Training vs Education

I applied for an interesting position as a sales trainer and stopped to reflect for a moment on my philosophy of learning and education. Early in my professional career I was as a math teacher and school administrator, and although I wasn't schooled in the experiential learning model, once I was exposed to it at the Bay Area Adventure School in Traverse City, MI, I felt like I needed a head slap because it was perfectly aligned with my experience as a teacher and learner.

In a very simple way, experiential learning is like a 3 legged stool that you would use to milk a cow. All three components (legs) are required for it to be valid and work.
1. The learner actively participates in the experience
2. The learner reflects on the experience
3. After reflection, the learner changes their behavior (or not)
It is a lifelong iterative process and the person who would normally be considered the teacher, takes on the role of facilitator.

Anyway, that got me to thinking about the connotations of "trainer" vs "teacher" . I remember a mother who took great offense to a course in Driver's Training that was offered at my school. She went to the school board and demanded that the name be changed to Driver's Education because training was what you did with dogs and circus monkeys.

There are some subtle differences between training and education, and in another over-simplification, education is generally thought of as studies done in school, while training involves gaining skills.

Aren't you glad that they only offer sex education in school?