The Blog

I had a disaster with a web host.  The posts you will find here go back to my original blog.  Posts from mid 2019 to date are AWOL.  If we are able to recover them, we will and I’ll be able to import them using WordPress tools.  If not, I will be “importing” them from the block chain over the next while.  Probably a long while.  Please bear with me.

 

Now

I write.

I love words and writing.  I love cats, cooking and The Husband.

Not necessarily in that order.

I am a freelance as a writer for hire.

I have a presence on Hive, a social blockchain, blog on WordPress and cook for the McGregor Saturday Morning Market.

I always do my best to make a plan to solve people’s problem.  If I can’t do it, I’ll tell you.

Life long learning

I used lockdown to brush up my qualifications and completed an advanced certificate in the teaching of English as a foreign language. I had planned to work remotely with adults learning English, but the content writing bug bit.

Now, I take on writing work – from a range of clients:  research, writing and wordsmithing for a range of audiences from the academic to business and lifestyle.  You will find an online portfolio here.

Initially conceptualised as a business to provide hospitality and tourism related service to McGregor village, this website is a constant rebirthing-in-progress.  This is now a side-side hustle.


I also take on projects within my skillset and that rock my socks.  I will also build, populate and maintain simple and WordPress websites.  At a push, I will manage clients’ social media.  You will find an online portfolio here.

If I can help, do get in touch

[contact-form to=”fionafavouritesmcgregor@gmail.com” subject=”Enquiry: potential freelance project”][contact-field label=”Name” type=”name” required=”1″][contact-field label=”Email” type=”email” required=”1″][contact-field label=”Website” type=”url”][contact-field label=”Message” type=”textarea”][/contact-form]

The Work Stuff

Based in McGregor, in the Winelands of the Western Cape, South Africa, I am a remote gig-worker and writer.

In January 2021, I was recruited to join a boutique marketing and business solutions business as Lead:  Content and Research.  Alas, it had to downsize. 

Prior to the pandemic, I ran a couple of tourism-based initiatives and hosted Sunday Suppers @ The Sandbag House.  I still cook for the Saturday morning market in McGregor.

I am slowly resuscitating Destination McGregor.

For more about what I’m doing now.

For more about what I did then.

Want to get in touch?

[contact-form to=”fionafavouritesmcgregor@gmail.com” subject=”Enquiry: potential freelance project”][contact-field label=”Name” type=”name” required=”1″][contact-field label=”Email” type=”email” required=”1″][contact-field label=”Website” type=”url”][contact-field label=”Message” type=”textarea”][/contact-form]

Then

I ran an education and training management consultancy for more than 20 years. The advent of the Internet and broadband meant that I was able to work with clients in both South Africa and abroad, successfully maximising time and costs for all concerned. Consultancy services specialised in project conceptualisation, policy analysis, systems development, quality assurance and compliance as well as the development of learning materials. Over the time, clients included tertiary education institutions (local and international), sector education and training authorities (skills boards), private companies, government departments and donors, as well as grassroots community organisations.

Excerpts and samples of work product available on request

Access Trust Final report of the activities of the Trust when it was wound up:
Closing the circle:  two decades of advocating and supporting Technical and Vocational Education in the Western Cape
Afrec
(Applied Fiscal and Research Centre, UCT)
Troubleshooting:  Assessment design and management, policy for the recognition of prior learning
Activists Networking against the Exploitation of Children (Anex) Consulting:  Options for accreditation as a provider of skills development
Brenda Eisenberg
Consultant, United Kingdom, for City & Guilds
Collaborative work researching and analysing the trainer training market in South Africa and Botswana, for and on behalf of City and Guilds, UK
Centre for Education Policy Development (CEPD)/Services SETA

Research to investigate the development of (a) Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) model(s) and Credit Transfer and Accumulation (CAT) system(s) for the community development and Early Childhood Development (ECD) sectors

Technical support to Services SETA: ETQA, Strategic Plan and Sector Skills Plan development processes, as part of the team merging the legacy occupational system with that for the Quality Council (occupational qualifications), streamlining, revising and re-engineering the ETQA policies and processes for its transition to a Quality Management Division

Chemical Industries Education and Training Authority (CHIETA)

Presentation to the Regional Broad Forum on the proposed amendments to the Skills Development Act and the proposed National Qualifications Act (pro bono).

An evaluation of the CHIETA’s SMME provider capacity-building and accreditation project, from scoping study, to hand-over to the ETQA. The evaluation took into account the systemic barriers to workplace SMMEs gaining accreditation and included a series of recommendations.

Draft CHIETA ISOE Strategy:  Some comments (pro bono)

Audit guideline documents and auditor training programme for the CHIETA ETQA to evaluate its education and training providers in line with SAQA requirements

Consol Glass (Pty) Ltd Formulation of a guideline which could replace grade 12 as one of the criteria for employment, based on the principles in the proposed amendments to the Skills Development Act and related legislation which includes the development of level descriptors for the National Qualifications Framework (NQF).
Further Education and Training Institute (FETI), University of the Western Cape, Cape Town

Member of the Project Management Team for the National Symposium of expert TVET practitioners for the development of qualifications of vocational and occupational trainers and educators held in August 2009.

