NEWS P5 FEATURE P12 RESEARCH P18 SUSAN WALLACE P30 · Peter Giles Maths Corner 23 The key to a...

The journal for professional teachers and trainers in the further education and training sector Issue 32 Summer 2018 set.et-foundation.co.uk

inTUITIONAll SET for first national conference in NovemberNEWS P5

Job pressure mayhelp professional adaptabilityFEATURE P12

Is teaching an art, craft or science? The debate beginsRESEARCH P18

Earning respect is vital to succeed as a teacherSUSAN WALLACE P30

Remarkable global journey leads to QTLSHow Uzma Kazmi’s teaching career turned a corner with her new status Interview p10-11

inSIDE

News 4Get SET for first national conference Sector’s training needs revealed Embedding digital learning

Views 6Leader column Member focus Policy view with Joel Petrie

Focus 8Teaching world Me & my tutor Downloaded

Interview 10Uzma KazmiIn Depth 12Developing professional adaptability in a pressured careerResearch 15Vicki Robinson Diane Thurston David Powell Paul Kessell-Holland Tom Bennett Paul Demetriou-Crane Andrew Morris Peter Giles

Maths Corner 23The key to a college’s success in maths and English Maths essentials Finite ideas

Subject Focus 24Windows of opportunity in the media revolution All about English

Career Focus 26The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award scheme steps forward into further education Career spotlight with Donna Lucas

Learning Tech 29Sharing blended learning resources across colleges IT ideas Star tech

Susan Wallace 30Earning respect is a two-way process Books 32Flip the System UK: A Teacher’s Manifesto Learning Rebooted: Education Fit for the Digital Age Writer’s blogMembers Forum 34Pedagogue with Lou Mycroft For the diary

Don’t forget, you can access a range of additional benefits including digital links, documents and video content by logging in to your digital inTuition.

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READY TO ADVANCE?The badge of advanced professionalism and mastery in FE and training

ATS

Advanced Teacher Status (ATS) offers a distinct step up from QTLS to recognise teachers and trainers with signifi cant experience and commitment to personal development.

The closing date to apply for a place in the October 2018 cohort is 31 July

Request a brochure online at set.etfoundation.co.uk/ats or call 0800 093 9111

InTUITION ISSUE 32 • SUMMER 2018 54 ISSUE 32 • SUMMER 2018 InTUITION

inNEWS

INSIGHTS ON NEW TEACHERS The average salary for newly qualified teachers starting full-time teaching roles in further education and training in 2015/16 was £25,220. This has remained relatively static since 2012/13.

Around 60 per cent of initial teacher education (ITE) learners progressed to a teaching role in further education and training, of whom 73 per cent gained employment in FE colleges. An increasingly high proportion gained employment in independent training providers.

These findings are among many insights in the fourth annual report by the Education and Training Foundation (ETF) examining the provision and take-up of ITE in education and training.

The report is part of the ETF’s Spring series of independent, impartial and comprehensive research which includes the Training Needs Analysis (see story, facing page). To see the full report, visit the ETF’s website and click on the Research tab. READ THE VOICES OF FEA fascinating collection of essays that examine the past, present and future of further education and training has been published.

The Voices of the Further Education Sector: The purpose of the Further Education Sector Now? features essays from some of the FE sector’s leading lights, who attempt to understand what the purpose of FE is, and if it still has intrinsic relevance.

Contributors include Dr Alison Birkinshaw, principal of York College, and the Education and Training Foundation’s chief executive David Russell.

The publication is the result of an Oxford University Saϊd Business School and ETF-sponsored further education (FE) Strategic Leadership Programme. It is available on the ETF website under the News tab.

Landmark research reveals sector’s training needs

A landmark analysis of the development and training needs of practitioners across the further education sector has been published by the Education and Training Foundation (ETF).

The Training Needs Analysis report reflects the perspectives of nearly 500 organisations and more than 2,300 individual practitioners – including teachers, trainers, leaders and assessors. It was supported by all the key sector membership bodies, the sector’s trade unions, and the Department for Education.

The report provides intelligence that will help policy-makers and sector leaders make informed investment decisions to support the workforce to meet the challenges and opportunities that

the technical education reforms, including T levels, will bring over the next few years.

One of the key conclusions is that while providers and those working in the sector felt their recent training and development activities met most, or all, of their development needs, there were key areas that required further investment and focus.

Respondents felt that, budget and time permitting, additional training would allow the sector to take advantage of the reforms, with a particular focus on leadership and management, maths and English, alongside the use of digital and other new technologies for teaching and learning.

David Russell, the ETF’s chief

executive, said: “We are entering one of the most critical phases in this country’s history of further education and training.

“The opportunities the reforms bring, alongside the renewed focus on technical education, means we have to ensure we have the high-quality workforce to make them a real success.

“This landmark report sets out clearly what training support the workforce needs to play its part. It is now up to sector leaders at an institutional, regional and national level to get behind them and respond. We have no time to lose.”

The research, which took place in Autumn 2017, was carried out by BMG Research. It is part of the ETF’s Spring series of independent, impartial and comprehensive research which includes the ITE report (top right, opposite page).Turn to p15 for a more detailed summary of the report’s key findings. The full report is available on the ETF’s website.

Book now for SET’s first national conference on 7 November in Birmingham

Embedding digital learning is explored in report

The Society for Education and Training’s (SET) first national conference, Pride in Professionalism, has been announced for 7 November in Birmingham. Up to 300 delegates are expected to attend the inaugural one-day event to hear keynote speakers and take part in debates and breakout sessions on a range of topics central to teaching and learning.

Topics include: the changing landscape of FE and what this will mean for practitioners; what excellence looks like in FE; staff wellbeing and resilience; digital innovation and pedagogy; SEND; and maths and English. There will also be a discussion about ‘Teaching: art, craft or science?’ – a major debate launched in this issue (see p18).

A number of big-name speakers will deliver keynotes and will be confirmed in due course. In addition, a number of SET members will feature in conference sessions talking about their career journeys.

Martin Reid, SET’s head of membership, said: “We are really excited to be launching the first SET annual conference, which is being shaped by our members. It’s a great networking opportunity and will bring together a high profile line-up of experts, influencers and sector leaders. We hope the annual conference quickly becomes the ‘must attend’ event for professionals working across the further education, vocational teaching and training sector.”

Tickets to the full-day event, including a networking lunch, are available to SET members for just £49, if places are booked before 31 July. (For non-members it’s £99). The conference, also featuring exhibitors, is sponsored by the Skills and Education Group. It will be held at the Vox Conference Centre, which is near the NEC, just off the M42. More details will be announced shortly. Also, keep an eye on the conference Twitter feed #SETCONF2018 and the SET Facebook page @SocEducationTraining.

By Vikki Liogier

The barriers, as well as the enablers, to embedding learning technology in teaching, learning and assessment, are explored in a report published by the Education and Training Foundation (ETF).

The report, produced by Sero Consulting for the ETF, acknowledges that further education and training organisations can find it a challenge to support the use of learning technologies.

Interviews and focus groups were held in March 2018 with senior managers, eLearning coordinators, curriculum managers and mainstream lecturers, based in three colleges, in order to identify the barriers and enablers to the embedding of learning technology.

Barriers included: restrictions caused by classroom design, including access to Wi-Fi and hardware; a lack of staff confidence in their digital skills; difficulties in accessing digital resources, and a lack of time for digital content creation.

The study indicates that senior leaders have a critical role to play in embedding learning technology in their organisations through developing, managing and implementing a digital strategy. Strategies should be linked equally to teaching and learning as well as the demands of management information systems.

To read the report visit the ETF website and click on the Research tab or, if reading your digital inTuition, click this link goo.gl/xsdsnq

Heeran Basi (centre) won The PeoplePlus Award for Advanced Apprentice of the Year at the National Apprenticeship Awards. Heeran, an apprentice at Severn Trent Water, is flanked by Simon Rowes, of PeoplePlus, and Sue Husband, Director of the National Apprenticeship Service. Read more about Heeran and his mentor, Joe Appleby, on page 9.

Vikki Liogier is head of learning technologies at the Education and Training Foundation

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Welcome to your bumper summer issue of inTuition, including our free special maths and English supplements. On the cover we feature SET member Uzma Kazmi, whose incredible career has taken her from Pakistan to the Falkland Islands, via the even more remote island of St Helena. Read her interview on page 10.

In common with many members, Uzma, who gained her QTLS last year, has had to adapt and grow as a teacher – a theme picked up in our lead feature (page 12). It’s the second in a series of articles looking at professional behaviours, this time from the perspective of teachers and trainers. It explores how practitioners adapt and develop in response to changes in education policy to ensure they continue to deliver more than just qualifications for their learners. Teacher educator Diane Thurston picks up on some of these themes on page 16. Also in the research section (page 18), the Education and Training Foundation’s (ETF) head of partnerships, Paul Kessell-Holland, announces a series of articles debating the question ‘Teaching: art, craft or science?’ These will appear online and in future inTuition issues. Both the maths and the English supplements are packed with leading experts, as well as brilliant case studies of good practice from around the further education and training sector. Look out, too, for the pull-out posters.

At SET we recognise the challenges for teachers and trainers to deliver maths and English GCSE retakes and Functional Skills. The ETF Training Need Analysis (pages 4 and 15) highlights it as an area in which practitioners want support.

SET members are eligible for discounts on all ETF maths and English courses and events, and more support is being planned. So, please use the

introductory membership offer – it’s on the back of the sheet carrying your name and address in your inTuition pack – to share these

benefits with colleagues, and claim a gift for yourself too! Finally, I am delighted to announce SET’s inaugural

annual conference, being held on 7 November in Birmingham (see page 5). Many thanks to

members of the Practitioner Advisory Group who are helping to shape the programme. This is an exciting development for your membership body, and I look forward to meeting many of you there.

Food for thought in this issue, our supplements and SET’s first national conferenceMartin Reid is head of membership at SET

Please use the introductory SET

membership offer to share the benefits

with colleagues

ATS: THE CHANCE TO APPLY NOWAre you interested in the Advanced Teacher Status (ATS)? If so, registrations for its third cohort are now open.

To register your interest for this cohort (starting in October 2018), you have to be a member of the Society for Education and Training (SET), or join before applying. You will also need to check that you meet the eligibility criteria.

You can then download and fill in the ATS application form and complete one or two supporting testimonies forms. You’ll also need to provide a CV outlining evidence of subject knowledge, qualifications and previous employment.

All applications will be reviewed during August and applicants will be told the outcome in September.

If you are accepted, you will be required to make a payment of £750, either in full or by direct debit instalments. An introductory webinar and issue of the e-portfolio will take place in October.

Participants will be supported throughout the process by a mentor. Ideally, the mentor should be a more experienced colleague working in your organisation or professional network. Alternatively, you can request a SET mentor.

For more details, visit the SET website. The closing date for applications is 31 July 2018.

A LIBRARY AT YOUR FINGERTIPSDon’t forget that as a SET member you have access to thousands of papers, journals and books through the SET Online Research Library, powered by EBSCO.

The library also includes SET’s Career Skills Research Centre with curated articles and e-books to support career development.

Login in to SET online and click Research under Publications.

WHAT’S NEW?The government has published its response to last year’s consultation on the implementation of T levels.

WHY SHOULD I CARE?These are the biggest reforms to technical education and training in a generation.

The first T levels will be rolled out in 2020, although full roll-out is postponed to beyond 2022.

One of the main challenges, identified in the consultation, is to upskill current teaching staff and recruit additional skilled staff.

Extra support will be available for staff development, including up to £20m to improve teaching quality over the next two years. The Education and Training Foundation (ETF) and the Society for Education and Training (SET) will be involved in delivering much of this support for teachers and trainers.

A further £500 million a year will be made available to cover the additional taught hours and industry placement requirements for T levels.

High-quality industry placements are essential to T levels, and the government has promised support to help providers deliver this aspect of the programmes.

T levels will include a six point grading scale for the core (A* - E) and a three-point grading scale for each occupational specialism (Distinction, Merit, Pass). There will also be an overall T level pass grade. Providers will set their own T level entry requirements.

The expectation is that most students will have gained Level 2 qualifications in maths and English by the end. For more information, visit: goo.gl/zsGoAW

Optimistic about FE research By Joel Petrie

I once attended a conference at which Professor Frank Coffield lamented the limited evidence of research in further education and asked: “Where else would you find a £10 billion industry with no research?”

While the paucity of FE research is widely acknowledged, there are grounds for optimism. Several universities, particularly post-1992, have vibrant FE research traditions. There have been several books published about FE in the past year, written and edited by FE practitioners and researchers.

There is also considerable research activity, much of it practitioner-led, going on ‘under the radar’ which has significant value. Many FE professionals are studying for masters, MPhil and doctorates.

Engagement in research and its dissemination is unquestionably a challenge in FE. Scholarly activity can be a low priority for a sector responding to policy churn. A further significant barrier is the cost at a time of stretched professional development budgets.

