Further education brings together people with a huge amount of knowledge and experience.

Many come into teaching directly from industry. They know their subject inside out, but they may never have stood in front of a group of learners before.

That is quite a leap.

Knowing what you do and being able to explain it, structure it and adapt it for different learners are very different skills.

That is the thinking behind NOCN Group's Train the Trainer programme, developed in conjunction with Cornwall College.

The programme is aimed at people who are new to teaching and need practical support to get started and build their confidence.

It isn't about expecting someone to become an experienced teacher overnight. It is about giving them a good foundation and the chance to put what they are learning into practice.

Building confidence as you go

The programme combines eLearning with practical clinics, so participants learn something and then have the opportunity to use it.

It starts with the basics, including how to understand and work from a NOCN unit and how to teach towards its outcomes.

From there, participants look at how to plan a session, different teaching methods, inclusive teaching, managing learning and creating activities that work for their learners.

Later sessions look at teaching and assessment, including the difference between teaching something, checking understanding and formally assessing it.

The programme then builds towards the final clinic, where participants deliver a short 10-minute microteach.

They are also asked to think about how they would teach that same topic to a different group. What would they change? What might work differently? How would they adapt their approach?

It gives people a chance to try things out and build confidence in a supportive environment.

Something centres can use too

We've also thought about how the programme will work for centres.

The content is mapped and supported by materials including session plans, giving centres a programme they can pick up and deliver with their own teams.

For someone taking their first steps into teaching, it provides a practical introduction to the skills they will use every day.

And for centres, it provides a structured way to support people who may have plenty of subject knowledge and industry experience, but are still learning how to teach it.