The development of technology facilitated learning for continuing professional development of construction managers

The demands on professionals in the construction industry are considerable, both in terms of time commitments at work and the range of skills necessary to execute their job effectively. One element in ensuring the continued effective delivery of projects has been the recognition that continued learning is an underpinning aspet for successfully delivering projects. This results in more certainty around the time of completion, to the appropriate quality and within budget. The aim of this research is to formulate a strategic framework that will serve both educational institutions and the construction industry, bring industry and higher-level education closer in the delivery of lifelong learning. These issues were investigated via the primary research, which consisted of a survey of construction professional bodies, the evaluation of a pilot portal for continuing professional development and the evaluation of a formal continuing professional development programme from both a participant's and an instructor's perspective. This research work suggests that it is vital to recognise the importance of understanding pedagogy and how learning takes place and that a "one size fits all" approach does not recognise the inherent differences in individuals in terms of how people learn. There are a number of key issues that must be addressed in effectively delivering lifelong learning in the construction industry. These can be clustered around four principal themes; (i) continuing professional development, (ii) understanding the learning process, (iii) higher education's role and (iv) technological issues and challenges. Key success factors in delivering lifelong learning include; (i) acting professionally, (ii) collaboration between education, professional bodies and industry and (iii) creating an environment that encourages and facilitates access to lifelong learning. An important output from this research is the formulation of a framework that may be applied for deploying blended learning continuing professional development in an educational setting.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo