"Starting From Where They're At"

Towards an appropriate methodology

in training
Rod Bolitho and Tony Wright

Abstract
In this article we discuss and exemplify a training sequence involving change, which
is rooted in the belief that a trainer's responsibility is to discover and work with the
implicit theories and values of trainees. The example is taken from our work with
Malaysian trainers on a primary English project

Dans cet article nous presentons et nous analysons un stage de formation conduisant
au changement. Ge stage est ronde sur la conviction que la responsabilite du
formateur est de decouvrir les tMories et les valeurs implicites de ceux qu'iI forme et
de les utiliser. Get exemple est tire du travail que nous avons realise avec nos
formateurs ma/aisiens sur un projet d'enseignement de /'anglais a /'ecole primaire.

General Introduction
ne of the main challenges we face as trainers is to find ways of engaging
O with course participants' previous knowledge, experience and beliefs.
Without this engagement, even in part, we believe it is difficult to enable
participants to make sense of any new input on a training course. It is also vital
for us as trainers to familiarise ourselves with key aspects of participants'
backgrounds. The development of any training sequence depends to a consider-
able extent on how successful or otherwise the beginning of the sequence might
be -linking with previous issues (teaching or training) can only be of successful
if we are able to make the initial connection, and then build on it during a
programme.
This short article describes a 12-hour training sequence in which we introduce
the concept of 'educational change' to a group of teacher trainers on a short
intensive in-service course. The trainers were part of a large group of profession-
als engaged in an extensive programme designed to bring about fundamental

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changes in training methodology and practices in their home context.

Managing Educational Change - A Short Introduction for Trainers

Stage 1. (30 minutes)
We briefly introduce the course concept to the group. We tell the group that we
are going to address issues in educational change by working through a sequence
of activities, all of which are grounded in the notion of "change". From this,
we draw out issues involved in change in educational systems and then consider
how participants, individually and collectively; might address these issues in
their work in the next phase of their project. We introduce, as a pointer, the
paradox that education is intended to bring about change and yet educational
practices are surprisingly resistant to change (see Fullan (1993) for further
discussion).

Stage 2 - Activity Sequence (3 hours)

We invite the participants to take part in a sequence of activities each aimed at
bringing out experience of and attitudes towards change in one way or another.
Following the experience of doing an activity, we provide the participants with an
opportunity to review the activity with the aid of a grid (Bolitho ~d Wright 1993).
After each activity, quiet time is set aside for participants to make notes under
each heading on the grid. As they do this, they are beginning the process of
integrating the activity into their experience. A copy of the grid we used is in
Appendix 1.) After grid entries are complete, we move quickly to the next
activity.
The activities we used are:

Activity 1 Introductions
(Used to break the ice and to help us with names.) Each participant
introduces the person on her/his left, and tells the group one thing they
like about this person

Activity 2 Career Pathways

In this activity, participants are asked to visualise their careers to date,
and choose a visual image, such as a path to a river to represent their
progression. Images such as bridges, cross-roads, forests etc. are
selected to represent timing points, choices and problems encountered

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along the way. Sketches are shown to partners and discussed, then
displayed on the wall. For us as trainers this is a quick way of gain-
ing access to a wealth of biographical information.

Activity 3 Development Continuum

We ask each participant to think of three adjectives which describe
them when they were 'beginning' teachers. They write these down in
a column as follows, with the opposite positive adjective (describing
how they'd ideally like to be) on the right hand side of the page.
For example:

Beginning Better
impatient ---------}jXf--------- patient
enthusiastic - - - - X " X - - - - - - - - - - - - moreenthusiastic
excitable ------------)lX[----- less excitable

Participants then work on each line where they are now in terms of
how they have developed as a teacher. A central aim of the activity is
for each participant to see how far they have developed and changed
during their career. Participants are encouraged to share their feelings
in pairs. (Adapted from Brandes and Ginnis (1986).)

