How to increase the impact of training using storytelling jan 2014 diane shawe

Just like other facets of training, storytelling must be practiced to be delivered effectively. Practice your entire speech, story, or workshop out loud and standing up as if you are in front of a classroom, or on a podium.

Here are just a few pointers to help you perfect and be CREATIF

How to Increase the Impact of Training Using Storytelling

By Diane Shawe M.Ed

January 2014

Table of Contents How to Increase the Impact of Training Using Storytelling ............................................................................................... 4 Game ............................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Icebreakers ...................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Energizer .......................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Simulations ...................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Brain teasers .................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Role Plays ......................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Case Studies ..................................................................................................................................................................... 4 But do Stories Matter? ........................................................................................................................................................ 5 What Can Storytelling Do for Teaching? ......................................................................................................................... 5 Being CREATIF ........................................................................................................................................................... 6 The Fox, the Cat and the Wolf Have Taught Us So Much ................................................................................................ 7 How to Make an Engaging Story...................................................................................................................................... 7 Three Ways to Obtain Buy-In ............................................................................................................................... 8 How to Tell a Good Story ..................................................................................................................................................... 8 Be Highly Engaging .......................................................................................................................................................... 8 Make sure there is Build-up............................................................................................................................................ 8 Make sure it’s Not Too Long........................................................................................................................................... 8 Make sure it’s Not Too Short .......................................................................................................................................... 9 Make sure it is Clear ........................................................................................................................................................ 9 There is Variation in the Tone of Voice ........................................................................................................................... 9 Add some Emotions ......................................................................................................................................................... 9 There Are One or More Pauses ....................................................................................................................................... 9 There is a Clear End ......................................................................................................................................................... 9 Engaging Reluctant Participants....................................................................................................................... 10 There is a Follow-Through ............................................................................................................................................. 10 Engaging Introductions .................................................................................................................................................. 10 Using Activities to Make Training Fun 1 day course ...................................................................................................... 11 About Us ............................................................................................................................................................................ 12 What we do ................................................................................................................................................................... 12 What type of courses do we focus on? ............................................................................................................................. 13 How have we used technology? ........................................................................................................................................ 13 Learning Management Solution (LMS) & Portal Hub ................................................................................................ 13 Our Solution allows us to achieve all of the following and more: ............................................................................. 13 Student Centric Training Model .................................................................................................................................... 14 © How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 1

ACCREDITATION & VALIDATION: ................................................................................................................................... 14 What is the social impact? ............................................................................................................................................. 15 Visit AVPT Global Website ......................................................................................................................................... 15

Š How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 2

Diane Shawe M.Ed mIoD Founder & CEO Academy of Vocational & Professional Training Ltd LONDON, ENGLAND, March 6, 2013/International Womens Day/ - Diane Shawe was nominated along with other wonderful women for IWD Roll of Honour 2013 at House of Lords

©Entreployability ©Entreployability Assets An individual’s ‘©entreployability assets’ comprise their knowledge (i.e. what they know), skills (what they do with what they know) and attitudes (how they do it).

To keep busy or at work; engaging your skills and attentions to employ yourself independently and maintain work.

A person who organises and manages their own business, contracts or employability.

To be available to be hired, provide a soft or hard skill for solving problems or being of service for which one is paid by another party.

Making sure that the skill you have can support you first and help solve the problems for individuals, groups, companies or even countries.

Academy of Vocational & Professional Training lTD Broadgate Tower 12th Floor 20 Primrose St London EC2A 2EW Email: diane@avptglobal.com Tel: 0203 551 2621

LONDON, ENGLAND, January 19, 2012 /Cambridge Who's Who/ -- Diane Shawe, M.Ed., IEBE, Chief Executive Officer of the Academy of Vocational and Professional Training Ltd., has been named a VIP Member by Cambridge Who's Who. This special distinction honors individuals who have shown exceptional commitment to achieving personal and professional success.

As the chief executive officer of the Academy of Vocational and Professional Training Ltd., which provides online fast-track training courses, Ms. Shawe utilises her expertise in education and business administration to oversee individual, one-on-one, group and corporate training. In addition, she ensures that staff members are reporting and achieving and that the business is meeting its target of student recruitment.

