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LSRN Discussion Workshop

The future of technical and professional education:

Joining up the dots

Thursday 12 May 2016

80 The Strand, London WC2R 0RL

CONTENTS

The workshop

LSRN values and purpose

Information from participants

LSRN contacts

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THE WORKSHOP

This event is hosted by Pearson. Planning for the event was supported by a small grant made by the Education and Training Foundation to support the work of LSRN during 2015-16.

The LSRN event planning team were: Andrew Morris and Anne Thompson. It was organised by the NfER Events and Conference Team on behalf of LSRN, in liaison with Pearson.

INTRODUCTION

Technical and professional education and training have always been central to the work of the post-16 sector. Different terminology may have been used at various times but rarely has the topic been so high up the agenda for both policy and research. The phrase captures many strands, some of which have not been linked together so clearly in the past. Concerns about the uptake of STEM subjects and low levels of literacy and numeracy, even amongst graduates, (as reported by OECD) are driven by fears over economic competitiveness globally. Local Enterprise Partnerships are focusing on the supply and demand for skills and Area Reviews on the structure of provision locally. New types of institution, such as the National Colleges and Institutes of Technology are proposed and the government aims to create 3 million apprenticeships starts by 2020 but there are worries about the quality and extent of careers advice and information for technical education.

The emphasis on structural changes continues to overshadow the fundamental weakness in our knowledge about vocational pedagogy – the core activity between learners and teachers that determines success. Do we know enough about the effectiveness of specific teaching methods in areas as disparate as social care and accountancy? Have the means of developing standards and constructing learning programmes been sufficiently researched? Are the merits of learning in the workplace, college or online clearly characterised?

Moreover, can we measure demand accurately and can we measure success? Will the introduction of loans affect uptake? Will evidence from previous initiatives, such as the Centres of Vocational Excellence, inform the new policy and practices?

Equally relevant are the issues of teacher development. If technical and professional provision is to expand, appropriately skilled teachers will need to be found. Are the incentives to recruit them sufficient? Will new demands be placed on initial teacher education and professional development?

The plan for this workshop is: first, to set out what we know about these highly diverse aspects of professional and technical education and training, then to link them together, and finally to formulate ideas about the future. In order to get quickly to the heart of the matter, the workshop will avoid the many intriguing questions of definition – what counts as technical, what as professional, how does each differ from vocational? Instead the day will focus on the evidence base in three broad areas:

Data: employer and employee demand, supply and the impact of provision Curriculum, pedagogy and qualifications: effectiveness of different approaches Institutional and structural issues: merits of management and governance arrangements

To accommodate this wide spread of themes, the workshop involves a greater number of inputs than usual, and hence, slightly less time for discussion in groups. Six speakers will prepare short papers outlining their work and perspectives, to be published in the booklet for circulation in advance of the event. The speakers will initiate a symposium style discussion around the three

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themes by briefly highlighting key points from their papers for discussion with other speakers and participants generally. In the afternoon, three discussion groups focusing on each of the themes will address the challenges identified in the morning with a view to drawing out implications for the future agenda for gathering evidence, implementing policy and developing practice. The final plenary session will enable speakers and participants to pull together the strands, speculate about the future of technical and professional education and training and make suggestions for future research.

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LSRN PURPOSE AND VALUES

Purpose

The network aims to help people, in going about their professional practice, engage with research and development.

The network seeks to:

Demonstrate the value of research and development by: assisting practitioners to undertake effective research and development assisting practitioners and policymakers to understand the outcomes and processes of

research and development encouraging the growth of a research culture at institutional, national, regional and local

levels.

Help build the capacity of the sector by: putting people in touch with each other providing opportunities to present and discuss research and development organising opportunities for professional development develop opportunities to undertake research and development work, collaboratively or

otherwise.

Exploring ways of increasing the influence of findings by: encouraging work across sector and discipline boundaries encouraging collaboration between parties developing conduits through which findings can be assessed and disseminated.

Values

In pursuing its purpose, the network places particular value on: An inclusive approach which:

recognises the variety of relevant methods and topics involves participants from a wide range of backgrounds, including practitioners, researchers,

developers, managers and policymakers identifies the specific role of practitioners and others in evaluating and implementing

findings.

