OK, an interesting title, but this article describes a process of considering and adopting more \u2018innovative\u2019 VET teaching and learning practices.<\/p>\n

That is the niggle and the jiggle bit. The magic comes if you can anticipate and avoid the \u2018squid\u2019. Intrigued? Read on!<\/p>\n

What\u2019s this all mean I hear you ask!<\/h2>\n

A while ago, 2009 in fact, I was managing an NCVER project focused on trends in VET teaching and learning. It involved the production of two reports (Links to overviews of these two pieces of work \u2013 one Australian and one international \u2013 are\u00a0here<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0here<\/a>). Then we took things on the road around Australia and ran a series of workshops across five states and territories. Their focus was to get workshop participants to consider a teaching and learning innovation they would like to make.<\/p>\n

Niggling, jiggling and \u2018squidding\u2019<\/h2>\n

The process described in Jane Figgis and Yvonne Hillier\u2019s\u00a0summary paper<\/a>\u00a0about these workshops involved participants identifying a problem that was an issue for them, or that their \u2018clients\u2019 \u2013 students and employers mainly, bought to their attention. That was the \u2018niggle\u2019. The next phase of the process involved developing a potentially workable solution (an innovation or \u2018jiggle\u2019) and then taking their innovation to \u2018the market\u2019. The idea of the \u2018jiggle\u2019 was that innovations often are not that \u2018radical\u2019, or \u2018new\u2019 but are more the products of experimentation or adaptation. They just have to be \u2018new\u2019 to the team or institution attempting to implement them.<\/p>\n

Where does the \u2018squid\u2019 bit comes in, though? As the\u00a0paper<\/a>\u00a0noted:<\/p>\n

\u201cSquidding is a form of critique where one looks for all the reasons why the innovation won\u2019t work, all the blockages to implementation. The concept originates from the way a squid defends itself by shooting a cloud of ink at the offending object and running away. Although this concept sounds negative, it is really important that a potential innovator recognises all the limits and barriers to the great idea.\u201d<\/p>\n

OK, so now you see \u2018squidding\u2019 is really a positive process in the early stages of an innovation. It\u2019s the way by which you anticipate the \u2018ink\u2019 that possibly will delay or prevent taking up a good innovative idea. However, the process also helps identify any potential flaws in the proposed innovation. It\u2019s one way of doing what is, essentially, a viability assessment. It\u2019s about designing and then marketing a potentially good idea.<\/p>\n

The paper describes the process used, and that\u2019s worth a look. Essentially, it involves being responsive to any perceived inadequacies in teaching and learning and receptive to \u2018new\u2019 ideas or ways of working. It requires experimentation with and adapting or adopting good ideas (their own or others\u2019) and finally being ambitious, imaginative and inventive in trying to improve the quality of one\u2019s work.<\/p>\n

There are many things that can stop this innovative drive, though, and the paper summarises a few of them: a lack of time (and a lot of workshop participants mentioned this of course), the difficulty of being \u2018innovative\u2019 in the face of tight budgets and limited resources and finally the rigidities imposed by training packages,\u00a0 regulatory compliance and other system requirements.<\/p>\n

How does the process come about?<\/h2>\n

Jane and Yvonne\u2019s paper used the\u00a0Brookfield model of reflection<\/a>. It invites you to think about practice from various perspectives, including learners, colleagues (at your own institution or at others) and employers. It can involve talking to people, forming an action learning set, investigating new technologies, searching the \u2018literature\u2019 for materials, case studies etc. on the internet, or finding and using a mentor.<\/p>\n

Messages from Jane and Yvonne\u2019s work<\/h2>\n

Here, we draw on the key messages identified in the\u00a0paper<\/a>.<\/p>\n

First, \u201cchanging practice is neither a quick nor painless process.\u201d Second, the key to changing practice is \u201caccessing fresh ideas, which are often passed on through networks. However, those wanting to \u2018innovate\u2019 need to convince other colleagues of the need for change.\u201d Third, \u201crecasting practice and rethinking assumptions\u201d needs to \u201ctake account of deeply held values and experience.\u201d And as I have already noted, \u201cthe most effective change may not be through radical reform, but through incremental improvements.\u201d<\/p>\n

And finally, it\u2019s really important to develop \u201can organisational culture which encourages mainstream practitioners to reflect habitually on what they are doing and take action [on] what is needed, [and not to focus on] \u2018star innovators.\u2019 Providing the resources to enable this is also important.\u201d<\/p>\n

Niggle, jiggle and squid<\/a> | VDC<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

OK, an interesting title, but this article describes a process of considering and adopting more \u2018innovative\u2019 VET teaching and learning practices. That is the niggle and the jiggle bit. The magic comes if you can anticipate and avoid the \u2018squid\u2019. Intrigued? Read on! What\u2019s this all mean I hear you ask! A while ago, 2009 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4798","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-workplace-development"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/proactivetraining.com.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4798","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/proactivetraining.com.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/proactivetraining.com.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/proactivetraining.com.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/proactivetraining.com.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4798"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/proactivetraining.com.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4798\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4799,"href":"https:\/\/proactivetraining.com.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4798\/revisions\/4799"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/proactivetraining.com.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4798"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/proactivetraining.com.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4798"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/proactivetraining.com.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4798"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}