Leave the product in the shopping trolley for few days before finalising the order (because of the cookies, companies might send you reminders with offers or vouchers)
Check product reviews critically
Check sellers reviews crtically
Check information about the product you want and similar products (wikipedia, blogs, forums, browser, youtube, etc.)
Check the product you are about to buy carefully, as sometimes the reviews are for similar products with different specifications ( in a laptop could be different battery capacity, different processor, ram memory, software included, etc.)
Reviews can be used carefully, as sometimes can be subjective and suspicious. They can help also to find out more information about the product.
Check the different possibilities of delivery (in my case I prefer to collect it in Doodle, if possible, to minimise risk).
Use incognito or private browsing: Epicbrowser.com, duckduckgo.com Google incognito, Firefox private browsing, Opera private window.
In Amazon, consider the pros/cons of different sellers.
Camelcamelcamel.com can be useful to learn the prices that Amazon has displayed on a product at different times
Sometimes the reviews are of similar products that are not exactly the same.
As a general rule you have 14 days to return a product you have ordered by mistake (or because you have found it cheaper). In the case of CD/DVD they cannot be opened (outer plastic film must be intact).
Use different browsers as the mentioned above and Internet Explorer so the cookies don't overload one browser only.
If your computer is slow, use opera as it demands less resources.
Consider different options such as buying, renting or borrowing.
Consider buying a model from the previous year rather than the latest and check the specifications and prices. Sometimes an old version has some feature that the latest one lacks.
Leave the product in the shopping trolley for few days before finalising the order (because of the cookies, companies might send you reminders with offers or vouchers)
Check product reviews critically
Check sellers reviews crtically
Check information about the product you want and similar products (wikipedia, blogs, forums, browser, youtube, etc.)
Check the product you are about to buy carefully, as sometimes the reviews are for similar products with different specifications ( in a laptop could be different battery capacity, different processor, ram memory, software included, etc.)
Reviews can be used carefully, as sometimes can be subjective and suspicious. They can help also to find out more information about the product.
Check the different possibilities of delivery (in my case I prefer to collect it in Doodle, if possible, to minimise risk).
Use incognito or private browsing: Epicbrowser.com, duckduckgo.com Google incognito, Firefox private browsing, Opera private window.
In Amazon, consider the pros/cons of different sellers.
Camelcamelcamel.com can be useful to learn the prices that Amazon has displayed on a product at different times
Sometimes the reviews are of similar products that are not exactly the same.
As a general rule you have 14 days to return a product you have ordered by mistake (or because you have found it cheaper). In the case of CD/DVD they cannot be opened (outer plastic film must be intact).
Use different browsers as the mentioned above and Internet Explorer so the cookies don't overload one browser only.
If your computer is slow, use opera as it demands less resources.
Consider different options such as buying, renting or borrowing.
Consider buying a model from the previous year rather than the latest and check the specifications and prices. Sometimes an old version has some feature that the latest one lacks.
I would suggest using extensions to help online shopping, as different places might have different prices at different types for different customers. Recently I wanted to buy a very cheap product of £0.99 (free shipping). However, when in the basket I added 3 of them to buy, they added shipping costs that were far more costly than the product, however, I was able to buy them without shipping costs by buying each of them separately. As I said before, I would suggest searching for the top browser extensions for shopping online, such as alitools, camelcamelcamel (the camelizer), getinvisiblehand, etc. and also searching for their reviews.
REVIEWSCan you trust the reviews websites? I find that the reviews are useful to spot some information (weaknesses, strengths, alternative products, specifications, features) that then, you can check them on-line (or in shops) and help you to make decisions. You can find fake reviews and honest reviews. On the right below, you can watch an interesting video which shows how fake reviews can be obtained and it provides some advice, such as using different review websites.
When shopping online, make sure the website is a genuine one (safe with a padlock). Even if it is a genuine one, sometimes is good to print the screen to ensure that you are buying what you wanted (sometimes there are several tick boxes). You also can be saving or printing any message, confirmation, etc. even if it is just to remember exactly what the purchase was. If you buy something over the phone (something I try to avoid) make sure you send an email to confirm what has been agreed over the phone.
