CONDUCT AND FACILITATE ICT TRAINING
Level three student
Prepared by Nuri.M
Learning out comes
LO1:-Conduct and Facilitate ICT
Training
LO2:-Training Techniques
What is training?
Training is any learning activity which is directed towards the
gaining of specific knowledge and skill for the purpose of
empowering an occupation or task. The focus of training is the job
or task.
Training is a continuous process that should concern a person
throughout his or her career in the public service or business world
so as to make the organization more efficient and effective.
Any training and development effort can have the following goals:-
Improve individual’s level of self awareness
Increase individual’s skill in one or more areas of expertise
Increase individual’s motivation to perform his or her job well
Steps in training preparation or development
One who is responsible for the development of certain training has
to follow a number of important and interdependent steps in order
to organize a successful training program. Each step must be
approached with the needs of people in mind for whom we are
going to develop training.
Steps in training development are:-
2.1. Training need assessment
2.2. Setting Objectives
2.3. Design the program
2.4. Implement the program
2.5. Evaluate the program
Training Need Assessment
Objectives
This Needs Assessment training modules will cover the
following objectives:
Discuss what a needs assessment is and when and why to
conduct
Identify the steps in planning a needs assessment
Demonstrate how to differentiate an audience
Select an appropriate method for data collection
Understand how to use questions appropriately
Identify considerations for analyzing and managing data
List the benefits of conducting a needs assessment
Needs Assessment Training
Introduction
Needs assessments are critical to developing relevant and effective
education and training programs. These programs can be for use by
your organization, or for external customers. By assessing target
audience needs, you can determine a focus and direction for
investments made in training, and extend the reach and impact of
environmental programming.
What is a Needs Assessment?
A needs assessment is a systematic investigation of an audience(s)
to identify aspects of individual knowledge, skill gap, interest,
attitude and/or abilities relevant to a particular issue (e.g. ICT),
organizational goal, or objective.
Most of the time training programs fail because they
are not exactly designed to meet concrete needs.
A training need fills a gap between what is required of a
person to perform their duties competently and what
they actually know.
What are the indicators of training needs?
It is advisable to look for possible training needs in the
following conditions of work.
Complaints from staff using of IT
Seek for transfer from one job to another
Repeated work accident
Poor quality of applying ICT
Complaints from customers/clients
New technologies, equipment, or systems
New policies or procedures
All these are possible indicators for the need of training.
Yet further investigation, study, survey and analysis is
necessary to prove that they are real training needs.
Plan ICT Training System
Training procedure and aim are researched and developed
according to organizational needs and policies
Training aim – Training objectives should be drafted based upon the
findings of a need assessments analysis. The objective has to be
realistic taking into account audience needs and capabilities.
Needs Assessments - Needs assessments or needs
evaluation are critical to developing relevant and effective
education and training programs. By evaluating target
audience needs, you can determine a focus and direction
for investments made in training, and extend the reach
and impact of environmental programming
ICT training need is identified
A training need fills a gap between what is required by people to
perform their duties competently and what they actually know.
What are the indicators of training needs?
It is advisable to look for possible training needs in the
following conditions of work
IT training plan is developed
We will identify staff/employees who will take the
training. During the needs assessment we will study the
employees needs and capabilities to find what are their
needs and the best way to accomplish them.
Staff and management have to be trained in change management
procedures and policies for:
Better service delivery – Usually organizations use training to
improve the service provided to clients by IT departments.
Better information management – Our organization will often
introduce changes to information systems to have a more efficient
use of it. The ease of access to information for the managers is
critical.
Improvement to technology capabilities – Those improvements will
enable employees to use technology more efficiently, but whenever
we introduce a change to the system, it will be necessary to perform
a training to teach users how to use the new capabilities of the
system.
Better staff development – A benefit of training is to develop
employees capabilities and their level of self awareness
Better administration
Implement training change
Training schedule:
Determine time
Determine place
Determine resources
Determine number of participants
Plan to implement the training
Plan procedure to implement the training (Type of training,
material...)
Plan how to manage the training
Implement training according to the plan
Monitor and review implementation
Measure training against new benchmarks – When the training has
been performed, the training organizer needs to measure the
performance of the training versus/against the new benchmark
needed by the company.
Submit performance results to higher officials
Documentation of the training
Check the changes that came after the training was delivered – We
must document those changes introduced to the system after the
training was performed. After some time, there will be enough
modifications to the system to organize a new training based on
those changes.
Preparing a training session –
The length of a training session can go from some minutes to an
entire day. The duration is not as important as the requirement
that each session covers its topic entirely.
There are four key elements to prepare a training session:
a)Audience
b)Objectives
c)Resources
d)Subject
The audience are the learners and it is mandatory to know their
abilities, level of knowledge, language skills and related aspects.
We will not design the same kind of training if it is intended for
people with a technological background, or if it is intended for
other people that do not have it. The language level is important
too.
Objectives should be based on the need assessment or training
needs analysis. The objective must be set realistically, thinking of
what the organization needs from employees and the gap between
this and the real ICT level of the employees.
Resources include from the training room to equipment,
hardware, communications, transport, expendables and others.
Time is a resource too that we must carefully consider.
Sequencing – Setting the order of a session can often be a problem.
