In the ever-evolving landscape of international development and Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E), organizations must constantly adapt and learn to achieve their goals effectively.
In this blog post, designed for professionals working in organizations within the international development and M&E sectors, I will explore what a learning agenda is and provide practical steps for creating one.
A learning agenda is a strategic plan that outlines an organization's learning priorities, goals, and strategies. It serves as a roadmap, guiding an organization in acquiring necessary knowledge and skills. This plan is particularly crucial for organizations such as NGOs, governmental agencies, and nonprofits involved in international development and M&E.
Despite their varied forms, most learning agendas share a core structure comprising three main components:
learning questions
learning activities
learning products
The importance of a learning agenda cannot be overstated. It is fundamental for:
Enhancing Organizational Capacity: A learning agenda equips teams with essential knowledge and skills, improving their ability to excel in complex international development and M&E environments.
Driving Impactful Programs: It ensures alignment with best practices, current research, and emerging trends, thereby enhancing the impact of organizational projects and initiatives.
Fostering Innovation: By encouraging an environment of continuous learning and experimentation, a learning agenda paves the way for adopting new and innovative approaches.
Improving Decision-Making: Robust M&E practices, underpinned by a learning agenda, enable informed and data-driven decision-making processes.
Step 1: Engaging in a Consultative Process
The initial step in developing a learning agenda is to engage in a consultative process. This involves bringing together various stakeholders within your organization, including program managers, M&E specialists, and leadership, to discuss themes, theories of change, and existing knowledge gaps. This collective effort ensures that the learning agenda is comprehensive and tailored to the specific needs of your organization.
Step 2: Reviewing Existing Research
After defining the broad themes and areas of interest, the next step is to review existing research and evaluation findings related to these areas. This step is crucial as it helps to build upon existing knowledge, avoid duplication of efforts, and identify areas that require further exploration.
Step 3: Formulating Learning Questions
With a solid understanding of existing research, you can then proceed to formulate specific learning questions. These are carefully crafted questions that guide the entire learning process. They are derived from the organization's strategic goals, Theory of Change, specific knowledge gaps, or challenges faced in operational areas. Learning questions should be specific, measurable, and directly related to the organization's mission and objectives.
For example, a learning question in international development might be, “How can we effectively measure the long-term impact of our educational programs in rural communities?”
Step 4: Planning Learning Activities
Once the learning questions are established, the next phase involves detailed planning of learning activities. These activities are the methods through which the learning objectives, as defined by the questions, are pursued. They can vary widely depending on the nature of the learning questions and the resources available.
Common learning activities include:
Training Workshops and Seminars: To build skills or impart knowledge relevant to the learning questions.
Research Projects: Either internal or external research initiatives to gather new data or insights.
Collaborative Learning: Group activities or discussions that encourage knowledge sharing and problem-solving among team members.
Experiential Learning: On-the-ground activities that allow staff to learn by doing, which can be particularly effective in understanding the complexities of international development work.
Step 5: Learning Products
The final phase is the creation of learning products. These are the tangible outputs or results that arise from the learning activities. They serve as a record of what has been learned and are tools for disseminating this knowledge within and outside the organization. Learning products can include:
Reports and Briefs: Summarizing findings from research or learning activities.
Tools and Frameworks: Practical tools developed as a result of the learning process, such as new M&E frameworks or project management templates.
Training Materials: Educational content developed for workshops or seminars, which can be reused for future training.
Digital Content: Such as webinars, online courses, or infographics, making the learning accessible to a broader audience.
In essence, learning questions guide the activities, activities generate knowledge, and this knowledge is then encapsulated in learning products. This cycle ensures that the learning is structured, goal-oriented, and leads to tangible outcomes that can improve organizational performance in international development and M&E sectors.
You can find resources on the learning agenda (including sample learning agenda) in the library of the M&E Academy.