Applying research to the concerns of practice and policy by: encouraging reviews of existing knowledge before new research is undertaken distilling and communicating key messages in appropriate ways for different audiences.

Addressing capacity by: building practitioner training into projects encouraging engagement with research through professional development activity demonstrating the value of research and development to budget holders maximising connections between regional groups.

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INFORMATION FROM PARTICIPANTS

All participants had the opportunity to provide information about current research they have conducted and the actions they have taken to disseminate the results and influence others.

Name: Mary CostelloRole: Senior Policy Adviser/Senior Research ManagerOrganisation: QAA – on secondment from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES)Email contact: m.costello@qaa/ac.uk

Research or research related activity

Leading the evaluations of UKCES employer investment and growth innovation funds and evaluation lead at UKCES for BIS Employer Ownership Skills Pilots. These studies have sought to identify the impact of the funds, with particular focus on shorter-term outcomes such as training levels. It included quantitative analysis comparing fund beneficiaries and a control group. This analysis was supplemented with qualitative research with employers, delivery partners and stakeholders.

Additional recent research based projects in this area have included leading a studies for the Solicitors Regulation Authority to inform its development of a competence framework for practitioners. This included an extensive analysis of the skills, knowledge and attributes that are expected of a solicitor by surveying practitioners and consumers. This work was complemented with a study exploring how regulated entities plan and organise their skills provision to ensure continuing competence of their professional and paralegal staff.

How does your work relate to the workshop themes?

My current work is exploring employer expectations and involvement in degree level apprenticeships. This involves working with employers, employer bodies and professional bodies to explore their experiences and perceptions of high level vocational and training and how the evolving landscape needs to ensure quality for learners and employers.

Name: Nick DavyRole: HE Policy ManagerOrganisation: Association of CollegesEmail contact: [email protected]


Boost European Exchange on HVET and Employer Involvement on Education (BEEHiVES) is a 6 -country collaboration funded by the EC’s Erasmus + Fund

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mailto:[email protected]

mailto:m.costello@qaa/ac.uk

The BEEHiVES project is designed to address cooperation and collaboration barriers in the strategic partnership triangle – HVET/PHE institutions, employers/labour markets and students – to contribute to the development of skills relevant to labour market needs and equip students with the knowledge and skills relevant for their long-term employability, entrepreneurship and personal development.

BEEHiVES aims to create tools and measures that will create a fundamental step-change in terms of employer involvement in programme and curriculum design, validation, accreditation and award processes – placing employers and the needs of the labour market at the centre of the education offer.

From a research perspective, the project will: Provide a typology and practices of HVET across the partner countries Identify strategic goals of the main actors involved in HVET

o Demands of employers (relevance, alignment to the market, skills, competences and knowledge levels)

o Demands of students and employees (employability, permeability)o Demands of HE institutions (level of programmes, curriculum design)

Propose a set of defining characteristics of HVET as the base for the quantitative analyses and elucidate specific criteria and performance indicators for each defined characteristic

Develop a strategy matrix (framework) with a set of strategic elements of collaboration within the strategic partnership triangle, such as policies, partnership structures, curricula and qualifications in the area of learning outcomes, e.g., hard and soft skills, competence needs, entrepreneurship.

Identify the factors stakeholders consider essential for strategic partnerships and stronger collaboration in HVET provision.

Identify stakeholders HVET collaboration needs and future trends. Provide a set of best-practice examples in different industry sectors and regions. Propose high-level recommendations for strengthening the strategic partnership alliance

Project Website: http://beehives.de/


Curriculum, pedagogy and qualifications

Name: Nick DavyRole: HE Policy Manager Organisation: Association of CollegesEmail contact: [email protected]


Series of publications arguing for the development of a professional and technical stream in England’s tertiary education system – the case for change, the case for a new accreditation and

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http://beehives.de/

validation body and how such a body could operate within present tertiary education structures.1 Paper one argues that in the 1990s the decision to allow polytechnics to became universities, meant students who might previously have followed a technical path progressed into academic degrees featuring an expensive full-time student experience. And that this decision, and later policies, has led to the creation of a two-tier tertiary system with university education prized as the ‘gold standard’. These changes have downgraded technical education and damaged local progression routes. More recently, there has been a significant decline in part-time provision. This artificial divide has compounded England’s weaknesses in educating and training people for intermediate and advanced level technical skills and arguably is a contributory factor to our poor productivity in comparison to other countries.

