The "Staff"​ model-The five components of instruction development to measure the quality of training

Many organizations currently engage and employ experts in the development and management of instruction in order to build, improve and streamline the training methods of the company's employees or of the company's customers. An examination of the quality of training should have at least two aspects: one, the quality of the training development process, and two, the quality of the training when put into practice. A combination of the two will provide an indication of the quality of the entire training process. One possible way of assessing the quality of the training and its indicators is using questionnaires for learners and evaluating the quality of the "product" obtained from those students who completed the training. But the question arises; can we measure the quality of training before it has been realized? Even during its development process. Is it really right to measure training only at the end? How can a formative assessment be incorporated into training processes? In this article I will attempt to describe and evaluate the quality of training even while it is being developed. This is in addition to the familiar and popular measurement, which is based mainly on the opinion of the students and on the basis of their achievements after the completion of the training.

When approaching the creation of some kind of training - learning a profession, training for a specific teaching rank, leadership training, or professional training on any technological system, one should consider and address a large number of issues. However, in my opinion there are five critical components in instruction development. Each of these components must be given in-depth consideration separately as well as the relationship between them. The five components are:

1.      The learner

2.      The teacher (the guide)

3.      Content

4.      Learning Methods

5.      Technology - Use of technology which supports training and learning.

Consideration of each of these components is required from the stage of formation and development, through various stations in the implementation and even at the end of the training.

In order to develop training in which instruction and learning is best practiced, the first stage is defining the purpose of the instruction process. What do we ultimately want to impart to the learner? In my view, the goals are defined by defining the image of the graduate - the learner at the end of his training, in professional aspects and in cultural values (organizational culture and values).

The figure of the graduate / employee is a term that describes the range of fields and abilities that were given to the learner over the course of his studies in specific training. You can define how the entire organization or sub-organization wants to "see" the learners as graduates / employees at the end of the training process. In defining the image of the graduate, we must consider their professional knowledge and capabilities, as well as their cognitive abilities, social abilities, and world of values / culture. Hence, the image of a graduate of professional training is examined against the goals of the organization, which is important to be shaped by managers of the organization.

I would like to suggest a model according to which each instruction is based on a number of generic components that we must take into account. Their integration and measurement will lead to an upgrade and a high quality of learner training. In other words, in the process of developing the instruction, all the following components must be taken into account, and at the end of each stage in the development of the instruction the quality of each component should be examined in conjunction with the other components. In short, the “staff” model can be presented as a formula, in which the quality of training is a function of these components. However, it should be emphasized that this is only a form of presentation and that the components cannot be quantified into numbers and quality cannot be calculated, but it is possible to work with it towards developing and implementing quality instruction.

The “staff” model as a formula:

Q = f(M, s, c, m, t)

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Moderator (Instructor / Mentor) (M)

It is not by chance that the component of the moderator (M) in the formula is the first and only element marked with a capital letter. My view is that the quality of the training, whatever it may be, in every training and learning framework, rests mainly on the moderator (instructor, mentor, commander). This is because it is the interface that links the learning materials, the learner, and the organization. In addition, he is also a role model for the students in the course and a professional authority.

In today's world of learners, the moderator is required to have skills and knowledge of mentoring in light of the need for assistance and support in guidance, in a world in which knowledge is accessible to all and at every moment, and learning independently becomes more common. Hence the need for the moderator’s ability to adapt themselves to changing situations - that is, to adapt to the learner who is the center of training. A good moderator is measured in their ability to advance all the trainees and to train them professionally in the right way, while optimizing the time and resources in an optimal manner against the unique diagnosis of each student.

The Student (s)

In recent years, the need for personal adaptation of the learning process has become much clearer. The fact that no person is identical to another also requires the training systems to be perfected and to examine ways of adapting the training to a specific learner. Looking at the asynchronous learning world shows that sometimes this means different content together with matching a specific way of transferring content to a specific learner. Adapting training to a specific learner requires prior study, knowledge, and in-depth assessment of each student. Such a diagnosis is an in-depth knowledge of the learner and the understanding that each individual is unique. Diagnosis of the learner will enable the training system to better tune to their needs and thus streamline the training and improve the students' achievements in it.