Activity 4 Lighthouse
In this activity, one participant (the lighthouse keeper) stands on a
chair and guides a ship's captain (a blindfolded volunteer) through
dangerous rocks (the other participants) safely to shore. The blindfold
is necessary to simulate thick fog. One aim of this activity is to build
trust and solidarity within the group. (We cannot, unfortunately, recall
the source of this activity. Apologies to its creator.)

Activity 5 Story
Participants listen to a story (a good one is "the inventor" in Morgan
and Rinvolucri (1982» which has a strong change theme. We tell the
story without comment and then ask the participants, first in pairs, and
then in plenary discussion, to respond to the story. The aim is to
identify issues such as individual isolation, unpredictability and loss

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 as key aspects of the change process.

Activity 6 Twin Axes

This activity, borrowed from Brandes and Ginnis (1986) gives a
trainer instant access, in a roughly tuned way, to the experience and
attitudes in a' group relating to a· particular topic. The theme of
motivation to change features strongly.

Activity 7 Classroom Metaphors

In this activity, participants are asked to select and explore metaphors
for the classroom. Metaphors chosen include a theatre, a market-
place, a jungle etc. The exploration is conducted by looking at
roles, perhaps using 'if' questions:
"If the classroom is a jungle, who or what are the teachers and
learners ... ?"
Once again, attitudes and experience are revealed in all sorts of ways.
A key theme to examine here is how our metaphors might change.

Stage 3 - Making Sense (3 hours)

Participants are grouped around the activities, 3 or 4 per activity. They are
asked to share their perceptions about the activity they have been assigned, using
material from their grids. So group 1 will consider Activity 1, and so on. They
are invited to identify what they see as the main "themes" in the activity in question
related to change. The themes are not necessarily directly or literally linked to
change - they might be more subtle. For example the notion of trusting others
features very strongly in more than one activity.
Each group then reports back to the whole group in plenary and the main
points are recorded on the white board. When a group has completed its report,
other participants can add their own individual perceptions. In this way a
composite picture is created of the whole group's responses to the activities
with reference to the theme of change.
The small groups are now asked to find common themes running across all
of the activities. These are collected and discussed as they are elicited.
The final part of this activity involves the small groups making a poster
(A3) of their own activity, using "key words and phrases" generated during the
thematisation of their responses to the activities. The posters are displayed for

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(a) clarification and (b) comment. The group is asked to identify further
'change themes' from the posters which we "store" on the whiteboard for
follow-up in the next stage (see Appendix II for a list of change themes).

Stage 4 - Towards Understanding (3 hours)

The themes generated in Stage 3 are now examined and discussed. A key theme
is "personal response" to change. We give a short talk on some of the views
of various writers and thinkers on this theme. This is supplemented by a
questionnaire for personal reflection on individual's responses to change based
on Kirton (1989). We then move on to look at important features of peoples'
response to change such as resistance - this sets up a need to examine ways
of responding to resistance in training which we accomplish through role play
and active listening exercises. From a consideration of how individuals
respond to change we look at the impact of change on organisations. This in
itself entails dealing with motivation, with a specific look at Herzburg's
theory (1966), Maslow (1968) etc. We examine various "blockages" in
organisations and through their set of activities begin to assemble the agenda
for participants as change agents in their own institutions, introducing new
training and learning materials (see Appendix III for a sample activity).
A key part of this stage is a discussion of the rationale behind the training
approach we ourselves are using. This is done through a talk showing how the
stages we are progressing through follow a learning cycle - we shall discuss this
in the next part of this paper. This is an important stage as it provides us with
an opportunity to discuss our own ideas about training and change, and
associated notions of trainer role (or change agent's role) and the role of
previous experience in helping to shape a training sequence.

Stage 5 - Action Plans (2.5 hours)

Having identified the central issues involved in change as raised by the partici-
pants' responds to all the activities in Stage 2, and explored them through
discussion, activities, our own input and associated reading, we now, as the
final stage of the training sequence, tum to the participants' agendas in their
home situations which has developed in Stage 4. We deal with their hopes
and, especially, fears through role play, active listening, and discussion, and
brainstorm ideas. The final stage is for each individual to create an action plan
for introducing change into their institutions and a personal plan for coping with

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the effects of change among their colleagues (see Appendix III for a sample
activity).
The whole sequence can be summarised as follows.