However there are several organisations that promote sector inquiry and support FE researchers. These include the Association for Research in Post-Compulsory Education (ARPCE), the Learning and Skills Research Network (LSRN), Teacher Education in Lifelong Learning (TELL) and, of course, the Education and Training Foundation (ETF) and the Society for Education and Training (SET).

Through various channels, including social media, websites and regular publications, these organisations provide support for practitioner and academic researchers, as well as information about events, conferences, new books and potential funding. ARPCE membership includes free electronic access to its academic journal, Research in Post-Compulsory Education. LSRN operates via voluntary regional convenors, promoting and supporting local events such as the burgeoning FE Research Meets. TELL organises about four free network meetings annually.

The ETF offers the Practitioner Research Programme bursaries for fellowships at SUNCETT, run by Professor Maggie Gregson. SET members can access an online research library powered by EBSCO. And they also benefit from research-based articles in inTuition and in its supplementary publications, including the annual inTuition Research Supplement.

There is a final factor which gives us optimism for the future of FE research – the fact that some of these organisations, including the ETF, are in discussion to establish an overarching meta-network of existing research bodies.

This could facilitate a joint electronic presence, foster collaboration and greater use of research evidence, and perhaps ultimately stimulate collaborative bidding for the funding of research focused on, and undertaken by, FE researchers.

Joel Petrie works in FE, and recently coedited The Principal: Power and Professionalism in FE with Marie Daley and Professor Kevin Orr.

For information on ARPCE http://arpce.org.uk/members/To find out more about LSRN contact Andrew Morris at [email protected] details on TELL and its events, email Jim Crawley at [email protected]

inTuition is also available in digital and PDF formatsTo access the digital version of your inTuition log in to the SET site and click on ‘Publications’ and ‘inTuition’.

6 ISSUE 32 • SUMMER 2018 InTUITION

The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Education and Training Foundation (ETF) or the Society for Education and Training (SET).

WHAT’SNEWIN EDUCATION AND TRAINING? AND WHY SHOULD I CARE?


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DR KAREN FLANAGAN IS HEAD OF SCIENCE AT NEWHAM SIXTH FORM COLLEGE (NEWVIC)

Two women scientists are featured in this issue. Both Dr Karen Flanagan, based in London, and Iram Sabri, who teaches in Saudi Arabia, studied chemistry at university and ended up teaching GCSE and A level students. Despite these similarities, there are differences in their careers and approaches to teaching.

NEW WORLD INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLis licensed by the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Education to teach pupils from pre-school to secondary. It caters for many ex-pat British people working in the kingdom and follows the British curriculum, offering iGCSEs and A levels.

NEWHAM SIXTH FORM COLLEGEis one of London’s largest sixth form colleges, with more than 2,500 students. Courses include GCSE, A-levels, level 2 and 3 vocational programmes and ESOL programmes.

Karen, who has a BSc in chemistry, an MSc in computer modelling and a PhD in hydrophobic effects in proteins, enjoyed a 20-year career in the science and IT industries before retraining as a teacher. She has

now been teaching for 11 years.As head of department she has around 12.5 face-to-face teaching

hours, although her additional management duties mean she works around 60 hours in total per week.

She teachers GCSE science, A level chemistry and Level 3 applied science. The vast majority (some 80 per cent) of her students go on to university,

while the remainder complete apprenticeships or find work.Karen, a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry, is no stranger to

updating her subject knowledge and she avidly reads science publications in her fields. She keeps her teaching up to speed by regularly meeting, and

discussing issues, with other teachers and learning champions in the college. Her department tends to encourage independent learning, and learners are

expected to prepare for lessons by, for instance, making notes on a topic, learning an equation or watching a video.

They are then tested on this as a start to the lesson. The idea is that this allows more time to work on higher-level skills during lessons.

Homework is usually self-assessed. Peer assessment is often used in lessons as part of a formative

assessment process.

SAUDI ARABIAAL KHOBAR

IRAM SABRI IS THE HEAD OF CHEMISTRY / SCIENCE AT THE NEW WORLD INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

Like Karen, Iram is a chemistry graduate who decided to become a teacher, albeit earlier in her career than Karen.

Iram was born and educated in India, where she gained an MSc in chemistry followed by a BEd, a required qualification for teaching in Indian schools. She has been teaching for 15 years, starting at a small college in

India before moving to the New World International School in Saudi Arabia. The school teaches from pre-school to secondary, catering for many

in the ex-pat community. It follows the British curriculum.Like Karen, Iram teaches GCSE (or, more specifically, iGCSE) and A levels.

As at Newham Sixth Form College, the majority of students are aiming for further study, either at university or in further education and training.

Iram’s working week differs from the traditional UK teaching week, as she works from Sunday to Thursday, starting at 7.15am and finishing

around 2.15pm. The weekend in Saudi Arabia is Friday and Saturday.Describing herself as a traditional teacher, Iram’s approach in class

tends to be teacher-led. However, students are involved in lessons and are encouraged to use the internet, and learn as

a group. Learner feedback is given face to face and in the form of termly reports and progress updates.

Professional development is important at Iram’s school, just as it is at Newham, and she attends teaching seminars

and takes part in the continuing professional development sessions run by

her employer.

HEERAN BASII never really applied myself at school and college. I was coasting along but getting okay grades. I applied to university and got accepted to study accounting and finance.

But I was helping at my mum’s newsagents one day, and a Severn Trent employee came in telling us there was a leak up the road. I asked him some questions and he mentioned the apprenticeship scheme at Severn Trent. Later I went on their website and watched some videos of current apprentices. This was what originally made me apply for the programme.

I am now an instrumentation, control and automation (ICA) apprentice and I am working towards my NVQ qualifications in ICA, alongside studying part-time for my business management degree. I hope to progress on to the Severn Trent graduate scheme.

Being sat here two years later with The PeoplePlus Award for Advanced Apprentice of the Year is unbelievable, and it’s given me ambitions higher than I would have dreamed of before.

I was very fortunate to have Joe, an instrument technician, as my mentor. He is naturally good at teaching and I get on very well with him. He is known by everyone in the team as somebody who will go above and beyond what his role requires. He always pushes me to do the same.

A chance conversation about a burst pipe opened Heeran Basi’s eyes to the possibilities of an apprenticeship. Two years later the award-winning Severn Trent apprentice compares notes with his mentor, Joe Appleby.

SET MEMBER TELLS OF HER BATTLE WITH ADHD Don’t miss Jannine Harris’s powerful story as a teacher with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Jannine, a special needs teacher at Billing Brook School in Northamptonshire and an MSc Psychology student at the University of Liverpool, tells how she uses her ADHD to her advantage as a teacher.

It was only three years ago when Jannine, then 41, had her ADHD confirmed. A new understanding and acceptance of her disorder helped her get through her PGCE and embark on her teaching career.

She teaches a high proportion of students with ADHD and uses the knowledge and insights she has gained as someone with ADHD to tailor the learning experience for them.

Jannine’s story is available now as a blog with audio on the SET website. Click on ‘blogs and articles’ under the News and events tab.

Jannine runs the ADHD Wise UK Facebook community group, which offers information, support and resources on ADHD in the UK @adhdwiseuk

A CALL FOR SUPPORT ASSISTANT RECOGNITION It’s time to raise the game for learning support, to encourage learning support staff to gain qualifications, and share and promote good practice, argues Bob Parsons, SET member and member of SET’s Practitioner Advisory Group (PAG). To read Bob’s blog calling for action, visit the SET website and click on ‘blogs and articles’ under the News and events tab.

JOE APPLEBYIn his apprenticeship, Heeran was bursting with enthusiasm. He is extremely driven and this has ensured he has made the most of his apprenticeship. He puts himself forward for all opportunities, which has given him an insight into different areas of the company and the best possible start to his career.

Heeran and I have built a trusting relationship where I feel he can, and does, ask if he is ever unsure. This gives me the confidence that once Heeran has seen a job completed, and is happy to have a go himself, I can let him attempt it, knowing it will be in a safe and controlled manner.

I do think constructive feedback is essential. This enables Heeran to learn about his strengths and weakness and areas where extra attention is required. And he regularly gives me honest feedback on my approach and delivery of mentoring.

I left school after my GCSEs in 2003 and completed an apprenticeship with Severn Trent as an instrument technician. During the past 14 years, I have spent time working across the East Midlands district. Severn Trent have given me the opportunity to continuously expand my knowledge, including mentoring training. At the moment, I am working towards a foundation degree in engineering. I am also involved with the company’s instrumentation, control and automation (ICA) community of practice.

inTERVIEW


ike so many other teachers and trainers in the further education and training sector, Uzma K azmi has enjoyed a varied career.

Uniquely, however, that career has seen SET member Uzma travel from her native Pakistan via the Middle East to the impossibly remote island of St Helena and on to the equally far-flung Falkland Islands, where she

currently works in adult and community learning.

For much of her 22-year career Uzma taught English literature and language to the children of princes and ex-pats in the Middle East. A far cry from the night classes in Asian cooking and English as a Second Language courses that she now runs on the Falkland Islands.

Having attended a convent boarding school, Uzma gained a BA in English literature, French and international relations at university. This was followed by a Masters in English literature, a BEd, which she took with the intention of becoming a teacher, and an MPhil.

Uzma and her husband, Mukhtar, a doctor, then decided to travel. In 2000 he secured a job in Bahrain and Uzma taught A level English in a school for ex-pat British workers. After six years, the family moved to Dammam, in nearby Saudi Arabia, and Uzma got a job at one of the country’s top schools, educating the daughters of Saudi royalty.

“It was a different culture. They wanted their children to study what they thought was the best literature, and which would not challenge their religious or cultural thoughts,” Uzma says.

“Once I chose to talk about Paradise Lost. One

MY JOURNEY TO JOB FULFILMENT

of the girls asked a question, and the next day I was called by the head teacher and was told that I was teaching the Bible.

“I said when you are teaching literature you sometimes have to refer to the Bible. I remember going back to my husband and I was really afraid. Basically, one of the parents had informed the school I was teaching the Bible.”

Despite this hiccup, Uzma and her family stayed in Saudi Arabia for five years. But that was to come to an end when, in 2011, the family, who admit they like to travel, opted for a complete change.

“We moved to St Helena. That was a drastic change,” Uzma says, with a hint of deliberate understatement.

“The hospital where my husband worked in Saudi Arabia had more than 12,000 people. The whole of St Helena had a population of not more than 3,000. The local school had 53 students. My old school had more than 4,000 students.”

Uzma got a job as a teaching assistant in the local primary school. Despite having a BEd and extensive experience teaching to A level standard, she was told that she needed a PGCE and Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) to teach – St Helena being a British Overseas Territory.

Professional frustration collided with personal tragedy when her father, who was now living in the United States, was diagnosed with cancer. St Helena had no airport at the time and Uzma, who was also experiencing difficulties in securing a US visitor’s visa, was unable to be with her father, who died less than two months after his diagnosis.

After a year on the island, Uzma and her family moved back to Saudi Arabia for a few months before

some pride. “We have a lot of contract workers from England and they are so used to having Indian takeaways that they decided to learn about Indian food for themselves.”

Uzma was researching the QTS process online when she came across information about QTLS. “I had been a bit depressed as I thought that without a PGCE and QTS this might be the end of my school teaching career. But I saw that QTLS was equivalent to QTS and I enquired.

“The people at the Society for Education and Training were so helpful. It was a light at the end of the tunnel for me.”

Around the same time Uzma had been encouraged to start an English as a Second Language (ESL) course for the many Spanish-speaking Chilean contract workers employed on the islands. She now runs a level 3 course and an English course for beginners. Six of her students hope to take iGCSEs in English as a Second Language this year – the first cohort from the Falklands to do so.

“I am still not teaching in school. But I wait for the evenings now and teach my ESL classes and my food classes. I feel I am really serving the community,” Uzma says. “I completed my QTLS in July 2017. It completely changed my confidence. The moment I completed it I sent my certificate to the education board. And suddenly my salary was increased.

“But it is not only about getting a professional certificate, it is a continuous learning process. I don’t think, if I had not joined SET, I would have gone back to CPD. It is a life-changing experience, to be honest. I think a couple of my colleagues are planning to do QTLS as well.”

Uzma Kazmi’s challenging teaching career has taken her from Pakistan to the Middle East, St Helena and, now, the Falkland Islands. En route, there have been real turning points, such as completing QTLS. Alan Thomson reports

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Alan Thomson is editor of inTuition

SET members reading their inTuition digitally can watch a video of Uzma by clicking on the ‘play’button below.

her husband secured a job at the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital in Stanley, capital of the Falkland Islands, and another British Overseas Territory.

“I think living in St Helena made me realise that there were better places in the world than the Middle East to bring up the children. That year changed our perspective on life,” Uzma says.

