1. The pilot

2. A session was set up at our annual Teaching and Learning conference at Nottingham Trent University which was attended by thirty academic practitioners. The participants were introduced to the research ideas and the workshop opened. A short time frame was used, feedback was from six groups of five academics.

3. Three questions were asked of the six groups of attendees 1. Thinking of your own Continuing professional development. A. What helped you most towards a successful outcome? B. What impeded your learning? C. If you had a magic wand……what would support you most in your scholarly development?

4. The results The questions drew out that the participants had similar experiences to the social work practitioners who were at the centre of the original set of ideas. Time was limited within a busy professional timeframe and there was a general feeling of the candidates development taking less priority than the University workload. Having time and developed motivation (2006 Keller 2006.) were recurring themes noted to supporting successful outcomes with all groups. Concomitantly all groups wrote that lack of time was an impediment to learning one group relating this as a de-motivator to the whole process of learning.

5. Some unconsidered areas emerge. The second theme which emerged was one of the impacts of both work and home relationships. Four out of the five groups related that support of family was of key importance. This I feel leads to the question, when there is no time in work to undertake CPD does it naturally fall into the out of work arena? Secondly peer support was important and this could be explored further. Two issues come to the fore here, is this due to work place pressures of the teams workers are in or is it about scholarly activity and the dissemination of knowledge and skills expected by organisational management teams?

6. magic wand question’, (MacDonald 2007) When asked the third question, the ‘magic wand question’, (MacDonald 2007), time again appears unanimously along with support, of the institution and of the supportive environment generally. One noteworthy answer which ties to motivational learning were the production of a ‘procrastination eraser!’ we are all human after all.

7. Adjustments to original research design. The work here has allowed some adjustment to the initial ideas in this research proposal. The main ideas have developed to include issues of motivational learning and support outside of the organisation. Secondly, do we treat this with mirth because we feel deeply responsible for our own learning or, is it a type of siege humour? (Maybe this is another research project in itself!