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Tearfund commissioned DeltaNet International Ltd to develop an online Health and Safety Induction programme. They have recently piloted the eLearning course with some of their employees in Liberia.
Tearfund is a Christian relief and development agency working in over 60 countries worldwide, whose vision is to relieve suffering and to offer hope to the world’s poorest countries. Since 1960, the organisation has worked to provide education, disaster relief, food security programmes and business opportunities in the Third World.
The programme, which is designed to provide an introduction to Health and Safety, was originally developed for employees in the UK. Darren Hockley, Managing Director of DeltaNet commented: “Understanding the target audience is a key consideration when designing and developing learning programmes.”
The programme was recently introduced to employees in Liberia to assess its suitability for overseas training purposes, and to raise awareness of the issue of Health and safety. In this particular pilot scheme, a large proportion of the target audience had no familiarity with the subject of health and safety and the practices associated with it, and had a limited understanding of the English language.
The programme was developed in English. At first it was thought that it may be necessary to develop translated versions of the programme. However the pilot scheme revealed that although the level of understanding of the English language was mixed, most students were able to complete the course. This was due to the accessible, pictorial nature of the programme, which aids textual understanding. The structure of the course is divided into short modules and the language used to convey information is clear and concise, which was also of benefit to the learners.
Learners studied the programme individually or in groups. Though both methods of study were successful, the latter proved to be the favoured approach, particularly for those with no prior knowledge of the subject, and for those with a limited understanding of English. Group work gave learners an opportunity to discuss course content and answers to questions, to facilitate understanding.
In a post assessment of the pilot project, it was ultimately decided that the programme was effective for overseas learners conducting individual or group study, and required only limited provision of face to face guidance and background knowledge training, prior to learners embarking on the course. The programme was subsequently deemed as a valuable training resource for overseas tutors and learners alike.
Darren Hockley, Managing Director of DeltaNet commented on the success of the project: "The feedback from the UK and Liberia proves that our solutions are educationally effective for a diverse range of audiences. Our ability to reposition the learning programme in this instance has led to an increased return on investment for Tearfund, and we are now working with them to design the next stage of the project". |
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