie Training Need Identification.
The right identification of training needs is the most significant
and crucial job for a manager.
As a Manager you must also know what are various methods to
training need identification, which is explained in this lesson.
A Needs Assessment is a systematic exploration of the way
things are and the way they should be. These things are
usually associated with organizational and/or individual
performance .
WHY design and conduct a Needs Assessment? We need to
consider the benefits of any Human Resource Development
(HRD) intervention before we just go and do it:
What learning will be accomplished?
What changes in behavior and performance are expected?
Will we get them?
What are the expected economic costs and benefits of any
projected solutions?
We are often in too much of a hurry. We implement a solution,
sometimes but not always the correct intervention. But we plan,
very carefully and cautiously, before making most other
investments in process changes and in capital and operating
expenditures. We need to do the same for Human Resource
Development.
The largest expense for HRD programs, by far, is attributable to
the time spent by the participants in training programs, career
development, and/or organization development activities. In
training, costs due to lost production and travel time can be as
much as 90-95% of the total program costs. Direct and indirect
costs for the delivery of training are about 6% of the total cost,
and design and development count for only about 1-2% of the
total (2). Realistically, it makes sense to invest in an assessment
of needs to make sure we are making wise investments in
training and other possible interventions.
Training needs are identified on the basis of organisational
analysis, job al1alysis and man analysis. Training programme,
training methods an~ course content are to be planned on the
basis of training needs. Training needs are tho.se aspects
necessary to perform the job in an organisation in which
employee is lacking attitude/aptitude, knowledge, skill.
Training needs = Job and Organizational requirement
Employee specifications
Training needs can be identified through identifying the
organisational needs based on:
LESSON 11
TRAINING NEED ASSESSMENT
i Organisational Analysis: This includes analysis of objectives,
resource utilisation, environments canning and
organisati0nal climate: Organisational strengths and
weaknesses in different areas like accidents, excessive scrap,
frequent breakage of machinery, excessive labour turn-over,
market share, and other marketing areas, quality and quantity
of the output, production schedule, raw materials and other
production areas, personnel, finance, etc.
ii. Departmental analysis: Departmental strength and weakness
including special problems of the department or a common
problem of a group of employees like acquiring skills and
knowledge in operating computer by accounting personnel.
iii. Job Role Analysis: This includes study of jobs/roles, design
of jobs due to changes, job enlargement, and job enrichment
etc.
iv. Manpower Analysis: Individual strengths and weaknesses in
the areas of jobknowledge, skills etc
Methods Used in Training Needs Assessment
Group or Organisational Analysis Individual Analysis
Organisational goal and objectives Performance appraisal
Personnel/ Skill inventories Work Sampling
Organisational climate indices Interviews
Efficiency indices Questionaires
Exist interviews Attitude survey
MBO or work planning systems Training progress
Quality circles Rating scales
Customer survey/satisfaction data Observation of behaviour
Consideration of current and projected changes
Individual Training
Needs
Group Training
Needs
Organisational
Training Needs
Assessment Methods
The following methods are used to assess the training needs:
i. Organisational requirements/weakness.
ii. Departmental requirements/weaknesses.
iii. Job specifications and employee specifications.
iv. Identifying specific problems.
v. Anticipating future problems.
vi. Managements requests.
vii. Observation.
viii. lnterviews.
ix. Group conferences.
x. Questionnaire surveys.
xi Test or examinations
xii. Check lists
87
xiii. Performance Appraisal
Training Needs for Employees at different Level
A
B
C
A
C
B
A
B
C
EMPLOYEES FIRST LINE
SUPERVISORS
TOP & MIDDLE
MANAGERS
Training Content for Different
Categories of Employees
Training methods and content may not be the same for
different categories of employees. A5 such management has to
train the employees of different categories in different areas and
through different methods based the job analysis. Training
methods and content for a few jobs are discussed hereu\der
with a view to giving an idea to the reader
Supervisory Training
Supervisors mostly learn to supervise under the guidance of a
manager. Hence, the emphasis should be on the on-the-job
training methods. These methods can be supplemented by
various off-the-job training methods. course content of
training to this category include: production control,
organisation methods, work/activity control, method study,
time study, job evaluation, company pol~ies and practices,
personnel policies, procedures, programmes, training the
subordinate, grievance handling, disciplinary procedure,
communication, effective insection, report writing, performance
appraisal, personnel records, dealing with absenteeism, labour
turn-over, industrial and labour laws, leadership qualities etc.