In paper two, Breaking the Mould – the next steps - the paper argues that universities virtual monopoly of validating and awarding higher education (HE) qualifications and a funding system that incentivises institutions to develop three or four year full-time academic honours degree programmes has led to a growth in this type of provision, at the expense of less costly, and potentially more appropriate, technical and professional qualification alternatives. Present accreditation and validation structures for technical and professional education (TPE) below honours degree are spread across several ‘sectors’ –academic higher education, including higher national qualifications; adult and higher vocational skills, including higher apprenticeships; and the professional certificates and diplomas market. There is no coherent validation and award system for this type of provision leading to constant policy tinkering, disjointed structures and ultimately confusion for employers and applicants. In consequence, professional and technical education has always been the poor relation in England’s tertiary education system – often poorly funded and with less status than academic higher education. The paper then outlines how a Technical Education Accreditation Council (TEAC) could fit into present accreditation and validation structures

The third paper in the series describes how a TEAC would work including institutional accreditation processes, programme validation and links with other relevant TPE bodies and structures.

The following principles would underpin this new system Strong leadership and the promotion of technical education; Prevention of academic drift; Synergy with recent qualification reforms; Maintenance of institutional autonomy; Resistance to the introduction of new intermediaries; Supported by a reformed adult skills funding system that is both fair and simple.


Institutional and structural issues

1 See https://www.aoc.co.uk/teaching-and-learning/college-higher-education/reports-and-surveys/research-and-publication for the three papers.

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https://www.aoc.co.uk/teaching-and-learning/college-higher-education/reports-and-surveys/research-and-publication

https://www.aoc.co.uk/teaching-and-learning/college-higher-education/reports-and-surveys/research-and-publication

Name: Mahmoud EmiraRole: Research ManagerOrganisation: City & Guilds of London Institute Email contact: [email protected]


Mahmoud Emira is a Research Manager at City & Guilds of London Institute. He’s currently leading a longitudinal evaluation of the City & Guilds TechBac® programme of study and its impact on learner progression. Prior to joining City & Guilds, Mahmoud worked as a Post-Doctoral Research Assistant at the Centre for Developmental and Applied Research in Education (CeDARE) at the University of Wolverhampton for six years. Recently he worked with the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) on a case study to investigate what lessons could be learnt in England from the experience of Scotland’s ‘college regionalisation’ programme. The case study involved conducting a number of telephone interviews with key stakeholders in Scotland. The findings are expected to be published in late spring this year.


The case study relates to the 3rd theme around institutional and structural issues: merits of management and governance arrangements.

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Name: Colin ForrestRole: Research AssociateOrganisation: Bradford CollegeEmail contact: [email protected]


Part of University of Bath team examining ‘the role of the clerk to the corporation of further education colleges in England in ensuring high quality college governance’. This was funded and published (http://www.et-foundation.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Final-Report-of-the-Role-of-the-Clerk-to-the-Corporation-of-FE-Colleges-Research-Project.pdf) by the Education and Training Foundation. Co-author of paper related to this research (in press Educational Management Administration & Leadership) and BELMAS conference presentation 2015 . Also co-author with Dr Ron Hill (University of Stirling) and Prof Chris James (University of Bath): ‘The challenges facing further education college governors in England: A time for caution or creativity? (in press Management in Education 2016) Research paper successfully peer reviewed for presentation with Dr Norman Crowther at British Education Leadership Management and Administration national conference (http://www.belmasannualconference.org.uk/programme/ July 16) ‘The leadership of improvement: the implications for safe spaces and contested boundaries as the leadership of further education colleges is redefined by area reviews’. This conceptualisation has formed part of a research proposal to explore ‘Leadership for Good Decision Making in Further Adult and Vocational Education: building capacity and expertise through dialogue and decision-making in the local context’ (awaiting outcome). Associate for the Education and Training Foundation exploring sector development needs relating to apprenticeship reforms. Included sense making related to themes such as policy and contested narratives, continuity and planning, assessment, workforce development, curriculum design, data and information, and funding.