“The first time I really came into contact with the word ‘racism’ was in St Helena. It made me realise that we had been treated in quite a racist way in the Middle East.” In December 2013 the family arrived in Stanley. It was summer but only around 5°C.

“Everyone was apologising for the weather. But we were saying ‘no, we love it’. Having lived in Pakistan and the Middle East, a sunny day is not a nice day,” says Uzma.

“The Falkland Islands are the most beautiful place in summer. We have these wild flowers and the whole area is filled with the scent.”

Uzma enquired about teaching but was again told that this was not possible as she lacked a PGCE and QTS. Martin Winward, then headteacher at the Falkland Islands Community School and Training Centre, was nonetheless impressed by Uzma’s determination to resume teaching and he offered her a job as a learning support assistant.

She signed up with the University of Sunderland to do her PGCE. During her studies she taught small groups of primary school children to help teachers out. It was also during this time that Uzma started her Indian cookery evening classes.

“I never thought that people would turn up in any numbers. But they did. Right now it’s the most popular evening class in the Falklands,” Uzma says with

inDEPTH


hen David Powell, director of the Education and Training Consortium, thinks of how the performance culture has changed further education, he thinks of his father.

In 1992, David’s father, Dennis Powell, took over a course at Stafford College and recalls how there

were 72 students at the start of the programme in September and just 36 by November.

“Now he would have to be producing action plans all night to remedy that,” says his son.

Performance measures are seen as so important that it has led some observers to characterise today’s system as a transactional one, where achieving targets and delivering results for learners are paramount. “Performativity, the monitoring of performance, is like a signature tune that plays in the background of teachers’ lives. And you have to decide how you dance to that,” Powell says.

For many, like Powell, this transactional system can negatively influence the professional behaviours and practices of teachers and trainers by undermining their autonomy, and fostering a dependent culture. “If you don’t follow instructions in organisations now, you generally get yourself in trouble,” Powell says.

But in such a well-oiled machine is there still room for a transformational approach to education? Is the professional role of a teacher or trainer simply to ensure learners pass their exams? Or do practitioners have a wider role in supporting the personal growth of their students and apprentices?

ADAPTING AMIDTHE PRESSURE

And what about the wider role of education in supporting social justice?

Powell cites research by Paul Ayres, emeritus professor at the University of New South Wales, Australia, which shows the top one per cent of teachers are not exam-driven at all. “It was because they got the confidence, and they got that from being competent early on. You wouldn’t start off as a transformational educator. You become one,” says Powell.

That process of mastery faces a challenge from policy changes. As the curriculum will radically shift with the introduction of T levels and new apprenticeship standards, expert teachers and trainers need to refresh their knowledge. Powell describes it as withstanding “turbulence”.

Anita Collins, higher education leader in Skills for Life education at Leeds City College, says: “The biggest barrier is time, the time we have in the curriculum with learners. Being creative requires headspace.” Weekly teaching hours for full-time courses have dropped from 30 hours in the 1980s to 12.5 hours today.

Collins says there are examples of how teachers and trainers adapt to policy changes in a transformative

way. She cites teachers using creative writing to make GCSE English resits more inspiring, or turning the obligatory promotion of British values into an opportunity to help foreign-born learners build cultural capital and gain a sense of belonging.

Simon Ashworth, chief policy officer of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP), says the switch to content-rich apprenticeships focused on knowledge, skills and behaviours is making the trainer’s role less transactional. “The role has morphed into a coach, teacher, trainer, as opposed to an assessor who does a bit of training,” he says.

But at the same time, work-based training now faces the same concerns of ‘teaching to the test’ as other parts of education.

Collective professional response“Adaptability is crucial,” says Helen Pettifor, associate director of the Education and Training Foundation (ETF). Teaching isn’t necessarily about inspirational performances at the front of the class but about understanding the learner’s needs, she says.

“If people are coming into your institution to do some off-the-job training for their job in BAE Systems, they don’t want to be treated in what could be quite a patronising way. They want to be heard when they say what they want,” Pettifor says.

In the second article in our series on professional behaviours, inTuition investigates the pressures on teachers and trainers, and how these may be helping to build greater professional adaptability and resilience. Joseph Lee reports

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The professional behaviours essential to thriving in a performance-driven culture, such as autonomy, creativity, adaptability and collaboration, are being put into practice in the Academic Resilience Model, an improvement process adopted by several schools and some FE colleges.

Josie Maitland, a PhD researcher at the University of Brighton, who is studying the impact of the model, says that it is based on seeing resilience as a collective professional response rather than as an individual quality of grit.

The model involves the whole institution auditing its processes, suggesting an improvement plan, and evaluating and iterating with the aim of constantly

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The Education and Training Foundation’s (ETF) Training Needs Analysis (April 2018) is the most significant and detailed survey of the development and training needs of the workforce across the further education and training sector ever completed.

The purpose of the report is to provide intelligence that can support policy-makers and the sector in making informed investment decisions to support the workforce, and to meet the challenges and opportunities over the next few years.

The analysis reflects the perspectives of nearly 500 institutions, mainly providers, and more than 2,300 individuals. It is supported by all corners of the sector: key sector membership bodies, trade unions and the Department for Education.

The vast majority of providers (91 per cent) that responded felt that the training and development carried out over the past year had met all or most of the significant needs of the organisation.

However, just under a quarter (23 per cent) of individual respondents (including many teachers, trainers and assessors) felt that they received only part of the training and development they needed or wanted. This proportion rose to 28 per cent of those working in further education colleges. Overall, 59 per cent of individual respondents had said they

received all of the training they needed.On average, individuals reported

spending 44 hours on continuing professional development (CPD) over the past year. This varied from 73 hours reported by governors and trustees, to 22 hours spent by learning support staff. Lecturers/teachers/tutors spent an average of 41 hours on CPD over the past year.

In general, staff at independent training providers (ITPs) spent more time training (57 hours annually), while in local authorities it was 37 hours. ITPs spent the most money on externally-provided CPD: £761-£889 per member of staff. Colleges spent the least: £172. However, colleges are likely to have the scale and resource to provide a great deal of their CPD internally.

TRAINING COSTSJust under half (48 per cent) of individuals surveyed said that their external training costs were entirely funded by their employer, while 8 per cent were self-funded.

Nearly a third (30 per cent) said their training involved no cost. In part, this reflects the number of free and subsidised training courses offered through the ETF and the Society for Education and Training (SET).

Around 7 in 10 individuals working in the sector believe they would benefit

from further training and development over the next year, with institutions providing a similar picture.

A third of individuals would like to gain a qualification or accreditation through training.

Teaching and pedagogy were the key priority for training for 44 per cent of individual respondents. Obtaining QTLS status was a top priority for 16 per cent of assessors and 13 per cent of lecturers and learning support staff. A fifth of all respondents said governance, leadership and management skills were their top priority.

Nearly two fifths (38 per cent) of providers thought that staff would benefit from further training and development in general subject knowledge. Some 27 per cent of providers identified specific training and development needs in health/public services/care, 22 per cent of providers wanted further training in engineering/manufacturing and in English, while 21 per cent identified maths as a key area for staff training.

Two-thirds of providers looked to the ETF and the Department for Education as the most welcome sources of support and training.

For further information, and to read the full report (Training Needs in the Further Education Sector), visit www.et-foundation.co.uk/research

To activate all one-click web links throughout the magazine please log in to SET and access your interactive digital edition of inTuition.

Investing in workforce development is vital for FE and training sector The Education and Training Foundation’s comprehensive Training Needs Analysis shows a focus on leadership and management, English, maths and digital skills is needed to take the FE profession forward with confidence through the current set of major further education reforms. By Vicki Robinson

FURTHER INFORMATION ON THE TRAINING NEEDS ANALYSIS

Vicki Robinson is content and media officer at the Education and Training Foundation (ETF).

The ETF commissioned BMG Research to undertake the research. Some 2,366 individual respondents and 481 learning providers were surveyed. Researchers carried out 50 in-depth discussions with senior representatives of FE sector organisations. The analysis is part of the ETF’s spring series of independent, impartial and comprehensive research, which started with the SIR Workforce Data

report, and the Initial Teacher Education report earlier this year. The ETF is the government-backed, sector-owned national workforce development body for the further education (FE) and training sector. Its role is to support the continuing transformation of the technical and vocational education system by ensuring the sector has world-class leaders, teachers and trainers.

improving. But that doesn’t mean piling extra responsibilities on to teachers, because undermining their wellbeing would undermine the resilience of the whole system. “One of

the major themes that staff discuss in their interviews is that communications

channels were opened up because there was a shared value base, so resilience and wellbeing was seen as a shared value rather than the focus being on outcomes,” Maitland says.

“People were quite surprised that there weren’t these opportunities in everyday professional life to be able to take time away from the pressure of very linear, outcome-driven conversations to look at a broader perspective of what value base was important to the provider and the staff.”

In some learning providers these have resulted in a wellbeing policy that has reduced the requirements for lesson planning to slash workload. “It meant staff were less stressed and had more time to focus on other things,” Maitland says.

It also meant they had a forum where expert observations by teachers about students’ relationships and progress were at the heart of improving the institution, instead of externally imposed metrics.

A similar collaborative approach has been adopted in teacher observations at the health, education and life sciences faculty of Birmingham City University. Based on research by the university’s reader in education, Dr Matt O’Leary, it replaces observations linked to performance management with ones that involve no grade and are used more like a research method or a tool of educational inquiry.

“If we’re going to use it in a way that is valuable and meaningful to teachers, then we have to sever that umbilical link to assessment,” says O’Leary. “You don’t use it as a way of judging what you’re seeing, there are no assessment criteria, no prescriptive checklist of categories.”

That automatically reclaims time, turning a box-ticking exercise into a productive opportunity for collaboration, he says.

Counterintuitively, O’Leary says it can also be more challenging than performance-driven observations. He says that teachers can be inclined to soft-pedal observations when they know serious consequences can follow, whereas a collaborative atmosphere can help people open up about substantive issues.

Changes to the observation regime in teacher training is one example of how the learning experience for educators can set the tone for an entire system, by supporting the development of a profession that resists being overwhelmed by performativity.

“Improving the student learning experience starts with improving the teacher learning experience,” says O’Leary.

The same applies to CPD, says Helen Pettifor.

The key to changing the educational environment to support students’ personal growth is providing ongoing learning for teachers and trainers centred around those values.

“All those things that teachers need to do for their learners, we have to do for our learners – the teaching and leadership workforce,” she says.

“We have to think about how we engage and motivate people to take part in learning. We need to think about what is the content of what we want to teach people. We’ve got to think about the best way they need to learn,” she says. “What you do in CPD is a mirror image of what teachers are trying to do with learners out there.” (See Research, p16).

UNDERSTANDING TRANSACTIONAL AND TRANS-FORMATIVE EDUCATIONInstrumental and performance-driven systems of education have a long history, says Professor Maggie Gregson at the University of Sunderland. The origins can be traced back to psychologists in the USA, including Ralph Tyler in his 1949 Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction and the Taxonomy of Educational Objectives produced by Benjamin Bloom in 1956.

“Since then, the idea that education needed to be rescued from ‘woolly thinking’ and become more ‘scientific’ has hardened into a movement which has taken on a particular arrogance and an almost crusading purpose,” Gregson says, “Subsequently any problems or issues that teachers have had in making instructional objectives or outcomes-based models work are laid firmly at the door of teachers or the inertia of systems of education.”

For Gregson, ‘transformational’ education also has its roots in behaviourism, not to mention having something of the ”whiff of the hero” about it. The American political scientist, James MacGregor Burns, described transformative leadership as a way of lifting people to their “better selves” through higher levels of motivation. Gregson notes how this suggests top-down power relations which reward some behaviours above others, and carry with them the hint that transformative education leaders ‘know best’.

She argues that John Dewey offers an alternative view of transactional learning which does not imply an outcomes-driven system, but is instead characterised by pragmatic, social and moral processes concerned with the formation of character and personal growth in which engagement in democratic forms of practice is seen as a way of life. From this point of view, careful thinking goes on across (trans) the action in situations where people keep an open mind, recognise that as human beings the decisions they make can be wrong, are careful to monitor the consequences of their actions and, where necessary, change their minds/do things differently in the light of evidence.

She suggests that when a system of education becomes dominated by objectives and preoccupied with narrow outcomes, the development of character, the growth of independent thought, the habit of truthfulness, and concerns for the development of a sense of justice can become sidelined.

Joseph Lee is a freelance writer and photographer. Jo-seph worked for nine years at the Times Ed-ucational Supplement (Tes), specialising in areas such as further education and the science of learning.

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RESEARCHRESEARCHRESEARCHRESEARCHRESEARCHI was interested in Peter Rook’s article on developing the professional behaviours of students in the last inTuition (issue 31, page 12).

My understanding of modelling as a concept has developed from studying how further education-based teacher educators use it within an initial teacher education programme, though it might be applied within other areas of education and training.

