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Features

Published May 2008

Engagement and the Evolution of Classroom-Based Training

  

  Jim Haudan

Classroom-based learning has changed a great deal in the past few years due to innovations in technologies and methodologies. But the biggest revolution of all has been in the expectations of learners and instructors.

In its strictest sense, classroom training follows the “mug and jug” theory. Picture a traditional classroom with rows of students and an “expert” at the front of the room who holds all the knowledge. If a student sits there holding an empty mug long enough, the expert with the jug will eventually fill it for him. That’s pretty much how “training” has been accomplished in businesses during the past few decades.

It’s true that we’ve moved away from this kind of teaching for the most part. Today, we’re seeing classroom-based training expanded and modified to include role-playing, scenarios, action learning, discovery learning, best-practice sharing and simulations. However, the real evolution of training is not about how you arrange the chairs or whether you use PowerPoints or flipcharts.

What’s evolving and changing is expectations: of the learner, the teacher and, most important, the experience itself.

Our learners’ expectations of how to get information have skyrocketed. They are immersed in stimuli competing for their attention and interest: the immense access to information on the Internet, the challenging interactivity of video gaming, rapid social sharing and exchange on networks such as MySpace and Facebook, and the increasing globalization of our lives through travel, either physical or virtual.

We have greater expectations of the learning itself. In a world of “edutainment,” the learning experience must blend analysis and critical thinking, entertainment, immediate feedback, practical application and especially personal relevance. Merely sitting in a chair and having someone else tell you what to think just won’t cut it anymore.

The techniques of our teachers, trainers, coaches — whatever name we give them — have never been more subject to examination under the microscope. They’re expected not just to transfer knowledge and information, but to orchestrate people’s ability to think and, even more daunting, act differently so they can capture new opportunities and deliver results. With all due respect, this is not your father’s classroom.

Relevance Changes Everything
In training, and just about every aspect of dealing with people, relevance makes the difference. Without a connection, even the best training, no matter where it’s conducted, won’t make sense or stick. Consider a profession where relevance has instant results: stand-up comedy. When audience members believe a comedian and his material are relevant to them, they’re immediately engaged. They laugh, they’re animated and their energy engulfs the room. Compare this to the unlucky guy who bombs, gets heckled and is booed off stage. What he’s doing and saying is just not funny because he demonstrates no association with those in the audience. They simply don’t connect.