Continuous improvement
TWI job instruction: four steps to teach work
Learn the four steps of TWI Job Instruction. Connect a task breakdown with demonstration, learner practice and follow-up at the workstation.
TWI Job Instruction is a four-step method for teaching a person to perform a task: prepare the learner, present the work, let the learner try it and follow up.
TWI stands for Training Within Industry. Job Instruction is one part of it; Job Methods concerns improving work, while Job Relations concerns handling people problems.
LEI's TWI explanation keeps those purposes separate and describes a job breakdown using Important Steps, Key Points and Reasons Why.
Teach the task behind the document
The packing-station Note includes loading, sealing, checking the seal and verifying a label. Its fictional timing chart describes a proposed working sequence.
That chart does not show that a new operator can recognise an unacceptable seal or handle a missing label. Teaching those details needs the applicable quality criteria and a check of the learner's performance.
The instructor needs the current approved seal and label criteria before demonstrating or assessing the task.
| Breakdown field | What the instructor records |
|---|---|
| Important Step | A meaningful part of the task that advances the work |
| Key Point | A detail that affects correct, safe or consistent performance |
| Reason Why | Why the key point matters for this task |
Prepare and present
Establish what the learner already knows, explain the task and prepare the workstation. Confirm the equipment, method and current instruction before teaching them.
Present the work in manageable steps. Demonstrate the important points and explain their reasons, using the pace the learner can follow. Reading a complete procedure aloud is not the same as showing the work.
Let the learner perform and explain
Observe the learner doing the task under the approved training conditions. Ask them to explain the key points and reasons while practising, then correct misunderstandings before independent work.
Check the difficult or consequential parts of the task against the actual requirements. Merely repeating the instructor's words gives little evidence of practical competence.
The poka-yoke Note explains how a device can prevent or detect a particular error. Training still needs to cover the method and the response when the device signals a problem.
Follow up in ordinary work
Identify who the learner should contact and check how the method holds under normal operating conditions. Reduce support when the demonstrated competence and task requirements allow it.
Keep training evidence tied to the task and current method. A changed fixture or acceptance criterion may require an instruction update and a further competence check.
For the packing task, obtain the current seal and label criteria, then use them in the demonstration and observed practice. Record what the learner can perform before signing off the training.