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I just conducted an in-person training as an outside consultant at a museum yesterday and I'd like to share my experience with you because I learned a lot.
The museum was open but we held the training after hours. I asked that the training be outdoors and my hosts were able to accommodate that. Unfortunately we did not come up with a rain plan and guess what? it rained!
Lesson number one: make a rain plan. Thankfully this museum had a couple outdoor areas that were covered and we were able to quickly change locations. This did mean that the chairs had to be closer together to fit under the roof.
I always ask for amplification but was especially adamant I be amplified for an outdoor training with people spread out. They had a great portable speaker with microphone however there were no bleach wipes and the microphone couldn't pick up my voice from behind my cloth mask.
Lesson number two: a plastic face shield would have allowed for me to speak into the microphone while covered. Bleach wipes would have been helpful for sterilizing the microphone.
A supervisor was casually explaining the mask policy as folks trickled in. Some participants were lifting their masks to snack and wearing them incorrectly (chip strap, nose overhang, you know). I was put in the very uncomfortable position of telling individuals to mask up.
Lesson number three: agree on the safety rules ahead of time and if you are hosting, take charge of articulating them confidently and clearly and please don't let the responsibility fall on the guest speaker to enforce those rules.
Participants wanted to eat and drink during my training. I don't blame them - they were coming straight from another training, it was 5pm, and they had not been given a break.
Lesson four: acknowledge we're asking a lot from participants and build in the time for them to take care of their needs before and after the training. I made an announcement that if they needed a snack or mask off time they could go do that whenever and I would not be offended.
I'm conclusion, we were able to create a relatively low-risk in-person training scenario and everyone did their best in challenging circumstances.
That said, it was stressful and awkward. I couldn't facilitate dialogue or show slides which I could have if we'd hosted online.
That said, it was stressful and awkward. I couldn't facilitate dialogue or show slides which I could have if we'd hosted online.
In-person trainings are more engaging and they don't require participants to have/use computers. But right now, necessary safety precautions undermine the benefits of in-person facilitation. I don't plan to conduct any more in-person trainings for the foreseeable future.