What do I mean by modelling? It is a teaching and learning strategy used by teachers or trainers that consciously demonstrates professional behaviours and values for the purpose of student learning. One of the most powerful ways students learn is through experience and modelling is based on experiential learning.

What might I model? It depends on the professional behaviours and values that characterise, and are expected of, your students for their chosen career. As a teacher educator, I might model how to write a lesson plan by sharing my own lesson plan with my trainee teachers and referring to it in the class.

What is important is that you (and your team) identify the professional behaviours and values you need to model and plan where and how they will be modelled within your scheme of work and sessions.

It is important to signpost any modelling of professional behaviour for your students, or they might miss it. For example, “Watch what I do next…” It is also important to explain your professional behaviour or value as you model it so students understand what it involves, including any theory underpinning its use. Finally, you should invite students to consider how and when they might use the modelled behaviour.

THEBIG IDEADr David Powell on the power of modelling professional behaviours and values

Diane Thurston is Director of Education Services at Newcastle College. She also leads Success North Centre for Excellence in Teacher Training and is Project Director for the North East and Cumbria Outstanding Teaching, Learning and Assessment project.

A key function of defining professional behaviours (PBs) is to inform initial teacher education, professional formation and development for teachers at varying stages of their careers.

This is a complex area, with research (Luft, 2010) identifying how professional development is more likely to develop beliefs in new teachers but inform practices in established teachers.

Within a transformational view of learning and teaching, it is key that teachers believe in their role of empowering learners to develop the skills they need to become better learners and thrive and contribute to wider society. The challenge for professional development is to encourage teachers with effective practices and transformative beliefs.

DEFINING PROFESSIONAL BEHAVIOURSWe need to establish agreed PBs which provide a framework to support the development of teaching, learning and assessment practice, but also clearly promote wider professional responsibilities. PBs are central to supporting both new and experienced teachers to shape their identities and fulfil their potential.

The challenge of how to encourage professional behaviours

included a selection of these PBs (our top three), which I have broadly categorised within the two dimensions of: teaching, learning and assessment (TLA); and wider professional responsibilities.

THE TLA TOP THREE1. Embrace the dual professional role – Practitioners in the education and skills sector may have extensive vocational experience, knowledge and expertise, but must also develop skills to foster curiosity and develop knowledge, skills and understanding to match the needs of the varied cohort and diverse individuals they teach. For this reason, professional vocational updating and the skill to accommodate diversity are both clearly outlined in our sector’s professional standards (ETF, 2014).

2. Striving for a truly employer-led curriculum – Meaningful contact with employers is a key feature of the sector to ensure that employers have a genuine input into curriculum planning, development and delivery. This is the route to success for learners in their career goals.

3. The student-led practitioner – The student is at the heart of curriculum design, development and review. This does not mean we expect our students to arrive as experts in learning and teaching, but does mean we fully recognise their experience as learners for whom some practice has clearly not been effective (consider the GCSE re-sitter here).

This also reflects the need for teaching professionals to take account of previous learning (the basis of recognition of prior learning), identify starting points and adapt practice to accelerate progress and attainment, but also foster curiosity and develop wider skills.

THE WIDER PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE TOP THREE1. Reflective and self-critical practitioner – Education professionals should be supported in their continuing development but lead the improvement of their teaching through focused professional development. This will include an open and responsive approach to considering and responding to feedback from colleagues, learners and employers.

2. Collaborate, collaborate, collaborate – Professional educators view themselves as part of an education team who hold high expectations for themselves and their learners, and work together to inspire, motivate and challenge learners of all backgrounds, abilities and dispositions to achieve their full potential. To ensure we achieve the best for our learners, what’s required is an ethos and commitment to collaboration and mutual respect between support staff and teachers; administrators and teachers; and managers and teachers.

3. Education professionals as role models – In our experience this is a PB more commonly used with reference to school teaching professionals. For example, the Teachers’ Standards (DfE, 2011) clearly enshrine the teacher as role model for students. This is an ethos which we believe applies equally to the education and training sector. A professional behaviour that really matters is around demonstrating belief in the potential of your learners – often referred with the label of high expectations. “There is overwhelming evidence of a positive relationship between self-concept and related outcomes.” (Gutman and Schoon, 2013).

Professional development is a complex area but the goals are clear – supporting teachers to develop effective practices and transformative beliefs so that learners can thrive and contribute to society By Diane Thurston

Dr David Powell is director of the Education and Training Consortium and HUDCETT.

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To activate these one-click links, and all other links in the magazine, log in to SET and access your interactive digital edition of inTuition.• Luft, J.A. (2010) Changing inquiry practices and beliefs: The impact of

an inquiry-based professional development programme on beginning and experienced secondary science teachers, International Journal of Science Education, 23:5, 517-534.

• Gutman, L.M. and Schoon, I (2013), The impact of non-cognitive skills on outcomes for young people. Institute of Education

• SET (2016) Code of Practice. Find it at goo.gl/tPx3yQ• ETF (2014) Professional Standards for teachers and trainers in

Education and Training – England. View them at goo.gl/Fvszvz• DfE (2011) Teachers’ Standards. Read them at goo.gl/8eiWd8

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An effective framework should reflect the diverse learners within our sector and consider learners at entry/transition stages; mature/professional/adult returners and apprentices; HE students from level 4 to postgraduate.

PBs should feel relevant and true. They should reflect the appropriate professional behaviours of teachers and advanced practitioners in different settings and teaching different qualifications. Managers and leaders must also model PBs.

Capturing inclusive language for PBs can also be a challenge where the language we use varies according to our practice, and our different beliefs and ideas about teaching.

HE professionals in the sector will be more comfortable with descriptions of developing independent, autonomous

learners or developing higher order thinking skills. Education and skills educators may be used to referring to stretch and challenge to support learners in reaching their potential.

Irrespective of these divisions in language and conceptions of the roles of education professionals working with varied learners, we still contend that it’s feasible to create shared PBs to reflect the role of all our education professionals.

Our code of practice (SET, 2016) captures both mandatory and aspirational dimensions, and in our recent work on the Outstanding Teaching, Learning and Assessment (OTLA) project to define PBs, we have identified two dimensions which we feel can apply to the breadth of practitioners.

In the section that follows, I have

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Teaching is evolving. This is not a reflection on recent policy changes, advances in understanding or a response to current funding pressures. It is a fact.

Teaching evolves in a Darwinistic way – what is working in a classroom or workshop tends to ‘stick’, and what doesn’t tends to slip away. Sometimes ideas stick even when they are superseded or undermined.

Take Visual Auditory and Kinesthetic learning (VAK), for instance. Despite substantial evidence that learning simply does not work in this way, many teachers stick to using VAK styles. So, while there is little evidence to support VAK, it has left a legacy, and many teachers are now comfortable with variation in teaching approach, differentiation of activity, and so on.

Mostly, as is often lamented, evidence and action focuses on schools, and the majority of researchers and commentators are based in universities. This can sometimes have the effect of leaving teachers in FE feeling isolated from conversations.

And yet, the need to be evidence aware, to know how, or why teaching functions the way it does, has rarely been more pressing in our sector. We need to be the best teachers we can be for a number of important reasons, not least our shared altruistic desire to make a difference in people’s lives.

All provision across our diverse sector plays a major part in supporting growth in our economy, and in societal change. At a time when our future society is being reimagined (through Brexit, but also more fundamentally due to digital technologies), when we are preparing for enormous change in our curriculum (T levels and apprenticeship reforms), we owe it to ourselves, society and to our students to be the very best teachers we can be.

COMPETING VOICESIt is a real moment in time for teaching and training. We are evolving and growing as a profession, at the same time as those around us need us most.

But how is a busy teacher to stay up to date with all of the evidence in what is a noisy, confusing and often contradictory debate? What truly counts as ‘evidence’? What should we be measuring when we are looking at ‘change’? Who, of all the competing voices, is speaking the ‘truth’?

The answer is as complex as the question, and finding it is likely to be a personal journey for every teacher.

However, there are some key questions that

it would do us well to try and answer. ‘Questions of our time’ so to speak, which we should try to understand and debate as a profession. Challenges or ideas that reach to the heart of what teaching is really about, and on which we are all likely to take a point of view, no matter how hard we try to be impartial.

With the aim of fostering debate, and helping us all to find our way in this age of change, the Society for Education and Training (SET) is commissioning a series of articles from a range of leading writers and researchers across the education world, based on the following proposition:

Teaching: art, craft or science? Why this question?Developments in science related to

learning are hard to dispute. The rapid and important growth in educational neuroscience and related work are key areas. We know much more than

previously about the functions of memory, learning, recall,

adolescent brain development and a whole range of

related areas. Does this change the nature of teaching forever?

Should we stick to approaches that seem to work when the

latest neuroscience suggests more effective strategies?

At the same time, teaching in our sector has distinguished links into the distant mists of medieval guilds. Are we to discount the instincts of a modern-day master craftsman or woman to involve their students in practical learning? Do we risk losing part of our heritage and effectiveness by turning our backs on the craft of learning and teaching?

Or is education an art? Is it an ephemeral thing, wholly dependent on the context of its existence? Do we need to learn the skills, but then develop a facility that is creative, and responsive to our ‘audience’ of learners?

There are tensions for us in our professional choices, and no silver bullet answers.

But the more we understand the positions of people who are making it their lives to understand these philosophical, ethical and scientific debates, the more informed our own choices as teachers can be.

The articles we are commissioning will express a range of viewpoints. They promise to challenge many assumptions about what teaching is, how we should try to work and think, and what pitfalls lie in our way.

So far our prospective authors include Professor Gert Biesta, Professor Tanya Ovenden-Hope, Professor David Hopkins, Professor Maggie Gregson and Dr Greg Yates. More will confirm soon.

We will be publishing edited versions of these articles in inTuition over the coming months, and sharing the full texts with members on our website. We will be building debate and discussion, including at the inaugural SET Annual Conference in the autumn.

We look forward to sharing the debate with you.

By Tom BennettThere is an old Buddhist parable about the Blind Men and an elephant, familiar to most readers. Each one encounters an elephant from a different angle and, unable to see the entire beast at once, describes what it is they feel with their hands.

One man, grasping its trunk, says, “Why, an elephant is like a rope!” Another, coming at the side says, “No, an elephant is like a wall.” A third, feeling its tusks says, “An elephant is like two long daggers!” And so on. This parable illustrates an eternal truth – our perspective is partial, often painfully so.

Is teaching art, science or craft? It is all of them, and more than any one of them. For centuries, there has been an extraordinary neglect of one of these: science. Teaching has been, for far too long, seen solely in terms of craft, learned through an apprenticeship model of transmitted wisdom, handed down carefully through generations, honed by personal experience. Teaching is very much a craft. Its secrets often have to be grasped, experienced, to be understood. Much of the teacher’s daily job is sieved, one golden grain at a time, like a prospector panhandling for riches in a stream.

But teaching is an act that occurs in the physical world. Its outcomes must be physically sensible in some way. It is vital that, as far as possible, we attend to the structured study of education; we seek to discern patterns in strategies and outcomes. We try to work out what works best, but also when, and when it doesn’t, and why.

Context matters. We seek not certainties, but probabilities, best bets. This is how teaching can be like a science. And where science and craft intersect, lie the most extraordinary, fertile fields of possibility.

That’s why I started researchED, to raise our evidence literacy as a profession, and stop grasping blindly in the dark. Evidence turns what we do from folk teaching to professional practice. Our lens, clarified and magnified by the lens of evidence and research, leads us out of superstition and bias, into a new realm of glittering possibility. It empowers teachers to rebuke the dogma of their managers and mentors. You can see why this upsets some people. But these worms don’t go back in the can.

BENNETT ON...... THE ART, CRAFT AND SCIENCE OF TEACHING

Tom Bennett is founder of researchED, an author, and behaviour advisor to the DfE. Tom writes the Behaviour Guru blogspot and is a regular contributor to newspapers and magazines. behaviourguru.blogspot.co.uk/

RESEARCHTeaching: art, craft or science? SET invites experts to debate the issues The Society for Education and Training (SET) is commissioning a series of articles from leading writers and researchers around the world that will explore contemporary thinking and research on the nature of teaching, learning and professional practice in the 21st century. By Paul Kessell-Holland

• Sennett, R (2008) The Craftsman. London: Penguin. • Biesta, G (2009) Good Education in an Age of Measurement: on the need to reconnect with the question of purpose in education,

Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability, 21(1), pp.33-46.• Woods, P (1996) Researching the Art of Teaching, London: Routledge.

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Paul Kessell-Holland is head of partnerships at SET. Paul is also a Fellow of SET.

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The overall aim of the project was to investigate the effectiveness of peer assessment and feedback as a teaching and learning approach for pre-service trainee teachers.

Its conceptual framework and underpinning rationale enabled students to take an active role in the ownership, management and improvement of their own learning.

