developing a learner involvement strategy · questions to consider when developing a learner...

Developing aLearnerInvolvementStrategyA handbook for the further education sector

For review

Of interest to everyone involved in deliveringLSC-funded provision

February 2007

Responses are requested by 30 March 2007.

This handbook will be relevant to all providers asthey prepare a learner involvement strategy. Itwill be of particular interest to staff who lead onlearner involvement or operate in a studentliaison or similar role, or are newly appointed tothis type of role.

Further informationFor further information, please contact theappropriate Learning and Skills Council office.Contact details for each office can be found onthe LSC’s website (www.lsc.gov.uk).

Learning and Skills CouncilNational OfficeCheylesmore HouseQuinton RoadCoventry CV1 2WT

Tel: 0845 019 4170Fax: 024 7682 3675

www.lsc.gov.uk

ContentsParagraph number

Foreword by the National Learner Panel –

1: About this Handbook 1

Who is the handbook for? 6

How was the handbook developed? 8

How is the handbook structured? 9

Responses 13

2: About the Learner Involvement Strategy 21

What is a learner involvement strategy, and why is it important to have one? 21

What should be included in a learner involvement strategy? 28

What format should a learner involvement strategy take? 30

How should a learner involvement strategy be developed? 32

How should a learner involvement strategy be monitored and refreshed? 36

3: Strengthening Teaching and Learning and Responsiveness to Individual Need 40

How can teaching and learning and responsiveness to individual need be strengthened? 43

Questions to consider when developing a learner involvement strategy 56

4: Strengthening Learner Participation and Representation 57

How can you strengthen learner participation and representation? 58

Involving learner representatives 68

Formal structures of representation 76


5: Creating a Culture of Learner Involvement 84

How can you create a culture of learner involvement? 87


6: Measuring and Reporting on the Impact of your Learner Involvement Strategy 99

Annexes

A: Consultation questions

B: References

When learners participate in decisionsaffecting their learning experience, they arelikely to play a more active role in the provider’squality improvement processes – a key leverof service improvement.

Further Education: Raising skills, improving life chances (DfES, 2006c)

During the first event held by the National LearnerPanel (NLP) in January 2007, its members gave alearner’s perspective on the importance of a learnerinvolvement strategy and the issues the NLP mightaddress. That perspective is reproduced below.

The NLP was established by Bill Rammell, Minister ofState for Lifelong Learning, Further and HigherEducation, in November 2006 to provide theGovernment with direct access to learners from awide range of backgrounds, and to ensure that thevoice of the learner can influence national policy. Thepanel members range in age from 17 to 75 and aredrawn from further education (FE) colleges, work-based learning (WBL) and personal and communitydevelopment learning (PCDL).

As the newly established National Learner Panel, webelieve passionately in the benefits that learnerinvolvement can bring to many organisations. We arefrom a broad range of backgrounds and learningenvironments – some already with well-establishedmechanisms for learner involvement and otherscurrently without – but we are united in our beliefthat successful learner involvement can play a keyrole in helping to drive up quality.

We are therefore hugely supportive of the newrequirement for providers to develop their ownlearner involvement strategy, and we hope that it will help organisations to ensure that their delivery is firmly based on the needs of learners. However,we are wary that it is all too easy for ‘learnerinvolvement’ to be dismissed as a catchphrase, thelatest fad. If it is to work, it has to become aninherent part of a system that feeds back to those who have the power to make a difference,and it needs to have a tangible effect. It needs tobecome a key driver of every provider’s qualityimprovement system.

Before you read this draft handbook and respondwith your comments, we would like to share withyou our vision of a provider organisation that hasreally taken the principles of learner involvement to heart.

It is an organisation in which learner involvement is embedded throughout the organisational culture,learner representation is strong and responsivenessto the needs of the individual has helped to improveprovision. Crucially, we would expect to see thefollowing attributes.

•A dedicated learner liaison officer on the seniormanagement team, for example a learnerinvolvement co-ordinator, brings credibility to thevalue of the learner voice. His or her role is linkedto quality and curriculum issues, not just pastoralconcerns. In smaller organisations, this may not bea full-time post, but having a named person as afocal point for learner involvement activity cannevertheless send out a powerful message.

•An independent learner committee or studentcouncil, led by the learners and fully supported bydedicated staff, allows us to express our opinionsand concerns, and to which the provider iscommitted to responding.

•An established mechanism for involvinglearners in review processes (or even inspections)exists, which feeds back annually on how our viewshave helped the organisation to improve.

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Foreword by theNational Learner Panel

We certainly support many existing mechanisms forlearner representation and involvement, such asstudent or learner unions, learner surveys and electedstudent governors. We also agree with therecommendation in the FE White Paper, FurtherEducation: Raising skills, improving life chances, thatthere should be at least two student governors onevery governing body, and perhaps, depending on theorganisation, learner representation on the board. Butsometimes these arrangements don’t work as well asthey could: learner surveys, for example, will remaincredible only if we as learners feel that our input istaken seriously and we can track the impact of ourcontribution. Similarly, student governors can only do their job properly if they are properly trained and supported.

It’s important for us to know that provision is beingdriven by our needs, and not by the requirements offunding. We need to see the evidence that youunderstand and are responding to our learning needs.We would like to see one-to-one discussionsbetween learners and teachers or trainers that arenon-intimidating, that allow us to define a shared setof expectations and objectives, and represent agenuine learning experience for both parties.

Finally, in addition to the suggestions we’ve madeabove, there are some simple things you can do tosupport learner involvement in principle and inpractice. You can ensure that there are clear signpostsfor how learners can get involved (for example,physical signs as we walk through the door, andvisible noticeboards). When we enrol on a course, youcan provide us with welcome packs that raise ourawareness of the involvement opportunities. You candevelop open and honest means of relayinginformation back to us, for example through a directaddress from the principal or chief executive.

All of this would result in better two-waycommunication, enhanced awareness of the issuesthat affect us all and a feeling among learners thatwe are truly part of the organisation.

We are aware that many organisations are alreadydoing some of these things very well, and weacknowledge that different organisations, and thelearners they serve, have different needs. We know,for example, that one of the greatest challenges forthose in work-based learning is that learners canoften feel isolated. This will require the trainingprovider to develop ways that enable the learners tofeel part of a wider learning community.

But, whatever type of provider you are, we hope thatyou will view the introduction of a learnerinvolvement strategy as a positive step. And it mightseem obvious, but when you are developing yourstrategy, we’d suggest that you include your learnersin the process and then, once it is in place, ensurethat they know how to access it in the future. In themeantime, we urge you to get involved in feedingback your thoughts and comments during thisconsultation process, using the form at Annex A andthe contact details (including email) at paragraph 15.For the benefit of everyone.

The National Learner PanelFebruary 2007

Developing a Learner Involvement Strategy

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1 The country’s economy and society depend on oureducation and training system. Colleges and trainingproviders help 6 million learners every year who eachdeserve an enriching and successful learningexperience that gives them the skills and abilitiesthey need to succeed and thrive as individuals, ascitizens and at work.

2 The Five Year Strategy for Children and Learners(Department for Education and Skills (DfES), 2004;DfES, 2006a)) set out five clear priorities for the wayahead. These are:

•closing the gap in educational attainment betweenthose from low income and disadvantagedbackgrounds and their peers

•at the same time, continuing to raise standards forall across the education system

• increasing the proportion of young people stayingon in education or training beyond the age of 16

• reducing the number of young people on a path tofailure in adult life

•closing the skills gap at all levels, from basicliteracy and numeracy to postgraduate research, tokeep pace with the challenge of globalisation.

3 We can only achieve these aims by reforming theservices we deliver to help everyone achieve theirgoals, whoever they are and wherever they choose to learn. We need to put the needs of the learner and the employer at the centre of service design and delivery.

4 The need to deliver a demand-led system to supportthe UK in becoming a world leader in skills washighlighted in report of the Leitch Review of Skills,Prosperity for all in the Global Economy: World classskills (HM Treasury, 2006).

5 This handbook aims to support providers as theydevelop their own learner involvement strategies. Itincludes a framework and questions that will helpproviders in developing their own mechanisms forengaging with, and responding to, the needs ofindividuals, alongside examples of approaches thatother providers have found helpful.

Who is the handbook for?