INTRODUCTION
TO 'CHANGE' AND
COURSE PLAN
30 minutes

ACTION ACTIVITY SEQUENCE

PLANNING +
3 hours GRID FILLING
3 hours

DISCUSSION AND
CONCEPTUALISATION 1<-----1 ON ACTIVITIES AND
OF CHANGE THEMES IDENTIFICATION OF
- Personal and CHANGE THEMES
Organisational 3 hours
2.5 hours

Rationale: Developing Training Sequences from Personal Experience

The vast majority of participants on training courses start, in our experience,

with widely varying degrees of knowledge, expertise and experience and with a
range of value systems. In order that they make the most of the experience of a
course or workshop, we believe that they should be able to respond to the

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themes of course, from their own standpoints. It is a further principle that
participants experience any new approaches and have the opportunity to respond
to it themselves. Their responses enable them (a) to make sense of the new
approach and (b) to develop an agenda of issues to be dealt with on the
programme.
Thus, the training methodology we use is appropriate in the sense that all
participants face the same experiences at the beginning of the programme. While
the training methodology we use may be new to the participants, we contend that
our way of introducing it is appropriate as it engages the participants as they
are when the programme begins - it draws off both previous experiences and
knowledge, and new experiences.
We also believe that it is vital for participants to have ample time to process
the experiences presented in Stage 2. While Stage 1 is an important stage - to
allay fears and provide an early rationale for the approach - it is unlikely to have
made a very deep impression on participants so quickly. Stage 3, when the act-
ivities are discussed - feelings are revealed and concepts are explored - provides
the opportunity for participants both to make sense of their own thinking and
to share it with others. Again, all participants are able to contribute to the agenda
and to build an agenda for further discussion which includes everyone's ideas.
Thus, individual and group perceptions on 'change' are the essence of the
agenda which is created. This is a time-consuming part of the sequence, but is
important for both participants and facilitators in setting a collective agenda,
based on reflection on experience, past and present.
In Stage 4, we change role - as well as providing the support and structuring
of activities, we also add input when appropriate or requested by the group. We
feel that it is important not to "feed" participants with input until this stage -
our aim is to work from participants' perceptions in the early stage of the
programme. Our contributions are made to clarify, inform and enable the
participants to develop their ideas on the topic in question. It is also tuned to
what we have discovered about them so far. We also provide ideas for further
exploration and reading as requested. The final stage is crucial - it re-connects
the participants with their own institutions and contexts, and re-orientates them
to the issues they face "armed" with new perceptions. Confidence is a key factor
here - change agents often run a lonely race - and we find it necessary to assist
participants in developing their own ideas for the future. This is an issue dis-
cussed by Baldwin and Williams (1988), among others. Again, the group's

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contribution to the process is vital - sharing worries and seeking solutions is a
key element of this. Our role is again to support and to provide structure for the
process.
Our approach is a modified version of the Kolb (1984) learning cycle, as
follows:

Previous
Experiences

Our experience as trainers is that this methodological pattern is a firm basis for
enabling participants to process new ideas by working from their present state
of knowledge and beliefs towards the new ideas, encountered in "conceptual"
form in Stage 3. This has the following advantages (see also McGill and Beaty
(1992)).
1. It values past experience as a basis for learning.
2. It enables participants to contribute to the agenda for learning.
3. It leads to raised awareness as well as the acquisition of the new
knowledge.

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61

4. It provides relevance for new ideas by allowing participants to relate

them to their work contexts.
5. It frees trainers from having to provide input on every aspect of the
topic, allowing them time and space to enable participants to explore
the topic for themselves

Remarks
The sequence we have outlined has the additional advantage that it can be
adapted to training sequences of different lengths and intensities, from a short
workshop to a longer intensive programme. The sharing of experiences and of
thinking, based on the principle of active involvement in learning are our
guarantee of relevance and appropriacy in our training methodology.

