Chapter Study Group Guide

Chapter

Study Group

Guide

PayrollOrg | Chapter Relations Department

ChapterRelations@payroll.org | (210) 226-4600

Payroll.org

Revised September 2023

Table of Contents

Overview .......................................................................................1

Benefits ......................................................................................... 1

Logistics ........................................................................................2

Cost ............................................................................................4

Materials to Use / Study Resources ...............................................................5

Syllabus/Schedule ...............................................................................7

Sample Class Agendas ...........................................................................7

Registration ....................................................................................10

Tips for Facilitators ............................................................................. 11

List of Web Links ............................................................................... 11

Sample Class Schedules/Syllabuses .............................................................12

Tips for Instructors ..............................................................................17

Chapter Study Guide 2023 1 Payroll.org

Overview

The chapter can choose to provide its members the opportunity to prepare for the Fundamental

Payroll Certification (FPC) or Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) certification exam by delivering study

groups. PayrollOrg (PAYO) oers the FPC and CPP certification exams throughout the year. Each year,

the chapter should determine whether study groups should be oered and if so, how many and when.

Discussions should take place regarding who will coordinate the study groups. The Chapter President

can choose to coordinate the events or can designate someone to coordinate the study groups. A

chapter may also choose to form an education committee to ensure all aspects of the planning and

execution of the study group are addressed.

This handbook/guide will highlight the dierent steps, best practices, sample schedules and helpful

tips for establishing study groups.

Beneﬁts

One of the questions that arise in the planning a study group is, “Why do we want to do this?” Here are

just a few of the benefits we have witnessed over the years for the chapters, instructors and students:

 For chapters

y Recognition within the local payroll community

y Recruiters know that quality people belong to your chapter

y Increase local chapter and national PAYO membership

y Potential revenue source

 For instructors

y Receive Recertification Credit Hours (RCHs) for your time teaching

y Increase personal knowledge in areas that you may not deal with on a regular basis

y Increase your confidence in public speaking

y Build your leadership and communication skills

 For students

y Recognition in the payroll community for attaining your FPC/CPP

y Recruiters know you have obtained your FPC/CPP

y Confidence that you can step into an instructor role in your chapter

y Increased networking opportunities

y Advocate for your chapter’s study group within your chapter

y A sense of pride and empowerment for yourself

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Logistics

When you begin planning your study group you need to address many logistical items.

Some highlights are listed below:

 Location

y Area of town

– Distance traveled

– Traic pattern before and after class time

– Available parking and cost

– Available public transportation

– Security/safety

 Employer or vendor-sponsored space

y Oer a chapter website link to the employer or vendor as a sponsor of the study group

y Consider hours of use – weeknights, weekends

y Security access issues if class is after regular business hours

y Hold-harmless or indemnification agreement may need to be in place with employer

for liability purposes

y Access to snacks/drinks and restrooms

 Local community college

y Oer a “scholarship” for one of its payroll sta members to use the space for free

y Promote as a “Partner in Education” with the local chapter

y Parking logistics for non-regular students

y Rented space

y Review cost per square foot

y Amenities provided

 Community space

y Libraries

y Churches

y City buildings

y YMCA

y Chamber of commerce

 Regular chapter meeting space

y Inquire at the establishment where you hold your chapter meetings and negotiate

a reduced room rate or no rate at all.

 Meeting space

y Classroom set-up

– School room –  students per  foot table

– Theater style – no space for working problems

– Individual desks

– Line of sight for instructor

y Size of room

– Be aware of how sound carries in room

• High ceilings take volume from speaker

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y A/V requirements

– Screen, projector, microphone, whiteboard/blackboard, markers/chalk

• Internet access, Wi-Fi, secure network

 Chapter’s meeting space

y Consider limitations to the number of class participants

y Consider technical resources available and what costs

 Class scheduling

y Day(s) and time to meet

– Weeknights

– Weekends

y Frequency - once a week or twice a week

– Two weeknights

– One weeknight, one weekend day

– Every other week if sessions are longer (- hours per sessions)

