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Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide a critical, reflective examination of the organisation, delivery and evaluation of a training event conducted by postgraduate students undertaking a module on human resource development. Design/methodology/approach: The paper seeks to offer a triangulation of semi-structured interviews, archival student written reflective accounts of the training event together with oral narrative from past participants on the module. Findings: This paper examines the form and nature of a training event used as part of an assessment strategy on the human resource development (HRD) module of the MBA programme at the University of Abertay. The findings document the meanings and multiple realities that the participants ascribe to the training event. The interactional variable inherent in the informal and formal dichotomy of learning are also illustrated. Finally, the process of empowerment and reflection for all learners leads to a range of outcomes beyond the fulfilment of the assessment task. Research limitations/implications: The study is exploratory and the authors do not attempt to assess the generalisability of the findings. Practical implications: The significance of the assessment of the training event lies in the manner of its execution and the involvement of the postgraduate student learners. It is anticipated that the wider dissemination of the practice is deemed to be in the interests of the HRD community. Originality/value: The paper highlights an innovative approach to the teaching and learning of human resource development at postgraduate level.

Interviews with 15 participants in New Deal, a British training program for unemployed 18-24 year-olds, revealed overall skepticism about government training programs, distrust and disillusionment, little support for what the government identified as different about New Deal, and low expectations of long-term employment outcomes of the program. (SK)

In this article, the author uses a personal story to challenge the definition of success--introducing Ann, who comes in last in a swimming competition, but wins after all. He has drawn on his years as a swim coach to generate a series of stories exploring the emotional side of learning and the role of compassion in teaching that too often lie buried beneath the need to score points. He believes that when people expand their definition of success beyond medal counts or profit margins--when they expand this definition in their work, their relationships, their families, even in their sporting activities--they permit themselves a taste of enormity.

Two head-injured patients were treated for memory difficulties and two for temper control problems. The patients were taught memory aids and anger management strategies in a program emphasizing the role of relatives as co-therapists in ameliorating rehabilitation problems. Three obstacles to progress (denial, guilt, and family roles) are discussed. (JDD)

Explores, through semi-structured interviews, participants' perceptions of the "New Deal". The paper draws on empirical data from research on the New Deal training scheme for unemployed young people aged between 18 and 24 years. It examines the ideology underpinning the New Deal training programme in terms of structure and its projected outcome. Under the New Deal training programme unemployed young people will be offered four options in the areas of training or work, with the elements of a personal adviser and quality assurances incorporated to achieve this. The government insists there will be "no fifth option of life on benefit". This paper offers some evidence that there is disillusionment among participants regarding the programme and its four options. The accounts expressed question government rhetoric that the New Deal will prove to be "radically different from previous schemes" for getting the young unemployed "off benefits" and into employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]