Sales Training
Emphasis should be towards on-the-job as well as off-the-job
training methods in training the sales personnel. Course
content include job knowledge, organisational knowledge,
knowledge about the company products, Customers, competi-
tors, sales administration procedures, law concerning sales,
special skills like prospecting, making presentations, handling,
objections, closing the sales etc., employee attitudes such as
loyalty to the company and trust in the company products,
understanding and tolerance with regard to potential and
existing customers.
Clerical Training
Emphasis may be given on the off-the-job training in training
the clerical personnel. The training content includes organisation
and methods, company policies, procedures and programmes,
background knowledge of the company, forms, reports, written
communication, clerical aptitude, maintaining ledgers, records
etc
Clerical Training
Emphasis may be given on the off-the-job training in training
the clerical personnel. The training content includes organisation
and methods, company policies, procedures and programmes,
background knowledge of the company, forms, reports, written
communication, clerical aptitude, maintaining ledgers, records
etc.
Four Steps to Conducting A Needs
Assessment:
Step 1. Perform A Gap Analysis.
The first step is to check the actual performance of our organi-
zations and our people against existing standards, or to set new
standards. There are two parts to this:
Current situation: We must determine the current state of
skills, knowledge, and abilities of our current and/or future
employees. This analysis also should examine our
organizational goals, climate, and internal and external
constraints.
Desired or necessary situation: We must identify the desired
or necessary conditions for organizational and personal
success. This analysis focuses on the necessary job tasks/
standards, as well as the skills, knowledge, and abilities
needed to accomplish these successfully. It is important that
we identify the critical tasks necessary, and not just observe
our current practices. We also must distinguish our actual
needs from our perceived needs, our wants.
The difference the gap between the current and the
necessary will identify our needs, purposes, and objectives.
What are we looking for? Here are some questions to ask, to
determine where HRD may be useful in providing solutions:
(3)
Problems or deficits. Are there problems in the organization
which might be solved by training or other HRD activities?
Impending change. Are there problems which do not
currently exist but are foreseen due to changes, such as new
processes and equipment, outside competition, and/or
changes in staffing?
Opportunities. Could we gain a competitive edge by taking
advantage of new technologies, training programs,
consultants or suppliers?
Strengths. How can we take advantage of our organizational
strengths, as opposed to reacting to our weaknesses? Are
there opportunities to apply HRD to these areas?
New directions. Could we take a proactive approach, applying
HRD to move our organizations to new levels of
performance? For example, could team building and related
activities help improve our productivity?
Mandated training. Are there internal or external forces
dictating that training and/or organization development will
take place? Are there policies or management decisions which
might dictate the implementation of some program? Are
there governmental mandates to which we must comply?
Step 2. Identify Priorities and Importance.
The first step should have produced a large list of needs for
training and development, career development, organization
development, and/or other interventions. Now we must
examine these in view of their importance to our organizational
goals, realities, and constraints. We must determine if the
identified needs are real, if they are worth addressing, and
specify their importance and urgency in view of our organiza-
tional needs and requirements (4). For example (5):
88
Cost-effectiveness: How does the cost of the problem
compare to the cost of implementing a solution? In other
words, we perform a cost-benefit analysis.
Legal mandates: Are there laws requiring a solution? (For
example, safety or regulatory compliance.)
Executive pressure: Does top management expect a
solution?
Population: Are many people or key people involved?
Customers: What influence is generated by customer
specifications and expectations?
If some of our needs are of relatively low importance, we
would do better to devote our energies to addressing other
human performance problems with greater impact and greater
value.
Step 3. Identify Causes of Performance Problems
and/or Opportunities.
Now that we have prioritized and focused on critical organiza-
tional and personal needs, we will next identify specific problem
areas and opportunities in our organization. We must know
what our performance requirements are, if appropriate solu-
tions are to be applied. We should ask two questions for every
identified need: (6)
Are our people doing their jobs effectively?
Do they know how to do their jobs?
This will require detailed investigation and analysis of our
people, their jobs, and our organizations both for the
current situation and in preparation for the future.
Step 4. Identify Possible Solutions and Growth
Opportunities.
If people are doing their jobs effectively, perhaps we should
leave well enough alone. (If it aint broke, dont fix it.)
However, some training and/or other interventions might be
called for if sufficient importance is attached to moving our
people and their performance into new directions.
But if our people ARE NOT doing their jobs effectively:
Training may be the solution, IF there is a knowledge
problem.
Organization development activities may provide solutions
when the problem is not based on a lack of knowledge and
is primarily associated with systematic change. These
interventions might include strategic planning, organization
restructuring, performance management and/or effective
team building.