– See Sample Class Agenda section

 Instruction format

y In-class, live

– Great for hands-on learning activities

– Good for visual and kinesthetic learners

y Online

– Webinar with interactive chat or survey component

– Reach a wider audience, possibly more participation

– More flexibility to move class schedule on short notice

– May be diicult to gauge participant progress and engagement

– Ideal if chapter members cover a large geographic area

y Mixed format

– Utilize both in-class and online resources

– Consider what content works best in each format

 Class size

y Personal – smaller class size, more interaction and coaching per participant

y Meeting space limitations

y Frequency with which CPP or FPC study course is oered

y Other chapters in local area

 Know your audience

y ADA compliance issues

y Food and/or other allergies

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Cost

When determining if and/or how much to charge for the study group, there are many things to consider.

Some of these include:

 Will there be separate rates for members and non-members to attend, or do you require

attendees to become a member of your chapter to participate?

 Is the chapter being charged for the meeting space being used?

 Will you be including the cost of any materials? (The Payroll Source

, etc.)

y Once your program is established, purchase text books and materials, such as PAYO’s The

Payroll Source, in bulk to receive the discount and pass the discount along to your students.

y Watch for PAYO emails on discounts on The Payroll Source purchased by January .

 Calculator/tools used

y Purchase items in bulk that your students will need during the study group and

for taking the exam.

 Paid instructors

y Do as a last resort

y Instructors will receive RCHs for all classes taught

 Refreshments

y Based on your meeting location the chapter can provide light refreshments

y Location may have a cafeteria where students can purchase refreshments

y Students can bring their own refreshments. You may want to provide information on some

local stores or restaurants so they can stop on their way and pick something up.

 Equipment

y Laptop

– Chapter may have one for instructor to use or the instructor can use his or her own

y Projector

– Chapter may have one for instructor to use

– Ask a vendor to donate or sponsor one if your chapter does not have one

y White Board/Markers

– Meeting facility may have these available for use

– Table-top flip charts provide historical review since the content covered is not erased

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Materials to Use / Study Resources

An important decision to be made is which materials the study group will use. Not only does this mean

what text book(s) to use but what other ancillary materials to use as well. PayrollOrg does not recommend

any one particular resource. However, chapters over the years have used common materials to prepare

their students for the certification exams.

The first resource to introduce students to is the Certification section on PayrollOrg’s website:

www.payroll.org/certification/.

 This section contains helpful information, including the oicial CPP and FPC candidate

examination handbooks. The handbooks contain important information about preparing for and

taking the examination.

Deciding what text-book to use depends on which exam students are preparing for:

 The most commonly used book for the CPP exam is The Payroll Source.

 While The Payroll Source can also be used for the FPC exam, it might be intimidating for that

particular exam. Payroll Practice Fundamentals is a more appropriate text book for the FPC exam.

 Another book considered helpful for the FPC review is Customer Service for Dummies.

For students who study best using interactive, online tools, PAYO provides products that meet those

expectations. These include:

 PayTrain® is an Internet-based tool that provides games, exercises and tests. More information

can be found at http://vc.learnpayroll.com/paytrain/.

Free resources are available to students as well and these include:

 The IRS website (www.irs.gov), which contains good information, including Publications ,

-A, and -B.

 The IRS and some private companies also provide free webinars on topics related to the

certification exam. The IRS You Tube channel has archived videos that may pertain to study

group topics.

Your chapter also may want to create and provide materials to the students. Such materials include:

 Use of standard tools such as Power-Point to create games for students such as Payroll

Jeopardy, Who Wants to be a CPP, etc.

 Create flash cards with questions: rates, limits, sections of the Internal Revenue Code,

abbreviations

 Create quizzes that reflect knowledge accumulated throughout the study group sessions so

that students are reflecting on what they’ve learned to date

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Regardless of what materials are used, it’s also important to make sure the students have the right

versions of the materials. These include:

 Exams in the fall and the following spring are based on laws and regulations in eect

January  of the year of the fall exam.

 For example: January , , laws and regulations are covered on the fall  and

spring  exams; January , , laws and regulations are covered on the fall 

and spring  exams.

