Friday January 27, 2012
Develop your skills and enhance your career prospects in 2012
In addition to our accredited training programmes for educators with responsibility for inclusiveness, needs assessment and support strategies, we’re offering a number of focussed seminars and webinars on specific themes. Details of these training opportunities are listed below.
Face-to-face seminars are free to many people working in Scottish Further Education, and attendance at some even guarantee a discount on accredited courses. Our seminars are also relevant to people working in other areas of education, the voluntary sector and allied health professions. If you don’t fulfil the requirements for a free place, attendance is £70. Full booking details are at the end of this eNews.
All webinars are free, and a great way to experience the BRITE Virtual Classroom (showcased by Adobe as a success story). You’ll know a session is a webinar where the location is listed as “BRITE Virtual Classroom”. Find out more about webinars below.
Please forward this eNews to colleagues who may be interested, or use the buttons below to share via Twitter and Facebook.
Remember to follow @BRITEinitiative on Twitter, and keep up-to-date with training and assistive technology news on our blog.
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Educational Support Worker: Key Skills
Thursday 2 February, 1pm – 4pm, Dumfries and Galloway College or Wednesday 15 February, 10am – 1pm, Stevenson College Edinburgh.
This seminar aims to equip educational support workers with a general understanding of student needs. Topics covered include the conventions of proofreading, note taking, scribing and creating accessible materials whilst adhering to guidelines for assessment.
This opportunity to consider your responsibilities, skills, values and boundaries will provide you with enhanced clarity about your role and reassurance that your students receive a quality service.
During this seminar you will:
• understand the importance of being aware of student need and learning styles
• develop an understanding of key skills required to support students i.e. note taking, proofreading and scribing
• consider the role of the ESW and discuss boundaries and values
• understand the importance of creating accessible materials for students based on need
Attendees who choose to progress to the full ESW: Professionalism in Practice qualification will receive a 10% discount. Normally a place costs £475. The next ESW course intake is in autumn 2012. Full details can be found on our website.
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Emerging from Merger
Tuesday 21 February 2012, 4pm - 5pm, BRITE Virtual Classroom
With the news that far fewer colleges will exist in Scotland by the end of the decade, and the prospect of regionalisation on the near horizon, this timely webinar will address the issue of merger from the perspective of support for learners and learning.
The session – which is likely to be of particular interest to staff working in student support/services – will also signpost other BRITE resources on this theme.
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Creating an Inclusive Classroom
Monday 19 March 2012, 1pm – 4.30pm, Forth Valley College, Alloa Campus or Tuesday 12 June 2012, 1pm – 4.30pm, Elmwood College, Fife
How do you make your teaching accessible? How would your teaching differ if a student in your class was Deaf, blind, dyslexic? This session focuses on adaptations for specific disabilities, but also on how adaptations can make information accessible for all students.
This seminar is suitable for lecturers, tutors and anyone who has a responsibility for ensuring students have access to teaching materials.
You will be shown many ways in which teaching materials – both on screen and printed – can be adapted to ensure they are as accessible as possible. Discussion around the adaptations will be encouraged and you will be encouraged to talk over specific examples. During this seminar you will learn about:
• specific areas students with additional support needs may struggle with
• structuring documents
• getting the best out of PowerPoint
• classroom setup/management tips
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Inclusive Risk Assessment: A Case Study
Wednesday 21 March 2012, 12 noon - 1pm, BRITE Virtual Classroom
In this webinar, participants will glean useful information about ‘risk’ in an educational setting – and how to deal with it effectively and inclusively. The session – which is likely to be of interest to college managers, curriculum and support staff - is based around a case study and will signpost other useful resources. Time will be set aside for questions/feedback.
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Assistive Software: Free versus Paid
Thursday 19 April 2012, 1pm – 4pm, Dundee College
Many free assistive technology software titles do the same job as commercial versions costing hundreds of pounds. This seminar will compare and contrast the free with the paid and aim to assist people in weighing up paid and free options for software.
This seminar is suitable for anyone working in a role which requires knowledge of assistive software. During the session you will experiment with and discuss various software titles. You will practise critical thinking by comparing software titles with regard to usability, functionality and value. These judgements can then be applied in your work to assess the best options for students.
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Introduction to Real Time Online Teaching and Learning
Monday 23 April 2012, 11am - 12 noon, BRITE Virtual Classroom
This webinar will examine good practice in the provision of real time teaching and learning experiences mediated by web conferencing tools such as Adobe Connect, GoToMeeting, Elluminate, BigBlueButton and others.
Increasing numbers of educational providers are moving towards the provision of courses via live online classrooms - reducing costs and travel time, and increasing their geographical reach.
BRITE has been delivering this way to colleagues across Scotland and Northern Ireland for the last 2 years, enabling a community of learners to meet, share and learn despite living and working hundreds of miles apart.