One of the things that made me to phone or contact the companies or search about it online, it is when I received emails on different occasions from a very famous shopping website and from the government... they seemed genuine!!!!!! However, as it was not normal that they would send me this type of emails I contacted them and searched for this type of scam online. This confirmed that the emails were not genuine, what was a relief because it seemed something that could be possible. Very worrying!!!!
If possible, I would advice to collect anything you buy, or collect it recorded delivery, to avoid possibilities of post missing. Sometimes I receive mail that is for other people, so I suppose the same could happen to others about my orders. On one occasion, somebody from a different building came to bring me a printer that had been delivered to him (I cannot understand how it happened).
Check that shops are not fake. Make sure you make pictures inside the phone (serial number,etc) as they can return something similar which is broken and ask for a refund. If you sell something and in ebay and says you are posting it, don't give it on hand (even if the buyer asks you), as the buyer could later say that you did not post it to him and you gave it to somebody else. When contacting a seller, use the contact forms from ebay or amazon, so that they keep the record in case you want later to complain.
TUC Education www.tuceducation.org.uk TUC Education is the TUC's training organisation for workplace reps and union officers.
Learn My Way www.learnmyway.com Learn My Way is a website of free online courses for beginners, helping you develop digital skills to make the most of the online world.
PEARL http://pearl.open.ac.uk/ Part-time Education for Adults Returning to Learn Guides you through a range of educational opportunities from short, free, online courses through to higher level learning.
Home and Learn www.homeandlearn.co.uk Home and Learn is a free computer courses and tutorials site. Aimed at beginners so you don't need experience to get started.
iDEA www.idea.org.uk iDEA helps develop digital enterprise and employability skills through free online challenges, with badges and records of achievement
www.englishmyway.co.uk English My Way is a fresh approach to English language learning, focused on supporting adults with no or low levels of English to better integrate with their local communities.
BBC Learning English www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish BBC Learning English provides free audio, video and text materials to learners around the world.
Duolingo www.duolingo.com Bitesize online language learning with reading, speaking and listening exercises.
ALISON http://alison.com ALISON is an online learning community, filled with free, high quality resources to help you develop essential, certified workplace skills.
Vision2Learn www.vision2learn.net Vision2Learn offers free online courses in association with further education colleges.
National Numeracy www.nationalnumeracy.org.uk National Numeracy aims to help adults and children improve their numeracy.
Babbel http://uk.babbel.com Babbel offers thousands of hours of interactive courses that are fun and effective. Put your new language in context and stay actively engaged with relevant scenarios - from travel to work and hobbies to social situations.
The British Council http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org Learn English online with the help of this site - includes games, stories, listening activities and grammar exercises.
Bookboon http://bookboon.com Free eBooks and textbooks available to download.
Business Balls www.businessballs.com A free ethical learning and development resource for people and organisations.
TED www.ted.com TED is a nonpartisan non-profit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks.
edX www.edx.org Free massive open online (MOOCs) courses from a range of institutions, soon to be joined by Oxford University.
Wikihow www.wikihow.com An online wiki-style community consisting of an extensive database of how-to guides.
YouTube
www.youtube.com A wealth of opportunities for learning, sharing and collaborating.
Plot Generator www.plot-generator.org.uk Short story writing and inspiration How can I learn for free?
