Active Training

When the first edition of Active Training was published in 1990, there was an emerging awareness that adults learn best by engaging actively with what they are learning. Since then, new research and evidence from practice has only continued to strengthen this core fact about adult education. There is every indication that learning by doing the active approach is crucial if we as trainers want our courses to make a lasting impact. Therefore, it is unsurprising that Mel Silberman's classic Active Training has become one of the most widely used and deeply trusted training methodologies in existence. In this fourth edition, Mel Silberman, along with coauthors Elaine Biech and Carol Auerbach, preserve the heart of the active instruction with the detailed, example-based style that trainers and training leaders have appreciated for decades, adapted for the present-day. Originally, Active Training emphasized face-to-face, instructor-led programs in which learners could interact directly with one another and with the trainer. From a trainer's perspective, this kind of hands-on learning might still be the ideal; however, the reality of today is that we are often challenged to take learning out of the classroom and onto devices. New virtual classes, m-learning apps, and other emerging technologies present opportunities for the training field, but can present challenges for the design of engaging activities. This new edition of Active Training tackles mobile learning and social media effortlessly, proving that the classic learn-by-doing method can carry forward and adapt to new realities. By measuring return on expectations using the Active Training method, trainers will be able to demonstrate the impact of their efforts no matter what form those efforts take. In business environments, new realities extend beyond technological change. With a workforce that spans four generations and is increasingly globalized, adult educators must consider a host of factors that were once unproblematic. When we combine these facts with tightening budgets, we find that trainers must adapt to new roles like vendor management and coaching, constantly doing more with less all while continuing to engage learners. Thankfully, this edition adds ideas for handling each of these situations using the same time-tested principles that have helped Active Training remain as the preeminent teaching methodology for decades.