Ms. Shawe also manages the quality of training, company finances and front-end marketing, while also maintaining the business profile. She has been in the educational field for the last 15 years and has successfully led her company for the past five.

In addition to handling her day-to-day responsibilities with flair, Ms. Shawe has published several books, including "Getting Started in the Hair Extension Business," "Dieting Dilemma," "How to Cyber Kiss your Business to Success," and "100 Ways to Generate Quick Emergency Cash." She believes that people should try to integrate the following practice into their daily lives: "never do anything as though you are a professional amateur."

www.avptglobal.com

© How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 3

How to Increase the Impact of Training Using Storytelling One of the most important tasks of a top trainer is to keep the delegates engaged. The more delegates are immersed in a training course, the more likely that they will learn. There have been many great ways to do this as listed below:

Game A game is an exercise that normally has a set of rules and an element of competition. Games also normally include some element of reward or pay off.

Although traditional games include competing against some one or another team, they are also many non-competitive games available.

Icebreakers Icebreakers are normally used as an exercise to introduce group members to one another, infuse some energy into the beginning of a workshop, and to lead into the topic material.

Energizer An energizer is a brief pick-me-up designed to invigorate a group if energy in the room is waning, or to bring them back together following a break. Energizers may be a short version of any game or icebreaker, or a brief set of stretches.

They are completed within approximately two to five minutes.

Simulations A simulation is used to train future operators when the equipment that they will use is either very expensive or dangerous. Simulations are designed to be as realistic as possible so that participants can learn from the situation without worrying about damage or financial cost.

Brain teasers Brain teasers are puzzles to keep participants busy or to highlight key points. Brain teasers have the flexibility for a creative trainer to create their own rules to fit a particular session. They can include perception exercises, joining the dots, or drawing activities.

Role Plays Role-playing is a helpful way to gauge how participants are learning material or how they react to certain situations.

They are very useful way to practice new skills in a non-threatening environment.

Case Studies Case studies are stories normally extracted from a participant’s workplace or industry. It may also be a simulated scenario. They may be studied by individuals/groups and then analyzed to demonstrate particular training points or to stimulate discussion. A great way to do this is to tell powerful stories. Stories capture people’s imagination and

help them to visualise a concept. In this introduction brochure you will learn why storytelling matters and how to make great stories to enhance your training. Š How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 4

But do Stories Matter?

Consider a typical day. How many stories do you hear? Stories seem to be everywhere. TV is full of stories from soap operas to sitcoms to various drama series. Even news is primarily told as one story after another. Massive number of fiction and movies are consumed every single day. Now, analyse yourself to see when you are most susceptible to persuasion.

You will see that it is when you have been told a really good story. The story can be about anything; but it is usually a story that sells you an idea or a product.

Consider famous public speakers. What is it about their speeches that make them stand out? It is always the story they tell us in their speeches and the way they deliver it that moves us. They make the story emotional, even somewhat personal. Their stories give us hope and promise us a better future. Their stories make us forget about the past or our everyday problems. Their stories give us energy and motivate us to follow up with an idea. There is always a protagonist that you can connect with emotionally.

You feel their pain and joy. While the story is told, you are curious to know how it ends. You cannot wait until it reaches its climax. You want to know what the protagonist decides when he is suddenly forced to make a choice. While you are fully engaged with the story, the real message is then given to you, directly or indirectly. You understand the message through the story and you feel that you have a first-hand experience of the issue. The real power of stories is that they can be remembered very easily and be retold to others. This is in fact largely the main way that cultural memes pass through generations.

What Can Storytelling Do for Teaching?

When it comes to training, you have two critical aims; to teach a new skill and to increase the likelihood that this new skill is retained long after the course. Stories can serve both needs. The story itself can be used to explain a particular concept or illustrate the benefits of following a particular attitude in a vivid way. It is also easier to remember the story which can reinforce the learning after the course. People can tell the story to others and thereby spread your training without your direct involvement.

The story can then spread by word of mouth and if it is good enough it may go viral. If it was your original story it can do wonders for your reputation as a trainer. Many people will want to know more about you and hear more stories.

