Supported Learning Guidance Kit
Purpose
The supported learning guidance kit is a practical aid to support the planning, delivery and reporting on Supported Learning. It is designed to guide The Global Health Network regional teams and its wider network and communities, including researchers, teachers, students and health professionals, to promote and strengthen scientific and technological research.
Supported Learning Overview
Supported Learning is an approach designed to provide resources, access and guidance to participants to enhance their research knowledge and skills. The approach adopts a blended learning methodology combining synchronous lectures (delivered in-person or online) with asynchronous learning activities such as e-learning courses or toolkits provided by the TGHN training centre and its partners . After successfully completing the predetermined number of sessions, participants are required to undergo an evaluation process to obtain certification. This approach promotes on-the-job training and providing participants with access to facilities and dedicated time to undertake learning courses that are key to developing and improving their research skills. Participants receive training focused on a specific topic, and guided by a tutor. The sessions incorporate a variety of resources, including documents, recorded lectures, e-learning courses, online materials, group exercises, tutorials, and more. Additionally, it incorporates live interactions with a tutor who aids in providing an overview of the topic, clarifying key concepts, monitoring progress, and providing valuable feedback to participants.
Steps for Organising Supported Learning
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Step 2: |
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Step 1: Identify the needs
Assess the research training needs or gaps withing the community by reviewing existing literature, conducting a needs assessment survey, or consulting with the target audience and key stakeholders.
Step 2: Prepare a plan or proposal for the Supported Learning
Planning is crucial for the organisation of a supported learning, since it guarantees clarity regarding the audience, objectives, resources and alignment with the goals of your institution, facilitating its approval and implementation. We provide a standard template to help you outline all the elements necessary to for your planning process.
Note: Preparing a plan or proposal for the workshop may be a long process and it takes shape over a period and changes to the plan can be made along the way.
Plan or Proposal Template
- Topic of Supported Learning
- Organising institution/s – include organising partners
- Primary coordinator or contact person
- Identify online materials or e learning courses that will be utilised as part of the sessions
- Objectives of the supported learning – this should clearly state 3-5 learning objectives of the activity and the knowledge, or skills participants can expect to come away with after the workshop
- Target participants
- Format – Online/in person/hybrid
- Number of sessions
- Registration – open access or by invitation
- Location
- Equipment - computers or laptops with Wifi made available to undertake the online courses
- Language – including whether translations required or not
- Schedule – Date and time and frequency if there are multiple sessions
- Duration – in hours or days
- Scope – local/national/regional
- Number of participants – It would depend on format (online/in person) and the capacity of the venue
- Certificates of attendance to participants needed – yes/no
- Courses or modules to be completed
- Agenda
- Chair/Facilitator – including their institution, role, contact and rationale for their participation
- Tutor – This should be an expert on the identified topic. Include information on their institution, role, contact and rationale for their participation
- Cost to participants – Attendance should be free for all participants
- Tutor participation – Generally there is no renumeration and tutors contribute their time pro bono, they can be compensated for their time in kind or through mechanisms suitable to the organising team
- Budget
Budget template as an example
| No. | Description of Item | Quantity | Unit | Cost |
| 1 | Venue hire | |||
| 2 | Catering | |||
| 3 | Materials | |||
| 4 | Equipment | |||
| 5 | Travel |
- Source of funding
- Dissemination methods – social media/knowledge hub/email/posters/newsletters depending on reach necessary
- Supported learning outputs – that align with the aims and objectives of the sessions
- Participant engagement – Q and A session, feedback session, etc.
- Impact measurement plan
Step 3: Develop a supported learning programme
Develop a supported learning program that addresses the identified needs and level of knowledge of the target participants. This should include the topic to be covered, list of online courses to be undertaken, supporting resources to be provided, content for the in-person lecture, time duration to be allotted, mode of sessions, number of sessions, and agenda for each session.
Step 4: Recruit facilitators and tutors for the session
Identify and recruit qualified facilitators and tutors to lead the supported learning sessions. Consider candidates with relevant expertise and experience in the subject matter, as well as strong teaching skills. Ensure that facilitators can engage participants, providing support, and fostering an interactive learning environment. Clear communication of expectations and roles will be essential in preparing them to deliver effective training and enhance the overall learning experience.
Step 5: Obtain approvals
Obtain relevant institutional or other approvals to implement the workshop using the plan or proposal developed.
Step 6: Pre event setup
- Schedule the sessions
- Set up the venue or online meeting including registration link, registration questions, follow up or feedback surveys, polls or breakout rooms, etc.
- Prepare slides for the lecture
- Organise a practice session with the facilitators and tutors and going over the introductions, testing technical setup, going over the agenda, role guidance, etc.
Step 7: Invite participants
Invite the identified participants using the dissemination methods identified, such as newsletter, social media, mailing list, flyers or posters, and knowledge hub posts.
Step 8: Register participants
Get the participants registered using an online or paper form with the necessary registration questions to document participation. The registration must include pre-session questions so that the impact of the supported learning can be measured utilising the pre-post questionnaires.
