Transforming Rural Education

1

Flexible curricula for employer engagement: A

family of approaches.

Transforming Rural Education

2

The development structure

Transforming Rural Education

The essence of the framework

• The framework enables the formation of named awards using work-related credit from different sources to be combined in ways that meet the needs of employers.

• The framework balances responsiveness with rigour, as well as flexibility with functionality.

3

Transforming Rural Education

Rationale 4

•Allows autonomy •Businesses and learners can make decisions about their learning.

•Flexible in the face of rapid change •Flexibility within modules and within awards.

• Partnership with colleges and training providers.

•Tool for Business Development Managers.

•Values credit.

•Wealth of progression routes.

•Incentive for engagement.

Transforming Rural Education

What is the framework?

• Modules (reusable curriculum).

• Parameters (credit volumes, work-related).

• Processes (Accreditation, documentation).

• Conventions (naming awards, module rescaling).

5

Transforming Rural Education

Foundations of the framework

• Academic infrastructure– FHEQ higher education

qualification descriptors– Principles of credit

accumulation and transfer.

– QAA Codes of Practice (Sections 2 & 9).

– Harper Adams Quality Assurance Manual.

6

Transforming Rural Education

Modules7

•Accredit and add value to existing work-based learning

•Provide ready-made descriptors to be used in different contexts.

•Generic descriptors can be scaled in terms of volume and level

•Less emphasis on content and more on learning process

•Shell and wrapper modules becoming more common

Transforming Rural Education

Modules 8

Module descriptors are provided as exemplars.

•In use – seeking validation for re-use

•Ear-marked for particular initiatives

•Ear-marked for a cohort of individuals

•Future facing.

Transforming Rural Education

Shells

• A shell module articulates the learning process that may be applied to different employment contexts.

• A shell module contains subject based themes to a greater or lesser extent.

9

Transforming Rural Education

• “Leadership and organisational change”Example of a shell module with:

– Significant core content.– Some personalisation. – Some contextualisation.

• “Action research”Example of a shell module with:

– Some core content – High degrees of personalisation. – Significant contextualisation.

10

Transforming Rural Education

Wrappers• A wrapper module places processes for higher level learning

around existing work-based provision that is often focused on vocational competence

• The aim is to extend and enrich the learning that is derived from the work-based practice and make the learner more aware of the processes involved in acquisition of knowledge and skills

• A wrapper allows the learner to grow further learning from an existing situation.

11

Transforming Rural Education

12

Transforming Rural Education

Wrappers contd13

Work well in partnerships with Training Providers offering vocational qualifications e.g. NVQ’s and with Professional Bodies offering recognised Industry Qualifications e.g. British Horse Society

Allow industrial experts to underpin operational and vocational skills.

Transforming Rural Education

Wrapper modulesteaching and assessment

• Divisions of roles and responsibilities can be established in line with expertise

• The industry partner is best placed to teach and assess the technical content (core) whilst the HEI focuses on the higher level learning (extended and meta levels) that “wrap” around the content

14

Transforming Rural Education

Wrapper modules -Quality Assurance

• The partner is best placed to utilise mechanisms respected by industry (e.g. Lead Body Internal and External Verifiers)

• The HEI quality assures the higher level learning in the extended and meta-learning layers

• The HEI has greater confidence in overall quality of the provision and is able to devolve greater responsibility to the partner

15

Transforming Rural Education

• Exemplar programme using wrapper modules • Certificate of Higher Education for the rural care

home sector. – Wraps round an NVQ 4 for managers in the care home

sector – Extends vocational learning to meet requirements of the

HE award– Embraces modules such as ‘Introduction to professional

skills development’ & ‘Advancing practice’ – Involves learning activities such as:

• Consideration of related literature• Analysis of learning strategies• Consideration of current issues in practice.

16

Transforming Rural Education

Parameters

• Work-based nature of credit.

• Firm footing in rural sector.

• Existing Harper Adams credit conventions respected.

17

Transforming Rural Education

Conventions

• Award - Professional Studies

• Suffix relating to context and or content where an additional learning outcome is defined.

18

Transforming Rural Education

Creating cohesive awards 19

Transforming Rural Education

20

•MSc Professional Studies

•Online

•Represents one route through the framework

The Framework and cohorts of individuals

Transforming Rural Education

21Why an online cohort of individuals?

•SME’s•Staff development•Resource central

Transforming Rural Education

22

Transforming Rural Education

23

•Range of elements – related

•Reusable curriculum objects

•Capacity building

•Serving the needs of the sector in innovative ways

•Supporting employer engagement

•Supporting widened participation

•Cross-college

Transforming Rural Education

Questions and issues ???

• Transferability• Hype and expectation• Workability• Balance: risk and innovation• Staff engagement• Management of programmes (reporting etc)

24

Transforming Rural Education

• Faddy? • Emperor’s new clothes? • Lack of critique• Complexity in language/density• Longevity

25

Transforming Rural Education

Contact

• Lydia Arnold larnold@harper-adams.ac.uk • Liz Warr lwarr@harper-adams.ac.uk • www.lydiaarnold.net• www.reednet.org

26