This is because people are addicted to good stories. We cannot get enough of it. If we discover that someone is a good storyteller and his stories work for us, we want to hear every story he has to say. We become somewhat addicted to his stories. As a public performer who provides training courses and aspires to become more popular and better known, you cannot underestimate the power of storytelling. Š How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 5

Being CREATIF Clean

Rehearsed

Energising

No matter what or who is in your audience, in order to deliver what you have been hired to do, gain respect (and be invited to do more training!), your material needs to be clean. It doesn’t matter how much crude or crass language your audience may use, a professional trainer keeps their material clean.

Racial jokes, gender bashing, swearing, or demeaning jokes do not enhance the quality of your training, and do not belong in the professional trainer’s toolkit.

Just like other facets of training, humor must be practiced to be delivered effectively. Practice your entire speech, story, or workshop out loud and standing up as if you are in front of a classroom, or on a podium. You can also utilize a coach, join a trainer’s group, a good toastmaster’s program, or a mastermind group to really supercharge your ability levels.

Even if the story is something sad or serious make sure that by the time that you complete the debriefing or wrap up, the group has recovered and is feeling energized by working with you.

Note:



Don’t select activities or stories that would annoy you if you were a participant.

Action oriented

As trainers, we need to find words and stories that motivate and inspire. Standing at the front of the room listing off a bunch of “don’t do this” and “don’t do that” is boring for your participants, and akin to reading directly off of PowerPoint slides.

Your audience will snore. Instead, craft your stories and anecdotes with a call to action.

Think of a phrase or jingle that will stick in their memories and remind them of what they are going to do.

Truth

Many situations in our lives make wonderful training stories if they are told with attention to pacing and good articulation. Your story is much stronger when it is based on something real and it relates somehow to the training that you are providing.

Don’t slip in your favorite story just because it usually gets a laugh.

It makes a relevant point

Adult learners want the content to reflect the objectives of the training. If your favorite story does not fit, save it for another training day and use something that will work.

Fun

When you are preparing your training session, make sure that it is really you talking.

Don’t try to be someone else that you think is funny, and don’t try to copy someone else.

People’s attention spans are short, and overwhelmed people have even shorter ones!

Be sure to inject some lighter content, which can include games, energizers, and icebreakers to keep training fun, and keep your participants engaged.

© How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 6

The Fox, the Cat and the Wolf Have Taught Us So Much Consider the following story.

“Driven by hunger, a fox tried to reach some grapes hanging high on the vine but was unable to, although he leaped with all his strength. As he went away, the fox remarked, ‘Oh, you aren’t even ripe yet! I don’t need any sour grapes.’”What’s the moral of the story?

It works like this. I want something I don’t have. I am certainly a capable person and deserve to have it. If I don’t have it, it’s because it wasn’t good enough. But this leads to a conflict; either something is good or not.

It cannot be both.

The story is about people who hold two or more conflicting ideas and firmly believe in both which leads to cognitive dissonance. The story vividly explains what cognitive dissonance is all about. Once you hear it, it is easy to remember and it is easy to tell others about it. The story, a famous fable by Aesop and its independent variations from other cultures, provide a great way to explain a basic but powerful concept. For example, the Persian version is like this: “A cat was passing the window of a neighbour’s house. She saw a pan full of meat in the kitchen. Tempted to get to the meat she tried to enter through the window. The window was just slightly open so she couldn’t squeeze in. As the cat went away, she remarked, ‘Oh, the meat smelled anyway.’ ”This is a similar story for cognitive dissonance; just with the cat as the protagonist.

Here is another story. “There was a shepherd boy with a flock of sheep. He cried for help because a wolf was attacking his sheep. He tricked the villagers because in reality there weren’t any wolves attacking. He kept repeating this false cry for help several times just for fun and each time villagers came to help but realised that they were tricked again and again. Then, one day a real wolf came along and the shepherd cried for help. This time no one came to help him and the wolf took away the sheep.”

The story, told countless times around the world in schools, serves to illustrate a great concept; if you lie too often no one come to believe what you say any more. The story has become so famous that it has led to an idiomatic phrase “to cry wolf”. You can teach the lesson directly, but the story is a great tool that helps to satisfy the two critical training needs identified earlier; it makes the concept easily understood and memorable.

