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Foster, Pablo; Howard, Ursula; Reisenberger, AnnaA Sense of Achievement: Outcomes of Adult Learning.Further Education Development Agency, London (England).ISSN-1361-99771997-00-0056p.; A product of the Quality in Learning and InformationTechnology (QUILT) Program.Further Education Development Agency, Publications Dept.,Mendip Centre, Blagdon, Bristol BS18 6RG, England, UnitedKingdom (7.50 British pounds).Reports Research (143)FE Matters; v2 n3 1997MF01/PC03 Plus Postage.Adult Education; *Adult Learning; Attitude Change; CheckLists; *Data Collection; Educational Attitudes; ForeignCountries; *Lifelong Learning; Models; *Outcomes ofEducation; Postsecondary Education; Records (Forms);*Student Certification; Student Educational ObjectivesNational Vocational Qualifications (England); *UnitedKingdom

This report, which is an outgrowth of the Further EducationDevelopment Agency's (FEDA's) Learning Outcomes study, explores ways ofidentifying, recording, and valuing adult learners' goals and achievements inlearning opportunities that are not designed to lead to qualifications. Thefollowing topics are discussed in the report's six chapters: the diverse andcomplex reasons for learning and increasing recognition of the inadequacy ofexisting procedures for formally assessing and accrediting education in theUnited Kingdom; the context, background, and approach of the FEDA study;current thinking regarding learning outcomes (the National VocationalQualifications outcomes model, open college networks and the creditframework, and the issues of accreditation for organizations that maintain abroader mission of adult learning); practical application of learningoutcomes in five case studies; practical frameworks for developing learningoutcomes strategies; and movement toward a culture of lifelong learning.Appended are the following: specification of the Further Education FundingCouncil's and local authorities' duties regarding provision of lifelonglearning opportunities; overview of activities conducted to investigatedifferent conceptions of learning outcomes and related issues; membership ofthe FEDA colloquium and consultative group; FEDA specification of learningoutcomes; and sample forms. The bibliography lists 20 references. (MN)

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Further EducationDevelopment Agency

A sense of achievement:outcomes of adult learningPablo Foster, Ursula Howardand Anna Reisenberger

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wideningparticipation

Further EducationDevelopment Agency

A sense of achievement:outcomes of adult learningPablo Foster, Ursula Howardand Anna Reisenberger

3

Published by the Further Education DevelopmentAgency (FEDA), Dumbarton House,68 Oxford Street, London W1N ODATel: [0171] 436 0020 Fax: [0171] 436 0349

Feedback and orders should be directed to:Publications Department, FEDA,Coombe Lodge, Blagdon, Bristol BS40 7RGTel: [01761] 462 503Fax: [01761] 463 140 (Publications Department)

Registered charity no: 1044145

Editor: Lorraine Mullaney

Designer: Mike Pope

Printed by: Blackmore Limited, Shaftesbury, Dorset

Cover photograph: Clarendon College, Nottingham:International Students at The Language Centre

ISSN: 1361-9977

1997 FEDA

All rights reserved. No part of this publication maybe reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or trans-mitted in any form or by any means, electronic, elec-trical, chemical, optical, photocopying, recording orotherwise, without prior permission of the copyrightowner.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTSFEDA would like to acknowledge various papersand comments received during the preparation ofthis paper, in particular contributions from:

Membership of FEDA colloquium and

consultative groupMaureen Banbury, HMI InspectorateSue Cara, Norfolk Adult Education Service(now NIACE)Carolyn Daines, WEA Eastern RegionJoyce Deere, Hillcroft CollegeMel Doyle, WEA National OfficerPablo Foster, FEDARobert Fryer, Northern CollegeUrsula Howard, FEDAOlga Janssen, Mary Ward CentreCaroline Mager, FEDAEvelyn Murray, Working Men's CollegeJoan O'Hagan, Fircroft CollegeChristopher Parkin, FEDAAnna Reisenberger, FEDAGary Smith, Northern CollegeSheila Stanley, Hillcroft CollegeMerillie Vaughan Huxley, Senior Inspector,FEFCAnsel Wong, Morley CollegeStephen Yeo, Ruskin College

Discussions with FEDA colleagues are gratefullyacknowledged by the authors, in particular withChristopher Parkin and Caroline Mager.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Pablo Foster is a consultant and former staff

member of FEDA.

Ursula Howard is Director of Research and

Information at FEDA.

Anna Reisenberger is Head of Participation andAchievement at FEDA.

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ContentsForeword 4

1 Introduction 5

2 The origins of the FEDA study 8

3 The outcomes: philosophy andlearning models 11

4 Approaches to gathering evidence ofoutcomes of learning 17

5 Practical frameworks for developinglearning outcomes strategies 25

6 Towards a culture of lifelong learning 33

Appendices 37

References 52

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ForewordI welcome this report as a significant contribution tothe way we need to think about learning opportu-nities as we work towards a culture of lifelonglearning. Not all learning needs to lead to qualifica-tions. We also need to give value and validity tolearning which is more informal and open-ended andin which learners and teachers can assess togetherthe outcomes of learning and give learners recog-nition of their achievements.

We are living through an optimistic, exciting timebut also a challenging one. Lifelong learning is a pri-ority for the government to widen participation,involve the many, not the few and to work to erad-icate the deep-seated inequalities which have doggedour society and hampered our economic prospects.

We must start with the learners and potentiallearners. We must respond to what they want andneed to learn and recognise each step people take asthey develop a sense of themselves as learners.

This work should be developed further. I hope FEDAand other partners in Lifelong Learning will nowtake the agenda forward and explore how we canvalue and recognise all learning as mainstream, notmarginal so that a Learning Society becomes areality.

Bob FryerPrincipal, Northern College

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1 IntroductionI decided to change the direction I was headedin, i.e. downhill fast. The way I felt able tochange direction was by turning my hobby into aliving. My hobby is computing. I'm actuallyquite good at design and problem solving oncomputers, but I have nothing on paper to proveit. So the answer I came up with was go back toschool and get something (anything) on paper.

Bob Smith, Trowbridge, Wilts

Thanks to . . . an excellent tutor . . . and thefriendly support of my fellow-students I suc-cessfully completed an English course at mylocal community college. I am proud of myachievement and I intend to go on to pursue allmy ambitions.

Hay ley Morris, Crawley, West Sussex

I began a course at Park Lane College. In 1996I am starting an Access course and I hope to goto Leeds University in 1997 to do environ-mental studies. At the moment, my life is won-derful; I have my confidence and self-esteemand feel I can achieve anything.

Julie Smithson, Wakefield

Coare and Thomson (eds.) 1996

This report aims to contribute to the development ofgood practice in recognising learners' goals andachievements for learning which is not designed tolead to qualifications. It is about the accreditation oflearning in its widest sense: finding ways of identi-fying, recording and valuing learning which startwith learners' needs. It is not about accreditation aspart of the framework of formal qualifications.Adults need learning opportunities in a wide varietyof ways at different times for different purposes,which do not fall along binary divides betweenwhether that learning leads to a formal qualificationor not. What links all modes of adult learning,however, and justifies their place in the system ofprovision is the need for learners to take awayknowledge and a recognition of their own achieve-ments, so that these can be carried forward tosupport them in making progress and meeting chal-lenges throughout their lives.

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Adults may want new skills for job opportunities orpersonal development. For many people learning is apart of a way of life indeed it is a key element ofour culture. Although the pleasure and personal sat-isfaction of learning is well documented, this is farfrom a self-indulgent or purely recreational pursuitfor 'which individuals alone should shoulder thecosts' (Sargant et al, 1997). Learning is increasinglycentral to economic productivity in the informationand communications age. In a world in which themeans of livelihood will be volatile and demand con-stant change, learning will be the thread of conti-nuity running through life. And too many people,especially those without qualifications or those whofeel alienated from education, do not participate atall in the learning opportunities which are available.Education systems and providers therefore need tofind imaginative and diverse ways of encouraginglearning, and flexible forms of recognising andrecording it. An inclusive and flexible approach fitsentirely with predicted developments in the work-place, where learning how to learn and the ability toadapt to constant change will be more essential tosuccess than qualifications gained by the age of 21.Recurrent learning will be needed by everybody. Thiswill also be true for those needing technologicalskills, those striving to create a sustainable envi-ronment or those learning the skills of caring for anailing parent. We have to prepare for a world whereeffective learning will be at a premium.

The learning outcomes described in this report canbe built into a framework of recognising learningachieved, part of a system of building blocks whichincludes formally accredited learning, the nationalframework of qualifications and more formalaccreditation systems. A credit-based system couldencompass all learning (Tait, 1997). A system ofbuilding blocks or scaffolding could become an evenmore helpful concept in the 21st century than themore linear 'ladders' of progression which havehelped providers to shape better opportunities forlearners in recent decades.

The reasons for learning are diverse and complex.Learners do not always, or even mostly, want orneed qualifications or formal assessment to achievetheir goals or to give value to their achievements.Many adult learners already have qualifications(Tuckett and Sargant, 1996). However, adults

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without qualifications may also want or need tolearn a specific skill for a known purpose, or wish tomove at their own pace without the pressure offormal assessment at too early a stage. The sense ofachievement which successful learning offers cancome from a variety of sources, perhaps a particularpiece of work, or the activity which the learningenables. This is as true for a specific job-related skillas it is for history or home decorating.

Adults often prefer to learn in short bursts, or`learning episodes'. They have multiple responsibil-ities around which they want to fit their learning.Learning opportunities need to be flexible withrecords of learning achieved which will be widelyrecognised and valued and which learners can carryforward and use for a variety of purposes: furtherstudy, job search, etc. New technologies offer almostlimitless potential for enabling the carrying forwardof learning outcomes. Summative outcomes or wholeportfolios can be captured and carried by bothlearners and institutions. With careful design thedevelopment of student tracking and other systemscan provide a learner-centred approach to the own-ership of the outcomes of lifelong learning.

