Teaching Tips for Instructors
Positive Praise for Performance
When reinforcing a participant's performance or ideas use positive feedback. Positive feedback is the skill of telling participants what they are doing correctly or well.
When reinforcing a participant's performance or ideas use positive feedback. Positive feedback is the skill of telling participants what they are doing correctly or well.
There are many ways to give positive feedback. It can be general, as in:
- "Great!"
- "That's an excellent suggestion."
- "I'm sure that would work."
Positive feedback can also be specific. When you're trying to reinforce skill use or a specific performance, it's helpful to participants when the feedback contains a specific reference to what was said or done well. For example:
- "You demonstrated a clear example of non-evaluative feedback. You told me you appreciated my comment without saying it was right or wrong."
- "Your team developed a solid list of questions to ask customers. Each question will encourage customers to talk about their needs."
- "It's great when you return from breaks on time. It keeps us on schedule."
Keep in mind, positive feedback is always evaluative. You're telling participants that they have met a standard or expectation.
Positive feedback may be directed at individuals or the total group. By using positive feedback skillfully, you foster a comfortable learning climate, reward accomplishment, and motivate individual effort.
Helpful Tips
Trainers may expect to "lose" some students at some point during the training session due to distractions. Learners can process speech at the rate of 400-600 words per minute, while trainers typically lecture at 125 words per minute. With that, people can "tune out" so be prepared to apply some of the following techniques.
Trainers may expect to "lose" some students at some point during the training session due to distractions. Learners can process speech at the rate of 400-600 words per minute, while trainers typically lecture at 125 words per minute. With that, people can "tune out" so be prepared to apply some of the following techniques.
- Elaborate and give examples related to what participants are seeing on transparencies, PowerPoint screens, and slides rather than just reading them aloud
- Illustrate with interesting analogies and stories to peak interest
- Create games, contests, and word puzzles to reinforce terms and concepts
- Infuse the session with your own energy. Pick up the pace and periodically use "grabbers" to spark interest in the learning activity
- Give out prizes for participation
How much time is required to prepare to teach a course?
The IIA does not have a mandatory time requirement for preparing to instruct a course. Preparation time will vary from one instructor to another as well as the length of the course (i.e. 1 to 4 days). Good preparation practices should include the following:
The IIA does not have a mandatory time requirement for preparing to instruct a course. Preparation time will vary from one instructor to another as well as the length of the course (i.e. 1 to 4 days). Good preparation practices should include the following:
1. Read the entire leader's kit at least twice.
2. Each class exercise must be worked at least twice to be sure that you have the experience, so that you can explain how the exercise must be worked and have the knowledge to answer questions when the students try to perform the exercise.
3. Any reading materials, exhibits, or other reference documents should be read, so you can make recommendations to the students and answer questions.
4. You should practice teaching the course so that you have an idea as to the amount of time required to present certain parts of the unit, practice the exercises, and de-brief the exercises. All of this will help in planning the teaching schedule for you and the co-instructor.
"Do you have any questions?" "No."
Participants often "freeze" when asked "Do you have any questions?" They tend to shake their heads "no" or become quiet and avoid eye contact. A simple solution would be to rephrase the question as an open-ended question. Instead ask, "What questions do you have?"
Participants often "freeze" when asked "Do you have any questions?" They tend to shake their heads "no" or become quiet and avoid eye contact. A simple solution would be to rephrase the question as an open-ended question. Instead ask, "What questions do you have?"
Alternative:
- Give out prizes for participation
- Give each participant an index card
- Ask them to write down a question that someone unfamiliar with the topic might have
- Collect all cards and randomly draw index cards
- The facilitator may answer the question or ask for volunteers to "draw" a card and answer each question