The proposed 15 semester hour Graduate Certificate in Adult Learning: Coaching and Facilitation offered by TWU Extension is specifically designed for the growing demand for online or hybrid learning professionals. This certification will enable learners to seek employment in the following areas:
- online learning facilitation,
- facilitation and coaching of international learners,
- organizational professional development, and
- coaching within an organizational setting.
This is a stand-alone certificate and the individual courses qualify as electives in the MA Leadership program.
- Plan appropriate group processes to support transformative learning.
- Apply the use of technology, time and physical space to support learning.
- Create and sustain a participatory environment that supports critical and creative thinking in a variety of disciplines.
- Demonstrate effective facilitation and coaching communication skills (eg. active listening, developing rapport, providing feedback)
- Develop cross-cultural competency and create learning environments of inclusivity, safety and trust.
- Describe various learning theories and develop the ability to identify individual and group learning needs.
- Identify a variety of facilitation/coaching methods and techniques.
- Engage in ongoing reflection and learning related to coaching and facilitation.
- Reflect on personal values and beliefs and their impact on facilitation, coaching and learning. Revised from https://www.iaf-world.org/site/professional/core-competencies
- Bachelor's Degree
- relevant leadership experience
- IELTS 7.0 or equivalent
Students who wish to ladder into the MA Leadership will be required to meet admissions requirements for the MA Leadership.
This program is well-suited for students who:
- Are proficient with technology, web tools, and communicating with social media.
- Are self-directed learners.
- Have experience with facilitating learning in a variety of contexts
- Have experience in online learning as a facilitator or course developer.
The program is flexibly designed as either a traditionally offered, full time program for learners interested in preparing for a role in FAR Centre Coaching and Facilitation, or as a fully online program for learners who are actively working as FAR Centre Coaches and Facilitators and are looking for a credential related to their roles.
Learners are introduced to principles and practices of adult education. Focusing on facilitation methods and instructional design, this course develops practical skills necessary to teach adults. Whether in a classroom, other formal learning context or workplace, the class will explore how leaders are all teachers. This course equips leaders to facilitate transformational learning experiences that are learner-centered, supportive, well-organized and based on critical inquiry in the context of practice.
On successfully completing this course, students should be able to:
- Develop service-oriented leadership insight, skills, and values that promote a framework for successful adult learning and achievement.
- Articulate a justified, worldview-based vision for adult learning.
- Categorize and appraise various approaches to adult learning.
- Assess the strengths and weaknesses of various approaches to adult learning.
- Categorize and appraise various approaches to adult learning assessment.
- Design a lesson or session based on your synthesis of perspectives, themes and ideas.
Course Activities & Assessments
| Assessment | Grade |
|---|---|
| Weekly Reading Responses | 50% |
| Discussion Posts | 20% |
| Adult Learning Design | 30% |
Learners will analyze personal cultural values and beliefs, expanding their cultural self-awareness and cultural competency. Learners will examine implicit biases in educational structures and processes, assess culturally-inclusive theoretical perspectives, analyze inclusive pedagogy, and explore global Indigenous perspectives on teaching and learning. Learners will develop and apply practical strategies to create culturally-inclusive learning environments and learning activities and establish and develop meaningful intercultural communication and relationships, applying coaching/facilitation skills to engage all learners in authentic learning experiences.
On successfully completing this course, students should be able to:
- Analyze and respect personal cultural values and beliefs.
- Evaluate the cultural-inclusivity of learning environments.
- Examine implicit bias in educational environments.
- Assess culturally-inclusive theoretical perspectives.
- Define culturally-inclusive pedagogy.
- Integrate global Indigenous ways of knowing into learning experiences.
- Design culturally-inclusive learning experiences.
| Assessment | Grade | Outcomes |
|---|---|---|
| Community of Inquiry (Discussions) | 20% | All |
| Assignment 1: Culturally Inclusive Teaching and Learning – Interview | 20% | 2, 3, 4, 5 |
| Assignment 2: Culturally Inclusive Learning Spaces – Observation | 10% | 2, 3, 4, 5 |
| Assignment 3: Culturally Inclusive Learning Community Paper | 15% | 1, 2, 3 |
| Assignment 4: Personalized Learning Plan | 10% | 1, 2 |
| Assignment 5: Culturally Inclusive Lesson Plan | 25% | 4, 5, 6 |
Examines the theoretical foundations and professional practices of coaching learners in blended-learning environments with an emphasis on facilitating transformational learning experiences. The intersection of adult learning, educational technology, and international education thought is investigated in relation to the development of effective strategies for coaching learners within the emerging context of technologically distributed global higher education. Projects develop digital literacy skills, including the use of communication, collaboration and publishing tools; and media literacy, including knowledge of copyright, open licensing, and digital citizenship.
On successfully completing this course, students should be able to:
- analyze the characteristics of the coaching role within theoretical models of blended teaching and learning;
- demonstrate the ability to model metacognitive strategies for self-regulated learning;
- apply intercultural competencies in coaching learners in transformational blended learning environments;
- evaluate the quality of feedback in light of evidence-based research
- evaluate interactions in a learning environment and develop strategies for high quality educative interactions;
- Design cognitive and social activities to meet learning outcomes.
- apply multi-modal communication and collaboration tools effectively to support learning in a higher education context.