6 This handbook is designed for use by all providersdelivering provision funded by the Learning and SkillsCouncil (LSC). It aims to address those areas that allproviders should consider when developing theirlearner involvement strategy and to provide aframework that is both practical and sufficientlyflexible to accommodate the circumstances ofdiverse providers. It will be for each provider todetermine how it will use this framework in thecontext of its own circumstances and to develop alearner involvement strategy that is appropriate tothe size and the nature of the learning that theprovider delivers.

7 The Further Education and Training Bill, which iscurrently before Parliament, contains a clause thatproposes a duty on the governing bodies of FEinstitutions to have due regard to guidance issued bythe Secretary of State for Education and Skills inrelation to consulting learners, prospective learnersand employers. Governing bodies of FE institutionswill want to consider that guidance alongside thisdocument. To keep it simple, governing bodies maywish to include their approach to consulting learnerswithin their overall learner involvement strategy. Itwill be for each institution to ensure it complies withany statutory duties.

1 About this Handbook


How was the handbook developed?

8 This draft version of the handbook has beendeveloped on the basis of a review of research anddiscussions with learners and providers, and hearingabout good practice across the FE sector. We havedrawn on:

•consultation and research conducted during thedevelopment of the Framework for Excellence (seehttp://ffe.lsc.gov.uk/)

• the consultation document Personalising FurtherEducation: Developing a vision (DfES, 2006b)

•discussions with managers, staff and learners fromacross the spectrum of FE provision, that is, in FEcolleges, and providers delivering PCDL and WBL

•the expertise of partner organisations such as theNational Union of Students, Quality ImprovementAgency, Association of Colleges, National Instituteof Adult Continuing Education and Centre forExcellence in Leadership.

How is the handbook structured?

9 Section 2 provides an overview of the proposedlearner involvement strategy, and addresses thefollowing questions.

•What is a learner involvement strategy,and why is it important to have one?

•What should be included in a learner involvement strategy?

•What format should a learner involvement strategy take?

•How should a learner involvement strategy be developed?

•How should a learner involvement strategy be monitored and refreshed?

10 Sections 3, 4 and 5 address the three key areas thatwe suggest every learner involvement strategyshould cover:

• involving learners individually, and strengtheningteaching and learning and responsiveness toindividual need

• involving learners collectively, and strengtheninglearner participation and representation

•developing the organisation, and creating a cultureof learner involvement.

11 Each of these sections contains an overview of therelevant area, along with a set of questions to helpyou to develop a learner involvement strategy.

12 Section 6 sets out how you might measure andreport on the impact of your learner involvementstrategy. In Personalising Further Education (DfES,2006b), the DfES set out the intention that thepersonalisation approach should be measuredthrough the Common Inspection Framework (Ofsted,2005) and the Framework for Excellence. As theFramework for Excellence is developed, we will lookto ensure that the measurement of your strategy canbe closely aligned with your self-assessment againstthe learner responsiveness strand of the Frameworkfor Excellence.

Responses

13 Responses are welcomed from organisations on allaspects of this draft handbook. As well as invitingresponses using the questions in Annex A to thishandbook, we will be arranging interviews withproviders to support the consultation.

14 If you would like to be interviewed as part of theconsultation, please register your interest by [email protected](please note that it may not be possible to interviewall those who express an interest).

15 If you would like to comment, please send commentsin writing or by email to:

Berni HensonLearner involvement strategy handbook reviewLearning and Skills CouncilCheylesmore HouseQuinton RoadCoventry CV1 2WTEmail: [email protected]

16 Please send any responses and comments by 30 March 2007.

17 The final version of the handbook will also beinformed by the outcomes of the DfES consultation(DfES, 2006b) and will be available by the end ofApril 2007.

18 The handbook is intended to support providers in

http://ffe.lsc.gov.uk/

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developing a learner involvement strategy bySeptember 2007, in line with the requirement in theFE White Paper (DfES, 2006c). We intend to include a resource appendix in the final document. If youwould like to recommend any resources for inclusion,please include this in your response.

19 The year 2007/08 is the first in which there will be a requirement to create learner involvementstrategies, and we will be looking at ways to evaluatethe process nationally. This evaluation will help usshare good practice and will guide the developmentof additional resources and materials to supportcolleges and providers.

20 As part of the personalisation agenda, the DfES andits partners are developing resources to support yourefforts to involve learners individually andcollectively. These are described in PersonalisingFurther Education (DfES, 2006b).


What is a learner involvement strategy,and why is it important to have one?

Systematic collection of the views of learners isa rich source of valuable feedback, and whenacted on effectively it can influence the shapeand availability of services to ensure maximumbenefit to the learner.

Further Education: Raising skills, improving life chances (DfES, 2006c)

21 Learner involvement is not a new idea. Across the FEsystem, we have found examples of providersworking hard to engineer greater learner involvementin order to meet learners’ needs well and deliverexcellent provision for them.

22 For learners, the benefits of such involvement areclear: a more responsive, more engaging, higherquality offer that empowers learners in shaping theirown experience, and delivers improved outcomes formore learners, especially those who might otherwisenot succeed.

23 For providers, the potential benefits include:

• increased participation, retention, progression andachievement

• learners who are more expert and independent,and who can help to shape learning experiencestailored to meet their needs and objectives in away that achieves success

•better quality of information about the learners’perspective, which can be used to triangulate other sources of data and drive professional and organisational development and quality improvement

•better decisions about resource allocation and investment

• learners who feel more involved and are motivatedto put something back into the organisation, forinstance by contributing to the development of

policy or by coming back to share their experienceof industry with future generations of learners.

24 Learner involvement covers a wide variety ofpractices that seek to enable, equip and motivatelearners to voice their views and actively shape theirlearning, as the following examples illustrate.

•Learners can be involved in many different kinds ofdiscussions and decisions. For example, this mightcover the learning experience, the support theyneed, the facilities that are available, or thestrategy and direction of the organisation to whichthey belong.

•Learners can be involved individually or collectively,on their own behalf or as representatives, ascustomers, partners or experts.

•Learner involvement may be initiated by theprovider, as when a provider uses a satisfactionsurvey to gather data, or it may be initiated by thelearner, for instance when learners act collectivelythrough a student association or committee, orindividually as expert learners to shape theirlearning experiences and environment.

25 Each of these approaches can be valuable in its ownright. However, people across the sector have told usthat realising the full value of learner involvementrequires a co-ordinated approach across theorganisation to tackling barriers as perceived andexperienced by learners, and unlocking their potentialto help drive improvements. Examples of such anapproach include:

•an organisation-wide approach to helping staff riseto the challenge of greater learner involvement,including a clear continuing professionaldevelopment strategy that prioritises the supportthat staff need to seek and respond effectively tolearner views

2 About the LearnerInvolvement Strategy

7

•putting in place mechanisms to enable studentgovernors or committee members to be successful,drawing on other governors and committeemembers to provide mentoring and other support

• setting up a successful system of learnerrepresentation, in particular working with learnersto consider how to help representatives developtheir skills and access the support, facilities andresources they need to do their job

•developing a culture where learners are motivatedto give constructive feedback, where they see theirfeedback is taken seriously, and where teachershave the skills to encourage and respond positivelyto feedback

• fostering an inclusive culture where no individualsor groups of learners are left out and where theprinciples of equality and diversity inform all learnerinvolvement activity. This may include how to reachout to disadvantaged groups within a communityand to those that may be under-represented orless likely to succeed in their learning.

26 Your learner involvement strategy should help youco-ordinate activity to maximise the benefits oflearner involvement for your organisation. It will setout the steps you will take to maintain, enhance andbuild learner involvement in your organisation,including mechanisms you already have in place.

27 The Framework for Excellence will set out a standardand criteria for capturing and responding to learnerviews that will apply across the FE sector. Over time, we envisage that your learner involvementstrategy will set out what you plan to do to achieve excellence.

What should be included in a learnerinvolvement strategy?

28 Your learner involvement strategy should set out thesteps you will take to maintain, enhance and buildlearner involvement in order to improve theeffectiveness of your organisation and provision. Thelearner involvement strategy outline opposite providesa suggested format for your strategy document.

29 If you do not already have a learner involvementstrategy in place, you may want to use the outline asa template. If you already have a strategy, you maywant to review it against the outline. There may beaspects that you want to incorporate in the formatyou have developed for your organisation.

Learner involvement strategy outline

1. Baseline review

It will be important to review and evaluateexisting learner involvement arrangements and policies with a view to deciding whetheryou plan to continue and develop these arrangements.

