We are planning to run E Guides forums to provide support for staff developing e learning solutions within Work Based Learning and Adult & Community Learning organisations. These will give E Guides the opportunity to share good practice, develop new skills in the hands on technology sessions and network with other providers. To tell us what kind of form you would like these forums to take you can fill out our survey.

Also feel free to leave comments on this blog.

The JISC RSC YH Work Based Learning Launch Event took place on Wednesday 14th November 2007 at Bedern Hall, York. The event report is available via the RSC YH website events page

What delegates said about the event:

• ‘It was good for sharing practice, looking at and getting ideas and resources for implementing e learning.’
• ‘Very informative in all sessions’
• ‘[Good for] information on new types of technology; explanation of bid requirements (LIG3).’
• ‘The RSC team [were good] and the ideas that you were trying to put over and develop. Very good and positive speakers.’
• ‘Presentations helped to gather further ideas to develop e learning.’
• Excellent technology, particularly Amazing.com’
• ‘[It was good] being shown activities of other providers and being able to network.’

Suggestions for future events and RSC support for Y&H Work Based Learning Providers were:

• Undertaking ‘e reviews in WBL’ – recording pastoral support
• Assessor training in the use of ‘E’ collection methods – how to photo/video observations, etc
• Bid writing techniques, including method of scoring/assessing bids
• Sharing information about learners, speaking of their experience.
• Subject specific examples
• Technologies to support learners with learning difficulties
• Hands on workshops

As a result of the feedback from the event and the Work Based Learning support survey, we are planning events and support materials around all delegates’ requests.

Events Planned:

• Bid Writing
• E Guides Forum (with hands on workshops & good practice examples)
• Excellence in Inclusivity
• Excellence in e learning

The Centre for Excellence in Leadership has developed 3 toolkits, one of which is for WBL leaders. The aim of the toolkits is “to encourage the use of e-learning and technology and to assist leaders to use technology effectively to enhance and support their business operations” A notebook facility allows the use of the toolkits for noting of CPD requirements.

To get access to the toolkits you have to subscribe for 12 months and apparently they are updated on a quarterly basis.

Each subscription provides 10 individual users and costs £518+VAT per organisation.

WBL & ACL providers are entitled to a 50% subsidy and ISC providers 25% subsidy.

According to CEL this toolkit is tailored specifically to the needs of WBL providers. I haven’t seen the toolkit so I can’t give any personal views on its effectiveness.  However, I am told that it has 9 interactive topics covering the core business areas crucial to improving organisational effectiveness.

Launches of the toolkit are on the following dates:

30th April – Manchester
13th May – London

For further information go to TOOLKIT@CENTREFOREXCELLENCE.ORG.UK or phone 0870 060 3278

I attended the ALP Provider of the Future e-learning and technology event yesterday. Slightly late due to delays at Sheffield but arrived part way through the keynote address from Professor Bob Fryer, National Director for Widening Participation in Learning, Department of Health. His presentatation, Challenges for e-enablement: inclusion, personalisation and participation explored models for personalisation, emphasising the importance of standards and quality. Choice vs personalisation. One question he asked was whether increased personalisation in education and in other areas of life would lead to an increased fragmentation and individualisation in society. Referred to Delors’s 4 pillars of learning:

Learning to know

Learning to do

Learning to live together

Learning to be.

He said, “For me as an educationalist, involved in HE and Adult Learning …. the capacity for critical thinking is so important”

Derrin Kent, Development Manager, Training for Tomorrow gave a presentation on Free Software for Work-Based Learning. This was interesting as he referred to some open source software that I didn’t know about:

Joomla (content management system)

ubuntu (a linux based operating system which Derrin said Dell are now installing on their cheaper machines. He also said it is resistant to viruses and very robust)

GIMP – (a photoshop equivalent)

Easy Eclipse – (packages together Eclipse and selected open source plugins)

Project Management tools mentioned by Derrin:

Gant Project (like MS Project)

Planner

Alfresco

Sugarcrm (Customer Relationship Management)

Trixbox (VOIP)

OS Commerce (like ebay where you can set up and run your own online shop)

Haven’t had chance to look at any of these in detail yet so will save evaluations for a later posting.

Derrin has also been working with Moodle to create a Virtual Training Centre after having received LIG1 Funding and is seeking to develop e portfolio and individual learning plan modules within Moodle.

Chris Swingler, e-learning Manager, Association of Learning Providers fed back on the LIG funding (see post on LIG) and reported that for the first phase of funding 189 bids worth 7M had been received (with 1.64M being distributed to 105 providers).

LIG2 – those who have been successful will find out today. These bids were more around collaborative partnerships so it will be interesting to see what comes out of them. For LIG2 136 bids were received.

The third phase of LIG is planned for September and again bids will be around collaboration on specific projects around improving retention and achievement.

Dr Alan Clarke, Associate Director ICT and e-learning from NIACE gave some practical tips on realising the benefits of e learning. Mentioned research done on access students by Carol Twigg – need to read up on her.

Workshop

Only had chance to attend one workshop due to the train times. The one I went to was on the e-smart system which has been developed by S&B Automative Academy. S&B Automative Academy is a COVE and private Work Based Learning provider for motor vehicle apprentices. It is a national organisation training for companies like TNT. The company also provides short courses of 2/3 or1 day.

The esmart system tool came out of the need to track learner evidence and the desire for a portable, accessible system rather than the old paper based method. For the presentation a demo was carried out where a learner (delegate) was photographed with a mobile phone carrying out a task through their virtual vehicle resource which has been developed with BMW and then the image was uploaded to the evidence portfolio (a folder linking to the esmart tool). Real diagnostic equipment is linked to the software (I noticed it was a Fluke unit). The former system where large paper based portfolios were transported to a location for the EV was expensive and time consuming. With this method the esmart software is installed on laptops with swivel screens for ease of use in the workshop environment as they can be carried like a clipboard. PDAs were investigated but these were perceived as too small for the task. The tool runs in excel and is a flash based design. Navigation tools (hyperlinks) are positioned across the top of the screen. It seemed like a pretty good tool and the take up has reportedly been good because of its user friendly nature. Video capability is going to be introduced although I can’t really see why this is not possible now.

“An electronic NVQ portfolio that tracks and stores photographic evidence. The tracking system is smart and identifies exactly the outstanding evidence requirements as well as calculating total progress of all units and overall completion. A simple traffic light system sets targets and milestones for accurate learner progress review. The whole package runs from Microsoft Excel.”