Attending a literacy or numeracy course subsidized by government
Borrowing books and learning resources from the library, using computers or accessing free online courses with your library card
Watching television or listening to radio
Following tutorials online or on You Tube films
Attending taster courses at colleges
Following a free online course or module
Reading materials and using learning activities on websites
Free lectures, concerts, guided walks and other events available locally
Free courses offered by local community organizations and charities
Investigate MOOCS (Massive Open Online Courses) through Futurelearn
How do I find free learning online? You can use search engines to look for the subject you are interested in. Alternately, you can try the links below, to find a wide range of free resources at different levels. This is only a selection of what you can find when you browse the internet using the keywords “free” and “learning”. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_educational_video_websites
Workplace learning and free resources Get the very best from the many learning opportunities that arise at work [/workplace-learning?tb=490677]Learning at work [/workplace-learning?tb=490682]Guides [/workplace-learning?tb=490908]Learning team [/workplace-learning?tb=490909]MOOCs [/workplace-learning?tb=490686]Other free learning Using your free resources Whatever your role, grade or department there are real benefits from learning at work, particularly when getting time away from your regular duties is at such a premium. Start with the Guide to Learning in the Workplace or go straight to searching for what you need. You’ll find everything from tips to team activities and from case studies to pocketbooks, and on a whole host of topics. Don’t struggle with a problem alone; get the learning you need just when you need it. All find on these pages details of massive open online courses (MOOCs), our own top resources and other free learning you can find on the internet. Your guide to learning in the workplace This guide explains the principles of workplace learning. Its purpose is to enable you to get the very best from the many learning opportunities that arise at work. It includes plenty of links where you will find further information about each learning method, including lots of 'how to' tips and hints. https://civilservicelearning.civilservice.gov.uk/learning-resources/your-guide-learning-workplacehttps://civilservicelearning.civilservice.gov.uk/learning-resources/your-guide-learning-workplace The guide is for everyone - we all have more to learn, and most of us would benefit from being more open and creative around how we learn. https://tinyurl.com/mh5ksfhhttps://tinyurl.com/mh5ksfhhttps://member.goodpractice.net/csl-competency/welcome.gphttps://member.goodpractice.net/csl-competency/welcome.gp Guides and other learning resources Need some help fast? You will find our fantastic range of guides, toolkits, videos and articles free to download anytime, anywhere. View them online, print them, use them with your team, the choice is yours. Our two partners – GoodPractice and Virtual Ashridge - have even matched their materials to the Civil Service Competency Framework. Communication is vital to performing well as a manager. The [/node/495931]Communicating with Confidence toolkit is full of practical ideas, tips and resources to improve your confidence when engaging with your teams and colleagues. Investing time in communication ultimately saves time and creates a more productive, motivated and results driven team. Also developed specifically for line managers are our ‘how to’ guides on performance and attendance management, discipline and grievance. The GoodPractice Learning Toolkit covers the full range of issues you may face as an individual employee or as a senior leader. Topics such as change management, financial management, strategy are there alongside interpersonal skills, people management and how to write a CV. These come in the form of top tips, case studies, audio clips, self assessment tools, exercises and articles. Virtual Ashridge gives access to the research and expertise of Ashridge Business School. It provides resources for senior managers and leaders in a range of formats to suit individual learning styles. This includes text based resources, videos and audio and comes in the form of learning guides, pocketbooks, book reviews, knowledge maps, essays on hot topics, webinars and much more. If you want ideas about how to get the best from learning in your workplace – from shadowing colleagues to using social media – a good place to start is Your Guide to Learning in the Workplace. Other popular guides include:
The Learning Team is a straightforward four step process to help teams address the challenges that are most important to them in their daily work - see the Learning Team Toolkit for full details. It can help save time, improve morale and equip people to perform at their best. How does it work? It is a simple, robust approach that can be used by any team to help people share their expertise, find more interesting and creative ways to learn together, and have a visual way to see how it all ties together. It works like this:
