Breaking Out of the Box Training

I had a chance to talk to a colleague at school in my class on Adult Learning and Adult Development and she had some interesting things to say about "out of the box" training. 

I think one of the difficulties I face is that the entire industry undervalues training. Training is something that "has to be done" not something that is valuable and thought to be a worthwhile investment of time and money for the contractor organizations we support. 

We are working to change that belief. Providing more engaging and effective training is a part of the answer. Another part of that answer is to find ways to help the learners understand that learning doesn't stop the second they exit the building. We are trying to find ways to keep the conversation between the learner and our organization going. These discussion posts and the cohorts we build in these classes are terrific examples of the dynamic I'd love to promote. Too often our learners come, they get some computer-based training, then they leave and forget the training. This is a cycle they've played out many times and it's a vicious circle, ingrained in their habit. Breaking that habit, showing them that learning can continue, and creating a stronger learning community is the key to this I think. It's a tough slog, but already we've seen positive results. More organizations are using us for more innovative training, our organization has started to see that the courses they've developed in the past can no longer be relied on. 

I appreciate her thoughts and the comparison you've made to teacher in-services. The one thing I don't possess is a view into other industries. My life has been in the contracting industries, both for refining and for construction. This means I don't know what other forces are at work in training development and adult learning that could be a part of our solution as well. It would be interesting to discuss more with her what she liked most about the course she got that buested out of the in-service boring paradigm. What would she think would have helped create teacher in-services that were more consistently like the speaker who spoke about growth mindset? Was it the topic? The speaker? The presentation? The style? Or a combination of these things?