I just attended a three-day marketing seminar conducted by a self-proclaimed expert in curriculum design.
It was very disappointing to see once again what happens when a trainer ignores the basics and causes students to fail.
He made ten flagrant errors. Here are five of them:
1. Never have a one-on-one conversation with a participant in response to a question or comment that many couldn’t hear.
Instead, repeat each question and comment before answering it. This is both a courtesy and a necessity to those who might have shared the same concern or confusion and needed to hear the answer in that context.
2. Never ignore your group’s needs for understanding. In this class there were a large number of international students whose first language was definitely not English. Despite her being aware of this fact, the trainer herself spoke so fast that even native English speakers sometimes didn’t know what she was saying.
Instead, slow down and check for understanding before moving on to the next piece of content.
3. Never forget to cross-reference issues and responses with other members of the training team. In this class, which had more than 150 participants, the group was divided into teams of 20 members to work with individual trainers. The concept was great, but the problems were many: first, there was not enough time for a trainer to work with each of the members; second, different coaches gave different answers to the same question; third, presumably all the trainers reviewed the 150 worksheets but did not provide the trainer with a summary of the remaining problems.
Instead, if you are going to rely on trainers for a large group, be sure to meet with them to identify any ongoing issues or concerns that need to be discussed with the entire group.
4. Never give participants key information and then model the exact opposite of what you have said. For example, in this class the trainer pointed out that human beings have an attention span of 7 minutes. He then did nothing to check in with the participants every 7 minutes or so to ensure understanding, other than to say without pausing for responses, “Does that make sense?”
Instead, break up the instruction so that participants can do something with the information every 7-10 minutes: for example, let them ask questions, look at a picture, discuss with a neighbor, complete a worksheet, or take a verbal test.
5. Never schedule a training session from 9 am to 10 pm!! Even with short breaks and time for very late lunches and dinners), that’s exhausting. The human brain needs time to review and relax every 50 minutes or so, so don’t go on for 2 hours or more at a time. And don’t do any of these for three days in a row! Exhausted minds and bodies don’t retain much of anything. Training then becomes an endurance test.
Instead, recognize that people need frequent breaks to improve the quality of learning and the likelihood of retention. Instructional hours should not be more than 6 hours in a day, and this is particularly true if a class lasts more than one day.
Don’t copy their mistakes!