2. Improvement andimplementation

The learner involvement strategy should beforward-looking. It may include the steps youwill take to improve existing learnerinvolvement mechanisms or policies, as well asany plans you may have to implement newones. For instance, a learner involvementstrategy might include a plan to review thequestions used in a learner survey, or to pilot acourse representative scheme.

Sections 3, 4 and 5 of this draft handbookprovide questions and examples under each ofthe areas to help you develop your learnerinvolvement strategy in order to:

• involve learners individually, andstrengthen teaching and learning andresponsiveness to individual need

• involve learners collectively, andstrengthen learner participation andrepresentation to improve services

• develop the organisation, and create aculture of learner involvement.

3. Evaluation and reporting

The learner involvement strategy should setout clearly the ways in which its effectivenesswill be measured and reported and howlearners will be informed of the changes madein the light of their comments. This topic isdiscussed in more detail in Section 6.


The FE White Paper (DfES, 2006c) sets out theexpectation that all colleges and providers willpublish and monitor strategies for involvinglearners.

Throughout this handbook we will highlight, inboxes such as this one, other mechanisms set out inthe White Paper that providers are expected toinclude in their learner involvement strategies.

Taken together, these measures form a basicfoundation for learner involvement activity,and are an essential part of your learnerinvolvement strategy.

What format should a learnerinvolvement strategy take?

30 There is no set format for a learner involvementstrategy. Each provider will have differentrequirements. For some small providers, the learnerinvolvement strategy may be a short statement ofintent and an overview of current and plannedmechanisms for learner involvement. For a largecollege, it may be valuable to include some detail ofthe way in which involvement arrangements operate,for example setting out how a student committee isconstituted and run. The appropriate level of detail isfor the organisation to decide.

31 The outline described at paragraph 29 aims to providea structure that is easy to use in developing a learnerinvolvement strategy, or as a useful check to ensureyou have considered each of the main themes.

How should a learner involvementstrategy be developed?

32 We recognise that the diversity of the FE sector isone of its great strengths, and that differentproviders work in different circumstances withdifferent types and numbers of learners. There is nosingle correct way to involve learners. The learnerinvolvement strategy is your opportunity to createan approach to learner involvement that reflects the:

•nature and number of your learners

• type(s) of programmes or training you provide

•size and remit of your organisation

•work you have already done to involve learners inyour organisation that has proved effective inimproving the learner experience and success.

33 At the heart of a successful learner involvementstrategy will lie your organisation’s current prioritiesfor learner involvement. We recognise that differentorganisations will have different priorities, dependingon their size, their remit, their client group and thematurity of their learner involvement arrangements,as the following examples illustrate.

•A provider focusing on 16–19 provision might want to emphasise citizenship in its approach to learner involvement.

•A WBL provider might identify as a priority theneed to enable and support dialogue betweenteachers or trainers and learners, and within thelearner group.

•A large college might want to focus its efforts onimproving representative structures, using the FE White Paper (DfES, 2006c) requirements as astarting point.

•An organisation working with vulnerable groupsmight put at the heart of its strategy thedevelopment of expert learners through betterteaching and learning and pastoral support.

•A provider offering many different kinds of courseto a diverse learner base, and with a learnerinvolvement strategy already in place, might makeinclusion its priority.

•A provider with established, successful approachesto involving its current learners might want toexplore ways of involving potential learners, aswell as encouraging past learners to contribute(for instance by sharing their industry experience)or involving the local community.

34 The following checklist may help identify the areaswhere your organisation could prioritise its activitiesto:

•give learners more opportunities to get involved

•help learners develop the skills they need to get involved

•give learners the support and confidence they needto get involved

•motivate learners to get involved

• identify and meet the needs of groups of learnerswho are currently less involved

•ensure staff and managers have the skills, supportand confidence they need to involve learners.

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35 We recommend that the discussion aboutinvolvement priorities in any organisation should bean inclusive one, involving the senior managementteam, teaching and support staff and, of course,learners themselves.

How should a learner involvementstrategy be monitored and refreshed?

36 A learner involvement strategy should be a livingdocument that is reviewed regularly, probablyannually, in the light of an evaluation of itseffectiveness and the difference that it makes to thelearner experience and success rates. A review shoulddraw on feedback from learners and any goodpractice. The strategy may be drawn up as part ofyour main business planning cycle, alongside yourbusiness plan and self-assessment report.

37 In the future, we envisage that the process ofdeveloping, monitoring and refreshing your learnerinvolvement strategy will be driven primarily by yourself-assessment and action-planning against theresponsiveness to learners strand of the Frameworkfor Excellence and the Common InspectionFramework (Ofsted, 2005).

38 We recommend that you involve learners inmonitoring and refreshing your strategy.

39 People from across the sector have stressed thatlearner involvement is a journey. Input given byparticipants at a workshop held in November 2006offered the following advice: start small, plancarefully, and make sure that existing learnerinvolvement measures are working successfullybefore implementing new ones.

40 Learner involvement starts with the individuallearner’s involvement in co-creating their learningexperience, which, as Personalising Further Education(DfES, 2006b) makes clear, depends on negotiationand dialogue with learners. A learner involvementstrategy should address how this dialogue will befostered and personalisation embedded in teachingand learning.

41 For learners to get involved in a dialogue about theirlearning, they need to become experts inunderstanding their own learning needs and howthey learn and evaluating their learning experience.They will also need to develop the confidence totake part in the learning dialogue. Current work thatwill support your efforts in this exciting area oflearner involvement includes the work of the QualityImprovement Agency (QIA) on the characteristics ofthe ‘expert learner’, which will be an importantresource for learner involvement strategies in thefuture (QIA, 2007).

42 Assessment, in particular initial, diagnostic, formativeand summative assessment, will also be an importantaspect of supporting learners both to become expertand to reach their potential. Learners should beactively engaged in an effective assessment of theirneeds at the start of their programme, and in theirongoing assessment and support. They need helpwith developing the language and understanding ofthe concepts involved in assessment so that they caneasily discuss assessment and learning and really useassessments themselves to improve how well theylearn. The QIA is reviewing and evaluating existingassessment resources, tools and literature, and willtake this work forward to develop more supportmaterials and good practice on assessment modelsby April 2008.

How can teaching and learning andresponsiveness to individual need bestrengthened?

43 We discuss below the following approaches tostrengthening teaching and learning andresponsiveness to individual need:

• involving learners in assessment

•pastoral and other support for learners

•continuing professional development

• involving learners in quality improvement.

Involving learners in assessment

44 A learner-centred, holistic initial assessment processwill involve the learner in a variety of experiencesdesigned to yield information that will guide whatthey will learn, how they will learn and how theymight be supported. Many learners will be involved ina screening process to identify levels of literacyand/or numeracy. The process is likely to include the use of assessment tools, with other tools used to diagnose specific literacy and numeracy skills and needs.

45 Learners who understand how they learn best will beable to take a more active role in managing theirlearning. Learning styles inventories can be used toidentify preferred ways of working; structuredfeedback on this can give learners the confidenceneeded to engage in discussion about how theylearn, at the same time as helping them recognisethe support they will need to learn in a range ofdifferent ways. It is important to ensure that teachers


3 Strengthening Teaching and Learning andResponsiveness toIndividual Need

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and trainers have the time and skills to help learnersto develop an understanding of a range of learningstyles, a greater awareness of their own learningpreferences, and strategies for applying thisunderstanding in a range of learning contexts. Thiswill be an important part of embedding apersonalised approach to teaching and learning.

The FE White Paper includes an expectation thatlearners should have a proper assessment of theirneeds at the start of their programme, and thatthey should be supported in developing a range ofeffective learning styles in order to get the mostfrom their programme and take responsibility formanaging their own learning.

46 Involving learners actively in assessment can givethem a deeper understanding of their ownpreferences and needs, and how these differ fromthose of others. It is important to explain assessmentto learners so that they understand why and howthey will be assessed, and have an early opportunityto discuss the outcomes of testing and feedbackfrom assessment activities. This discussion can helpto shape and structure their learning programme, theways in which they may want to learn, and thesupport they will need in order to be effective in that learning.

47 Learner induction is an important opportunity tobegin this dialogue and ongoing opportunities forlearners to discuss their assessment can help themtake more responsibility for their learning.Conversations about learning can also benefit froman organisation-wide learning model to help learnersunderstand what to expect from their learningexperience, and to help them identify what theyneed and to discuss this with staff.

