1. j. farrington consulting Instructor Training/Skills Dr. Jeanne Farrington, CPT ICT Immersive Training Workshop January 27, 2010

2. j. farrington consulting Competing Pressures Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting Faster Better Mission

3. j. farrington consulting Assuming good & relevant design… Mission Critical Tasks Instruction Instructional Design

4. j. farrington consulting What difference can instructors make? Making Classes BetterMaking Classes Worse Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

5. j. farrington consulting Topics for Today Training instructorsthe basics Tailoring instructional lessons Adapting lessons based on content types Adapting for virtual classes & social media Training instructors for specific courses Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting Enable better contributions to mission sooner

6. j. farrington consulting Training Instructorsthe Basics Training instructorsthe basics Tailoring instructional lessons Adapting lessons based on content types Adapting for virtual classes & social media Training instructors for specific courses

7. j. farrington consulting Elements of Instructor Readiness Preexisting Trainer Attributes General Instructor Training Trainer Selection & Availability Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting Instructor Skills Motivation Aptitude & Experience Instructor Feedback & Evaluation Curriculum/Course Design and TSPs Specific Instructor Training Subject-Matter Expertise

8. j. farrington consulting Three Instructor Levels I. Presentation Skills Get content across (while keeping people awake) Demonstrate effectively Answer questions Avoid quaking in boots II. Facilitation Skills Use presentation skills Encourage dialogue Set up and manage activities & practice sessions III. Training Skills Use presentation & facilitation skills Adapt the events of instruction to each lesson Use different strategies for different learning outcomes (content types) Ensure that the students master the objectives Assist the students to transfer what theyve learned Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

9. j. farrington consulting Quick Review #1 I give a lecture & you stay awake What level of instruction is that? I break a class into groups and get them to do an activity What level of instruction is that? I make sure that the students can master the objectives What level of instruction is that? Copyright 2009 J. Farrington Consulting

10. j. farrington consulting Tailoring Instructional Lessons Training instructorsthe basics Tailoring instructional lessons Adapting lessons based on content types Adapting for virtual classes & social media Training instructors for specific courses

11. j. farrington consulting Training Elements (Bare Bones) Practice Feedback Objectives Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

12. j. farrington consulting Anatomy of a Lesson Getting Started Practice, Practice, Practice Closing Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

13. j. farrington consulting Anatomy of a Lesson I Getting Started Instant audience analysis Make the objectives clear Provide a strong rationale for the lesson Connect to prior knowledge Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

14. j. farrington consulting Anatomy of a Lesson II Practice, Practice, Practice Present content they need to know Have students practice what they need to do Give helpful feedback Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

15. j. farrington consulting Anatomy of a Lesson III Closing Maximize learning transfer Test student performance Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

16. j. farrington consulting Anatomy of a Lesson Getting Started Instant audience analysis Make the objectives clear Provide a strong rationale for the lesson Connect to prior knowledge Practice, Practice, Practice Present content they need to know Have students practice what they need to do Give helpful feedback Closing Maximize learning transfer Assess performance Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

17. j. farrington consulting Quick Review #2 Three most important elements of training? Whats one of the things that its important to do at the beginning of a lesson? We should provide more lectures & less practice to save time in training. True or false? Copyright 2009 J. Farrington Consulting

18. j. farrington consulting What about NextGen Learners? Characteristics? Preferences? Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting How should we respond?

19. j. farrington consulting But Im so amazingly distracted! Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

20. j. farrington consulting Two Books Worth Having Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

21. j. farrington consulting Adapting Lessons Based on Content Types Training instructorsthe basics Tailoring instructional lessons Adapting lessons based on content types Adapting for virtual classes & social media Training instructors for specific courses

22. j. farrington consulting Content Types Declarative knowledge (things you can remember, name, describe) Concepts (sorting between this and that) Procedures & psychomotor (physical) skills (step-by-step how to) Problem solving (define the problem, decide what to do, do it, see if you solved the problem) Cognitive strategies (learning to learn) Attitudes (choosing to do something)

