Problem 1: What are the characteristics of a good trainer and what effect do these characteristics have on learning?
Problem 2: What is the meaning or ethics? What are some the ethical situations a trainer might face?
Problem 3: What are the main factors a trainer should consider when choosing an instructional method?
Problem 4: Explain how these factors will lead to a certain method over others providing a real-life training example.
BC Assessment is a provincial Crown organization whose 350 to 400 professional appraisers determine the market value of land and improvements for taxation purposes. Each year, about 2 percent of property owners file a formal complaint or appeal with the agency. Complex appeals that are not resolved might proceed to an appeal board, which could lead to a formal hearing. The appeal process represents a significant cost, mainly in staff time. To help cut back, the agency decided to train appraisers to develop the skills needed to resolve appeals earlier. Thirty-six appraisers took part in a two-day, face-to-face workshop that included group discussions, team summaries, case studies, and mock role-playing exercises. Before training, 20 percent of the trainees rated their knowledge and skill levels as high. After training, that number rose to 56 percent. In addition, 69 percent of the trainees said they had a high level of confidence in applying the learning to their jobs effectively. However, six months after the training the value of the course was significantly diminished at the transfer of learning stage. More than one-half of respondents saw little or no improvement in tasks associated with appeals management.
Answer the following questions.
Q1. What effect did the training have on trainees? What should the trainees be able to do on the job after attending the training program?
Q2. Use Baldwin and Ford's model of the transfer of training process (Figure 9.1) to explain why so many of the trainees reported little or no improvement in tasks associated with appeals management.