48 As learners grow in expertise and confidence, theywill increasingly be able to co-produce their learningexperiences as the balance of responsibility betweenlearner and provider shifts. Confident expert learnersmay also be involved in peer support, which can be apowerful way of cementing new learning skills andpassing them on to other learners, as well asproviding a satisfying and rewarding experience forthe learners themselves.

At a conference run by the Centre for Excellencein Leadership (CEL) in January 2007, learnersdiscussed their motivations for getting involved intheir organisations, for instance as representatives.For many of those present, the opportunity to helpother learners develop the expertise andconfidence to get more out of their learningexperience was a significant motivation.

At Chichester College, learners were invited toreview a learning model developed by staff. Whatemerged was a simpler and more learner-friendlymodel, based on the question ‘Has the pennydropped?’ The model, which is now in usethroughout the college, offers the followingquestions for learners to review their learning.

• Was the aim of your lesson explained?

• Was it connected to your previous lesson?

• Were the teaching and activities interesting?

• Did the teacher or trainer check that youunderstood?

• Did the penny drop? – Yes – I know morethan when I came into class.

Pastoral and other support for learners

49 Approaches to pastoral support can play a criticalrole in developing the confidence, motivation andindependence of learners. Work so far suggests thatthe three main components of pastoral support are:

•undoing barriers to learning

•boosting learning and achievement

•motivating and spurring ambition and broadeninghorizons for future steps after completion of the programme.

50 There is a wealth of research on the benefits of goodpastoral support: some providers, for example, aredeveloping ways of offering pastoral support thatactively engages learners in self-help and peersupport. The abilities of excellent teaching staff toprovide appropriate tutorial support are central toefforts to build learners’ expertise. Appropriatecontinuing professional development (CPD) may be an important element of your learner involvement strategy.

For the senior management team at LewishamCollege, the drive to give learners more controlover their learning, and to encourage staff to stepback and allow learners to become moreindependent, is a priority. The college uses theterm ‘learner development’ to convey a sense ofthe gradual assumption of self-responsibility. Thecollege’s information, advice and guidanceframework takes this principle beyond the college:GURU (‘Guidance Until you no longer Require Us’is a post-exit service that offers advice andguidance on jobsearch, starting work, universitylife and what to do if things go wrong.

The college has also established a ‘duty ofcontribution’, whereby learners who come to thecollege make a voluntary contribution to help inthe day-to-day running of the organisation, forexample by taking the role of peer mentor orgreen officer. Through measures such as these,the college fosters a culture of learner agency,encouraging its learners to take control of andresponsibility for their own lives, and promoting an awareness of the consequences of their life choices.

The FE White Paper includes an expectation thatgoverning bodies will consider how their pastoralarrangements can best reflect the characteristics oftheir learner body, including faith (for example,through multi-faith chaplaincy arrangements).Pastoral support will be important for learnerswherever they study, and other providers will needto consider the mechanisms they can put in placeto ensure that they support their learners in a waythat reduces drop-out and maximises attainment.

Continuing professional development

51 The responsibility for developing learners’ expertiseand confidence lies ultimately with the staff whowork directly with those learners, and in particularwith teaching and support staff. A critical element of efforts to involve learners in initial and ongoingassessment, therefore, is appropriate CPD, and CPDplans will be an important part of any learnerinvolvement strategy.

52 Senior managers, too, should look for opportunitiesto improve their skills in, and knowledge of,personalising learning and involving learners. The fullrange of professional development activities has arole to play here, from formal training across theorganisation to coaching arrangements or staffnetworks. There may be valuable opportunities toinvolve learners in these development activities, forinstance, in developing materials for training sessionsor participating in delivery.

Learners at a conference run by the CEL inJanuary 2007 identified appropriate professionaldevelopment as a critical part of an organisation’sapproach to learner involvement. Teachers andtrainers, they argued, would benefit from theopportunity to build their skills in listening to andnegotiating with learners. This could be particularlyimportant for people from an industry background,who might have less experience of working withlearners. The learners also commented on the needfor senior managers to be skilled at engaging andcommunicating with learners.


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The FE White Paper includes a commitment tointroduce by September 2007 a regulatory CPDrequirement, applying to FE colleges and supportedby a national CPD framework and guidance. Thisincludes an intention to require teaching staff tomaintain a portfolio of CPD that shows evidence of,among other things, the use of learner feedback toimprove performance.

Involving learners in quality improvement

53 Learners can also play an active role in qualityimprovement across the organisation. This may beclosely linked to the measures you put in place tostrengthen learner participation and representation(see Section 4). For instance, if you have a course rep system, these reps are ideally placed to participatein the quality improvement system. Confident expert learners can bring fresh insights to helpquality improvement.

54 Of course, learners can be involved not just assources of feedback, but also as assessors andevaluators. For instance, appropriately trained and supported learners might play a role in observing teaching.

55 Support for staff in understanding and responding tolearner feedback can be critical. Successful efforts toboost the confidence of learners can lead,paradoxically, to a short-term increase in what mightbe initially perceived as negative or unfocusedfeedback, or even complaints.

At Pendleton College, curriculum managerssought and collated learner views on the question‘What makes an outstanding lesson?’ Findings arebeing used as the basis of staff developmentexercises.

Questions to consider when developing alearner involvement strategy

56 Providers may find the following questions useful asprompts for developing a learner involvementstrategy that will strengthen teaching and learningand responsiveness to individual need.

•How will you help learners become expertlearners?

•How will you help learners develop the confidenceto take part in the learning dialogue?

•How will you embed the learner voice in qualityimprovement mechanisms?

At Ealing, Hammersmith and West LondonCollege, groups of learners contribute to thedevelopment of self-assessment reports (SARs) in June through a meeting with a review teamcomprising the director of the curriculum area,the principal or deputy principal, the director ofquality and a college governor.

Learners are invited to corroborate or challengethe strengths or weaknesses identified in a draftSAR prepared by the review team, and actionsrequired are minuted and fed back to therespective curriculum manager, with feedbackcovering things that are good as well as thingsthat need to be changed. When the SAR ispresented in its final form in November, it isexpected that minuted actions will have beenaddressed. The process is very much appreciatedby all parties.

57 This section considers the following approaches tostrengthening learner participation andrepresentation, including:

•gathering learners’ views directly from learnersusing mechanisms such as surveys (includingsatisfaction surveys), focus groups, consultationevents and more informal feedback

• involving learner representatives, including courserepresentatives and student governors as well asoffering all learners more informal opportunities toget involved

•setting up new structures such as studentcommittees, student parliaments, learner forums,and student unions or associations.

How can you strengthen learnerparticipation and representation?

Gathering learners’ views directly from learners

Surveys

58 One common way of collecting learners’ views isthrough surveys. Surveys are an effective way ofgathering standardised responses from a largenumber of people and they can be enriched byseeking individual responses using open questions.Surveys can be paper-based or online, or can beconducted through structured interviews (face-to-face or by telephone). They may be carried out acrossthe whole organisation, or targeted at specific groupsof learners; for example, a teacher or trainer who askslearners to complete an evaluation form isconducting a mini-survey.

Providers are encouraged to use the core questionsfrom the National Learner Satisfaction Survey(NLSS) (LSC, 2005) within their own surveys, and tobenchmark their results against the NLSS using theLSC’s research tools website(http://researchtools.lsc.gov.uk/KMSResearchTools).As part of the Framework for Excellence, allproviders will be required to include in surveys acore set of questions based on the NLSS questions.Further information regarding this requirement forFE will be available in summer 2007.

Focus groups

59 Research shows that learners are growing lesstolerant of the closed questions that are typical ofsurveys. One alternative is the use of focus groups,which make room for more learner-initiated comment,although this to some extent relies on the personfacilitating the group having the required skills.

60 Focus groups can also be an effective way ofinvolving learners in innovating (developing newsolutions) as well as evaluating (giving views onexisting provision). Many providers supplement theirsurveys with focus groups to probe more deeply theissues that the survey has brought to the surface. TheLSC has produced materials on running participatorydesign workshops, which are an effective way ofinvolving learners in innovation (Unlocking LearnerMotivation: Report on the LSC Learner EngagementProgramme (LSC, 2006)).