How does your work relate to the workshop themes? Provides an insight through the implications for employers, providers and learners of the implication of apprenticeship reforms and related policy. The research on college governance has illuminated many issues relating to institution and structural issues including how contemporary challenges may create undue caution or may provide opportunities to strengthen college governance and leadership creatively . The research into leadership in the context of area reviews aims to offer ways of thinking, seeing and decision-making in difficult situations differently. It intends to create a new narrative to replace one that is currently colonised by closure, job losses short-term decision-making and low returns on public funding.

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http://www.belmasannualconference.org.uk/programme/

http://www.et-foundation.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Final-Report-of-the-Role-of-the-Clerk-to-the-Corporation-of-FE-Colleges-Research-Project.pdf

http://www.et-foundation.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Final-Report-of-the-Role-of-the-Clerk-to-the-Corporation-of-FE-Colleges-Research-Project.pdf


Name: Cath GladdingRole: Research ManagerOrganisation: Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP)Email contact: [email protected]


Research with training providers to understand policy in practice, gather evidence for representation and lobbying, evaluate support programmes such as Future Apprenticeships, facilitate access for fellow researchers.

Current interests: Apprenticeships (levy, SMEs...), English devolution, careers education, public recognition of training providers (whether independent, third sector, general FE college, employer, etc.). How inclusion of the training provider sector in wider research can be assisted, for example by reflecting terminology, self-identification of staff and strategic priorities used within it.

The above builds on 20 years in policy and market research in the education and skills sector.


Data - local decision-making using far from perfect data on skills supply and demand eg LEPs, devolution deals, careers advisors, area reviews.Curriculum, pedagogy and qualifications - of particular interest in this field are longitudinal impacts of apprenticeships reforms Institutional and structural issues - all relevant

Name: Paul GraingerRole: Co-Director, Centre for Post-14 Education and WorkOrganisation: UCL IoEEmail contact: [email protected]


Links between employers and education providers


Employer links have a significant impact on pedagogy. Effective skills development requires innovative institutional structures

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Name: Jackie GreatorexRole: Principal Research OfficerOrganisation: Cambridge AssessmentEmail contact: [email protected]


One of my research interests is using taxonomies in assessment practice.

When developing qualifications it can be important to undertake comparability research to ascertain whether new qualifications are of appropriate demand in relation to other qualifications. To support this process, we evaluated taxonomies of educational objectives to ascertain which:

Indicate which knowledge/skills are more and less demanding Covered all the neccessary domains – affective, cognitive, interpersonal, metcognitive and

psychomotor demand (Greatorex, Rushton, Mehta, & Grayson, 2015).

No single taxonomy fulfilled all our criteria (Greatorex et al., 2015). Therefore, we selected taxonomies which collectively covered the domains and broadly corresponded with experts’ views of demand in general, vocational and vocationally related qualifications in three sectors (Greatorex et al., 2015). The taxonomies were used to underpin experts' judgements about whether units from different qualifications were of a similar demand (Greatorex & Mehta, 2012; Greatorex & Shiell, 2012). Clearly, it is important to sustain comparability work.

Using taxonomies to shape curricula, objectives, assessments etc. is accepted as good practice. We decided to enrich practice by using taxonomies to support writing objectives and grade criteria as well as evaluating domain coverage for vocationally related qualifications (Greatorex & Suto, 2016). Again, no single taxonomy fulfilled all our criteria and therefore we selected two taxonomies which together covered all domains and distinguish levels of cognitive processing. Now, and in the future we will be training colleagues to use taxonomies and discussing how they might be applied.

