Certification - July 2008 - (Page 31)

and dry. Or they may have verbal skills, but do not have the background and knowledge when faced with questions outside the realm of the textbook. IT trainers have to be able to cater to the different skill levels they encounter and find an acceptable medium between each end of the skill level present. An acceptable medium is one that everyone will find useful, interesting and, occasionally, entertaining. You do not want, at the end of the course, the entry-level people saying they couldn’t understand and the seasoned professionals saying they found it uninteresting and boring. the private training companies, as they’ll most likely be dealing with a lot of businesses, both private organizations and government agencies. However, if you don’t already have at least two years of experience providing training, private training companies will either not want you or offer you a trainee position at a fraction of the salary that a seasoned trainer would earn. There is the option of approaching educational institutes — universities, colleges, schools — to be employed as an unqualified lecturer. Educational institutes normally offer better training opportunities, such as recognized trainer certifications, and you can train up to qualified teacher status. Getting Started A journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step, and so will this one. The first step for an IT trainer is to know the subject. This is a broad statement, as it covers experience, research and opportunity, and that’s just to get the background you’ll need to be successful. Prior experience can provide a wealth of knowledge for students. Not only will you get them asking about materials on the course, but they will also ask why, how and when you would use them in the real world. In researching your subject, there will be times when you will have to teach with only theory instead of experience, or a combination of the two. No one will have experience with every form of technology in the world. That’s just impossible — there’s too much out there. However, by doing some research, you’ll be able to cover the basics of what’s needed. Opportunities to do so can come in all shapes and sizes, from your own experience to signing up for newsletters from companies such as Adobe, Microsoft, CompTIA and Cisco, as they will inform you of what e-learning, exams and books are available, as well as beta programs being introduced. Provided you adhere to the nondisclosure agreements of the beta programs, they will give you insight on new material that you can use and pull from when you’re in front of the class. There are several ways to make that final step in crossing over into the training field. You can approach private training companies, contact local educational institutes or even start up your own independent training company. Generally speaking, you’ll earn more with Trainer Beneﬁts So what are the benefits of working as an IT trainer? First of all, it’s a way to stay in the IT arena without working directly in IT. Think of it as no more working to improve and maintain the infrastructure, no more working all hours when a critical server goes down and no more dealing with those help-desk calls that are for the PC that would not boot up because the person on the other end of the line hasn’t plugged it in. We’ve all experienced those calls. You could be a person who wants to top up his or her salary and provide training in the evenings. This is a popular option for IT professionals. Or you may want to move up the career ladder. Providing IT training is useful in this respect. If you have proven experience in providing IT training, it can demonstrate good development in those essential soft skills, primarily sociability, responsibility, participation and the ability to teach and negotiate. It also reinforces your knowledge and skills; after all, you cannot teach what you do not know. And last but not least, it looks good on your CV for that future job or promotion. The Challenges Clearly, working as an IT trainer carries benefits. However, working as a trainer and maintaining an ongoing career as an IT professional has its challenges, as well. Take me for example. I work a full-time job as an IT manager and teach two evenings a week at the local college to supplement my income. The only day I don’t work is Friday evening. During the weekend, July 2008 CERTIFICATION MAGAZINE 31

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Certification - July 2008

Certification - July 2008 Editor's Letter Contents Data System Virtual Village Tech Careers Dear Techie Academic Connection Look Ahead Troubleshooting Testing Your Foot in the Door: Certification at the Entry Level Analyzing the Societal Effects of YouTube Interface Spread the Knowledge: Becoming an IT Trainer Inside Certification Ad Index What We Like Endtag

Certification - July 2008

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