Information into college etc

I have posted two new documents to WBL-WAY Group. One gives details on usable FD data the other suggests different focus for the portal.
On the data front, our development of "useful databases" is not really sophisticated yet to provide the portal with anywhere near the depth of data requested. Cross college collation of FD info is sparse unless it is paper based. As the report shows, this being tackled but not quickly enough to impact on the project.
On the course development front, the Dance section has provided "food for thought". The WBL materials should be made available and marketing towards placement providors who are not students/learners existing employers needs looking at.

Restructure continues

The development of Foundation Degrees at Burton college continues against a backdrop of restructuring and ecpd developments. These will impact on project aims.
Having moved to a faculty structure with Assistant Principals providing cross faculty senior management development impetus, there is now a Standards and Development Unit. Comprising of an Assistant Principal, a Quality Manager, a Curriculum Area Leader for ILT and E-Learning, and admin support. The whole topic of quality assurance, particularly in HE, is now under closer control.
Ecpd developments and ILT developments now have far more "management Clout" which should begin to impact on elearning and online information services development. Moodle developments are particularly being pressed.
The WBL-Way project has led to marketing seeking to improve links with employers, initially by developing a college news publication for employers. Of course, WBL-Way will feature in the first issue to be launched in June 2007.

Completed Surveys

Finally got most respnses to questionnaires back. Respondants include SMT, Curriculum Area Leaders, tutors and four groups of students - along with interesting inputs from Marketing and self financing students. Some of the student groups were not populated by HE type students - who appeared to be "muddling through" to quote one comment without any understanding or support.
Curriculum Area Leaders, who are charged with FD development, are reluctant to encourage me to contact employers. "Lets give them some support first before making them any more frightened than they already are." The students, particularly those on the Early Years FD, thought that it would be less than productive until I could go "bearing gifts".

Equipping Our Teachers et al.

Inside college - final gathering of questionnaire data underway.
Within project group - wondering what the response will be to the Shrewsbury & Burton attempt to produce a definitive model for the project (not much from elsewhere yet). Seems to be too easy to get into committees & Camels type arguments where everyone talks at cross purposes.
Equipping Teachers (East Mids RSC event). Really brought home the fact that even the people who train teachers accross a whole region have not got a fix on ILT or elearning or any type of e-support. ESCALATE looks useful (www.escalate.ac.uk) an HEA offering. Note there is even money available - seemingly easier to get your hands on than JISC - for staff development projects.
As usual, got some info on thing that I maybe should know about. ie http://www.learningtechnologies.ac.uk/itq/lrc/how_to_guides.htm
which I may have seen before ...but not made use of.

Gettysburg Meeting

On 15th of February 2007 there was a seminal meeting at Shrewsbury college - where a scoping review document was devised. Soon to be attached to WBL-Way documents, after Steve and Hamza have viewed it. The following email was sent back to Shrewsbury with revisions to the document. This is not intended to be facetious.

"Hi Dave and Richard
I have added a few words - under "Tutors" for example. I was tempted to try to knock up a student screen but stopped myself ....thinking about your wise-words yesterday. We have, in this document, a statement that defines exactly what we feel would provide a functional portal. By exactly I mean just do what it says...nothing left out and nothing more added.

Like one does............I was reading about Lincoln's Gettysburg speech last night. Apparently it went unnoticed on the day, as he wasn't even the main speaker. Someone else spoke for two hours then Lincoln got up and uttered 200 hastily penned words. His address was so short that the New York Times was able to print it verbatim in its obscure centre pages where it remained unadmired for quite a time.
The moral of this story is that if someone shoots you at the theatre within the next few weeks someone might realise just how good this scoping document is!

Send it to Steve and Hamza (telling them that it is an attempt to be concise)....then post it to Google docs and tell Fleur and Sam."

Scoping Tactics February 2007 and early ideas.

Given the task of investigating administrative procedures at Burton during our January WBL-Way meeting, I have immediately noted the lack of prescriptive organisation. Responsibility for employer engagement has been devolved to Curriculum Area Leaders (more clearly I should say "abdicated" by senior staff).

In order to test the water, I have sent a questionnaire to all members of the college HE Curriculum and Quality Group which is chaired by Garry Phillips (the Assistant Principal I nominated as project leader). I have asked them to reply before the next meeting of the group on 23rd Feb 07 and told them I intend to report to the project and formally to them (minutes to Academic Board -which I am a member of). I am hoping to tease out the "appearance and reality" of FD procedures - and get some concensus about standardising things (which the portal should assist).

Student Perceptions

I have, during January and early February 2007, met many groups of FD students. As a college issue, all of them are not receiving any kind of support from our VLE services (from either the existing Tribal Le or the Moodle trial we are running). This is pertinent as many of the students request portal development of services and support that staff could be providing via VLE's (even if this is only basic communication tools or advice or collaborative features). This is a teaching culture issue.

Early indications are that WBL placement providers are not fulfilling any FD requirements. This is particularly true in Care FD's where the students themselves are often the most highly qualified employees on site. Therefore they struggle to obtain mentors or Work Based assessment guidance.

Early (Jan 07) reports to Fleur are included in her review of scoping for Burton/Shrewsbury/Stoke in Google Docs.