There is growing recognition by providers, fundingbodies and inspection agencies that formally assessedand accredited education and the national qualifica-tions framework are not appropriate or sufficient forall adults. The system is not currently flexibleenough to support strategies to attract excluded orunderparticipating groups of people. Lifelonglearning, national targets for training and education(NTETs) and a learning society can only be realisedif a wider range of strategies and opportunities forlearning are developed and supported. We need bothtraditional and new, flexible forms of learning tooffer the breadth and variety of outcomes required.New approaches to the design and method ofdescribing learning outcomes are both necessary andrealistic if they are valued and recognised at anational level and eligible for public funding.Educational development will support all adults, themain income generators and key activists in enablingfamilies, communities and society to function well. Itis a means to meet the challenges which successivegovernments have identified: national competi-tiveness, skill shortages, long-term unemployment,the alienation and exclusion of many young people,lack of social cohesion and human wastage.

With learners' interests and perspectives in mind,this report focuses on what providers can do andare already developing to support learning, andrecognise achievement.

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The FEDA 'Learning Outcomes' study exploredsome of the ways providers of adult learning havecollected evidence which shows that learning sat-isfies, changes people, opens up opportunities, getsjobs and generates income, without necessarily qual-ifying for supporting funds. With political support,adult education could contribute to widening partic-ipation throughout adulthood.

Chapter 2 examines the context, background andapproach taken for this study. In particular it buildson work undertaken by the Workers' EducationalAssociation (WEA) and designated institutions toidentify the learning outcomes of non-accreditedprovision.

Chapter 3 examines how thinking on learning out-comes has developed by outlining three importantcontributions to the debate:

the model espoused by Gilbert Jessup,radical in its concept but later constrainedby the demands of assessing outcomes forNational Vocational Qualifications (NVQs)the role played by Open College Networksand the development of a national CreditFramework in raising the profile of adultlearning outside the 'national' qualificationsframeworkthe issues of accreditation for organisationswhich maintain a broader mission of adultlearning.

Chapter 4 focuses on the practical application oflearning outcomes. The case studies exemplify theuse of a learning outcomes strategy to improvequality, the ongoing recording of learning outcomesthrough records of achievement, and the wide rangeof outcomes of non-vocational courses, both relatingto economic benefits and social and personal ben-efits, including unintended outcomes.

Chapter 5 offers perspectives on recording learningoutcomes from the viewpoint of the provider andlearner. Issues for organisations introducing alearning outcomes strategy are identified in achecklist. The need to gather both process and finaloutcomes and to avoid over-burdensome proceduresis stressed. This section also provides a frameworkfor learners to separate the outcomes and benefits ofa learning opportunity from the reflection on thelearning experience itself. A set of minimum prereq-uisites for adult learning opportunities is used as thebasis for an adaptable draft tool for recordinglearning outcomes. The essential feature is that thestudent and tutor must be allowed to describelearning outcomes in their own words, and theprovider or funder must apply the detailed analysis.

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Chapter 6 argues that a diverse range of learningopportunities and funding streams are needed tocarry forward the lifelong learning agenda. Evidencefrom both the Employment Department's researchinto Lifetime Learning, and from the OFSTEDinspection reports on adult education demonstratethe contribution of adult education to lifelonglearning and argue for a recognition of the broadrange of process outcomes which adult educationprovides.

In this report the term tutor, commonly used in adultlearning, has been used rather than teacheror lecturer.

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2 The origins of the FEDA studyFEDA's investigation into adults' learning outcomesgrew out of action taken in 1993 by the LondonDistrict of the Workers' Educational Association(WEA) and the Working Men's College (WMC), aLondon college with 'designated' funding status.Both organisations received funding for their generaladult education work (over two-thirds of total pro-vision) and for their accredited work. In the FurtherEducation Funding Council's (FEFC) terms, theywere funded for their non-Schedule 2 (NS2) and fortheir Schedule 2 (S2) provision.

However, in 1993 there was anxiety that a change inFEFC's funding for the designated institutions (theCity Literary Institute, Morley College, Mary WardCentre and the Working Men's College) and for theWEA nationally might 'penalise those courses whichdid not have measurable and accredited outcomes'.

Following an inaugural seminar in 1993 on`Assessing outcomes in adult education' the partic-ipating institutions agreed to devise surveys and topool experience gained. There was shared recog-nition that:

outcomes were difficult to define in termsappropriate to all partiesadministrative processes had to bemanageable and affordablecourse aims and objectives might have to bethe starting point for determining easilymeasurable outcomes.

Progress was made by working with tutors toimprove course writing skills in ways that wouldclarify the intended outcomes of any course, beforemoving on to involve students in assessing how suc-cessfully course intentions had been realised, andwhether any other, unintended outcomes had alsobeen realised or experienced. Each organisationaccordingly developed its own instruments and pro-cedures, reflecting its values, its stage of adaptationto FEFC requirements, and its available levels ofteaching and administrative support.

A report was commissioned by the FEFC from DickBooth and John Fairhurst on the designated colleges:`Review of Future Funding Arrangements forGrowth in non-Schedule 2 Provision' (March 1995).

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It noted:

the work funded by the non-Schedule 2 allo-cation lacks any agreed framework for its mea-surement. Consequently it is not easilyamenable to external scrutiny and this impedesits accountability. We recommend that the col-leges be required to develop and implement aframework which specifies the learning out-comes for non-Schedule 2 work.

The Council recognised that the 'development of aframework for the learning outcomes of non-Schedule 2 provision was also of interest to externalinstitutions' and this was drawn to FEDA's attention.

The original institutions were interested in openingup the research and invited FEDA to take some ofthe work forward by disseminating their experience.If they had found ways of gathering evidence ofachievement for their own non-accredited provision,perhaps all providers of liberal adult education coulddo the same. Further work might also confirm thatthey were 'on the right track' in tackling one of theparadoxes of traditional adult education:

Adult education has often regarded its lack ofcertification as a benefit and attraction foradult learners. It permits greater flexibility andgenuine negotiation of the curriculum, and isless daunting for many people whose expe-rience in certificated work at school has dimin-ished their confidence in their ability to studysuccessfully. However, it is difficult to claimthat the non-certificated education of adults isat least as valuable as examined courses, if weare unable to identify what is learned in theprocess . . . unplanned benefits, such as 'socialcontacts' or 'a friendly atmosphere' or`increased confidence' are important butprobably immeasurable.

Evelyn MurrayPrincipal, Working Men's College

The aims for this FEDA project, identifying andvaluing learning outcomes for adult learners,therefore build on the learning achieved by the

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original institutions who opened up this importantissue:

to identify learning outcomes valued byadults at different stagesto survey good practice in identifying andrecording learning outcomes for the benefitof individuals and learning providersto offer guidelines for providers of goodpracticeto identify and draw attention to the rangeof outcomes including economic, personaldevelopment, and their benefits at allsocietal levelsto begin enhancing the importance, valueand credibility of achievements in thissector (i.e. non-accredited work in generaladult education)to devise a framework for recording theoutcomes of non-accredited learning whichis of value to learners and learningorganisations.

A colloquium was convened in January 1996 to tapinto the experience of the prime movers in this area(see Appendix 3 for membership).

The Workers' Educational Association, the MaryWard Centre and the Working Men's Collegedescribed how they had developed tools to match theneeds of management, tutors and students, con-sistent with their organisations' values and resourcelevels.

FEDA presented how learning outcomes can bedefined and given credit within the evolving creditframework (see Chapter 3 and Appendix 4).

Discussion of the pilot initiatives ranged fromfinding clear indicators of development in terms ofconfidence, capability and increased flexibility, toaccommodating the various metaphors that peopleused to indicate progress or benefits. For example:

the metaphor of the 'journey', whichunderpinned 'distance travelled'the 'ladder of progression' for academicachievementsthe 'river', broadening and deepening interms of understanding and confidencethe 'widening circle' of autonomy.

There was general recognition that ways ofrecording outcomes would need to be very flexible inorder to accommodate the different perspectives,values, purposes and resources that would bebrought to bear in different organisations.

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Initial concerns about providing evidence for fundershad shifted to examining ways of using evidence ofoutcomes to improve the quality of provision, partic-ularly of teaching and learning.

CONCLUSIONS FROM THECOLLOQUIUM

Introducing an institutionalstrategy

Purposes

Different institutions had differentneeds.Any instrument had to be flexible andresponsive to institutional and nationalagendas.

Process

Introducing a scheme for identifyingand assessing learning outcomes wouldneed clear articulation of benefits, timeand trust.Time for analysis should not beunderestimated.

Involving tutors

Staff development needed to include how to:

write learning objectives and outcomesintroduce the concept to students andchange attitudesuse feedback from outcomes to improveteaching.

Language

Educational 'jargon' should be avoidedat all costs.'Free writing' by students is difficult toanalyse.There should be a span from qualitativeto quantitative evidence of learningoutcomes.

Uses

There would appear to be clear benefitsfor students, tutors, managers,inspectors and funders.Some organisations were concentratingon management uses, others onimproving tutors, and some were tryingto get a balance among all stakeholders.

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2 The benefits

Identifying and assessing learning outcomescan offer the benefits listed below.

For the learner

Clearer information about the courseA more reflective approach to learningRecognition of the importance ofconfidenceThe ability to make and value ownjudgments on progressGroup cohesion through discussingcourse aims and outcomes

For the tutor

Improvements to planning andreviewing coursesA framework for negotiating with thegroupA way of reviewing progress on groupand individual objectivesAn improved quality of teaching

For the providers

A way of identifying staff developmentneedsQualitative and quantitative indicatorsof student satisfactionImprovements in the quality ofcurriculum planningA clearer framework for establishingprogression routes

For national organisations

A way of identifying learning gains forfunding purposesA way of giving credibility tounaccredited learningA means of recognising the broaderoutcomes of adult learningA basis for self-assessment reports andevidence for inspectors

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The background to this project exemplifies many ofthe questions that have to be addressed in identifyingand valuing learning outcomes:

What exactly are learning outcomes?Who defines them?Who assesses them?Who takes responsibility for identifying andmeasuring them?How do you make the processes conform,to the resources available?What do you actually end up measuringperformance against criteria, actualoutcomes, or only those that aremeasurable?What kinds of evidence can we accept/willfunders accept/will students accept?Who are the primary beneficiaries of theevidence? (Is it the learners, the teachers orthe funders?)

Let us begin with trying to identify 'learningoutcomes'.

