Teaching
Helping people learn about design and facilitation
All the courses we facilitate are aimed at helping people learn how to design and facilitate learning experiences or group process meetings. We help you learn how to facilitate in an interactive way, drawing on effective practices and processes to create active learning environments. Since we design and facilitate in all modes of learning (from in person to the range of online modes), we can support you to learn how to do the same. When you learn with us, be prepared to get involved, have fun, and walk away with more tools in your toolbox to be able to create great learning experiences for your own groups.
Beth is a qualified Instructional Skills Workshop (ISW) facilitator, passionate about helping facilitators – new and experienced – develop and enhance their skills in facilitating learning within a small group setting. The ISW is an internationally-recognized facilitator development program which gives people the opportunity to facilitate short “mini-lessons” and receive developmental feedback from the facilitator and fellow participants. This workshop is a transformational experience; the best thing about it is that you actually get a chance to practice facilitation, you don’t just learn about it. For groups outside of the postsecondary environment, Beth calls this workshop the Facilitation Skills Workshop and includes theme sessions expanding on adult learning concepts from her book, Design to Engage. Download a one-page info sheet about this custom offering that you can book for your team.
Additionally, Beth is a qualified Trainer for the Facilitator Development Workshop, the course that teaches people how to facilitate the Instructional Skills Workshop. This means that if you would like to offer the ISW at your organization but need to train ISW facilitators, Beth can facilitate the course for you to help you accomplish that.
Past Examples: In 2022 Beth facilitated a three-day Instructional Skills Workshop for the leadership team of STEM Camp in Ontario.
“Beth is very skilled at keeping us focused on the topic of the moment, and providing effective feedback to our mini lessons. Keeping us engaged over the course of three days must be a challenge, and I felt engaged the entire time.”
– Participant, Instructional Skills Workshop, 2022 –
Liberating Structures are a set of 33 facilitation processes that anyone can use to make their meetings and learning events more interactive, inclusive and fun, and work together towards meaningful change and innovation. We use Liberating Structures processes in our group process facilitation and workshop facilitation work, and we also create and facilitate workshops that help others learn how to design and facilitate with them – both in person and online. Beth co-created and has been co-stewaring the Vancouver Island Liberating Structures User Group for a number of years now.
Past Example: In early 2021 Beth co-facilitated a three-hour virtual workshop for University of Calgary staff to introduce them to Liberating Structures. They not only facilitated the group of approximately 25 people through some of the structures so they could experience them firsthand, they explored together why LS are so powerful and discussed considerations for facilitating them online.
“Beth is an innovative and creative facilitator. She works hard to make her students feel comfortable and welcome. Participant comments included: ‘It was wonderful to work with Beth, she is a professional and dedicated individual.'”
– Patricia Larose, Program Coordinator, School of Business Continuing Education, Camosun College –
Beth has extensive experience designing and facilitating participatory courses about how to facilitate learning online in both asynchronous and synchronous online (virtual) environments. The Facilitating Learning Online (FLO) courses in particular prepare facilitators how to facilitate online and incorporate experiential learning and peer-based feedback opportunities.
Recent Examples: Beth is the original designer of the Facilitating Learning Online (FLO) Synchronous course, which helps participants learn how to design and facilitate virtual sessions. She has facilitated it numerous times over the years for Royal Roads University, BCcampus, and more. Beth also has experience facilitating FLO Fundamentals, FLO Design and some of the FLO Microcourses. Beth is one of the authors of the FLO Facilitation Guide, an open textbook that helps post-secondary institutions or other organizations learn how to implement and facilitate the FLO courses.
“The facilitation was an excellent example of how to run a course, from enrollment to completing. I felt like I was welcomed and always felt that I was being watched or monitored, which is actually a good thing here. Thanks so much for your excellent examples, they speak louder to me than any words I read in publications.”
– Participant, Facilitating Learning Online Fundamentals course at Royal Roads University –
We design and offer custom workshops to organizations to help their staff or volunteers enhance their learning design and facilitation skills, for both in person and online environments. Reach out to us via the Contact page to discuss what a custom workshop would look like for your group.
Past Example: For The University of British Columbia Faculty of Medicine Beth designed and co-facilitated a four-hour session for faculty to enhance their teaching skills. This workshop was an abbreviated version of the Instructional Skills Workshop, designed to accommodate the limited availability of faculty. In the workshop we both modeled facilitative teaching and asked faculty members to individually facilitate one 10-minute mini lesson, on which they received feedback from the small group.
“I have had the great pleasure of co-facilitating and co-creating learning opportunities with Beth, both online and face-to-face. She is a dream to work with: ever organized, passionate, creative and collaborative. In facilitation, Beth is timely, insightful and truly lets participants lead and share their expertise – an indicator of a highly skilled facilitator and educator. Beth uses her curiosity and passion for learning and listening in everything she does.”
– Leanna Hill, Consultant –