To see what a visual plan looks like see this illustrative team learning plan. Can we do this in our team? Yes, but discuss it with colleagues and your team leader first. If you want to go ahead we recommend using a facilitator to help you get started. Once you are underway the process is entirely self managing, though you can call back the facilitator for further sessions if you wish. If there is someone who is experienced at facilitation in the team it is possible for them to lead the sessions but they won’t be able to contribute to the team discussions at the same time. How do I get hold of a facilitator? Some departments have trained up facilitators on the Learning Team and you should be able to get details from your department’s L&D Lead or your HR Business Partner. Others are choosing to buy in facilitators as required. You can find information on how to do that on our book a Learning Team facilitator page. How long does it take? That depends on the size of your team and how many challenges you want to address. We recommend the team meets initially for about 1.5 to 2 hours but you will easily gain that time back in the weeks that follow through more efficient ways of team learning. You will also want to review progress and update your plans periodically but timing of that is up to you. Sounds too good to be true. What’s the catch? There isn’t one. It is a genuinely stimulating approach that most people enjoy and find valuable. It is practical. And it helps teams tackle real work problems. Here is what people have said about it: “It helped us come together as a team” “We were a well-functioning team but it’s taken us to the next level” “For the first time in years we are doing an L&D experience that is engaging!” What other information do I need? If you are a facilitator, or thinking of doing this in your team, there is a free Learning Team Toolkit that you can view online which has links to all the materials you will need. Links to selected materials can also be found below. The toolkit and other materials can be printed for you to refer to or share with teams as needed. Facilitator training is available if there are a few of you and you want the training to come to you. If you are a team leader you may want to speak with your HR Business Partner; many have been trained up in the Learning Team methodology. Manager training is also available - the Learning Team approach forms a core part of the Manager as Developer of Others course. Teams that learn together work better together. Related links: A manager’s checklist for developing people Guide to Learning at Work Blank Team Learning Plan for your use Learning Team Toolkit Massive open online courses MOOC stands for a massive open online course. MOOCs are free and open to anyone who registers. Some of the bigger MOOCs can have thousands of people enrolled. The MOOC experience MOOCs make use of videos, case studies, forums, question and answer sessions, aspects of game playing and other interactive content to engage the learner. MOOCs are developed in partnership with universities or colleges, with input from tutors and expert guest speakers. These courses give you the opportunity to make use of an online community of participants to share ideas and discuss issues. A course will run for a specific period (usually between 3 and 6 weeks). Courses are designed to fit around your life with short activities and clear goals to encourage you to make progress at a rate that suits you. Some MOOCs require as little as 3 hours a week involvement. To get an idea of what is available, try these popular MOOC sites:
FutureLearn – courses from UK universities coordinated by this Open University website
edX – courses from prestigious US institutions such as Harvard and MIT
New MOOCs are always being added, so do keep checking back for new possibilities. OCW There is also OpenCourseWare (OCW), which offers free online learning, often in short, bite-sized blocks. Try:
External Sources of Online Learning There are over 4,600 carefully selected resources available on this Civil Service Learning portal, including many from our partner organisations GoodPractice and Virtual Ashridge. However, if you want to explore the internet, here are some of the more popular sites. [l]A[l]B[l]CD[l]E[l]F[l]G[l]H[l]IJK[l]L[l]MN[l]O[l]PQ[l]R[l]S[l]T U[l]V[l]WX[l]YZ
12Manage – e-Learning community on management; online encyclopaedia on management models, concepts and ideas
99u - short video 'talks' from business leaders (see also the better known TED below)
Businessballs – Free career help, business training, organizational development – inspirational, innovative ideas, materials, exercises, tools, templates – free and fun
Change Management Center Tutorials – designed to provide consultants, managers and practitioners with insight into the field and practice of change management.
E
Economics Forum – economics discussion forum, economics blogs, economics resources, and economics social network (from the Economist)
HowTo - a wide range of free business books available to read online to help you with all your business related needs
I
Industry Player - business game. You are the CEO of a multinational industry holding. Your success depends entirely on your management skills
Informatist - extremely popular online business simulation game offers you the perfect environment to play and learn business skills that will stand you in good stead in the real world. It’s great for novices as well as experts.
Khan Academy - free educational resources, micro lectures and video tutorials
L
LeaderNetwork - for aspiring leaders as well as highly-developed leaders. Core web resources include Leader Resource Spotlight, Book Reviews, and Leadership Podcast Series.
Leadership.FM – Take your leadership to the next level
These are not a fixed set of steps but a suggestion that can be changed according to what we are looking for.
For example:
Find out about the product specifications, reviews, etc. to learn about the products and choose the one that you think is best for you.
Use comparison sites to find the best prices and re-assess the product you are going to buy (when finding the best prices, sometimes you can find better products for less cost)
Check that you feel safe buying it and read any other information you might need. Consider the different type of delivery options.
You could also find the cheapest model of product you can and then assess if it could be enough for your needs.
Look at the "tips" section as there are suggestions that you can use when convenient.
Leave the product in the shopping trolley for few days before finalising the order (because of the cookies, companies might send you reminders with offers or vouchers)
Check product reviews critically
Check sellers reviews crtically
Check information about the product you want and similar products (wikipedia, blogs, forums, browser, youtube, etc.)
