Traditional Training Methods

Organizations of today have a variety of methods to choose from when training their employees. There have been many technological advances in the training industry, however most employers prefer to utilize the traditional methods due to viability and effectiveness of these training formats. The most used traditional training methods are instructor-led, hands-on, and interactive.

There are many types of instructor-led trainings such as blackboard or whiteboard, overhead projector, video, PowerPoint, and storytelling. Storytelling is the most effective technique because trainees can communicate openly and feel less threatened by their response for there is no wrong or right answer. The instructor-led method has advantages that out weigh disadvantages.

The advantages of this method are: 1) Instructor-led classroom training is an efficient method for presenting a large body of material to large or small groups of employees; 2) It is a personal, face-to-face type of training as opposed to computer-based training and other methods we will discuss later; 3) It ensures that everyone gets the same information at the same time; 4) It is cost-effective, especially when not outsourced to guest speakers; and 5)Storytelling grabs people’s attention. BLR, 2011) The disadvantages of this method are: 1) Sometimes it is not interactive; 2) Too much of the success of the training depends on the effectiveness of the lecturer; 3) Scheduling classroom sessions for large numbers of trainees can be difficult—especially when trainees are at multiple locations. (BLR, 2011) The hands-on traditional training method enables employees to learn while doing their job. This method utilizes several techniques to train employees such as cross-training, demonstrations, coaching, and apprenticeships.

The advantages of hands-on are its effectiveness in training of new equipment and new procedures; it is applicable to trainees’ jobs, as well as enables trainers to determine a trainee retains learned new skills and procedures. The disadvantages are that it is not applicable in large groups; personal training limits trainer’s time spent with other trainees; and apprenticeships are expensive to companies that pay for employees who are less productive than others. (BLR, 2011) The last traditional training is the interactive method. The interactive method enables trainee involvement as well as holds their attention to information to be learned.

This method can utilize quizzes, small group discussions, case studies, question cards, and role playing to influence trainees actively participate. The advantages of this method are trainee involvement resulting in retained new information; fun and enjoyable training; the sharing of experience and knowledge from veteran employees to newer employees; in-session feedback on new employee performance. The main disadvantage is time constraints due to activities such as quizzes that take longer. (BLR, 2011) My review of traditional training methods has influenced my opinion of which methods are effective and ineffective.

The most effective method would be the hand-on method. This method would make available the opportunity for employees to experience the jobs and responsibilities of other coworkers which would expand knowledge and skill levels. The ineffective method would be the interactive method. This method although fun and enjoyable would not guarantee that the required information would be learned or retained.

References

BLR Employee Training Center. (2011). The Most Effective Training Techniques. Retrieved on April 14, 2011 from http://training. blr. com/employee-training-resources/How-to-Choose-the-Most-Effective-Training-Techniques