Empowering Action Learners and Coaches: Free Online Resources

Sections of this topic

    (The aim of this blog has always been to provide highly practical guidelines, tools and techniques for all types of Action Learners and coaches. Here are links to some of the world’s largest collections of free, well-organized resources for practitioners in both fields.)

    The Action Learning framework and the field of personal and professional coaching both focus on personal, professional and organizational development, especially by including thoughtful questions among participants to clarify current priorities, select relevant strategies to address them, and take realistic actions to implement those strategies. The fields focus on guiding and supporting participants to reflect on the questioning and the actions that they take, in order to cultivate deep learning for the participants.

    (There are many different views of Action Learning and how it should be done. To understand those differences, see the video Different Perspectives on Action Learning.)

    Here are links to extensive, free, practical resources for these activities.

    All About Action Learning

    One of the world’s largest collections of free, well-organized information about Action Learning, including different definitions and models of Action Learning, various theories, examples of applications, and resources for each of the typical elements in the process. It also references numerous, free practical videos about all aspects of planning, developing, implementing, evaluating and troubleshooting Action Learning program

    All About Coaching

    Also one of the world’s largest collections of free, well-organized information — this time about personal and professional coaching, including different definitions, types of coaching, many benefits, hiring a coach, getting coached, doing coaching — and much more.

    All About Facilitation

    Includes free resources about typical tasks of facilitators, their values, how they often work, good versus not so good facilitation, group theories and dynamics, different types of groups, tools and techniques — and much more.

    All About Questioning

    Includes different types of questions and when to use each, traits of useful and not so useful questions, and many examples of useful questions.

    Inquiry and Reflection

    Includes definitions, the process of reflection, balancing inquiry and advocacy, tools to cultivate reflection, capturing learning, etc.

    All About Learning and Development

    Includes extensive, free resources about understanding learning and development, different types of L&D, types of activities for L&D and when to use each, designing informal and formal learning activities, etc.

    Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD, is a faculty member of ActionLearningSource, which specializes in customizing high-quality Action Learning and group coaching programs for a wide variety of outcomes and applications. The firm also conducts a variety of low-cost, virtual and face-to-face trainings about Action Learning and group coaching facilitation, meetings, models and programs.