Check the product you are about to buy carefully, as sometimes the reviews are for similar products with different specifications ( in a laptop could be different battery capacity, different processor, ram memory, software included, etc.)
Reviews can be used carefully, as sometimes can be subjective and suspicious. They can help also to find out more information about the product.
Check the different possibilities of delivery (in my case I prefer to collect it in Doodle, if possible, to minimise risk).
Use incognito or private browsing: Epicbrowser.com, duckduckgo.com Google incognito, Firefox private browsing, Opera private window.
In Amazon, consider the pros/cons of different sellers.
Camelcamelcamel.com can be useful to learn the prices that Amazon has displayed on a product at different times
Sometimes the reviews are of similar products that are not exactly the same.
As a general rule you have 14 days to return a product you have ordered by mistake (or because you have found it cheaper). In the case of CD/DVD they cannot be opened (outer plastic film must be intact).
Use different browsers as the mentioned above and Internet Explorer so the cookies don't overload one browser only.
If your computer is slow, use opera as it demands less resources.
Consider different options such as buying, renting or borrowing.
Consider buying a model from the previous year rather than the latest and check the specifications and prices. Sometimes an old version has some feature that the latest one lacks.
using extensions to help online shopping, as different places might have different prices at different types for different customers. Recently I wanted to buy a very cheap product of £0.99 (free shipping). However, when in the basket I added 3 of them to buy, they added shipping costs that were far more costly than the product, however, I was able to buy them without shipping costs by buying each of them separately. As I said before, I would suggest searching for the top browser extensions for shopping online, such as alitools, camelcamelcamel (the camelizer), getinvisiblehand, etc. and also searching for their reviews.
When shopping online, make sure the website is a genuine one (safe with a padlock). Even if it is a genuine one, sometimes is good to print the screen to ensure that you are buying what you wanted (sometimes there are several tick boxes). You also can be saving or printing any message, confirmation, etc. even if it is just to remember exactly what the purchase was. If you buy something over the phone (something I try to avoid) make sure you send an email to confirm what has been agreed over the phone.
One of the things that made me to phone or contact the companies or search about it online, it is when I received emails on different occasions from a very famous shopping website and from the government... they seemed genuine!!!!!! However, as it was not normal that they would send me this type of emails I contacted them and searched for this type of scam online. This confirmed that the emails were not genuine, what was a relief because it seemed something that could be possible. Very worrying!!!!
If possible, I would advice to collect anything you buy, or collect it recorded delivery, to avoid possibilities of post missing. Sometimes I receive mail that is for other people, so I suppose the same could happen to others about my orders. On one occasion, somebody from a different building came to bring me a printer that had been delivered to him (I cannot understand how it happened).
Check that shops are not fake. Make sure you make pictures inside the phone (serial number,etc) as they can return something similar which is broken and ask for a refund. If you sell something and in ebay and says you are posting it, don't give it on hand (even if the buyer asks you), as the buyer could later say that you did not post it to him and you gave it to somebody else. When contacting a seller, use the contact forms from ebay or amazon, so that they keep the record in case you want later to complain.
Leave the product in the shopping trolley for few days before finalising the order (because of the cookies, companies might send you reminders with offers or vouchers)
Check product reviews critically
Check sellers reviews crtically
Check information about the product you want and similar products (wikipedia, blogs, forums, browser, youtube, etc.)
Check the product you are about to buy carefully, as sometimes the reviews are for similar products with different specifications ( in a laptop could be different battery capacity, different processor, ram memory, software included, etc.)
Reviews can be used carefully, as sometimes can be subjective and suspicious. They can help also to find out more information about the product.
Check the different possibilities of delivery (in my case I prefer to collect it in Doodle, if possible, to minimise risk).
Use incognito or private browsing: Tor browser, Epicbrowser.com, duckduckgo.com Google incognito, Firefox private browsing, Opera private window.
In Amazon, consider the pros/cons of different sellers.
Camelcamelcamel.com can be useful to learn the prices that Amazon has displayed on a product at different times
Sometimes the reviews are of similar products that are not exactly the same.
