Simply raising awareness of good practice through ‘passive’ dissemination methods, such as publications, websites and conferences will not be enough to change behaviour and practice. To make a real difference staff need to engage in demonstrations, coaching and other forms of active or ‘experiential’ sharing. Yet evidence cited in the report suggests that most organisations continue to use passive methods of dissemination. Unless they adopt more active approaches to sharing, the impact on actual practice is likely to be minimal.
Good practice is rarely, if ever, neutral of the structures and culture of the organisation in which it has been developed. To transfer good practice effectively, changes must be made not only within classrooms, but also at the organisational level. Managers have a critical role to play in developing the values and infrastructure necessary to support this work. Staff also need the time and opportunity to engage in experiential sharing and to test and customize new ideas.
Education and training organisations need to develop their own capacity for identifying excellence, instead of relying on what inspectors or external agencies define as ‘good practice’. They also need to acknowledge that the transfer of good practice is a joint responsibility. This suggests a need for a more selective and targeted approach to good practice sharing.
Ways of measuring the direct and indirect impact of transferring knowledge and skills should be developed using case study examples identified in the report. With the focus on ‘exchanging practice’ and ‘learning from each other’, more attention should be given to the mutual benefits of good practice sharing.
The report identifies the need for a national policy for supporting the transfer of good practice transfer in further education and training. To achieve this, greater clarity is needed over the role of external agencies and national bodies in identifying and signposting good practice, brokering sharing relationships, funding projects, assessing the impact of initiatives and disseminating outcomes. This is now being addressed by the Quality Improvement Agency for Lifelong Learning (QIA), to be launched in April 2006, which will lead the development of a quality improvement strategy for the learning and skills sector, working closely with the inspectorates, funding bodies and other national organisations.
Andrew Thomson, LSDA chief executive and chief executive-designate of the Quality Improvement Agency for Lifelong Learning (QIA), said: ‘Spreading good practice really effectively doesn’t just happen: it has to be planned and managed. It needs more than simply telling people about it. Teachers and managers need to be properly engaged in making things work. This means using more interactive methods such as coaching, but also giving scope for teachers and trainers to experiment with new ideas and practices. Colleges and other learning providers will need to collaborate more and encourage staff to share practice both internally and externally. A key task for the QIA will be to promote the sharing of good practice and to help providers to make progress through such work.’
At the end of March 2006, LSDA will evolve into two separate organisations. Its policy and strategic work will develop into the Quality Improvement Agency for Lifelong Learning (QIA) - an NDPB (Non-Departmental Public Body) which will provide a strategic focus for quality improvement in the learning and skills sector. LSDA’s existing programmes, research, training and consultancy work will continue as normal under the banner of the Learning and Skills Network (LSN). The role of the QIA will be to: lead the development of a three-year Quality Improvement Strategy for the sector; build providers' capacity for self-improvement; secure the commitment of the learning and skills sector to national strategic priorities; and speed up the pace of improvement among providers. The Learning and Skills Network (LSN) will continue LSDA’s hands-on delivery work with the learning and skills sector, building on LSDA’s existing skills and knowledge. LSN will bid for contracts to provide services for our sector, for the QIA and for other agencies. Its work will include support programmes, research, training and consultancy work
Through an examination of different models for good practice sharing, the report considers why providers seek to share their practice, or adopt the practice of others, and the role of external agencies in supporting sharing relationships. It examines the techniques used by providers to share good practice, to adopt, or adapt, such practice and to deal with the organisational changes necessary to support its transfer. It reviews approaches to assessing the direct and wider benefits of good practice sharing, for sustaining improvement and extending the lessons learned.
On the basis of this analysis, the report identifies the following factors as being critical to the success of good practice sharing:
- Confidence in the source of the practice:
Education and training organisations often rely on what inspectors or external agencies define as ‘good practice’. They should develop their own capacity to identify good practice and the sources of such practice.
- Reciprocity and parity of status between the participants:
Parity of status, based on an equal relationship between those sharing the practice, is important. The focus should be on exchanging practice and learning from each other. This recognizes the mutual benefits of good practice sharing.
- Sharing as an active learning process:
Sometimes called ‘experiential sharing’ this takes the form of demonstrations, practice, feedback and coaching. Without such activities there is likely to be limited impact on actual practice.
- Leadership and management of change:
The effectiveness of good practice sharing will depend on how the process is led, managed and resourced. In transferring good practice, changes will therefore need to be considered at both the practitioner level (e.g. within the classroom setting) and at the level of the whole organisation.
- Impact assessment:
This is the least well-developed aspect of managing knowledge and skills transfer. Without the ability to demonstrate the benefits of good practice sharing, in measurable ways, it will be difficult to sustain such activity over time.
The research offers messages to managers, practitioners and policy-makers in national organisations on ways of supporting good practice transfer.
- Managers: For sharing to be effective over time, there must be leadership ‘from the top’. Managers have a critical role to play in developing an overall strategy for good practice sharing and for developing the infrastructure necessary to support this work. Good practice is rarely, if ever, neutral of the organisational structures and culture in which it has been developed and to which it must be transferred.
- Practitioners: Staff are usually willing to change the way they work if it helps them to do a better job. They will, however, need the time and opportunity to develop an experiential understanding of how other practitioners work and perform. Professional updating may also be necessary. In sharing across curriculum or occupational areas, the commitment of staff to the perceived needs of their professional disciplines will need to be addressed.
- National organisations: There is no overarching policy or framework for supporting good practice transfer in the learning and skills sector. Greater clarity is needed in establishing the role of external agencies and national bodies in identifying and signposting good practice, brokering sharing relationships, funding sharing projects, assessing the impact of such initiatives and disseminating outcomes.
An analysis by the Learning and Skills Council of good practice sharing project supported through the former Standards Fund found that:
- 68% of relied on ‘passive’ dissemination methods, such as publications, websites and conferences
- only 28% of projects sought to promote understanding through more active methods of engagement, such as workshops, consultancy and secondments
- only 4% used collaborative networking strategies.
"Good practice transfer in post-16 learning: strategies that work" by Philip Cox, is available from: Information Services, LSDA, Regent Arcade House, 19-25 Argyll Street, London W1F 7LS. Tel: 0207 297 9123. Email: Diese E-Mail-Adresse ist vor Spambots geschützt! Zur Anzeige muss JavaScript eingeschaltet sein!
Quelle: Publictechnology, 08.02.2006
