Mental Health Certification Programme
Situation and Task
On a strategic level, one of the main business aims at Seetec was to prepare and pass the upcoming Ofsted inspection, with a focus to satisfy the Ofsted safeguarding requirements. It was highlighted members of staff throughout Seetec, including coaches and tutors, felt as though they do not have the required knowledge and skills to support their learners will any mental health issues which may arise.
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My task was to lead a 2-week project sprint on the roll out of this new certification blended learning programme, which would provide all stakeholders with the required knowledge and skills. The aim was to upskill 100% of all tutors and coaches throughout Seetec. The initial group of learners consisted of internal staff members, but the intention was to eventually commercialise the course and offer it for sale to external participants as well. This would provide extra revenue for the business.
Action
When beginning projects like this I use the ADDIE instructional design framework to provide a structure to the project pipeline by beginning with a training needs analysis. I collaborated with the SMEs on creating effective learning outcomes, focussing on how the assessment methods would satisfy each outcome, such as quizzes, scenarios, and case studies by referring to Bloom’s Taxonomy and making sure the programme is aligned to learners’ needs. It was decided to be delivered in a blended learning format, with E-Learning covering foundational knowledge hosted on the Moodle LMS that learners are required to do before the live session, this would then be followed up by a reflective activity and assessment.
The project management involved using the Planner app within Microsoft Teams to delegate tasks and set deadlines. SharePoint was also used for file collaboration along with an Excel tracker so all stakeholders involved can mark their tasks as complete once done. As this was a 15-week programme, the same structure was kept consistent for each week on Moodle for a cohesive user experience. I created the weekly sections and used placeholders which could be replaced once the content had been developed within each of these sections. Each weekly section included introduction text and learning outcomes, eLearning resources, downloadable files, videos and assessments.
Due to the fast turnaround required on the 2-week project sprint, I chose to use Articulate Rise due to the need for rapid deployment. The SMEs sent over the raw content on various aspects of mental health such as stress, anxiety, PTSD and phobias. The interactive resources developed within Rise were used as pre-work the learners are required to do before the Microsoft Teams session to cover the topic in greater detail, as part of a blended learning approach. Post session the learners then had to complete reflective activities and assessments.
Results
This project resulted in increased confidence among members of staff on how to support learners with mental health needs as well as gaining certification within the area. Extra cohorts were needed to keep up with sign-up demands throughout the business. On leaving Seetec, 80% of tutors had signed up for the programme, with the aim to increase to 100%. This would fully satisfy the Ofsted safeguarding requirements at the next inspection.
Due to the success of the programme, it was then commercialised and offered for sale to external participants to increase revenue for the business.