23. j. farrington consulting Quick Review #3 Learning the term rescue is learning… A concept or how to solve a problem? Learning to give CPR is learning… A concept or a procedure? Learning to rescue civilians from hostile forces is learning… A concept or how to solve a problem? Copyright 2009 J. Farrington Consulting

24. j. farrington consulting Concepts Sets of –Objects –Ideas –Events With characteristics in common and That share a common name –Grenade, weapon –March, deployment –Friendly, enemy

25. j. farrington consulting Concept Lessons Define the concept Give examples of the concept Contrast with things that are NOT the concept (especially things that are similar) Provide practice telling the difference between examples and nonexamples –Give them some examples & nonexamples –Have the students think of some on their own Give them feedback on how they are doing

26. j. farrington consulting For Every Content Type There are different prescriptions for how to design instruction AND, there are different ways that instructors can assist students to learn better Trainers should learn… –What the content types are –How to tell what kind of content something is –How, specifically, to teach each content type –What to look for as successful learning of each content type Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

27. j. farrington consulting Quick Review #4 Why do we care about content types? A.There are different ways to design for each one B.There are different ways to teach for each one C.Both A & B D.Neither A nor b If Ive learned a concept, what can I do? A.Pick out examples of the concept B.Tell when something isnt an example of the concept C.Both A & B D.Neither A nor b Copyright 2009 J. Farrington Consulting

28. j. farrington consulting Adapting for Virtual Classes & Social Media Training instructorsthe basics Tailoring instructional lessons Adapting lessons based on content types Adapting for virtual classes & social media Training instructors for specific courses

29. j. farrington consulting Virtual Classes Challenges Benefits Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

30. j. farrington consulting Virtual Classes Instructor is at a distance from students, but electronically connected (audio, video, text, chatrooms, built-in tools) Instructor (& the design) guides the instruction (not learner control) –Sequencing –Learning strategies Clear learning goals Competent modeling Cognitive load Learner engagement Deadlines & persistence Sense of connectedness I can do this! Not too hard or too easy Positive mood Pre- & post questions Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

31. j. farrington consulting Social Media Learning where & when you need it Facilitated by Web 2.0 technologies Content is often generated by and for a given audience Facilitators add guidance and structure Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

32. j. farrington consulting Training Instructors for Specific Courses Training instructorsthe basics Tailoring instructional lessons Adapting lessons based on content types Adapting for virtual classes & social media Training instructors for specific courses

33. j. farrington consulting Training Elements (Bare Bones) Practice Feedback Objectives Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

34. j. farrington consulting Helping People Learn Provide Practice on Individual Tasks Demonstrate Provide Materials Explain Give Feedback Provide Practice on a Series or Cluster of Tasks Relate to Prior Knowledge Provide Rationale & Objectives Evaluate Performance Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

35. j. farrington consulting In an ideal world, trainers would… Learn to teach a class by… 1.Attending the class as a student first 2.Receiving a briefing about special lessons 3.Observing the class, perhaps teaching part of it 4.Teaching all or most of the class, with backup –Experienced instructor or –Subject-matter expert 5.Teaching the class on his or her own Have time to prepare between different classes Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

36. j. farrington consulting Maybe That Seems Impossible What could you do instead? Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

37. j. farrington consulting Evaluating Instructor Training At the beginning…. –Define your goals –Determine what you will accept as evidence of success Capture current state as baseline data, for example: –Current time to get up to speed –Description of what up to speed means today Success measures, for example: –Time to defined levels of presentation–facilitation–training –Performance tests –Transfer into the field Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

38. j. farrington consulting Summary Training instructorsthe basics Tailoring instructional lessons Adapting lessons based on content types Adapting for virtual classes & social media Training instructors for specific courses Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting

39. j. farrington consulting Instructors with Better Skills Improve NCOs knowledge & skills Save time and other resources (money, human resources, facilities) Improve overall performance, retention, and transfer Copyright 2010 J. Farrington Consulting