It is very important to remember that study materials purchased from PAYO or another publisher are

protected by federal copyright laws.

 For example, reproducing part or all of sections of The Payroll Source or Payroll Practice

Fundamentals and providing them for free or at a cost to study group members is a violation of

PayrollOrg’s copyright.

 The same holds true if someone provides access to an electronic copy of these materials as an

ebook or through the Payroll Source Online.

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Syllabus/Schedule

In planning for your study group you will need to decide on the schedule and provide a syllabus to your

students. It is recommended that the instructional portion of the class averages 35 to 40 hours. It is also

important to remind your students that, in addition to the time they spend in the classroom, they will also

need to spend 6 to 8 hours a week on their own studying.

To help decide what works best for your group here are some questions the planning committee

should address:

 Will you be using The Payroll Source as the main textbook for the class?

y Most study groups design their schedule based on The Payroll Source and add in other

reference materials along the way.

 Will the classes be held online, in a classroom, or a combination of the two?

y How many hours will each class be scheduled to run?

 Survey your membership to find out what day(s) and time work the best. Things to consider:

y What is the most common day your members run payroll?

y Will evenings or weekends work?

y How long will each class be?

Please see Appendix A for sample syllabuses and schedules.

Sample Class Agendas

As you can see from the schedules provided in Appendix A each study group uses dierent techniques

and resources to keep students engaged. We encourage each chapter to find creative ways to help

students prepare for the exams. Some items to consider when preparing your agendas are:

 Decide how the students will receive the documents needed for each session

y Are they stored online on your website in a secure location?

y Are you using Yahoo Groups or Google Docs?

y Will facilitators be required to bring copies of quizzes, presentations, tests, puzzles, games etc.?

y Make sure the documents or materials you are copying and handing out are not protected

or copyrighted. If they are, receive permission to distribute prior to your sessions.

y American Payroll Institute, Inc. reserves all rights to the PayrollOrg publications. No portion

of the PayrollOrg publications can be reproduced in any format without prior permission of

the American Payroll Institute, Inc.

y Remember to build in break times.

y Plan for group activities.

y Avoid lecturing the whole time.

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Here are a few sample class agendas:

 Sample  – First Night of Class

y Go over the expectations

– Student responsibilities

– What to expect from the facilitators

– How Q&As will be handled during class

– Whom to go to for additional clarification if there are multiple facilitators

y Take a pre-test – this helps the student to assess what areas they may need to focus on over

the course of the study group.

– Use The Payroll Source  test.

– Prepare a customized test

y Take a break

y Go over the pre-test and explain the answers as a way to preview what the next sessions

will be covering.

 Sample  – Last Night of Class

y Consider having a pizza or a pot-luck party

y Take a post-test

– This could be the same as the pre-test so they can compare their scores

y Ask students to evaluate the study group

y Consider taking an anonymous online survey

– Go over the tips again for students on being prepared for test day

y Recognition awards for participants

– Perfect Attendance – Come Rain, Come Shine, Came All The Time award

– Most Loved Book – obviously the most used book during class based on wear and tear

– Sherlock Holmes Award – asked the most questions, volunteered to work problems for

class, very engaged and inquisitive participant

 Sample  – -Hour Classroom Structure

y Begin with a quiz that covers material that was assigned for that night ( questions)

y Review the quiz and take a break

y Review assigned reading material and open up class discussions for student questions

– PowerPoint presentations work well

y Assign group problems (calculations) or puzzles to work on together

– Wrap up class with a reminder of the next week’s assignments

 Sample  – Game Night – Good way to engage students in a fun way

y Organize a game – examples include Payroll Jeopardy, Payroll Bingo, Payroll Family Feud or

any other theme that may work for your group

y Form teams and compete for prizes

y Provide snacks and/or a meal

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 Sample  – -Hour Saturday Class

y Review assigned material using PowerPoint presentation

y Take a break

y Have students take a cumulative quiz based on the current and previously presented

materials

y Go over quiz and entertain questions

y View one of the webinars provided by the IRS for free and then lead a discussion on what

was learned and how it tied into that night’s lesson plan

 Sample  – Payroll  Day Boot Camp

y Class would be organized into two days

y This format may be useful as an intense review but it would be hard to cover all the material

for the exams in - hours

 Sample  – Payroll -Day Boot Camp

y This class would be organized into five consecutive days of intense review

y PAYO has Payroll  and Payroll  available

y This format may be diicult for local chapters because of the time commitments that would

be needed from students and facilitators

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Registration

Several items are included in the registration process for the study group. Below are items that should be

considered:

