Innovation Frontiers – Piloting

Introduction

Lancaster and Morecambe College (LMC) implemented our project piloting phase over the course of 3 weeks in August and September 2021. The project target was for each partner to conduct piloting of the Digital Breakout Challenge Compendium with 12 vocational students and the In-service Training Programme with 10 vocational educators. Partners were given the freedom to implement the piloting either virtually, physically or in a hybrid format depending on their national situation in relation to COVID-19 and the needs of their participants.

LMC implemented the piloting virtually with the vocational educators in two separate groups of five participants in August 2021. We then conducted the piloting with the vocational learners in person during the induction week of the 2021/22 academic year in early September 2021.

The participants were a selection of vocational educators from LMC and several different vocational training providers and colleges from the local area. The learners were all vocational students from LMC’s student cohort from the 2021/22 academic year. Up on completion of the piloting the participants completed a debriefing session to share feedback and a completed quality assurance survey provided by the QA lead partner.

Methodology

LMC used different delivery methods for the piloting phase depending on the participant group. We implemented two separate three day virtual piloting phases for the vocational educators. The first ran from 2nd – 4th August with 5 LMC vocational educators. The second ran from 9th – 11th August with 5 representatives of local vocational training providers and colleges who were all members of our local stakeholder forum. Both educator groups completed the same itinerary of piloting which is outlined below.

Day 1

Participant introductions and training expectations
AppHop project overview, rationale, aims & objectives and key target audiences (Module 1 of Learner Manual)
Presentation of the AppHop website
Introduction to the In-service Training Programme structure and objectives
The European Entrepreneurship Competence Framework – EntreComp (Module 2 of Learner Manual)

Day 2

Challenge-based Learning, key concepts, strength & limitations (Module 3 of Learner Manual)
Introduction to Digital Breakouts (Module 4 of the Learner Manual)
How to access and utilise the AppHop Digital Breakout Compendium (Module 5 of the Learner Manual)
Trying out a selection of Digital Breakout Challenges (using the project website and e-learning platform)

Day 3

Making your own Digital Breakout Challenges (Module 6 of the Learner Manual)
Final debriefing session and quality assurance survey completion

The vocational students completed the piloting of the Digital Breakout Challenge Compendium in person at the beginning of the 2021/22 academic year. This was completed in the student induction week, 6^th – 10^th September, with the AppHop Digital Breakout Challenges serving as excellent tools to break the ice with new students and engage groups in practical activities.

The implementation with the vocational students was less formal than the piloting with the educators. A brief introduction to AppHop project, website and e-learning platform was provided followed by a selection of Digital Breakout Challenge workshops and entrepreneurial competence linked group activities.

Twelve students were then chosen to attend a second day of workshops based around the Digital Breakout Challenges. This group then provided constructive feedback on the resources and completed the quality assurance surveys at the end of the piloting session.

Results & Findings

As a result of the piloting phase and participant feedback, LMC believes that the AppHop resources meet the needs of the project target audience. The piloting phases were a success even though we had to deliver the sessions in different formats due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The educators found the In-service Training Programme informative and the learner manual well-paced and professionally presented. The vocational students enjoyed undertaking some of the Digital Breakout Challenges and found them both interesting and engaging. We were especially pleased with the way in which the participants could engage with the challenges effectively on all formats (PC, Laptop, Tablet and Smartphone).

Participant Feedback

Here is a selection of testimonies provided by participants across the piloting phase:

I found the training programme informative and interesting. The themes covered in the learner manual were really important as we come out of the pandemic and our learners face a very different employment landscape

The project resources looked great, I really enjoyed the breakout challenges and I think my learners will love them. I also enjoyed working through the learner manual and think it contains a lot of helpful advice for teachers

This project covers some really important topics and the strategies used to support teachers and students are well-thought out and implemented brilliantly. The selection of challenges is extensive and cover so many different vital life skills. The training manual is also detailed and is logically structured

I really enjoyed these training sessions, it was nice to meet some other vocational trainers (even if only virtually). I liked the resources I tried out and found both the breakout challenges and training programme professionally designed and easy to use

The selection of challenges is great, there are so many to work through. I like the introductory animations that give you a story and help you use your imagination to get involved

I like the approach of using the challenges to encourage us to work together and solve the problems. The challenges are fun and make you have to really think about the task at hand