Methodology for green business training development

Greening the Business: Green Business Management Trainings GREENB

ERASMUS+ PROGRAMME [DURATION: September 2015 – September 2017]

Methodology (Roadmap) for Green business training Development Intellectual Output 2: Course curriculum, learning and teaching materials (Final version)

IPS at UNWE, BULGARIA

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission.

This publication reflects the views only of the author and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

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Contents Introduction ......................................................................................... 3 1. The process of training programme development .............................. 4 2. Training programme inputs ............................................................... 5 3. Training programme development .................................................... 5 4. Training programme outputs: ......................................................... 10

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Introduction The present document has been prepared to facilitate the process of elaboration of GREENB training programme within O2. Course curriculum, learning and teaching materials. CHAMBRE DE COMMERCE ITALIENNE DE LYON will be the leader for this work package. The other GREENB partners will have specific responsibilities for undertaking O2 related tasks in their respective countries.

Support role to the lead partner will have IPS. This output aims at developing of a training methodology, content and materials, which match the requirements and training needs of the target groups. The training will be functional, attractive and user−friendly in an e−learning environment.

The process of developing the output should contain the following main tasks, which define: o o o o o o o o

o o o

Aims and objectives of the training, General profile of the trainees, Roles of participants (trainers and trainees), Communication means and channels, Organizational aspects of the course, Methods and approaches for teaching and learning, Learning content of the curriculum, Internal and external materials of different modules (eg, Green business concepts, Green business energy use, Green business supply chain and purchasing, etc.), Criteria and tools for evaluation of the acquired knowledge and skills, Requirements for the content and format of the learning materials, Instruments for monitoring of the progress of the learners, peer feedback, mechanisms for following improvement of the course.

O2 activities and associated results include:     

Development of Methodology for Green Business Training.

Development of Curriculum of Green Business Management Training Course (2 versions).

Validation of the training methodology and curricula.

Preparing of Teaching and Learning Materials.

Development of e-learning Green Business platform

One of the key objectives of this Methodology is to ensure that the training programme specification to be elaborated (training content, modules, materials, etc.) reflects all the requirements and needs identified during the previous IO1 and it should be coherent with the expected level of knowledge and skills.

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According to the updated project work plan the above activities are to be accomplished in the period from April 2016 to March 2017.

1. The process of training programme development The process of development of Course curriculum, learning and teaching materials under the GREENB project is not confined to O2 only. It uses the results of O1 Training needs assessment and will eventually take into account the feedback from O3. Final version of the Green Business Training Course to fine tune web-based training content.

TP inputs

National assessment reports on green business training needs

Report summarizing the common issues identified by the partners

TP development Definition of training content

Allocation of tasks among partners

Validation of training methodology and curricula

Development of training materials & evaluation tools

TP outputs

Methodology for GreenB Training

Curriculum of GreenB Management Training

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Validated training methodology and curriculua

Teaching and Learning Materials

E-learning GreenB platform

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2. Training programme inputs -

National assessment reports on green business training needs

O1 was built on the results of the needs/gap analysis of Green Business training needs in every partner country using different research instruments.

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Report summarizing the common issues identified by the partners

It is important that the Curriculum specification puts the emphasis on the Green Business training needs that are identified in the Composite Report as common for all partner countries but also leave enough room for training content variation in line with country specifics identified in National Reports on users’ existing level of Green Business skills and training needs.

3. Training programme development The elaboration of specification of Green Business course will encompass the following stages:

• Definition of training content in Curriculum of Green Business Management Training Course • Allocation of tasks among partners • Validation of training methodology and curricula

• Development of training materials – presentations, etc.

• Preparation of evaluation tools • Development of e-learning Green Business platform

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3.1. Definition of training content in Curriculum of Green Business Management Training Course Following the findings contained in the Composite and National Reports (IO1), the partners will identify the most appropriate approach to be used for the development of the training programme content. In the process of Curriculum development partners will take into consideration the theoretical and technical specifications, as well as the future operability of the materials after the end of the project.

The training content structure should allow for some degree of variation among project partners reflecting National Reports results and identified good practices at national level (O1): o o

Generic training content – will be used by all partners for all training modules; Specific training content – two factors have to be taken into account here:  Target groups – distinction should be made regarding the groups of trainees and trainers, on one hand, as well as the different types of organisations to be represented at the workshops on the other hand;  Country/ region of training delivery – training content should be fine-tuned by each partner in order to reflect the identified region-specific training needs.

Course curriculum will define course and modules learning outcomes. The syllabus and the contents for each module will be produced, for instance, objectives, outline, requirements, schedule and course material, main topics included in the distance and face-to-face training, criteria for evaluation of trainee performance, recommended readings, etc.

Optional modules include Economic sense to “green” the business, Green business travel and transportation, Green business office equipment and computing, Green business building design, Path to greening your business.

Other open issues with respect to training modules include: o o o

Definition of the number and types of training modules; Duration of each module: 5-8 hours, 5-8 sessions (40-60 minutes each); Definition of thematic and structural areas: learning, self-testing, assessment.

