G E T T I N G A H E A D
Lessons of experience: Trainers share tips
Marie Ticha has been managing seminars for the Czech Republic's CEA for four years. She shares what she has learned about organizing training programs.
Marie Ticha has been managing seminars for the Czech Republic's CEA for four years. She shares what she has learned about organizing training programs.
First, let me say a few words about the Center for Environmental Analysis (CEA), so that you can understand our work better.
CEA was created as one of the project activities of the American government's Environmental Training Program. Its goal was to encourage the development of democracy on the local and international levels while also fostering improvement of the environment. We knew that our effort would only be successful if local citizens chose to protect the environment, while also taking responsibility for the region where they live.
The main tools we use to achieve our goals are seminars. The seminars are directed at a target audience consisting of four groups: government, universities, businesses and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).
Because of the make-up of our target audience, we are able to do more than just disseminate knowledge that the participants can put into practice. The informal background of the seminars also allows the mutual discussion of groups which often have a bad relationship. During the discussions, I am often surprised to find that the individual opinions of the participants, concerning environmental issues, are not as divergent as it seemed in preliminary meetings.
Creating a new model
Instead of relying on existing models for seminars, we felt a need to create our own model. True, our approach to environmental analysis was partly inspired by existing ETP training material. But we also had a need to show that environmental analysis are an effective means of protecting the natural eco-systems and human health. Further, we needed to establish a bridge to assist in communication between technically oriented experts and environmentalists. Finally, we were trying to react to the topical situation in the region and introduce new methods and procedures in the field of environmental analysis. For all these reasons, we felt a specially constructed seminar was vital.
The process enriched not only the participants of the seminars but also the trainers. It required that we monitor the environmental situation carefully and meant we had to be in constant contact with experts in this field.
| KEY ISSUES |
Trainer Marie Ticha recommends that trainers keep the following key issues in mind when planning a workshop:
- The theme of the seminar must be topical.
- Trainers must be well prepared.
- The course should give a good image of the managing organization.
- Invitations should detail the goals of the course and should go out on time.
- Organizers must decide if there will be a fee and, if so, how much the fee should be.
- The seminar must be kept short enough to accommodate the needs of the participants.
- A pleasant location will encourage participants to meet between lectures.
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Needs assessment process
We had already been providing seminars for two years when we decided it was time for a needs assessment process to help us react more flexibly to needs and demands of our potential participants. To accomplish this, we set up a meeting of representatives of the target audience at a round table at the Environment Ministry in the Czech Republic. The representatives were experts, capable of formulating the training demands of their organizations. Participants included the deputy minister of the environment in the Czech Republic, the director of the Chemical Industry Association, the director of the Town Association, the director of one NGO and others whose opinions we valued.
This needs assessment panel included 12 people - a group large enough to cover all the important fields of the environment, but still small enough for brainstorming methods and group discussions. The result of the meeting was chronologically ordered list of seminars, which we used as a basis for the suggestion of grants. All the grant proposals we introduced to the Environment Ministry in the Czech Republic were sanctioned.
Dealing with difficulties
The main problem we face in giving seminars is a lack of financial support, or in some cases, delayed distribution of financial support. This problem became especially acute when we stopped receiving USAID sponsorship. We solved it by focusing our efforts on writing proposals and seeking new sponsors.
Aside from finding new sponsors, another way to handle the loss of financial support is to charge some sort of fee for participants. When we adopt this policy, we have to be careful if we hope to maintain the correct ratio of participants, with representatives from each of the target audiences. NGOs, universities and many private businesses do not have enough money to pay large fees. In the past, we have solved this problem by using a sliding scale for fees, with the charge set according to each participants' assumed ability to pay.
Another problem that arises when we charge a fee for a seminar is that full participation becomes a financial imperative. And people tend to show less interest in seminars where the cooperation of participants is demanding. Also, more attention must be paid to promotion, so it's important to put a lot of effort into creating good invitation cards. When sending out invitations, you should set an optimal time between the point when you do the mailing and the beginning of the seminar. From our experience, it seems best to send out invitations five weeks ahead of time.
Boris Kompare, Ph.D., national lead trainer of PHARE programs in Slovenia, writes about the lessons that 16 years in the field of lecturing have taught him.
Aside from his work with PHARE, Boris Kompare is also a lecturer at the University of Ljubljana. We asked him to share his experience in giving courses and workshops by answering some questions about his work.
What steps should trainers themselves take in preparing a workshop and what decisions must be made?
