It finally happened: I attended a bad firearms training class. I don’t have the deepest training resume, but I have trained with quite a few national-level trainers. Though I once wrote a couple scathing reviews of a local concealed carry class, most of my class AARs are glowing; I love training and it’s not hard to make me happy. Here is what happened at the worst firearms training class I have ever attended.
Ending the Class: Issuing Student Certificates
I attend a lot of training. The learning is its own reward, but there’s more. As someone who spent a decade as a full-time instructor, I enjoy seeing how other instructors do things. I have written before about opening a class with instructor introductions (and a bunch of other observations). Though I haven’t taught professionally in a while, I can offer the view from the other side of the podium, as a student. Today I’m going to talk about something that I think is important: closing the class with student certificates.
Opening the Class: Instructor Introductions
I have written previously that an instructor should be able to give an introduction in no more than 90 seconds. This was in response to some (too) long instructor introductions that went into way too much detail. I have recently come to realize the opposite is true – it is possible to give way too little detail. This article is a guide to effective instructor introductions that give students everything they need and nothing they don’t.
Before the Class: Student Gear Lists
I attend a lot of training and get to see a lot of student gear lists. I have some thoughts on these lists for all the instructors out there. The ideas here apply regardless of what you are teaching, from a close-quarters gunfighting course to a photography seminar to a sushi-rolling class. Short story: keep your student gear lists updated, simple, and clear.
ATP Podcast 041 – How to Teach a Class
Welcome back to the Across The Peak Podcast, the show Where Rich and Justin discuss preparedness, the birds and the bees, guns, history, tattoos, and… well, basically all the stuff your old man shoulda taught you! After a four-year silence we are re-releasing the ATP archive, including this never-before-aired episode: Across The Peak Episode 041: How to Teach a Class. This show was supposed to air on 04/03/2019, but it was never edited and never listened to (even by us), so you’re hearing it for the first time!
Time Management for Instructors
I would like to pose question to my instructor friends out there: why do you teach? I hope the answer is something along the lines of, “to provide my students with valuable information.” Poor time management can completely interrupt the learning process. I’ve written about respecting students’ time before. Today I’m going to delve deeper into the idea of time management for instructors, using a bad example.
Even More Instructorship Lessons
I recently mentioned attending some outdoor Search & Rescue training. The class wasn’t bad but there was definitely some poor instructor behavior. I’ll be honest, I thought I had seen it all until began attending public safety training. Here are a few instructorship lessons that may help make your classes better.
Instructor 101: Answering Student Questions
I have attended a number of classes in which instructors struggle when answering student questions. The problem isn’t a lack of knowledge; the instructors generally know the answer. The problem is they don’t know how to systematically provide the answer to the class. I hope this tutorial on answering student questions helps a few instructors out there.
Instructor’s Guide to Using PowerPoint Well
We are all familiar with the term, “Death by PowerPoint” and for good reason. Poorly designed and poorly presented PowerPoint presentations can suck the life out of the most dedicated student. PowerPoint is one of the most misused and misunderstood instructional tools out there. It’s really fun to bash PowerPoint; it’s much less popular to admit it can be a highly effective instructional tool if used well. Here I offer you a guide to using PowerPoint well.
Instructor 101: The Basics
I wrote “Lessons Learned as a Professional Instructor” over three years ago. It is still one of my favorite things I have ever written. I wrote it at a time when I made my living surrounded by other professional instructors. At the time I was burdened with the idea that all instructors possessed some level of professionalism and pride in their craft. The paramedic class I have almost finished has taught me this is not the case. Here are some basic recommendations for running a high-value class.