ExchangeEveryDay Past Issues

I'm always intrigued by individual definitions of words and how much emphasis we put on our own interpretation. For me, as both a trainer and a participant, if the training isn't fun I'm very likely not learning or not being successful as a trainer. However, that doesn't mean that I equate fun with fluff. Fun activities are related to the content, help participants understand a concept, or challenge participants to think in new ways. I remember many years ago when a colleague was distressed about an evaluation of her training that complained about the "games" that were played. She asked me if I had any insight and we discussed her reasons for including those specific activities. It took us breaking the training into parts and looking at the games she had played for her to realize that they had no connection with the content. It takes a skilled trainer to be able to incorporate fun in a meaningful way so that participants recognize it is more than just playing - they're practicing or activating prior learning so that new material can be incorporated. Not everyone is successful in using fun in their training but when it's done with intentionality it's very successful - just like anything that is done for a specific purpose.

I think fun can be meaningful and be reminded of the lessons that stuck with you the most. They were the ones that you FELT good about or FELT most challenged

Judy Metzger

I too was put off by the word fun. I like words like interesting, thought-provoking, satisfying. Education doesn't have to entertain - adults don't need entertainment in the name of training and they shouldn't get the message that kids need entertaining either - they get much too much of that already - starting at birth. Involvement is a better goal.

I was pleased to see a follow up article!

We realised that every culture has a stock of indegenous stimulation material and practices. So we decided to involve the community elders to work side by side with our teachers trainees to create indegenous play materials and explain the use. They also explain ideas used to instill discipline in a playway style.

I think there is a difference between learning regulations and office locations vs. reflecting on practice and delving deeper into our work. In a perfect, well funded professional development program, the power of multi-day or retreat type settings are most powerful. Building relationships with a community of practice, modeling behaviors and values we want to see in our workplace can make a huge difference in the lasting results of this model of training.

Ellen Brosbe
Bureau of Jewish Education
San Francisco