The study set out to explore the effectiveness of peer assessment and feedback in helping to develop the trainees’ abilities to evaluate and self-reflect upon their own work. It also aimed to improve their pedagogical approaches in applying the guiding principles of Assessment for Learning (AFL), and teaching and learning generally in their own practice in particular.

The main research questions were:1. To what extent has peer assessment

and feedback helped trainees understand what is considered to be good work in the context of both their practice and their teacher education course, and why? In what ways have their experiences of AFL increased their ability to achieve?

2. To what extent has peer assessment developed trainees’ self-confidence, independence and self-direction as learners?

3. How much have trainees’ experiences of peer assessment

and feedback modified their previous knowledge and understanding of the guiding principles and techniques of AFL?

The cohort of research respondents comprised 28 PGCE pre-service trainees on a full-time course. Assessment was carried out summatively during formal teaching observations in their placements, and formatively via regular micro-teach sessions in front of their peers.

SELF-EVALUATIONEach trainee normally completed seven micro-teach sessions over 14 weeks. Tutor and peer feedback was always given, but normally using only ‘loosely structured’ assessment criteria.

According to Race et al. (2005), one of the most effective ways to implement peer assessment is via presentation, so I decided to use the micro-teach sessions as a way of developing peer assessment and feedback in our PGCE sessions. (Curiously enough, for several years I had been using the approach regularly when teaching karate to support classes of more than 30 learners, but until recently I never dared use it with my PGCE groups).

After every session each trainee would write a short self-evaluation of

their micro-teach. To track whether the attitudes of trainees towards peer assessment were changing throughout the process, they were given a short survey to complete at the beginning and end of the 18-week cycle.

At the end of the research project the peer assessment and tutor assessment forms were collected. Qualitative and quantitative data were gathered along with information from tutor observations and tutor field notes.

Findings from the study supported the work of researchers such as Black (2002) and Falchicov (2007), who supported the central importance of peer feedback in the AFL process.

The research also suggested that student groups need a thorough grounding in the methods of peer assessment and feedback before it is introduced to them. It worked more effectively when learners have a strong understanding of the guiding principles and practices and skills of AFL.

The study concludes that AFL modelling exercises should be used to ensure that trainees understand the criteria completely.

It also suggests that peer feedback is best repeated several times. Trainees became better at peer assessment with practice and that repeated practice helps them gain confidence in applying

peer assessment in the context of their own practice.

The paper concludes that the primary purpose of peer assessment should be formative. The main objections to peer assessment and feedback can be overcome when it is clearly integrated into general teaching and learning strategies. The issue of subjective marking can be overcome by anonymity, which was also the preferred option for student groups in the literature (Foley, 2013, Falchikov, 2007).

SENSE OF IDENTITYThe paper closes by arguing that a strong community of practice needs to be developed and supported within the student group before peer assessment and feedback can take place effectively. Through participation and the development of a community of practice, trainees can develop a stronger sense of their identities as teachers with specific values, norms and professional behaviours which can help in their long-term professional development.

When we presented this research to the EAPRIL Conference in Finland in 2017 several delegates commented on the varying uses of peer assessment in their own establishments.

Many said that their own experiences concurred with the findings of this study in terms of its effectiveness to develop self-confidence and meta-cognition. Some argued that peer assessment was most commonly used when teaching younger learners rather than adult learners.

They were intrigued to see how this approach might be applied more widely in their own university programmes and, in particular, those related to teacher education.

By Andrew Morris

“How people frame the purpose of controversial discourses actually changes their opinions…”. This conclusion, in a recent article in Scientific American, comes from a study in which one set of people were encouraged to argue a point with the aim of winning, while another was encouraged to argue in order to learn.

Understanding what helps people modify their standpoint is central to the challenge of getting evidence used in practice. We know it’s not straightforward: seat belts are worn and smoking is less prevalent today, thanks to persuasive evidence. But attitudes to streaming or the use of learning styles show that evidence is not always enough.

Two important reports shed light on the ways in which research evidence can be put to use effectively.

A 2016 systematic review on evidence-use in decision-making by the EPPI Centre at the UCL Institute of Education suggests that “incorporating adult learning principles in the design of programmes is likely to benefit capability to use evidence”. The implication is that using research evidence is a form of grown-up learning, requiring the same pedagogic consideration we offer our students. The review offers a framework for understanding the various mechanisms for getting evidence used: raising awareness, easing access, developing interpretation skills, and adapting institutional processes.

A 2018 report from the Education Endowment Foundation aims to “frame research evidence around the practice context, rather than the other way around”. Using research is “a process not an event,” it says. The ‘Explore’ stage identifies suitable approaches and checks the strength of the evidence. The ‘Prepare’ stage identifies where an intervention needs to be tightly implemented, and where there is flexibility. The ‘Deliver’ and ‘Sustain’ stages look at how faithfully the evidence is being followed and what preparations need to be made for scaling up.

The take-home message of these studies is clear – it’s a social process, calling for time, thought and interaction rather than imposition.

HOW TO...

Andrew Morris is an honorary senior lecturer at the UCL Institute of Education and a member of the national planning group of the Learning and Skills Research Network. Andrew was research manager at the former Learning and Skills Development Agency. Contact Andrew at [email protected]

Dr Paul Demetriou-Crane is a lecturer in education at Havering College of Further and Higher Education. He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. RESEARCH

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‘I can take it better coming from you’: Trainees test out peer assessment Trainee teachers have been involved in a project that probed the effectiveness of peer assessment and peer feedback in helping to develop how they evaluate heir own work. The insights are very interestingDr Paul Demetriou-Crane

To activate these one-click links, and all other links in the magazine, log in to SET and access your interactive digital edition of inTuition.• Black,P. (2002) The Nature and Value of Formative Assessment for Learning. London: King’s College.• Falchikov, N. (2007) Learning Together – Peer Teaching in Higher Education. London: Routledge.• Foley, S. (2013) Student views of peer assessment at the International School of Lausanne.Journal of Research in International Education

Vol 12, Issue 3.• Race, P., Brown, S. and Smith, B. (1999) 500 Tips on Assessment. Second edition. London: Routledge.

• Fisher M. et al. (February 2018). The Tribalism of Truth in Scientific American. February 2018 (page 44).

• Langer L, Tripney J, Gough D (2016) The Science of Using Science: Researching the Use of Research Evidence in Decision-Making. EPPI Centre, Social Science Research Unit, UCL Institute of Education.

• Education Endowment Foundation (2018). Putting Evidence to Work – a School’s Guide to Implementation. Read the report at goo.gl/J9vQgV

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Maths skills are essential for scientists.And teachers on vocational science courses embed maths in most classes.

But it can be difficult to determine if a student is struggling with a calculation because of gaps in their scientific knowledge or because they lack underlying maths skills. This issue is further compounded by staff from different specialist areas not having enough time to discuss individual maths skills for each student.

My research aims to develop a tool which can use the digital marking of work to identify which maths skills students need most support with. The science department already uses Microsoft OneNote to support science teaching and assessment of class work. The specialisms explored in this project are biology, chemistry and physics.

The tool works by using macros to assess students’ skills, based on the comments teachers have made while marking. When they identify that a student has made a mathematical error, they add a tag to their comment by clicking a button that’s added to OneNote.

The comment should mention the maths skill where the student has made an error. A macro extracts all the teacher comments with a maths tag. These are put in a table, which also identifies the student and the subject. This table then transfers to an Excel spreadsheet, which analyses the

comments. For each student and subject it counts the number of times an error for each skill has been made. For example, if a teacher says, “you have labelled the axes on this graph incorrectly”, it will pick out ‘axes’ and ‘graph’ and record this against both the student and the subject.

Three outputs are produced. First, a table is generated for each student, identifying which maths skills they need to work on based on the number of errors. These are rated red, amber or green. This can be loaded into the student’s own OneNote notebook, giving them personal feedback and links to online resources to practise these skills.

Second, skills can be analysed by cohort, to identify the support needed by several students. This is done by identifying the number who are rated red, amber or green for each skill. This, in turn, allows for maths sessions to be planned for an entire class.

Lastly, staff can assess where students only make specific errors in one subject. For example, if they can calculate ratios in chemistry but not in biology, then staff can focus on supporting the subject knowledge rather than the core maths skill. Currently this tool is being used with two Level 3 BTEC Applied Science groups.

A number of findings have already been made about implementing and using online marking tools. Teachers said the

single-press button to tag mathematical errors was helpful as it did not add to the marking time, which is where previous marking systems had failed. Using the tool has led to greater discussion across specialisms about maths skills and allowed specific teachers to lead on skills which fall more in their area, but are covered in all specialisms.

Using this tool to inform discussions with students has led to wider issues being identified in the application of maths. For instance, students who can calculate proportions in maths can struggle with dilution calculations in their science sessions. This highlighted the importance of teaching maths practically to generate the cognitive links between the calculations and the practical work.

There have also been some issues over implementation. For example, in chemistry students carry out a lot of titrations. Titration contains the word ‘ratio’ and the tool would identify comments containing titration as a ‘ratio’ error, even though this was not the maths skill being commented on, but the topic.

There is now a need to assess the impact on students. This has started in a small way with students completing a science maths skills test. Some tests will be assessed with the tool, and others without it. There is also potential for the tool to be expanded to engineering, and to develop an equivalent for English skills.

Peter Giles is a deputy head of curriculum at North Hertfordshire College. He works with young science students and adult students on Access to Higher Education courses. He was one of three Members of SET to win the 2017 Researching Numeracy Teaching and Learning Competition run by the Society.RESEARCH

Digital tool could be the answer forhelping students grapple with mathsResearch is under way on developing a tool where marking work digitally can spot the maths skills where students need the most support. And if successful, it could be rolled out to other subjects, like engineering By Peter Giles

To activate these one-click links, access your interactive digital edition of inTuition.• Arrowsmith G et al (2010), Electronic Marking in Mathematics: the Marker and Student

Perspectives, MSOR Connections Vol 10, No 1.• Milward S, User Opinions of Marking Online. Available at goo.gl/pQYiwu • Tutill C (2015) Simplify Marking and Assessment with OneNote: a Case Study. goo.gl/HdPWc6 • Whitelock D (2009) e-Assessment: Developing New Dialogues for the Digital Age, British Journal

of Educational Technology, Vol 40 No 2.

REFERENCES

MATHS ESSENTIALSmathsCORNER

InTUITION ISSUE 32 • SUMMER 2018 23

The secrets of a college’s success in maths and EnglishBased in an area of high deprivation where only 47 per cent of learners have both GCSE mathematics and English on entry, outstanding provider Dudley College of Technology achieves GCSE success rates in both subjects that are significantly above national average.

Key to this success is the college’s strengthening of delivery teams through sustained staff development and recruiting subject specialists. Lead practitioners in maths and English work as a team of five covering the delivery of both Functional Skills and GCSE maths and English.

A cross-college attendance campaign, ‘It’s all about ME’ (maths and English), combined with staff targets for student attendance, have reduced absenteeism. Internal quality assurance reports identify strengths and weaknesses in the delivery, highlighting areas for improvement and informing professional development support.

Support materials are made

available to teachers. Electronically, the college uses Blackboard. A tracking system for GCSE and Functional Skills demonstrates skills gaps, and helps predict success rates for learners.

Great emphasis is placed on supporting learners so that a differentiated approach is taken. Study programmes run over two years. Weaker students can study at a slower pace while those more competent in maths and English sit examinations after the first year.

Learners do ‘boot camps’ – highly intensive interventions focusing on exam preparation and technique. Level 1 courses have extra timetabled hours for Functional Skills and English.

The college structures itself around key client groups, which allows full-time 16-18 year olds, full-time and part-time adults, apprentices etc., to receive specific attention. Regular management meetings, which always include Functional Skills and GCSE maths and English on the agendas, are held to monitor progress.

Sarah Cooper is marketing and student services manager at Dudley College of Technology.

Steve Pardoe is a maths specialist ITT tutor and the Education and Training Foundation’s (ETF) regional specialist maths lead in the West Midlands. Find your regional specialist maths lead at goo.gl/12Xnmd

WORKING BACKWARDSBy Steve Pardoe

A good way to increase the challenge (and interest) of maths questions is to flip the question so learners have to work backwards from the answer to the question. For example:

I have five numbers• Their mean is 4• Their median is 3• Their mode is 3• Their range is 5.Can you find a set of five positive

whole numbers that satisfy these conditions?

This question could be simplified for lower levels by just providing the mean and range.

Another example is providing learners with the area and perimeter of a rectangle and asking them to work backwards to find the dimensions of the rectangle. This sort of question encourages mathematical reasoning and helps develop deeper understanding – as opposed to merely following a learned method of calculation.

One way of implementing this in the classroom is to get one learner to draw a rectangle with integer sides and calculate its area and perimeter. This learner then passes the results to a neighbour, who must try to reconstruct the rectangle from the area and perimeter.

