A wide variety of available training methods will be used during any one year, depending upon the topics being covered.
Orientation: It is the method where the training begins as soon as a new employee is recruited. It should be started by giving the new worker the center’s employee hand book followed by answering the questions raised by the recruitee. It also includes taking the new recruitee to work site. For example: Take them to class room and show where the materials are and how to operate the equipment and also introducing to other staff members.
Mentoring: A mentor is one who serves as a trusted counselor helping a teacher to perform the duties more effectively. Mentoring helps the new teachers to improve their teaching skills.
Team teaching: In this method, two teachers work closely together as equal partners and they should function as a team with common aims. Each learns from the others as they come to recognize their own strengths and weakness.
College and university classes: College and universities offer another source for training staff. The advantage of using this source is that the courses are often taught by well qualified persons with wide experience. In addition, other students from varied backgrounds offer stimulus for learning.
Staff meetings: It facilitates for all staff members to communicate with one another. This can be a fruitful time to clarify issues and brainstorming problems. In order to be effective the entrepreneur must create a climate in which each person’s ideas and opinions are valued.
Portfolio: It is written document of what teachers do, where they do it and how it related to competency as a professional. Portfolios are used as a self – study vehicle and is the basis of discussions between teachers and supervisors.
Workshops: A workshop is sometimes called a “hands on experience”. Participants get actively involved in doing or in making something to broaden their practical skills. In a workshop teachers can learn songs, make curriculum materials and practice reading or telling stories.
Group discussions: Group discussions are one of the effective ways to help adults learn. The advantages of this format are that whole staff can be included both teaching and non-teaching.
Role playing: Role playing is a drama in which the participants put themselves in to a designated situation. It is an informal type of meeting and is an excellent tool for resolving interaction problems between adults. Several participants act out the problem or situation. The audience watches, listens and then discusses what happened.
Exchange observations: Exchanging observations between teachers with in the school is another way of encouraging new ideas. By mutual agreement two teachers observe each other in the class room. After the visits they meet to discuss their observations.
Films, slides and tapes: Use of audio visual materials is another strategy used in staff training. The entrepreneur can use public libraries for getting the required material and can allot some money in the yearly budget for renting or purchasing the audio visual materials.
Field Trips: The entrepreneur can help broaden the staff’s learning by arranging field trips. Visit to other schools always gives teachers new ideas for curriculum or arranging their environment.
Guest Speakers: The entrepreneur should invite guest speakers to address the staff on various trends and issues in child development. The lecture should be followed by questions and answer session where the teachers are encouraged to ask questions and get clarifications from the guest speaker. Later the entrepreneur should have follow up with the staff to know about possibility of implementing new ideas gained in class room situations.
Professional meetings: The entrepreneur should encourage the staff to attend meetings and conferences of professional organizations. This type of meetings provides a wide variety of speakers, workshops and displays from which teachers can learn. They may get the opportunity to know about various publications on early childhood development and education also.
Reading: Providing books, pamphlets and magazines related to early childhood development and education, teaching methods, parenting techniques etc. to the teachers will help them develop skills for teaching.
Last modified: Saturday, 25 February 2012, 10:49 AM
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