Training Session vs Instructional Plan
The terminal installation training that was performed varied the one that was planned. Although the user and installation documentation and first boot component of the training were planned for, they were not available for the session. The original documentation for the machine has been lost so had to make do with the mother board documentation to identify ports (although am rather familiar with them already). The first boot screen for the operating system would have meant a re-installation of windows, later realizing I could have established a Virtual Machine for the task. Instead I walked through the user administration functions in the control panel.
The time for each task varied greatly to what was planned. The hazards identification at the start came closer to half an hour even though the process is mostly second nature. This was not due to the trainee but more so my elaboration and rambling oppose to deliverance of concise information.
What Worked Well?
Even though some steps were slightly spoon fed to the trainee, planning the installation steps helped speed up the installation time as the trainee didn't have to refer to pages within a manual but could just tick off a checklist of steps. I figured that in a bigger and more complex installation a set of checklists for steps would be essential to ensure consistency.
The planning of each part also helped as I knew what I needed to cover and could tick it off when I believed the message had been conveyed.
What Needs To Be Improved?
The allocation and management of time. I was lucky to be training someone who could listen to long winded monologue without going stir crazy and had some prior knowledge which helped the training hasten, but if this wasn't so, i could very well have lost the trainees attention or enthusiasm.
Better preparation would have also improved the training. Doing a mock run and identifying everything is working and accounted for such as the documentation and first boot walkthough.
