Shai Segal and Clay Calvert (MetroStar Systems Instructors)

My group (MetroStar Systems’ Education and Training Division) recently performed our first training class for the Marine Corps. Luckily we weren’t just a group; we were a team, in all sense of the word. For the past 18 months we’ve been researching, learning, and compiling training material on a huge amount of topics; and we boiled it down to 3 weeks of intense training. This course taught the Marines how to setup, configure, manage, and repair a portable, virtualized, SharePoint network unit. This unit is called a Tactical Collaborative Work Suite, or TCWS.  Our course topics included:

• The Marines’ custom TCWS hardware
• Use and manage Storage Area Networks
• Administer VMware
• Install and manage Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007
• Keep SQL Server 2005 running
• Configure Jabber XCP Server
• Use and manage Adobe Connect sessions
• Administer CommVault backups
• Manage Infonic replication
• and many more…

Thankfully I did not have to research or teach all this by myself. Our team worked together and gathered information according to our specialties, and brought it all together in a single cohesive three week package. Over the duration our objectives changed many times; software was upgraded, features were added, and lesson topics were changed. I always knew my teammates had my back and were there to assist in any way I needed, as I was for them.

We worked, supported, and assisted each other through the entire process. Our short term goals and team members changed often over time, but our mission never did; compose the best course for customer’s consumption. And boy did they feast!

My future posts will describe some of our challenges, and how we adapted and overcame them.

When an instructor faces a room of students, we seem to stand alone. When all goes well we’re the Rock Star!. But when all goes wrong ours is the only face people see. Many instructors get the blame when events beyond our control happen: technicians setup a room wrong, the systems crashed, books never arrived, course ware contained several major errors, etc…

These events cause many instructors to receive complaints they couldn’t effect at one time or another. Here are a few:

• Instructor didn’t know what he was doing…
• Systems kept crashing and teacher couldn’t fix it
• Nothing worked, instructor was [no good]
• Presenter couldn’t control the room
• Class was too fast (and in the same class, “Class was too slow”)

But we often forget the instructor is not alone. Many people helped us earn that place in front of the room; the technicians who set up and maintain the equipment, the administrator who orders and delivers our course ware, the manager who gives us the required time to study and prep for courses and certifications, our coworkers and peers who help with difficult concepts and share great analogies, the sales people who sell our services and keeps our paychecks coming in, and so on.

We instructors do stand alone, but we are not by ourselves. It would be nice if customers acknowledge those others who control events beyond the instructors’ control, but it would also be good for us instructors to remember all the people who helped make a class possible when things go great, as well as when things go wrong. Pay back does happen; I’d rather receive a dividend than a loss!

Many instructors have different teaching styles. Most use some humor to alleviate participant’s tension while other instructors have a drier, more serious style. Humor can be a powerful but dangerous instruction tool. Participants are nervous and stressed entering a class for several reasons:

1. They are admitting they don’t know something.
2. They are admitting someone knows more than they do.
3. Their job is on the line.

And the big one…

1. They may have to speak in front of others in the class!

I use more humor than some, so I try to pick safe targets; namely myself. I dislike others laughing at me as much as anyone else, but I revel when others laugh with me. This tells me they’re relaxed and comfortable in my presence and that I can do my job. I am not a serious person and my students learn that early in my introduction: “I’m originally from New York City, so I apologize if at all necessary.” I usually get chuckles from the participants. Occasionally someone asks, “Why do you need to apologize?”, and I reply with a smile, “New Yorkers have the reputation of being rude, arrogant, and obnoxious. In my case two out of three’s not bad, so you all can take your pick.” I do recall one instance a fellow New Yorker shouted out “You’ve got nuttin to apologize for! They don’t like it, tough!” Sometimes the humor finds you.