5 ways to maximise learner engagement 

Everyone knows me as an experiential learning specialist but not everyone knows what that means. Many people assume that that means that I use games, exercises or tasks in my training programmes and that is true, but it is only a small part of the story. I don’t use games to spice up a boring training session, every aspect of the programme must be designed to maximise learner engagement and that means getting learners as involved as possible in thinking, learning, doing and planning for application in a way that means they simply cannot be bored or wondering what they are going to have for dinner.

It means a lot more time spent planning, designing and creating resources to use and a much bigger car to transport what you need to sessions, but it is worth it for the outcomes and results. It is generally not done well in secondary schools and universities, unfortunately, where all too often learners are expected to passively consume. There are many different ways that I plan for ‘learner engagement’ and here is a selection of five of them to get you started if you are hoping to improve engagement and outcomes on your programmes…  Read more

Berneslai Homes Project Completed

In our Spring bulletin we reported a new contract with Berneslai Homes to deliver 360 degree performance feedback reports as well as management workshops to 80 leaders. The workshops covered key themes of... 

• emotional intelligence
• resilience
• role-modelling
• succession-planning

This contract has now been fulfilled plus additional requests for us to lead a couple of team away days. We were grateful for the excellent support of our 360 degree service provider, Lumus360. 

Some of the feedback from  participants...

"The balance of the course was just right and encouraged everyone to take part. The style of teaching ensured that the entire course was engaging and always captured the learners' attention. I can honestly say that this was the best course I have ever attended and I have taken away some great tips and tools for better leadership. Your teaching style is amazing!"

Claire, Berneslai Homes

"I can honestly say it was by far the best leadership programme/training I have ever undertaken. The emphasis on teamwork activities and then reflecting on leadership rather than traditional textbook sessions with horrendous feedback/role play sessions was so valuable." 

Faye, Bernaslai Homes

Bernaslai Homes are an ALMO (Arms Length Management Organisation) and are a lovely values-driven organisation, with lots of amazing managers that it has been a real treat to work with.

If you would like Shirley to help inspire your leaders, contact: shirley@azesta.co.uk

After December our Yorkshire Trainers Development Network will no longer be part of the Brain Friendly Learning Group which is closing down. Of course, we will continue to provide top-quality non-profit professional development and our upcoming workshops are below. Why not book your place now?(Sessions usually take place on Fridays between 10am and 2.30pm.)

Friday 6th December

‘Using a systems psychodynamic approach in coaching and facilitation‘

with Megan Meredith

Friday 31st January 2020

‘TetraMap’

with Nicki Davey

Friday 13th March 2020

‘How to accelerate learning’

with Krystyna Gadd 

For more details see the website ...

https://www.brainfriendlylearninggroup.com/leeds/

 Metalog Training Tools

Azesta are the only official Metalog distributor in the UK.

Exciting new tools are being developed all the time, such as FutureCity.  

Just like in the real world, building the FutureCity requires “Visionaries” and “Doers” to get the job done. In this activity each Visionary has a picture card containing the relevant information for their construction project, but they are not allowed to show their cards either to the other Visionaries or the Doers. The Visionaries must solely rely on clever communication to co-ordinate their plans with each other and with the Doers – because only the Doers are allowed to touch the building blocks they will use to construct the FutureCity.

Only when all of the team members really co-ordinate properly with each other can the building project be constructed step by step according to plan. But, be careful, because the building blocks look different from the different perspectives. Just because the building block looks blue to one Visionary doesn’t mean it looks the same to another. This learning project is ideal for groups of 4 to 24 participants and can be adapted to suit the desired level of difficulty. 

Please visit the Metalog website for more information

**Ensure you order directly through azesta to secure a discount on catalogue prices!**

Azesta have linked up with EvaluationStore.com to give all Azesta customers 10% off all EvaluationStore.com products. This includes:

• High Performing Team (£9.99 per person, £8 with the Azesta code ... as far as we are aware, this is globally unique and immensely effective)
• Spectrum behavioural evaluation – Individual and Team (£19.99 per person, £18 with the Azesta code ... which compares with an average of just over £100 for alternative Jungian evaluations)
• Motivation@Work evaluation (£9.99 per person, £9 with the Azesta code ... referred to by one UK HR Director as ‘the best new evaluation he’s seen in many years’)
• How I learn (multiple intelligences, £4.99 per person, £4.50 with Azesta code)
• How I communicate (sensory preferences which include internal/external elements of each sense, again, as far as we are aware, this is globally unique. £4.99 per person, £4.50 with Azesta code).

Examples of evaluation reports are available www.EvaluationStore.com  

You may complete any single evaluation and at the end, on the payment page, insert the code 'Azesta10%2019' in the box marked ‘Voucher code’. When you do, the price shown will fall by 10%.

You may set up a code for a team or a set of individuals to use – the instructions are here: paper versions and instructions (EvaluationStore have changed payment provider since the PDF here was created, so a couple of cosmetic differences on the payment page, but the rest seems fine). You sign in as a member, buy a code, distribute that code to the team members you want to complete the evaluation, then they cut and paste it onto the homepage code box and the evaluation is: a) free to them as you have already paid b) if you have set it up as a team evaluation, the results get to the right place for team results consolidation.