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PurposeThe evaluation of training results in large groups with limited resources is one of the challenges of organisations. This paper aims to provide a methodological approach to facilitate evaluation of training among large groups. The paper presents the tools and the results of an evaluation of a whole training plan on the rational use of medicines addressed to 1,550 health professionals in Spain.Design/methodology/approachTwo questionnaires were administered to the trainees in order to evaluate transfer of training: one questionnaire upon finishing the training session and another one two months later. A total sample of 351 subjects was obtained from 53 different training programs linked with the rational use of medicines.FindingsResults show that most of the trainees had improved their professional performance, especially the duties related to the selection and use of medicines. Key factors for transfer, such as motivation and support from the organisation, which are present when the transfer is higher, were also detected.Practical implicationsThe research offers an easily applicable tool that can be used by organisations with few resources available for evaluation. The tool allows evaluation of the maintenance of the acquired learning, the particular changes in professional performance that prevail in time, and the factors that contribute to such changes.Originality/valueThis study provides a model to evaluate transfer of training that can be useful for practitioners and researchers who want to evaluate training effectiveness among large groups. It also contributes relevant information about the health sector and about large organisations with a lot of working offices, which could help advancing towards improving the effectiveness of training.

The Bologna Process has taken an undeniable role in the development of the European Higher Education Space to create a shared framework at the higher education level. In this new framework, teachers' and students' mobility is the key element. This is one of the main aims that European Union education policies try to achieve. This study is about the mobility of Erasmus and Sicue students in the European Union and the Spanish university context. It tries to explain mobility through three basic lines of research: documentary analysis, the application of eligibility index and work field. The methodology used gathers qualitative and quantitative data from a sample of Erasmus and Sicue students. The results show that the participation in a mobility programme is not only connected with a personal profile but also with other factors that can promote or inhibit this decision. The most important factors are related to the family and relationship context, the features of programmes and the promotion that takes place in the universities.

PilarPineda pilar.pineda@uab.es Good preschool education requires professionals whose training is both solid and updated. This article presents the results of an evaluation of the continuing training received by teachers in the preschool educational sector in Spain, and discusses the level of implementation. The authors examine factors such as culture and motivation, and look into the initiatives taken with respect to training. They evaluate the results of training, focussing on satisfaction, learning, pedagogical suitability and the transfer of training. The methodological approaches are both quantitative -a questionnaire administered to 1500 teachers and managers -and qualitative -50 interviews and 10 discussion groups were carried out with 70 teachers. The results of preschool teachers' training are quite positive overall, in terms of levels of satisfaction, learning, pedagogical suitability and the transfer of continuing training. However, there is little evidence of the skills being used at work, which suggests that training is not as effective as it could be.