Women have been, for years, better than men in a lot of areas.  Women are better at meeting the needs of those around them.  Women are better at nurturing.  Women are more compassionate.  Women are better at multi-tasking.  Women are better at reading and following directions.  Women are better at asking for help when they need it.  And now, based on various sources, we can say that women, in general, make better leaders than men in the field of training and learning management. 
    Historically, women who wanted to succeed in the business world had to adopt certain masculine characteristics in order to be taken seriously.  Now, women are gaining ground in the office hierarchy based on the inherent qualities that make them definitively female.  These typically feminine qualities are now being seen as beneficial, even desirable, traits that were once thought of as weak and inappropriate for the business world.   
    You may think that women are emerging on to the corporate training scene without much experience, but you’d be wrong!  Women have been in the business of training for thousands of years, literally.  If you look back to the Garden of Eden, Eve was the first “training executive” in existence.  She scoped out the scene, listened to the chatter, made a decision, and then persuaded Adam to follow suit.  She trained Adam. 
     As the family unit continued to grow, women became chief training officers by default.  It was the woman’s responsibility to educate the children, teach them manners, and train them to complete various chores, all while she maintained order in the house, grew the garden, did the mending, the wash and more.  These traits that a woman historically used to keep her family together, are now being used to unify and solidify the workplace and it’s functions.  Dr. Kanyoro of the YWCA has this to say about women in leadership:
    Domination as a leadership style is becoming less and less popular. There is a new growing appreciation of...those traits that women use to keep families together and to organize volunteers to unite and make change in the shared life of communities. These newly admired leadership qualities of shared leadership; nurturance and doing good for others are today not only sought after but also indeed needed to make a difference in the world....A feminine way of leading includes helping the world to understand and be principled about values that really matter.     
    In the business world we are seeing a paradigm shift from the male dominated, hierarchical structure to a micro-community of idea-sharing within the office environment.  No longer is the CEO’s M.O. “to the top no matter what” or “looking out for number 1”.  Today’s business leader is expected to nurture and encourage, team-build and even sacrifice for the benefit of the whole.  An article in the Washington Post (8/10/2011) titled “What Men Can Learn From Women About Leadership” points to some recent studies that suggest women are more adept at reading all sorts of social interactions and situations including those in an office setting.  An article in BusinessWeek indicates that women are actually performing on a higher level in most business settings than their male counterparts. 
     History and the research seem to indicate that women make better leaders.  From that one can draw the conclusion that women make better trainers, too.  When you consider what is involved in the training process, i.e. lots of personal interactions, dissemination and distribution of new information, keeping abreast of training innovations, sensitivity to the learners needs, etc., it’s not hard to see why women are excelling in this area.  While the male perspective is certainly useful, even needed, in some areas, this is no longer one of them.

As we've been looking at the characteristics of a good teacher or educator, I've realized that these individuals often share similar roles in addition to similar qualities.   One of those roles is that of advocate.  All good educators are advocates for their students.  They will argue and fight on behalf of their students, even when the students know nothing of it.  An advocate not only identifies the rights and needs of their students but they are also willing to put the energy and effort into defending them.

Teachers in the school system advocate for their students in myriad ways.  They fight local governments for better education funding, they go to battle with the state departments over unfair or unrealistic testing expectations, and they advocate within the school for programs that they believe will enhance learning.  Educators in other realms advocate for their students, too.  They present data on how training programs benefit the individual and the bottom line.  

Being an advocate isn't so much about a character trait as it is about realizing a responsibility that is inherent to this particular position.  Teachers who deny this responsibility are probably lacking in several of the other traits that make a good teacher.  Being a teacher who is also an advocate for their students is a time consuming practice but it is essential.

"Bueller."  "Bueller."  You've probably seen the clip I've referenced here.  A teacher in monotone calls roll, teaches class, and dismisses students without ever looking up.  Test time comes and they are virtually word-for-word from the lecture notes (where at least half of the class was asleep).  The problem isn't that the teacher doesn't know his/her stuff, it's that they offer no personality or life to their classroom.

I had a prof like this one in college for European History. He was extremely knowledgeable.  Some days I wondered if he had actually lived through Charlemagne's rule.  Some of the things he talked about were fascinating but I couldn't get passed the monotone, no-personality, lecture and listen style approach.  I fell asleep nearly every day.  Needless to say, I didn't do so well in that class.

I'll take some of the blame for that, but not all of it.  This prof was severely lacking in a vital area.  Personality.  He either had none or decided not to share it with his students.  That is a fatal mistake.  Students are looking for you to inject a little bit of life into what might be and otherwise boring topic.  Discussing the finer points of the subjunctive mood?  Great!  Be excited, use your hands to talk, tell jokes about how you learned, and in general, have fun with what you are teaching. 

The best teacher in the world is no good to anyone if s/he can't seem to make it to class.  Teachers who are effective are also present and accounted for on a regular basis.  The best educators can be counted on by their students and by the other faculty, too.  

Great lesson plans are no use to a substitute or a cancelled class.  Great lesson plans are useless when they are not followed up on the next day and the next day.  Teachers must make every effort to be in their classrooms or with their students.  

With that said, the best teacher in the world can't teach students who don't show up.  Students must make every effort to be in class so that they may absorb all that the educators have to offer.  

