Hi, folks.

Last week I asked you about your thoughts on involving learners as part of 
the program improvement team.  I've been talking about this over the last 
several days with co-workers and other colleagues interested in pi.  One 
co-worker noted that it's most important for the learner/customer 
experience to be valued as part of the whole program improvement 
process.  And that if the learner was to participate as part of a program 
improvement team, that the program supervisors/directors should first be 
very clear about the overall program issues and goals and make them 
transparent.

In thinking about this same issue, another colleague shared these thoughts: 
"Program improvement efforts might very well benefit from students' 
involvement and vice versa. I don't know. Until now, I've seen students as 
primary beneficiaries of program improvement efforts but not as 
participants in the process. I think a student's main responsibility is to 
learn.  If being involved as part of a program improvement team helps 
support that, then I think it's a good idea. (Whether it's practical or 
not.) However, I think it's a good idea only if the student's involvement 
is integral to their learning plans/goals. As a student or a teacher, with 
the motivation, I would see my work on the program improvement team and in 
the classroom as one, or as relative parts contributing to a coherent 
whole. It's critical for learners to be involved in their own learning 
processes but not in their program's improvement process."

I look forward to your thoughts on this...

Regards,
Kim