4 Strengthening LearnerParticipation andRepresentation

http://researchtools.lsc.gov.uk/KMSResearchTools

Telephone interviews and online solutions to gathering feedback

61 Where it is difficult to set up focus groups (because learners might be physically distributedacross many different locations), telephoneinterviews can be an effective way of gathering moredetailed input. There are also online options whichcan be highly effective with learners who arecomfortable in an online environment – examplesinclude discussion boards, blogs and onlineconsultations. Where online methods are used,it is important to monitor responses and to checkthat learners who are less e-literate are not being excluded.

As the UK’s largest online training provider,learndirect recognises that the views of its 2 million learners are crucial for continuousimprovement. Focus groups are a critical elementof the organisation’s learner involvement strategy,alongside a quarterly online learner questionnaire,consultation via the organisation’s network of 770centres, and other mechanisms. Focus groups aredesigned to allow learners to raise issues and tofeed back on the learning experience and, throughthis process, contribute to the improvement of the service.

Sessions are arranged in accessible locations overlunch periods, with travel expenses paid, to breakdown potential barriers to attendance. Minutes are reported back in a ‘You said this – we did this’format so that the learners involved can see theimpact of their voices. Learners at learndirect arealso involved in working groups such as themarketing working group, where learners’ viewshave led to a better understanding of the learningexperiences of target audiences.

Consultation events

62 When more time is available, effectively runconsultation events can have a big impact, not justbecause of the quality of the information generated,but also because they create an opportunity forlarger numbers of learners and staff to workalongside each other to exchange views. It can be anopportunity to bring people together and shareexperiences across sites.

63 In deciding which methods you should use to gatherlearners’ views, it may be useful to ask yourself thefollowing questions.

•How will you use the information you gather?Examples of use include identifying issues forfurther investigation, generating new ideas,evaluating options and make a choice, ormeasuring performance or progress.

•What kind of information do you need to gather?Decide whether you need responses from as large asample as possible or a smaller sample of in-depthinsights into learners’ views. Are you looking forinnovative ideas or the insights of specific groupsof learners?

•What practical constraints are there on themethods you choose, and how might youovercome them? You need to consider the timethat is available, the facilitation experience andskills of staff conducting the consultation event,any practical arrangements such as venue and cost,and possible barriers presented by learners’ lack ofconfidence or trust.

ProCo NW Ltd, a work-based learning provider,found that learners were just ticking boxes ontheir written questionnaires. Now themanagement information system is used toidentify a sample of learners from eachdepartment who are interviewed by the qualitymanager about key processes such as recruitmentand initial assessment, induction, individuallearning plans and progress reviews, off-the-jobtraining, support and on-the-job training.

The quality manager reviews the learners’ filesbefore the interviews in order to highlight areas toask about, but the interviews are not limited to theprompts used by the quality manager. They providean open opportunity to discuss any issues thelearner wants to raise. A summary of the questionsand answers goes to the management team.

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•How will you involve learners in designing andevaluating methods for gathering their views?Consider involving learners in devising thequestionnaires, focus groups or consultation eventsand any design review arrangements. Input fromlearner representatives will be useful here.

64 Other feedback that learners give outside theseformal planned approaches, for instance throughcomplaints procedures or informal conversations withteaching staff, may also form part of a learnerinvolvement strategy. These approaches can beeffective and valuable where issues and complaintsare followed up and responded to swiftly so thatlearners see that their input has resulted in aresponse or a change.

65 Whatever approaches you take to gathering learners’views, it is important that you think about how youwill include all learners, in particular those who maybe especially ‘hard to reach’ or with particular needs.You may want to run focus groups comprisingspecific categories of learner, for exampleBangladeshi women or looked-after children, tounderstand their perceptions fully and decide whatimprovements would help their experience of, andsuccess in, their studies.

66 In designing a survey, it is very important to takesteps to ensure that learners can respond. Forinstance, certain learner groups, such as those withEnglish as a second language (ESOL), may requireadditional support or adapted questions. The choicebetween paper, online and telephone surveys shouldalso be based on an understanding of learnerpreferences. Providing more than one way ofresponding to a survey is often a good strategy.

For Manchester Adult Education Service (MAES),a low-tech approach has proved an effective wayto engage learners in giving their views. Posters in prominent locations in each of MAES’s 14centres ask for feedback, with the headings ‘Whatdo we do well?’, ‘Where do we need to improve?’and ‘What would you be interested in us doing inthe future?’ Passers-by are provided with Post-itnotes and pens to log their ideas, and commentsfrom one person will often trigger responses fromothers. ‘You said – we did’ feedback is posted incentres to let people know how the feedback hasbeen used.

The Green Paper Care Matters (DfES, 2006d) pointsout that FE colleges and WBL providers offer anexcellent route towards education, training andemployment to young people in care aged 16 andolder, within institutions experienced in offeringpersonalised education packages. The Green Paperincludes a requirement for each FE provider to havein place a learner involvement strategy thatincludes the views of young people in care andcare-leavers.

67 An important part of the learner involvementstrategy will be the measures that are in place tomonitor the inclusivity of arrangements (includingless formal mechanisms) and the specific steps takento ensure that different groups, especially those leastlikely to succeed, are heard and responded to.

Involving learner representatives

68 Learner representatives can help in gatheringlearners’ views indirectly, and supplementing theinformation gathered through other means: forinstance, a representative may pass on the views of alearner regarding the quality of a particular course.

At Dewsbury College, staff from areas such asESOL, learners with disabilities and/or learningdifficulties, Entry Level and franchised provisionhave worked to ensure that the wording ofquestionnaires reflects the needs of their clientgroups. A standard questionnaire has been created,which can be further adapted to specific groupswhere necessary.

Runshaw College was also concerned that somelearners might be disadvantaged by theterminology used in its standard survey. EntryLevel learners now receive help to fill in the onlinesurvey from a facilitator who is used to workingwith this client group but not directly connectedwith the individual learner.

One teacher at Orchard Hall College developed a‘scrapbook challenge’ approach to gatheringfeedback from adults with profound and multiplelearning difficulties. The teacher and learnerstogether review a collection of photos and videofootage of activities undertaken by learners overthe week. The teacher gauges learners’ reactions tojudge whether they enjoyed the activity or not.


69 A strong learner involvement strategy will considerhow to encourage less confident learners in engagingin learner representation. This may include ‘buddying’arrangements for those who would like to getinvolved but may lack the confidence to take on acourse representative role straightaway, or shadowingof existing course representatives for a period beforetaking up the role themselves. Such approaches canhelp widen learner representation at all levels.

Course representatives

70 Using course representatives can be a useful way for learners to feed issues through to studentgovernors or other learner representatives workingwith management.

71 There are different ways of organising courserepresentation depending on the needs of yourorganisation and learners. A formal system ofrepresentatives elected by learners to serve for aperiod of time may be difficult to implement in asmall organisation. Inviting a number of learnersselected at random to take part in course reviewprocesses can add significant value.

At City College Norwich, all courses elect courserepresentatives, who attend school (curriculumarea) councils along with heads of schools andother staff. Course representatives raise issues ofconcern, including issues about the content anddelivery of courses. These meetings are held atleast three times a year, and in some casesmonthly. Course representatives also attend atwice-termly student parliament that is attendedby members of senior management and studentunion officers.

At Peter Symonds College, a scheduled coursereview takes place at the end of the autumn term.Learners first identify up to six good or bad thingsabout their course individually, and then work inpairs and fours to identify common issues to takeforward. The process concludes with a coursemeeting attended by subject staff and a learnerrepresentative from each class, who is alsoresponsible for reporting to peers on the outcomes of the meeting.

72 Whatever your approach to course representation,it is important to ensure that representatives areequipped with the skills they need to fulfil their role.Research suggests that, without appropriate support,many course representatives find it easier to talkabout issues that are not related to teaching andlearning such as facilities or transport. Learnerrepresentatives may also need practical support inorder to fulfil the role, such as access to computerfacilities, an email address or support with childcare.

Student governors and learner committeemembers

73 Student governors and other learner representativeson key committees or groups also have a vital role toplay in ensuring that learners are at the heart of theorganisation. Like course representatives, studentgovernors need appropriate support to succeed intheir role. Student governors in particular may needassistance from the chair and from other governorsto play a full part. For instance, preparatory meetingswith learner representatives can help them to getclarification on any papers required and to decide inadvance where and how they want to contribute.

At Leicester College, there is a strong recognitionof the need to put resources behind the courserepresentative system. The student liaison officeroffers training, support and guidance to courserepresentatives throughout their courserepresentative experience, with training tailored todifferent groups of learners. There are specificprogrammes for ESOL learners and learners withlearning difficulties and/or disabilities. Courserepresentatives can work for bronze, silver or goldawards, depending upon the degree ofinvolvement they choose to have.