A very good book to read which is delivered in a story telling format is 'Who moved my cheese'

How to Make an Engaging Story There are many different ways to make stories though good stories tend to follow a familiar proven pattern. Longer stories usually follow established forms; the kind that scriptwriters use to make movies. Shorter stories may need to skip over some parts so they can be told quickly. Story making can also be applied to an entire speech. See the 6-steps procedure to writing a speech for more guidelines on this.

© How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 7

Three Ways to Obtain Buy-In State Objectives Make sure, especially during a workshop where games or humor are being used, that the value of the training is clearly stated either verbally by the trainer or written in a workbook, in a handout, or on a flip chart. Participants who do not clearly see objectives stated may put up resistance to taking part in training if they cannot recognize the value easily.

Rules The three key rules are:  Respect for others.  Having fun.  What takes place in the workshop stays in the workshop.

Preparation If you plan to have a day that flows smoothly, then you must do an excellent job of preparing your material. When a facilitator uses a fast paced game but has to frequently refer to their notes, the energy flow of the activity is interrupted, and participants may lose interest. Similarly, if you plan to use a game but forget your props or run into technical difficulty at the last second, your fun activity could turn into a flop. Prepare, prepare, prepare.

How to Tell a Good Story Once you have selected a good story or made your own story, you need to think about how you are going to deliver it.

There is indeed an art to telling stories. We know from experience that some people are simply very good at it. The best way to learn about story telling is to listen to good storytellers and spot the common pattern. Good storytelling usually has the following characteristics:

Be Highly Engaging A good story is usually told in a dramatic way. The storyteller seems to be captivated by his own story. He is eager to tell the story, not because it makes his speech look cool, but because he truly thinks this is a good story worth telling.

This comes across through his body language and tone of voice. His body language is relaxed but energetic. His tone rings with excitement. In short, a good story is an experience; make it a memorable one for your audience.

Make sure there is Build-up There is usually a build-up before the main story is told. Here are some examples: “Let me tell you a good story I learned from my father...” “Let me tell you what happened the other day when I was flying to Amsterdam...” “You won’t believe the story I am about to tell you...Listen to this…” “Let me share with you a heart-breaking experience I had when talking to one of the volunteers I worked with...” “While I was attending a conference, a gentleman, who I didn’t know at the time, came to me and told me a story that I cannot get out of my head. It changed the way I look at things and I have been thinking about it ever since. Let me share this story with you because I think everyone needs to hear about this amazing development…”

Make sure it’s Not Too Long The longer the story, the riskier it is. The more time you spend telling the story, the more your audience expects the story to be something really interesting and useful. If the concept could be explained in two sentences there is no point to spend 5 minutes telling a wonderful story about, especially if it is not that critical. Use the following rule of

© How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 8

thumb; does the concept you are going to explain deserve the amount of time you are going to spend telling a story about? If not, simplify your story or skip it altogether.

Make sure it’s Not Too Short Beware of extremely short stories. “A man crossed a road without looking sideways because he was looking at the pretty woman on the other side. He died in the ambulance. ”This story doesn’t do much. It is so short there is no room to develop it. There is no point in the story where the protagonist needs to make a life changing decision which would then lead to a climax and a consequence based on that decision. With most stories, it is this consequence and the eventual decision that teaches us something new or simply entertains us. Without this decision making, you really don’t have a story.

Make sure it is Clear A great storyteller goes through a story with just the right pace. You don’t feel you are falling behind. It is delivered in clear terms and is expressed casually and somewhat informally. Slang is used in moderation, in relation with the audience and is usually included to serve a particular purpose in the story; for example to make it funny or to indicate the class a particular character in the story belongs to.

There is Variation in the Tone of Voice A good storyteller’s tone of voice is clear but varies as the story is told. It goes down when quoting a person who is telling a secret and it goes up when reaching a climax. It imitates an accent when talking on behalf of someone else and goes back to its normal narrator accent when describing the story.

Add some Emotions Good stories usually have plenty of emotional content in them. A good storyteller doesn’t just say, “It was snowing”.

He will make it a lot more emotional and personal, “It was freezing cold. I couldn’t feel my toes. There was an eerie silence. Everywhere I looked it was white. I was scared I could not find my way out and I was sure I would be late for the meeting…”Don’t just tell them a story; paint a picture for the visuals in your group.