 Obtain a list of prospective students from PAYO – Chapter Relations

y https://info.payroll.org/pdfs/chapters/maillistrequest-agreementform.pdf

 Register your study group with PAYO – Chapter Relations

y http://ebiz.payroll.org/ebusiness/chapters/new-study- group?_

ga=...-.

 Register for RCHs from PAYO – Certification

y https://info.payroll.org/pdfs/certification/chapter-packet-.pdf

 How will advertising/notifying prospective students be handled?

y Mass email communication

y Website

y Mailing

y Announcement at chapter meeting

y Social media

y Contact local recruiting firms for candidates

y Provide class information to your local third-party payroll processing providers, PEOs, CPA

firms, etc.

 Determine how participants will register

y By website

y By email

y By mail

y Accepted payment methods (cash, checks, online payment, credit card)

y Provide chapter’s W- form if requested

 Establish deadlines for registrations

y When must participants register

y If there are not enough registrants by X date, there will be no class

y Will you allow late registrations

 How will refunds be handled?

 Tracking attendance

 Remind students that they will need to register for the test via Pearson Vue

y www.pearsonvue.com/payo/

y The certification handbooks on PayrollOrg’s certification page have more information about

signing up to take the exam.

Chapter Study Guide 2023 11 Payroll.org

Tips for Facilitators

It is important for facilitators to understand the impact they have on the students and the atmosphere of

the classroom. Some chapters have a training session for their facilitators before the study group begins

to go over expectations and give them helpful tips.

Being prepared for class is the most important focus a facilitator can have. Facilitators should allow

ample time to prepare the materials. Some materials, more than others, require more updates on

an annual basis. Also, make sure all documents are ready in a timely manner. Are they to be posted

online? Are they to be printed before class? Make sure facilitators know the deadlines so that students

have materials when they need them.

During the in-class presentation—which should be practiced ahead of time—facilitators should

maintain a positive attitude and encourage the same of the students. That can be accomplished by

sharing your preparation and testing experiences to help them visualize what to expect.

We have compiled a list of helpful facilitator tips. See Appendix B for tips on how to deliver the

presentation.

List of Web Links

 PayrollOrg http://www.payroll.org/

 Internal Revenue Service http://www.irs.gov/

 Department of Labor http://www.dol.gov/

 U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services http://www.uscis.gov/

 Ascentis (health care reform) http://www.ascentis.com

 Paycheck City (payroll calculators) http://www.paycheckcity.com

 Pearson Vue (certification testing) http://www.pearsonvue.com/payo

 Free Conference Calling (unlimited audio teleconferencing) http://www.freeconferencecall.com

 Free Screen Sharing (free online meetings) http://www.freescreensharing.com

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Sample Class Schedules/Syllabuses

** All of these samples are based on using The Payroll Source as the main textbook**

 Uses both Classroom and Yahoo Groups

Syllabus courtesy of the Houston Chapter – 8 Sessions

Date Time Chapter Topic Presenter

Saturday

July 14

Introduction

Instructor’s Name

8:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. Yahoo groups . study groups , ice breaker Instructor’s Name

BREAK

10:15 a.m.- 12:00 p.m. 7 Unemployment Insurance Instructor’s Name

Saturday

July 21

8:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. 2 Federal and State Wage-Hour Laws Instructor’s Name

BREAK

10:15 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. 2 Federal and State Wage-Hour Laws Instructor’s Name

