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We are ready for departure!
We have no direct contact with our participants, so we have to find ways to be closer to them.
Our participants can be very different from one another. How can we still manage to offer content that fits exactly to our participants?
Ready for a test? Do you know your target group?
What motivates them? How can their motivation be addressed?
What is the average age of the target group? Some older people, e.g., may need advice on how to handle the technology.
Are they native speakers? If not, using simple language and explaining unfamiliar terms is all the more important.
What is the cultural background of the target group? This issue can play a role in the search for appropriate examples and also if humor is used.
What are the characteristics of the specific subject area? For example, color codes may predominate in different disciplines, and specific abbreviations, symbols, and procedures may be established in a specific field.
How to adapt the content to the target group
How to adapt the content to the target group
Beginners
Beginners
Refer to everyday knowledge at the beginning.
Use more extensive explanations.
Explain the basics even though some participants may already have some basic knowledge.
Make sure that technical terms are sufficiently explained.
Advanced
Advanced
Start with addressing the previous knowledge.
The explanations should be short and to the point, not long-winded.
The content should serve in particular to prepare for the examination (i.e. highlighting facts relevant to the examination, in a concise manner).
References to previous lectures can help in the case of knowledge gaps.
Mind the gap!
Just think of a course that is perfect for you personally. What would distinguish it from less appropriate courses?
Characteristics of a great participant approach:
Motivating
Interacting and activating
Inspiring to think along with
Possibilities of activation and memory techniques (particularly for beginners/learning lectures):
Actively ask questions of the participants and invite them to rethink some things by themselves.
Separate exercises from lectures within a course.
Have the exercises section include test questions and the solutions explained by the lecturer.
Involving participants with little tasks in between, such as:
Finding the difference
Covering sections and asking participants to remember what was there
Asking participants to put something in the right order
Asking participants to find examples
Etc.
Mind the gap!
When tasks are set or questions asked, it is especially important to know the target group and not to set tasks that are too easy or too difficult.
Do:
An introduction such as this one makes people think and be curious. If you encourage participants to first think about the topic themselves, they will be able to remember what they have learned and explain it better afterward.
Do:
Instead of an overview, you can also start by asking questions. The advantage of this approach is that existing previous knowledge is activated, and new content is then better linked and thus learned.
Do:
Posing central questions from the presentation can sometimes be more effective than providing a summary. A summary might only be perceived in ‘standby mode’.
Do:
An example such as this one should be followed by another task for practice. Sometimes it is useful to offer different levels of difficulty.
Do:
Questions and tasks can be designed in different ways. It is important that they be moderated well by the lecturer.
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