There Are One or More Pauses A good storyteller doesn’t tell a story from beginning to end in one go. He uses the story as an opportunity to tease you. He tells you the introductory part and then pauses to allow an emotional response. He then slowly continues to build up to the next climax and pauses again. Sometimes he slows the pace down by diving into more detail or background. Other times he quickly skips over details so he can get to the points that matter more.

There is a Clear End The end of the story comes both from the structure of the story and from the way the story is told. You can usually tell from the tone of the voice that the story is coming to an end. In contrast, a bad story finishes abruptly. You think, “Is that it?” usually followed by a thought like this, “All that for this silly punch line?”Don’t tell a story until you know it is going to be a good one, you have enough time to tell it and that you can go over it without forgetting something or missing a critical part.

© How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 9

Engaging Reluctant Participants    

Simulations and role-plays may help reluctant participants become more at ease at being part of a group, which will help to reduce barriers. Once those barriers start to come down, then energizers that are a little more movement based and fun will continue to engage the group.

You can’t coerce people to have fun. Always give trainees the opportunity to sit out of an activity that makes them uncomfortable.

If trainees see the value in the games, they will be more likely to participate.

For those who don’t like icebreakers, you may want to choose a more intellectual, low-energy game.

There is a Follow-Through Once the story is finished, there is a pause. Either the audience laughs to the punch line or there is a reflection. Either way, the storyteller allows some time for the audience to reflect on the story.In a training environment, you should lead the story to the learning points under consideration. What is the moral of the story? What would have happened if the protagonist did differently? How does the story relate to the lesson or to the audience?

Engaging Introductions In addition to storytelling you could consider other methods in keeping delegates engaged consider the following: Use engaging introductions. Just before starting each session or topic, big it up by saying how important it is. You can use dramatic titles or statements to increase curiosity. Use humour. A good training course is not just educational, it is also entertaining. Otherwise it can be very boring. To look into more strategies on engaging delegates see 10 tips on becoming an interesting trainer.

If you are interested in learning more and gaining a valid qualification, take a look at our one day course and contact us for more information.

© How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 10

Using Activities to Make Training Fun 1 day course This one-day workshop will help you teach participants how to: - Understand how training can include the use of humor and games - Use different types of games - Using story telling - Identify methods to elicit participant buy-in - Use humor principles in adult learning - Troubleshoot when games go badly - Develop their own games

Introduction and Course Overview You will spend the first part of the day getting to know participants and discussing what will take place during the workshop. Students will also have an opportunity to identify their personal learning objectives.

Let’s Have Some Fun We will begin the day with a brief review of the learning cycle and adult learning principles. We will also discuss the value of games in training. Participants will then have an opportunity to share their favorite training game.

Buy-in!

During this session, we will discuss three things that can help the participants see the value of training games. We will also discuss some great game experiences and some games that flopped, and what we can take away from these lessons.

Choosing the Right Game Preparation is key to the success of any trainer. This session will discuss some different types of games and activities.

We’ll also talk about how to deal with reluctant participants.

When Games Go Badly Despite our best intentions and planning, sometimes a game won’t work. We will discuss how to anticipate, avoid, and deal with problems.

Using Humor in Training It’s not hard to be funny; just be CREATIF! We will explore each letter of this acronym during this session.

© How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 11

Wavy Lines To break the day up and illustrate some of our key points, participants will take part in a quick, fun energizer.

Quick and Easy Games Participants will take part in three easy games that can be adapted for many situations. Then, they will discuss the games from a trainer’s perspective.

Create a Game To wrap up the day, participants will work in small groups to create their own game.

About Us What we do AVPT is the only UK Globally Accredited online and workshop based provider of over 390 Soft Skills courses using a cutting edge, proprietary online Learning Management system. The Social Enterprise ‘not for profit’ arm of our company is called ACEE. It takes an awful lot of time and effort to create a training course; Designing, researching, writing, and appropriately presenting it. Especially difficult though, even more so is the time taken to create an on-line learning system to work fluently and securely with various technologies. We know this because we have done just this.

