The Unheralded Trainers.

In the past I have talked a lot about IT Pros, their certifications, training etc, but now is the time to discuss another IT trainer, an unsung hero of IT world and IT training- the Applications Trainers.  Teaching application classes is not an easy thing to instruct for a variety of reasons, time constraints, different class each day, class setups, remembering what new and possibly removed features are in each variant of a product, time constraints - did I mention that I already?

Application Instructors just do not have much, if any, flexibility in their class schedule. They usually have but one day to get through their book and little time for veering off-topic or spending too much time with a difficult student.  They must also be more diligent about breaks and lunches - when class starts at 1pm - it starts at 1pm, there just isn't the time available to wait for tardy students.  As a result, I believe there is much that can be learned from observing their teaching style.  I have taught 1-day classes before - it is not easy when you are used to having the flexibility to catch-up the next day - you just don't have the luxury of time with one day classes. For those of who train regularly and teach multi-classes we are used to have some flexibility in our timing and can accommodate diversions in class discussion.  We also have the flexibility in going into greater detail on some topics and spending time with individual students and their questions.

I have the upmost respect for applications instructors - theirs is not an easy world of training at all having taught a few 1-day classes. I used to work with an outstanding applications instructor - that is all she taught and I was amazed at her ability to switch between different subjects on a daily basis and her ability to develop a rapport with her students in such a short period of time.  It is also a totally different teaching style from those of us teach multi-day classes.

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