- Determine who the target audience is. What background knowledge do they have? Is the level of this knowledge fairly comparable among the participants? Based on the answers to these questions, you must determine the level of advancement of the workshop.
- Determine where the initiative for the workshop comes from. If the initiative for the workshop comes from the participants, then you can count on a higher level of alertness and cooperation. But if the initiative for the course comes from a third party, the participants' interest level may be lower. You must keep this factor, and the background knowledge of participants, in mind when selecting the difficulty of the course and the methodical approach.
- Prepare yourself and shape the workshop or lectures to optimally fulfill your goals. Write down the main points of your lecture or workshop and elaborate on it to fulfill the aim.
- Prepare transparencies, lecture notes, handouts, used and additional literature, etc. for participants. Sketch your transparencies. If you are not skilled in lecturing, then you should try some rehearsals at home or in front of a reviewer. If you have developed proper transparencies, then the average time needed to present a transparency is about two minutes. Prepare final versions of the transparencies. Leave out those redundant or loosely connected with the core matter, but keep them at hand if the topic shifts to those issues.
- Although it might not be mandatory to prepare lecture notes, the time spent to prepare them now is minimal and a great investment for yourself and the participants. Short notes, in the form of handouts to accompany the transparencies, are welcome and a sign of your professionalism. Do not forget to properly cite the used literature, and give the participants additional reading sources.
- Make sure the logistics of the workshop will run smoothly. You will suffer the most if anything goes wrong.
What materials must the trainers gather?
A good trainer will have two heaps of material: one large stack for themselves and a smaller stack of literature for the trainees.
If the time of the course permits, it is advisable to let the participants obtain the literature themselves. This process gives the participants a better understanding of one link in the chain of problem-solving. If they can seek out and obtain their own materials, they will be capable of finding the information to solve their problems by themselves.
What makes a workshop a success?
From the workshops I have been involved with, it seems that the most successful ones are well-organized, are run by trainers who are well-prepared and are attended by participants whose knowledge and skills are well-matched with the subject matter.
What advice would you give to others on the subject of running a workshop?
Aside from suggesting that trainers read books or take courses on the subject of giving good lectures, I would also stress one piece of advice that I think is particularly important: As a trainer I have often found myself in the position of being unable to give a proper answer to a student's question. The worst reaction to this situation is to improvise or invent an answer - odds are your students will eventually figure out you were bluffing and you will lose your credibility. When I find myself in such a situation, I admit to what I don't know, but I try to think of some possible answers and promise to check those answers and give the right one next time we meet. Usually, at least one of my answers was correct, but what was more important, I gained credibility.
Where should a workshop be held?
I don't think there is a single answer to this question. If cost is not an issue, then it is my experience that the best place for a workshop is a pleasant location a few hours away from the home of most of the participants. This removes the participants from their daily routine and makes it less likely that they will suddenly disappear from the classroom to resolve business or family problems.
How long should training last?
Again, there is no single correct answer. The person who is responsible for preparing the course or workshop, should have a good understanding of the needs and abilities of perspective participants. Duration of training greatly depends on at least these factors:
- How much new information shall be conveyed? More material requires more time. Beware of giving participants too much to digest in too little time.
- Who are the participants? If they are key personnel in their enterprises, it will be difficult to ask them to stay for more than one or two days. The older the participants, the less time they are likely to have to give to your course. If the participants have to leave their jobs behind, any training that lasts for more than a few days - one week at maximum is likely to be ineffective.
- What is going to be taught? If the matter is very much along the lines of participants' present knowledge and skills, the training can be longer. And vice versa: The more distant the matter is from the participants' present education, the shorter the training should be.
- What is the final aim of the course or workshop? If your goal is merely to impart information, this requires less time than getting participants to accept and completely learn a new subject.
- Which training techniques are appropriate and can be used? Active participation of the trainees is supposed to give the best results. But these techniques can be very exhaustive and thus reduce the possible duration of the training.
How should topics be selected?
The topics should be tailored as much as possible to the present education and practice of the trainees. A familiar frame of reference attracts students to the subject and gives more clues as to how they can store and digest the new knowledge. If the matter being taught is not very familiar to most of the participants, then special techniques should be implemented to keep people attracted to the lectures. For example: Try telling an anecdote from time to time, or frequently asking the participants to figure out where and how the matter being discussed can be used in their every-day work.
REC * EMTC * PUBLICATIONS * INSIGHT * WINTER 1997
