Training and facilitation

What interviewers look for

• Training built on real needs: you find out what people cannot do yet before you write the agenda.
• Respect for adult learners: you use their experience, keep it practical and let them practise instead of lecturing for hours.
• Real facilitation skill: you get quiet people talking, manage the ones who dominate and keep the group on time.
• For TVET: you can demonstrate the skill yourself, keep the workshop safe and assess whether each trainee can really do the task.
• Evidence of results: pre and post tests, follow-up at work, and clear reports that show what changed.

Questions they ask

1. 1“How would you find out what training our staff need?”

   Why they ask: They check whether you start from needs or from a ready-made presentation. A training needs assessment shows you think about the gap between what people do now and what the job needs.

   How to answer

   • Start with the goal: what should people do differently at work after the training?
   • Collect information in more than one way: a short survey or test, interviews with managers, watching people at work, reviewing reports.
   • Separate training needs from other problems: missing tools or unclear roles are not solved by training.
   • Turn the gaps into objectives and agree them with the manager before designing the course.

   A health NGO in Baidoa asked me to train community health workers on record keeping. Before planning anything I looked at a sample of their monthly forms, sat with two supervisors, and gave the workers a short ten-question check. The forms showed the main problem was wrong totals, not missing data. The supervisors also told me some workers had no calculator, which is not a training issue, so I reported it separately. The training then focused on two things: adding up correctly, and filling the form the same way every month.

2. 2“How is training adults different from teaching children?”

   Why they ask: A test of adult learning principles. The panel wants to hear that adults learn best when training is relevant, uses their experience and lets them practise, and that you plan for that.

   How to answer

   • Adults need to know why: link every session to a problem they face at work.
   • They bring experience: ask them first, and build on what they already do.
   • They learn by doing: short input, then practice, case studies and discussion.
   • Respect them: no embarrassment in front of colleagues, and timing that suits people with jobs and families.

   Adults come with experience, and they want training they can use the next day. When I trained school principals in Garowe on school budgets, I started by asking how they currently track money. Several already used simple notebooks, so I built on that instead of bringing a new system. I kept my input to about fifteen minutes per topic, then they worked in pairs on a real budget from a school like theirs. I never corrected anyone in front of the group; I walked round and helped quietly.

3. 3“Design a one-day training on a topic we give you. Walk us through the agenda.”

   Why they ask: They check session design: clear objectives, a logical order, a mix of methods, breaks, and time for practice and evaluation. A full day of slides is the wrong answer.

   How to answer

   • Open with objectives, expectations and a short pre-test.
   • Order sessions from simple to complex, each with short input and an activity, and put the hardest content in the morning.
   • Plan breaks, prayer times and an energiser after lunch.
   • Close with a post-test, an action plan for each participant and a short feedback form.

   For a one-day training on customer service for bank tellers in Hargeisa, I would open with the objectives and a short pre-test. The morning would cover greeting and listening: a short input, then role plays in threes using real situations, like a customer whose transfer has not arrived. After the midday break and prayer, a quick energiser, then handling complaints with case studies from their own branch. The last hour is the post-test, a personal action plan with two things each person will do differently, and a feedback form.

4. 4“Some participants dominate the discussion and others say nothing. What do you do?”

   Why they ask: Managing a group is the core skill of a facilitator. They want calm, respectful techniques that give everyone a voice, including women and junior staff who may not speak in front of seniors.

   How to answer

   • Agree ground rules at the start, including one person speaks at a time.
   • Use methods that do not depend on speaking up: pair work first, small groups, sticky notes, a round where everyone gives one idea.
   • Thank the dominant person, then redirect: 'Good point; let's hear from this side of the room.' Speak to them privately at the break if needed.
   • Consider separate groups for women or junior staff when mixed discussion is hard for them.

5. 5“How do you know your training worked?”

   Why they ask: Donors and managers want results, not attendance lists. They check that you measure learning and, where possible, change at work, not only whether people enjoyed the day.

   How to answer

   • Use a pre-test and a post-test with the same questions, linked to the objectives.
   • Collect feedback at the end, but do not treat it as proof of learning.
   • Follow up weeks later: observe work, check records, or call some participants about their action plans.
   • Report honestly, including what did not improve.

   I use the same short test before and after, built from the objectives. In a data collection training for enumerators in Kismayo, the post-test showed most people had improved, but many still made mistakes on the consent question. So on the first morning of field work I ran a short refresher on consent before they went out. A month later the supervisor checked a sample of their forms and found far fewer errors on that question. I reported both results to the programme manager, including the part that had needed a refresher.

6. 6“As a TVET instructor, how do you teach a practical skill to complete beginners safely?”

   Why they ask: TVET panels check that you can demonstrate, supervise practice and assess competence, and that safety comes first with tools, electricity, machines or chemicals.

   How to answer

   • Start with safety: rules, PPE, how to hold and store each tool, and what to do in an emergency.
   • Use tell, show, do: explain the step, demonstrate it slowly, then trainees do it while you watch.
   • Break the task into small steps and let trainees practise each one until they get it right.
   • Assess by watching each trainee do the full task against a checklist: competent or not yet competent.