Joint preparation of comments on the draft policy frameworks of the Quality Council for Trades and Occupations (QCTO), submitted to the Department of Labour on 31 October 2008)

Contributor to the Institute’s comments on the Draft Policy Framework for FET College Lecturers, submitted to the Department of Education (September 2009 and 2012)

GIZ / Department of Labour In association with Deborah Machard & Associates (Pty) Ltd: development of draft Criteria for SETAs: Implementation of Monitoring and Evaluation processes for Learnerships
Industrial Development Corporation of SA For the Department of Trade and Industries:  Research towards the development of a skills programme for the ship/boat building industry

Institute of Estate Agents of

S A

Report:  Suggestions for Developing an FETC—Property: as Part of a Continuum of Professional Qualifications for the Property Industry

Independent Institute of Education(IIE is a subsidiary of AdVtech and is the overarching academic body for Varsity College, Vega – the Brand Communications School, College Campus and Rosebank College)

In association with Deborah Machard & Associates (Pty) Ltd:

Review of existing assessment strategies, guides and related documents for selected SETA courses, assessing compliance with the requirements of outcomes-based assessment in an occupational context, identifying gaps and making appropriate recommendations for remedying these.

Development (including materials, appropriate activities and tools) and co-facilitation of a three-day capacity-building-cum-experiential learning intervention for the IIE faculty

Public Sector Education and Training Authority

In association with Deborah Machard & Associates (Pty) Ltd:

Design of a principle-based system for learning programme evaluation

Capacity building of learning programme evaluators

Research into the application of RPL in the public service

Development of a guideline and tools for rolling out RPL in the public service

Sports Science Institute of South Africa

Strategic consulting services on the impact of legislative and environmental shifts on the ETD/training department and its operations/service offering.

Development of a quality management system for its training division for accreditation as a training provider by THETA.

S A Oil and Gas Alliance

Consolidation of research into skills gaps on the West Coast of South Africa, and the development of associated project proposals

Consultative process on, and development of, a principle based guideline on RPL for the oil and gas sector in South Africa

As a joint venture with an accredited training provider, the development and piloting of two learning programmes for occupational trainers/instructors in the oil and gas industry:  12-day train-the-trainer course and a course on on-the-job training.

Fiona Cameron Consulting’s role was the curriculum and methodological design, development and writing of unit standard aligned learning materials with embedded (integrated) assessments.

Swiss South African Co-operation Initiative (SSACI)

Evaluation of skills training programmes that SSACI funds to, among other things:  verify that training took place as well as to appraise the quality of the curriculum, its mode of delivery, educational value, relevance, coherence, practicality, etc.

Investigation into the feasibility of an identified NGO seeking accreditation as a provider of hospitality-related training.

University of Newcastle, Australia For six years, concluding in 2013, in-country representative, as project coordinator, stakeholder manager and advisor on education policy in relation to potential initiatives and partnerships with South African education institutions, and with special emphasis on TVET and ECD teacher and educator development.
WDM Workforce Development Consultants, Canada Consultant advising of the education and training landscape in South Africa, on a project concerned with validation trade maps for plumbers (South Africa in relation to Canada).

Comments on draft legislation and/or policy in South Africa

2014 Draft National Policy and Criteria for Designing and Implementing Assessment for NQF Qualifications and Part Qualifications and Professional Designations in South Africa :  Comments
  Draft National Policy and Criteria for Credit Accumulation and Transfer:  Comments
2013 Ministerial Task Team report:   The Establishment of a South African Institute for Vocational and Continuing Education and Training (SAIVCET):  Comments
2012 South African Qualifications Framework draft policy on the Recognition of Prior Learning
  National Qualifications Framework sub-framework proposals
  The Green Paper on the Post School Education and Training System in South Africa
2011 Comments on QCTO Draft Policies (Delegation of Qualification Design and Assessment)
2010 National Skills Development Strategy III (2011 to 2016) and proposed SETA Landscape
2009 Draft Policies Relating To The Occupational Qualifications And Quality Assurance Frameworks
2008 Comments on the proposed Skills Development Amendment Bill 2008, submitted to the Department of Labour on 27 March 2008

Papers and publications

Skills plan puts Setas in hot seat Mail & Guardian, 25 February 2011
National Symposium on the development of qualifications for vocational and occupational trainers and educators The South African Policy Environment – joint presentation with Seamus Needham, FET Institute, UWC, August 2009
CHIETA (Chemical Industries SETA) The Skills Development Amendment and the Qualifications Framework Bills:  Presentation to the Broad Regional Forum (Western Cape), May 2009
2008 Conference of the International Association of Colleges and World Congress, New York, USA Developing new partnerships – the importance of context, co-authored and presented with Donna Hensley, University of Newcastle, Australia
Scarce Skills Summit Scarce Skills: An international partnership approach to training quality trainers for scarce skills
MyMoneyforLife© A personal finance management course, designed around a simulation game, and co-authored with associate, Arlene Adriaanse.
Winning Essays, Assignments and Reports:  A Handbook Designed to help novice writers to work with their own writing and strengthen it.
S A Auditing and Training Certification Association (SAATCA) Co-presenter:  Developing a Quality Management System for Training Providers
6th IAC International FET Colleges Conference A Case for a Uniform Approach to Systemic Quality Management in the SA Education & Training System