Course representatives provide feedback onimprovements to be made, support fellow learnersin working with staff to achieve a learningexperience personalised to their needs, providelearners’ perspectives on cross-college issues andon groups such as the equal opportunitiescommittee, and participate in high-profilemeetings and events.

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The FE White Paper includes an expectation thatlearners will play a key role in institutionalgovernance and states that there should be at leasttwo learners on governing bodies. The CEL hasdeveloped training to support learners in leadershiproles, and runs an accredited programme forstudent governors with the NUS and theAssociation of Colleges (AoC).

Other types of representation

74 There are many other ways in which learnerrepresentatives can play a part in the life of theorganisation over and above formal representationon committees or in processes.

With a management team of just two people,Breaking Through The Barriers (BTTB) haswrestled with the challenge of finding approachesto learner representation appropriate to a smallprovider. The organisation’s aspiration is to developa board that will include learner representation. Inthe meantime, learners from programmes areinvited to the Annual General Meeting (AGM) totalk about their experiences and achievements.

Ongoing evaluation of all courses seeks views fromlearners and contracting organisations’ experiencesof BTTB services. This less formal representation ishighly rewarding for learners, contractingorganisations and the directors of BTTB alike, andensures that learners’ voices are heard.

The organisation sees its grass-roots approach tolearner involvement, with the aim being to enablelearners to focus on the things they care about, asa significant factor in achieving 98 per centretention rates (including accredited courses).

75 In creating a scheme to engage learners asrepresentatives, it may be useful to ask the followingquestions.

•How formal will the representative role be?

•How will the representative be selected?

•What will motivate learners to becomerepresentatives? The motivation may be a sense of achievement and making a contribution,acquiring new skills and experience, remuneration,or just fun.

Formal structures of representation

76 Learner representatives can play a key role in a widerange of existing committees, processes and projectsacross an organisation. It may also be worthdeveloping new structures to involve learners in your organisation.

At Liverpool Community College, learners withlearning difficulties and/or disabilities volunteertheir time to carry out access audits on newcollege buildings and fittings. In one case, visuallyimpaired learners were asked to advise on colourschemes. Their advice led to the use of a standardcolour coding of floors in seven buildings, enablingvisually impaired learners to work out which floorthey were on more easily.

At Bromley Adult Education College, learnerswith disabilities are invited to act as mysteryshoppers to test and give feedback on the equalityand diversity policy and procedures.

At Luton Sixth Form College, a studentambassador programme through which learnersplay a role in promoting equality and diversity isone of many elements in the college’s studentvoice policy, which confirms its commitment toinvolving learners in decision-making andoperational management processes. The college isalso exploring the feasibility of training learners toevaluate teaching and learning in the classroom.

At Pendleton College, learners’ views are soughtwhen new teaching staff are being interviewed.Learners review ‘micro-lessons’ taught byapplicants. This has been found to be useful forshortlisting, and learners appreciate theopportunity to comment, even if they are comingto the end of their time at the college and maynever be taught by the applicant.


Student committees

77 Student committees or similar bodies can play apowerful role in bringing learner and managementrepresentatives together to work as a team. It is veryimportant to ensure that bodies such as these arenot just ‘talking shops’, and that they are fullyintegrated with other decision-making andgovernance structures in the organisation. It is alsoimportant to ensure that these bodies are not limitedin their remit to issues such as facilities, and thatthey address core issues such as quality. Learnersshould have a role in determining the agenda ofstudent committees and similar bodies.

The FE White Paper includes an expectation that allcolleges will set up a student committee, and otherproviders are expected to have mechanisms forengaging learners collectively.

Herefordshire Group Training Association holdsthree meetings a year that are attended by electedlearner representatives, staff, the LSC contractmanager, and representatives of Connexions andemployers. Part of the meeting is used to reporton feedback from learner surveys and action takenas a result. The process has now reached the stagewhere few comments are received aboutproblems, since these matters will already havebeen resolved. The balance has instead tiltedtowards positive comments about how things canbe maintained or further improved.

Arden College currently has 49 residential and 26 day learners aged 16–25, with levels of needranging from those with autism who may be ableto communicate only through pictorialrepresentations to those with Williams syndrome,who may also have emotional and behaviouralproblems. The college has a student council, whichmeets every month and for which nominationswere invited and members chosen to representboth day and residential learners. Learners help to set the agenda and can raise any issues via this forum. Issues considered include personalrelationships, bullying, the facilities and theprogrammes that learners would like to pursue.

Student parliaments or learner forums

78 Student parliaments and forums give learners theopportunity to come together to share views,identify issues and develop a common agenda.Learners may use these structures to feed issues andviews to the learner representatives on other bodies,such as student committees, or directly to theorganisation’s management. A few staff attending alearner-led meeting to hear learner views can gatherperspectives that learner representatives attendingstaff meetings may find hard to raise.

It is important for colleges to bear in mind thatstudent parliaments, learner forums, committees,councils, associations or unions may fall within thedefinition of ‘students’ union’ in the Education Act1994 (the Act). In this case, the provisions of theAct, which include holding elections and having awritten constitution, will apply by law.

79 For learner forums to be successful, they requireappropriate resources and staff support. They alsoneed to address the barriers to attendance that somelearners may face, such as access to transport orchildcare. In addition, simple steps such as includinglunch can help to motivate learners to attend.

The student liaison committee at LeicesterCollege has a membership consisting of severalcourse representatives, seven college governors(including the principal), two student governorsand other senior staff. The committee advises thegoverning body on issues relating to recruitmentand enrolment processes, guidance and support,programmes of study, careers guidance, studentfacilities and the college environment.

Course representatives bring forward a range ofissues for discussion following consultation withother course members. All issues raised by courserepresentatives, both positive and negative, areacknowledged and any negative issues raised arefully investigated, with the process overseenpersonally by the director of quality and studentservices. The outcome of investigations andactions taken by the college are fed back to thestudent liaison committee at its next meeting.The students’ union also presents an update on its activities, including an outline of activitiesundertaken with learners at the college, and oncontact with the NUS.

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Student associations or unions

80 Learners may take on leadership roles and specificresponsibilities in the organisation through theestablishment of student associations or unions.Research suggests, however, that many work-basedlearners may not see themselves as ‘learners’ butrather as ‘employees’. Models that draw on thelanguage of works councils and trades unions may bemore appropriate and more successful in enlistingthe involvement of these learners.

81 Student-led associations or unions can be a criticalelement of a learner involvement strategy, but theywill not be appropriate for all providers. A successfulstudent-led body depends not just on the energy andenthusiasm of learners, but also on seniormanagement support and resources.

At Worcester College of Technology, all learnerswith a disability and/or learning difficulty areinvited to attend an ‘open doors’ group, whichprovides an opportunity to raise issues, makesuggestions or to praise what is already happening,as well as being a social gathering. The collegeconsiders the success of these groups can beattributed to the agreement of the seniormanagement team to take seriously, and to acton, the issues raised.

82 In creating new learner involvement structures, it maybe useful to ask yourself the following questions.

•What is the remit of the new structures?

•How learner-led are the new structures?

•How formal are the new structures?

Questions to consider when developing alearner involvement strategy

83 Providers may find the following questions useful as prompts for developing a learner involvementstrategy that will strengthen learner participationand representation.

•What areas and issues will you involve learners in?

•What approaches will you take to engaging withlearners collectively?

•How will you actively support learner participationand representation at all levels?

At Cornwall College, a project is under way tolaunch a students’ union to serve the college’s45,000 learners, spread across 7 main sites up to60 miles apart. A full-time officer has beenappointed to lead the project, whose first step wasto spend time listening to learners and staff acrossthe college to understand the issues and problemsthey faced.

Involving learners in the development of thestudents’ union is seen as critical to buildingmotivation and participation, as is involving staff.Other critical success factors have been strongsupport from senior managers and governors,appropriate funding, and the personality of thefull-time officer.

Getting learners motivated to take part is seen asa critical challenge, and participation will be a keymeasure of success. Several engagementapproaches are planned. The students’ union willblend services with representative functions todraw learners in: for instance, the planned websitewill include information about searching for jobsas well as mechanisms for raising issues. Aparticipation and democracy officer will joinstudents’ union staff with responsibility forsupporting learner representation across thecollege. Learners will also be involved on the basisof their courses, so for example, learners onjournalism courses will be involved in creating thestudents’ union newspaper.


