Training and Development for Growth
Having clarity on the objectives of any learning process that is being offered helps to meet both training and developmental needs thereby ensuring greater opportunities for systemic change.
F rom the earliest times, living beings have progressed step by step, learning to live life. Birds learn to fly, animals get trained in the art of hunting and human beings learn to talk and walk. The family becomes our first school of training. Our life’s experiences are our training ground; every experience imparts some learning to us, enriching us and adding value to our lives.
Training, thus, is an integral part of our life and, at every stage, we play the role of either a participant or a trainer. In PRADAN, where we are engaged with people, creating their agency. It is important, therefore, to learn the basics of training, which will help us make learning a less difficult proposition for others whom we are supposed to help. This article is a sincere attempt towards understanding the basics of training.
Training and development are often used as interchangeable words, training leads to development of some sort and developmental needs spur our training needs! However, there is a subtle difference, and understanding this will help us decide which ‘needs’ require more attention and what should drive our training objectives. Training is more about acquiring a skill and knowledge whereas development is about the growth of the individual/group/society. Training is the systematic development of the attitude, knowledge and skill patterns required by a person to perform a given task adequately whereas development is the growth of the individual in terms of ability, understanding and awareness. For example, the ability to read/understand the entry in a SHG pass book by a member is a training need whereas the ability to build understanding, confidence and awareness of the fact that, in spite of having a little or no education and despite always being led by the man of her family, the SHG member can do this task efficiently, is a developmental need. As Pradanites, we focus on the growth of the individual member; however, being aware of this subtle difference, shapes the design of our module and methodology.