Training Need Assessment Flow Chart
PERFORM A "GAP" ANALYSIS
IDENTIFY PRIORITIES AND IMPORTANCE
IDENTIFY CAUSES OF PERFORMANCE
PROBLEMS AND/OR OPPORTUNITIES
IDENTIFY POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS AND
GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES
Techniques for Investigating
Organizational and Personal Needs:
Use multiple methods of Needs Assessment. To get a true
picture, dont rely on one method. It is important to get a
complete picture from many sources and viewpoints. Dont
take some managers word for what is needed.
There are several basic Needs Assessment techniques. Use a
combination of some of these, as appropriate:
direct observation
questionnaires
consultation with persons in key positions, and/or with
specific knowledge
review of relevant literature
interviews
focus groups
tests
records & report studies
work samples
An excellent comparison of the advantages and disadvantages
of each of these methods can be found in the Training and
Development Journal. (7)
Remember that actual needs are not always the same as
perceived needs, or wants. Look for what the organization
and people really need they may not know what they need, but
may have strong opinions about what they want.
Use your collected data in proposing HRD solutions:
Use your data to make your points. This avoids confronting
management since your conclusions will follow from your
Needs Assessment activities.
Everybody should share the data collected. It is important to
provide feedback to everyone who was solicited for
information. This is necessary if everyone is to buy into
any proposed training or organization development plan.
Having identified the problems and performance deficiencies,
we must lay out the difference between the cost of any pro-
posed solutions against the cost of not implementing the
solution. Heres an economic gap analysis:
What are the costs if no solution is applied?
What are the costs of conducting programs to change the
situation?
The difference determines if intervention activities will be cost-
effective, and therefore if it makes sense to design, develop, and
implement the proposed HRD solutions.
Summary Steps in A Needs Analysis:
Perform a gap analysis to identify the current skills,
knowledge, and abilities of your people, and the
organizational and personal needs for HRD activities
Identify your priorities and importance of possible activities
Identify the causes of your performance problems and/or
opportunities Identify possible solutions and growth
opportunities.
and finally:
89
Compare the consequences if the program is or is not
implemented
Generate and communicate your recommendations for
training and development, organization development, career
development, and/or other interventions
Training Needs for Employees at different Level
A
B
C
A
C
B
A
B
C
EMPLOYEES FIRST LINE
SUPERVISORS
TOP & MIDDLE
MANAGERS
A: Technical Skills And Knowledge
B: Knowledge On Organisation And External
C: Conceptual And Interpersonal Skills
Quick Review
Training Assessment Methods
i. Identifying Specilic Problems: Such problems are:
productivity, high costs, poor material control, poor quality,
excessive scrap and waste, excessive labourmanagement
troubles, excessive grievances, excessive violation of rules
of conduct, poor discipline, high employee turnover and
transfers, excessive absenteeism, accidents, excessive fatigue,
fumbling, discouragement, struggling with the job;
standards of work performance not being met, bottlenecks
in production, deadliness not being met, and delayed
production.14 Problems like these suggest that training
may be necessary. For this the task and the workers should
be closely observed and the difficulties found out.
ii. Anticipating Impending and Future Problems bearing on
the expansion of business, the introduction of new
products, new services, new designs, ne,w plant, new
technology and of organisational changes concerned with
manpower inventory for present and future needs.
iii. Management Requests: The supervisors and managers may
make specific request for setting training programmes.
Though this method is simple and a correct evaluation of
the employees performance deficiencies can be made, but
often such recommendations may be built on faulty
assumptions; and requests may not coincide with each
other or organisational goals.
iv. Interviewing and Observing the Personnel on the Job:
Interviewing personnel and direct questioning and
observation of the employee by his supervisors may also
reveal training needs.
v. Performance Appraisal: An analysis of the past
performance records of the perspective trainee and
comparing his actual performance ,-,!ith the target
performance may provide clues to specilic interpersonal
skills that may need development.
vi. Questionnaires: Questionnaires may be used for eliciting
opinionsofthe employees on topics like communication,
satisfaction, job characteristics, their attitude towards
working conditions, pay, promotion policies etc. These will
reveal much information about where an employees skills
and knowledge are deficient.
vii. Checklist: The use of checklist is a useful supplement to
interviews and observations. Through it, more reliable
information can be obtained and the data got are
quantifiable. This facilitates evaluating the training
programmes effectiveness.
viii. Morale and Amtude Surveys: An occasional personnel
audit may be conducted to forecast future promotions,
skill requirements, and merit rating, to initiate informal
discussions and an examination of records and statistics
regarding personnel, production, cost, rejects and wastages.