The example above is adapted from NRICH, which is part of the family of activities in the Millennium Mathematics Project – a collaboration between the Faculties of Mathematics and Education at the University of Cambridge. Visit the NRICH site at goo.gl/Ssm21U

FINITE IDEASMany maths classrooms have a number line displayed horizontally at the front of the room, where students can see it, and the teacher can easily point to it. But a teacher told me her students found it more helpful when the number line was displayed vertically, particularly when they are discussing negative numbers, which many students have trouble with.

This makes sense because two of the everyday situations where we see and use the minus sign also involve characteristics of ‘up’ and ‘down’ rather than ‘left’ and ‘right.’ In multi-storey car parks and lifts in buildings with deep basements, the ‘negative’ levels are, in a physical sense, lower than the positive ones. And in temperature, the most common image we see is a thermometer, with positive and minus temperatures. So, the next time you mention negative numbers, it might be worth displaying a vertical number line to see if it helps secure more understanding.

Steve McCormack is communications director at the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics (NCETM). To browse the NCETM’s resources visit goo.gl/wU7wiz

By Sarah Cooper


subjectFOCUS

They were once ridiculed as ‘soft options’ that prepared students inadequately for a career in the pressure-cooker world of the newsroom, while also failing to deliver the necessary academic rigour to enable them to progress to a degree.

But media and journalism courses seem to have ridden out the derision and snobbery once attached to them to become core subjects in further education.

An awareness of how the media saturate our lives, combined with consistent government drives towards employability, have helped these disciplines establish their place in post-compulsory education.

The need for 10,000 new entrants in the next five years in the film industry alone – according to the British Film Institute (BFI) action plan in 2017 – indicates that screen-based media training is essential.

The Creative Skillset, this sector’s skills body, says the screen industries are conservatively valued as worth around £14 billion to the British economy. But its chief executive, Seetha Kumar, is concerned at what she sees as “the decline in creative education in schools”.

She adds: “There are challenges of major skills shortages in the screen sector, caused by the boom in film and television drama as well as the speed of change and growth in areas such as AR/VR (augmented reality/virtual reality) immersive tech and visual effects.

“We make sure that training opportunities are

Peter Rook is a freelance journalist and journalism lecturer at University Centre Peterborough, part of Peterborough Regional College.

ALL ABOUT ENGLISH

Sam Hart is a teacher educator and English lecturer at Brighton Metropolitan College (MET) and is a Member of SET.

OVERCOMING WRITER’S BLOCKBy Sam Hart

“I don’t know what to write,” is a common complaint from students when faced with a creative writing task. This is usually followed by lots of sighing and metaphorical head-banging, but most students – even the most reluctant – eventually buckle down and produce a few paragraphs.

However, for some students, writer’s block can be a serious problem. Creative writing counts for 50 per cent of GCSE Language Paper One. In a recent mock, one of my students, J, produced a near-perfect reading paper followed by several blank pages for the writing section. “I just sat there. It was like I was in a trance,” he reported afterwards.

J is on the autistic spectrum and students with learning difficulties such as this can be particularly susceptible to ‘page freeze’, as one of my students calls the sense of panic when she sees a yawning expanse of white paper.

They may encounter difficulties with organisation and finding suitable language, and struggle with abstract ideas. Students often fail to see the wood for the trees and find it difficult to form an overview of a task. They may also be hampered by a need to get everything perfect. J explains that he doesn’t want to commit pen to paper unless he is sure he has the sentence just how he wants it.

Unfortunately, once the panic sets in, it can become self-perpetuating as stress impairs the working memory required to complete writing tasks. A brain stuck in fight or flight has little room for creativity.

All students need to form good habits to avoid seizing up in the exam. First of all, it’s important to break down the task into manageable chunks.

Writing a plan may seem overwhelming. Instead, encourage students to underline the important words in the question before brainstorming a series of words or phrases they might want to use before outlining key paragraphs. If they are describing a picture, encourage them to describe one element at a time.

Students on the autism spectrum may have an unusual perspective on life which could be exploited as a strength in the creative writing exam. Urge students to write about what they know – putting themselves or someone they know well in a description or plotline will be more successful than an abstract character.

Similarly, imagining they are writing to someone e.g. sending an email to explain what is happening, rather than simply ‘describing a picture’, may help reduce the seemingly intangible nature of creative writing tasks.

Journalism, film and other media have undergone dramatic changes due to technology and the economics of the industry. Journalism lecturer Peter Rook assesses the impact on teaching and training in the sector and looks at the possibilities and challenges ahead

Seizing the opportunitiesin the media revolution

available for new entrants, to people returning after a career break and those who want to progress in their careers. We are also working hard to unlock opportunities and create a more inclusive workforce through the targeted use of bursaries and by developing a mentoring scheme with industry volunteers.”

Creative Skillset is leading the delivery of the new Future Film Skills 10-point action plan for the BFI over the next four years, with a budget of £19 million.

The picture for journalism training is arguably less rosy as falling newspaper print circulations and the growth of social media have led some to question the subject’s relevance, a fact not lost on Harlow College.

With a history of delivery journalism training that spans more than 50 years, Harlow is among a number of FE colleges delivering courses accredited by the

National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) – the long-established industry training body. Three years ago Harlow switched awarding bodies (to the University of the Arts London) for its Level 3 media courses to gain greater autonomy in course content. It developed a strategy of using its Level 3 media qualification as a feeder for its industry-accredited courses.

Lewis Heritage, Harlow’s assistant academy manager for journalism, explains: “We switched to UAL to give us the opportunity to develop a course that matches the NCTJ syllabus.” It means that the students start the two-year level 3 course on what could be a three-year journey if they decide to do the one-year NCTJ qualification.

“As we all teach on the NCTJ courses we know what is required. Students get a grounding on the Level 3 course so they are fully prepared for the challenges of the NCTJ. We even introduce them to a bit of shorthand. Students progressing from the Level 3 are often among our highest performers on the NCTJ.”

This ‘no-one-size-fits-all’ approach could be the way forward – allowing for greater flexibility to meet the changing demands of the industry and local employment needs.

Heritage says the pace of change means that prescribed modules and qualifications can often be out of date within a couple of years. “It is better for staff and students as the course stays current and staff aren’t teaching something they have little or no knowledge of, or can’t see the relevance for it.”

It also appears to indicate a lack of clear consensus on the core content for journalism training. This uncertainty peaked in 2016 when the NCTJ announced that shorthand – for so long the scourge of trainee journalists – will no longer be mandatory.

The NCTJ launched the Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship in Journalism in 2013, but some remain sceptical. Jonathan Hewett, director of interactive and newspaper journalism at City, University of London, argues: “Apprenticeships might be useful for some people at a relatively early age, but a great deal favour deeper and broader education before starting journalism-specific training.”

Apprenticeships “present opportunities but also challenges for the screen-based industries,” says a Creative Skillset spokesman. “They have huge potential to open up the sector to a more diverse range of entrants and help create a more inclusive workforce.”

One difficulty with apprenticeships is the stipulation to do at least 12 months with a single employer. Even the biggest film or TV productions are not running all year long. The high-pressure working environment and long days make the 20 per cent off-the-job training complicated to deliver. Creative Skillset is working with others to encourage the government to make apprenticeships “truly industry-led and more flexible”.

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Creative Skillset has developed a system of accreditation which is being extended to courses in further education. The organisation already operates the Tick system for higher education, in which industry assessors validate screen-related courses.

Two centres which have the Tick and deliver Level 3 qualifications are Bridgwater and Taunton College (BTC) and Weston College, both based in Somerset. Both centres place greater emphasis on external engagement.

Lucy Withecombe, media arts curriculum manager at BTC, says: “Our Media Academy, which is a student-led group, fulfils roles similar to those in industry and completes real-life based client projects.

“We base much of our teaching on digital platforms such as Google

Classroom and have built user-friendly online assessment applications for our learners to use both in college and at home.”

Kim Johnson, area manager for media at Weston College, says: “Real industry briefs are set by external clients who are looking for a filmed end product to use within their business and have a potential reach nationwide.

“Students work autonomously with the clients. Assessment includes pitching to a panel of industry specialists.”

Both course leaders agreed that it is imperative that teachers and trainers in the field keep up to date with technological advances. Withecombe added that vocational course specifications also had to accurately reflect current industry practice and developing technology.

CASE STUDY GETTING A PICTURE OF THE REAL WORLD

For more on the issues highlighted in this article visit Creative Skillset at goo.gl/qdMNKQ


careerFOCUS

When you think of The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE), you probably imagine bands of eager schoolchildren tramping across moorland clutching route maps and compasses.

And you’d be right – the majority of the quarter of a million young people who started their award last year were in the 14-18 age bracket.

But the charity is keen for the DofE Award to boost its uptake among young adults and increasing its foothold in further education and industry.

Although the expedition is the most well-known element of a DofE programme, Peter Westgarth, the chief executive, stresses that there is much more on offer. “The whole package - the skills development and the volunteering - help young people develop a

Sam Hart is a teacher educator and English teacher at Greater Brighton Metropolitan College (MET). She is a Member of SET.

CAREERSPOTLIGHT

Donna Lucas is group vice-principal, HR and professional development at the Shrewsbury Colleges Group and chairs the Association of College’s West Midlands HR Network. Donna is a Member of SET and the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

THE DOS AND DON’TS OF THE SPECULATIVE CVBy Donna Lucas

At a recent network event, I was discussing the growing prevalence of speculative CVs in our sector. What was evident is that, increasingly, my HR colleagues are spending just seconds scanning a speculative CV, and not much longer reviewing applications, before placing them in the ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ pile. So, if you are sending a speculative CV, how do you demonstrate you are worthy of more consideration to get an interview?

I’d suggest keeping your CV to no more than two pages. Research shows employers spend, on average, less than 10 seconds initially looking at a CV, so you may find yourself rejected if you send them your entire life story. Keep it to the point, make sure it looks appealing, and hold the details for discussion at the interview.

Recruiters will find it more appealing that you demonstrate why you are a good fit for them specifically rather than just a good candidate per se. So, take the time to tailor your CV for each role that you apply for. Find out what you can about the organisation and use the information to highlight how your experience relates to the organisation’s role. The reader will appreciate the obvious effort, but will see through the lack of attention if you haven’t researched your prospective workplace. In your cover letter make sure you explain why you are a great person for their organisation and ask for an opportunity to meet to talk over your interest in them.

Gaps in your CV will immediately cause suspicion, so present a positive view on your time out of work where you can. Employers will quickly notice and discount your CV if they spot errors – use a spellcheck and get someone else to double-check.

My absolute key tip is to include information on your student performance. It’s the first thing I and other employers in education will look for.

Speculative CVs are always a gamble, but the right one, to the right employer at the right time, might just secure you the ideal role.

The popular Duke of Edinburgh’s Award programme is often thought of as the terrain of adventurous schoolchildren. But it has now made inroads into further education colleges and industry, offering an extra qualification and other positive rewards, writes Sam Hart

Reaping the benefits as the DofE advances into FE

wide range of additional skills. They become more confident, better at problem solving and they develop independence,” he says.

All participants take part in voluntary work which, as well as providing valuable experience for the students, means they also act as unofficial ambassadors for their learning providers, building valuable links with the local community.

The role of the DofE manager at an educational establishment is key to delivering this holistic approach. Although the post often attracts public sector and sports teachers, Westgarth is keen to point out that it is not just for ‘outdoor types’.

“Young people need encouraging in the whole range of skills and it’s important to identify key people who

can support them with that. Our DofE managers play a crucial role,” he says.

Although the DofE manager role does involve extra work for already busy teachers – around four unpaid hours a week – Westgarth believes that the rewards are significant.

“Staff form a whole new relationship with the young people – they see them in a different light. You see these benefits in class where students are more willing to take responsibility for their own learning. Our managers do it for love!”

There are challenges for delivery in FE. The lack of large, school-like assemblies and tutor time means there are fewer focal points for the award. But Westgarth firmly believes that the award has huge potential for post-16 and vocational learning providers.

The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award is increasingly being used as a tool in developing young people in industry through management training schemes, and even as a key component of apprenticeships.

Heathrow Airport now use the DofE to develop young talent and to nurture potential managers. Instead of traditional classroom-based management courses, young employees with potential are sent on the challenging Gold DofE programme, which involves learning a skill, volunteering and an expedition.

Paula Stannett, Heathrow Airport’s chief people officer, says that the effects are striking. Young colleagues develop skills such as problem-solving and resilience and are transformed into “well-rounded leaders, in comparison to a standard programme where they spend all day in a classroom”, she says. It also has the benefit of identifying young people who may not have shone academically. And Heathrow Airport appears to be reaping the benefits, with 95 per cent of their young talent from the 2015 DofE intake staying with the company.

