Synopses & Reviews
From data entry clerks to MIS analysts, secretaries to sales reps -- anyone who teaches others to use computers is a computer trainer. As the resident expert on the latest versions of Excel or WordPerfect or the newly installed sales tracking software, most people who train others to use computers tend to fall into the role accidentally. The Accidental Trainer offers a practical guide to computer training for anyone who has made the leap from resident computer "expert" to computer trainer. With checklists, questionaires and other hands-on tools, this book shows how any computer "expert" can bridge the gap between people and technology by creating effective computer training that is clear, concise, on target and memorable. Focusing on the key challenges faced by computer trainers -- what to teach, how to teach it, and how to tell if it worked -- it is unique in its simplcity in synthesizing the complex process of adult learning and development to make it accessible even to the most "accidental" trainers.
Review
"A guide for helping the resident computer expert become the resident computer trainer. If you are making this transition, then The Accidental Trainer should be on your shelf." —Bill Coscarelli, director, Hewlett-Packard World Wide Testing Center
Synopsis
The perfect bridge to assist the accidental trainer in moving from the panic of being asked to teach 'because you know the system so well' to the satisfaction of successful knowledge transfer. A must read.--Suzy Johnson, Course Manager, AT&T
The Accidental Trainer is a practical guide for the multitude of computer experts who have fallen into the role of computer trainer accidentally. As the resident experts on the latest word processing programs or the newly installed sales tracking software, most people who train others to use computers have little or no training experience. With checklists, questionnaires, and other hands-on tools, this book provides anyone with tools to bridge the gap between people and technology to create computer training that is clear, concise, and effective.
You'll learn how to:
- Build bridges between people and computers
- Create a blueprint for computer training
- Assess the learners
- Check your training results
Synopsis
As the resident experts on the latest version of WordPerfect or the newly installed sales tracking software, most people who train others to use computers fall into the role accidentally. The Accidental Trainer is a practical guide for the multitude of "computer experts" who have made this unintentional leap.With checklists, questionnaires, and other hands-on tools, this book provides anyone?from secretary to data entry clerk to MIS analyst? with tools to bridge the gap between people and technology and create computer training that is clear, concise, and effective.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 145-148) and index.
About the Author
ELAINE WEISS has spent the past fifteen years helping people and technology work together. Her company, Educational Dimensions, designs training and nontraining strategies to improve the performance of people who work in automated work environments.
Table of Contents
Section One: Building Bridges Between People and Computers
1. If You Teach People To Use Computers, Then This Book Is For You
2. A Blueprint for Computer Training
Section Two: What Should I Teach?
3. Assessing the Learners: Know Your Audience
4. Assessing the Usability of the System: Know Your Challenges
5. Assessing the Work Environment: Know Your Setting
Section Three: How Should I Teach It?
6. Selecting Instructional Methods: Telling Isn't Teaching
7. Selecting Instructional Products: Support Materials That Really Support
Section Four: How Can I Tell It Worked?
8. Evaluting Teaching: Beyond Smile Sheets
9. Evaluating Learning: Beyond Multiple-Choice Tests