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3 The outcomes: philosophy andlearning models

BACKGROUNDThe drive towards accreditation in adult educationservices in the 1980s and early 1990s, which wasembedded in the Further and Higher Education Actof 1992, had complex origins. Firstly, in somerespects it was an acceleration of moves towardsgreater accountability to learners within a morelearner-centred curriculum which grew up in the late1970s in adult learning. Concentrating on the out-comes of students' learning as much as the processesof teaching and learning was central to this thinking.Concepts and models of learning outcomes havebeen debated since this period. Secondly, the 1970salso saw the launch of a national drive for adult lit-eracy, the growth of English for Speakers of OtherLanguages (ESOL) and new provision for adultreturners and access courses, with a greater emphasison progression for adult learners without previousqualifications. The class, gender and ethnic compo-sition of adult education altered. Progression wasoften focused on the movement from non-accredited(first step) to accredited (next steps) provision.Thirdly, from as early as the late 1970s, but nearlyuniversally by the early 1980s, cuts to local authorityprovision for adults began to bite.

Funding for courses and programmes leading tovocational and academic qualifications was moresecure. The culture of work-related provision foradults was fostered through funding from theManpower Services Commission, to whom manylocal authorities and voluntary providers turned.Within a stringent financial climate and with highlevels of unemployment, the drive to accreditationthrough clear progression routes grew stronger. Thegovernment of the day made choices about the kindsof learning it wished to fund, and prioritised qualifi-cations. The divide between unaccredited adultlearning (non-Schedule 2) and learning leading torecognised qualifications in a national framework(Schedule 2) was incorporated into the 1992 Act,leaving the former particularly vulnerable with localauthority funding under continued pressure. Thedivide was not clear cut, however. A significantamount of 'non-Schedule 2' provision was swept upinto the FE sector with the designated colleges andthe WEA. The FE/HE Act gave FEFC responsibilityfor these institutions with their special character andmission. Their provision included both non-Schedule

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2 and Schedule 2 provision. In addition in the LocalEducation Authority (LEA) sector, the new unitaryauthorities have duties which include to 'secure' ade-quate adult education.

All three types of adult education providers and theirlearners need a framework through which the goalsand outcomes of learning can be meaningfullyunderstood and appraised. This is not only toincrease the security of funding. It is to ensure thatlearners, tutors and organisations can work togetherto measure the value which adult learning adds inways which are relevant and useful.

The philosophy of outcomes and of learning modelsderiving from it begins with a strong focus onlearners' objectives. The focus on objective-settingpresupposes that people can project aims, goals andintentions upon their future and strive to realisethem through successive actions. It is the philosophythat underlies planning, that binds the present withfuture rewards, that defines 'needs' as the gapbetween where we are and where we want to be. Itlocates paradise as just ahead of us. Most peopleadopt a pragmatism that allows them to account forsome things as 'nature-driven' (`That's the way Iam.') and for other things as open to choice,intention and free will ('What do you want to do?Where do you want to be? How do you want tolive?' and so on). We can feel powerless by self-per-suasion or we can learn to change our situation andour perspective: our innate capacity to learn is animportant component in determining the kind of lifewe live. Present action can influence future out-comes, and the design of future goals can motivateour endeavours.

THE NVQ OUTCOMES MODELAlthough 'objectives' informed course preparationfor the Open University in the early 1970s, a greaterinfluence on the use of 'outcomes' has been GilbertJessup's work in developing the framework for theNVQs in the 1980s. His book, Outcomes: NVQsand the emerging model of education and trainingwas published in 1991. A more accessible source ishis chapter in Outcomes, learning and the cur-riculum, edited by John Burke, in 1995. There is

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much here that enthusiasts on either side of the adulteducation/vocational training divide could subscribeto. Jessup's theory is a unifying one:

The outcomes model is based upon theassumption that learning is a personal and indi-vidual experience and that to 'standardise' it byadopting specific modes and time periods is notthe most effective means for a group to achievea set of learning outcomes. Individuals need tomanage their own learning experiences in amanner which recognises where they startfrom, their preferred styles and modes oflearning, and the time and opportunities theyhave for learning. This is believed to be true forlearners of all ages and becomes even moreimportant for mature and adult learners,amongst whom individual differences and dif-ferences in opportunity are likely to be evengreater than amongst the young.

It separates out the requirements for an award orrecognition from the course or training programmeor personal learning activities used to generate theevidence of achievements or competence. Itencourages people to acquire competence or achieve-ments in any way conformable with their prefer-ences, lifestyle or availability, whether they areformal or informal, part-time or full-time opportu-nities, and wherever the location. It encouragespeople to accredit previous learning, get recognitionfor learning at home, at work, or during leisure time.

Jessup envisaged the development of the Record ofAchievement and the Portfolio of Evidence as usefulways for people to demonstrate achievements. ThePortfolio represented a flexible way of assembling evi-dence in a range of media and modes appropriate tothe learner (building on the way students in art anddesign had traditionally assembled evidence of accom-plishment). Products were acceptable outcomes.

The notes to Jessup's article (p53) record some rel-evant comments on the relationship betweenteaching and learning:

Whereas 'learning' could be characterisedwithout introducing the notion of teaching,`teaching' could not be characterised withoutthe notion of learning . . . The teacher's success. . . can only be defined in terms of that of thelearner . . .

This provides an interesting springboard for tacklingteachers' objections to determining learning out-comes (see Section 4).

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However, the original learner-centred model wasmodified in the NVQ model, where, to maintainnational standards, outcomes were centrally defined.This created problems for many adult learners whojust want to learn what meets their personal needs,which may of course include, or develop into job-related needs or academic aspirations. Many suchpeople learn intermittently over a period of time, areoften anxious about assessment and cannot accu-mulate all the evidence needed to demonstrate com-petence. There may also be no external requirementon learners to gain a qualification in order to meettheir goals.

Objections to the model included:

the confusion over outputs and outcomesthe mechanistic behavioural modelunderlying competencythe over-specification of learning objectivesand performance criteria focusing only onthe easily measured features and so on.

Similarly, the dominant model systems for relatingresources and sources of performance indicators(inputs > process ) outputs) drove attentiontowards the easily enumerated factors, rather thantowards those factors which were less easily countedor measured.

Different 'stakeholders' give different value to dif-ferent interpretations of 'outcomes' and placeemphasis on different components. For example,while students might concentrate on the benefits theyare or are not experiencing, teachers might berequired by their organisations and funding bodiesto focus on 'outputs' and 'impact', and so leave theexperienced benefits to be identified by a qualityassurance process.

Figure 1 illustrates how outcomes may be seen asmeasurable outputs for the organisation and broadereffects on the learner.

The variable use of the term 'outcomes' by differentstakeholders led to:

much anxiety and confusion about what anapproach focused on learning 'outcomes'might entaildifferent definitions emerging in differentsectors of education and training.

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Figure 1: Learning outcomes

OUTCOMES FORPROVIDERS/

STAKEHOLDERS/FUNDERS

Outputs (positive or negative)

Operational outputs

e.g. number of tasks done

range of artefacts

(reports, essays, pottery, etc)

Service outputs

e.g. levels reached

numbers retained

successful passes, etc

Service impact

e.g. more qualified

more choice

more progression, etc

Personal

e.g. more confident

more literate

more skilled

loss of self-esteem

OUTCOMESEXPERIENCED Social

BY THE e.g. better mixer

LEARNER wider network

put off 'education'

Economic

e.g. got a job

found a source of income

got involved in community action

wasted money, etc

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OPEN COLLEGE NETWORKS ANDTHE CREDIT FRAMEWORK

Open College Networks (OCNs) developed duringthe 1980s and 1990s in response to tutors' desire toprovide recognition for a wider range of adultlearning outcomes than mainstream qualificationsacknowledged. OCNs provide recognition forlearning programmes, and accreditation for theachievements of individual learners successfully com-pleting these programmes.

The rationale for OCNs was that much valuablelearning takes place often in informal environ-ments, in voluntary organisations, adult and com-munity education centres, or in the periphery ofcolleges and other mainstream learning environments

which gains no formal recognition. Such learning isoften targeted to meet the particular needs of groupsof learners, which may be highly localised and indi-vidual. Because this learning does not lead to anyformal recognition, it does not provide an easy basisfor progression. In addition, this provision is outsidenormal quality assurance systems, and this affects thevalue given to the achievements of learners.

OCNs are regional consortia of providers, usuallyincluding FE colleges, higher education, voluntaryand community and adult education centres and arenow co-ordinated nationally by the National OpenCollege Network which develops policy on behalf ofits members.

OCN accreditation processes needed to be applied toa wide range of learning opportunities. Simpleaccreditation frameworks evolved with the followingfeatures:

four levels of achievement to denote the com-plexity, learner autonomy and range of learningachieved: these correspond broadly to the 4 levelsproposed by the Dearing Review of 16-19qualifications.

credits which are a means of measuring thevolume of achievement. To establish the volumeof achievement or credit value, the notionallearning time required to achieve the learning out-comes of the programme is identified. This isdivided by 30 to arrive at the numberof credits.

Tutors need to specify the programme as a series ofunits of achievement in order for a learning pro-gramme to be recognised. A unit is defined as acoherent set of learning outcomes with assessmentcriteria which denote the standards which need to beachieved, the level and proposed credit value.

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The rationale for specifying learning outcomes isexplored in Christopher Parkin's paper (seeAppendix 4):

Learning outcomes describe what a personknows, understands and is able to do after aprocess of learning. Making outcomes explicitcan help both learner and tutor to understandwhat the learner is trying to achieve, to monitorachievement, and to decide what learningmethods and activities may be mostappropriate.

To ensure quality, a panel of tutors experienced inthe specific area of study, drawn from a range ofproviders, considers the consistency and coherenceof the learning programme and has the authority torecognise learning programmes on behalf of themembers of the OCN.

The OCN also organises moderation of the pro-gramme during delivery to ensure that the pro-gramme is being delivered as recognised, tomoderate individual learner achievement, and toconfirm the credits awarded to learners. Learnersreceive a credit record which identifies the unitsachieved, the learning outcomes, and the numbers ofcredits achieved at various levels.

Peer group processes spread and develop bestpractice, ensure shared understanding of standardsand that decisions are made by informed and currentpractitioners. Courses accredited include return tostudy programmes and other programmes designedto provide access into specific qualifications withinthe mainstream framework, innovative short coursessuch as cultural literacy, Internet skills, access to FEand HE. The majority of Access to HE courses arenow accredited by OCNs.