ReferencesGreatorex, J., & Mehta, S. (2012). A method for comparing the demands of specifications. Paper

presented at the British Educational Research Association Conference and the European Conference on Educational Research, University of Manchester, University of Cádiz. http://www.cambridgeassessment.org.uk/Images/183562-a-method-for-comparing-the-demands-of-specifications.pdf

Greatorex, J., Rushton, N., Mehta, S., & Grayson, R. (2015). Do expert's views of specification demands correspond with established educational taxonomies? Online Educational Research Journal, November. Available at www.oerj.org (Authors’ names are withheld by the journal until reviewing is complete)

Greatorex, J., & Shiell, H. (2012). Piloting a method for comparing the demand of vocational qualifications with general qualifications. Research Matters: A Cambridge Assessment Publication(14), 29-36.

Greatorex, J., & Suto, W. M. I. (2016). Extending educational taxonomies from general to applied education: can they be used to write and review assessment criteria? Paper presented at the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction, Ludwig-Maximilians-

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Universität Munich, Germany, August.


Our work exemplifies using evidence to underpin approaches to qualifications design.

Name: Graeme HallRole: Engineering Subject Lead, Higher National UnitOrganisation: Pearson UKEmail contact: [email protected]


More effective employer input to curriculum design and improved support for delivery centres


Redesign of the Higher Nationals in Engineering to reflect latest practice

Name: David HarbourneRole: Director of Policy and ResearchOrganisation: Edge FoundationEmail contact: [email protected]


Edge commissions, summarises and disseminates research into technical, practical and vocational learning. Our largest current project is a longitudinal study of level 3 vocational and technical learners, which we have commissioned jointly with City and Guilds; it is being carried out by the Warwick Institute for Employment Research. Our biennial research conference is being held jointly with the Education and Employers Taskforce in July. We use evidence from data and research when lobbying politicians and officials.


The longitudinal study we have commissioned from Warwick Institute for Employment Research relates mainly to theme one (data), but also to theme two (curriculum and qualifications).

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Name: Lynsi Hayward-SmithRole: Head of Adult Learning and SkillsOrganisation: Cambridgeshire County CouncilEmail contact: [email protected]


Research on the” wider outcomes” framework for Adult LearningContribution to work on leadership and Governance of Adult LearningWork on establishing the “Pound Plus” model for demonstrating the contribution made by Community Learning Providers and their partners to Adult Learning


I have a role to lead on the Skills Strategy for Cambridgeshire which looks at both employer and community needs and provides an action plan to meet those needs. This is overseen by the Learning and Skills Board which I chair. The focus of the work has been to try to ensure that we are supporting local growth through meeting employers’ needs locally. The Board includes all the local providers and stakeholders. The challenges have been around sharing data and managing the changing focus of government funding. I also work with our Local Economic Partnership who give us intelligence on the economic needs of the County.

The work of my service includes learning that has outcomes that are broader than the gaining of qualification and certification and we operate a wider outcomes model. We piloted this last year and after evaluation agreed to roll it out across our county.

My services provide learning, careers advice and support into employment through a variety of activities. The service provides a framework for local planning of the curriculum through the Community Learning and Skills partnerships in the 4 districts of Cambridgeshire. This is based on data on local demography and local need including the economic assessment. It also has input from local communities and this development has enabled there to be a focus on some of the needs of those communities, which vary considerably across Cambridgeshire.

I chair the National network of Local Authority FE providers and we have been looking at the Governance of the Adult Education work undertaken by my network providers.

I would say my work touches on all 3 areas that will be the day’s themes.

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Name: Dr Ann LahiffRole: Lecturer in Education, post 14 sector.Organisation: Institute of Education, University College LondonEmail contact: [email protected]


