In September 2002, the TECH21 Professional Development Institute kicked-off the first stage in a continuing professional development series for 8 field sites across the country. The Institute explored several multimedia products, developed with funding from the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Vocational and Adult Education.

Participants offered a great deal of valuable feedback on this professional development initiative. Their comments and suggestions helped me craft this "guiding principles" piece. Trainees identified the following activities, information, and support as crucial in product-related trainings.

-Offer an in-depth orientation to the product. Be sure to include a great deal of hands-on time.

Several course participants said that they would have liked more time to experiment with the products while still situated in the training context. That way, they could raise questions and receive more immediate answers and support from training staff. They said that they would have felt more comfortable using the products in their own programs had the in-person workshop been more "hands-on."

-Establish clear incentives for use - make sure the relevance of the product is obvious to all participants.

This piece is challenging because all participants must, to some degree, define their own incentives for use. Certainly, trainers can suggest reasons for using particular products and/or help participants define the value of these products in their programs. Ultimately, however, the impetus to use products comes from users.

This "incentives" thread should run throughout the training day. As participants progress through the day's activities, facilitators should help them (collectively and individually) define incentives for use. If participants do not leave the training with a strong sense of the product's value and potential, they will be much less inclined to integrate the product into their programs and/or tackle roadblocks that arise.

-Include small group work in the training so individuals have the opportunity to bond and collaborate.

Course participants wanted to have more time to chat casually with fellow trainees. Developing these relationships during the in-person training can create a solid foundation for future communication and collaboration.

-Provide step-by-step implementation instructions.

This request is challenging, largely because programs vary. What works in one place may not work in another. In an effort to help folks establish their OWN implementation steps, refer to the three implementation models in the Handouts section.

-Help participants understand how all the pieces (video, online, workbook) work together.

The TECH21 training initiative focused on integrating video resources into practice. Participants commented that they would have liked more information about the online and print resources and how these pieces complemented the videos.

-Show participants how to sort through the available resources and find the specific topics, etc. that meet their students' needs.

Participants should have access to a quick reference guide that lists all the video, print, and online resources. Course participants wanted a simple, user-friendly "roadmap" to help them navigate.

-Provide examples of lesson plans (using the products).

Participants indicated that they would have liked access to a collection of Workplace Essential Skills lesson plans (designed for use in a variety of learning contexts). They felt that seeing other teachers' lessons would have given them more concrete ideas about how to leverage WES for their own purposes.

-Offer an informal forum for communication beyond the in-person training.

Participants emphasized the importance of ongoing communication with one another and with trainers during the implementation process. They wanted to stay in touch (informally) with colleagues to share stories of implementation, brainstorm solutions to roadblocks, ask the trainers questions, etc. They felt that having access to an ongoing community reinforced their commitment to and interest in adopting Workplace Essential Skills.

Copyright © 2002 National Center on Adult Literacy (NCAL), University of Pennsylvania/Graduate School of Education. All rights reserved. This website is based on work funded by the U.S. Department of Education/Office of Vocational and Adult Education under grant number ED-01-R-0023. The content does not necessarily reflect the policy or position of the U.S. Department of Education, nor does mention or visual representation of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the federal government.