Background Materials: Media Wise notes for trainersINTRODUCTION
These are generic guidelines that MediaWise supplies to its trainers. Not everything may apply to your situation, but there is certain to be something that you will find useful.
The key issues for all trainers are · Knowing what they want to achieve · Engaging students and keeping them interested · Finding simple ways of getting messages across · Having the right resources available at the right time
If you are trying to implant knowledge K now your subject and what you want to achieve N ote down key points and provide them as handouts O rder your material so it makes sense to you and the students W ait until students have asked questions before moving on
I nclude everyone – don’t let the timid be dominated T ell stories from your own experience to make your points
REMEMBER Effective training requires 3PE · PREPARATION · PRECISION · PRESENTATION · EVALUATION The Training Venue
If possible, visit the training venue in advance, or get someone to check it out, and make a checklist of things you will need. Look for problems and see how they can be resolved.
· How many people can it hold comfortably?
· If it is in a workplace, what distractions might there be and how can they be overcome?
· If it is not, is it convenient for the participants. (It is difficult to get working journalists to stay away from the workplace for longer than one day, but if they can be isolated from their normal working surroundings, over a weekend for example, it is easier for them to relax and concentrate on the course content)
· Is it accessible to participants with a physical disability?
· Can an informal layout be created?
· Is there enough room to split into smaller groups?
· Are there enough tables and chairs?
· Are there toilet facilities?
· What equipment is available?
· What additional equipment will need to be provided?
· Are there any ‘barriers to learning’? (Consider temperature, noise, lighting, acoustics, and how can they be overcome.)
· Can refreshments be provided?
· If there is a language issue, what facilities can be arranged for translation? (Simultaneous translation from a booth can seriously hamper interactivity; working with a translator in the body of the room may be time-consuming, but makes it easier to build relationships, respond quickly to questions, and clear up misunderstandings quickly. Ideally a course lasting more than one day should have two translators, since interactive workshops can be exhausting.) Equipment
Decide well in advance what resources you may need. How many of the following can be made available?
· Registration desk · Copies of participants list, with contact details · Outline/detailed programme agenda (with timings) · Training pack (loose-leaf files are ideal, as participants can add their own materials) · Handouts · Hole punch · Overhead projector · Laptop computer · PowerPoint ‘beamer’ / overhead projector slides (OHPs) · Blackboard/whiteboard and / or flipchart · ‘Bluetack’ or masking tape for fixing things to walls · Marker pens · TV and DVD or video player · DVD/video tapes · Internet connection · Newspaper cuttings · Simultaneous translation booth (if appropriate)
Each participant will need: -
· Full workshop/seminar programme (ideally send them an outline in advance) · Chair and table space · List of participants with contact details (to facilitate future networking) · Paper · Pens/pencils · Handouts · Certificates of attendance (Not essential, but some may need or want evidence they attended)
Handouts
· Handouts should be clear, simple, concise and easy to keep in a file.
· Ideally use a ‘sans serif’ typeface and a minimum 12point font size.
· They may include o printed exercise sheets, o copies of PowerPoint or overhead slides, o copies of newspaper cuttings or a o summaries of key points o materials for use in role-plays.
Audiovisual aids Allow time to check that all equipment is functioning properly before training session start. If a technician is not going to be available, get written instructions about how to use (and ‘troubleshoot’) equipment with which you are unfamiliar
· PowerPoint / overhead slides o Keep these clear, simple and concise o Use a sans serif font style and appropriate size – 24 point minimum o Avoid complex designs and too much colour; they can be difficult to read, especially when reproduced as black and white handouts o Keep distracting animation and sounds to a minimum.
· DVD/video / audio clips o Keep them short and significant o Label them clearly and o Cue them in advance
· Internet examples o Projecting ‘live’ from the World Wide Web can be problematic o Copy pages onto slides, or bookmark pages in advance risky o Always supply participants with website references
· Newspaper cuttings o Enlarge for display purposes o Reduce for handouts o Supply participants with publication, date and page details where possible
CoURSE Delivery Place the emphasis on ‘active learning’. Journalists are usually inquisitive people who enjoy challenges, so make sure all the participants get involved in a variety of learning activities. Encourage questions and comments at any time. Individual participants will have different learning styles and approaches. Some may be more used to lectures than ‘role play’ and discussion; some may respond better that other to the use of audiovisual aids; others may prefer lively debate and game playing. To maintain interest and attention levels, alternate styles and pace of delivery in each successive session. Judicious use of humour and personal anecdotes (especially from your own journalistic experience) can aid explanation and discussion of complex issues and, most importantly, establishes that you are a colleague as much as a trainer. Remain alert to participants’ needs: - · Check that they can see and hear properly · Check the pace and level of delivery is suitable · Keep to time limits · Clearly ‘signpost’ each stage of a module · Allow opportunities for clarification · Encourage relevant questions and comments · Acknowledge useful questions and comments · Make sure everyone gets a chance to contribute · Discourage individuals from dominating the discussion · Avoid going into too much detail unless it is asked for · During small group activities move round the room to offer support · Summarise main points at the end of each session, unless participants have demonstrated that its messages have been understood · Use break times to deal with individual concerns Evaluation Feedback from participants helps trainers to develop their skills, improve course structure, content and materials, and reflect upon the effectiveness of the training.
Evaluation of the effectiveness of training is usually left until the end of a course. Ideally it should also include follow-up assessments, once participants have had a chance to apply the training in their working environment.
However trainers should be alert to, and encourage, ‘live’ feedback during each session. Listen to what sort of questions that are being asked. Do they suggest that your messages are not being communicated? Are they ‘merely’ disruptive? Do they suggest boredom? If the answer to any of these is ‘Yes’ or ‘Maybe’, try to adjust your delivery to address the problems they indicate.
· At the end of each session a quick-fire round of questions, asking a few people at random to say one word or ‘message’ that they are taking from the session, will help them to focus and you to discover whether your key messages have been successfully communicated.
· At the end of each day allow 15 minutes for a round-up of people’s views. Insist that everyone says something. Ask them ‘What was the key message of the day for you?’ OR ‘What one new thing did you learned today?’ OR ‘What was the best / worst thing about today?’ OR ‘What would you like more / less of tomorrow?’
· Listen carefully to what they have to say, and try to make sure that there is evidence the next day that you have taken notice of their (less flippant) comment sand suggestions. If they enjoy a particular technique, give them more of it. Enjoyment is an important part of learning. If the coffee was cold or the food late, have a word with the caterers – or adjust your timing.
· At the end of the course distribute a short Evaluation Form and ask participants to complete them before they leave. They will feel less inhibited if the answers remain anonymous, but try to make even this session interactive. Ask the quieter participants to sum up the main message they will take away from the module. Ask a few of the more extrovert to announce the most significant messages they want the trainers to hear. This can be quite a fun way to end. Self evaluation There is always room for improvement, and critical reflection will enable you to introduce changes with which you are happy. Compile a short Trainer’s Self-evaluation Form, which should be completed BEFORE you read the comments of the participants. This will help you reflect upon whether you achieved your own aims and met the objectives you had for the participants. Were there any particular factors or problems that you had to address? What might you do differently next time? How could each session be improved?
· If two trainers have been working together throughout the day, they can observe each other and exchange honest but constructive feedback.
· Compare your analysis with that of the participants, and consider the implications of any contradictions between your assessment and theirs.
· Make suitable adjustments to course structure and content where you think criticism has been valid, and especially where your own views coincide with those of the participants.
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