BWU Launches Online Education Portal in Partnership with NTI to Expand Training Opportunities

The Barbados Workers’ Union (BWU) has unveiled an online education portal to provide accessible training opportunities to its members. The initiative, a partnership with the National Transformation Initiative (NTI), was launched as a memorandum of understanding was signed on Friday at the union’s Solidarity House headquarters.

BWU General Secretary Toni Moore hailed the development as a pivotal moment, praising the collaboration with the NTI as a sign of a commitment to providing meaningful opportunities for members’ professional growth.

“A major plank of the Barbados Workers’ Union’s work is education. It was against that backdrop that we developed the education arm and a facility to bolster that platform at Mangrove,” she added, referring to the union’s training college in St Philip.

The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 prompted a re-evaluation of traditional training methods, Moore acknowledged, though she also recognised the opportunities for innovation it presented.

“COVID…for the Barbados Workers’ Union…was an opportunity to expand our online training,” she explained.

The new portal offers diverse courses tailored to BWU members’ needs while complementing face-to-face training.

“Face-to-face courses aren’t going anywhere,” the general secretary said. “But we also recognise the need to provide flexible options.”

She emphasised the portal’s role in democratising access to education, particularly for marginalised groups: “We are committed to ensuring all workers have access to affordable education and training.”

NTI Director Dr Allyson Leacock noted a surge in participation since introducing Coursera courses during COVID-19, reaching close to 60 000 learners. She attributed this success to increased e-learning familiarity and efforts to make courses accessible.

A key feature is the inclusivity afforded by transcripts accompanying video content, catering to different learning needs.

“One of the advantages is that even if you have dyslexia…the videos run and there’s a transcript beneath…so [they’re] fully accessible,” Dr Leacock explained.

Acknowledging that businesses’ reluctance to recognise online certifications remains a significant hurdle, she added: “That is the biggest nut to crack. We have found that that sector has been the most resistant to recognising that the trajectory of education skills and competencies has changed.”

Dr Leacock attributed this resistance partly to “legacy mindsets” and misconceptions surrounding e-learning as inferior to traditional correspondence courses.

“It actually takes an instructor more time to design an e-course properly because you have to be clear on the goals and the units and the details that you intend to cover in every unit,” she countered.

The NTI director argued that e-courses align with modern teaching principles by accommodating different learning styles.

While acknowledging businesses’ discretion in accepting certifications, she urged them to recognise e-learning’s prominence among industry leaders. Echoing Dr Leacock, Moore called for collaboration between educators and the business community to bridge this gap, urging the Barbados Employers’ Confederation and human resource professionals to integrate Coursera training to enhance rather than replace traditional methods.

“It’s an enhancement and it will not be necessary to reinvent the wheel…but to do more to get them to come on board,” she said, highlighting potential cost savings for training budgets.

Dr Leacock highlighted the programme’s demographic diversity, with learners ranging from primary school pupils to pensioners. She noted its flexibility, allowing individuals to learn at their own pace without penalties for interruptions, citing a 74-year-old who completed over 20 courses. (RG)