Critically Evaluate the Concepts of Professionalism and Accountability in Lls and Process of Evaluation, Quality Assurance and Quality Improvement. free essay sample

Part 1 Introduction 500 (lo 1 2) Critically evaluate the concepts of professionalism and accountability in lls and process of evaluation, quality assurance and quality improvement. Provide clear definitions of these key issues and how they affect the teacher. Comment on different documents on professionalism and what they have to offer. Identify and comment on key issues of professionalism conduct and accountability in the life long sector. Professional identity, according to Bucher and Sterling, (1977), is defined by ones skills and knowledge and also the work one is involved with. Professionalism has been a term rarely associated with those within the FE sector due to the wide range of entrants, which includes the differing backgrounds in industry along with the varied level of teaching qualifications held by employees. Macdonald, (1995) argues that this diversity in FE is believed to have created a weak professional boundary, in sociological terms and therefore making it difficult to accredit a professional code of practice. Definitions of professionalism tend to emphasise key words, such as professional knowledge, autonomy and responsibility. Furlong et al (2000) believe that a professional would need to be autonomous to make own decisions and judgements, but that such decisions are made responsibly. Robson, (2007) argued that to be a professional then you must be guided by some form of professional code of conduct that contain specific standards and values that make members accountable for their behaviour. Therefore one must be responsible for their actions both in the context of their profession and also within ones dealings outside. This is especially of importance when one is working with education and decisions regarding students trust and confidentiality. Furlong et al, (2000) maintains that students should be at the heart of decisions made and that a high level of trust is of paramount importance in maintaining professional standards. Teachers in FE come into the sector with knowledge from industry, but do not always have the expertise to teach it to others. The problem with this can be that those who have come with specialist knowledge may not fully engage with the teaching side of it, wrongly believing that knowledge alone is enough to get them ahead in the FE sector. Tipton, 1973) Experts in certain subject fields are not always the best teachers and according to Robson, (2006) they can also be the ones who are most reluctant to take part in further teacher training. Yet training as a teacher is essential in attaining professional teaching status and in developing what is known as dual professionalism, meaning that you are up to date in teaching and subject knowledge. The sector, however is changing and Teachers in the post compul sory sector now have to undertake teacher training and be awarded QTLS status, and thus attain a professional role in FE. This was brought in from September 2007 and was welcomed by the IFL in its attempt to reinforce a professional identity to teachers in this sector. As noted earlier, one aspect of being a professional is being accountable for your actions and also being open to scrutiny from other professionals. The IFL have their own code of professional practice, which includes Reasonable care and responsibility to the institute’s condition of membership. They also have a very detailed system of dealing with complaints about professionals who are out of accordance with the code, emphasising the other important aspect of being a professional, which is being able to suspend or remove you from the professional body. Johnson (1972) believed that professional bodies can carry with them negative connotations, such as being out to protect themselves and their interests, the IFL suggests otherwise, instead protecting the sector in which they operate. The IFL have brought in the new LLUK standards that teachers need to attain to be given the QTLS. These replace the previous FENTO standards, which came under much criticism and were accused of not being fit for purpose by OFSTED. The LLUK standards offer the ability to be easily assessed and are observable. They ensure that student teachers acquire a dual professionalism, learning from a subject specific mentor and guidance from Tutors from their course. This benefits the teachers and ensures they are prepared, not only with the subject knowledge, but how to deliver it to others. Attaining QTLS status not only gives you a teaching qualification but it also ensures those who have such status continue to develop both their teaching and their subject specialism through guidance, support and other CPD activities within the work place. It also make certain that teachers are accountable for their own skills and actions in the classroom, which in turn would offer them more autonomy within their professional lives. By developing and enforcing professional standards within FE, society will view the sector with more respect, viewing charted status as a sign of the quality that has been lacking in the past Part 2 case studies 1200 (lo 4) Detailed case study that follows 2 different students and their experience. 2 students that have notably different experiences in order to evaluate your role and engagement in the quality assurance on their experience. Discuss how their personal and social development may contribute to the community they live in. Student A is male and started his further education journey straight from high school at 16 years old, where he was set on going to college to increase his job prospects. He had a variety of different career prospects he would like to pursue, which included Police officer and Primary school teacher. He is one of very few males studying within Health and Social care, which is often viewed as a ‘Female’ subject due to the focus on care in different stages of life. Though he liked the look of the syllabus and the variety of subjects covered. Student A applied to both KGV and Southport College to do a BTEC first diploma in Public Services. Advice was offered by teachers at high school and KGV recruitment staff to apply for this level as his grades were low and e was not expected to get straight onto the National diploma. Though after GCSE results day he changed his mind with some guidance from the recruitment team at KGV and opted for the Health and social care BTEC first. This was due to it’s diverse content and diverse subject matter. This left his options open for choosing either BTEC national in Health and social care or Public ser vices if he passes the course and achieves his GCSE grade C in Maths. Student B applied to KGV after a 2 year gap from education and entered KGV after her 18th birthday. Student B finished high school with low GCSE results and started a BTEC first course in ICT at Southport College, but dropped out after 3 months of the course, insisting she had chosen the wrong course. Student B was interviewed separately after sending a letter of application to KGV, as she was not in education. Student B was offered a place in BTEC first Health and Social care, due to it having some units that were appealing and the fact that it would enable her to get onto a higher level course the following year. Students within college are contributing to their community through educating themselves with the potential to train in careers that have benefits to their own lives and those around them. Those educated would be more likely to make better choices and advance on to higher education, thus not adding to the rising amount of people out of work and claiming Job seekers allowance. At the beginning of the course during the Induction phase, students were asked to answer questions on themselves including careers, what looking forward in the course and of potential problems. Student B discussed her worry about the stress of combining her work out of college and her work within college. At this time she was living with her boyfriend and had to bring in rent each month. Students were warned about taking on too much work outside of college and signed an agreement to attend all lesson s and only work a maximum of around 8 hours a week. She was already exceeded this number and had agreed to try and reduce her hours. (Further information on Induction is offered in Appendix 1) During the induction week both students completed all work to a high enough standard to not warrant any specialist intervention. If extra help was needed the students would be reassessed by learning support and provided with additional help if needed. During the 3rd week of teaching Student A experienced some bullying within the class from two female students, who made jokes at his expense. Equality in the work place is part of Domain A from the LLUK standards, which aims to ensure that the classroom remains a safe and comfortable working environment for all. In order to fulfil my professional role I took the students out of the lesson at the end and explained what they had done, how unacceptable that behaviour is and the college policy on bullying. They later apologised and student A became more comfortable within the classroom. Discussion was had with Student A to ensure no further upset was caused. Later discussions with my mentor on the matter supplied me with alternative ways of dealing with said students. Student B was completing work on time, which was of a good quality up until half term and then her attendance began to slip dramatically. After 2 weeks of no contact with college, despite college trying to get in touch with her, she finally came back. It was discovered that her friend had been killed in a motor biking accident, she had split up with her live in boyfriend and was forced to move to a flat on her own. Within Domain F of LLUK standards offering support or directing towards appropriate support is part of being a professional in the FE sector. It was partly my responsibility to ensure the right staff got in touch with student B to offer support and help her in her crisis. Learning support staff were contacted and regular meetings were set up to help with college work and also offer advice on becoming a solo student and emotional support. Deadlines for coursework were extended with permission from the department head. Members of staff in FE have to deal with a increasingly wider job role that includes safe guarding of students under their watch, taking more responsibility for students within their proximity and being responsible for reporting any issues. This also relates to the ‘Every child matters’ Green paper and Children Act 2004, which covers; Physical and emotional well being and protection from harm and neglect. Here I had to consult my mentor in order to learn about dealing with such situations and how to report it in the future, to fulfil my professional role. Student A began to flourish within the class and produced solid Merit work, he was consistently on time with all work and had perfect attendance. He also gave regular feedback on sessions, even emailing after lessons he really enjoyed. This gave me immediate feedback on teaching and providing me valuable information on the quality of teaching from the students view. With Domain B on learning and teaching it is my professional role to inspire and create a working environment that is educational and includes all learners. This was my aim in each lesson and though it is difficult to inspire if the student is not attending. Student B became later with course work and began to miss appointments with support staff and myself. She missed important meetings on progression and student reviews. This was discussed amongst learning support staff and heads of department, resulting in warnings being given and attendance targets being set by SMT. Assessment for the BTEC course involved regular pieces of course work to be submitted, which were marked with appropriate feedback and an opportunity to increase the marks achieved. The course work was verified by the Pre advanced course leader and was marked by myself and internally verified by the head of department. This linked with Domain E on assessment, which makes sure assessment is fair and at a consistent standard along with offering students constructive feedback to learn from and advance their learning. Student A used the assessment to better himself unlike student B who would give in assignments late, without appropriate cover sheets and not turn up for feedback and so would not re submit course work. This limited her chance of achieving her target grade of a Merit. (For further information on Assessment see Appendix 2) Student A is currently at interview stage to try and get on to AS levels, although his grades are good, they do not fit the colleges grades for advancing on to As level, which includes A Distinction in coursework, GCSE grade C in Maths and English along with two other GCSE results at a grade B. Student A will definitely continue on with the college, but is being given advice on following either Public services or Health and social care national diploma. I have sent him to careers in order to get the most information he can to make the right choice for his future career, again demonstrating professionalism within Domain F in the work place. He will also be interviewed by the pre course assessor to guarantee he is making the appropriate choice, and sent a letter of acceptance sent out shortly after. Student B received final warnings about commitment and attendance and was eventually removed from College after Heads of department showed concern for her ability to complete their course with an attendance of only 40%. This could reflect badly on the recruitment team, as they knew she had dropped out before on a number of times and showed signs of prioritising outside activities over college. Though some of the personal problems would not necessarily have been apparent from her interview. However it is important that students are offered chances to try again and get the qualifications they need. Part 3 organisational processes 800 words (lo 3 5) Evaluate how the principles of evaluation, quality assurance and quality improvement are applied within the organisations programmes, summarising how they impact on the experience of the learners. Provide evidence of your own participation in qa/qi systems and evaluate the benefits in terms of improving your own professional practice. Identify how qa process underwrites your compliance with statutory requirements within your curriculum area, e. g. equality and diversity, access, health and safety Management in the FE sector have come in to increasing pressure to adopt a more business like approach to the running of Colleges, with each institution focusing on the quality and effectiveness in relation to it’s competitors. This has increased the focus and importance placed upon league tables that compare pass rates and on the need to improve each and every year. Holmes, 1993) Such change of focus needs a Quality assurance system in place to keep each college ahead of it’s competitors, along with implementing QI when needed. (league table 2009 in Appendix 3) The QA strategies adopted by the college include observations and appraisals with goal settings. Although Ainley and Bailey’s (1997) found that some staff felt that such methods are a‘ invasion’ by management, taking away their au tonomy and making them feel untrustworthy. Even Avis (1996) states that appraisal is a method for management to police those below them. However Colleges need to ensure that staff that need it receive additional support and that the students have the right teachers in front of them for their own benefits. Appraisal is a key form of QI within the college, giving staff a voice and an opportunity to advance themselves professionally, which would have the added effect of improving the quality of the college and therefore benefit the students. Betts (1996) argues that appraisal should actually be a positive tool to identify staff that may be in need of extra help and CPD opportunities to increase equality amongst staff. I have found it to be valuable in increasing my skills within the college and improving my prospect for taking on new challenges. This also ensures that members of staff retain their QTLS status. Responsibility for QA within colleges has increased dramatically, with colleges being trained up in a way that they are able to assure their own standards with out as much interference from outside organisations. Even OFSTED do not give inspect in as much detail if the college has shown it self to be of a high standard, though the high college standards use the strict OFSTED criteria. Awarding bodies that offer BTEC and A level examinations are cutting down on the need for external QA assessment, which saves money for both groups. This in turn directs the responsibility back toward the staff at the institution, which previously was described as having less responsibility by Elliott, 1996. This also creates a more professional and competitive environment. Internal inspections are also used to look at the overall running of subject departments and are done once a year. Teachers are then brought in to discuss the Quality of their subject team and are given smart goals in which to improve upon. This takes in to account grades and pass rates, success rates and retention levels along with quality of material given to students. Scores are compared against previous years results within the college, but also the national averages. (See Appendix 4 for health and Social care SAR) My own experience of QA and QI within college comes from my regular observations for both attaining QTLS status and also from within the college to ensure I am at an acceptable standard. In both instances feedback is given to guarantee that I am teaching at a level that is expected within the college and offer advice and guidance in the aim of improving my own skills and knowledge base. Yet I was disappointed to not be offered further help to dealing with some issues raised by my Observer. The college also offers opportunities to observe other members of the Health and Social care team. This is a valuable tool for Quality improvement allowing the opportunity to learn from established staff and alter my own teaching in a positive manner. This not only improves my own skills, but also is beneficial for the College as the students gain a teacher with greater skills and experience. As a BTEC teacher I have to mark coursework and for my first time I was not given much guidance with my marking until an entire unit had been marked. The head of department internally verified the marking to check the standard and consistency of the results. I was pleased that only one mark was changed and was given extra advice on my next piece of marking. I have now been included with the BTEC meetings on marking and standardisation with the aim of going on a workshop at the beginning of next term. This enables me to offer more constructive feedback to my learners and help guide my teaching to benefit the students with their work. One BTEC meeting involved a senior member of Edexcel on the changes to the Quality Assurance mechanism for BTEC programmes from 2010. The aim was to bring an end to external Verifier’s within the BTEC programmes and place the responsibility on to members of staff within the college. Here a select group of staff will be responsible for verifying the other members of their team and is able to certificate the students. The aim is to improve QI with all staff and help standardise results through extra CPD within colleges. (Minutes from meeting Appendix 5) This change will benefit students as they will get better feedback, they should be able to get results back faster and students are less likely to get varied results and have to resubmit coursework. This means that the grading will be fair and consistent, leaving little doubt that examiners are getting ‘soft’ with marking. Also a standard verifier will randomly take samples of work from colleges to ensure the quality level is kept at the standard expected.