Saturday

July 28

8:00 a.m. - 9:15 a.m. 3 Taxable and Nontaxable Compensation Instructor’s Name

BREAK

9:30 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. 3 Taxable and Nontaxable Compensation Instructors Name

BREAK

11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. 1 The Employee - Employer Relationship Instructor’s Name

Saturday

August 4

8:00 a.m. - 9:45 a.m. 4 Health, Accident, and Retirement Benefit Instructor’s Name

BREAK

10:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. 4 Health, Accident, and Retirement Benefit Instructor’s Name

Saturday

August 11

8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. 6 Withholding Taxes Instructor’s Name

9:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. 9 Other Deductions from Pay Instructor’s Name

BREAK

10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. 14 Payroll for US Employees

Abroad & Aliens in US

Instructor’s Name

12:00 p.m. - 12:30 p.m. 5 Paying The Employee Instructor’s Name

Saturday

August 18

8:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. 8 Depositing and Reporting Withheld Taxes Instructor’s Name

BREAK

Handout 10 Record Keeping Instructor’s Name

BREAK

10:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. 13 Managing a Payroll Department Instructor’s Name

Saturday

August 26

8:00 a.m.- 10:00 a.m. 8 Payroll Accounting Instructor’s Name

BREAK

10:15 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. 13 Payroll Systems and Technology Instructor’s Name

Saturday

September 1

8:00 a.m. - 8:30 a.m. Quick Review -

Open for any handouts missed

Instructor’s Name

8:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. Mock Test Mentors

BREAK

10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Certificates, Review Mentors

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Classroom Thursday Nights – 12 sessions (2 dierent samples)

Syllabus courtesy of the Lehigh Valley Chapter – Sample 1

ROOM DATE

(Thurs)

CPP

Chapter

Description Pages Facilitators - Lead

person is in bold

ECC 4 24-May CPP 14 Payroll for U.S. EE’s Abroad and Aliens in U.S. 45 Instructor 1

CPP 1 The Employer-Employee Relationship 45 Backup Instructor

ECC 4 7-Jun CPP 10 Recordkeeping & Record Retention 28 Instructor 1

CPP 11 Payroll Accounting 34 Backup Instructor

ECC 4 14-Jun CPP 12 Payroll Systems and Technology 33 Instructor 1

CPP 13 Managing a Payroll Dept. 41 Backup Instructor

ECC 4 21-Jun CPP 2 Federal and State Wage-Hour Laws 87 Instructor 1

No class 28-Jun

No class 5-Jul HOLIDAY

ECC 4 12-Jul CPP 3 Taxable and Nontaxable Compensation 108 Instructor 1

Backup Instructor

ECC 4 19-Jul CPP 4 Health, Accident & Retirement Benefits 151 Instructor 1

Backup Instructor

ECC 4 26-Jul CPP 5 Paying the Employee 35 Instructor 1

CPP 6 Withholding Taxes 66 Backup Instructor

ECC 4 2-Aug CPP 7 Unemployment Insurance 58 Instructor 1

CPP 9 Other Deductions from Pay 64 Backup Instructor

ECC 4 9-Aug CPP 8 Depositing and Reporting Withheld Taxes 141 Instructor 1

ECC4 16-Aug Review Review Instructor 1

Backup Instructor

ECC4 23-Aug Review Review Instructor 1

Backup Instructor

ECC4 30-Aug Review Review Instructor 1

Backup Instructor

Chapter Study Guide 2023 14 Payroll.org

Syllabus courtesy of the West Michigan Chapter – Sample 2, 12 Weeks

West Michigan Chapter - CPP/FPC Study Group

Location: Dominion Systems - Grand Rapids

Week Thursday Section - Subject

Evening 6 p.m.-9 p.m.