OCNs can accredit a wider and more varied range oflearning outcomes than other awarding bodies as aresult of the simplicity, flexibility and the localism ofthe processes, but they do require that the learningprogrammes are relatively formalised. Althoughthere is an increasing move towards accreditation bybodies which have traditionally resisted such formal-isation of provision, OCN accreditation will not besuitable for all learning opportunities. Thepaperwork and cost of accreditation through anOCN is not likely to be feasible for tutors providingprogrammes with a short shelf life or highly nego-tiated content.

FE matters 4-OVol 2 No 3

The level of bureaucracy is a problem with alllearning outcomes systems and OCNs are not alonein being criticised for the time and cost of the qualityassurance processes. There are benefits and pitfalls inpeer moderation.

In 1993, FEU published A Basis for Credit? whichset out a vision of a credit-based framework of qual-ifications. This explores how the achievements andthe processes developed by OCNs, might usefully beapplied to the mainstream qualifications framework.FEU and FEDA have carried out a range of researchand development projects and published a range ofpublications which explore the potential of credit-based approaches both to qualification design and toinstitutional approaches to quality, measuring valueadded and as the basis for funding.

In Wales, colleges have been collaborating withOpen College Networks through the Welsh Officefunded CREDIS project to explore the idea of aNational Transcript of Student Achievement. TheCREDIS transcript records all achievement in creditsand levels within the FE Credit Framework. In Walesthis process has been strengthened by linkingfunding from the FE Funding Council for Wales withthe credit value of OCN units and the credit ratingsof qualifications.

The transcript is intended as a summary sheet withinthe Record of Achievement, with all school, college,community or work-based learning outcomes addedto the transcript during a lifetime of learning. Specialprojects in Wales have been investigating how studenttranscripts can form an integral part of studenttracking systems and link seamlessly with the collegemanagement information systems. The summativetranscript can evolve from the original learneragreement into a document to monitor studentprogress, before being printed as a final transcript ofachievement whenever the student leaves the college.

The idea of the transcript has captured the imagi-nation of the growing numbers of Credit Consortiaacross the UK and has the potential to form anational scheme, providing a useful formative andsummative record for the individual, and aggregatedinformation for institutions and regions. In parallel,the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service(UCAS) has been commissioned by the DfEE todevelop the Profile, a computerised database torecord individual learning achievements, initially forUniversity entrance but with the potential to bedeveloped as a lifelong record for individuals and asource of national data. This would complement thenew National Record of Achievement (NRA) whichis being trialled in 1997-98, where the emphasis isless on the record and more on learners acquiring the

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skills of planning, acknowledging and reflecting on awide range of learning situations in order to becomelifelong learners.

ACCREDITING LEARNINGOUTCOMES: THE ISSUES FORADULT EDUCATIONIn an article on accreditation for Adult Learning,1993, Kathryn Ecclestone recognised that:

more learners wanted proof of theirachievementsthe Further and Higher Education Act tiedlarger proportions of public funds tospecific, certificated outcomesthe then Department of Employment wasinvesting heavily in the accreditation ofprior learning towards vocationalqualifications, as steps towards the nationaleducation and training targets (NETTs)accreditation will change the way in whichmany education and training programmesare designed and implemented.

At the same time, growing numbers of informal and`non-vocational' liberal adult education programmesand courses were being accredited in order to satisfythe funding criteria for Schedule 2 under the Furtherand Higher Education Act. This shifted debatetowards the technicalities of accreditation and awayfrom its impact on different groups of adults and thenon-formal curriculum offer. Simultaneously, thehumanist and liberal principles were being bundledup in statements of mission and general aims like 'Tocreate access for the whole community, to empowerlearners through negotiation, to recognise their lifeexperience . . . ', and so on while at the same timesteering them onto Schedule 2 provision and beingobliged to maximise the number of units claimed bya number of ploys.

She saw the benefits in accreditation for teachers,who could make use of a framework which can helpteachers and learners to recognise and assess whatthe learner can already do, what remains to belearned, create action plans and record achieve-ments; and can form the basis for staff development.

She also saw benefits for adult learners in helping themmake decisions about the suitability of programmes orabout the order in which they learn the intended ele-ments; and in generating evidence of learning ortesting the value of what has been learned, whichwould also satisfy funders, employers and managers.

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However, she also acknowledged that the drive toaccreditation and an outcomes-based approachraised two serious questions:

Are the technical processes and the intendedtargets the right ones?Are the educational values and principleswhich underpin them appropriate?

The underlying anxiety is that learning outcomesspecified externally become the 'property' ofawarding bodies, and the opportunity for learnersand teachers to participate in shaping outcomes islost. An accompanying fear is that more complexbundles of skills, such as creativity, critical reflectionor the ability to work in a team, will be overlookedor omitted because their learning outcomes are dif-ficult to define.

Older adult education concerns with joint explo-ration and creation of knowledge, shared ownershipof negotiated programmes and the concept of edu-cation as a social movement are now beingmarginalised.

Kathryn Ecclestone acknowledges that many ofthose who denigrate accreditation have themselvesusually enjoyed easy access to it. For many people,education serves a more instrumental purpose andthey have been persuaded that accreditation is

important. The rise of accreditation has attractedsome people who previously might not havebothered. It has also put off many people who findthe processes irksome.

The major question, as she sees it, is:

How can we use accreditation to enhancerecognition of achievement whilst keeping thedebate about access to a range of learning(outcomes), and about the purposes of learningand accreditation (in a lifelong framework)alive?

She suggests a number of strategies:

We have to challenge the use of humanistprinciples to promote what could bemechanistic and restrictive practices.We have to show that the ability to learneffectively is at the root of competence at alllevels and in all contexts. We have to be lessapologetic about intangible outcomes oflearning and the outcomes of liberal andhumanist education.Continuing professional development andbetter understanding about how peoplelearn, cannot be replaced with 'teacher-proof' assessment systems.

16

We need to know when accreditation isappropriate and beneficial, when itconstrains achievement or access, and whenusing learning outcomes and assessment tosupport learning is enough without aformal certificate.

Her final envoi is very apt and powerful. If adulteducation is worth defending, it is worth findingbetter ways of defining its benefits.

FE matters Vol 2 No 3

4 Approaches to gathering evidenceof outcomes of learning

CASE STUDY 1:LEARNING OUTCOMES AS AQUALITY STRATEGY

It was fitting that the 'challenge' issued by KathrynEcclestone in 1993 was at that time being taken upby organisations with a long commitment to liberaladult education such as the WEA and the London`designated' colleges. The Eastern District of theWEA, partnered by the South Eastern District, actedas the pilot for a WEA project to develop a 'learningoutcomes Strategy'.

The remit for the WEA research and developmentproject was to identify acceptable means by whichthe WEA could demonstrate to itself, to its studentsand tutors, and to its funders, that worthwhilelearning took place in its liberal studies (i.e. non-Schedule 2) courses. The main motive for the projectwas to be quality, not effectiveness. Quality edu-cation should demonstrate that learning was takingplace. The project consultant, John Daines began bydocumenting the existing WEA practices fordescribing student learning and carrying out courseevaluation. Simultaneously, he consulted part-timetutors (who formed the bulk of the teaching staff),field staff and Branch members to check out theacceptability, feasibility and practicalities of des-cribing learning outcomes, and to draft a set of pro-cedures. Once the procedures were available theywere piloted by a group of tutors in their Branchcourses. The feedback was then used to modify theprocedures for each successive application.

The basic framework that evolved was:

Tutors are required to produce syllabuseswhich make the proposed learning outcomesfor their course explicit, in terms of whatstudents should be able to do, think, feel orsay as a result of their newly-acquiredknowledge, understanding and skills.'These proposed outcomes are then agreedand acknowledged by each class member,forming a learning contract wherefulfilment is describable by both parties.(The traditional flexibility of the`negotiated' syllabus is not lost, since thelearning outcomes agreed at the outset canbe modified during the course.)

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At the end of the course, students are askedto judge the extent to which they haveachieved the agreed learning outcomes, toidentify other personal achievementsresulting from the course, to suggest what`next steps' may be undertaken, and to offeran evaluation of the course itself(see Appendix 5).

The requirement to prepare a syllabus with explicitlearning outcomes was generally welcomed bytutors, while most students liked the new format andthe opportunity to comment on the outcomes andtheir own achievements. What also emerged was theinfluence of the tutors' attitudes on students. In theEastern District, where the procedure was imple-mented in 100% of classes, and 75% of studentscomplied with the invitation to complete theirlearning outcome forms, there had been the oppor-tunity to participate in the formulation of the schemeand tutors were by then more supportive. Students'responses elsewhere were more varied, and reflectedtutor uncertainties.

At District level, its adoption was helped by theamended documentation arising from Stage 2 andthe evaluation carried out by Mosaic, a specialistconsultancy and training service (Astor, 1995).Mosaic's findings were:

1 The members (students), while recognising thesocial benefits of courses, see the WEA as 'alearning activity, opportunity provider'.

2 They see the learning objectives and outcomesas useful because:they serve to focus the course, the tutor is betterdirected, they give students a degree of controlover tutors in that courses can be re- directed.. .

3 The requirement to prepare a syllabus withexplicit learning outcomes is broadly welcomedby tutors. (Where the approach was resisted,tutors felt it was inappropriate for courses con-cerned with developing the senses or values.)

4 The student responses on learning outcomeshave enabled the review and reflection of manytutors to be more focused and developmental.

5 The learning outcomes approach is conceivedby many students and branch officials as astrait-jacket, and the potential of the process as

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an enabling framework has not been recog-nised. There is real concern that it reduces flex-ibility and response.

6 Some students and branches have resented the`time taken out of the class' for discussion ofthe learning outcomes process. This reflects aperception of the scheme as something externalto the class, and not part of a cycle of planning,delivery, learning and review (that they feelownership of).

7 Some students and tutors made reference to thedemands that reading and analysing studentresponse forms made on tutors' time. TheIntroduction of Learning Outcomes. AnEvaluation Report, April 1993.

8 There has been a wide variety of approaches inthe presentation of 'learning outcomes' to stu-dents.

9 Members recognise the possible funding ben-efits of describing their learning, but they feelthe 'rigour' of describing their learning achieve-ments may not be appropriate for those peoplenot seeking academic or vocational progression.

10 Progress in terms of qualifications oremployment is appropriate for only some of thestudent body. The use of these words has beenirritating to some students.

