Trainers Conference (Skills Zone)

This is Skills Jenga, but could be used to train on any message.

 I'm thinking about the new Checklists?

My favourite zone was the Skills zone. There were lots of ideas but 2 in particular I think I will be adapting:

We were asked to bring a photo that represented a meaningful moment. I guess to illustrate how the skills required have changed over the years. This is an idea I will adapt for the next Residential training I organise, as it will be so much more powerful when the participants recognise each other and can share common experiences.

 

Stonewall 50 Years Anniversary

I went to a presentation yesterday about the start of the riots in the Stonewall Inn, Greenwich Village, 50 years ago which marked the start of the LGBT+ community speaking out. There was original footage and interview extracts, it was hard to accept that this repression occurred in my life time. It makes me appreciate those girls & Leaders who participate in Guide with Pride events and the importance of history that they represent.

Future Girl and Plastics

Yesterday I received a one question survey from Girl Guiding about Future Girl and what girls would think about action on plastics. Co-incidentally my brownies, working on Skill Level 3 on Making Change, completely at their own suggestion, have written this term to our Prime Minister about the impact of plastics in the ocean. They ask every week if there has been a reply yet!

Trainers Conference 2019

I have deliberately left it a whole week before recording my feelings on last weeks national Trainers Conference so that I could reflect on what I saw, heard and felt. It was a very different message that was being put out from the Trainers conference 2 years ago. I have been keeping an eye on Padlet to see comments being made by trainers after the event, but there has been much less than I thought there would be.

They event was run this year as an Unconference, there were several non Girl Guiding "experts" who were facilitating; one of whom actually quoted from the original Open Space book! There were 4 zones to the conference and a very strong digital feel. I have several things I want to follow through on, but the really striking difference from 2 years ago was that then the message had been about everyone training to a consistent quality, all leaders receiving the same material, from standardised training plans, and pre prepared powerpoints that could be amended to suit the audience.

Now it feels like we are being encouraged to look at much more blended learning, that will provide for a new leader to acquire the skills she needs to be an effective leader in a much faster and more effective manner than happens currently, but will suit her lifestyle. We have all known for a long term that the nature of volunteering has changed dramatically, alongside the use of technologies for learning and development. Personally I have felt that Girl Guiding was moving away from needing face to face trainers who require a Training Qualification, as the material to deliver was being handed to them on a platter. I am pleased about the changes that seem to be afoot, but can't help but think when we ditched the NVQ, that I did, and developed our own Training qualification we dropped a great deal of the very theory we talked about this weekend. I am interested to see how that is going to be re-introduced to the revised TQ.

The irony was not lost on me that the changes are being introduced to train leaders at the opposite end of the age demographic than the vast majority of the Trainers at the Conference!

I will never be able to call CHQ "Head Office" that's just not how I think of it. These pictures were "drawn" over the course of the unconference, and hats off to the graphic artist, this isn't an easy thing to do. I know as I've done the training. There is so much to see in them I could look at them all day. I will start to blog tomorrow on some of the specifics I noted to follow up on.

BGIG residential training at Church House

These are photographs from a BGIG residential training weekend from 2003. I found the polaroid pictures attached to the poster the leaders had made during my training which was on Publicity and Promotion. I think they really captured the essence of the fun and spirit we had at these really special training weekends which used to be held twice a year in March & October. I was fortunate to be asked to organise them after the 1st one I attended as a trainer, on the stipulation that Saturday afternoon was given over to the AGM then a walk into Lubbecke (North Germany) for a visit to the lovely craft shop and an amazing ice cream. One year, as my son was only a few months old, and I was still feeding, my whole family came and stayed at a hotel so I could pop out and feed him! 

The facilities were amazing and it was a wonderful opportunity for someone who didn't even have their Trainers Licence yet. I also got to team train here for the first time with a young Canadian Leader called Patti; and hold the 1st Trainers Support Group in BGIG at one of the residential weekends following the introduction of the new Trainers Qualification. I only wish I had thought to take more photographs as these are the only ones I have from some really enjoyable weekends. Looking back 16 years, today's residentials feel different mainly because they are more "educational" and in BGIG we had the opportunity to catch up with each other every 6 months so therefore you could be more collaborative and share resources & ideas more easily. In addition there was the opportunity to act on feedback and try new things out on the next weekend.

I don't know if the Polaroids will last another 16 years, and it's the first time I have every used these types of photos for Scrap booking. I would love the opportunity to go back for another weekend and of course ice cream to Lubbecke!