June 9 Orientation, Registration - Pre-Test

Instructor Section 1: Employer-Employee Relationship

June 16 Section 2: Federal and State Wage and Hour Laws –

Instructor Quiz on Section 2

June 23 Section 3: Taxable and Non-taxable Compensation –

Instructor Quiz on Section 3

July 7 Section 4: Health, Accident and Retirement Plans –

Instructor Quiz on Section 4

July 14 Payroll Knowledge - Interactive Practice/Game/Roundtable

Instructor Review of first 4 Sections - Quiz

July 21 Section 5: Paying the Employee –

Instructor Section 6: Withholding Taxes –

Quiz on Section 5 & 6

August 4 Section 7: Unemployment Insurance –

Instructor Section 8: Depositing & Reporting-Withheld Taxes –

Quiz on Section 7 & 8

August 11 Section 9: Other Deductions from Pay –

Instructor Section 10: Record keeping & Record Retention –

Quiz on Section 9 & 10

August 18 Section 11: Payroll Accounting -

Instructor Quiz on Section 11

10 August 25 Section 13: Managing the Payroll Department –

Instructor Section 12: Payroll Systems & Technology –

Quiz on Section 12 & 13

11 September 8 Section 14: Payroll-Employees Working Abroad –

Test your Knowledge - Roundtable - Bring your questions/problems

Group Review of Sections 5-12 - Quiz

12 September 15 Final Review – Post Test Q & A

Group

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Classroom Monday Nights – 16 sessions

Syllabus courtesy of Terry Meggitt, CPP – Payroll University

CPP Study Group

Tentative Study Plan

June 12 – September 18

6 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. or 5:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Week of

June 11 Section 1 and 14

June 18 Section 2 and 10

June 25 Section 3

July 2 “No Class catch-up time”

July 9 Section 4

July 16 Section 5 and 6

July 23 Section 7

July 30 Section 8

August 6 Section 9 and 11

August 13 Section 12 and 13

August 20 Review, flash cards and sample test

August 27 “No class” sample test to be completed

September 3 Review, flash cards and sample test

September 10 Review, flash cards and sample test

September 17 Review, open for one on one

September 24 Open for one on one

Sections that are small, we’ll use the remaining time to do some review, go over forms, flash

cards and/or to discuss what to expect when taking the test. The last few weeks are very

important because that’s when we tie everything together.

Chapter Study Guide 2023 16 Payroll.org

In your second review week I would have all students take a practice test to see where they are and

then work with them on a plan to increase their knowledge on areas where they score low.

Study Materials: PAYO’s The Payroll Source and Flash Cards

• Hybrid – Uses both Classroom and Online Meeting formats

Date Day Time Chapter Content Speaker Location E-mail

June 14 Thursday 6-9 pm 5, 15 Testing, Pre-test Instructor GT HR Bldg Instructor’s

