Using technology to help with induction of students and staff.

1. Technological tips and tricks to help with the business of getting students and
staff on board and familiar with the organisation.
06/05/2014 Induction andTechnology

2. Induction
2
Phil Hardcastle, Catriona Moore,Trevor Eeles

3. Aims and Objectives
 To make some practical
suggestions about how some
aspects of the induction process
can be delivered online.
 To help make Student and staff
induction a more useful
experience.
 To give some ideas about the
ways that technology can be
used to provide activities which
will help the induction process.
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We hope, in this webinar:

4. Why do induction?
Understand the ethos of the
organisation – what it expects
of its staff and students and
what it will do for them.
Orientation – help newcomers
to know what to do, where to
go and how to get there.
The underlying objective is to
get both staff and students
settled in quickly and working
productively.

5. Induction in detail
Generic – organisational induction
• Ethos
• Familiarise students with the
site and buildings
• Discipline
• Safety & Support
• Social & Recreational
Course induction
• Learning programme
• Guidance
• Study skills
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6. There’s a lot to cover
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The dreaded checklist – death by tickbox!

7. How do you do induction?

8. Depends on the business model.
ACL, WBL may be recruiting and
inducting learners as they go. FE/HE
may have a significant induction
need in October.
Both have their problems –
consistency and impact are
problems with the roll on, roll off
method.The large numbers
involved in induction days predicate
against individual attention.
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Roll on, roll off or all at once
0
500
1000
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
StudentNos
Enrolment Patterns
ACL
WBL
FE
Geographical dispersion is also an issue – county
wide ACL services have to induct people in a
wide variety of venues.

9. 1 Adult and Community Learning
2 FE College
3 Specialist College
4 Work-based Learning
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Which sector are you?

10. The key to successful induction is
to spread it out.
There is a huge amount of
information to be given, but not all
of it needs to come in one day.
Besides, students ability to absorb
all this is limited – remember the 20
minute attention span!
Pre- Induction
•Familiarisation
•Making friends
•Transmitting
ethos
•Preparation
On the day
•Ethos, essential
geography
During the
week
•Forms, IT
•Course info
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Induction: breaking it down

11. Using social media it is
possible to provide new
students with a link to
the organisation and to
their peers who are also
starting.
Web based activities such as
familiarisation with the
layout of the buildings
through a virtual tour –
particularly useful for
students with accessibility
needs. See example from
New College, Stamford
http://www.stamford.ac.uk/360-tour/
Attitudes towards
the course could be
influenced by short
video clips of other
students talking
about the course
and their
experience.
FAQs could be
set up which
answer the most
commonly
asked questions.
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Pre-induction activities

12. Friendly welcome
Lots of signposting to web and
mobile resources
Information via multiple channels
Receive
important
College
information:
Talk to our
tutors:
Talk to our
students:
Find out
about the
support
available to
you:
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The Open Day

13. Many students/learners
will have mobiles – think
about how you can use
this as a channel of
information. Facebook
and other social media
are now predominantly
using mobile.
If you’re going to use
mobile prepare the
students by telling them
which apps they might
need – a QR reader for
example.
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Get their mobiles ready

14. Examples
of video
being used
“Sorry I can't be with
you” video
Pre-induction
welcome
Induction: getting to
know you for students
Post-induction video
wall
14
UseVideo

15. WBL
Trevor Eeles from Lagat
Web-site used to get info to
students
Adult and Community Learning
Derby City staff induction
Learner induction by tutor
Some providers now emailing
essential info out early
Complaints about form filling from
learners
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Dispersed staff and students
Examples

16. Induction day
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Ok, so much of this might be face to face - but
everyone gets bored with long checklists.
Data collection is important, but too much makes
it a tedious introduction to the course. Are there
ways some of it could be put online for filling in
later?
Give them a break – do a mystery tour with clues
and QR codes.
Use IT as an icebreaker – Mentimeter, Padlet etc.
Games – see induction video on our Moodle
Get feedback through mobile voting systems.
Signpost to more detailed info onVLE/Website

17. Induction week
There’s lots of
different
inductions needed
– IT in particular
with e-safety, & IT
systems etc to be
sorted.
Much of this can be done online the first time they log on.
Reminders – posters with QR codes with photos of the people who can help –
IAG, Student Support, Health Issues, Counselling
Lots of signposting to web info – remember lots of learners/students will have
their own mobiles.

18. How can it be improved?
Less form filling
Shorter
More online information
Fewer speeches
Your views

19. Did it work?
Information overload, both verbal and printed. Avoid hours of
speeches and presentations and voluminous policy manuals or information
packages. What matters is what the student/employee understands and
retains, not how much he/she is told.
The process is too passive. Provide activities that students/employees
can participate in, not just watch and listen to.The most important ones
are self-training (eg computer-based) and having 'real work' to do from an
early stage.
Information is irrelevant. Remember to start with the 'basic survival'
principle, and gradually build from there.
– how was it for you?
Reasons why induction programmes fail

20. Links & Upcoming Events
ILT Forum Basford Hall,Wednesday 7th May, 9:30am for 10am
Work Based Learning Forum, 16th May. MESMA will talk about their
software for quality improvement planning and KMTraining of Derby will
be sharing details of theirTraineeship Staff support programme.
Moodle user group, 23rd May at Derby College’s Roundhouse site next to
the railway station.
Finally there is our summer jamboree of online and face to face workshops
– Insight 2014. As last year there are two days of online events (5th & 6th
June) and a face to face day repeated in Leicester and Nottingham (10th &
11th June). Booking is open from this weekwhen the programme details will
be available.

21. Links and Events
EMFEC are running a workshop on Active approaches to learner induction
on Tue 13 May 2014.Time: 09:30 - 16:00
http://www.emfec.co.uk/cpd/active-approaches-to-learner-induction

22. Contact Information
RSC
Phil Hardcastle
phil.hardcastle@rsc-em.ac.uk
Catriona Moore
catriona.moor@rsc-em.ac.uk
Trevor Eeles
www.lagat.co.uk