Knowing your students

One challenge I face in every class is having to teach a variety of students with different levels of learning and understanding. Some class have faster learners, other slower. Some with high level of understanding of the subject(which I ask why are they there) or zero knowledge with no idea why they joined(I also ask why are they there)

If none of the students are forced to come, comes the next question, what is their expectation(Kirkpatrick 1, reaction). Are they in class to learn from an expert or just to gain some new knowledge? In most subsidised Singapore WSQ courses, we see that issue and we have to think on our feet to meet the expectations.

WSQ training

Ok, workforce Skills Qualification or competency based training was never design for expertise. It was for designed for basic competency for Singaporeans to be able to try and apply new skills. Yet the marketing puts out a different image that after the courses, you can find a new job or become and expert in the field after 2 days.

Some see WSQ training as the lowest level of training available in Singapore. Since it is subsidies and based on minimum skills the Singapore government sees is required for workers. Well, except the maybe the subsidies part, WSQ is amazingly well researched on the skills Singapore needs in the future. Just maybe the world is changing faster than we are decide what skills we need to learn

The User, looker and Tourist

Very early in the British council class, I learnt there are a few types of learners, They are the user, looker and tourist. The user, about 15% of learners who are there cos they need to use it for work. They are highly motivated and would ask the tough questions of the latest technology, not for fun. Why are these learners the rarest is that most are motivated to read and study online, and seek out the best teachers. They are not looking for accessibility of learner that WSQ gives, they are looking to be the best they can be.

The Looker is someone there for knowledge or a cert. About 35% of the learners who are there to learn something new, still unlikely to use or do not have access to do so. They want to listen and learn the knowledge of the course they sign up for and get a sense of achievement. Not quite how the government envisioned WSQ to be but hey, its a start.

The Tourist remains the most difficult to work with. Without really knowing why are how they are there(maybe cause its subsidised), they have no expectations and no idea what they are in. Like a tourist in tour group, just go somewhere, tour leader says this is famous, they take pictures. Some courses are very technical or specific to the industry they are from, leading to frustration when the learner cant keep up.

Economics of training and education

Having classroom and knowledge based trainings are the easiest, most profitable ways over investing in equipment, props or other tools to improve learning. Sometimes even the classroom is poorly maintained. Still education is costly, and in a for profit setting, we want to reduce cost, and increase revenue. Thus as many students as possible per class.

Due to this, every classroom is filled with all kind of learners of different abilities. We as the trainers just have to work with it to ensure we can "accommodate" everyone. A few secret sauce for the users and a lot of simplification and encouragement for the tourist.

Sizing up who are your users, lookers and tourist are key to any class. If they are all users, bring on the big guns and all the latest stuff. If they are tourist, hey a bird flew by, shall we take a photo?