   At a vocational centre in Bosaso I teach basic electrical installation. On day one nobody touches a tool until we have covered the safety rules: power off at the board, test before you touch, no loose clothing. For each skill, like wiring a socket, I explain the steps, demonstrate slowly, then trainees do it in pairs on practice boards, never on live circuits. I watch each pair and correct them on the spot. At the end of the unit each trainee wires a socket alone while I use a checklist, and anyone not yet competent practises again before a retest.

7. 7“Some participants cannot read and others have university degrees. How do you run the session?”

   Why they ask: Community training often mixes very different literacy levels. The panel checks that you adapt methods and materials so nobody is left out or bored.

   How to answer

   • Use pictures, demonstrations, stories and role plays more than written handouts.
   • Run the pre and post tests orally or with pictures for those who cannot read.
   • Mix the groups so readers support others, and give educated participants a role such as group reporter without letting them take over.
   • Train in the language the group is most comfortable with, usually Somali.

8. 8“What do you put in a training report?”

   Why they ask: Most NGO and ministry training ends with a report to a manager or donor. They check that you can write a short, clear report with evidence, not a diary of the day.

   How to answer

   • The basics: title, dates, place, facilitators, objectives, and participants by number and gender.
   • What was covered and how, in a few lines per session.
   • Results: pre and post test scores, a summary of feedback, and key issues participants raised.
   • Challenges, lessons learned, clear recommendations and follow-up actions.

Example answers are in English, the language most panels use. Say it in your own words.

Topics to revise

• Training needs assessment (TNA)Finding the gap between what people can do now and what the job needs, using surveys, tests, interviews, observation and records. Panels ask how you would run one and what you would do with the results.
• Adult learning principles (andragogy)Adults learn best when training is relevant to their work, uses their experience, is practical and treats them with respect. Be ready to name the principles and show how they shape your sessions.
• Learning objectives (knowledge, skills, attitudes)What participants will know, be able to do, or value by the end, written with action verbs. Good trainers write two to four objectives per session and test exactly those.
• Session planA table for each session: time, objective, activity, method, materials and who leads. Panels may ask you to draft one in 30–60 minutes, so practise with a template.
• Participatory methodsMethods where participants do the work: group work, case studies, role play, brainstorming, gallery walk, demonstrations. Know when each one fits and roughly how long it takes.
• Ground rules, ice-breakers and energisersGround rules set how the group works together. Ice-breakers help people start talking; energisers wake up a tired group after lunch. Choose ones that are respectful and culturally suitable.
• Pre-test and post-testThe same short test before and after training, linked to the objectives, to measure knowledge gained. Know how to compare average scores and what to do if results do not improve.
• Kirkpatrick's four levelsA common model for evaluating training: 1 reaction (did they like it), 2 learning (pre/post test), 3 behaviour (do they work differently), 4 results (did the organisation improve). Panels like candidates who go beyond level 1.
• Competency-based training (CBT)Common in TVET: trainees are assessed on whether they can do defined tasks to a set standard, not on time spent in class. The result is 'competent' or 'not yet competent', and trainees can practise and try again.
• Demonstration method (tell, show, do)The standard way to teach a practical skill: explain, demonstrate slowly, the trainee practises under supervision, then does it alone. Expect to demonstrate a real task in a TVET interview.
• Workshop safety and PPERules, personal protective equipment (gloves, goggles, boots), tool storage, first aid and emergency steps. In a TVET interview, forgetting safety during a demonstration costs more marks than a small technical slip.
• Training of trainers (ToT)Training people who will then train others, common in NGO and ministry programmes. It adds facilitation practice and a plan for how the new trainers will be supported and checked.

Practical tasks you may get

1. 1Facilitate a 15–20 minute micro-session with the panel as participants. Prepare a mini session plan: one objective, a short input, one participatory activity and a quick check. Involve the panel; do not read slides at them.
2. 2Design a training agenda or session plan in 45–60 minutes from a short brief. Practise a template with times, objectives, methods and materials, and remember breaks, prayer times and evaluation.
3. 3TVET practical demonstration: you may be asked to show a task in the workshop, like wiring a switch, a simple weld or a tailoring step. Start with safety, explain as you work, and check the 'trainee's' understanding at the end.
4. 4Written task: write five pre/post test questions for a topic, or read a table of pre/post results and write three findings with recommendations. Practise writing clear questions with one right answer.

Mistakes to avoid

• Turning the micro-session into a lecture with slides and no activity for the panel.
• Designing training before asking what people need, or promising training will fix problems caused by missing tools or poor management.
• Using feedback forms ('participants enjoyed the training') as the only proof that it worked.
• Skipping safety steps in a TVET demonstration to save time.
• Planning a packed agenda with no breaks, prayer times or room for questions.
• Talking down to participants or correcting them in front of their managers.

Quick check

5 questions. Answer each one to see the explanation.