The
Daily Herald, Arlington Heights, IL have just completed
a survey regarding training in their newsroom. It
is far from scientific, but worked, generally, for
them, says Jim
Slusher, Assistant Managing Editor/Staff Development
at The Daily Herald.
|
|
Jim
has some suggestions for things to do differently:
1.
If evaluating past training, don't enumerate "things you've
learned this year." You'll get all kinds of duplication in
different order.
2.
Similarly, don't enumerate "topics you want training in."
Just ask them to list them.
3.
Open-ended questions were valuable for us in getting certain
types of feedback. One thing I wish we'd done better would
have been to link certain types of comments either to the
staff member's job, location or location. Using Excel, we
were able to do some valuable cross referencing in many areas,
but missed some opportunities. We found, for example, that
many people wanted more technology training, but we weren't
able to easily determine whether it is a more dominant issue
for one group or another.
|
|
A Survey on Daily
Herald In-house Training
Please list three
concepts or skills you gained or strengthened as a result of one or more
of this year's monthly training workshops:
1.
2.
3.
Please list three
concepts or skills you would like training in 2001 to address:
1.
2.
3.
Where do you work?
Arlington Heights Bureau
outside Arlington Heights
What is your position?
|
Top
Manager
|
Supervisor
|
Copy
Editor
|
Photographer
|
Reporter
|
Artist
|
Edit
Asst/CNC
|
Please rate the
following aspects of the 2000 Newsroom Training Program based on your
overall assessment of the sessions, using
A= Excellent; B = Good; C = Neutral; D = Poor; F = Failing.
For any items you rate C or below, please provide some brief explanation
in the space below each category.
|
Courses
|
A
|
B
|
C
|
D
|
F
|
|
Handout materials
helped reinforce what I learned.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Practice activities
were used appropriately to reinforce learning.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The pace and
length of the courses were appropriate to the material covered.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The size of
my training group is appropriate
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The makeup of
my training group is appropriate; that is, the skills, needs and
interests of the other people in my group are generally the same
as mine.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Comments
about course outlines:
Which
courses were designed MOST EFFECTIVELY?
Which
courses were designed LEAST EFFECTIVELY?
|
Value
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The skills covered
in the workshops are important in my current job.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The course content
met my expectations.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Attending course
sessions was a worthwhile investment of my time.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Comments
about value of the workshops:
Which
workshops did you find MOST valuable?
Which
workshops did you find LEAST valuable?
|
Instructor
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The instructors
presented the information in a manner that was clear and easy for
me to follow.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The instructors
were effective at answering questions.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The instructors
used class time effectively.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Comments
about instructor(s):
Which
instructors were MOST EFFECTIVE in presenting material? (Please explain
why.)
Which
instructors were LEAST EFFECTIVE in presenting material? (Please explain
why.)
General
questions about training and coaching
For
in-house workshops, I would prefer:
a.
monthly one-hour programs
b.
quarterly programs of up to four hours
If
hourlong programs are continued monthly, the time that works best for
me is:
Please
rank the following activities showing how you think the department's training
resources for in-house programs would be best used in 2001, with 1 being
your highest priority.
| |
By
concentrating on improving the in-house workshops
|
| |
By
concentrating on improving Jim Slusher's role as a writing and quality
coach
|
| |
By
concentrating on improving my supervisor's ability to help me improve
|
| |
By
developing mentor relationships within my area of focus
|
| |
Other
|
One
of Jim Slusher's responsibilities is to serve as a quality and writing
coach. If you have not used him or thought of him in this role, please
identify one or more of the following reasons. If more than one reason
applies and priority is important to you, please rank the reasons numerically,
with "1" representing your strongest reason.
| |
I
didn't know this was his role
|
| |
I
don't think he has the skill or understanding of my job to effectively
coach me
|
| |
I would feel
more comfortable with a coach who seems less involved in newsroom
management
|
| |
Jim
seems too busy to take time for me
|
| |
I
have sought feedback from him, but have not received it
|
| |
I
have received feedback from him but did not find it valuable
|
| |
Not
an issue: I have received feedback from him and benefited from it.
|
| |
Other
|
We
welcome any other comments you have for improving in-house training in
the newsroom:
|