84 Learner involvement is as much about the cultureand values of an organisation as it is aboutprocedures and responsibilities. Providers who haveachieved in this area have stressed how critical seniorleadership has been to the success of their learnerinvolvement activities.

85 This section considers the following approaches tocreating a culture of learner involvement, including:

•communicating and demonstrating yourcommitment to learner involvement

•structuring the organisation around learnerinvolvement (including the role of student liaisonofficers or similar)

• involving everyone across the whole organisation.

86 You will need to consider how to embed learnerinvolvement throughout your business planning. Thiswill also involve looking at the structure of yourorganisation and seeing where lead responsibility foryour learner involvement strategy will sit within it.

How can you create a culture of learnerinvolvement?

Communicating and demonstrating yourcommitment to learner involvement

87 A clear statement of the vision and priorities for theorganisation might be an important starting point for leading a culture of learner involvement acrossthe organisation. This vision statement for learnerinvolvement could be included in the learnerinvolvement strategy. The values of learner involvementwill need to be reflected in the day-to-day contactthat learners have with teachers, trainers and supportstaff. It will be important to use CPD and othertraining opportunities to raise awareness among staffof the value of learner involvement for helping toimprove provision and services. Effectivecommunication of the impact of learners’ views backto learners is critical (see Section 4).

88 Simple measures such as putting standing items onthe agenda of key committees to discuss learnerinvolvement and views, or ensuring that seniormanagers themselves spend time meeting learners –for instance through a principal’s or chief executive’squestion time – can be very effective ways ofdemonstrating your organisation’s commitment tolearner involvement. All the actions you take as partof your learner involvement strategy, and the energyand resources you invest in them, can help tocommunicate your commitment, as will thepublication of the strategy itself, and yoursubsequent reporting on it (see Section 6).

At Bridgwater College, as part of the college’s ‘Aday in the life’ scheme, senior managers spend aday shadowing a learner as a way of sampling thelearner experience. This approach has providedwide-ranging information to managers on issuessuch as the type of learning activities, amount ofhomework, transport and catering.

At Chichester College, a co-ordinated approachto learner involvement across the organisation hasdeveloped from the idea of an inverted pyramid.Rather than being at the ‘top’ of the organisation,the senior management team sees itself asproviding support to teaching and support staff,from whom learners in turn draw the support andresources they need to engage in their learning. Toturn this vision into a reality, the college hasimplemented a raft of measures to ensure thatlearners are able, skilled, supported and motivatedto get involved, and to ensure that staff, too, areable to respond.

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5 Creating a Culture ofLearner Involvement

89 It is particularly important to find ways todemonstrate to learners that their views andparticipation are having an impact. You can do thiswith something as simple as a poster or newsletter,using the ‘What you said – what we did’ format. Insome instances it may not be possible to act onlearners’ views, for example if the ideas are notaffordable, but in these cases, it is still important toreport back to learners, and explain why action hasnot been taken.

Governing bodies and boards have an opportunityto show leadership in the area of learnerinvolvement. Clause 21 of the Further Educationand Training Bill proposes a requirement forgoverning bodies of organisations in the FE systemto have regard to guidance about consultation withlearners or future learners.

Structuring the organisation around learner involvement and the role of studentliaison officers

90 A member of staff with specific responsibilities forliaising with learners can play a pivotal role in learnerinvolvement. The student liaison officer (SLO) roleneeds to have the capabilities and enthusiasm toengage learners and staff as well as the wisdom tostep back at the right moment to let learnersthemselves take the lead.

91 Making the SLO role work is not just a matter ofrecruiting or selecting the right person. It is alsoimportant to think about where the SLO fits in your organisation. The following questions may prove helpful.

•Do you have a dedicated lead person or are thesefunctions part of a larger remit?

•Where does the SLO sit in the structure?

• Is the post integrated within your main qualityteam or alongside your quality manager?

Participants in a workshop in November 2006identified that having a single named person withdedicated learner involvement responsibilities is acritical success factor in a learner involvementstrategy. They also stressed the need for this role to be defined in a way that helped to make learnerinvolvement everyone’s responsibility.

A capable, enthusiastic SLO, working at middle-management level with full seniormanagement support, is considered to have beencritical to the delivery of Chichester College’slearner involvement strategy. Success has helpedthe college tap into the creativity of learnersthemselves, who are now fully involved inrefreshing and delivering the strategy. For instance,learner representatives play a key role in gettingfirst year students involved and building a‘pipeline’ of talent and enthusiasm.

In the last year, learner representatives have takenparticular steps to engage adult and part-timelearners by attending tutor groups and introducingthemselves. Student councils have also beenchanged to take place on different days of theweek, so that learners with other commitmentscan attend at least some. Notes of meetings are emailed to part-time representatives whocannot attend.

Learners also created a learner-friendly version of a learning model developed by staff, which is nowused across the college, and which emphasises theaspiration that, on leaving the room, both learnersand teachers or trainers should be able to say thatthe objectives of the lesson were achieved. Thecollege is now considering the possibility ofbuilding on this success by involving learners inclassroom observation.


•How senior is the SLO in the organisation?

•Who does the SLO report to?

•What committees or groups is the SLO part of?

•Does the SLO attend senior management teammeetings?

92 A strong SLO role is important, but learnerinvolvement should not become an organisationalsilo. Responsibility for involving learners may bedistributed across the organisation’s structure, andespecially in areas such as quality and curriculumdevelopment. Overall, your approach should seek toembed learner involvement in all aspects of theorganisation, but with a key focus on improving the overall learning experience and outcomes for learners.

93 We recognise that smaller organisations may be unableto maintain a single dedicated SLO, but it is stillimportant to establish who has what responsibilityfor learner involvement in the organisation. In thesecases, the SLO role may be made part of a largerrole, for example, by designating a manager to act asa contact point for learners or take charge of the keylearner involvement processes, or by clearlydistributing SLO-type responsibilities.

Involving everyone in the organisation

94 Some learners will face barriers to involvement, andwill need appropriate help or support to overcomethem. The needs of the different learners in yourorganisation such as distance learners, learners withlearning difficulties and/or disabilities or mentalhealth issues, young people in care or care-leavers,learners with care responsibilities, and learners ofdifferent ethnicities, genders, sexualities or faiths all need to be taken into account over time as your approaches to learner involvement mature and develop.

95 It is important to be clear about how you will assessthe impact of your learner involvement strategy onequality and diversity issues as the basis forcontinuous improvement.

96 Enhancing learner involvement in your organisation is about helping learners to become partners and co-creators of their learning experiences, and formany learners this will involve acquiring confidenceand expertise, taking on new roles and trying out new behaviour. The same will be true, however,for others too: staff, managers, governors and board members.

97 The journey towards greater learner involvement willfor many organisations involve subtle changes inculture as the shift in the balance of responsibilityidentified in Personalising Further Education (DfES,2006b) takes place. Organisational developmentactivities that involve staff and others in shaping thatnew culture and that give them the skills andconfidence to succeed in it will be a critical elementof a learner involvement strategy.

Questions to consider when developing a learner involvement strategy

98 Providers may find the following questions useful asprompts when developing a learner involvementstrategy that will create a culture of learnerinvolvement.

•How will you communicate your commitment tolearner involvement?

•How will you embed learner involvement in yourorganisation’s structure and processes?

•What will you do to support your staff?

•How will you ensure that everyone has a stake inyour learner involvement strategy?

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99 Several ways of measuring learner involvement andsuccess already exist in the sector and are widelyused and understood, in particular success rates, theCommon Inspection Framework (CIF) and the LSC’sNational Learner Satisfaction Survey (NLSS). As anoverarching approach, the LSC is developing theFramework for Excellence. Through a balancedscorecard, the Framework for Excellence aims tomeasure success and excellence in responsiveness tolearners and employers. The evaluation of the impactand effectiveness of your learner involvement strategyshould form an integral part of your self-assessment.

100 As with any strategy, it is important to be clearabout how you will measure the impact of yourlearner involvement strategy. We suggest that youconsider two types of measure: outcome measuresand process measures.

•Outcome measures, which may be hard or soft, aremeasures of the wider impact of learnerinvolvement: are learners’ views and involvementactually making a difference? Outcome measuresmay cover a wide range of issues, from marketingand recruitment to learner satisfaction and successrates. Indicators of success are best established atthe outset so they can be used to measureprogress.