Example questions for registration:
- Name
- Email address
- Country
- Organisation
- Job title
- The Global Health Network and partners would like to share updates, events, services and opportunities which may be of interest to you. Do you consent to your details being shared for these purposes? Yes, No
- We would like to contact you in the future to follow up about the impact of the work across The Global Health Network. Do you provide your consent to be contacted? Yes, No
Step 9: Conduct the sessions
Facilitate the supported learning according to the outline and learning program developed, and include impact measurement plans in it.
Step 10: Follow-up and evaluate
Follow up with the participants as per the impact measurement plan and seek feedback for improvements for future supported learning or sessions. The process, outcome and immediate impact is measured immediately after the session and the medium and long-term impact is measured after a certain amount of time is passed after the session.
Measuring Results and Impact
Suggested KPI’s for Supported Learning
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Activities under Objective 1 |
Key Performance Indicators |
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Process Indicators |
Outcome Indicators |
Impact Indicators |
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Supported learning |
# of supported learning sessions held yearly # of participants in each session
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# of people with improved knowledge of the topic following the supported learning # of users who receive a score of 80% in the course evaluation after the first try (If TGHN Training Centre courses were used)
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# of participants who have applied gained knowledge in their work |
Here are a few examples of how to collect information on the above metrics:
- Feedback form
If you would like to gather feedback from the participants for a supported learning, here is the example set of questions that can be utilised.
Example feedback form questions:
- Full name
- Please enter the title of the Supported Learning you attended
- Your current role
- Name of organisation
- Country
- Why did you attend this Supported Learning?
- The Supported Learning session was a good fit for my needs – Yes, No
- The concepts and skills covered were explained well – Yes, No
- Are you aiming to publish any materials (studies, guidelines, toolkits, etc) relevant to the topic covered in the Supported Learning? Yes, No
- Will you be applying the knowledge gained from the Supported Learning in the work you are doing? Yes, No
- Please explain your response above
- What were the key takeaways for you from the session, anything that struck you or that you found most interesting?
Pre-post questionnaire
A pre-post questionnaire is a tool used to measure the impact of a supported learning session by assessing participants' knowledge, skills, and attitudes before and after the supported learning. The pre-session questionnaire establishes a baseline, while the post-session questionnaire evaluates any changes, helping to quantify the effectiveness of the training. This method is important as it provides concrete data on the supported learning's impact, identifies areas for improvement, and ensures that the objectives of the supported learning are being met.Here is an example question for a pre-post questionnaire
- On a scale of 1-5, how confident are you in the topics covered in this Supported Learning? (1 = Not confident, 5 = Very confident)
Follow up questionnaire
A 2-month, 3-month or 6-month follow-up questionnaire is used to measure the long-term impact of a supported learning by assessing how well participants have retained and applied the knowledge and skills gained. This questionnaire evaluates the lasting effects of the training and measures the sustained benefits and improvements in participants' practice or projects.
Here are example questions for a follow up questionnaire:
- I believe that I learned new information/skills during the training/workshop. (Strongly agree, Agree, Neither agree nor disagree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree)
- Please explain your answer
- The skills I gained in the training/workshop has been useful for my work (Strongly agree, Agree, Neither agree nor disagree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree)
- The information I gained in the webinar/training/workshop has been useful for my work (Strongly agree, Agree, Neither agree nor disagree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree)
- I have noticed improvements/positive changes in my performance/produced work as a result of the webinar/training/workshop (Strongly agree, Agree, Neither agree nor disagree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree)
- Please explain your answer
- I have applied the knowledge/skills gained from the training/workshop in my work (Strongly agree, Agree, Neither agree nor disagree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree)
- Please explain your answer
- Are there any specific examples of how the training/ workshop has helped you in your work? (if they choose any of the first two options)
- Are you working to publish any materials that are relevant to the topic covered by the training/workshop? ** Follow up on this previous question (Yes, No, Not sure)
- What is the type of work you want to publish? (if the answer is yes)
- What is the tentative timeline until publication?
- Do you consent to be contacted again by The Global Health Network to follow up regarding your progress in publishing your work?
- Are there any collaborations that have emerged as a result of participating in the training/webinar/workshop? (Yes, No, Not sure)
- Please describe them (if they choose yes)
Reporting
- Reporting on the Regional Activity Tracker
The Regional Activity Tracker is designed to collect and track key information from research capacity strengthening activities. The information will be compiled to produce a Regional Activity Dashboard accessible and published on the TGHN Regional Knowledge Hubs to help The Global Health Network collaborators to stay informed of the ongoing and implemented activities in the regions. This information will further factor into The Global Health Network’s impact metrics and progress evaluation.
Link to Regional Activity Tracker form: coming soon
- Reporting on the TGHN Knowledge Hub
All regional activities should be reported on the relevant knowledge hub on the TGHN online platform using information on:
- Activity summary including location, background, aims and objectives
- Activity poster for comms and dissemination
- Activity programme or agenda
- Activity recording, if available
- Learnings from the activity and key takeaways