101 Ways to Make Training Active

332 Pages·2005·5.83 MB·English

by  Mel Silberman

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About This Resource
Why is this topic important?
Hours of lecturing and presentation slides don’t lead to participant involvement, learn-
ing, and change. In order to learn something well, it helps not only to hear and see the
information but also to ask questions, discuss it with others, do something with it, and
perhaps even teach it to someone else. These are the activities that trainers need to design
and deliver.
What can you achieve with this book?
This book contains 101 concrete strategies to design and deliver active training for vir-
tually any topic. You will discover a tool kit overflowing with creative, challenging, and
fun ways to enliven learning. By browsing through this collection, you can identify those
strategies that hold the most promise for your situation and apply them to your topic
and learning objectives. To aid you in this process, each strategy is illustrated with a case
example.
This book also contains twenty how-to lists that any trainer will find indispensable
when facilitating active training. Using this advice, you will have a wide variety of options
for achieving such goals as setting up the classroom for active training, obtaining par-
ticipation at any time, utilizing props, making lectures active, and more.
How is this resource organized?
The 101 active learning strategies are organized into three major categories that corre-
late to three distinct phases of any effective training session or program. . . .the opening,
the main learning events, and the closing. Within these three categories, you will find
subcategories, such as team building, stimulating discussion, team learning, e-learning,
skill development, review, application planning, and so forth. This organization simplifies
your task of perusing this entire collection for the ideas you need immediately.
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About Pfeiffer
Pfeiffer serves the professional development and hands-on resource needs of
training and human resource practitioners and gives them products to do their
jobs better. We deliver proven ideas and solutions from experts in HR development
and HR management, and we offer effective and customizable tools to improve
workplace performance. From novice to seasoned professional, Pfeiffer is the
source you can trust to make yourself and your organization more successful.
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comprehensive materials on topics that matter the most to training
and HR professionals. Our Essential Knowledge resources translate the expertise of
seasoned professionals into practical, how-to guidance on critical workplace issues
and problems. These resources are supported by case studies, worksheets, and job
aids and are frequently supplemented with CD-ROMs, websites, and other means
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Essential Tools Pfeiffer’s Essential Tools resources save time and
expense by offering proven, ready-to-use materials—including exercises,
activities, games, instruments, and assessments—for use during a training orteam-
learning event. These resources are frequently offered in looseleaf or CD-ROM
format to facilitate copying and customization of the material.
Pfeiffer also recognizes the remarkable power of new technologies in expanding
the reach and effectiveness of training. While e-hype has often created whizbang
solutions in search of a problem, we are dedicated to bringing convenience and
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Essential resources for training and HR professionals
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101 Ways
to Make
Training Active
Second Edition
Mel Silberman
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Copyright © 2005 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Published by Pfeiffer
An Imprint of Wiley.
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ducible pages are designated by the appearance of the following copyright notice at the foot of each page:
101 Ways to Make Training Active, 2nd Edition. Copyright © 2005 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Reproduced by permission of Pfeiffer, an Imprint of Wiley. www.pfeiffer.com
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Printed in the United States of America
ISBN: 0-7879-7612-1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Silberman, Melvin L.
101 ways to make training active / by Mel Silberman.-- 2nd ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-7879-7612-1 (alk. paper)
1. Active learning. 2. Teaching. 3. Adult learning. I. Title: One hundred one ways to make
training active. II. Title: One hundred and one ways to make training active. III. Title.
LB1027.23.S55 2005
371.3--dc22
2005003710
Acquiring Editor: Martin Delahoussaye Editor: Rebecca Taff
Director of Development: Kathleen Dolan Davies Senior Production Editor: Dawn Kilgore
Developmental Editor: Susan Rachmeler Manufacturing Supervisor: Becky Carreño
Printed in the United States of America
Printing 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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C
ONTENTS
Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xv
Introduction: Getting the Most from This Resource . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
THE NUTS AND BOLTS OF ACTIVE TRAINING
Two Hundred Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Ten Layouts for Setting Up a Training Classroom . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Ten Techniques for Learning Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Ten Questions for Obtaining Participant Expectations . . . . . . . . . . 18
Ten Methods for Obtaining Participation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Ten Assignments to Give Learning Partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Ten Occasions to Use Response Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Ten Ways to Make Learning Visual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Ten Suggestions for Activating a Lecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Ten Common Games Trainers Play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Ten Energizers to Wake Up or Relax a Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Ten Strategies for Forming Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Ten Alternatives for Selecting Group Leaders and Filling Other Jobs . . 35
Ten Tips When Facilitating Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Ten Options for Role Playing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Ten Steps to Use When Facilitating Experiential Activities . . . . . . . . 40
Ten Timesavers When Active Training Takes Time . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Ten Tricks for Calling Participants to Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Ten Props That Dramatize Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Ten Interventions for Regaining Control of the Group . . . . . . . . . . 48
Ten Tips for Online Active Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
HOW TO GET ACTIVE PARTICIPATION FROM THE START
Team-Building Strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
1. Stand Up and Be Counted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
2. Human Scavenger Hunt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
vii
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viii Contents
3. Group Résumé . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
4. Predictions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
5. Television Commercial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
6. Me Too . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
7. Really Getting Acquainted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
8. Team Getaway . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
9. Reconnecting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
10. Setting Ground Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
On-the-Spot Assessment Strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
11. First-Class Survey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
12. Introductory Go-Arounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
13. Assessment Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
14. Instant Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
15. A Representative Sample . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
16. Class Concerns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Immediate Learning Involvement Strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
17. Active Knowledge Sharing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
18. Rotating Trio Exchange . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
19. Go to Your Post . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
20. Lightening the Learning Climate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
21. Exchanging Viewpoints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
22. True or False? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
23. Hangman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
24. Buying into the Course . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
HOW TO TEACH INFORMATION, SKILLS,
AND ATTITUDES ACTIVELY
Active Lecturing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
25. Gaining Attention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
26. Inquiring Minds Want to Know . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
27. Teaching by Analogy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
28. Listening Teams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
29. Guided Note Taking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
30. Lecture Bingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
31. Guided Teaching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
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Contents ix
32. Acting It Out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
33. Team Quiz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Stimulating Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
34. Active Debate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
35. Town Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
36. Three-Stage Fishbowl Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
37. Expanding Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
38. Point-Counterpoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
39. Reading Aloud . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
40. Card Exchange . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Prompting Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
41. Learning Starts with a Queston . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
42. Question Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
43. Planted Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
44. Role Reversal Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Team Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
45. Information Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
46. The Study Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
47. Card Sort . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
48. Learning Tournament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
49. The Power of Two . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
50. Team Investigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Peer Teaching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
51. Group-to-Group Exchange . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
52. Jigsaw Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
53. Everyone Is a Teacher Here . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
54. Peer Lessons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
55. Participant-Created Case Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
56. Poster Session . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Active e-Learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
57. E-Mail Exchanges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
58. Dear Addie Letters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
59. Application Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196