June 24 Sunday 7-9 pm

Employee/Employer Rela-

tionship

Instructor Conf Call

Online

Instructor’s

June 28 Thursday 6-9 pm

Taxable Fringe Benefits -

part 1

Instructor GT HR Bldg Instructor’s

July 8 Sunday 7-9 pm

Federal and State Wage

and Hour Laws

Instructor Conf Call

Online

Instructor’s

July 12 Thursday 6-9 pm

Garnishments and Other

Deductions

Instructor GT HR Bldg Instructor’s

July 29 Sunday 7-9 pm

Benefits Instructor Conf Call

Online

Instructor’s

July 26 Thursday 6-9 pm

Benefits Instructor GT HR Bldg Instructor’s

August 5 Sunday 7-9 pm

Taxable Fringe Benefits -

part 2

Instructor CConf Call

Online

Instructor’s

August 9 Thursday 6-9 pm 11 Accounting Instructor GT HR Bldg

Instructor’s

August 19 Sunday 7-9 pm

Withholding Taxes Instructor Conf Call

Online

Instructor’s

August 23 Thursday 6-9 pm 10, 12, 13 Recordkeeping, Systems,

Management

Instructor GT HR Bldg

Instructor’s

September 9 Sunday 7-9 pm

Unemployment Insurance Instructor Conf Call

Online

Instructor’s

September 13 Thursday 6-9 pm 3, 6, 7 Calculation Practice Instructor GT HR Bldg

Instructor’s

September 23 Sunday 7-9 pm 8, 14 Depositing and reporting

taxes, Int’l

Instructor Conf Call

Online

Instructor’s

September 27 Thursday 6-9 pm

Depositing and reporting

taxes and info returns

Instructor GT HR Bldg Instructor’s

October 4 Thursday 6-9 pm Post Test -

Gross to Net Calcs

Instructor GT HR Bldg

Instructor’s

October 7 Sunday 7-9 pm Review Q&A review for all content Instructor Conf Call

Instructor’s

Syllabus courtesy of Metro Atlanta Payroll Association Chapter

Chapter Study Guide 2023 17 Payroll.org

Tips for Instructors

Courtesy of Terry Meggitt, CPP – Payroll University

Voice

 Strive for variety in your voice.

 Change volume from forceful to soft.

 Change speed and tempo of speech.

 Pause to breathe. This allows you to project your voice.

 Use a lively and firm voice so that you come across as authoritative and interesting.

 Avoid filler words such as “um,” “ah,” “OK,” etc.

 Put emphasis on the words you wish to stress.

 Enunciate your words for clarity of pronunciation.

Gestures

 Use movement. Don’t stand in one place. Walk but avoid pacing.

 Stand and move toward the learners.

 Don’t use a podium or be riveted to the spot where your lesson plan is located.

 Move hands and arms when you speak.

 Avoid distracting the learners by jiggling change, clicking on a pen, waving a pointer, constant

throat-clearing, pet phrases, swaying, etc.

 Use gestures to hold attention (e.g., tap on the board or flip chart, snap fingers, slap the table, etc.).

 Sit on the edge of a table, or on a stool to come across as more relaxed.

 Use your personal mannerisms when speaking. Be yourself.

 Stand when you wish to command attention. Sit when you want to leave the limelight.

Eye Contact

 Use eye contact. Look at the learners rather than your lesson plan.

 Scan the group and look at everyone, not just the supportive faces.

 As a prerequisite to good eye contact, you must know your material thoroughly.

 When beginning to speak, use the following patterns:

 Make eye contact with someone who looks friendly.

 Lock in your eye contact for - seconds.

 Smile or nod.

 Keep eye contact until you feel acknowledgement from that person.

 Scan the entire group briefly.

 Begin the pattern again for everyone in your audience.

 If the group is too large for individual eye contact, look at one location as you would at one

individual. No one knows precisely who you are looking at. Most people will think you are

looking at them.

 Speak only when you can hold the eye contact of the learners completely.

 Don’t speak while learners are reading or looking at audio-visuals.

 When answering a question, look at the entire group, not just the questioner. End by looking at

the questioner for a sign that the answer was suicient.

Chapter Study Guide 2023 18 Payroll.org

Structure

 Start with an interesting statement, observation, quotation, or question.

 Use cartoons, overheads, and other audio-visuals to enliven a presentation.

 Use interesting examples, anecdotes, analogues, and statistics.

 Ask frequent questions.

 Use frequent buzz groups, neighbor discussions, and brief assignments. If giving a long

presentation, show the outline on a handout or overhead to provide structure.

 Build in reviews.

 Try to minimize your own talking time as much as possible.

 Don’t use lengthy notes. To be more spontaneous - free yourself of notes as much as possible.

Things Not to Do

 Don’t read the material verbatim to the class - use it as a guide.

 Don’t get caught up in a topic: know when to move on.

 Don’t argue with students; assign someone to research a topic and get back to the group.

 Don’t let the side-bars take over the class.

 Don’t forget contact information in case the class has to be canceled.

Chapter Study Guide 2023 19 Payroll.org

PayrollOrg would like to thank the following individuals and chapters

for assisting in the creation of this Chapter Study Group Guide:

Luanne Brown, CPP

Taunya Fritzsching, CPP

Robyn Maslouski, CPP

Terry Meggitt, CPP

Levi Meeske, CPP

Bruce Phipps, CPP

Lisa Poole, CPP

Laura Scott, CPP

Carl York, CPP

Houston Chapter

Lehigh Valley Chapter

Metro Atlanta Payroll Association Chapter

Payroll University – Terry Meggitt, CPP

West Michigan Chapter