Geschreven door Peter van der Reijden | November 04, 2011
Good trainers understand the art to make a group ‘safe’, to teach, to stimulate and at the same time encourage participants to develop themselves on a personal level. Do trainers from online or blended training need to do the same? Or is their role entirely different?
The online trainer is a coach
The role as coach is even more important online. Online courses are much more woven into daily life. In other words, while the participant follows an online module of Assertiveness, he gets faced with daily situations that challenge him. It is valuable to involve practical experiences in the learning process and to give personal coaching on these.
The online trainer is a facilitator
Most learning environments enable participants to pace themselves and sometimes even to determine their own learning paths. The facilitation of their learning processes becomes more important than pushing for the next step.
The online trainer is a quality controller
Online training challenges a participant to be a ‘creator’ himself. Whether it's about filling a wiki, responding on a forum, giving feedback on fellow students or recording your own instruction video: the material is not fixed. An amazing phenomenon, but to ensure the quality is very relevant.
The online trainer is a motivator
The online learning environment is simply a less compulsory concept than the obligatory presence in a room. Motivation is not always obvious and the role as a motivator is therefore more relevant.
The online trainer is not a teacher
‘Flipping the classroom’ is the fashionable slogan which is now often used. The children follow lectures at home and make their homework at school. The parallel is also reasonable: running through PowerPoint presentations during the face-to-face sessions is simply not efficient anymore and above of all no longer needed.
The online trainer is not a computer expert
As an online trainer, you do not have to know everything about computers. The communication on a distance is something you have to get used to and it helps if you type fast. But that’s it. Otherwise you're using the wrong learning environment.
We distinguish these roles among our customers. I am very curious about your opinion. Something I missed? Something you see differently or recognize? Let us know in the comments section below!