- apply information and media literacies to research, produce, analyse and present information online.
| Assessment | Value | Outcomes |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly Learning Reflections Students will implement metacognitive strategies to reflect on each week's learning activities and assessments. Reflections will focus on consolidating new knowledge and extending it to different contexts and relevant personal applications. |
20% | All |
| Syllabus Analysis Students will work with in cooperative groups to evaluate a syllabus and make recommendations for translating that syllabus into a dynamic active-learning environment. |
20% | 1, 3, 5, 7, 8 |
| Lesson Plan Design Working in cooperation with the local instructor of a FAR Centre course, students will design a lesson plan based on the instructions given in the FAR Centre course syllabus. |
10% | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| Lesson Plan Presentation Students will work in cooperation with an instructor in the TWU International Degree Completion program to plan and present a full or partial face-to-face lesson (45-60 minutes). Follow up will include brief written observations from the host instructor and metacognitive reflection on both the planning and presentation of the lesson. |
20% | 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 |
| Coaching Handbook This assignment requires students to work cooperatively with a small group of their colleagues to create an instructor handbook for a course. Students will use the actual syllabi and course materials from Liberal Arts core courses in various disciplines to research and record learning strategies, common misconceptions, related resources, and other aids for them and their colleagues to be able to effectively assist students working through the course materials. Student work in this course will be foundational and future course Facilitators will build on their work in future semesters. |
30% | All |
Learners explore theoretical foundations of learning communities, evaluate strategies for creating authentic learning communities, and apply those strategies in a learning/coaching context. Learners explore teaching and learning through the lens of personal transformation and then widen their lens to consider systems theory and challenges of leading for an authentic learning environment. Learners explore themes such as identity, perception, interconnectedness and learning organizations. Learners will develop a personal philosophy of Learning Communities, exploring what it means to be personally authentic and how to lead authentically in a learning environment.
On successfully completing this course, students should be able to:
- Interpret the influence of teacher authenticity on student learning.
- Develop a personal philosophy of their role as facilitator in creating authentic learning communities.
- Create a platform of beliefs regarding adult learning for a specific organization.
- Evaluate strategies for developing learning connections with and between students.
- Apply strategies for creating authentic learning communities that include indigenous ways of knowing.
- Analyze the effectiveness of training and employee development.
| Assessment | Grade | Outcomes |
|---|---|---|
| Community of Inquiry (Discussions) | 30% | All |
| Assignment 1: Identity as a Teacher | 20% | 1, 2, 3 |
| Assignment 2: Company Website Analysis | 20% | 6 |
| Assignment 3: Platform Paper | 30% | All |
Using reflective practice, learners apply adult learning theory, assessment theory, facilitation practices, and cross-cultural competency, in a professional learning facilitation setting. The practicum is conducted with a supervised business, non-profit agency, social service agency, or institution related to the student’s personal interests and career goals. (include number of hours)
Upon successful completion of this course, students should be able to:
- Synthesize adult learning theory with practical experience facilitating or teaching
- Design authentic and inclusive learning experiences
- Demonstrate effective teaching/facilitation skills to support critical and creative thinking
- Integrate cross-cultural competency into the teaching/learning process
- Apply assessment strategies to measure student learning
- Synthesize personal identity, values, and beliefs into the facilitation and teaching process
- Engage in reflective practice within a facilitation/teaching role
| LEARNING ASSESSMENT | VALUE | OUTCOMES |
|---|---|---|
| Practicum Proposal | 10% | All |
| Reflective Practice Discussions: (10) | 45% | 2-6 |
| Lesson Plan 1: Authentic and Inclusive Learning | 10% | All |
| Lesson Plan 2: Cross-Cultural Competency | 10% | All |
| Lesson Plan 3: Critical and Creative Thinking | 10% | All |
| Reflective Practice Practicum Portfolio | 15% | All |
As required for new program approval, the following courses are the result of an 'environmental scan' of existing courses that could overlap or complement the ones proposed. These are not prerequisites.
- Com 372 Cross Cultural Communications
- EDUC 490 Selected topics in Education
- EDUC 321, 401 (curriculum and assessment courses)
- LDRS 230 Leading Teams and Groups
- LDRS 255 Leading and Coaching
- Douglas Atha, DSL
- Adrienne Castellon, EdD
- Melinda Dewsbury, MA
- Imbenzi George, PhD
- Greg Gerber, EdD
- Mark Halvorson, PhD
- Christian Klaue, EdD
- Julie Lane, EdD
- Colin Madland, MEd
- Kelly Marjanovic, MA
- Jim Parsons, PhD
- Catherine Penfold Navarro, PhD
- Heather Strong, PhD
- Tina Wu, PhD
Graduates of this program deliver value to the educational market by having a sound foundation of skills and knowledge that assist them to seek work as facilitators and learning coaches in numerous multi-disciplinary hybrid educational settings, both locally and in other global locations. Graduates would also be well prepared to work in sectors beyond education supporting work-place change and training needs.
- FAR Centre Facilitation
- Adult learning
- K-12 Hybrid Education (supplemenatary credential; does not imply Teacher Regulation Branch approval or other professional regulatory certification in any jurisdiction)
- Postsecondary teaching (supplemenatary credential; does not imply Teacher Regulation Branch approval or other professional regulatory certification in any jurisdiction)
- Online Learning
- Workplace Facilitation/Corporate Training
- Christian Ministry
- Healthcare Training
- Non-Profit Leadership