All these generdlly reveal the potential problems to be
tackled through training programmes.
ix. In addition, tests of the interpersonal skills through
handling of posed cases and incidents, may also reveal
training needs.
xi. Test or examinations.
xii. Check lists.
xiii. Performance appraisal.
Check List For Identifying Training And
Development Requirements
Determine Immediate Needs
A. Evaluate current training and development programmes to
determine whether training produces the desired behavioural
changes.
i. Evaluate ongoing training programmes.
a. Review training documents for adequacy.
b. Observe trainers and trainees in the learning
environment of a classroom, a shop or a laboratory.
c. Analyse in-course and end-of-course test results.
d. Interview trainers and trainees.
ii. List and analyse shortfalls in the process or products.
Determine whether they are due to:
a. Poor organisation;
b. Inadequate supervision;
c. Poor communication;
d. Improper personnel selection or policies or procedures;
e. Unclear policies;
f. Poor job design;
g. Equipment or materials problems;
h. Work methods;
i. Inappropriate work standards;
j. Inadequate operator or supervisory training.
B. Survey all the aspects of the operations of an enterprise to
determine the areas where additional training is required.
90
a. Compare job descriptions and applicant specifications
with personnel records.
b. Analyse performance ratings.
c. Analyse all the records of an enterprise to identify areas
of possible deficiency.
d. Identify and analyse operating problems.
e. Use interviews, questionnaires, group conferences,
tests, and work samples to determine training
problems.
f. Subject each problem to a careful analysis to determine
whether it is due to: (1) Poor organisation;
2. Inadequate supervision;
3. Unclear or ambiguous policies;
4. Poor communication;
5. Improper, personnel selection policies;
6. Poor job designs;
7. Equipment or material deficiencies;
8. Improper work methods;
9. Inappropriate work standards:
10. Training deficits.
iii. Determine Long-range Training Needs
a. Analyse an enterprises plans, policies and forecast to
determine their potential impact on staffing needs.
b. Identify and analyse future systems, equipment,
techniques, and procedures t, determine their impact
on personnel requirements.
c. Determine whether current training systems will support
future personal requirement in terms of:
i. Operative personal workers;
ii. Supervisory personnel;
iii. Managerial personnel;
d. Identify training System shortfalls.
m. For each training requirement, determine whether training be
provided on or off the premises, and whether it should be
normal or on,the-job. Consider:
a. Comparative costs: and
b. The availability of in-house personnel, equipment and
facilities.
iv. Summaries training needs.
v. For off-the-premises programmes, develop Objectives,
prepare contract specifications, solicit and evaluate proposals,
and select contractors.
vi. For in-house programmes, develop objectives and guidelines
following the procedures laid down for the purpose
Various Appraoches To Training Need
Analysis
In a traditional Task or Needs Analysis, the analyst generates a
list of tasks to be performed. This list is integrated into a
survey to be completed by job incumbents, subject matter
experts and supervisory personnel. Respondents are asked to
evaluate the frequency, the criticality of each task to the successful
performance of the job, and the amount of training required to
reach proficiency. The surveys are then compiled and a commit-
tee discusses the findings and approves the tasks.
For many jobs, this basic Traditional Task Analysis works just
fine. For others, some different tools might be required. The
following are Analysis instruments that may be incorporated
into the analysis.
People-Data-Things Analysis
Jobs are often characterized by the proportions of time spent
on people, data, and things. Performance deficiencies are often
the result from a mismatch between the nature of a job, and the
employees preference for focus on people, data, or things.
Although most jobs entail that the jobholder work with all
three, there is usually one of the three that the job most
extensively focuses on. Listing all job responsibilities under one
of the three categories will provide the information as to what
major role an employee will be expected to fulfill a people
person, a data person, or a thing person. The following verbs
will help you to properly place a responsibility into a category:
people duties: advises, administer, briefs, communicates,
coordinates, conducts, consults, counsels, critiques, delegates,
demonstrates, directs, explains, facilitates, guide discussions,
implements, informs, instructs, interviews, manages,
mentors, negotiates, notifies, plans, participates, persuades,
promotes, provide feedback, organizes, sells, speaks (public),
sponsors, supervises, teaches, trains, tutors, welcomes
data duties: analyzes, arranges, audits, balances, budgets,
calculates, compares, compiles, computes, designs,
determines, documents, estimates, forecasts, formulates,
identifies, lists, monitors, obtains, predicts, prepares, selects,
surveys, tracks
thing duties: activates, adjusts, aligns, assembles, calibrates,
constructs, controls, cooks, cuts, develops, disassembles,
drives, grows, inspects, lifts, loads, maintains, maneuvers,
monitors, mixes, operates, paints, packs, repairs, services,
transports, writes
Tabletop Analysis
Using a facilitator, a small group of 3 to 10 subject matter
experts convene to identify the various tasks to be performed. A
minimum of one job incumbent and one supervisor are
needed to discuss the tasks. The facilitator conducts the sessions
and documents the information. Through brainstorming and
consensus building, the team develops a sequential list of tasks.
