How to improve your assessments with Cara North
Episode summary
Cara North joins the show to reflect on some of the key insights she shared at this year’s Assessment Summit. Tune into this conversation about asking the right questions, the different types of workplace assessments, and why L&D experts need to be like consultants.
About Cara North
Cara North has worked in the instructional design field for more than a decade and has won multiple awards for her learning experiences. Cara has worked in both higher education and corporate, and runs her own consulting business, The Learning Camel. Some of the clients The Learning Camel has served include Universal Records, WesBanco, NASA, Daisy and the National Association for Talent and Development (ATD).
Key takeaways:
- There are many engaging and impactful ways of conducting assessments. Go beyond just providing formal multiple-choice questions, and try out different types of workplace assessments. Many people get anxious when they hear the word “assessment”, so make it user-friendly.
- It’s important to ask the right questions. When creating your own L&D material, get really clear on what can be achieved. Ask your clients questions such as what are the business needs? What is the desired state? Can training fulfil this? View your role as a consultant, not just content generators, to drive impact.
- Engage stakeholders: your work is more than just a report card. Begin with the basics and find alignment with stakeholders. Then start with the basic tasks to provide hands-on experience that people can learn from, then build up. This is great for task-based assessments.
Segmented time stamps:
- 02:12 The opportunities with digital learning development
- 04:50 Handling people’s previous experiences of assessment
- 08:52 Assessment learning can help focus teachers and efforts
- 13:25 The right questions to ask when putting together workplace training
- 21:24 Advice on engaging stakeholders
- 27:31 How to improve your assessment practices
Links from the podcast:
- Connect with Cara on LinkedIn
- Check out The Learning Camel
- Read ‘Four Levels of Evaluation
- Listen to the interview with Jeff Kortenbosch