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The development of the training content will be followed by an identification, definition and selection of the training delivery approach, ensuring the usability, adaptability and constant updating of the training content. The delivery methods will reflect the preferences of the target group and contained in Composite and National Reports. Moreover, specific training delivery approach should be identified for: o o o o

Train the trainer workshops; The validation workshops provided to stakeholders; Pilot testing; Further usage of the training toolkit after end of the project.

The suggested general framework of training delivery methods is as follows: o o o

Learning approach – trainer-led sessions and online training; Methodology to be based on PPT presentations and audiovisual materials; Training delivery methods should again allow for some degree of flexibility to partners in the training delivery.

3.2. Allocation of tasks among partners During partner meeting in Ljubljana, and based on the partners’ responsibilities and time-allocation described in the application form, the O2 tasks will be distributed among partners in the following manner:

o

o

A ‘module leader’ will be assigned for each module to develop the learning materials and submit to the rest of the partners for feedback; All other partners will have to provide an input to the training programme development by preparing the respective country/ region specific content and are welcome to further contribute to the process if they are willing to do so.

Trainers will be involved in the process of development of training content and methodology. Each partner will closely consult trainers in order to make the product interesting and useful. At least one trainer form each country will participate in O2 and O3 project activities. The trainers will then apply what they have learned in practice and involve other trainers in their home countries.

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3.3. Validation of the training methodology and curricula The validation of the prepared under the previous activities products will be validated through organizing and conducting of one-day stakeholder workshops in each consortium country. As participants will be invited managers of SMEs, representatives of local, regional and national authorities, employer associations, trade unions, labour offices. 30 participants per event are foreseen; in total 150 stakeholders representatives from 5 countries will be involved.

The methodology and the course curriculum will be demonstrated, discussed and consulted with key stakeholders in order to be validated. Aiming to ensure a more effective discussion on its optimization at initial stage, two curriculum versions are going to be drafted. As a result of the consultations with the key stakeholders one of them is going to be adopted for the piloting of the course. English prototype will be finalized. Summary stakeholders’ consultation report will be prepared for each partner country.

3.4. Development of training materials A training toolkit of teaching and learning materials will be developed to support the implementation of the training course directed to green business managers.

This toolkit will include:   

Course outline and objectives, Set of training modules to fit the knowledge gaps and to improve managers’ skills, Training materials needed to implement the training methodology both at distance learning and face-to-face training.

In order to properly communicate the objectives, purpose and characteristics of the training content produced by the partners, training materials should be comprehensive, complementary and in consistence with the selected training delivery methods. Moreover, the training materials developed (PPT presentations, audiovisual materials, etc.) have to reflect the training content specifics – workshops, modules, sessions, etc.

The suggested training module and training session structure can be found below:

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o Training module structure:

Introductory session Session a TRAINING MODULE

Session b Session c Session ...

o Training session structure:

TRAINING SESSION

Introduction

Internal training content

Content presentation

External training content

Case studies

Audiovisual materials

Discussion Self-assessment

The development of evaluation tools has to ensure that training content and materials are fine-tuned based on end users’ feedback. Three types of evaluation questionnaires are proposed: o o o 

For self-assessment and selecting most appropriate training modules; For self-assessment of Green Business management skills acquisition; For evaluation of the training course content and delivery.

Translation of training course content (optional)

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To ensure the usability of the training content and materials, partners may decide to translate in national languages during or after the end of the project. There are no budget provisions for this option.

3.5. Development of e-learning Green Business platform The platform will be the tool for collecting dynamically learning resources for green business. The learning resources will be categorized according to selected green business training modules (eg., green business waste and recycling, green product and service design management; environmental management systems, green business sustainability reporting...).

A subcontractor will be selected to adopt Moodle with the following functions: o o o o o

E-learning module construction; Collection of learning resources; Relationship building of learning resources to learning modules; Expert forum; Learning outcomes assessment module.

Subcontractor will propose work plan for e-learning platform development and piloting within timeframe of O2 and O3.

4. Training programme outputs: As described in the application form, O2 includes the following outputs: 4.1. Methodology for Green Business Training - from April 2016 to May 2016.

Discussed during partner meeting in Ljubljana and updated after validation workshops in each partner country.

4.2. Curricula of Green Business Management Training Course (2 basic versions) - from June 2016 to August 2016.

Developed by all partners and updated after validation workshops in each partner country.

4.3. Validated training methodology and curricula September 2016 Validation organized and conducted in one-day stakeholder workshops in each consortium country with 30 participants in every one of them.

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4.4. Teaching and Learning Materials – from October 2016 to February 2017 The structure of training toolkit will follow the structure of the training course content and materials: o o o o

Modules and sessions; Basic concepts of green business; Case studies of successful green business implementation; Trainer handbook (teaching notes) will additionally offer guidance on training course delivery, monitoring and evaluation of learners’ skills acquisition.

4.5. E-learning Green Business platform - from July 2016 to 18 March 2017 E-learning platform will be developed by subcontractor and partners’ experts are expected to upload training content developed by them. In March 2017 all the partners will translate the modules content in their national languages.

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