11 There is an anxiety among students and tutorsthat the Learning Outcomes Scheme is the firststep on the route to formal assessment proce-dures for all classes.

12 Consultant queries include:Does the form need to include thestudent's name?Can it be single-sided?Can the language be made simpler?Can the distinction between student-related sections and course evaluation bemade clearer?

A SWOT analysis of the introduction of learningoutcomes led to the conclusions shown in Figure 2.

By October 1995 the National Association of theWEA was ready for the third stage of the project; toensure the incorporation of the learning outcomesapproach across all Districts as part of the nationalstrategy for quality assurance in WEA provision. Theadoption of the strategy was boosted at nationallevel by the report of the FEFC inspection of theWEA (1995) that:

the introduction of the Learning OutcomesApproach has led to a clarity of objectives andschemes of work for each course; students canconsider more carefully what they can get outof a course and what they might do afterwards.

Figure 2: Conclusions from the SWOT analysis of the introduction of learning outcomes

Strengths Opportunities

Clearer syllabus Informed evaluation by all tutorsEnables informed choice Improved quality of teachingProvides a sound basis for Improved opportunities for learningnegotiation/discussion Clearer information on learning across theFacilitates individual student reflection District(s)Gives evidence of perceived learning Challenge to entrenched styles of teachingAssists tutors' structured reviewsInforms tutor planning for next courseTutor commitment

Weaknesses Threats

Confusion about purpose Perceived loss of independenceInconsistency in presentation to students Perceived loss of flexibilityUncommitted tutors A concern about 'big brother'Inappropriate language Challenge to current styles of teachingAlienation of some branches and tutors Perceived as first step to accreditation

18 BEST COPY AVAILABLEFE matters VO1 2 No 3

John Daines recognised that his strategy was but oneapproach to gathering evidence of outcomes, andthat other adult agencies may have to develop theirown approaches. However, one route was to adaptthe procedures and proformas developed for theWEA. He offered the guidelines listed below.

Proposals would have to be culturally compatiblewith values and traditions (for instance, sum-mative assessment had been rejected, but not 'self-description of learning').

Student responses would have to be voluntary andpossibly anonymous if resistance was to beovercome.

Procedures would have to be organisationally fea-sible and administratively viable.

Planned and targeted staff training would be nec-essary to influence attitudes positively, deal withprocedures and enable the skills of syllabuswriting to be developed.

Careful consideration would have to be given tobriefing/informing students whether throughnewsletters, class tutors or meetings with studentassociations. (Much would depend upon the atti-tudes and support of students.) The slogan 'theeffective learner is a reflective learner' may have tobe invoked.

The key framework to operate within was thequality framework. However, this meant that themonitoring, evaluation and follow-up action ontutors' reports had to be taken seriously, andtutors themselves had to take note of what stu-dents were describing.

The main outcomes from any strategy werelikely to be:

A syllabus which focuses on teaching and learningin ways that benefit both tutors and students, anda procedure which provides clear evidence oflearning.

Tutors actually discuss learning and achievementand report on student responses.

Students have a purchase on the control of theircourse and a personal record of their achievement.

The WEA process is:

patently based upon qualitative judgement anddoes not lend itself to quantitative tinkering orreduction to simplistic indices. As such, theapproach has met the original aim of identi-fying acceptable means of demonstrating thatworthwhile learning takes place in liberal

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studies courses. Moreover, it has created a bodyof information that offers greater knowledgeabout, and confidence in the quality of the cur-riculum being provided, the teaching beingoffered and the learning that results.

The WEA experience represents a body of infor-mation about the application of the LearningOutcomes model in a liberal adult educationalcontext. However, there were other initiatives takenin different organisational contexts, and it is to thesethat we now turn.

CASE STUDY 2:MEASUREMENT OF LEARNINGOUTCOMES IN SHORT COURSES:A PILOT SCHEME AT THE MARYWARD CENTRE 1995-96The scheme was designed for short courses of nomore than 20 hours duration all taught by part-timetutors. It has a standard form used for a very widerange of subjects. The pilot included woodwork,painting, yoga, aromatherapy, creative writing,violin, computing and foreign languages. The MaryWard Centre is a designated Adult Education Collegefunded by the FEFC. Of its 7,000 part-time students,less than 100 opt to take an external certificate. Asexperimentation is valued, unexpected outcomeshave to be catered for. The scheme also enabled bothtutors and students to be involved in identifying out-comes, through a process of setting and reviewingobjectives.

All Mary Ward courses have their own set oflearning 'objectives' devised by the tutor, with Centreguidance. Since non-Schedule 2 courses do not haveexternally imposed objectives, the class can collec-tively negotiate a redefinition of learning objectives.Individual student objectives, outside those for theclass, are also permitted. Students are then invited toselect up to three objectives from the main menu astheir personal learning priorities. The form (seeAppendix 5) is usually introduced in the secondmeeting (this took about half an hour) and reviewedin the penultimate meeting. There is space alongsidethe students' comments on progression for sup-portive comments from tutors.

At the end of the course, students are invited to ratehow far they consider they have achieved theirlearning objectives on a scale of one to five with fiverepresenting a level of achievement much greaterthan anticipated. The office then makes a calculation

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to see what percentage of students consider theyhave broadly achieved their objectives and what thesuccess rate is for each course. For example a cre-ative writing class where the tutor ensured studentswere very aware of their progress had high scores,whereas a beginners language course where therewere false expectations or a weakness in the initialdialogue, had low scores. Class scores in the pilotranged from 3.92 to 2.33. Over two-thirds of stu-dents 'achieved', giving a score of three or above. Instaff development, the management were able tohelp tutors identify common pitfalls and good fea-tures when setting learning objectives or helping stu-dents to do so.

The scheme has the following benefits:

It raises both tutors' and students'awareness of the need to have specific andachievable objectives which are realisticwithin the timespan of the course.It is simple and quick to administer. This isimportant in a Centre with 12,500 courseenrolments, 950 courses and a full-timestaff equivalent of 28.It can be used for any course, whatever thesubject.It permits individual student variation.It is a useful management tool as a generalindicator of students' assessment of theirlearning and of the performance of differentcourses and tutors.It can act as a measure of 'learning gain'.

It has the potential to be used in the FEFC college'sself-assessment process, if evidence of the students'work is incorporated.

The following difficulties need to be overcome:

tutors may see this as an additional andunwelcome workloadstudents may express irritation at anadditional piece of 'non-learning' work.

CASE STUDY 3:LEARNING DIARIES IN ARESIDENTIAL SETTINGNORTHERN COLLEGE

The learning diary was designed to record thelearning of students on the Northern CollegePathways Programme. Intensive staff developmentsessions were held in September 1996 and adjust-ments to the learning diary were made after consul-tation with all members of the academic and course

20

office staff. A task group monitors the use of thelearning diaries and periodically consults with staff,and a rolling programme of staff development is inplace. At present the diaries are used for the awardof credit at OCN levels 1, 2 or 3. However, thelearning diaries could be developed as an instrumentto record learning outcomes on non-accreditedcourses.

The learning diary is designed to allow for flexibilityin the way it can be used. The first section allows thereader to record previous related learning that mightbe relevant to the course, in their community, vol-untary group, trade union, at home or at work. Italso allows them to reflect and record anything theyhave read or heard on the subject, recognising thatpeople learn in a multiplicity of ways and contextswhich they may not see as valid when compared tothe formal classroom lesson. The learner is alsoencouraged to record what they hope to get from thecourse, providing their own benchmark from whichto gauge their experience of the course. The secondsection allows the learner to record learning as ittakes place during the course, either at the end ofeach teaching session or at the end of each day.Learners may record examples of new informationor skills learned or developed during the sessions.They also may indicate if the session has clarified orchanged their views on a topic or any other way theyfeel they have learned. The third section allows thelearner to record learning at the end of the course.Learners can record how they might use what theyhave learned on the course, in their community, vol-untary group, trade union, at home or at work. Theyare encouraged to consider plans for continuing theirstudies as well as how and where they may accessfuture courses.

Together these three stages allow a significant oppor-tunity for the learner to record their learning and thelearning experience. The latter is particularly of rele-vance given the residential nature of the NorthernCollege's courses. For many students, past andpresent, it is the residential factor that has accel-erated their learning experience. Diaries not onlyallow the students to record this but, more impor-tantly, to reflect upon this factor. Not all studentscomplete every section or answer every question, noris it necessary that they do so. The learning diary is ageneric instrument which is applied to a wide varietyof courses. The diaries can be (and are) customisedto suit the needs of particular students and/orcourses.

Additionalsupport ofdiaries are

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evidence may also be presented inthe learning diaries. Where the learninginappropriate they are substituted by

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other methods of recording evidence of learning.Some of these have proved particularly useful for dis-abled students or students with learning difficulties.However, the learning diary forms the centralimplement for measuring learning on the part-timeprogramme. In order to achieve OCN Level 3 creditsadditional evidence must support the learning diary.

However, these diaries are not without theirproblems. The Northern College student populationis drawn from some of the most disadvantaged com-munities in the region whose past experiences of edu-cation are largely of failure. Forms of any kind areseen at best as an inconvenience and at worst withsuspicion. This is one reason for the close scrutinyduring the first year of the learning diary and themonitoring and evaluation of student usage andstudent views of the learning diary. Learning fromexperience on the accredited courses, it is hoped thatthe learning diary model will provide a frameworkfor measuring learning outcomes on non-accreditedcourses.

CASE STUDY 4:RECORDING ACHIEVEMENT TO

RECOGNISE LEARNING

OUTCOMES HILLINGDONADULT AND CONTINUINGEDUCATION SERVICE

The National Record of Achievement (NRA)developed alongside other initiatives, such as NVQs,which encouraged learners to build up a portfolio oftheir learning achievements. Although intended for alllearners, the NRA was seen to have particular value asa means of recording small steps of achievement forthose who did not have formal qualifications. It is alsoa means of recording voluntary activities and personalachievements which are not accredited (many havesince been accredited through key skills). Followingthe review of the National Record of Achievement in1996 (as part of the Dearing Review), the new NRAbeing trialled in 1997 will have a greater emphasis onthe process of action planning and review, and on itsuse as a tool for lifelong learning. The case study thatfollows is an early attempt to introduce recordingachievement to adults.

