eChat March
2012
Welcome to this month’s edition of e-chat. The forum
in which Careerforce can impart to you the latest information to assist you with
your training programmes, provide updates and useful links, highlight funding
opportunities that may be available and showcase the great work that you, in the
Aged Care, Health, Disability and Social Services sector, are doing.
Today’s edition features items on funding opportunities that you
can access to support your training through our Credit Achievement Payment, the
2012 Literacy and Numeracy Programme and directly from Te Pou. There is
information around professional development workshops we encourage you to attend
that are being held throughout the country. These workshops are part of the
2012 Literacy Programme. There are also Good Assessment and Moderation
workshops. Careerforce updates are provided on; reviews taking place around
the Prescribed and Pre-Packaged Medications unit standard, the latest in
resource development from Careerforce’s Resource Development team and a
Shareholder update. And finally, there are several stories showcasing the
fantastic work you are doing, and today we highlight two employers from the
Auckland region and one from Taranaki.
We hope you enjoy this edition of
e-chat. As always, please feel free to communicate with us at anytime, either
through your local Careerforce Workplace Advisor or directly by telephone on
0800277486. Have a wonderful Easter break!
In this
episode:
2012 Embedded Literacy and
Numeracy Programme
Credit Achievement Payment
Te Pou
Disability Workforce Development Grants Now Open
Good Assessment and Moderation
Workshops
Prescribed and
Pre-packaged Medication Unit Standards
New learning and assessment
resources
Shareholder Surveys
Great Successes!
Kaurilands Skills Centre -
A Rewarding Career
Talented Trainer
Transforms Taranaki Trainees!
2012 Embedded Literacy and Numeracy Programme
Careerforce is offering a number of
supports to assist you to enhance workplace training and increase the confidence
levels of your trainees to undertake national qualifications. One such support
is the 2012 Embedded Literacy and Numeracy Programme.
Careerforce has
secured Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) Embedded Literacy and Numeracy
funding for 2012. The funding from TEC is significantly less than in 2011,
which has resulted in a reduced rate for 2012.
This year, $100 (GST
inclusive) is available for each trainee who completes both a pre and a progress
(post) literacy assessment. This is paid on a monthly basis, once Careerforce
has received confirmation of the completed progress assessment. Please note
this funding is limited.
Other criteria required is the attendance of
workplace trainers and assessors at a Professional Development Workshop.
The
one day workshop is to enhance your training team’s knowledge of:
- Adult education principles and techniques
- How to administer the National Literacy and Numeracy Assessment tool
2012 Good Literacy
Workshop Dates
Please note if you attended a
workshop in 2011 there is no need to attend a further workshop.
To
register your interest in being involved visit our website or
alternatively contact your local CWA on 0800 277486.
Credit Achievement Payment
For every new level 3 credit a trainee achieves as part
of Core Competencies version 5, Intellectual Disability, Human Services,
Residential or Health Assistants qualifications, their employer is eligible for
an $8 credit (GST inclusive).
The credit achievement must be within the
average qualification timeframes and all results must be registered through
Careerforce.
The diagram below illustrates the payment &
process.
For every new level 3 credit a trainee achieves as part of Core
Competencies version 5, Intellectual Disability, Human Services, Residential or
Health Assistants qualifications, their employer is eligible for an $8 credit
(GST inclusive).
Te Pou
Disability Workforce Development Grants Now Open
The
Consumer Leadership and Leadership Development Grants are now open for
Ministry of Health funded disability support service providers. They will remain
open until 11/05/12. Criteria, terms and conditions and application forms are
available on the website
The
training grant which assists employers with costs arising from
employees participation in Ministry of Health approved NZQA certificate or
diploma is open all the time and can also be accessed through the website.
If
you have any queries please contact disability@tepou.conz
Good Assessment and
Moderation Workshops
This year’s round of Good Assessment
and Moderation workshops have kicked off to a roaring start!
These
professional development workshops have now taken place in Invercargill,
Dunedin, Nelson, Auckland and Hamilton with a fantastic turnout of Assessors and
Verifiers attending.
The content of the workshop includes:
- Understanding the levels
- Implementing the CRAVES model
- The relevance of Outcome Statements and Evidence Required
- The assessor/verifier relationship
- Integrating assessments
- Giving feedback
To date participants have stated the workshops have
been extremely informative, fun and with much meaningful learning taking
place.
The afternoon is devoted to Peer Moderation and the Good
Assessment Workshops are now a forum for this to take place. . In the past
moderation was carried out by post and although it is a successful method the
thought was it would be more effective if groups of assessors moderated each
other’s material. This has been trialled over the last couple of years and the
feedback received has been very positive. Assessors can actively participate in
the moderation process and the reflection and learning that comes from that is
huge. Assessors share ideas, learn from each other and develop new skills. The
overall outcome is that our assessors understand the moderation process, have
instant feedback and consequently improve their assessment practice.