•Process measures, which may also be hard or soft,are measures of whether or not you aresuccessfully involving learners, and might covertopics such as:

– participation and involvement – are learnersactually taking up opportunities provided, andhow many?

– inclusion – are diverse groups of learners takingup opportunities equally?

– reporting back – is the impact of learners’views and involvement being communicated to learners?

– satisfaction with process – are learnersthemselves satisfied with the processes bywhich they are being involved?

101 It is likely that the data and other evidence for bothyour outcome and process measures will come fromevidence you collect for your self-assessment usingthe CIF. This should also cover evidence collected foryour judgements for the Framework for Excellence,particularly that for the responsiveness to learnersstrand. In this way, measuring and reporting on theimpact of your learner involvement strategy will beconsistent with the two formal quality frameworks inuse by the sector. Some examples of measurableoutcomes of the learner involvement strategy are:

•high levels of learner engagement across all learnergroups and evidence that learner views are takenseriously and have triggered improvements

• learner representatives report very high satisfactionwith the impact their roles are having

•self-assessment content and performanceimprovement actions can be directly linked todocumented learner views

• learner involvement activities lead to clear and well-publicised lists of actions that arethen implemented


6 Measuring and Reportingon the Impact of yourLearner InvolvementStrategy

•the provider places a very high value on learnerviews and demonstrates how learner feedback isused to identify and spread effective practice

• learner surveys consistently give very high levels ofoverall learner satisfaction

•evidence of learners as experts and their activeinvolvement in teaching and learning processes,evidenced for example through lessonobservations.

102 In implementing a process for measuring andreporting on your learner involvement strategy, thefollowing questions may prove helpful.

•How will you integrate your learner involvementstrategy with your annual business plan, andembed measurement and reporting within yourmain business cycle?

•How will you effectively monitor sources ofinformation such as complaints, feedback fromlearners and feedback from staff?

•How will you evaluate the different approachesand actions set out in your learner involvementstrategy, and develop and refresh the strategy inthe light of that evaluation?

•How will you publicise the actions you have takento involve learners, and to respond to their views(for example, by including a statement of theimpact of your learner involvement strategy inyour annual report)?

•How will you ensure learners are fully involved inevaluating the effectiveness and impact of yourlearner involvement strategy, and in developing itand refreshing it in future years?

•How will you report back to and celebrate withlearners themselves the changes you have made inresponse to their views?

25

Reference: Developing a LearnerInvolvement Strategy: A handbook forthe further education sector

Please send responses by 30 March 2007 to:

Berni HensonLearner involvement strategy handbook consultationLearning and Skills CouncilCheylesmore HouseQuinton RoadCoventry CV1 2WTEmail: [email protected]

1. Have we explained the purpose and value of alearner involvement strategy in a way that makessense for your organisation?

Yes, very well

Yes, reasonably well

No, needs improving

What would you suggest adding?

2. Will the suggested outline help you to develop orreview your learner involvement strategy?

Yes, very usefully

Yes, a bit

No, not at all

What would make it more useful for you?

3. How will the approaches and questions help youto develop your strategy to:

(a) strengthen teaching and learning andresponsiveness to individual need;

(b) strengthen learner participation and representation; and

(c) create a culture of learner involvement?

4. What other approaches should we include?

5. What materials or resources would yourecommend to other providers?

6. What examples and experiences would you liketo share with other providers about your ownsuccessful efforts to achieve (a), (b) and (c) inquestion 3 above?

7. What other measures of success would yourecommend other providers consider whendrawing up their learner involvement strategies?

8. What further information would be valuable in linking your learner involvement strategy toself-assessment, the Common InspectionFramework and the Framework for Excellence?

9. Are there other important questions to thinkabout when putting in place a process formeasuring and reporting on your learnerinvolvement strategy?


Annex A:

Consultation Questions

10. Is the draft handbook structured in a way thatmakes sense for you?

Yes, the structure makes complete sense

Yes, the structure mostly makes sense

No, the structure makes no sense

How could the structure be improved?

11. What further information, support or resourceswould help you to involve learners in yourorganisation?

12. What ideas do you have about how you willpublish your learner involvement strategy?

Other comments

The information that you provide in your responsewill be subject to the Freedom of Information Act2000 and the Environmental InformationRegulations, which allow public access toinformation. This does not necessarily mean thatyour response can be made available to the public,as there are exemptions relating to informationprovided in confidence and information to which theData Protection Act 1998 applies. You may requestconfidentiality by ticking the box provided, but youshould note that neither this, nor an automaticallygenerated email confidentiality statement, willnecessarily exclude the public right of access.

Please tick if you want us to keep your responseconfidential. Otherwise, please use the boxesbelow to provide your contact details.

Name

Organisation(if applicable)

Address

27

DfES (2004) Five Year Strategy for Children andLearners: Putting people at the heart of publicservices, Cm 6272, Norwich: HMSO. Available at:www.dfes.gov.uk/publications/5yearstrategy

DfES (2006a) Five Year Strategy for Children and Learners:Maintaining the excellent progress, London: DfES.Available at: www.dfes.gov.uk/publications/5yearstrategy

DfES (2006b) Personalising Further Education:Developing a vision, London: DfES. Available atwww.dfes.gov.uk/consultations/downloadableDocs/DfES%20Personalisation.pdf

DfES (2006c) Further Education: Raising skills, improvinglife chances, Cm 6768, Norwich: TSO. Available at:www.dfes.gov.uk/publications/furthereducation

DfES (2006d) Care Matters: Transforming the lives ofchildren and young people in care, Cm 6932, Norwich:TSO. Available at:www.dfes.gov.uk/consultations/conResults.cfm?consultationId=1406

DfES (forthcoming) Further Education and TrainingBill. Available at:www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/pabills/200607/further_education_and_training.htm

HM Treasury (2006) Prosperity for all in the GlobalEconomy: World class skills, Norwich: HMSO. Availableat: hm-treasury.gov.uk/leitch

LSC (2005) National Learner Satisfaction Survey:Guidance on the core methodology and corequestionnaire, Coventry: LSC. Available at:http://readingroom.lsc.gov.uk/lsc/2005/quality/performanceachievement/national-learner-satisfaction-survey-guidance-core-methodology.pdf

LSC (2006) Unlocking Learner Motivation: Report on the LSC Learner Engagement Programme,Coventry: LSC

Ofsted (2005) Common Inspection Framework forInspecting Education and Training, HMI 2434, London:Ofsted. Available at:www.ofsted.gov.uk/publications/2434

QIA (2007) Pursuing Excellence: the NationalImprovement Strategy for the further educationsystem, Coventry: QIA. Available at:www.qia.org.uk/pursuingexcellence

Useful websites

Framework for Excellence: http://ffe.lsc.gov.uk

LSC research tools:http://researchtools.lsc.gov.uk/KMSResearchTools


Annex B:

References

http://dfes.gov.uk/publications/5yearstrategy

http://researchtools.lsc.gov.uk/KMSResearchTools

http://dfes.gov.uk/publications/5yearstrategy

http://dfes.gov.uk/consultations/downloadableDocs/Df ES%20Personalisation.pdf

http://ffe.lsc.gov.uk

http://dfes.gov.uk/publications/furthereducation

http://dfes.gov.uk/consultations/conResults.cfm?consu ltationId=1406

http://publications.parliament.uk/pa/pabills/200607/fu rther_education_and_training.htm

http://hm-treasury.gov.uk/leitch

http://readingroom.lsc.gov.uk/lsc/2005/quality/perfor manceachievement/national-learner-satisfactionsurvey- guidance-core-methodology.pdf

http://ofsted.gov.uk/publications/2434

http://qia.org.uk/pursuingexcellence

29

Notes

Learning and Skills CouncilNational Office

Cheylesmore HouseQuinton RoadCoventry CV1 2WTT 0845 019 4170F 024 7682 3675www.lsc.gov.uk

© LSC February 2007Published by the Learning and Skills Council.

Extracts from this publication may be reproducedfor non-commercial educational or trainingpurposes on condition that the source isacknowledged and the findings are notmisrepresented.

This publication is available in electronic form onthe Learning and Skills Council website:www.lsc.gov.uk

If you require this publication in analternative format or language, pleasecontact the LSC Help Desk: 0870 900 6800

Publication reference: LSC-P-NAT-070032

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