Who would benefit from this training?

The following text is part of the rough draft of what I said at presentation I gave on Social Media and Social Learning. My speech most likely deviated from this due to memory failings and last-minute editing.

What I’m talking about is using these conversation tools for training people who are not in the same room.

Let’s be honest though. This isn’t for everyone. People have different learning styles. And these tools may be a barrier to your training.

Before we talk about using those tools, let’s ask some questions about the people we want to train:

Do they have the tools?

They need computers and fast Internet connections. Do the computers have the right software and extensions to display multimedia? And if they don’t, can you help them get the right tools?

Do they have the skills?

I was part of a presentation on finding jobs at the CareerCenter. And in the room was an unemployed person who was kind of proud of her computer illiteracy. She insisted she didn’t have the skills to use computers to fill out online job applications.

There are a lot of people still who just don’t have an understanding of basic computer skills. Of course the problem is how we define basic. Because basic to me is rocket science to a lot of very intelligent people.

I’m not trying to put anyone down. But there is a gap here that can get in the way of training. So make sure you have an audience of people with the right foundation.

Maybe you need training so people can use the training.

Yeah, that seems counterproductive. And maybe it’s a sign that this isn’t going to work. Or it may be a long-term investment in training programs.

What is the pace of learning?

You’re already figuring this out for any training session. What can they absorb in the time allotted?

Figuring that out. Is that art or science?

I think you’re going to find that you need to allow for a slower pace than usual. Remoteness is a barrier that’s going to slow things down a notch.

Can they learn on their own?

Sounds like a stupid question I know. If they could, they wouldn’t need you.

But if we’re talking about remote learning, the trainees are probably isolated. They are in a classroom of one.

Yes, they are learning from you. But they don’t have the benefit of classmates asking the questions they should ask. Or contributing to a discussion that furthers the learning.

All things considered, your best candidates will be strong communicators and classic self-starters.