What most people, employers, entrepreneurs and even some educational institutions do not have in today’s current environment is time the necessary resources and the infrastructure they need to support and achieve their learning objectives. Both our online and workshop based courses are a cost effective way to deliver and up-skill a wide cross section of our society. Designed to be student (user) centric and time sensitive. We believe that online courses can save time, are easily scalable, reduced acquisition costs per person, measurable, provide a flexible virtual support system, Less paper/ink (environmentally green!) and are generally less stressful owing to their user led flexibility!

It can be difficult to meet the needs of all members of society with different schedules, language & geographical demands. All our courses are ready, can be modified, whilst delivered through our up-skilling online portals or express workshops around the UK. Our objective is to utilise our expert resources to support individual study and life-long learning by bringing education directly into the hands of communities and businesses. Designed to enhance the quality and impact of teaching and the learning experience whilst users are on the move, giving them the tools and opportunity to develop their existing skills and knowledge.

© How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 12

What type of courses do we focus on?

How have we used technology?

Learning Management Solution (LMS) & Portal Hub The Academy of Vocational and Professional Training has a sophisticated LMS solution that is not built on a static system. Yet the user interface is clean, clear, accessible, and easy to understand and work through. It uses little bandwidth, making it quick to load and use, and accessible on a scalable model. Globalisation has changed the way we communicate, do business and relate to each other and technology can help to up-skill a far wider audience.

In today’s ever changing environment, the real promise experts say, is providing learning experiences that are more tailored to individual students that enables more “learning by doing,” which many students find more engaging and useful. Our ‘Chunked’ teaching approach revolutionises the learning experience.

Teaching using 21st Century pedagogy, AVPT educators must be student centric and for that reason all of our virtual teacher and workshop facilitators have been highly trained to create the most comprehensive training experience for individuals within our broader society. Effectively covering everyone’s individual learning style! Our courses will not only train them in soft skill but also help them to become technology fluent.

Our Solution allows us to achieve all of the following and more:

© How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 13

Deliver multiple accredited short soft skills courses to a wide audience throughout the UK · Update in real time any course material · Supply a branded or white label course portal Hub · Upload and integrate new course content · Upload support training media such as video, power-point, graphs and audio · Because our solution is written in HTML users can use Google translate to read there course material in their native language · Generate new courses in a matter of weeks · We have a fully interactive assessment built in to report on students’ progress and achievements · Students, Tutors and management can log in from any browsers or mobile device. · Adding new students for training can be achieved simply by activating a valid email address, password and photo.

Student Centric Training Model

ACCREDITATION & VALIDATION: Accreditation and educational quality assurance are essential factors that complete the educational ecosystem.

Regional accreditation bodies have dutifully evaluated education providers on a regional scale and granted them Primary Accreditation. However in the wake of growing globalisation for individuals to compete with their international peers, the training organisational body must be recognised as an accredited education provider on an international bases. It is imperative to create standards that are regionally and internationally recognised and accepted. It is for this reason that Academy of Vocational and Professional Training Ltd sought and attained the Full Global Accreditation to ensure that students who wanted to provide evidence of their skill around the world could truly benefit from our courses and the awarded certificate would have some true value globally

© How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 14

What is the social impact?

The importance of transferrable skills. There can be no doubt about the importance of a degree and a solid academic background but it’s not the only thing that employers will be interested in. Especially where there is strong competition for entry to a job, employers have to find a way to choose. Educators must focus on the personal qualities and skills that can be developed while studying, and acquired as information in mutual exchanges of information. In a competitive employment climate, these can be just as (or more) important to employers as a degree certificate.

Employers are looking for people with transferable skills.

These include: • Team work • Decision making • ICT skills • Problem solving • Time management • Written and spoken communication skills. They also need people with personal qualities and abilities such as: • Willingness to learn new things • Ability to work under pressure • A sense of responsibility There are lots of ways in which these skills and qualities can be imbedded into students. Writing essays, taking part in tutorials and giving presentations as part of the course can enable students to develop time management, analytical, ICT and communication skills. As a student acquires such practical skills, it tends to boost their confidence as well.

Visit AVPT Global Website! We get people qualified in days, not years, through our soft skills training courses, which are globally accredited through IAO and are available online or in workshops. All online courses are

supported with a personal tutor! © How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 15

Š How to increase the impact of training using storytelling by Diane Shawe M.Ed AVPTGLOBAL IP SARL 16