"Being there" is often overlooked but essential to the successful educator.

It might seem a bit unusual to have trust listed as a trait necessary for teachers to possess but it is essential to the success of the classroom setting.  Educators must be trustworthy in the eyes and minds of their students whether you are teaching a four-year old in preschool or a forty-year old in night school.  You may think that trust is something reserved for relationships, like friends, couples, families, etc., but teaching and learning create a unique relationship that requires trust at its foundation.

Educators must be worthy of their student's trust.  They can achieve this by being consistent in their teaching and classroom management style but also in their out-of-class life style, too.  Students who observe contradictory behavior are less likely to believe and adhere to the teaching of the one who seems at odds with themselves.  For example, the nutritionist who teaches student to maintain a balanced diet for myriad reasons and who also maintains a healthy weight and diet will be trusted.  However, the nutritionist who is seen in the snack room eating cheese balls and drinking soda before each class is likely to earn disdain, not trust.  

Trust is essential.  It doesn't happen overnight but it is worth the wait.  Students who trust their educator are more likely to want to learn from them.

Another rather obvious trait for a good teacher is knowledge.  Teachers need to have a thorough knowledge of the subject they are teaching.  That is not to say that they must be experts in the field but rather that their knowledge of the material is extensive enough to approach to topic from a variety of angles in order to pass that information on effectively.  

But more than just mere knowledge, a teacher needs know-how.  He or she must be able, not just to talk about the material but, to put it into practice.  In other words, teachers must be able to use what they know.  Philosophical discussions are great but if you are supposed to be teaching then your students must be able to do more than just theorize about the topic.

Teachers that lack these two traits also lack something else, students who are engaged.  As soon as the first kids asks a question that the teacher can't answer, the group is lost.  Teachers must know their material, and know it well.

All good teachers ought to have a passion not only for what they are teaching, but also for who they are teaching.  Passion is a motivating factor for the one who possesses it, but it is also a contagious source of momentum for those who are exposed to it.  Is teaching possible without passion?  Yes.  Is it enjoyable? No.  Neither student nor teacher will enjoy their experience if the teacher lacks passion for either their audience or their material.

I could never, ever teach a math class.  There is absolutely no passion in any fiber of my being towards math.  Languages, on the other hand, fascinate me.  I love to explore different languages and the different ways people communicate.  Even when I was faced with teaching languages I didn't know, I enjoyed the experience.  (Not sure the students learned so much, since I was learning for the first time, too.)  I am passionate about languages.  Folks who are passionate about their subject often burn out or "bore" out.  

While I happen to enjoy most stages and ages of life, I am not passionate about the middle school age group.  I would prefer to work with high school aged students.  Teachers who love middle school aged students, love teaching middle school aged students.  They enjoy all the things that come with that territory while others would rather poke their eyes out.  You need to be passionate about the type of audience that will be staring you in the face day after day.

Passion is an essential quality for a good teacher to possess.

There is much debate over what constitutes a good teacher and how to calculate that measure of "goodness".  Some recommend looking at student's test scores.  Others suggest peer evaluation.  Still others recommend a "laissez-faire" approach that gives the teacher free reign so long as no one complains.  Perhaps it is important, first of all, to identify what a teacher's responsibility is.  Do we expect them to produce students who can fill in all the correct bubbles on an answer sheet, do we expect them to teach their students a set of skills, or do we expect them to produce philosophers and thinkers?

After defining the desired outcome, you can begin to identify the characteristics that will lead to that end.  You will find, no matter which outcome you desire, that all educators ought to possess certain traits, or at least strive to possess them.  

We will attempt to identify and describe those traits over the next several weeks.  

A New York Times article chronicles the fate of those public figures who have been found guilty of plagiarism.  The article talks about the many high-profile students and former students who have used literary works or parts of them as their own words.  It also discusses the cultural differences that may contribute to the frequency and/or understanding of the crime.  

As an educator, this issue is one of importance that needs to be addressed at an early age.  Young children can understand that stealing is wrong, even stealing words.  But it is also up to those educators to be diligent to follow up on suspected plagiarism.  As papers come across your desk, you must be willing to evaluate them with a critical eye to make a determination as to whether or not the work is original.

Educators need to facilitate original thinking.  This is the first step to combat the plagiarist mentality.  The trend of standardized tests, where everything looks the same and sounds the same, does not encourage creative thinking.  So educators must go the extra mile, encouraging at every opportunity for the students to think for themselves and for that thinking to be validated and not compared to others as being insufficient.  

In short, we need to teach our kids to think for themselves so that they won't be tempted to let someone else do it for them.

This is a great time to consider how effectively and efficiently your business is running.  Take a few moments to evaluate the amount of training/education needs that exist, the correspondence that accompanies it and the organization and scheduling of it.  Are you spending vital time keeping up with these details?  Have you considered that training should be a benefit to your company and not a burden?  

Now is a great time to consider investing in a learning management system that can meet your needs.  TrainingForce is a LMS that works for you.  TrainingForce is a  fast, affordable, and flexible system that can improve the way you manage learning and training.  It is designed to fit the needs of large companies and small businesses.  It is cost effective and customizable.  TrainingForce has been around for more than a decade and brings that experience and expertise to you.

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