Workers' Educational Association
Bringing the world into teaching and learning: An Accredited Development Education Tutor Training Programme

The Organisation
Background, aim and purpose of the pilot project
Role and purpose of involvement of the MEDE project
Evaluation processes used
Planning and development
Evaluation and learning methods undertaken
Outcomes from the case study
Value and benefits of the pilot project
Contact details

The Organisation
The Workers' Educational Association (WEA) is a national voluntary organisation which aims to provide adults with access to organised learning to develop their intellectual understanding and social and collective responsibility, with a particular emphasis on meeting the needs of working class adults who are socially, economically or educationally disadvantaged. The WEA recognises that in today's world of the global political economy, if the global context is missing from education, the understanding and strategies that arise from it will be inadequate. It has therefore embarked on a new effort to encourage better adult education on issues of world or global development.

Background, aim and purpose of the pilot project
The Accredited Development Education Tutor Training Programme was a three year project (1999 -2002) which aimed to bring development education into the mainstream of the WEA's curriculum through the development of a tutor training programme and the identification of specific development education learning outcomes and assessment criteria for the accreditation process. The project hoped to develop a training programme for tutors, tutor organisers and voluntary members. The plan was to review and evaluate the pilot phase of the project and to then offer the validated programme on a WEA wide basis and in liaison with the Association's wider tutor training initiative.

The project provided guidance on how to incorporate global perspectives into adult education, with a particular emphasis on the relationship between the content and key concepts in development education and the use of appropriate teaching and learning methodologies. The aims of the Accredited Development Education Tutor Training Programme were to:

• iIdentify development education learning outcomes criteria necessary for embedding international development perspectives and issues in WEA course programmes
• identify learning outcomes which reflect development education methodologies in the teaching of workers and their families in the workplace and community
• train a selection of key tutors and tutor organisers from across the association who will deliver tutor training courses within the districts
• develop and adapt education materials on international development for use on WEA national programmes and course development
• submit the programme for validation through either the National Open College Network or EDEXCEL Foundation as appropriate
• build on and strengthen partnerships developed with the DEA and trade union movement.

Role and purpose of involvement of the Measuring Effectiveness project
The project formed one element of the WEA's professional development programme nationally and at a district level. The WEA became involved in the Measuring Effectiveness project in order to support their strategy of bringing development education perspectives and practice across adult education.

Evaluation processes used
Aim of evaluation
This pilot project aimed to identify specific development education learning outcomes and assessment criteria, within the context of a project that responds to a range of professional development needs. In terms of evaluation the focus was on three key dimensions:

• evaluation of the project itself and how it is organised and managed - through the development of an overall evaluation model
• evaluation of the tutor's progress through continuous assessment - based on the identification of specific learning outcomes
• to influence national agendas through the identification of specific DE learning outcomes and assessment criteria for the accreditation process.

Planning and development
As this project set out to define and assess learning outcomes and to train adult educators, ongoing feedback from participants was central, and a range of evaluation mechanisms were built into the training programme from the outset such as:

• peer review and support
• reviewing progress against learning contracts
• guidance on learning outcomes and assessment criteria.

Evaluation and learning methods undertaken
The WEA team believed that directly relating work programmes to the international development context was of key importance in their development education work, both in terms of evaluation and within programme delivery. The evaluation model they adapted therefore focused strongly on evaluating the effectiveness and impact of the project whilst maintaining connections with the wider context. It was viewed as being particularly valuable because of its applicability at the micro level, e.g. evaluating a single training session or event, and also at the macro level, e.g. evaluating the project as a whole.

Methods
The WEA sought to base their evaluation practice on their teaching and learning methodology which focused on supporting active learning, valuing and building on existing knowledge, encouraging critical reflection and enabling the participants to make informed choices in their own context. Thus whilst opportunities for evaluation and many of the evaluation tools were in place at the beginning of the project, the team also experimented with different techniques in order to develop methods which reflect the values and concepts of development education. The variety of methods used in the project included:

• questionnaires
• learning contracts
• classroom observation
• presentations
• group discussions
• a range of participatory activities, e.g. mapping and ranking exercises, brainstorming activities

Outcomes from the case study
The evaluation model was used as a learning tool both for tutors and for WEA staff. It has been used in a number of ways to enhance organisational learning and the course participants' sense of ownership of the project.

Indicators
Within this project, indicators of success in relation to teaching and learning were identifiable in relation to individual learning outcomes, organisational and national changes in policy and practice:

Value and benefits of the pilot project
The WEA project is valuable in that it developed an evaluation model that maintains connections with the wider contexts of international development and adult learning and assessment. It has also used learning contracts that identify specific outcomes. The evaluation model is also interesting as it is applicable at the macro and micro levels, which is a powerful learning tool for WEA staff and tutors.

For further information contact:

www.wea.org.uk/

Workers' Educational Association
Quick House
65 Clifton Street
London
EC2A 4JE

Tel: 020 7426 3450
Fax: 020 7426 3451
Email: rbolsin@wea.org.uk