In 1994-95 Hillingdon Adult and ContinuingEducation Service ran a pilot project to introducerecords of achievement (RoA) as a way of gatheringevidence of learning outcomes (this was reported byDr Geoff Trodd in Adult Learning Vol 7, No 8,p189). The project was initiated with 'mixed

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feelings': 'As long as students came and paid theirfees, who had the right to ask if any learning wasactually taking place?' However, the pressure forincreased accreditation, the example of the WEA ini-tiative and the rapid growth of Open CollegeNetwork courses encouraged the Hillingdon Serviceto emphasise parity of esteem between the FEFCfunded work and liberal/ traditional adult education,in the belief that:

the LEA funded non-Schedule 2 part of theservice was not judged inferior to the FEFCfunded Schedule 2 sector because it lacked anyrecognisable accreditation or system ofassessing outcomes.

At the outset it was decided that the National Recordof Achievement folder would not be used, sincemany sections were not relevant. Instead, they woulddevise a format for recording achievement whichwould cover:

clarification of learning outcomes in eachcourse or subject areadetermination of assessment procedures tobe useda common recording processeventual accreditation through theHillingdon Education Business Partnership(the accrediting body for RoAs in schoolsand colleges in Hillingdon).

Those courses to be involved in the pilot projectwere identified in the brochure and an accompa-nying information leaflet for students was printed.This was available via an enrolment procedure andalso distributed to all students enrolling for thecourses participating in the project. The take-up ofan RoA was optional: an entitlement rather than anobligation. The student's decision did not have to bemade at the first session, when they were also sup-plied with a list of the intended learning outcomesfor their course.

Of the 272 students enrolled, 78% decided to com-mence the RoA exercise. Of these, 82% completed(ranging from 91% on computing courses to 64% inmodern languages).

The format for recording and assessing achievementallowed for both formative and summativeassessment, and enabled students to set their owntargets and monitor their ongoing performance.Towards the end of the course, students coulddiscuss an action plan with their tutor to help withany forward planning. After completion of the wholeprocess, RoAs were returned to students, along witha certificate of accreditation from the Hillingdon

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Education Business Partnership, and an internal cer-tificate from the Adult and Continuing EducationService.

Ninety-five per cent of students and 100% of tutorscompleted the evaluation. The tentative findings arelisted below, starting with the students.

Few students had joined a course because itoffered an RoA. The majority of those completingan RoA would take another course in the future.

Virtually all students found the list of learningoutcomes useful and would not wish to see anychanges.

Most students welcomed an action plan, but somefound it unnecessary.

Changes in the format used for recording andassessing achievements were suggested, particu-larly with regard to simplifying the forms andleaving space for more comments. Overall satis-faction that progress and achievements could beseen at a glance was expressed.

Only four replies were critical of the project; thesestudents believed the time and effort requiredwere wasted and that the paperwork involved wasunnecessary and a waste of money for the wholeservice.

The following comments were more positive andsupportive:

It makes you work harder.I now have a very useful reference book tohelp me with future work.At first I was doing this course for mypleasure only, but because of the record ofachievement I have developed my interestfurther and set up a small workshop . . .

It was useful for showing my manager whatI had achieved.

The fact that the whole process had receivedexternal accreditation was much appreciated.

The tutors' responses were constructive:

All claimed to be happy with the list of learningoutcomes, which allowed for negotiation with stu-dents.

There was a general desire to simplify the formatfor recording achievements.

Using the RoAs had made them more organised,with lesson plans easier to structure and theapproach to achieving outcomes becoming moresystematic. It helped clarify which students needed

22

more help, though it did not distinguish betweenstudents who were good and those who were justcoping.

The 'downside' for tutors was theadditional time needed for coursework,recording and training. They estimated thetime required (15 minutes per session)added up to eleven hours additional workover a course year. (This did not includetime spent on action-planning.)All the tutors involved indicated awillingness to teach an RoA course again.

The project was widened and extended into a secondyear, with changes in documentation and widerregional accreditation. The project was adjudged tobe supportive of the traditional ethos of non-voca-tional education because it:

motivated students to take greaterresponsibility for their own self-assessmentand learningidentified the crucial role of part-time tutorsas 'gatekeepers', in that enthusiastic tutorswere more likely to be subject specialistswho were keen to demonstrate evidence oflearning than full-time staff.

However, the project left Hillingdon with few falsehopes about funding learning through Records ofAchievement. Their external accreditation pleasedstudents but did not satisfy FEFC funding require-ments. Their pilot project did suggest that RoAscould encourage active learning, but it could notachieve parity of esteem for non-Schedule 2provision.

CASE STUDY 5:IDENTIFYING A RANGE OFOUTCOMES FROM 'LEISURE'COURSES GLOUCESTERSHIREACETDue to the funding divide separating adult educationinto either vocational or non-vocational courses orSchedule 2 and non-Schedule 2 courses, from 1993onwards there was interest in exploring how stu-dents applied their learning, irrespective of whichkind of course they had acquired their learning from.There was anecdotal evidence that people did uselearning acquired on non-vocational (non-Schedule2) courses in order to help them with access toincome, employment or promotion. If this were true,it would appear to undermine the justification for

rFE matters Vol 2 No 3

the 'funding divide', since both kinds of course couldlead to similar 'outcomes', in terms of use

of learning.

Early in 1994, Gloucestershire's Adult ContinuingEducation and Training Service (ACET) commis-sioned NIACE to conduct a pilot study on the uses towhich people were putting the skills and knowledgegained in art, craft and modern language courses (seeAdults Learning, February 1995, p.172). The prin-cipal aim was to identify the range of economic out-comes (such as gaining work, changing careerdirection, getting access to income, and so on) fromparticipation in so-called 'leisure courses'. Theproject not only showed that students were applyingtheir learning in a wide range of practical/economicways, but it also emphasised:

the important role that adult educationplays in the lives of people in rural areas:People new to the area, particularly those insmall villages, need the social contact aswell as the satisfaction of achievement.the range of benefits people derive fromparticipation:I am getting good enough to sell my piecesthanks to this course. I have learned newand rare skills and have transformed my lifewith a greater appreciation of the arts,porcelain and china.the widespread belief in the intrinsicbenefits of personal enjoyment and socialdevelopment:Courses like this always make a difference.The added skills, confidence and moraleboost increase the quality of life for me andmy family.

The survey took place in February 1994, at a timewhen weather plays a big role in attendance. Evenso, 50 venues across Gloucestershire were covered,and 879 students responded. Forty-two per cent ofrespondents were attending a course for thefirst time.

All the respondents cited a combination of reasonsfor attending a class: the main ones were to gain newskills, or to develop new or existing interests. Asizeable proportion of those taking modern languagecourses had expectations of communicating betterwhen travelling or taking up work or residence inanother country. Retired people gave social andrecreational reasons as the main motivations.

Few started with the explicit intention to use theirlearning to progress up the academic/educationalladder. (This information was in conflict with whattutors believed.) A high proportion on some courses

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(such as 50% in Calligraphy and 20% in ModernLanguages) said that they were looking to use theirskills to get employment. A similar proportion wasinterested in 'some kind of economic activity', likeselling their pictures, products, and so on.

The broad economic outcomes or uses of thelearning included:

making, refurbishing or repairing items (themajority of students on craft courses) forthemselves, family and friendsmaking and selling items for income (suchas clothes, furniture and cards) or acceptingcommissionsstarting a business (particularly students onPottery, Textiles, Upholstery and Sugarcraftcourses). A high proportion had previouslybeen made redundant.using skills in current employment. Thoseseeking to improve their skills in Art andCraft classes included professional andsemi-professional artists, art teachers,interior designers and one architect. Foreignlanguage students were particularly likely tobe applying their new skills within theircurrent employment.changing career. Some students reportedmaking a complete career change on thebasis of newly-acquired learning. Severalpreviously unemployed students reportedthat courses had enabled them to findwork.

If one widens the scope of application beyondincome-bearing employment, then the followingsocial participation and community benefits areevident:

using skills for the benefit of charities orvoluntary organisationsusing language skills to facilitate contactwith or residence in another countrypassing skills and knowledge on to othersdeveloping complementary skills to broadentheir social opportunities.

The personal benefits, in terms of enhanced lives,were:

increased social contact, especially forelderly people, and those in rural areastherapeutic benefits, particularly relaxationand stimulationenhanced ability to contribute to family lifeperhaps through family business orhomework

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4. '01

increased confidence and self-esteem. This isalways reported as a clear benefit of adulteducation. This whole latter category ofbenefits can be associated with processoutcomes.

As might be expected, the confidence to move on andenrol on another course was a common outcomethat was not originally seen as an objective orintention. Unintended outcomes can be just asimportant as the intended ones, since it is the unin-tended outcomes which are often indicative ofhuman development and the ability to change.

The Gloucestershire survey also revealed: 'therejection of what was perceived as a growing andinappropriate national stress on the utilitarianapproach to education'. The study highlighted theeconomic and therapeutic benefits of adult educationand the development of confident learners. Studentswrote to their councillors in support of the serviceand extolled its value in their lives. They not onlyappreciated the service, but were prepared to pay forit and defend it.

24 FE matters VO1 2 No 3

5 Practical frameworks for developinglearning outcomes strategies

Having looked at the development of thinking onlearning outcomes and some of the attempts todevelop evidence of achievements for traditional orliberal adult education we are in a better position toclarify the issues, for organisations, tutors andlearners.

THE ORGANISATIONALPERSPECTIVE

One way of representing the issues for organisationsis with a 'cycle of concerns' like the one shown inFigure 3.

Figure 3: A cycle of concerns

joe1 The intentional

framework

7 Evaluation

I6 The resource

issues

t5 The ecological

issues

2 The mechanics

i3 The 'learning

process' outcomes

4 The 'harvest'outcomes

As in any cyclical process, one can enter at any point.The issues can be expressed as a series of questionsfor those considering gathering evidence of out-comes.

VO1 2 No 3

A CHECKLIST FORORGANISATIONS INTRODUCINGA LEARNING OUTCOMESTRATEGY

1 The intentional frameworkWill the learning outcomes be determined byquality systems, funding regimes, national policyor another factor?

What's the purpose of the scheme?

Will the learning outcomes be imposed or nego-tiated with learners?

Will the process be led by managers, tutors or stu-dents?