DMA e-zine contributions

May 2005: Small Training Providers:  The Challenge of Managing Quality Systems in Compliance with accreditation
August 2005: Accredited Training:  What does it mean—for the Provider and for the Consumer?
October 2005: National Qualifications Framework Impact Study:  Report 2:  Cycle 2 (April 2005) – Key points from the Executive Summary and some comments
December 2005: Taking stock of the year that’s past, and looking ahead to the New Year:  Developing strategies for ongoing monitoring and evaluation
e/merge 2004 Co-presenter/author:  Online Writing Tutoring: Its Potential in Southern African Education
IRR Training (incorporating the council on education in management) The Skills Development Act Conference, 26-28 July 2000, Cape Town:Paper:  Practical steps aimed at amending existing training programmes to comply with unit standards and aid the swift implementation of the Skills Development Act to take full advantage of increased worker competence.

Learning support materials/programmes/products (not listed above)

Managing Poor Performance:  Essential skills and tools for managers and team leaders Development of workshop methodology materials, jointly owned by Arlene Adriaanse, Forefront Training;  piloted and successfully implemented in subsequent years in a private hospital group as well as for an international sportswear brand, and a leading home shopping company.
Coaching skills for supervisors Four-module course for team leaders and supervisors who are expected to coach co-workers and team members when they are found to have gaps in their knowledge and/or skills.  Aligned to unit standard Coach a team member in order to enhance individual performance in work environment

In association with

Triune Business Solutions Development of The Quality Framework for Training Providers© which provides the basis for developing a compliant, customised, elementary policy and procedures manual through a hand-holding and consultation process that facilitated the development of a best-practice quality management system unique to that provider.
Tutor suite, USA and South Africa

Conceptualising a syndicated approach to asynchronous online writing tutoring

Conceptualising a comprehensive in-service training programme for South Africa-based online writing tutors

Development of a Handbook for South Africa-based online writing tutors

Online writing tutoring for students of continuing education and post-graduate courses (ages ranging from high school to mature adults), with two US-based institutions, Smarthinking.com, Washington DC, and the University of Phoenix, Phoenix

Conferences organised

SkillZHub Conference

12 and 13 November 2013

Towards a coherent Post-School Education and Training Sector in South Africa

The trans-disciplinary conference on early childhood development and education

17 and 18 July 2012

What is the relationship between the Millennium Development Goals and Early Childhood Development and Education?

Welcome

I am an ordinary woman living in the Winelands of McGregor in South Africa.  My husband and I live in an alternative technology house with our cats.  At the moment, there are three:  Tiger Pearl (aka Princess Pearli), Gandalf the Grey and Rambo, the Ginger Bruiser’s thug who’s actually a toasted marshmallow.

What I do now

I am a writer, part time VA and cook for the local market.  Courtesy of Covid-19, I am constantly reinventing myself. I am a gig worker.   For a patch early in 2021, took on an almost full-time role as lead of content and research for a boutique brand and marketing agency.  Sadly they had to downsize and I have returned to offering services – relating to English, research, and writing, as well as limited social media and content management.

I take on a freelance gigs:

  • For businesses
    writing copy for anything from social media, blogs and leaflets to business plans, streamlining systems and procedures for succession and compliance purposes
    building and maintaining simple WordPress sites, designing uncomplicated leaflets and flyers.
  • For individuals
    I will troubleshoot:  when you can’t get an answer, give me the story..  I will write the letter or email you need to get action.

For more including a link to an online portfolio, go here.

Destination McGregor, provides an ever broadening digital window on McGregor, a village nestled between the Riviersonderend (River without end) and Langeberg (long) mountain ranges of the Western Cape winelands in South Africa.

I also blog on via WordPress and from there on to the Hive blockchain.

What I did then

I ran an education and training management consultancy for more than 20 years. With the advent of the Internet and broadband, I was able to work with clients in both South Africa and abroad.  I could successfully maximise time and costs for all concerned. Consultancy services specialised in project conceptualisation, policy analysis, systems development, quality assurance and compliance as well as the creation of learning materials. Over the years, clients included tertiary education institutions (local and international), sector education and training authorities (skills boards), private companies, government departments and donors, as well as grassroots community organisations.

You will find out more about my credential and other involvements here.

If you’d like to be in touch…

[contact-form][contact-field label=”Name” type=”name” required=”true” /][contact-field label=”Email” type=”email” required=”true” /][contact-field label=”Website” type=”url” /][contact-field label=”Message” type=”textarea” /][/contact-form]