Floodplain Meadows Partnership Ambassadors

<p dir="ltr">We have previously undertaken simple questionnaires to gain feedback about the training, but we would like to develop this further and in-more depth to answer the following questions:</p><p dir="ltr">Question 1. How effective has our training been for trainees’ work/professional lives?</p><ul><li>Has it improved knowledge and experience within their organisations</li><li>Has it improved their personal career development.</li><li>Has it resulted in improved floodplain meadow site management (better for the environment)?</li><li>Can an on-line forum build a community of practise in the conservation sector?</li></ul><p dir="ltr">Question 2. What are you intending to do to address this issue?</p><p dir="ltr">We would like to trial a number of ways to explore trainee experiences and ideas including:</p><p dir="ltr">For question 1: How effective has our training been for trainees’ work/professional lives?</p><ol><li>Rigorously evaluate the new cohort of Ambassadors (Phase 3) before they start their training, during their training and at the end of their training.</li><li>For the baseline evaluation, we plan to use simple paper questionnaires for them to fill out during a 2-day residential course in May 2019. The initial evaluation would include questions to explore what would be most beneficial to students in terms of professional accreditation (OU course accreditation/professional body accreditation etc).</li><li>For the mid-point assessment, we will be running a one-day course, at which we would table paper questionnaires to assess progress against expectations. At the final 2-day residential course, we will run a group discussion which will record their feedback about whether the course met their expectations and what could be done differently. We would transcribe this recording and evaluate comments.</li></ol><p dir="ltr">For question 2: Can an on-line forum build a community of practise in the conservation sector?</p><ol><li>Set up all P3 Ambassadors with an OUCU so they can join in an OU forum created just for them, hosted on the Floodplain Meadows Partnership website <a href="http://www.floodplainmeadows.org.uk/" target="_blank">www.floodplainmeadows.org.uk</a> The forum should be created before they come for their 1st training event in May 2019.</li><li>Set up Phases 1 and 2 of the Ambassadors programme so they can also join the forum, although not so urgent as for P3.</li><li>Appoint two super Ambassadors who would be paid to moderate the forum, including putting on-line threads for discussion, questions, information of interest – to keep the forum alive and active and to develop peer group support.</li><li>Analyse the discussions on the forum to determine the nature of the communication. What are they using it for? How is it helping?</li></ol><p dir="ltr">What do you see as the impacts, uses and outcomes of this work?</p><ol><li>Better training for future rounds of this course</li><li>Learn about how to set up a community of practise – what are the best/most effective methods of communication with a group of students. Share the experience within the OU.</li><li>Evidence of impact for REF (we are a REF Impact Case Study and the Ambassadors form part of the impact listed).</li></ol><p><br></p>