Following this process, the team determines which tasks should
be trained. Task selection is based on the frequency, difficulty,
criticality and the consequences of error or poor performance.
This method is labor intensive for the subject matter experts.
The validity of the identified tasks is dependent upon the
credibility of the selected subject matter experts. For consistency,
the team of experts should remain the same throughout the
process. The table-top method of job analysis typically consists
of:
Orienting the team.
Reviewing the job.
Identifying the duty areas associated with the job.
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Identifying the tasks performed in each duty area and write
task statements.
Sequencing the duty areas and task statements.
Selecting tasks for training.
Hybrid Method
This involves both a quantitative analysis and consensus
building. Using job task documents, a list of tasks is compiled
by an analyst. Through an iterative process involving consensus
building, the validity of the task list is assessed by subject
matter experts, supervisors and job incumbents. Through
discussions, each tasks complexity, importance and frequency
are numerically rated by members of the consensus group. Once
the tasks are identified, the group identifies and validates the
knowledge, skills and abilities required to perform each task.
Cognitive Task Analysis
For tasks with a high cognitive component, (i.e., decision
making, problem solving, or judgments), a traditional task
analysis may fail to identify those cognitive skills required to
perform a given task or job. A cognitive task analysis is per-
formed to identify and to describe the cognitive components of
a task. There are a variety of methodologies available to help the
instructional designer to represent and define the various
knowledge structures needed to perform a task or job. These
techniques can also be used to define expert systems and the
expert in Intelligent Tutoring Systems. There are three
knowledge structures: declarative, procedural and strategic:
1. Declarative knowledge tells us why things work the way they
do, or that the object or thing has a particular name or
location. It includes information about the concepts and
elements in the domain and the relationships between them.
The type of knowledge found at this level include facts,
principles, rules of science and concepts. Knowing the rules
of good database design is one example. Another is
knows the names, location, and prices of all the SKUs in
inventory. Methods for eliciting declarative knowledge:
Card Sorting - The researcher obtains sets of concepts
that broadly cover the domain (derived from glossary,
texts, or gleaned from introductory tutorial talk), then
transfers each concept onto a card. Subject matter experts
then sorts the cards into common groups or functions
according to similarity. The SMEs then creates the sorting
criteria. The groups themselves are grouped until
eventually a hierarchy is formed.
Data Flow Modeling - An expert is interviewed. The
researcher then draws data flow diagram using data
gathered from interview. Expert verifies diagram.
2. Procedural knowledge tells us how to perform a given task.
Procedural knowledge contains the discrete steps or actions
to be taken and the available alternatives to perform a given
task. With practice, procedural knowledge can become an
automatic process, thus allowing us to perform a task
without conscious awareness. This automatically also allows
us to perform more than one complex task at a given time.
A couple of examples would be creates a v-ditch using a
motored grader or types a letter at 95 words per minute.
Methods for eliciting procedural knowledge:
Interviewing - This is a variation of a basic interview.
There are several variations. Some of them are: (1)
working backwards through the problem, (2) drawing a
concept map, (3) showing an expert photographs
depicting system in a number of states and asking
questions, (4) expert describes procedure to interviewer
and then the interviewer teaches it back to the expert.
Discourse Analysis (observation) - An expert helps an user
while a researcher records the process. The transcript is
then analyzed for tasks and elements. The data is then
converted into a taxonomy.
3. Strategic knowledge is comprised of information that is the
basis of problem solving, such as action plans to meet
specific goals; knowledge of the context in which procedures
should be implemented; actions to be taken if a proposed
solution fails; and how to respond if necessary information
is absent. An example of this would be a production plant
manager who formulates a plan to meet the needs of a
greatly increased forecast. Methods for eliciting strategic
knowledge:
Critical Decision Method (Interview) first method -
Interview of expert to identify non-routine events that
challenged her expertise and events which expertise made a
significant difference. A time line of events is then
constructed and key points are further probed.
Critical Decision Method (Interview) second method - A
semi-structured interview is performed utilizing specific
probes designed to elicit a particular type of information.
