Provider Onboarding
DOWNLOAD FULL PDFCORE developed The Cultural Orientation Provider Onboarding Toolkit to assist new Cultural Orientation providers and their supervisors prepare and navigate together the successful delivery of Cultural Orientation that is compliant, interactive and engaging, and adaptable to organizational needs. The toolkit expands on information and guidance provided in CORE’s Online Courses and is designed for collaborative use by both new providers and supervisors, offering a combination of online lessons, suggested in-person activities, and resources.
Featured Resource
Online Courses
Featured Resource
Online Courses
CORE offers several interactive, self-paced courses that are designed for resettlement and volunteers that implement and deliver Cultural Orientation. Learners may take courses at any time and in any order. Courses are free and can be accessed at any time.
Onboarding Tips for New Cultural Orientation Providers
New to delivering Cultural Orientation? This toolkit is designed to prepare you with the knowledge and skills to deliver interactive and engaging Cultural Orientation.
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Pace yourself
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Pace yourself
As a new Cultural Orientation provider you may be juggling learning new information with developing skills while also managing other roles and responsibilities. Keep this in mind when you work with your supervisor to develop your onboarding plan and determine a realistic pace.
Develop skills
Ensure that your learning does not stop with the completion of lessons in CORE’s Online Cultural Orientation Certification Course. Develop skills discussed in these lessons through application and practice in the delivery of Cultural Orientation and, as applicable, other tasks at work. For example, identify new ways to incorporate student-centered learning concepts into your Cultural Orientation session and then implement those techniques. Part of skill development includes communicating and working collaboratively with your supervisor and other staff, as appropriate. Therefore, when you deliver a new technique, consider inviting others to observe or ask them to provide guidance based on their own experiences.
Patience
It is important to demonstrate patience not only with yourself, but also with your learners. For example, during Cultural Orientation delivery a lesson may not always work as planned. Perhaps certain activities have worked with one group of learners, but not the next. Remember, these things are a natural part of the learning process. Be observant and proactive in identifying actions for future improvement.
Flexibility
In addition to patience, flexibility is a critical quality for a Cultural Orientation provider. Have alternative plans so you can change them as necessary in the moment. Acknowledge that even the best planned Cultural Orientation session may not go as envisioned. The ability to shift during a Cultural Orientation session is something that may not come easily at first, but this will change over time as you gain experience and develop new skills.
Onboarding Tips for Supervisors
As a supervisor, it is important to understand the needs and skills of staff to provide effective, useful, and adaptive Cultural Orientation. These tips may help you onboard a new Cultural Orientation provider.
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Assess need
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Assess need
Consider the new Cultural Orientation providers’ existing knowledge and prior experience, and adapt their onboarding plan to meet those needs. For example, you may have new Cultural Orientation providers that have worked in refugee resettlement for years but do not have teaching backgrounds. Their needs will be different than a new Cultural Orientation provider that has never worked in refugee resettlement and has some experience in teaching.
Check-in
Engage with new Cultural Orientation providers through check-ins and discover what they are learning from both in-person and online activities. These check-ins will help to monitor progress of the onboarding plan and are an opportunity to address and/or assess additional needs.
Collaborate
Go beyond check-ins and identify opportunities to collaborate with the new Cultural Orientation providers. For example, cofacilitate a Cultural Orientation session with them, applying concepts from the online lessons. It is recommended to identify these activities in the onboarding plan to ensure accountability. Note that collaboration can also extend beyond Cultural Orientation delivery. For example, encourage Cultural Orientation providers to share relevant resources with colleagues through presentations or staff meetings.
Facilitate learning
The completion of the onboarding plan is just the beginning. You should identify ways to facilitate continuous learning and development for new Cultural Orientation providers as time permits. This can be done through your organization and/or by staying aware of new resources and learning opportunities available through CORE.
Teaching Cultural Orientation
These posters provide visual summaries of key concepts to be applied during the delivery of Cultural Orientation. The information aligns with lessons available in the Online Certification Course. Posters can be printed either as 24 x 36 inch format, or scaled to fit standard 8.5 x 11 inch or A4 printer paper.