My research interests centre on the ways in which learning in and for the workplace can be understood and enhanced. Primarily, my research reflects my practice as a teacher educator for Further Education (FE) and my background as an FE teacher. Through my involvement in FE teacher education, I have supported FE college teachers as they progressed through in-service training. Reflections on the future of FE teachers’ professional education and training and the challenges presented to vocational teachers in particular, led to research into developmental teaching observations conducted with vocational teachers. In this case study research, the post-observation feedback discussion was seen to offer a learning space where the development of vocational teachers’ pedagogy is situated - framed by the relationships established by participants. It was argued that this space is particularly important for vocational teachers as they cross boundaries from their vocational contexts and learn to become teachers (Lahiff, 2015; Lahiff, forthcoming).Other areas of inquiry have included research into apprenticeships and, in particular, the journeys of media production apprentices working in distributed, project-working contexts (Guile and Lahiff, 2012; Lahiff and Guile, forthcoming). Given my interest in understanding the ways in which learning in and for the workplace can best be maximised, I am currently attached to the Centre for Engineering Education at UCL where I am researching pedagogic practice in HE and in employment-based contexts.

Lahiff, A. Maximising vocational teachers’ learning through developmental observation, in O’Leary, M. (Ed) Reclaiming Lesson Observation, Chapter 4 (forthcoming), Routledge.Lahiff, A. (2015) Maximizing vocational teachers’ learning: The feedback discussion in the observation of teaching for initial teacher training in further education, London Review of Education 13 (1) 3-15 Guile, D. and Lahiff, A. (2012) Apprenticeship for “Liquid Life”: developing apprentices’ vocational practice and social capital to work as freelancers in Media Production. Available at : http://www.llakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/37.-Guile-Lahiff.pdfLahiff, A. and Guile, D. ‘It’s not like a normal 9 to 5!’: the learning journeys of media production apprentices in distributed working conditions (forthcoming)Centre for Engineering Education https://www.ucl.ac.uk/centre-for-engineering-education


My work connects broadly with the overall event theme. Whether in my work on FE vocational teachers’ development, in our research into apprentices’ learning or in identifying key pedagogic practices in developing Engineers for the future, the future of technical and professional education and training is implicitly assessed. Although my work might relate to each of the workshop themes in various ways, the workshop theme curriculum, pedagogy and qualifications is of particular relevance. This is because my work is centrally concerned with pedagogy – most particularly vocational pedagogy. My work on FE vocational teachers’ observations connects to the ‘Data theme’ in so far as it helps establish evidence of the impact of the education and training provided. Similarly, issues of local and regional provision and sector boundaries are addressed in our work on

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https://www.ucl.ac.uk/centre-for-engineering-education

http://www.llakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/37.-Guile-Lahiff.pdf


apprenticeships in the cultural and creative sectors.

Name: John Lea/Nick DavyRole: Director of Project/HE Policy Manager Organisation: Association of CollegesEmail contact: [email protected]; [email protected]


The Scholarship Project is funded by the HEFCE Catalyst Fundhttps://www.aoc.co.uk/enhancing-scholarship-in-college-higher-education-the-scholarship-project

Project Aims

This project aims to support the development and embedding of a distinct college HE scholarly ethos across the sector associated with technical education at Levels 4 and higher, by creating a ‘scholarship framework’ that can be adopted by all colleges, and one which is firmly centred on enhancing the learning experience for students.

Specifically, the project will continue to encourage individual staff to develop their own scholarly profiles and explore how these might be better integrated into a distinct context. This will include support for colleges in developing a more strategic and institutional approach to scholarly activity. In addition the project will explore the ways in which students might become more scholarly in their higher learning activities, and how links with local employers might become a more embedded feature of the scholarly profile.

Conceptual underpinning

The project is informed by Boyer's influential conceptualisation of four scholarships (Boyer 1990). In particular, the value of the scholarships of integration, application and teaching in the college HE context will be explored and evaluated. A clear focus on enhancing the practice and impact of these forms of scholarship to enhance teaching and learning will be central to the framework for the project and the resources to be produced by the project.For example, the project will provide an opportunity for project participants to explore ways in which curricula and pedagogies might explicitly and effectively integrate life and work experience with academic studies (the scholarship of integration); encourage staff, students and local employers to develop productive knowledge exchange networks (the scholarship of application); and seek ways to enhance peer support and mentoring particularly in work-based contexts (the scholarship of teaching). In essence, the project will explore ways to effectively enhance ‘the three-way partnership between the learning provider, the learner and the employer” (CAVTL 2013, 19).One focus will be to link these forms of scholarship with, first, relevant students as partners in learning initiatives (Healey et al 2014), and, second, by further developing the practical application of the concept of re-contextualisation (Simmons 2014). For example, the project will provide opportunities for students to work with staff on enhancing the integration of theory and practice in learning contexts, particularly in scholarly ways, including how the HE curriculum might best integrate traditional discipline knowledge with work-based contextualised knowledge.