The data is then examined for perceptual cues, judgment
details, and decision strategy details that are not generally
captured with traditional reporting methods.
Observing the Expert Analysis
This method uses an observer to record an expert performing a
task. The observer is a person who aspires to be an expert in a
similar job. The trainers role is to set the analysis in motion by
briefing the observer and the expert regarding the intended
outcome of the observation. This method works best when
three similar experts are observed by three different aspiring
observers. After the observations, the observers become a task
force who meet with the training analysis who functions as a
discussion facilitator.
Verification
This technique allows training program products to be deter-
mined based on work at other facilities on the same or similar
tasks. This process can save significant effort and cost. Commu-
nication with, or benchmarking visits to the facilities will enable
each facility to take advantage of existing experience and
materials. Use of this technique requires the help of SMEs and
a trained facilitator. These experts use various lists and docu-
ments to decide which tasks apply and to identify the tasks that
require modification to reflect job requirements. The verification
technique consists of the following steps:
Gathering relevant existing training materials and task
information from local and external sources.
Comparing this information to the facility-specific needs.
Modifying the information as needed.
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Verifying the accuracy of the information by Subject Matter
Experts.
Functional Analysis
When a position that performs a large number of tasks (e.g.,
management or engineering) is being analyzed, a technique
called functional analysis can be used. Rather than conducting a
job analysis to identify specific tasks, major functions within the
position are identified. After the competencies necessary to
perform the major functions are identified, those competencies
can be analyzed to determine objectives for training. For
example, a manager might make many plans such as production
planning, personal requirements, facility and equipment
requirements, forecasting materials, and formulating budgets.
The training objectives needed to perform these actions might
read as: Create a Gantt Chart, Build a Capacity Requirement
Plan, or Use the Basic Exponential Smoothing Model for
forecasting.
Templating
Training content can be determined by the careful review and
analysis of a template (a list of system facilities, procedures,
theory topics, or generic learning objectives). The template
technique uses a simplified process for determining content or
developing learning objectives associated with the operation or
maintenance of a specific system. This technique produces
generic and system-specific learning objectives for the training
and evaluation of personnel. Some organizations have
approached the design of training based on the systems an
individual operates or maintains. A template containing generic
learning objectives is reviewed by subject matter experts for
applicability. This approach directly generates system-specific
terminal and enabling learning objectives. It is important that
the template be carefully reviewed to determine the applicability
of each item to the system. If this review is not accomplished,
the result can readily become know everything about every-
thing. The template technique includes the following steps:
Develop or modify an existing template to meet facility
needs.
Use of a trainer and a subject matter experts to select
applicable objectives and/or complete portions of the
template for a given system, component, or process.
Document Analysis
This technique is especially valuable when accurate procedures
and other job related documents are available. Document
analysis is a simplified technique for determining required
knowledge and skills directly from operating procedures,
administrative procedures, and other job related documents. A
SME and a trainer review each section and step of the procedure
or document to determine training program content. Docu-
ment analysis consists of the following steps:
Review the procedure or document and list the knowledge
and skills required by a worker.
Verify the accuracy of the results.
Now try to think, discuss with friends, observe and write about
your conclusion on following:
1. List down various incidences leading to identification of
training needs in any organization.
2. What is the link between training need identification and
organization objectives.
Activity and Assignment
1. Carry out Training need Identification for any Company.
2. Prepare Job Description and Job Specification for training
manager and explain how it will help in training need
analysis.
3. What is the role of need analysis in training? Do you think
that all training programmes are based on such analysis.
4. How do you identify the training needs of an enterprise?
Cases
Cases 1. Credit Appraisal To Computer Applications
Mr. Naveen has been working as a Manager (Credit Appraisal)
in State Bank of India since 1970. He got first rank in his M.A.
front Andhra Universities in 1969. He rose from Officer - Grade
IV to Officer Grade I in a short span of 10 years. Personnel
records of the bank show that he is an efficient manager in
Agricultural Credit, Industrial Credit and Credit to small
business etc. The bank is planning to computerise the project
appraisal department. In this connection Mr. Naveen was asked
to take training in computer operations. But he was quite
reluctant to undergo training.
Question
1. Why was Mr. Naveen reluctant to undergo training?
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Also Observe Some of the Formats
Realting to Needs Assessment Here
Instructional Skills Inventory
Name:____________________ Date:___________
This inventory lists 34 skills which successful instructors use
when conducting a training session in a classroom. It will help
you identify your strengths and potential areas for develop-
ment.