Will the purpose or necessity of a learning out-comes strategy be justified to teachers and learnersby funding, politics, benefits to students oranother factor?

Will evidence of intended and unintended out-comes be gathered?

Who will have ownership of the record of learningoutcomes?

2 The mechanics

How will the public learn aboutits benefits?

the scheme and

How will 'learning outcomes' be explained,prompted or collected? Who is responsible forwhich part of the process?

What will constitute acceptable evidence?

Will the evidence be recorded, celebrated,accredited, acted upon or otherwise?

For how long and in what form will it be kept?

A, i

FE matters 25

3 The 'learning process' outcomes

(during the learning period)Will the scheme accept the learning outcomesfrom the process as well as the content (confi-dence, self-knowledge, inter-personal skills,assertiveness, study skills, and so on)?

Will the scheme acknowledge learning gains atdifferent stages?

This would involve questions like:Are you getting what you want?Are you making progress and, if so, where?What difference is the course making?What are you discovering that you didn'texpect?

Will the scheme consider different orders oflearning outcomes including development of skillsand new attitudes as well as knowledge?

This would include questions like:How do you feel now?What do you think at this stage?What new skills have you developed?How have your attitudes changed?

Does the scheme acknowledge the process ofbuilding a portfolio of work as well as its value asan end-product of learning?

4 The `harvest' outcomes (at theend of the learning period)

How will evidence of intended or unintendedoutcomes be gathered?(Will it be by verbal testimony by self or others,written testimony by self or others, products,portfolios, expressive items, and so on?)

How will the evidence be assessed and by whom?

Whose evidence is sought on whether learningoutcomes are achieved?

What will be the status of different forms of evi-dence (such as tutor observation; witness reports;written reflection; products, leavers' contributionsto group discussion and so on)?

When will evidence be gathered and over howlong a period?

Which ways of valuing/celebrating the achieve-ment of outcomes will be used? (Will it be a copyof a report, award, album, video, magazine, exhi-bition or event?)

26

5 The ecological issues

Are the benefits of the scheme worth the effort?

Does it benefit enough people?

Is the scheme benign in its impact on student/staff,staff/management relations?

What is the evidence useful for? (Educationalrecord, confidence raising, social/economic/envi-ronmental benefits?)

Is evidence gathering environmentally friendly?(Is it oral evidence, paper, electronic orotherwise?)

How can the value of the learning and the schemebe charted once the learner has moved on?

Is the scheme sustainable?

6 The resource issuesIs the scheme manageable within currentresources?

Is the evidence gathering administratively possible?

If you need additional resources (time, people,equipment and capital) what can you draw on?(Staff take on new roles, volunteers offer giftwork,students do more for themselves, part-timers/casual labour at key times, and so on.)

Who pays for the evidence gathering? (Is it stu-dents, an organisation, funding bodies, or other?)

7 Evaluation

What are the benefits to the organisation in termsof quality, cost benefit, improved continuationand progression and so on?

What do the tutors and students think of thescheme?

Can the evidence be used for other purposes (suchas self-assessment, inspection, curriculum andstaff development)?

What would you change next time round (forexample clarify intentions etc)?

What is the value added for individuals, organisa-tions and the national well-being? (Can the valueadded by the learning contribute to NTETS aim of`self-reliance, flexibility and breadth'?)

Obviously the values of an organisation will 'threadthrough' and influence decisions on each of the`bundles' of issues, and choices in one sector willinfluence the options taken up in other sectors of the

FE matters r;4.0 Vole No 3

Figure 4: The ecology of learning

Fifth level Statutory/Quango/Accreditationrequirements, funding, inspection,validation, auditing, etc

Plans, reports, systems,audits, self-assessment, etc

Fourth level Activities to support organisation, biddingfor funds, quality assurance, examinations

Bids, plans, systems

Tertiary levelactivities

Management activities to support learning Meetings, reports/plans,staff development, etc

Secondary activities Information and guidance, evidence gathering Plans, documents, procedures,instruments, records

Primary levelactivities

Tutors provide learning support, teaching, etc

Learning converts experience into knowledge,skills, etc

OutcomesObjectivesNeeds

cycle. The WEA, for example, decided that the aimsof the Learning Outcomes project were to enhancequality; to promote negotiation of outcomes; to setup an open process which allowed students andtutors to clarify intentions/objectives; recognise unin-tended outcomes (though focusing on agreed ones);rely largely on students' written responses for evi-dence; produce benefits for all the participants; keepthe 'administration' within bounds and the paperinvolved within reasonable limits.

Different organisations will give priority to differentaspects. For example, most examining bodies imposethe learning outcomes, so there can be no negoti-ation. They are less concerned with 'learnerautonomy' than maintenance of 'standards'. Manyproviders ignore the outcomes from the learningprocess, such as growing confidence and self-reliance, and only focus on outcomes which areeasily measured, or intended. All these decisionsimpact on factors like adult autonomy, ownership,motivation and continuing attendance, 'returnbusiness', and so on. However, OCN schemes, andto some extent developments in the accreditation ofkey skills in personal development (managing ownlearning, team-working and problem-solving) are anattempt to find a middle way.

A key factor for many traditional adult educationorganisations and particularly those in the localauthority sector, is how much of their resources willbe taken up by a new learning outcomes scheme.Most have very flat management structures, very

Vol 2 No 3

limited and often part-time administrative support,and a majority of part-time teaching staff. Askingpeople in such structures to take on an overburdenof administrative, monitoring and recording/inter-preting duties, particularly if there are no clearlyidentifiable benefits is a high risk venture. In thecurrent ecology of learning the overburden of admin-istration has grown dramatically, reflected in the riseof administrative support in colleges and thegrowing demands on managers, administrative staffand tutors elsewhere, as shown in Figure 4.

Although spending on formal education in thestatutory sector has risen, there are more agenciesintercepting the application of resources to simplyproviding learning opportunities. As a result, moreof a teacher's, manager's and administrator's time isnow spent on generating evidence for those at a`higher' level (as shown in Figure 4). Consequently,managers and part-time tutors particularly are nowasking the 'ecological' questions such as:

Who requires (or needs) this evidence?For what purposes do they need thisevidence?Who will benefit?Who pays for its collection?How much paper and stress is involved?How do we measure the value it adds?

FE matters 27

4.

THE LEARNER PERSPECTIVEThe term 'outcomes' is used in many different waysand with different implications. The WEA andHillingdon (and most Higher Continuing Educationcourses) have tried to limit the use of 'outcomes' to`learning outcomes' which can be translated into orfrom 'learning objectives'. However, learners, unlessthey have incorporated the terminology of theirteachers, tend to think of 'outcomes' either as theuses to which the learning can be put, in other wordsas benefits or as applications of the benefits. It mightbe helpful, therefore, to represent outcomes in aframework like the one shown in Figure 5, whichtries to separate out the uses of learning from thelearning itself, and use 'learner friendly' language atthe same time.

Such a framework could accommodate both accreditedand non-accredited, formal and informal learning; itwould absorb the range of benefits adults get fromlearning, both in terms of the learning process itself andthe eventual uses of the actual learning. It would reg-ister those aspects of learning which people value

from stimulation to getting a job (for example, ifsomeone leaves a Schedule 2 course to take up a job,

the provider gets no recognition); and facilitate cooper-ation between teachers and learners in a jointendeavour to create evidence of learning that is usefulto both parties.

Furthermore, the framework could help learners ori-entate and organise themselves; focus the learningproviders' resources on enabling learners to becomepartners in the move towards greater clarity andtransparency in getting evidence of learning and itsuses; and perhaps persuade funding bodies to widentheir scope on what constitutes useful personal,social and economic learning.

The markers of progress which link with 'processoutcomes' need not be complex. If something like thesix-step model for learning and learning support isused, then students' reported evidence of 'anxiety',`confidence', and demonstrated motivation, flexi-bility, and so on, can be represented as shown in thesix step model in Figure 6 on the previous page.

Figure 5: A framework for outcomes

The uses of your learning

To give you stimulation and confidenceTo give you knowledge and skillsTo pass an exam/to get a certificateTo help you get a jobTo help you help others (such as your children)To help your everyday life (such as mending your car)

Finding out what you have learned

Reflect on past progress and skills or knowledge gainedSet learning targets, then measure your progress against themSomeone else helps you measure your progressYou produce things, do things that you and others can assessagainst standards, etc

1

. ,

.

-

.

28 FE matters VO1 2 No 3

Figure 6: The six step model for learning and learning support

Learning

Developing/creatingunderstanding, attitudes

knowledge, skills,and appropriacy, etc

Raised motivation and energy

anxiety

6

5

Accomplishment

Positive

4

Complacency?3

Confidence2

Anxiety

Unconscious

competence1

Bliss

Conscious

competenceConscious

incompetenceUnconscious

incompetence

Learning support range

Informationand publicity

Tasters

Outreach

Videos

spoken

Preparation Quality models

Essential Qualitylearning skills feedback

(formative)from peersfrom tutors/

experts

APL

Testimony from Exposure to

earlier students real challenges

Reflection

Easy targets

and early

success

Gallery ofstudentproducts andcreations

Real Knowing how Guidance on

application much more next steps

there is tolearning

Formative and Re-orientationnormativefeedback

Tests/ Reviewed

confirmation, purpose/etc ambition

Keeping up to

date

Wanting tolearn more

Vol 2 No 3 FE matters 29

As we have seen, the term 'outcomes' could cover`learning outcomes', 'outputs' and the uses oflearning. We saw also that generally no distinctionwas made between 'process outcomes' and the`harvest outcomes', whether intended or unintended.

A DUAL PERSPECTIVE?

This section proposes that students and tutors needto be able to describe general learning outcomes intheir own words, but that it may be possible todesign a tool which organisations could use to gatherthe information they need, without overburdeningthe learners. The organisation's 'template' woulddiffer, depending on its key interest (such as quality,curriculum or staff development, funding, studentprogression).

All learning opportunities should be able to demon-strate that they have helped students to:

increase their confidenceimprove their capacity to continue or applylearningdeepen their knowledge or understandingacquire new skills (either in relation to theirsubject, or interpersonal skills).

These can be seen as necessary conditions by lookingat potentially undesirable outcomes:

loss of confidenceinability to use or transfer learningmore confused/narrowed visioninability to demonstrate new skills.

