Streamline Training & Documentation: Training in Botswana

Thursday, July 26, 2007

Training in Botswana

Among African countries, Botswana has done especially well in pursuing development policies that are broadly beneficial to its population. In the training arena, the Botswana Training Authority (BOTA) has a primary role.

BOTA was established in October 2000 as part of the implementation of the 1998 Vocational Training Act. BOTA's main responsibility is to monitor and regulate vocational education and training, hence their mission statement:

We coordinate an integrated vocational training system that meets the needs of learners and industry through the development of standards; quality assurance; policy advice and monitoring and evaluation.

After consultation with stakeholders — business and industry, training organizations, and community representatives — and with a view to matching global quality standards,¹ BOTA established seven value principles (pdf) for Botswana's vocational training programs (slightly edited):

Foundation — Learning materials must be guided and supported by the aligned or outcomes-expressed curricula and they must be relevant to industry needs so that they are capable of preparing the learner for current and future trends in the world of work; be challenging but still appropriate for the level of the target group; adapt rather than duplicate the existing materials – e.g., reference materials and manuals; be internationally comparable; not violate copyright laws; and indicate notional learning time.

Scope (breadth and depth of the learning material) — In order to ensure that the scope is fit for the training's purpose — i.e., suitable for the target group and addressing the expected outcomes of learning — developers need to: identify the relevant outcomes of learning or competencies, and support their acquisition; relate to the appropriate target group(s) — i.e., be flexible enough to accommodate varying abilities and backgrounds; provide clear examples, explanations and illustrations; indicate resources needed; provide an accurate industry context to suit current and future work environments; emphasize the purpose of learning in terms of employment opportunities; and provide a list of recommended further reading.

Structure and Design — Learning materials must not only promote effective learning and assessment strategies but must also have a clear structure and be sequenced such that the target group can easily explore them. They must: be easy for the learner to navigate; present a visually attractive design; be usable by the hearing, visually and physically impaired; provide activities and learning strategies designed to motivate learners; and use words / language appropriate for the level of the target group.

Flexible delivery — Learning materials must consider that learners (as well as trainers and assessors, as appropriate) have varying needs, preferences and entry levels, therefore must: provide a variety of learning methods; provide for use in a variety of training / learning contexts, e.g., on-the-job, off-the-job, and simulations; provide guidance on entry requirements (especially for learning packages / self-access materials); be adaptable for use under different but similar conditions — e.g., making coffee is different from making tea but the process is more or less the same; provide adequate user guides; provide guidance, as necessary, on safety, health and environment requirements pertaining to the learning event; be challenging to cater for the target population (e.g., should challenge both homogeneous and heterogeneous groups); be linked to industry minimum performance requirements / standards in order to adequately prepare the learner for the world of work; and highlight issues pertaining to modes of delivery – e.g., distance learning.

Access and Equity — In order for learning materials to be inclusive, they must: accommodate learners from different geographical locations — e.g., using relevant examples and contexts — for workplace learning taking place in remote areas; accommodate cultural diversity; challenge stereotypes of gender, ethnicity, creed and ability status, which can be corrected / reversed by use of non-discriminatory words, pictures, illustrations and examples; be affordable in terms of purchase price / procurement; be moderately colorful but attractive — not boring but not too colorful; be produced in a way that is affordable by producers; take information technology needs into account; provide guidance on training / learning and employment opportunities.

Content — Well-balanced content must: be interactive, keeping the target group engaged — i.e., tasks must adopt a practical approach, — e.g., role plays, projects, drama and surveys of living examples; be presented in a language appropriate for the level of the user — e.g., the lower the learner’s educational background, the simpler the language; be simple but yet challenging to the learner in order to sustain their interest; simulate reality in terms of work requirements and problem solving — i.e., be realistic; assist the trainer’s effort in delivering / implementing the curriculum; be sufficient in parameters guided by the curriculum — not too much and not too shallow; internationally and locally comparable and up-to-date; provide the notional learning time frame; and integrate and correlate theory with practice.

Feedback and Evaluation — Learning materials must promote self-assessment for the learner and provide feedback to both the learner and the developer. They must: show the date on which the material was produced; show the date of next review of the material; provide a list of assessment questions / tasks / activities for the user; include a questionnaire to evaluate the material; and state the contact details of the producer.

I have done some preliminary investigating of how BOTA's efforts are working out, but have not come up with anything very informative. I will continue to watch for reports of what BOTA is accomplishing.

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¹ BOTA hired Peter R. Fleming, an expert from New Zealand, to direct the group charged with promoting effective structured work based learning.
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Labels: Africa, Documentation, Usability

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