Staff training: organising work-based learning activities
There are many ways you can encourage work-based learning. Here we describe some of the ways which have proved successful and have included a checklist to help prepare your plans.
Low-cost learning activities
Set up discussion groups and lunchtime meetings
Use TV, video and other media
Set up a job awareness/shadowing scheme
Further resources to help you
Formal training courses are likely to be an important part of your training and development provision.
But there are many ways you can encourage work-based learning to help you meet staff development needs at much lower cost.
These include:
- informal discussion sessions
- 'lunch and learn' meetings
- watching TV/video programmes
- inviting external speakers
- job awareness / shadowing schemes
- presentations at staff meetings
The benefits of using work-based learning activities like these include:
- increased return for small investment as costs are low compared to formal training
- increased value for money as more staff will be involved in activities
- improved learning opportunities for lower level staff who may not have access to as much external training
- encouragement for staff who are nervous or reluctant to participate in learning
- increased staff morale from opportunities to learn about more general issues as opposed to job-specific areas
- positive image for your organisation from your visible commitment to supporting innovative learning opportunities
As the example above shows, there are many different ways you can build up your internal support for and provision of work-based learning.
Set up discussion groups and lunchtime meetings
Setting up internal discussion or learning groups is very easy and cheap compared to organising formal training.
Activities can take place on an ad-hoc basis when a particular need arises, on a regular basis with a particular membership (eg a group of staff who all share a particular interest or specialism), or on a regular basis with access to all staff.
- Consider testing a one-off 'lunch and learn' session on a crowd-pulling topic such as stress management, body language, time management, or memory techniques.
- Book a dynamic speaker to run a session for about an hour during a lunchtime. (The AAT may be able to help with speaker suggestions if you don't have any suitable contacts.) Book a buffet lunch, which staff can eat during the presentation.
- Promote the session to all staff in as dynamic/enticing a way as possible. Make it easier for people by advertising and taking bookings via e-mail. And don't forget to advertise the free lunch!
- After the session, gather feedback from staff about how it went and what other similar activities they would like in the future.
- Consider setting up either regular 'lunch and learn' sessions or other internal discussion groups as appropriate to your organisation. (It's best to recruit a small group of staff volunteers to manage these activities, to share workload and to promote staff ownership of - and participation in - future activities.)
The provision of TV, video and multi-media resources to support and encourage learning is a fast growing sector. Why not think about how you can use them to further support your staff's development?
1. Review what equipment you have available for supporting learning, and whether you need to upgrade or buy any new items. (Having a spare PC for software-based or online learning would be an excellent addition if feasible.)
2. Review whether there is a part of your premises that you can devote to becoming a learning resources centre, where staff could go to watch TV or video programmes, or to use a PC for learning.
3. Investigate options for learning through TV and video. You might find the following contacts useful in this respect:
Video Arts Ltd - Dumbarton House, 68 Oxford Street, London, W1N 0LH
t: 020 7637 7288
www.videoarts.co.uk
Television Education Network - 1 Clerkenwell Green, London, EC1R 0DE
t: 020 7074 3900
Fenman Ltd - Clive House, The Business Park, Ely, Cambridgeshire, CB7 4EH, UK
t: 01353 665 533
http://www.fenman.co.uk/
All the major TV channels also have their own websites where you can find information about relevant programmes:
www.bbc.co.uk/whatson/
www.itv.co.uk
www.channel4.com/guide/listings.cfm
4. Investigate options for learning through IT. You might find the following contacts useful:
Learndirect
www.learndirect.co.uk
Skill Boosters (BDP Media) - The Leathermarket, Weston Street, London, SE1 3ER
t: 020 7357 6444
www.skillboosters.com
5. If relevant to your organisation's needs, pilot the use of these resources with a small number of staff to establish the feasibility of extending it to all staff.
Set up a job awareness/shadowing scheme
Job awareness training helps individuals learn from others how to complete particular tasks, and it can also help to improve departmental relations and increase knowledge of the roles and people within different sections/departments.
1. Use the types of job awareness PDF checklist to consider which activities could be useful in your organisation.
2. Speak to personnel staff and managers about building in regular cycles for any job awareness activities you would like to try out.
3. Speak to staff to explain the benefits of this approach, and ask for their ideas of how it could work.
In addition to these simple tips, you may benefit from some further reading. The following resources may be of interest to you:
The Staff Development Handbook by Peter Shield (published by Kegan Page)
Learning in the Workplace: strategies for effective practice by Stephen Billett (published by Allen and Unwin)
Learning Unlimited: practical strategies and techniques for transforming learning in the workplace by Alistair Rylatt (published by Business Professional Publishing)