The prevention advisor training at Mensura will soon look quite different. In fact, starting in 2023, participants will engage in a mix of online and classroom learning activities, with e-learning and virtual reality (VR) playing a prominent role. To expand training with this innovative technology, we can count on the financial support from the European Union, Flemish government, and ESF Flanders.
“E-learning has been part of our training offer for some time now,” says Julie Pottier, Head of Training. “After all, we seek a good balance in all our courses between offline knowledge transfer with experts and self-study using digital tools. We are also already integrating some e-learning courses into our six-day basic training course for prevention advisors. But in the future, this learning method will play an even more important role. This creates more room to respond to the specific needs and wishes of course participants. This way, we can focus more on concrete exercises and cases during classroom sessions because participants have already processed the theory in their digital lessons.”
In addition, the training programme will soon have an innovative practical component. With VR, participants will be immersed in a very realistic, yet safe environment in which they can apply their acquired knowledge in lifelike scenarios. Julie adds, This reinforces the new information and makes it easier to remember. To successfully integrate this technology into our training modules, we are working with SoulMade, a professional start-up specialised in extended reality.”
The goal? To further focus on a comprehensive mix of learning methods, so that the participants’ training process is as flexible as possible. “We want to generate more impact with our training this way,” Julie continues. “It’s an ambitious plan, and we can count on financial support from the European Union and the Flemish Government. Mensura submitted the relevant project plan to ESF Flanders, the division within the Flemish Department of Work and Innovation that supervises the distribution and proper use of European support for all kinds of projects.”
“The ESF subsidy is an important accelerator for the further innovation of our training offer,” emphasises Julie. “The additional funds will allow us to take a critical look at the progression of our training courses and improve anything where necessary. It also gives us the opportunity to implement and evaluate the use of virtual reality more quickly and thoroughly. We can then apply that expertise to our other courses.”
The upgraded course is now in full development and is expected to be ready by early 2023.
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