The last thing that an adult student wants to hear is a bunch of I.T. jargon. If they knew what all of this meant, they probably wouldn’t need to be in the class, to begin with. Your presentation should be in plain, easy-to-understand English that taps into their life experiences. For instance, everyone can understand the concept of moving out of their home into a new one. Let’s face it, we’ve all done that at one time or another. When it comes to understanding the “Copy” or “Move” concept in Microsoft Word, however, many adults become confused.
A better way to present the information, then, would be to apply the concept to moving from one house to another. If you’re talking about the “Move” operation, for instance, you can explain it in terms of moving from an apartment into their first new home – they remove all of their belongings from one place and physically transfer them to the new location. They still only live in one location, albeit a new one. That, in essence, is how the “Move” operation functions.
In order to explain the “Copy” operation, you might use a similar comparison. Propose the idea of buying a cabin on the lake in a nearby state, while continuing to maintain their residence in the current location. In effect, they exist in both places, but their “original” home is still where it always was. It’s just that they now have a “copy” of their living environment, as well, so that they have homes in both places. This, then, is the concept behind the “Copy” operation – the original is where it always was, but there’s now a duplicate somewhere else.
If your plan is to stand up in front of the class and read from a textbook, then pack your briefcase and go home. This is the worst possible presentation technique that has ever darkened a classroom’s doorway, and most adults will turn you off almost immediately. Drop the textbook – you should know the material without having to read it, anyway – and become actively involved in the class. It’s just as important for the trainer to participate as it is for the students to do so. In fact, they’re far more inclined to respond to someone who’s animated than to a trainer who stands stock-still reading from a book. Keep moving, stay within their line of vision, love what you’re doing – and let it show.
Do your best to draw the participants into what’s being presented. Encourage questions and/or insights, and be prepared to explain things in more than one way, since this is often necessary. People perceive things differently and, since there will be a variety of age groups present, some may be more familiar with the concepts than others, and patience will be needed in order to get the information across effectively to such a diverse group.
If the class is going to be lengthy - 90 minutes or longer - plan to take a short break every 45 minutes. It can get fairly uncomfortable to sit on a hard classroom chair for any longer than that, and this will also give them the opportunity to use the restroom or grab a quick refreshment, if necessary. Just be sure that no food or drink comes back into the classroom at the end of the intermission. Not only will this distract them from what’s being presented, but it could be hazardous to computerized equipment, as well.