Learner Contracts -

Getting Participants to commit to the course

It is important that learners understand the commitment needed from both sides (trainer & learners) during training.

This can be addressed by first telling participants of what you, the trainer, commit to do for them and the course. This could include points such as:

• Preparing interesting and relevant lessons which address both their direct and indirect needs.
• Direct needs are the ones they know about and subjects they wish to cover.
• Indirect needs are the one they are not aware of, but you as their trainer have identified.
• You will keep them informed of their progress through feedback, regular revision exercises, and using various correction techniques.
• Keep contact channels open and be approachable outside of training for queries / to pass on info to participants who missed a lesson. (e.g. via email)
• And so on…

At this point you should get a commitment from participants regarding their participation in training. Ask them to think about and commit to things such as:

• Homework
• Contacting you (or other participants) to find out missed content / homework if a lesson is missed.
• Preparing for each lesson (homework)
• Punctuality
• No German usage in training
• Practicing in their free time, e.g. books, internet, DVDs, etc.

If participants are lacking free time try suggesting they use their ‘dead time’ more effectively – e.g. listen to podcasts while driving to/from work, set their home internet Start Page to an English site (e.g. reuters.com), and other such ideas.

Trainers should make a note of the level of commitment each group is prepared to give to the course and repeat it to them during the course if commitment and/or motivation fade.

Merely participating in the lessons is not enough to ensure effective progress.

This commitment should also be addressed during the mid-term feedback session.