81: The Behaviors of Training the Trainers with Megan Sanders, BehaviorWorks

This episode continues on "The Behaviors of..." series which dives into the people side of the animal care field. This episode Megan Sanders, BehaviorWorks, discusses the behaviors of training the trainers and advice on coaching people through the science and practical application of training.  This podcast is a companion to Megan’s presentation at the 2026 ABMA-IAATE annual conference titled “Training the Trainer: Behavior Skills Training Using PORTL to Improve Accuracy with Animal Trainers”. Megan starts the episode by demonstrating how we can take our knowledge of the science of training animals and apply that to training and coaching humans.  Next, Megan discusses the importance of practicing skills in the “classroom” beforehand and advice on how to teach those skills.  Finally, Megan provides some advice on giving and receiving feedback and how to best set yourself up for success if you are the one being training. Stay tuned in for Megan’s "Training Tale" about the simple way spider monkeys were recalled from the rainforest. For questions or suggestions about the podcast email ⁠⁠abc@theabma.org⁠⁠ and to contact Megan email mms@behaviorworks.org

• 4:10 Introduction to Megan Sanders 

• 13:00 How do we use the knowledge that we have about behavior modification in animals and bring that into how we teach people

• 16:30 Information on resources related to the science of behavior change and people 

• 19:15 The importance of practicing skills before training an animal 

• 30:35 Behavior Skills Training and how to apply that to teaching training 

• 34:30 Teaching training skills in a classroom setting using PORTL 

• 40: 25 Advice on giving feedback 

• 45:45 Modeling as an effective teaching strategy 

• 47:30 How to set yourself up for success if you are the one being trained 

• 57:05 The behaviors of being effective at training trainers 

• 1:02:40 “Training Tales”