As a general rule you have 14 days to return a product you have ordered by mistake (or because you have found it cheaper). In the case of CD/DVD they cannot be opened (outer plastic film must be intact).
Use different browsers as the mentioned above and Internet Explorer so the cookies don't overload one browser only.
If your computer is slow, use opera as it demands less resources.
Consider different options such as buying, renting or borrowing.
Consider buying a model from the previous year rather than the latest and check the specifications and prices. Sometimes an old version has some feature that the latest one lacks.
General information that can help to choose products
Workplace learning and free resources Get the very best from the many learning opportunities that arise at work [/workplace-learning?tb=490677]Learning at work [/workplace-learning?tb=490682]Guides [/workplace-learning?tb=490908]Learning team [/workplace-learning?tb=490909]MOOCs [/workplace-learning?tb=490686]Other free learning Using your free resources Whatever your role, grade or department there are real benefits from learning at work, particularly when getting time away from your regular duties is at such a premium. Start with the Guide to Learning in the Workplace or go straight to searching for what you need. You’ll find everything from tips to team activities and from case studies to pocketbooks, and on a whole host of topics. Don’t struggle with a problem alone; get the learning you need just when you need it. All find on these pages details of massive open online courses (MOOCs), our own top resources and other free learning you can find on the internet. Your guide to learning in the workplace This guide explains the principles of workplace learning. Its purpose is to enable you to get the very best from the many learning opportunities that arise at work. It includes plenty of links where you will find further information about each learning method, including lots of 'how to' tips and hints. https://civilservicelearning.civilservice.gov.uk/learning-resources/your-guide-learning-workplacehttps://civilservicelearning.civilservice.gov.uk/learning-resources/your-guide-learning-workplace The guide is for everyone - we all have more to learn, and most of us would benefit from being more open and creative around how we learn. https://tinyurl.com/mh5ksfhhttps://tinyurl.com/mh5ksfhhttps://member.goodpractice.net/csl-competency/welcome.gphttps://member.goodpractice.net/csl-competency/welcome.gp Guides and other learning resources Need some help fast? You will find our fantastic range of guides, toolkits, videos and articles free to download anytime, anywhere. View them online, print them, use them with your team, the choice is yours. Our two partners – GoodPractice and Virtual Ashridge - have even matched their materials to the Civil Service Competency Framework. Communication is vital to performing well as a manager. The [/node/495931]Communicating with Confidence toolkit is full of practical ideas, tips and resources to improve your confidence when engaging with your teams and colleagues. Investing time in communication ultimately saves time and creates a more productive, motivated and results driven team. Also developed specifically for line managers are our ‘how to’ guides on performance and attendance management, discipline and grievance. The GoodPractice Learning Toolkit covers the full range of issues you may face as an individual employee or as a senior leader. Topics such as change management, financial management, strategy are there alongside interpersonal skills, people management and how to write a CV. These come in the form of top tips, case studies, audio clips, self assessment tools, exercises and articles. Virtual Ashridge gives access to the research and expertise of Ashridge Business School. It provides resources for senior managers and leaders in a range of formats to suit individual learning styles. This includes text based resources, videos and audio and comes in the form of learning guides, pocketbooks, book reviews, knowledge maps, essays on hot topics, webinars and much more. If you want ideas about how to get the best from learning in your workplace – from shadowing colleagues to using social media – a good place to start is Your Guide to Learning in the Workplace. Other popular guides include:
The Learning Team is a straightforward four step process to help teams address the challenges that are most important to them in their daily work - see the Learning Team Toolkit for full details. It can help save time, improve morale and equip people to perform at their best. How does it work? It is a simple, robust approach that can be used by any team to help people share their expertise, find more interesting and creative ways to learn together, and have a visual way to see how it all ties together. It works like this:
