What You Should Do With Training Feedback Forms
While it may seem obvious that you should be improving your course with every teach, it's important to focus on feedback from your students. Some students are kind and know how hard it can be to get in front of a crowd of strangers and try to inspire them into believing something new they are learning may have a positive impact on their personal or professional life. Some are really critical and have all kinds of suggestions for how to make the learning a more enjoyable and effective experience for the instructor and the students. Most people fall in between these feedback bookends. A good tenant of ANY training course is a system for gathering feedback from the learners or observers.
Feedback Forms
I always put feedback forms out, unless my clients specifically have forms. Expectations vary from company to company on the requirement for filling these forms out. I like to tell my classes that I'd really appreciate their input, and nobody is required to put their names on a form, so feel free to be candid, forthcoming, and honest. I believe this does encourage someone whom may not have said something critical to cross that threshold and write some criticism.
A lot of companies or other consultants will tell you that when you get one student whom never wanted to be there in the first place, and you weren't able to win them over, you can cast off their wanton criticisms. However, I believe the outliers are the most interesting and most forthcoming with brutal honesty. I do invite scrutiny and have thick skin because I know my training products are solid. I am always wanting them to get better and never consider anything "finished" - they're always improving, so feedback is always promoted.
My favorite feedback and what seems to be a theme in the past two years from client to client is that people feel like they want more time in the classroom to digest the material, play with it, talk about it, and learn even more. This has been very encouraging and a reason for a client to have us come back.
Recommendation
My recommendation for every traveling trainer out there is to ensure you bring your own feedback forms and encourage students to fill them out. We scan them in for our clients, or hand them directly over - whichever is preferable to them. It's a great option for the client.