The purpose of this study was to examine the competency of workplace instructors as facilitators, to compare their awareness of the importance of facilitator competency and their actual performance as facilitators, and ultimately to give some suggesti...
The purpose of this study was to examine the competency of workplace instructors as facilitators, to compare their awareness of the importance of facilitator competency and their actual performance as facilitators, and ultimately to give some suggestions on the competency development of workplace instructors. Three research questions were posed:
1. What competency of workplace instructors are required to have as facilitators?
2. What is the level of awareness of workplace instructors on the importance of facilitator competency and the level of their actual performance as facilitators?
3. What are the differences among workplace instructors in awareness of the importance of facilitator competency and performance as facilitators?
The subjects in this study were 280 workplace instructors, on whom a survey was conducted. The answer sheets from 274 respondents were gathered, and the response rate stood at 98 percent. The instruments used in this study were Kolb, et. al.(2008)'s Facilitator Competence Inventory and the IBSTPI's Instructor Competency Inventory. As for data analysis, factor analysis, t-test and other statistical methods were utilized. The findings of the study were as follows:
First, when a factor analysis was made, five competency groups and 22 kinds of competency were selected as facilitator competency that workplace instructors should have. The five competency groups were teaching method/strategy, professional foundation, task/atmosphere, communication and organizing. Second, the facilitator competency group on which the workplace instructors placed the most importance was task/atmosphere, followed by professional foundation, organizing, communication and teaching method/strategy. In terms of performance, they were most excellent in task/atmosphere, followed by professional foundation, communication, organizing and teaching method/strategy. Third, there were the largest disparities between their awareness of the importance of facilitator competency and actual performance in effective facilitation skills, updating professional knowledge and knowhow, utilizing the characteristics of job and group, utilizing a good sense of humor and follow-up check.
Based on the findings of the study, there are some suggestions: Workplace instructors who should serve as facilitators should have a perfect understanding of the roles and competency of facilitators. Therefore careful educational planning is necessary to enhance the facilitator competency of workplace instructors, and then effective education should be provided for them according to the plan. Besides, an accurate evaluation system should be set up.