References
Baldwin, J and H Williams (1988) Active Learning: A Trainer's Guide. Oxford: Blackwell
Bolitho, Rand T Wright (1993) Grids as reflective tools in teacher education The Teacher
Trainer 7/2
Boud, D, R Keogh and D Walker (1985) Reflection: Turning Experience into Learning.
London: Kogan-Page
Brandes D and P Ginnis (1986) A Guide to Student-Centred Learning. Oxford: Blackwell
Fullam, M (1993) Change Forces. London: The Falmer Press
Herzberg, F (1966) Work and the Nature of Man. Cleveland, OH: World Publishing
Kirton, M (1989) (ed) Adaptors and Innovators. London: Routledge
Kolb, D A (1984) Experiential Learning. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall
McGill, I and L Beaty (1992) Action Learning: A Practitioner's Guide. London: Kogan-
Page
Maslow, A (1969) Towards a Psychology of Being. Princeton: Van Nostrad (2nd ed)
Morgan, Hand M Rinvolucri (1992) Once Upon a Time. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press
Patrick Diamond, C T (1991) Teacher Education as Transformation. Milton Keynes:
Open University Press

The Authors
Rod Bolitho and Tony Wright are Deputy Director and Senior Lecturer respectively
at the International Education Centre, College of St Mark and St John, Plymouth, UK.

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 Name Brief Purposes Your Feelings
of of During the Other
Description
Activity Comments
Activity of the Activity Activity

Appendix I: Reflective Grid

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 63

Below you will find a list of 'change messages' identified by you in the various
activities we have so far done. Read them through and do the following:

1. Make sure you are clear about the nature of the message Discuss with
a partner and question if the group identified the message if necessary
2. Group the messages around broad themes Identify themes with
your collegues
3. Locate the 3 most important themes for you personally in your current
work with PETEP. Be prepared to talk about them
4. Add any further themes that come to mind as a result of this activity.
Any 'change metaphors' come to mind?

CHANGE MESSAGES
change can happen to us without being aware that it is
no (wo)man is an island
change is not difficult (really}
do we have to change? ~ Yes ~ in whattirectionS?

~No how?
change when I want to
change at my own pace
self-esteem raised
dare to be one's self
danger of isolation
accommodation of other's ideas
be conscious of the situation you're in
need to understand the task
need to do tasks patiently, carefully
need to maximise our potentials
look at ourselves in order to identify changes we want to make
change ourselves before we bring about change
interraction is necessary
need to change according to the environment we're in Appendix II

1. PETEP - Primary English Training and Education Project. A jointly

planned and financed programme (by the Overseas Development
Administration (aDA) and the Government of Malaysia) started in 1993,
aimed at developing training practices in Teachers' Colleges in Malaysia.

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 1. Motivation (Stage 4)
We give the participants a list of motivators (as follows). There are
asked to choose, individually, their top 3, in order.

to be liked
to make a lot of money
to serve others
to have a good time
to be secure
to be an expert
to become well-known
to be independent
to make the most of your talents
to maximise status
to be a leader
to achieve something worthwhile Appendix III

Participants share their preferences in pairs and bring out any general
points about motivation and change (e.g. that some people need 'hard'
incentives to change). They then do the 'job motivation' questionnaire
from Everard and Morris (1989: 36-41) and share their results, again
with the change motif in mind.

The final stage is where we talk about various theories of motivation

and focus on people's motivation in participants' home context. We
draw out various obstacles and constraints to deal with later.

2. Sharing Fears (Stage 5)

Participants are invited to list their feelings as would-be change agents
and to list their main fears and forebodings in the home context.

These are shared in small groups, and an advice bureau is set up to

answer letters from the groups on their fears and expectations. Prac-
tical, moral and emotional advice is offered - participants are often
relieved to discover that they aren't alone in their fears. This is a
necessary step prior to drawing up personal action action plans for the
first stages of implementation at home.

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