An absolute must-read for anyone that trains.  I don’t put this in the overall “must read” category as not everyone wants or has a role that requires them to be a trainer.  The focus of this book is the difference between how adults learn (andragogy) and how we were taught during our school years (pedagogy).  The material is very pragmatic – the book practices exactly what it preaches.  My first exposure to this material was an eye-opener.  I immediately changed the design of my statistics class by adding as many hands on experiments as possible.  The latest lesson my teaching experiences has re-enforced is the book’s recommended practice of designing training backwards.  In the example of my stats class, that would be selected the homework problems first, then solve them myself, analyze the skills and techniques I just used, and make that into class material.  Other interesting sections talk about training myths, e.g., technology improves training effectiveness and lowers its cost (because training is about people, and the cost reduction turns out to be a shell game).

ASTD press and Harold Stolovitch have since followed Telling Ain’t Training with two sequels: Training Ain’t Performance, and Beyond Telling Ain’t Training Fieldbook.  Harold and his co-authors also have a new book out, Handbook of Human Performance Technology.