To see what a visual plan looks like see this illustrative team learning plan. Can we do this in our team? Yes, but discuss it with colleagues and your team leader first. If you want to go ahead we recommend using a facilitator to help you get started. Once you are underway the process is entirely self managing, though you can call back the facilitator for further sessions if you wish. If there is someone who is experienced at facilitation in the team it is possible for them to lead the sessions but they won’t be able to contribute to the team discussions at the same time. How do I get hold of a facilitator? Some departments have trained up facilitators on the Learning Team and you should be able to get details from your department’s L&D Lead or your HR Business Partner. Others are choosing to buy in facilitators as required. You can find information on how to do that on our book a Learning Team facilitator page. How long does it take? That depends on the size of your team and how many challenges you want to address. We recommend the team meets initially for about 1.5 to 2 hours but you will easily gain that time back in the weeks that follow through more efficient ways of team learning. You will also want to review progress and update your plans periodically but timing of that is up to you. Sounds too good to be true. What’s the catch? There isn’t one. It is a genuinely stimulating approach that most people enjoy and find valuable. It is practical. And it helps teams tackle real work problems. Here is what people have said about it: “It helped us come together as a team” “We were a well-functioning team but it’s taken us to the next level” “For the first time in years we are doing an L&D experience that is engaging!” What other information do I need? If you are a facilitator, or thinking of doing this in your team, there is a free Learning Team Toolkit that you can view online which has links to all the materials you will need. Links to selected materials can also be found below. The toolkit and other materials can be printed for you to refer to or share with teams as needed. Facilitator training is available if there are a few of you and you want the training to come to you. If you are a team leader you may want to speak with your HR Business Partner; many have been trained up in the Learning Team methodology. Manager training is also available - the Learning Team approach forms a core part of the Manager as Developer of Others course. Teams that learn together work better together. Related links: A manager’s checklist for developing people Guide to Learning at Work Blank Team Learning Plan for your use Learning Team Toolkit Massive open online courses MOOC stands for a massive open online course. MOOCs are free and open to anyone who registers. Some of the bigger MOOCs can have thousands of people enrolled. The MOOC experience MOOCs make use of videos, case studies, forums, question and answer sessions, aspects of game playing and other interactive content to engage the learner. MOOCs are developed in partnership with universities or colleges, with input from tutors and expert guest speakers. These courses give you the opportunity to make use of an online community of participants to share ideas and discuss issues. A course will run for a specific period (usually between 3 and 6 weeks). Courses are designed to fit around your life with short activities and clear goals to encourage you to make progress at a rate that suits you. Some MOOCs require as little as 3 hours a week involvement. To get an idea of what is available, try these popular MOOC sites:
FutureLearn – courses from UK universities coordinated by this Open University website
edX – courses from prestigious US institutions such as Harvard and MIT
New MOOCs are always being added, so do keep checking back for new possibilities. OCW There is also OpenCourseWare (OCW), which offers free online learning, often in short, bite-sized blocks. Try:
External Sources of Online Learning There are over 4,600 carefully selected resources available on this Civil Service Learning portal, including many from our partner organisations GoodPractice and Virtual Ashridge. However, if you want to explore the internet, here are some of the more popular sites. [l]A[l]B[l]CD[l]E[l]F[l]G[l]H[l]IJK[l]L[l]MN[l]O[l]PQ[l]R[l]S[l]T U[l]V[l]WX[l]YZ
12Manage – e-Learning community on management; online encyclopaedia on management models, concepts and ideas
99u - short video 'talks' from business leaders (see also the better known TED below)
Businessballs – Free career help, business training, organizational development – inspirational, innovative ideas, materials, exercises, tools, templates – free and fun
Change Management Center Tutorials – designed to provide consultants, managers and practitioners with insight into the field and practice of change management.
E
Economics Forum – economics discussion forum, economics blogs, economics resources, and economics social network (from the Economist)
HowTo - a wide range of free business books available to read online to help you with all your business related needs
I
Industry Player - business game. You are the CEO of a multinational industry holding. Your success depends entirely on your management skills
Informatist - extremely popular online business simulation game offers you the perfect environment to play and learn business skills that will stand you in good stead in the real world. It’s great for novices as well as experts.
Khan Academy - free educational resources, micro lectures and video tutorials
L
LeaderNetwork - for aspiring leaders as well as highly-developed leaders. Core web resources include Leader Resource Spotlight, Book Reviews, and Leadership Podcast Series.
Leadership.FM – Take your leadership to the next level