The skills are organized in the following categories:
Demonstrating Preparation
Establishing a Learning Climate
Making Presentations
Leading Discussions and Question/Answer Sessions
Conducting Learning Exercises
To complete the inventory, read each skill. Assess your level of
competence/confidence for each skill by assigning a rating in the
column indicated.
Use the rating scale below:
1 = You consider this skill to be a development need
2 = You consider this skill to be adequate, but not a clear
strength
3 = You consider this skill to be a real strength
After youve completed the survey:
Identify your 3 strongest skills
Identify the 3-5 skills that you would most like to develop
Instructional Skills Inventory
Skill Rating
Demonstrating Preparation
1. Explain the learning objectives, program agenda, and role
expectations up front.
2. Demonstrates knowledge of the subject matter.
3. Is well organized and advances the various learning activities
smoothly.
4. Manages time effectively, controls distractions, and maintains
an appropriate learning pace.
5. Uses transitions to provide flow and a sense of continuity
among the various learning activities.
6. Obtains closure at appropriate points with summary
statements.
Establishing a Learning Climate
7. Is comfortable working with the group.
8. Helps participants see the relevance of the program to their
jobs.
9. Uses vocabulary which is not offensive, condescending, or
patronizing.
10. Is supportive and helpful to participants.
11. Listens and responds to participants reactions.
12. Displays energy and enthusiasm.
Skill Rating
Making Presentations
13. Develops points clearly and to the point.
14. Uses body movement and eye contact to enhance delivery.
15. Uses adequate voice modulation and maintains an
appropriate pace.
16. Uses concrete, simple language; avoids jargon or imprecise
language.
17. Uses meaningful examples, analogies, and illustrations to
clarify points.
18. Uses flip charts or other visual aids to present key points.
Leading Discussions and Question/Answer Sessions
19. Uses appropriate questions to direct and stimulate
responses.
20. Asks follow-up and probing questions to shape and
extend responses.
21. Avoids using closed-ended questions when trying to open
up discussion.
22. Reinforces participants for contributing, thereby increasing
participation.
23. Uses flipcharts or other visual aids to capture participants
comments.
24. Repeats questions from participants before addressing
answers.
25. Draws on participants experience for examples to illustrate
points.
26. Calls on participants to evaluate appropriateness of a given
response.
27. Avoids biasing participants by overusing an experience or
opinions.
Skill Rating
Conducting Learning Exercises
28. Gives complete, concise, and clear instructions.
29. Explains the purpose of the exercise as well as the
mechanics.
30. Monitors learning exercises unobtrusively and offers help
when needed.
31. Facilitates the exchange of experiences, so participants can
learn from one another during the debriefs of learning
exercises.
32. Asks appropriate initiating and clarifying questions to
prompt and extend participants learning during the
debrief session.
33. Builds upon and extends participants ideas and analysis.
34. Uses appropriate paraphrases and summaries to highlight
learning points.
**************************************************************************
94
List Your 3 Major Strengths Below:
1.
2.
3.
List 3 Areas That You Would Like to Improve
1.
2.
3.
Notes -
95
Friends,
In earlier few lessons you have understood the training and
development process in detail. You were also exposed in detail
about the training need assessments.
We know now that major need of training is for perfor-
mance and is identified with performance gap.
After reading this lesson you will be able to
1. Know what is performance evaluation
2. How performance evaluation helps in identification of
training needs
3. What types of training needs can be classified with triaining
needs can be identified with performance evaluation.
4. How to conduct performance coahing
Performance Coaching
If you dont do it first, your competitors will...
Introduction
Achieving excellence through performance is accomplished in
two major ways. The first way is taking a proactive stance by
unearthing or preventing counter-productive methods. For
example, you might implement diversity and sexual harassment
training programs before they become a problem within the
organization.
The second way is to correct performance problems that arise
within the organization. This is accomplished by first, identify-
ing the root cause and secondly, implementing a plan of action
to correct the problem. Although people are our are most
important asset, sometimes it seems as if they are our biggest
headache.
There are four major causes of performance problems:
Knowledge or Skills - The employee does not know how to
perform the process correctly - lack of skills, knowledge, or
abilities.
Process - The problem is not employee related, but is caused
by working conditions, bad processes, etc, etc.
Resources - Lack of resources or technology.
Motivation or Culture - The employee knows how to
perform, but does so incorrectly.
The Performance Analysis Quadrant (PAQ) is a tool to help in
the identification. By asking two questions, Does the employee
have adequate job knowledge? and does the employee have
the proper attitude (desire) to perform the job? and assigning
a numerical rating between 1 and 10 for each answer, will place
the employee in 1 of 4 the performance quadrants:
Does the employee have the proper
attitude (desire) to perform the job?
