EduCOVID TIG Meet Reflection: Learning Briefs as tool to support EduCOVID response

In the second EduCOVID TIG meeting, held on 2 July, Ms. Tikwiza Silubonde from Stellenbosch University facilitated a TIG webinar on “Learning Briefs as a tool to support EduCOVID response”. The recording of the meeting together with the presentations can be found here.

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, organisations working in the education space must pivot and adapt quite quickly. This means that some of them are taking on novel activities or new ways of doing. Evaluators, in their role as knowledge brokers, can get involved to support the learning.

A Learning Brief could be a useful tool to share learning and to document learning on the go. In this webinar, three organisations – JET Education Services, the Zenex Foundation, and BRIDGE Innovation in Education Organisation – shared how they approach Learning Briefs and a few tips, tricks, and traps for those considering developing Learning Briefs.

These organisations highlighted that:

• Learning Briefs serve a variety of purposes – to share information about an organisation’s work, experiences, or any recent developments, and to disseminate lessons learnt.
• Learning Briefs can take different forms – ranging from text-based Learning Briefs to a more graphic-oriented approach and infographics.
• Learning Briefs should be digestible products that are tailor-made to suit different audiences.
• The development of Learning Briefs has great benefits – it enables organisations to engage in reflective practice useful for their own learning and improvement, to learn from their partners, and to share learning for the benefit of other organisations.

The discussion ended with a call to action: To share new and existing Learning Briefs that may support the Education Sector response to COVID-19.

• Do you know about a Learning Brief that may be relevant to the EduCOVID response? Please share on the EduCOVID TIG listserv.
• Do you want to help write a Learning Brief on Learning Briefs? Get in touch with [email protected] or email the TIG Convenor [email protected]
• Do you want to share some learning related to M&E in the time of COVID or on how organisations are adapting their programmes? Write a blog posting for the TIG blog at https://www.samea.org.za/blogs

The next TIG meeting will take place on 22 July at 15:00