If
you have not attended a Good Assessment workshop and have not participated in
Moderation and would like to do so, please visit our website for
the dates of a workshop in your region. You can register to attend here also and
upon receipt of your registration you will be sent further
information.
Prescribed and
Pre-packaged Medication Unit Standards
Careerforce has received
useful feedback on:
- unit standard 23685 Demonstrate knowledge of pre-packaged medication used in a health or disability setting (2 credits at level 2), and
- unit standard 20827Support a consumer to use prescribed medication in a health or disability setting (2 credits at level 3).
We are
now about to review these two standards based on the feedback received and will
be establishing a review panel of industry specialists to assist in the
review.
New Learning and Assessment
Resources
The Resources Development team at Careerforce brings a
wealth of experience.
Isabelle’s career is in publishing in the public
sector, particularly editing, writing and production management. Rosie brings
medical knowledge as a qualified paramedic, cardiology technician and medical
research technician and she has been involved in paramedical adult education.
Linda is an adult educator with training, assessment and e-learning
qualifications.
This team has recently revamped Careerforce’s learning
resources and assessments into a more user-friendly format. And they would
welcome your feedback.
There are new revised workbooks for over 30 of
the Foundations and Core unit standards, recognisable by the green covers. The
trainee assessments (formerly TAPs) and the matching assessor guides are
less-wordy and now in landscape format, with plenty of room for the trainee and
the assessor to write. These are in full colour, with assessments having tan
covers and the assessor guides having purple covers.
New workbooks are
on topics as diverse as communication, supporting people of different ethnicity,
breastfeeding, minimising risk of falls, use of enablers and restraints,
supporting a person to eat and drink and key responses to death and
dying.
The Resource Development team is now producing resources for
another 50 unit standards for new qualifications in brain injury, health
assistants and mental health and addiction. Stay tuned for more news next
time.
Shareholder Surveys
We are about to
survey our shareholders to gain feedback on our shareholder voucher system which
has become inconsistent with our funding requirements.
Next week
shareholders will receive the seven question survey as an e-mail link which can
then be filled out on line.
We are very keen to hear your thoughts of our
proposed changes.
Great Successes!
Rodney North
Harbour, who provide Disability and Home and Community Support Services in North
Auckland, began working with Careerforce since the inception of the Foundation
Skills qualification back in 2007. In particular, they were part of the pilot
of this qualification which involved providing relevant and meaningful feedback
to Careerforce ensuring the qualification and assessments reflected the outcomes
the Health and Disability sector wished to achieve. The relationship Rodney
North Harbour and Careerforce have has grown from strength to strength over this
time, largely thanks to the support and advice from all Careerforce staff and
the relationship building that has taken place.
When asked about the
relevance of training in their workplace, Wendy Hawkings, CEO, states, “training
is a must to ensure services are provided competently and safely”. All of
Rodney North Harbour’s support workers are actively encouraged to participate in
Careerforce training as it is widely recognised and acknowledged that in
completing a National Qualification, confidence and self esteem is built which
provides the support worker with a sense of pride in themselves from realising
this achievement.
Rodney North Harbour celebrate their staff’s successes
through graduations and formal dinners, giving it the status their achievements
deserve, often also in the presence of a notable dignitary which illustrates the
importance that is placed upon such celebrations.
It is a testament to
the whole organisation – from the CEO down - that Wendy and the Board Chair,
John Evans, both received the honour of Officer of the NZ Order of Merit for
services to Health and the Community. “We look upon this as an honour for
Rodney North Harbour Trust and the services provided by our very capable staff,
thanks to their training,” says Wendy in acknowledgement of this
recognition.
Kaurilands Skills
Centre - A Rewarding Career
Joanne Speechly (Kaipara Lifestyler
Jan 25 2012)
For 22 years Kaurilands Skills Centre, south of Dargaville, has
been providing a holistic programme for adults with intellectual disabilities,
encompassing work, leisure, spiritual and whanau involvement. The centre’s staff
help to ensure they provide a secure, friendly and happy environment and
recently staff members have been given the opportunity to earn qualifications
while they work.
Kaurilands residential manager Karen Duncan said this is
the first time staff have had the opportunity to study and learn while they work
and the outcome will be NZQA qualifications for staff and an enhanced level of
support for clients.
Karen first heard about Careerforce, an industry
training organisation for health, disability, and aged support, when attending a
conference last year.
“Our staff can work towards a National Certificate
in Community Support Services, so effectively the organisation helps our staff
become qualified,” said Karen.