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https://www.aoc.co.uk/enhancing-scholarship-in-college-higher-education-the-scholarship-project



Outputs

A ‘College Higher Education (HE) Scholarship Framework’ will be designed, tested and refined in partnership with participating colleges and college consortia, to include:

A clearly-articulated technical education pedagogy, informed by prior research and incorporating the principles of co-creation and co-inquiry

An aligned set of principles and practical implementation guidelines for different stakeholder groups including: institutional leaders and managers; teaching staff; learning support and development staff; students; employers

A suite of practical resources (toolkits) to support implementation of the Framework, providing exemplars and tools for use by the different stakeholder groups A kite-marked set of agreed performance indicators and impact measures related to the

Framework, adoptable by all colleges that offer HE

Boyer, E. (1990) Scholarship Reconsidered: Priorities of the Professoriate. New York: TheCarnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.CAVTL [Commission on Adult Vocational Teaching and Learning] (2013) Evidence Review –Supplementary Paper 1. London (p 19).Healey, M., Flint, A. and Harrington, K. (2014) Developing Students as Partners in Learning andTeaching in Higher Education. York: HEA.Simmons. J. (2014) `The nature of knowledge in the higher vocational curriculum’, in Lea, J. (ed)(2014) Supporting higher education in college settings. London: SEDA.


Curriculum, pedagogy and qualifications

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Name: Charlynne PullenRole: Programme Manager ResearchOrganisation: Education and Training Foundation (currently on secondment as a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Public Policy Research)Email contact: [email protected]


FE workforce data collection and ITE data analysisThe Education and Training Foundation is responsible for collecting data on the Further Education workforce, principally through the Staff Individualised Record (SIR). The SIR collects individualised returns and has done so for colleges since 1993. This year (2015/16), we will start collecting individualised data from all other types of provider in the FE sector as well, so we can more accurately represent the sector. This data will be displayed on a dashboard for individual providers, as well as showing a national-level view for all providers and by provider type. The new data specification for 15/16 also includes a range of other data fields, including qualifications.

The Initial Teacher Education data brings together data from the Individualised Learner Record and the Higher Education Statistics Agency to capture learners training to be teachers in all different types of provider, and studying for qualifications accredited by awarding organisations and by universities. There will be three annual reports, with the second annual report about to be published.


Data is a key theme, and data on the current and future workforce data is a key component for assessing the supply of teachers in FE.

Name: Dr Arti SaraswatRole: ResearcherOrganisation: Association of CollegesEmail contact: [email protected], [email protected]


I led on a national research project (funded by BIS and AoC) on College Higher Education in England. The project was an important initiative that aimed to identify the reasons for decline in part time College HE, and the institutional response and strategies for addressing the decline in part time student numbers. 30 FE colleges across England took part in the study and interviews were conducted with CHE leaders and managers. The study was also informed by survey responses from over 1200 part time students as well as through focus groups. The report is available at https://www.aoc.co.uk/news/aoc-commissioned-report-part-time-college-he.

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https://www.aoc.co.uk/news/aoc-commissioned-report-part-time-college-he




I am currently working with the Association of Colleges on an Erasmus Plus project (titled BEEHiVES). The project is focussed on Higher Vocational Education and involves project partners from six European countries. The project is designed to address cooperation and collaboration barriers in the strategic partnership triangle – HVET/PHE institutions, employers/labour markets and students – to contribute to the development of skills relevant to labour market needs and equip students with the knowledge and skills relevant for their long-term employability, entrepreneurship and personal development.

I am also working on a scoping research study funded by the QAA (and led by the University of Sheffield) on sub-degree UK HE. The project output will include an analysis of administrative data on courses and students in sub-degree higher education for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.