If the topics seem related, we can follow the logical order. If no
logical order is available, a good strategy is to go from the simple to
the complicated, allowing learners to build future knowledge on
information already known and understood. If we start from
something too difficult, some learners can disconnect from the
session easily.
Needs to know – Choosing which topics to include in the session
can be a challenge for trainers. It is common that some trainers try
to include more than time allows and so they are forced to
eliminate some useful, interesting points. To avoid this, it is a good
idea to sort the topics into three different categories: “must know”,
“should know” and “nice to know”. To classify the topics we have to
refer to the analysis performed in the needs assessment evaluation.
Must know topics are those absolutely essential for the subject to
be fully understood. These learning points are the key topics of the
knowledge we want to transmit. Another way to say this is that
they are the topics we must definitely know to perform our job.
Should know points are information that help learners to
understand the and improve their competency, but are not vital to
carry out their jobs at a minimum level of performance.
Nice to know topics are points in which the training
planner should not spend or waste any valuable time.
As an example, let’s imagine we are troubleshooting a piece
of electronic equipment. Under “Must know”, we place
topics like “being able to read a circuit schematic” or “be
able to use common test equipment”. Under “Should know”
we will put topics like “Other makes and models of
equipment that have identical specifications and testing
procedures”. “Nice to know” points can be “manufacturing
procedures for the equipment being tested” or “latest
research and development on equipment like this”.
In planning, we must always concentrate on the “must
knows” and eliminate the “nice to knows”. The “should
know” need to be included only as time and other resources
permit.
LO2:-The Most Effective Training
Techniques
There are many methods and materials available to help you
prepare and equip employees to better do their jobs.
What are your training goals for this session?
New skills
New techniques for old skills
Better workplace behavior
A safer workplace
A fair and equal workplace free of discrimination and harassment
Who is being trained?
New employees
Seasoned employees
Upper management
Classroom or Instructor-Led Training
Blackboard or whiteboard
Storytelling
Video portion
Overhead projector
This technique makes communication easier since it is none
threatening with any one right answer. It is cost effective,
especially if trainers have their own stories to tell. Stories can
also make sessions more personal if they involve people trainees
know
Advantages
•Instructor-led classroom training is an efficient method for
presenting a large body of material to large or small groups of
employees.
•It is a personal, face-to-face type of training as opposed to computer-
based training and other methods we will discuss later.
•It ensures that everyone gets the same information at the same time.
•t is cost-effective, especially when not outsourced to guest speak
Disadvantages
•Sometimes it is not interactive.
•Too much of the success of the training depends on the
effectiveness of the lecturer.
•Scheduling classroom sessions for large numbers of trainees
can be difficult—especially when trainees are at multiple
locations.
Interactive Methods
There are many ways that you can break up training sessions
kind keep trainees attentive and involved, including:
Tests. For long, complicated training, stop periodically to
administer brief quizzes on information presented to that point.
Small group discussions. Break the participants down into
small groups and give them case studies or work situations to
discuss or solve.
Case studies. Adults tend to bring a problem-oriented way of
thinking to workplace training.
Q & A sessions. Informal question-and-answer sessions are
most effective with small groups and for updating skills rather
than teaching new skills.
Active summaries. Create small groups and have them choose
a leader.
Advantages
•Interactive sessions keep trainees engaged in the training,
which makes them more receptive to the new information.
•They make training more fun and enjoyable.
•They provide ways for veteran employees to pass on
knowledge and experience to newer employees.
Disadvantages
•Interactive sessions can take longer because activities, such
as taking quizzes or breaking into small groups, are time-
consuming.
•Some methods, such as participant control, can be less
structured, and trainers will need to make sure that all
necessary information is covered
Hands-On Training
Cross-training. This method allows employees to experience other jobs,
which not only enhances employee skills but also gives companies the
benefit of having employees who can perform more than one job
Demonstrations. Demonstrations are attention-grabbers. They are an
excellent way to teach employees to use new equipment or to teach the
steps in a new process.
Coaching. The goal of job coaching is to improve an employee’s
performance. Coaching focuses on the individual needs of an employee and
is generally less formal than other kinds of training
Advantages
•They are immediately applicable to trainees’ jobs.
•They allow trainers to immediately determine whether a trainee has learned
the new skill or procedure.
Disadvantages
•They are not good for large groups if you do not have enough equipment or
machines for everyone to use.
•Personal coaching can be disruptive to the coach’s productivity.
Computer-Based Training (CBT
Computer-based training is becoming increasingly prevalent as
technology becomes more widespread and easy to use.
Text-only. The simplest computer-based training programs offer
self-paced training in a text-only forma
CD-ROM. A wide variety of off-the-shelf training programs
covering a broad range of workplace topics are available on CD-
ROM.
Multimedia. These training materials are an advanced form of
computer-based training.
Virtual reality. Virtual reality is three-dimensional and interactive,
immersing the trainee in a learning experience. Most virtual
reality training programs take the form of simulation, which is a
highly effective form of training.
Advantages
•Computer-based training programs are easy to use.
•They can often be customized or custom designed.
•They are good for helping employees develop and practice new
skills.
•They are useful for refresher training. They are applicable to self-
directed learning.
•They can be cost-effective because the same equipment and
program can be used by large numbers of employees.
Disadvantages
•These programs require trainees to be computer literate.
•They require trainees to have computer access.
•There is little or no interaction with a trainer; if trainees
have questions, there’s no one to ask.