“Support workers do a great deal of work but
in the past, there haven’t been a lot of qualifications which recognise this.
Our staff have a huge impact on our clients’ lives.
“Last year we had four
people go through the first module and this year another four have started from
scratch. Two staff will be moving on to the second
assessment.”
Kaurilands Skills Centre provides support for 16 residential
clients and three vocational clients. They employ a staff of 16.
Talented Trainer
Transforms Taranaki Trainees!
Exciting things are always
happening in the Taranaki region. Last week when I attended the Taranaki
Assessor Hub meeting another new assessor, Anne Mattson, was present. I was
immediately enthralled with Anne, her enthusiasm and passion emanated from her,
shining like a beacon, and I imagined while she was speaking to us, trainees’
being attracted to her light. And that they are.
Anne has only been an
assessor since the start of this year. She is a registered Diversional
Therapist (DT) and was approached by Judy Cooper of the DT Society to see if she
would be prepared to become a mobile assessor and support DT trainees in the
Taranaki region. Geographically speaking, the Taranaki region is a little out
on a limb, and as a result, the people have collectively become very
resourceful, developing several great initiatives to support workplace training
in their region – the Assessor Hub group being one of them. Anne jumped at the
opportunity to take on this role as she too recognised the need to support new
Diversional Therapists in the region.
After completing the Careerforce
Assessor course in Hamilton, Anne has now accumulated eight DT trainees that she
supports and with whom she completes assessments. It is interesting to note
that prior to Anne taking these trainees under her wing, they lacked motivation
and their activity rate was near to zero. So what form of support does Anne
offer, and how did she manage to create shining trainees from previous lack
lustre ones? And, can her talent, skills and strategies be translated and
utilised in other areas so all workplaces and trainees across the country can
benefit from Anne’s example?
Anne leads supportive workshops which she
holds at her workplace, Tainui Rest Home. Tainui have kindly donated this space
to all trainees supported by Anne, irrespective of where they work, as they view
this as one way in which they can be instrumental in the development of training
in their region. From the feedback Anne has received from her trainees, they
welcome this space away from their own workplace or home where the demands upon
them are always pressing and can conflict with their need to study. Also, by
being part of a group studying and talking together, meaningful learning can
take place. Anne will often introduce real life scenarios into their
discussions and the trainees themselves will discuss their own instances from
their Practice that they have found difficult to manage. This too has proved
invaluable as a fantastic strategy to facilitate new learning.
From my
(gentle) interrogation of Anne to elicit the secrets of her success, the
important points that came to light were:
- Holding regular fortnightly workshops on a Saturday from 9am – 11.30am
- Having a neutral place to work, away from day to day demands
- That neutral place being a safe environment in which to share stories, ask questions and discuss issues
- Implementing the use of real life scenarios so as to make learning meaningful
- Utilise the trainee’s prior knowledge – the trainee already has a wealth of knowledge from their everyday practice
- Working as part of a group and having “study buddies”
- Anne’s (the facilitators) support, direction and enthusiasm
- Putting in effort with the learning simplifies and creates a smoother, easier process for assessment
I think we can all appreciate that
to make training and assessment such a success as Anne has, requires dedication
on the part of the facilitator and the trainee, often one’s own personal time
and the required resources. Anne acknowledges that much of the work she puts in
she does for the love of her job and her desire to see the development of
professional DT’s in her area as well as the success of her trainees. She tells
me it is the “thrill of seeing other people’s success that keeps me
motivated”.
Reflecting on my conversation with Anne, I only hope that
there is an Anne in every region around the country. I feel quite confident
that there is. The Health and Disability sector is full of caring people and
people that love to share their knowledge and facilitate success in others.
Training is one of the major elements in promoting and elevating the status and
quality of our industry.
If you are in the Taranaki region and would like
to discuss training and assessment with Anne, her contact details are:
Work
(06) 7536597
Home (06) 7550310
email annefan11@hotmail.com
or you can
contact your Careerforce Workplace Advisor, Ben Mashiter, as he works closely
with Anne. His details are:
Work (027) 2550197
email ben.mashiter@careerforce.org.nz
If
you are in another part of the country and would like to facilitate a collective
learning and assessment environment in your own region, then contact your local
Careerforce Workplace Advisor and they will be able to support you in
this.
To conclude my conversation with Anne, I asked her two questions:
- What has been your biggest success so far this year?
- What are your goals for the remainder of the year?
“That is simple”
she replied, “my biggest success so far is seeing the confidence gained in my
trainees and their renewed enthusiasm. My goal for the year end is to see my
trainees complete their qualifications and to celebrate their collective
successes!”