Furthermore, it is recommended to examine the specific status of the learner. Different learners are in different situations, affecting and influencing their abilities and ways of learning. In order to define this process, I will use the term "accrual", assuming that various external and internal factors affect learners and their ability to study at a given time. Effects on the learner's "accrual" can be related to cognitive and emotional challenges both outside and within the organization. Understanding the learner is not only an in-depth study of the learner alone, but also relates to the learner's interfaces with the teacher and the contents of the training. A crucial point is finding and motivating the individual learner while increasing the sense of ability and strengthening the sense of security.

Learning Content (c)

The learning content is a direct derivative of the purpose of the training or, in other words, the graduate to which we aspire. The content component refers to the following: the list of topics, the internal content in each lesson plan, and the training structure - different stages in the development of learning. For example, dividing the duration of the training into stages and defining the connections between the different stages. The structure of the subjects can be serial or alternatively parallel. It is important to create a modular structure that allows change in training at any given time when taking into account:

A. Change in the composition of learners in training.

B. Change / update of content.

It is also possible and even recommended to use the training structure to support the diversity of learning methods and to diversify the learning environments in order to strengthen the ability to build partnerships and teamwork or any other professional instructional aspect.

Methods of study (m)

I have already elaborated on the importance of the in-depth investigation process to understand who the learner is who inhabits the training. However, this importance becomes more acute when we deal with different methods and techniques for learning in the face of students, who today belong to the "Z" generation, who experience and learn differently from previous generations. For example, it is obvious to them that knowledge is in Google, and they only have to access it. Consequently, the training developers must constantly engage in the development and adoption of innovative learning methods along with the increasing use of technology. We should strive to see how to maximize the use of the appropriate learning method for each student so that we can bring him to the top of his abilities. The emerging wealth in this field enables and even, in my view, requires the training developers to try to adopt new learning methods, to make specific adjustments of learning methods to existing training programs, and to develop new and unique learning methods. It is also right that in one training program a number of study methods will be incorporated and even a number of tracks that enable the learner to choose the appropriate course of study methods.

Technology (t)

In a technological world characterized by the frequency of rapid change, there is a crucial and critical place for integrating new technologies to support the training development process as well as the training process itself. First, it is important to emphasize that in my view technology in the world of training has two main goals. One is to support more effective and meaningful training. The other is exposing learners to the capabilities offered by the technology today, in practice enriching them with knowledge that may augment their minds and work after the training. Where possible, it is important that training developers select technologies that have relevance to the content of the training. It is necessary to examine, continuously, whether the technological "edge" has a product or capability that can be integrated in a manner that will lead to a change in the efficiency and results of the existing training. It is also important that the technological component be chosen in accordance with the learner, and more often than not, appropriate technology can solve problems and promote a specific learner. An important caveat is to avoid over-integration of technology where it is not needed or before it is ready to be a finished product, just to flaunt its feathers.

Conclusion

It is possible and necessary to examine the quality of training development in the early stages and even after the development process (before it is implemented). The way to reach quality professional training is through preliminary study and planning. This way must go through five main components listed in this article. The “staff” model presented in this article, according to which quality of learning (Q) is a function of the teacher-mentor (M), the learner (s), the content (c), the learning method (m) and the use of supportive technology (t), enables prior planning of the training program or alternatively and in-depth examination of existing training and upgrading it if necessary in the aspects of each component of the model. Along with all these in the development of training, it is of great importance to investigate the training itself during and after it, while providing a substantial place for learning from the learners and the teachers.

This is the place to reiterate the importance and centrality of the moderator (mentor) in each training system. The moderator is, in the end, the central factor, So that the other components, however successful, are ultimately tools and aids for him. A moderator who does not know how to use them and maximize them would impair their quality and, consequently, the quality of the training as a whole. Therefore, the training developer must work with the moderator even before the training process begins to see the entire process, with an emphasis on the components described in this article. Insights from this process will enable the development and planning of the implementation of training that will include: working with the learner to plan the course of development of the latter and points in which the learner must pass through in each stage in order to advance. All this while understanding the moderator’s role as a personal key for each and every learner, and understanding that he should not look at the situation, but at the learner.

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