401-03 A CAPACITY COACHING WAY OF WORKING

Community Learning Development Resource 401 – 03

A CAPACITY COACHING WAY OF WORKING

 

SUMMARY

Capacity coaching as a way of working with non-confident individuals, to encourage and support them to build their own capacity, so that they become more able and empowered to choose and make changes in their lives.  Very much a learner-centred way of working tailored to the needs, wants and readiness of each individual, with the worker interested in the individual’s learning journey and their understanding, valuing and application of their learning gains.

WORKING WITH NON-CONFIDENT ADULT LEARNERS IN THE COMMUNITY

Purpose – Individual learner capacity-building and Community capacity-building

Starting point – wherever the individual is at – within their comfort zone and learner-centred to the point of having no prescriptive curriculum or learning agenda

Timescale – flexible – as long as it takes

 

  • Agenda order – flexible – adaptable for the individual, to their situation, needs and progress. Flexibility includes changing the order (stages and activities); repeating, merging and recycling
  • Worker role – flexible responsive style and multi-tasking – centred on an ongoing one-to-one supportive relationship with each learner
  • Outcomes – individual learner behaviour changes – personal development and development as a learner; learner gains benefits from the use and impact of learning – gaining individual capacity
  • Worker responsibilities – within the work value set – encouraging; supporting; assessing progress; recording and reviewing; evaluating processes and effectiveness; planning; managing self and work
  • Learner responsibilities – key learning strand – with empowerment comes responsibility

 

Capacity Coaching is one activity within a wider worker role, which can include:

  • community profiling work and information gathering
  • developing a work and worker profile
  • establishing networking and relationships with intermediaries; establishing co-working and support arrangements, etc.
  • recording and reflecting – assessing and evaluating – action planning

INITIAL STAGE (with new learners)

  • Making contact
  • Identifying and maintaining the learner’s comfort zone
  • Building a working relationship – opening communication
  • Changing self-perception
  • Building a working relationship – trust
  • Building learner self-confidence and self-esteem
  • Assessing and evaluating progress (Initial assessment?)
  • Recording and reviewing actions and outcomes

 

FIRST INFORMAL AND NON-FORMAL STAGE – THE INDIVIDUAL

  • Providing opportunities for quick informal and non-formal learner success – may include appropriate learning success
  • Providing feedback and positive motivation
  • Assessment feedback and action planning
  • Building learner self-confidence and self-esteem
  • Learner needs to experience success and feel successful

FIRST INFORMAL AND NON-FORMAL STAGE – THE COLLECTIVE

  • Building interpersonal and relationship skills
  • Developing communication skills – listening skills
  • Building self-confidence and self-esteem – assertiveness with empathy
  • Building learner contributions and participation
  • Building awareness of interaction – relationships, contributions and impact
  • Assessment feedback and action planning
  • Building learner self-confidence and self-esteem. 

PROMPTS FOR REFLECTION AND DISCUSSION

  • A key process is being able to recognise, share and value with the learner, their achievements and success – what sort of evidence of success might you be looking for at the earliest informal stages?
  • How important is it that the learner feels successful?
  • What might contribute to a learners’ comfort zone during the workers first contact and early informal connections?