Training the Active Training Way

Mel Silberman, Ph.D. is Professor of Adult and Organizational Development at Temple University, where he received its Great Teacher Award. He is also president of Active Training, Princeton, NJ, a consulting firm that provides courses on active training techniques, interpersonal intelligence, and team facilitation.Dr. Silberman is a graduate of Brandeis University and holds an M.A. and Ph.D. in educational psychology from the University of Chicago. He is the author and editor of over 30 books, including Active Training 2e (Pfeiffer, 1998), 101 Ways to Make Training Active (Pfeiffer, 1998), and The Consultant's Tool Kit (McGraw-Hill, 2002), and a regular conference speaker for ASTD and ISPI.Dr. Silberman has conducted training for hundreds of corporate, governmental, educational, and human-service organizations. Among his recent clients have been: Valero Refining Co., BMW of North America, MGM Grand, New York University School of Dentistry, Merck, Girl Scouts of the USA, and International Teachers of Business Management Program.

• Acknowledgments. Introduction.STRATEGY 1: ENGAGE YOUR PARTICIPANTS FROM THE START.Tip 1: Give Participants Something to Do Before the Session Formally Begins.Tip 2: Structure the Initial Social Interactions Among Participants.Tip 3: Create Icebreakers That Focus Solely on Immediate Learning Involvement.Tip 4: Enlarge the Pool of Participation at the Very Beginning.STRATEGY 2: BE A BRAIN-FRIENDLY PRESENTER.Tip 5: Build Brain Interest in What Is Being Presented.Tip 6: Help Your Participants’ Brains to “Get It”.Tip 7: Involve Participants Throughout Your Presentation.Tip 8: Help Participants “Save” the Presentation in Their Brains.STRATEGY 3: ENCOURAGE LIVELY AND FOCUSED DISCUSSION.Tip 9: Engage Participants Before Plunging into the Discussion.Tip 10: State Effective Questions for Discussion.Tip 11: Improve the Quality of Discussion Through Participant Preparation.Tip 12: Alter the Discussion Format.Tip 13: Facilitate the Flow of Conversation.STRATEGY 4: URGE PARTICIPANTS TO ASK QUESTIONS.Tip 14: Help Participants Get Started.Tip 15: Create the Need for Questions.Tip 16: Let Participants Know You Expect Questions.STRATEGY 5: LET YOUR PARTICIPANTS LEARN FROM EACH OTHER.Tip 17: Choose How You Compose Learning Teams.Tip 18: Build Learning Teams Before Giving Them Work.Tip 19: Gradually Immerse Participants in Team Learning.Tip 20: Use a Variety of Team Learning Activities.Tip 21: Invite Participants to Teach Each Other.STRATEGY 6: ENHANCE LEARNING BY EXPERIENCING AND DOING.Tip 22: Create Experiences That Simulate or Match Reality.Tip 23: Ask Participants to Reflect on the Experience.Tip 24: Avoid “Monkey See, Monkey Do”.Tip 25: Use Role Play to Develop Verbal Skills.STRATEGY 7: BLEND IN TECHNOLOGY WISELY.Tip 26: Transform Active Classroom Strategies into e-Learning.Tip 27: Use e-Learning to Supplement Classroom Learning.Tip 28: Use Classroom Sessions to Supplement e-Learning Activities.STRATEGY 8: MAKE THE END UNFORGETTABLE.Tip 29: Get Participants to Review What’s Been Learned.Tip 30: Ask Participants to Evaluate Their Accomplishments.Tip 31: Have Participants Plan for the Future.Tip 32: Let Participants Celebrate the End.FINAL ADVICE.About the Author.Pfeiffer Publications Guide.