1. Quadrant A (Motivation): If the employee has sufficient job
knowledge but has an improper attitude, this may be classed
as motivational problem. The consequences (rewards) of the
persons behavior will have to be adjusted. This is not always
badthe employee just might not realize the consequence
of his or her actions.
2. Quadrant B (Resource/Process/Environment): If the
employee has both job knowledge and a favorable attitude,
but performance is unsatisfactory, then the problem may be
out of control of the employee. i.e. lack of resources or time,
task needs process improvement, the work station is not
ergonomically designed, etc.
3. Quadrant C (Selection): If the employee lacks both job
knowledge and a favorable attitude, that person may be
improperly placed in the position. This may imply a problem
with employee selection or promotion, and suggest that a
transfer or discharge be considered.
4. Quadrant D (Training): If the employee desires to perform,
but lacks the requisite job knowledge or skills, then
additional training may be the answer.
Also note that the fix does not have to be the same as the cause.
For example, you can often fix a process problem with training
or maybe fix a motivation problem with altitude or (affective
domain) training .
Show, Tell, Do, and Check
Lacks the Skills, Knowledge, or Abilities
to Perform
This problem generally arises when then is a new hire, new or
revised process, change in standards, new equipment, new
policies, promotion or transfer, or a new product. In this case,
there is only one solution...training. The training may be formal
classes, on-the-job, self-study, coaching, etc. To determine if
training is needed, we only need to ask one question, Does the
employee know how to perform the task? If the answer is yes,
then training is not needed. If the answer is no, then training is
required. This is where good coaching skills come in.
LESSON 12
TRAINING FOR PERFORMANCE
96
Coaching Skills
Many people tend to use the terms coaching, mentoring, and
training interchangeably. However, there are differences.
Mentoring is often thought of as the transfer of wisdom from
a wise and trusted teacher. He or she helps to guide a persons
career, normally in the upper reaches of the organization.
However, this perception is starting to change as organizations
are now implementing mentoring at all levels of a company
structure.
Note: Mentor comes from the age of Homer, in whose
Odyssey, Mentor is the trusted friend of Odysseus left in charge
of the household during Odysseuss absence. Athena, dis-
guised as Mentor, guides Odysseuss son Telemachus in his
search for his father. Fnelon in his romance Tlmaque (1699)
emphasized Mentor as a character, and so it was that in French
(1749) and English (1750) mentor, going back through Latin to
a Greek name, became a common noun meaning wise
counselor. Mentor is an appropriate name for such a person
because it probably meant adviser in Greek.
Training is about teaching a particular skill or knowledge.
Coaching, on the other hand, is about increasing an
individuals knowledge and thought processes with a particular
task or process. It creates a supportive environment that
develops critical thinking skills, ideas, and behaviors about a
subject. Although it is closely tied to training, it is more
personal and intimate in nature.
Also, the main difference between a coach and a trainer, is that
coaching is done in real time. That is, it is performed on the job.
The coach uses real tasks and problems to help the learner
increase his or her performance. While in training, examples are
used within the classroom (the task or problems may be based
upon real ones however).
Mentoring is more career developing in nature, while training
and coaching are more task or process orientated. Also,
mentoring relies on the mentors specific knowledge and
wisdom, while coaching and training relies on facilitation and
developmental skills. Although there are these differences, you
could say that the three are synergistic and complementary,
rather than mutually exclusive as most people would agree that
a good coach trains and mentors, a good trainer coaches and
mentors, and a good mentor trains and coaches.
A performance coach is also a:
Leader - who sets the example and becomes a role model.
Facilitator - is able to instruct a wide verity of material.
Team Builder - pulls people into a unified team.
Peace Keeper - acts as a mediator.
Pot Stirrer - brings controversy out in the open.
Devils Advocate - raises issues for better understanding.
Cheerleader - praises people for doing great.
Counselor - provides intimate feedback.
In order to coach, it help to use a few facilitating
techniques:
Draws people out:
What do others think? or What do you think?
Ive heard from (name) so far...are there any other
thoughts?
And what else?
Silence (20-30 seconds) - gives the learners a chance to think.
Also, groups tend to abhor silence, if you wait long enough
someone will usually speak up.
(Name), you look like you have something to say...
Interprets comments:
Words verses tune or tone (many questions are not really
questions but a need for self-assurance).
Intent verses wording (learners often have a hard time
wording new subject matters).
Sees beyond the learners paradigms and filters.
Clarifies thoughts or comments
Use models and experiences to bring life to the subject.
Looks for multiple points to expound on the