This webinar will identify good practice in preparing and delivering content, demonstrate techniques and activities to increase interaction and stimulate learning, and help you to avoid the pitfalls and mistakes that can lead to learning experiences that turn-off your learners.
This webinar will be of interest to lecturing staff, curriculum designers, blended learning practitioners, and anyone planning on participating in or leading online learning.
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Tablet Tools: iPad and Android
Wednesday 16 May 2012, 1pm – 4pm, Edinburgh’s Telford College
Tablets are versatile tools, but are they useful as a learning technology? This seminar will give advice on usage and help to navigate the multitude of apps out there.
This seminar is suitable for people employed in learning support roles, and all staff interested in tablets as a technology to support learners.
You will be introduced to tablet technology and to a selection of apps for note taking, organisation, reading and voice recognition.
During this hands-in session, you will have a chance to try out tablets and experience the apps. If you haven’t used an iPad before, this is an opportunity to learn how to.
You will leave with knowledge of a range of apps which can be used by students to support their learning.
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How to Mind Map with XMind Software
Monday 21 May 2012, 12.30pm – 1.30pm, BRITE Virtual Classroom
Following on from the popular introduction to mind mapping webinar, this webinar will demonstrate how to make effective use of the free-to-download mind mapping software XMind.
Learn how to use topics, subtopics, icons, images, hyperlinks, and more to create engaging learning resources for revision, planning, essay writing, presentations and teaching.
This webinar is directly relevant to lecturers; tutors; learning support tutors; teachers; and those with an interest in developing the use of mind mapping as a teaching and learning tool.
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Creating an Accessible Website
Monday 11 June 2012, 2pm - 3pm, BRITE Virtual Classroom
Many websites are inaccessible to people who are blind, have low vision, or have literacy difficulties. This seminar focuses on the technical considerations of accessible website design, but also on the need for content which is suitable for all users of the site.
This webinar is aimed at people with responsibility for website commissioning, creation or content authoring. Participants will learn about the barriers which can be presented by inappropriate web design. You will also discover the techniques and design elements which need to be in place for a website to be accessible to as many users as possible.
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Assistive Technology Online Drop In
Last Friday of the month during term-time, 12.30pm - 1.30pm, BRITE Virtual Classroom
All with an interest are welcome at these free interactive drop-in sessions. Why not make the most of your lunch break and supplement your sandwich with...
• information relating to current assistive technology news and topics
• opportunities to listen and speak to experienced assistive technology trainers
• interaction with BRITE staff, your colleagues and other professionals discussing assistive technology questions, concerns and cases/scenarios.
Previous topics have included updates on topics as diverse as JAWS screenreading software and tips for getting the most from iPads in an educational setting. We hope you’ll use this opportunity to tailor the session to your own needs by coming along (virtually) armed with lots of questions.
To join us, visit this url from 12.15 on the day http://brite.adobeconnect.com/at_webinar
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About BRITE Webinars
All BRITE webinars are free to attend and are delivered using BRITE’s virtual classroom, powered by Adobe Connect.
The virtual classroom is able to accommodate a large group, so everyone who wishes to attend will be welcome, but do contact us to let us know if you will be attending, to help tutors prepare.
Before attending, ensure that you have an internet connection, headset, and a recent version of Adobe Flash installed. This webpage will enable you to check that your computer is ready to access the learning environment.
“Brilliant multi-tasking opportunities – you can sit at your desk and eat your lunch while undertaking really useful training – in perfect bite-size chunks! Highly recommended.” (participant feedback)
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Reserving your place on a seminar
Places are limited therefore booking is essential.
Each Scottish further education institution is entitled to one free place on a seminar up to the point the seminar is full.
Additional members of staff may request to be added to a waiting list. If space remains 2 weeks prior to the seminar, places will be allocated to names on the waiting list on a first-come first-served basis.
If you would like to attend a “face to face” seminar but do not currently work in the Scottish FE sector, the fee to attend is £70.
There is no fee to participate in webinars.
To book, call us on 01383 749605 or email enquiries@brite.ac.uk.
Our website is scheduled to undergo significant work over the next fortnight, so seminar reservation forms may not always be available.
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Interested in hosting a BRITE Seminar?
If you would like to host a BRITE seminar in your institution, please get in touch on 01383 749605 or at enquiries@brite.ac.uk.
Where places on the seminar are made available to staff from other institutions, delivery of training is free of charge and 6 free places on the seminar will be reserved for staff working at the host institution. All we ask is that you provide a suitable training room and refreshments for trainers and attendees.
Should an institution or organisation wish BRITE to deliver a seminar exclusively for its staff, a fee and payment of BRITE staff travel expenses applies. Contact us to discuss your training needs.
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