Training for trainers: five skills of blended teachers
We have already talked about the new normal of training and the role of the teacher facilitator within this new instructional context: in this article we will address the issue of training for trainers, listing the five main skills required of the blended teacher.
TEACHERS IN THE NEW NORMAL OF TRAINING
When we talk about training today, we cannot fail to mention all the changes – even substantial ones – that have impacted this world in recent months. The spread of smartworking has changed our way of working, with consequent repercussions also on corporate and professional training, less and less in presence. It is therefore essential to build educational paths whose value can be measured in some way, in order to guarantee, even at a distance, high levels of effectiveness and an advantageous use of resources – both temporal and economic – in the short and especially in the long term.
From this point of view, the role of trainers changes radically: they become a reference figure with skills that go way beyond the single lesson, supporting companies in the design of e-learning and blended training programs and at the same time providing data on results reached by learners.
TRAINING FOR TRAINERS: WHICH SKILLS?
If the role of teacherS has thus changed, therefore, their work does not seem to be able to prescind from the acquisition of new skills: training for trainers then becomes a key-factor of this new normal, from both a technological and an instructional point of view.
So what are the skills required of a teacher today? Let’s try to see the five main ones below.
1. INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN
As we have said many times, digital training – both e-learning and blended – requires from trainers instructional design skills, thanks to which it is possible to organize the various training moments in advance and manage any changes in progress. It becomes essential, in fact, to make the educational project clear and shared, both to the company and to students who will have to undertake it, in order to allow everyone to know the objectives and be able to evaluate their achievement in the end.
2. EVALUATION OF RESULTS
In relation to what we have just said, for trainers who work in e-learning and blended it is essential to use tools to control the training path, to monitor performance and progress. In this, a great help comes from the use of tools such as LMS platforms and traceable training contents, thanks to which it becomes possible to collect objective data that can then be shared with anyone who needs to have an overview of the process.
3. KNOWLEDGE OF DIGITAL TOOLS
Obviously, the mastery of these technological tools is not taken for granted, but it is often one of the first skills to be acquired for a teacher who has always worked in presence. In fact, e-learning and blended training often requires trainers to use a great variety of solutions to build an educational program, depending on the type of materials that it includes, and therefore very heterogeneous skills. Clearly, teachers are not required to know them and be able to master them all, but they can always turn to collaborators or external suppliers to support them in more complex activities. On the contrary, two key tools that no teacher seems to be able to do without are LMS platforms and webinar systems.
4. TRANSPOSITION OF TEACHING STRATEGIES
Furthermore, because of the new tools involved, among the skills required of new trainers there is undoubtedly the ability to transfer educational strategies traditionally used in the classroom to digital and blended courses. This implies, without any doubts, once again knowing the potential of the tools and types of training content available, both synchronous and asynchronous, and knowing how to use them as needed to achieve the set objectives.
5. ABILITY TO DELEGATE AND COOPERATE
Last but not least, teachers involved in digital educational programs must be able to delegate part of their work and collaborate successfully with external companies or specialists. This is because, as we have stressed several times, e-learning and blended training requires a set of technological, didactic and organizational skills that trainers can hardly master all by themselves, risking losing focus on their role: this is why it is important to build a network of successful contacts and collaborations that allow them to carry out their work effectively, without taking on unnecessary tasks.
Do you want to find out how to acquire the skills required of the new blended training teacher? Fill out the form and request a demo of our training course for trainers, to be carried out whenever and however you want, even from your smartphone!
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