Effective Approaches to Teaching Skills

Making it clear to the learner what is really required of them, and why this is important.


There are several useful approaches to teaching skills to others. Below are some of them:

• Being prepared - Knowing ahead of time what you want the outcome of your skills training to be. This works because unless you know where you want things to go, you won't know how to conduct yourself to get there.
• Listening - Keeping communication lines open and indicating to others that their opinions are important. The key to effectively teaching a skill is often expressed by the learner, but overlooked by the manager when they fail to hear it.
• Using questions - Presenting a concept, options for applying it, and the consequences, then asking the learner what they will do. By asking rather than telling an employee how best to apply a new skill shows respect, and because it allows them to think it through for themselves, it helps them to learn faster.
• Being positive - Correcting mistakes in a positive way, not in one that is patronizing or makes others feel worthless and inferior. This helps motive the person you are teaching.
• Being honest and upfront - Making it clear to the learner what is really required of them, and why this is important.
• Setting performance targets - Indicating the acceptable level of performance you expect from those you are teaching and holding them to it.

ACTION POINT: Consider the approaches above when teaching new skills.