CASE STUDY HEATHROW AIRPORT

When public services lecturer, David Key started delivering The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award at Blanau Gwent Learning Zone - a campus of Coleg Gwent in a deprived area of South Wales - just four students took up the offer. This year 63 students signed up, with a growing interest across the college. As well as the benefits for students, Key believes the rewards for teachers are palpable. “You notice a real difference in behaviour. Students become more motivated. They are able to tackle problems without being spoon-fed and are more likely to take the initiative,” he says.

The college is keen to roll out the programme to as many students as possible and have trained 21 student leaders to help them in their mission. The young leaders are now supporting Coleg Gwent students with learning difficulties to complete their Bronze Award, and they report soaring confidence levels.

As the DofE has blossomed throughout the college, Key has noticed real improvements in student behaviour.

“They see you as someone to work with and cooperate with, rather than someone to be in opposition to. It does involve more work, but you definitely see the benefits,” he says.

CASE STUDY COLEG GWENT

Gill Coldicott is head of college at Stourbridge College and a passionate advocate of DofE, overseeing the programme across campuses. Her senior role ensures the DofE is embedded throughout the college, rather than being viewed as an ‘added extra’.

The college is currently planning for the Bronze Award to be rolled out within the foundation learning curriculum area, with a potential take-up of more than 400 learners. Staff training will be key to the programme, ensuring that the award is delivered consistently throughout the college.

Coldicott believes that DofE dovetails neatly with existing qualifications and has the potential to become a key part of the college’s existing provision.

“Work experience is a key part of the 16-19 study programme and that ties in with the volunteering element of the DofE scheme,” she explains.

“At the same time, we have an added benefit of an additional qualification.”But aside from the qualification, Coldicott believes that the DofE is beneficial in

helping develop students’ professional behaviours (PBs), such as confidence and problem solving, which are key to employability.

CASE STUDY STOURBRIDGE COLLEGE



IT IDEASlearningTECH


Consortium pools blended learning resources across FE

The Blended Learning Consortium (BLC) was set up by Heart of Worcestershire College less than three years ago as a vehicle for learning providers to co-fund and co-develop high quality interactive resources to support the growing use of blended learning across the further education sector.

The BLC works with a very simple and transparent democratic model. Each college pays in £5,000 per year and the money is pooled to be used to pay staff in member institutions to write, edit, develop and quality assess the resources.

Areas for development are chosen by voting. When a subject area is selected, 30 one-hour resources are built and shared.

In less than three years 100 learning providers have joined the BLC. Twelve hundred resources have already been developed and shared across 43 different curriculum areas and levels, with

another 400 in development.Resources cover many of the main vocational areas such as engineering, construction, sports, business and IT. There are also resources on cross-curricular topics such as British values, Prevent, employability, study skills, maths and English.

The resources are designed with flexibility in mind and this is reflected in the wide range of ways in which providers are using the resources. Uses include onsite blended learning, distance learning, class-based learning, additionality, stretch and challenge, and tasters. The resources are being used for college-based students and can contribute to the 20 per cent of the training required for apprentices.

To find out more about the BLC, to see who is involved and examples of content, go to http://blc-fe.org/

Peter Kilcoyne is director of information and learning technology at Heart of Worcestershire College.

Geoff Rebbeck is a further and higher education teacher. He is an award-winning expert in e-learning and is a Fellow of SET. Visit Geoff’s website at goo.gl/Rbf9TX

By Geoff Rebbeck

Genially is a very impressive piece of edu-software. Its great strength for teachers is its versatility. It enables you to build a webpage using different resources, videos, pictures, words etc. Each page can include collaborative input and be embedded into other platforms such as Moodle, Wordpress etc. Or it can be used as a ‘stand-alone’ learning object.

It will support presentation slides for lessons and posters created by students for projects. It can act as a learning resource store for a class or topic. It’s great fun for students to show their work or share accomplishments. The software is free and a helpful video on how to build a page is on a YouTube video at goo.gl/G4nh4fGenially’s website: www.genial.ly

Another good free presentation tool is SlideShare. It allows presentations to be posted that can then be followed by others. All presentations are shared, so the site is also a virtual library of thousands of presentations suitable for general research, or as learning objects that can be used by students in class, or in preparation for one. SlideShare gives students a chance to develop a following. It can also be embedded in VLEs – a good alternative to PDFs. www.slideshare.net

Finally, Google Translate is so good that it is worth sharing with students to promote language appreciation, and for students for whom English is not their first language. This free tool translates between 104 languages. You can also hear a spoken translation. https://translate.google.co.uk/

Tony Gilbert is assistant curriculum manager Computing, Business, Travel and Hospitality at New College Swindon. Tony is a Member of SET.Computing lessons at New College Swindon have been using Unio, by Harness, to enhance learning in the classroom and provide learners with instant feedback. This learning and assessment platform is web-based and runs in most common browsers with loads of fantastic features. Unio has several tools which help make learning engaging and fun.

Students can view all the teacher’s slides from their own devices while making their own notes and annotations. They can also request additional guidance and support from their screens. One of the best features is using the real-time quizzes and polls – they provide instant feedback on results, which can be downloaded via PDF or a CSV file. Unio has a whole raft of features, such as providing audio feedback to learners, blanking student screens, and allowing learners to upload YouTube videos, audio and images to the lesson. Importing Google Slides or PowerPoints is also a bonus!Unio can be found here goo.gl/MNo5YB

Peter Kilcoyne

For more information about the consortium you can email Peter at pkilcoyne@ howcollege.ac.uk

To activate all one-click web links throughout the magazine please log in to SET and access your interactive digital edition of inTuition.

SUMMER ‘18 CPD PROGRAMME

AVAILABLE NOW: ETFOUNDATION.CO.UK/COURSES

SET members benefit from 15% discount on most ETF courses.

The ETF provides a range of courses to support you, covering everything from maths and English, SEND and digital skills to Prevent and leadership courses.

New courses are added regularly.


susanWALLACE

On a recent day trip, I happened to see a teacher conducting a small group of learners around a site of cultural interest. The learners had clipboards and were carrying out a task that they seemed to be enjoying. But they were enjoying it quite loudly, and this wasn’t going down too well with other visitors.

I heard the word ‘respect’ muttered several times; and grumblings about the teacher having no ‘power’, no ‘authority’. Picking up on this, the teacher quickly proved the grumblers wrong, calling her group to order and asking them to keep their voices down. She did this respectfully and without shouting – and it immediately worked. It was one of those moments which make you proud of our profession.

Power, authority and respectFor me, it also highlighted the significance of those three words that were being bandied about. Certainly, the role of teacher does imply a certain amount of power and authority. But, just as with a police officer or a president, the power we are deemed to have derives not from us personally, nor from any skill or virtue of our own, but from the institution we represent.

As teachers we are, among many other things, representatives and upholders of the rules, and are able to deal out sanctions on issues such as punctuality, for example; but this power is fairly limited.

Authority, on the other hand, is something we can potentially gain for ourselves, deriving as it does from such things as our vocational credibility and experience, our depth of subject knowledge or skills, our ability to make learning interesting, and so on.

But it is respect that is, without doubt, the most challenging of the three – perhaps the hardest to acquire and certainly the easiest to lose. It is

Susan Wallace is emeritusprofessor ofeducation atNottinghamTrent University.She is an authorand expert nbehaviourmanagement.Susan andGeoff Petty willalternate theircontributions to these pages.

Susan Wallace argues that power, authority and respect are key to a positive and successful relationship between teachers and learners, but respect is the hardest to acquire and the easiest to lose. To earn respect, we must also be able to give it, and to communicate and interact respectfully with our students

Respect – why it must be earned

dependent on establishing a positive relationship with learners in a way that power, and even authority, are not. And unlike those two, it is a reciprocal relationship. In other words, to earn respect we must be willing to give it, to communicate and interact respectfully with our learners.

Respect versus fearToo often, respect gets confused with fear. To be feared is not the same thing as being respected. This is most clear when we remember that fear constitutes a serious barrier to learning. A learner who is afraid of the teacher, afraid of coming to class, afraid of speaking up in class, will find it very difficult to learn effectively, to think calmly, to recall what they are taught.

This is fundamental stuff for us as teachers, whether we remember it from Maslow’s hierarchy of needs or whether we’ve picked it up from experience. But when a learner is treated with respect by the teacher, that learner feels safe, the barriers come down and they are able to concentrate and learn. They are able to experience self-respect.

It is sometimes said of a powerful figure that they ‘command respect.’ This shouldn’t be taken literally. Respect can’t be taken for granted; it has to be earned or won, and that isn’t always easy.

Earning respectHere are some well-established ways of earning learners’ respect.• Know your learners’ names and use them

at every opportunity. This helps to build a positive relationship.

• Give praise and encouragement whenever it’s due.• If you make a promise, be sure to keep it. If you

lay down the law, be sure it’s something you are empowered to enforce. Unenforced sanctions destroy respect as much as broken promises.

• Demonstrate enthusiasm – for your subject, for the topic of the lesson, for the learners themselves. They need to know that you want to be there with them.

• Demonstrate a firm grasp of your subject, but be willing to admit to what you don’t know. Never be tempted to bluff.

• Treat everyone equally and fairly. This doesn’t mean being ‘soft’. You can be as stern or firm as necessary, as long as you’re seen to be fair.

• Always maintain your self-control, even if circumstances are very trying. This doesn’t mean you have to leave negative behaviour unchallenged. It means you shouldn’t allow yourself to be pushed into a knee-jerk reaction, but should respond in a measured and tactical way, even if this means pausing for a beat or two to think it through. The key is: don’t just react; think and then respond.

• Never shout in anger. Better still, don’t shout at all (unless there’s a danger or loud background noise).

• Don’t ambush learners with rules they’re not aware of. Make sure everyone knows what rules they need to abide by, and then be consistent in applying them, every time and to everyone equally, including yourself. So if there’s to be no swearing, don’t swear!

• Return assessed work on time and give learners accurate and

helpful feedback which will help them understand clearly what they need to do to improve.

• Model the respectful behaviour you expect them to show towards you and others.

Learning respectThe issue of respect today has a wider significance which goes beyond the teacher-learner relationship and the question of learner motivation. Along with democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and religious tolerance, mutual respect is one of the central tenets of the British Values agenda.

It was almost certainly this broader question of respect – in terms of appropriate behaviour and recognising the rights of others – which the mutterers on my day out were bemoaning. There was obviously mutual respect between the learners and teacher, as evidenced by how easily and pleasantly she was able to bring them to order. But how do we inculcate an attitude of respect that would make such a calling to order unnecessary?

There are some useful strategies here that can be introduced into small or large group discussions and project work in any vocational area.• When they are contributing to a discussion,

encourage or require learners to use a specific form of words which respectfully acknowledges

and engages with the ideas, arguments or contributions of others, even if they don’t agree with them. For example: “I agree/disagree with [learner’s name] because....” or “I agree/disagree with part of what [learner’s name] said because....” or “I would like to add something to what [learner’s

name] said because.......”• Ask small or large groups to choose one of their members to monitor respect in group interactions

and communication.• Emphasise that

disagreements within group discussions are not about

conflict but are part of a collaborative process towards

reaching the best answer.• Where appropriate, encourage

learners to think about the distinction between ‘tolerance’ and ‘respect’, and

consider under what circumstances tolerance might have its limits.To be fair to those grumbling visitors,

they may have been just about getting to the limits of their tolerance; but it did turn to

respect pretty quickly.

WRITERSBLOGbooks


OTHER NEW PUBLICATIONS

Flip the System UK: A Teachers’ ManifestoEdited by Lucy Rycroft-Smith and JL Dutaut.Routledge: paperback, 262 pages

This collection of essays includes contributions from academics, policy-makers and practitioners such as Ross Morrison McGill and Tom Bennett, who are passionate about the need for action.

Other contributors, such as Phil Wood on gaining ‘slow time’ for professional growth and Natalie Scott on regaining professionalism by teaching on overseas aid projects, both inform and inspire.

The book stimulates thinking. It has five themed sections, all on agency: cognitive, collective, ethical, political, and global. While written predominantly from a schools’ perspective, it has some messages for a further education and post-16 context.

I have gone through several emotions reading it. Elation: Here, neatly expressed, are the ideas I’ve long held dear. Despair: Reading about results-based judgements of teachers which undermine professionalism. Calm: It discusses teacher wellbeing and mutual support. Cynicism: It explores some of the unresearched and often inexpert initiatives that we have had to follow for years. Optimism: There are things we can do both individually and collectively to change our profession, eradicate disillusionment and (re-)love teaching. It expresses neatly several things we know to be true:• Too much of what we do is a reaction to top-down

initiatives, not always based in solid educational research;

• Too much is reactive rather than proactive (as college leadership changes, so too can the philosophy of the organisation, with babies and bathwater being chucked out together);

• Much continuing professional development (CPD) is arranged to comply with external drivers, rather than selected by teachers to improve their practice;

• Teachers benefit greatly from collaboration and should be allocated time to meet and do purposeful things that they themselves decide on;

• Not all external CPD is useful, while internal CPD (and action research) should be practitioner-led and not always by the ‘usual suspects’. There is a whole chapter on lesson study and its transformational effects if done properly. The thread of empowerment is skilfully woven

throughout this book. It promotes the teacher as someone with commitment to getting it right in challenging circumstances. As a manifesto it is affirming. As “a rallying cry:… to return to the values of humanity, pride and professionalism” it is effective. However, it left me wanting the ‘now what?’ For FE, the context is different. I’d like a manifesto just for us, with guidance, of course.