My work is closely related to all the three workshop themes. As part of my projects, I am analysing secondary data (quantitative) on qualifications and student numbers in College HE. I am also conducting fieldwork and gathering data (qualitative) with colleges, employers as well as students to identify nature of relationships and barriers in collaborations between employers and FE colleges. As part of my other (recent) projects, I have been researching issues of sectoral boundaries and institutional cultures and identities.

Name: Sharon SmithRole: ResearcherOrganisation: University of Greenwich and University of KentEmail contact: [email protected]


Over 15 years’ research experience in exploring progression to HE and assessing the evidence of impact using longitudinal tracking studies.


Understanding the role that FE and HE has to play in social mobility is a key driver to my research activity. My work primarily involves progression data and its role in evidence based policy and decision making. My research expertise is longitudinal tracking: using datasets to follow learners at an individual level, through multiple datasets and over time. The absence of contextualised progression data poses challenges for policy makers and practitioners in the FE and HE sectors and my research has produced new progression data for three groups of learners a) apprentices in England, b) Level 3 learners in FE colleges in England and c) young people participating in university outreach programmes in England. Context is everything to HE progression research and providing descriptive statistics to understand cohorts is key to interpreting patterns of progression and evidence of impact, especially for non-traditional entrants to HE (including work-based learners and

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those from lower socio-economic groups). Since 2004, I have also been involved in the design of a universal system to help with the evaluation of HE interventions. My current role as Director of HEAT (Higher Education Access Tracker, www.heat.ac.uk) is to lead a collaborative data service helping over 50 universities across England to assess the impact of outreach programmes on student outcomes including attainment, access to HE and student success in HE.

The absence of a universal student identifier, and central data repository poses huge challenges for cross sectoral research and although access to linked administrative data has opened up in recent years, there are still many obstacles to be faced by researchers in this area. I am particularly interested in how researchers can collaborate to optimise the use of data across educational sectors and increase our understanding of educational progression patterns over time and through the entire student life cycle. Networks such as the Administrative Data Research Network (https://adrn.ac.uk/) are a step in the right direction.

Published ResearchJoslin, H., & Smith, S. (2010). Progression Tracking Research Project First Release. University of Greenwich. Joslin, H., & Smith, S. (2013). The Progression of Apprentices into Higher Education. BIS. Joslin, H., & Smith, S. (2013a). Progression of College Learners to Higher Education in London. Linking London. Joslin, H., & Smith, S. (2014). Progression of Apprentices to Higher Education - Cohort Update. BIS. 84Joslin, H., & Smith, S. (2015). Progression of College Learners to Higher Education. BIS. 239More information on research produced by HEAT can be provided by request.

NEWSLETTER

A regular newsletter is produced and circulated. Please contact Andrew Morris ([email protected]) to be included on the circulation list or to include material.

REGIONAL AND LOCAL NETWORKS

Regional networks were created following the first national conference in 1997. Their level of activity has varied over time and across the country. During the time when LSDA provided support and links with their regional coordinators regional conferences were held and regional research projects supported. More recently the networks are entirely reliant on volunteers and support in kind from

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https://adrn.ac.uk/

http://www.heat.ac.uk/

institutions. However, there continue to be regular network meetings in most regions as well as regional events, and convenors are members of the national planning group. Recently local groups are also being organised often based around a city or lead college.If you would like to find out about these activities please contact the relevant convenor.

East Mike Smith [email protected] Midlands Hayley WoodLondon and South East Sai Loo [email protected](co-convenors) Rania Hafez [email protected] East Maggie Gregson [email protected] West Joel Petrie [email protected](co-convenors) Lydia Redican [email protected] West Claire Gray [email protected](co-convenors) Robert Cook [email protected] Midlands Rob Smith [email protected] & Humber Kevin Orr [email protected]

People who organise activities at a local level which are open to external participants are encouraged to provide contact details. Currently these include:Bristol area: City of Bristol College [email protected] Coast: University of Brighton/City College Brighton [email protected]

Martyn Howe: [email protected] Andrew Morris to be added to the list [email protected]

http://lsrn.wordpress.com/

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