A train the trainer course in South Africa teaches people who already know their subject how to teach it to adult colleagues. It covers how to plan a session, choose activities, deliver with confidence and handle difficult delegates. BOTI’s one-day Train the Trainer Essentials Course covers these core skills. The wider range of train the trainer and ETDP courses includes longer facilitator, assessor and learning-design programmes.
The current course runs at your offices anywhere in South Africa, live online or at a BOTI venue. The course page has the up-to-date outline and group prices.
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Learn how to train to help others gain from your knowledge and expertise
Course Introduction
Train the Trainer is a practical course that shows delegates how to pass knowledge on to adults effectively. Delegates learn tested methods for planning and running a training session and apply them to their own topics during the day. The course prepares internal trainers to deliver organisational training clearly and consistently, so that the training supports the organisation’s objectives.
Course Outline
Key outcomes of the Train the Trainer course include:
- Connecting training and learning
- Defining the job
- How to present a training session
- Preparing yourself as a trainer
- Understanding the difference between training and facilitation
- Gathering materials
- Making a lesson plan
- Choosing activities
- Preparing for the programme
- Getting off on the right foot
- Delivery tips and tricks
- Working with challenging delegates
- Tackling tough topics
Benefits of attending the Train the Trainer Course
Why is Train the Trainer Training needed?
Many organisations ask experienced staff to run internal workshops, inductions and system training. It makes sense to use people who already understand the organisation, its culture and its employees.
Knowing a subject well is not the same as being able to teach it. A skilled technician or manager can still lose a room by talking too long, skipping steps that seem obvious to them, or not checking whether people have understood. Train the Trainer closes that gap. It gives subject experts a simple structure for planning, delivering and checking a session, so that what they know reaches the people they train.
Methods of Training Your Staff
Organisations develop their people in several ways. These include sending staff on external courses, running workshops, job shadowing, coaching by line managers and peer learning. Internal trainers make several of these methods work better, because someone in the business is responsible for passing skills on in a planned way.
The train the trainer model also has a multiplier effect. Once a small group of internal trainers is prepared, they can train their own teams. More people can then be reached in less time, and sessions can be scheduled around shifts and rosters. Other benefits include:
End up being an employer of choice
- Better employee retention, because staff see that the organisation invests in their development
- Targeted training built around your own systems, procedures and examples
- Less workplace downtime, because sessions fit around existing rosters
- Skills transfer from experienced staff to newer employees
An internal trainer can run sessions at the workplace when the team needs them, so business disruption is kept low. Internal training also avoids travel and accommodation costs for staff.
Over time, a well-prepared group of internal trainers helps the organisation keep knowledge in the business and improve performance where it matters most.
What a good workplace trainer does differently
Adults learn best when training is relevant, practical and respectful of what they already know. In the course, delegates practise habits that make the biggest difference in a training room:
- Start with the outcome. Decide what learners must be able to do by the end of the session, then plan backwards from there.
- Find out what learners already know. A short question round or quick activity at the start shows where to spend time.
- Break content into small steps. Explain, demonstrate, let learners try it, then give feedback before moving on.
- Use activities, not only slides. Case studies, role plays, group tasks and hands-on practice keep people involved and help them remember.
- Check understanding often. Ask open questions and watch learners apply the skill instead of asking “Is that clear?”
- Manage the room. Set ground rules, keep time and deal calmly with side conversations, dominant voices and resistant delegates.
- Follow up. Agree with line managers how the new skill will be used and checked back at work.
Course Duration
1 day
The one-day Train the Trainer Essentials Course is practical, and delegates leave with a lesson plan approach they can use straight away at work. To discuss dates or group size, request a quote or contact BOTI.
Choosing the right train the trainer course
The one-day Essentials course suits staff who run occasional internal sessions and need a solid, practical foundation. If your trainers need more depth, BOTI has longer options:
- Train the Trainer (Facilitator Training) Course (3 days). This course is for people who will train regularly and want more practice time and feedback.
- Facilitation Skills Training Course (2 days). This course is for people who run workshops, meetings and group discussions rather than formal lessons.
- Design and Develop Effective Learning Material Training (3 days). This course is for trainers who also write manuals, workbooks and activities.
- Measuring Results from Training: Training Evaluation Course (1 day). This course is for people who need to show whether training changed performance.
If your organisation needs a QCTO-accredited route for staff who facilitate workplace learning, ask BOTI about the Occupational Skills Programme: Work Based Learning and Development Practitioner (SP-220322). For more background on facilitator training, read our guide to facilitator and train the trainer courses.
Who should attend
This course is designed for the following attendees:
- Delegates who wish to practise as facilitators in a training environment
- Subject experts, supervisors and team leaders who train colleagues on systems, procedures or products
- HR and L&D staff who run inductions and internal workshops
Recommended Prior Learning
None
Where the training runs
BOTI runs this course in-house at your premises anywhere in South Africa, including Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban and Cape Town. It also runs at BOTI’s venue in Sunningdale, Johannesburg, or live online. In-house sessions let your trainers practise with your own content, so they leave with a session they can deliver to their teams.
Frequently asked questions
What is a train the trainer course?
A train the trainer course teaches people who know their subject how to teach it to other adults. It covers planning a session, writing a lesson plan, choosing activities, delivering with confidence and handling challenging delegates.
How long is BOTI’s train the trainer course in South Africa?
The Train the Trainer Essentials Course runs for 1 day. For more depth and practice, BOTI also offers a 3-day Train the Trainer (Facilitator Training) Course.
Can the train the trainer course be run in Cape Town or online?
Yes. BOTI runs the course in-house at your premises anywhere in South Africa, including Cape Town, at its venue in Sunningdale, Johannesburg, or live online.
Is the train the trainer course accredited?
No. The Train the Trainer Essentials Course is a professional skills programme, and delegates receive a BOTI certificate of attendance. If you need a QCTO-accredited route for workplace learning roles, ask BOTI about the Work Based Learning and Development Practitioner skills programme (SP-220322).
Book or request a quote
To prepare your subject experts to train their colleagues, book the Train the Trainer Essentials Course. Call BOTI on 011 882 8853 or email [email protected]. Training runs in-house at your premises, at BOTI’s venue in Sunningdale, Johannesburg, or live online. This course is not accredited. It is delivered as a professional skills programme, and delegates receive a BOTI certificate of attendance.
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