It is indeed a manifesto: telling us what needs to be done, but leaving us to deduce how. It would be useful for teacher educators (and leadership teams) and CPD/quality managers in particular.

Review by Catriona Mowat is an Education and Training Foundation regional specialist lead for English in the West Midlands, and she works part-time as a manager at Loughborough College. She is a Member of SET.

WRITERSBLOG

John Tomsett has been a teacher since 1988 and is currently head teacher at Huntington School, York. He is an author and writes a blog called ‘This much I know …’. John is a regular contributor to the Tes, and he co-founded The Headteachers’ Roundtable think tank. https://johntomsett.com/

• Shulman, L., (1986). Those who understand: Knowledge growth in teaching, in the Educational Researcher, Volume 15, issue 2, pp. 4-14

REFERENCES

Technology’s the enablerin this vision of education


Inspiring manifesto is full of hometruths and suggestions for change

MEMBER OFFERSET members can claim 20 per cent off the RRP for this book and other titles when ordering directly from Routledge. Use code SET20 when prompted. This offer is valid until 31 December 2018.

By John Tomsett“What are the specific hallmarks of pedagogy in your subject?” It’s a question which initially stumps most people. General responses, such as “modelling”, are not really specific – most subject teachers use modelling techniques.

Ultimately, it’s a difficult question to answer, but it is crucial that colleagues in each department have a shared understanding of subject-specific pedagogy so that when they plan lessons, they do so in a way that addresses the more complex barriers to learning which the subject content inherently contains.

I am a pseudo-mathematics teacher. I have one way of teaching simultaneous equations and I find it hard to comprehend why students cannot understand how to solve simultaneous equations after I have explained a worked example. When they ask me to go over it again, I repeat the same explanation, but talk more slowly and loudly, as if I am explaining in English, for the second time, to a garage mechanic in rural France that my car is overheating.

If I had expert subject knowledge, I might understand more accurately why students don’t “get” my mathematical explanations; that is at the root of determining subject specific pedagogy.

Learning Rebooted: Education Fit for the Digital AgeBy James PennyRoutledge: paperback, 160 pages

An interesting think piece, illuminating not what education looks like, but more importantly what it could look like, with technology as an enabler.

This is a book for forward thinkers, imaginators, the curators of future-proof systems, schools and/or an individual curriculum. It provides many challenges to the status quo for educators and those leading education organisations, including those in support capacities (e.g. learning technologists, IT support). It’s a provocative read for the opportunity thinker and change agent.

The book reviews learning and providers in an array of education settings, not simply schools – taking us through pre-industrial, industrial and post-industrial times, to where we find ourselves today, working with ‘third millennium learners’.

Penny addresses myths and general misconceptions about digital learning. The focus, however, is on pedagogy, curriculum and where the learning takes place, not the hardware. Technology is discussed, not as an adjunct or bolt-on, but rather as a primary enabler in building an education system (be that education-wide, organisationally, or in individual classrooms) fit for the 21st century.

This book will not necessarily answer the ‘what’ or ‘how’ to future-proof teaching and learning, but it does provide key questions to consult when integrating technology into the fabric of organisations.

I would recommend this as a must-read for teachers, though it might be best suited to senior leaders and those who have impact upon system or organisation-wide (learning technology) strategy, including governors and wider policy makers.

Review by Alex Warner is director of the technology faculty at Activate Learning and is a Member of SET.

MEMBER OFFERSET members can claim 20 per cent off the RRP for this book and other titles when ordering directly from Routledge. Use code SET20 when prompted. This offer is valid until 31 December 2018.

Closing the Vocabulary GapBy Alex QuigleyDavid Fulton Books, an imprint of Routledge: paperback, 203 pagesMost of us take our vocabulary for granted. We may, occasionally, hesitate for a few seconds in a bid to find the mot juste but, by and large, the vocabulary is on tap when we need it.

Quigley invites us to consider another world when a dearth of vocabulary in early life often leads

to lower educational attainment and fewer career options.

The book is full of fascinating information. For instance, it is estimated that we must comprehend the meaning of some 98 per cent of the words we read in order to understand a text comfortably. On a page of 300 words, 98 per cent comprehension would mean you didn’t understand the meaning of six words – quite a few when you think about it. Drop

that comprehension rate to 95 per cent and that page now contains 15 words you don’t understand – that’s a lot, and it will begin to impact on your comprehension of the text overall.

Chapters tackle issues such as what teachers need to know about the process of reading, etymology, academic vocabulary, spelling and practical strategies for closing the vocabulary gap.

A fresh and interesting book.

MEMBER OFFERPlease see the Routledge member offers above.

Thrive in Your First 3 Years in Teaching. Don’t just survive, thrive.By Martha Boyne, Emily Clements and Ben WrightCrown House Publishing: paperback, 200 pagesAccording to reports, between a quarter and a third of school

Book reviewersWant to review a book or have a book to review? Contact us at [email protected]

teachers quit teaching in their first three years. The attrition rate in FE is much lower, thankfully. So this book is clearly written for school teachers, several thousand of whom also happen to be SET members.

The book is full of tips, ideas and strategies on how to manage behaviour, assessment for learning (AfL), homework, mentoring, observations,

time management, feedback, evidence-informed practice and accessing professional development – lots of which is available through the Education and Training Foundation (EFT) and SET, of course.

The chapters are short and include mini case studies and helpful further reading suggestions. If you are a newly qualified teacher, have moved into school teaching from FE

or know someone who has, then this book will help your professional practice develop and flourish. If you work in FE then you may still find some of the chapters informative.MEMBER OFFERSET members can claim 20 per cent off the RRP for this book and other titles when ordering directly from the Crown House Publishing website. Use discount code InTuition20. This offer is valid until 31 December 2018.


membersFORUM inTUITIONGET IN TOUCH

[email protected] Society for Education and Training, 157-197 Buckingham Palace Road, London SW1W 9SP.Editor: Alan Thomson [email protected]

PUBLISHINGinTuition is produced and published on behalf of the Society for Education and Training by Create Publishing Ltd, Anchor HouseBath RoadLymington SO41 9GH Advertising: 020 3092 5001 Printed by: PCP Ltd, TelfordCover image: Peter Searle

SUBSCRIPTIONSinTuition is sent to all members of the Society for Education and Training and is available on subscription to non-members. For non-member subscriptions enquiries, or to purchase single copies telephone 0800 093 9111 or email [email protected]. Annual subscription rate for four issues: £50 (UK); £60 (rest of the world).

CORPORATEThe Society for Education and Training is the membership service of The Education and Training Foundation. The Foundation is a registered charity (charity number 1153859) and a company limited by guarantee (company number 08540597). www.et-foundation.co.uk

The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Education and Training Foundation (ETF) or the Society for Education and Training (SET).

In all the debate around social media ethics, one of the good things it does is gather discourse around every strand of formalised education into the same space.

Having existed in an adult and community learning (ACL) bubble for much of my teaching life, it’s been instructive to see behind the scenes of our shared profession: across primary, secondary and higher education. There’s more solidarity than I expected – and also patterns of oppositional rift.

I’m talking about the ping-pong between ‘trad’ and ‘prog’ approaches to teaching, currently playing out in debates around ‘knowledge-rich’ curricula. I genuinely have no problem with disagreement. In fact, I like it. It brings newness into thinking. What troubles me is the confrontational nature of some discussions: potentially divisive and a little on the sneery side.

Like an increasing number of educators, I’m holding out for a knowledge-rich pedagogy that also builds skills. I think that’s what most good teachers actually do. Skills such as autonomy, critical thinking, kindness for others, respectful disagreement and self-reliance enable people to feel more empowered in life and at work – what the

co-operative education movement defined a century ago as “learning to be and learning to do”.

There’s nothing wrong with knowing your stuff – in fact, I’m a proper edugeek. I pride myself on the depth of the stuff I teach. It’s professionally satisfying to stimulate action and reflection with new knowledge. That doesn’t make me a ‘prog’ and it doesn’t make me a ‘trad’. It makes me a teacher.

I’m not convinced these discussions take place in staff rooms, but I’ve never been a staff room regular, so I wouldn’t know. They certainly don’t seem to take place around that familiar crossing place, the photocopier. Probably most educators don’t care.

But either/or thinking is pervasive, because it seduces us to join opposing teams and that can’t be good (unless it’s the actual World Cup). It distracts us from other possibilities. Know your stuff, yes, but don’t assume that all the students who cross our path know how to be powerful in the world. How great if, on their journey with us, they can learn a little bit of that too.

Lou Mycroft is a writer, teacher, independent thinker and thought-provoker. Join the debate at #pedagogue


JOIN IN NETWORK EVENTSCalling all members in the Bradford and Gateshead areas – two more SET local network events have been arranged.

The first is on 21 June at Bradford College from 4.30pm to 6.30pm. Discussion topics include problem solving and sharing good practice.

The second local network event is scheduled for 25 June at Gateshead Learning and Skills, from 6pm to 8pm. Topics will include: planning learning to enable students to develop professional behaviours, and digital learning.

Catherine McPartland, who contributed to the inTuition Research Supplement published in March, will speak at the Gateshead event on strategies to support student support assistants (SSAs).

East Kent had their second meeting on 23 May, where member Nicole Capon presented a workshop on identifying and supporting learners who self-harm.

Stay up to date with network events via the SET Facebook page @SocEducationTraining

Want to set up a group in your area? Then please email your name, membership number and the area where you’d like to set up a group to [email protected]

‘HEALTHY TEACHER’ BLOGSET member Tina Bullen is running a blog designed to support the physical

and mental health of teachers. The blog, called The Healthy Teacher, aims to support teachers, although Tina says she is considering a name change on the grounds that “healthy teacher is something of an oxymoron”.

Tina, is a teacher-trainer delivering PGCE and Cert Ed qualifications at a mixed-economy college. She recently completed a Post-Graduate Certificate in Higher Education Practice (PGCHEP) qualification, during which she researched the effects of graded observations on trainee teachers.

During a period of ill health, Tina was looking for advice on the internet and could find little of direct relevance. This inspired her to start the blog.

Read Tina’s story on the SET website in the Blogs and Articles section under News and Events.

Visit The Healthy Teacher blog at https://thehealthyteachersite.wordpress.com/

A STAFFING CHANGEAfter being involved with SET since its launch four years ago, director of membership Tim Weiss left the organisation last month to pursue new ventures.

The SET Management Board recognised Tim’s significant contribution to the organisation in its May board meeting.

The new head of membership at SET is Martin Reid.

With Lou Mycroft

SIDING WITH OPPOSING TEAMS IS A LOSS FOR EDUCATION

FOR THEDIARY

19Association of Colleges/ETF Quality Practitioner Conference at the Mercure Manchester Piccadilly Hotel, Manchester.More information at goo.gl/DPeMCi

JUNE

20Association of Colleges/ETF Quality Practitioner Conference at Lewisham Southwark College, London.More information at goo.gl/DPeMCi

21Bradford SET network meeting (details in Network Events story, above.) @SocEducation Training

27Reimagining Further Education Conference, Birmingham City University, Curzon Building.For more information and booking, visit goo.gl/mTA973

28Conference at the University of Wolverhampton on The Art of Mentoring.For more information and booking, visit Eventbrite at goo.gl/ByTDZn

2ETF Practitioner Research Conference, Mary Ward House, London.Details to be announced soon on the ETF website.

7Inaugural SET national conference at the Vox Centre in Birmingham.For further information keep your eye on the Twitter feed #SETCONF2018and Facebook @SocEducationTraining

JULY NOVEMBER

25Association of Employment and Learning Providers annual conference in LondonFor details visit goo.gl/WdMwny

26

SET CONFERENCE 2018

PRIDE IN PROFESSIONALISMGet SET go!Discounted early bird tickets for the inaugural SET Conference ‘Pride in Professionalism’ have just launched. You will have the opportunity to hear from inspiring experts in FE and network with other SET members. The programme is practitioner-led, shaped by SET members and promises to be a sell-out event.

Wednesday 7 November 2018 | The Vox, Resorts World, BirminghamTicket price: £99

Book today: set.etfoundation.co.uk/conference

EARLY BIRD OFFER FOR SET MEMBERS

IF YOU BUY YOUR TICKET BEFORE

31 JULY

£49

#SETCONF2018

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