That is, there should be progress which can bedemonstrated (through self-reflection, products,actions, attitudes). The problem is, that withoutexternal standards, it is hard to measure progress orlearning gain, unless we know what the startingpoint is. Even so, we can anticipate that some stu-dents will move a long way, others very little and thegains will be in different kinds of learning.

A learning outcomes strategy will be designed differ-ently depending on the relative importance of its keypurposes (whether recording personal achievementsor quality assurance systems is a primary or sec-ondary intention) and the key stakeholders (insti-tution, funder or student). Both the process andharvest outcomes will be affected.

What are the minimum prerequisites for the abovebroad outcomes which we could expect of all courseswithout distorting the diversity of what adult edu-cation offers?

30

The tutor clarifies what the students can expect togain from the course.

The learner says what they want to gain from thecourse.

The likely ways of acquiring these gains are clear.

The ways in which the learning might be demon-strated are clear.

The support students can expect from tutor andothers is explicit.

The organisation is realistic about what it can andcannot offer.

The student is aware of the steps required to moveon or apply the learning.

Almost all the items listed will benefit the organi-sation, the tutor and the learner in different ways.Some of the information will be supplied before(such as publicity), some at the start of the course,some during the learning process, and some at theend, or even at a later stage.

Unless the learning outcomes strategy is only there tobenefit the student, where it can be totally subjective,there will be some external quality assurancemechanism. We have argued that there must be somedemonstrable progress or movement in, for example,increased confidence, in skill acquisition or progress,in knowledge and/or understanding. The detailshould not be required from the student, but shouldbe applied as part of a rigorous quality 'template'.This will avoid:

overloading the students with 'bureaucracy'worrying them about 'assessment'demanding burdensome specificity indescribing outcomesinducing tutor resistance or tokenism.

For example, general learning outcomes (see Appendix4) describe what a person knows, understands and isable to do as a result of a process of learning.Assessment criteria may be where the detail of specificlearning is evidenced (for instance, How autonomousis the learner? How much is learned? Under what cir-cumstances is the learning applied or used?).

But, rather than assessing the learner for accredi-tation, we want to demonstrate the progress oflearning against externally offered outcomes and/orpersonal goals. So the objective is to analyse thosepersonal statements in such a way that theorganisation, tutor or inspector can assess relativestrengths or weaknesses in the learning gained. Ananalogy would be textual analysis applied to a piece

FE matters Vol 2 No 3

Figure 7: Course outline (what the course offers)

Outcome Prompts or questions for a learner's proforma

A i Course learning outcomes

ii Learning methods and support

iii Progression options

What should you be able to do by the end of the course?

How we will help you learn.

What could you do next?

B Learners' own desired outcomes

i Confidence/competence

ii Knowledge

iii Skills

iv Applied outcomes

What do you hope to get out of the course?

Personal confidence

What new things do you want to know or understand?

What new things will you be able to do?

What do you want to use the learning for?

C Self-assessment (for distance travelled) How confident are you now about the things you andthe tutor have listed above?

D i Self-assessment: mid course(or specified times)

ii New learning goals

How do you rate your confidence now?

Are there any other things you started thinking orlearning about during the course?

E i Preferred learning styles

ii Recording learning gains

List the ways that you learn(ed) best.

How are you showing to yourself or othersthat you are learning?

F i Self-assessment: confidence

ii Self-assessment: competence

iii Self-assessment: original goals

iv Self-assessment: course outcomes

v Evidence

vi Unexpected outcomes/social gains

How do you rate your confidence now with regardto the items listed above?

What can you do now (with help, or on your own) thatyou couldn't do before?

Have you achieved what you wanted?

Have you achieved what the course tutor expected?

How can you show it to yourself and others?

What have you gained from the course or from learningin a group that you did not expect to gain?

G Progression/application

i Role

ii Education progress

iii Employability

iv Other

What do you hope to do with your learning in relationto the following:

your family or community role

further learning in different areas

your job or job prospects

VO1 2 No 3 FE matters 31

of free writing, or analysis of semi-structured inter-views, or assessing the quality of teaching from aclassroom observation.

The chart in Figure 7 (see previous page) helps stu-dents to think about the following learningoutcomes which were highlighted in Figure 5:

eventual uses of their learning (what theyhope to get out of the course)what they have learned (how to assess thedistance travelled)how they learn best (reflection on learningstyles).

It can be integrated into a common frameworkwhich would identify the aspects indicated in thechart which, if required, could be coded, analysedand recorded by the organisation offering thelearning opportunities. The organisation could usethe prompts in the right-hand column as the sort ofquestions which could be used in a learner's pro-forma. In order to measure the learning gain, orvalue-added of learning experiences, learners wouldneed to respond to different parts of the frameworkat different times in the course. They would alsoneed to use evaluative words to describe their experi-ences or their gains in confidence from, say, 'a lot' to`not very much', possibly on a numerical scale.

32

4

FE matters Vol 2 No 3

6 Towards a culture of lifelong learningThere is growing acknowledgement of the impor-tance of recognising the diversity of outcomes fromlearning. This is as true in higher education as it is inadult and further education.

`Learning Works', the report of the FEFC's wideningparticipation committee, chaired by Helena Kennedy(1997), makes a strong case for widening, not justincreasing participation in post-16 education.Helena Kennedy argues in her introduction that eco-nomic arguments for a widening of participation ineducation should be matched by making socialcohesion a prominent goal for education. Describingcolleges which offer a non-discriminatory service toall sections of the community:

They see education as being more than theacquisition of knowledge and skills. In a systemso caught up in what is measurable, we canforget that learning is also about problem-solving, learning to learn, acquiring the capa-bility for intelligent choice in exercisingpersonal responsibility. It is a weapon againstpoverty. It is a route to participation and activecitizenship.

By participation, the committee understood not onlyaccess, but also the success and progress of learners.Some of the recommendations support the findingsof this FEDA study. For example, the recommen-dation that providers should establish new learningpathways which will enable adults to return tolearning with the assurance that they will receiveextra guidance and support, building on their earlierlearning and skills, and be able to update themselvesat a level and pace that suits them. There is strongsupport for a credit framework which would enablelearners to get recognition for their achievementsand build up credit throughout their lives with arecommendation that a national credit frameworkshould be implemented within five years.

The report notes that it is difficult to measure`learning gain' outside traditional GCSE to A-levelprogression but urges that:

A nationally-agreed system of 'learning gain' isurgently required. This would provide a way ofunderstanding and valuing all achievement.

VOI 2 No 3

Work on identifying outcomes of adult learning mayhelp in this process, although it is unlikely to providestatistically robust value-added data, because of thevast range of prior learning and attainment adultsbring to new learning situations.

The acknowledgement of the broad outcomes ofadult learning comes through clearly in the argumentthat 'all learning is valuable', citing learners whotake up upholstery for personal reasons and end upstarting a business, or the growth of leisure andtourism industries based around people's leisurepursuits.

Many of the skills and qualities required forsuccess at work are the same as those requiredfor success in personal, social and communityterms . . . Participation in community life . . .

(can) provide rich, diverse and accessible routesto learning. Those without these key capabil-ities will find themselves at a disadvantage insocial and public life as well as in the labourmarket (page 17).

Sir Ron Dearing's report on 'Higher Education in theLearning Society' (1997), published in the samemonth as 'Learning Works', also emphasises theimportance of widening participation and that oneof the key purposes of HE in sustaining a learningsociety is to:

inspire and enable individuals to develop theircapabilities to the highest potential levelsthroughout life, so that they grow intellectually,are well equipped for work, can contributeeffectively to society and achieve personalfulfilment.

These broad outcomes of learning would be sup-ported by the development, in the medium term, of a`Progress File' for each student, to provide 'a meansby which students can monitor, build and reflect ontheir personal development' and a 'transcript ofachievement' (Recommendation 20). The report alsorecommends that all HE provision should havelearning outcomes. HE institutions should:

immediately develop, for each programme theyoffer, a 'programme specification' which

FE matters 33

identifies potential stopping off points and givesthe intended outcomes of the programme interms of:

the knowledge and understanding that astudent will be expected to have uponcompletionkey skills: communication, numeracy, theuse of IT and learning how to learncognitive skills, such as an understanding ofmethodologies or ability in critical analysissubject-specific skills such as laboratory skills

(Recommendation 21)

Specifying outcomes in this way would undoubtedlyclarify the benefits of higher education for studentsand employers; however, they may not identify thebroader contribution of HE which Sir Ron Dearingalludes to in his description of the learning society.

THE EMPLOYMENT DEPARTMENTFINDINGSThe research undertaken by the employmentdepartment on learning and the world of work had abig impact on the Lifetime Learning consultativedocument in 1995. They recognised the key tran-sition for society was to develop the 'habit oflearning' and that this was more important thanwhat was learned. Subject areas and vocationaldivides were not important, indeed the current defin-ition of vocational was too narrow and inhibiting.The skills and attitudes to remain employable intimes of change are more important than job-specificskills or subject-area expertise.

Their research also recognised that workers andemployers value outcomes from the process oflearning as much as the 'harvest outcomes': like self-confidence, sociability, renewed motivation, and soon, and that these are found in the adult educationcourses which are not formally accredited.

In volume 42 of the Research Series there is a sum-marising section (p34) under the category 'self-funding learners':

34

The best single example of self-funded learningis largely excluded by a (narrow) definition ofvocational education and training, i.e. those 1.5million people who are, presently, involved inAdult Education. In many ways, the debateabout how 'vocational' should be defined iscentral to the idea of 'lifetime learning'. Abroad definition would include any learningactivities which contribute towards an indi-

vidual's continuing employability, rather than(more narrowly) only those activities whichcontribute towards the individual's stock ofskills or competences. A number of the betterknown employee learning programmes (Fordand Rover in particular) bias towards thisbroader definition. In doing so, there is a recog-nition that:

any activities which help the individual intothe habit of learning are to be valued,regardless of the specific subject areaother, more general and non-skill orcompetence based benefits (such asconfidence, fulfilment and motivation)accrue from learning and have value in awork context.

Viewing adult education from this perspective beginsto suggest that the sector may have a more signif-icant role to play in a national strategy to inculcate aculture of lifelong learning than has generally beenassumed. This is despite the fact that many of thesubject areas studied tend to be 'recreational' ratherthan 'vocational', and that (at least until quiterecently) adult education has tended to be an area ofsignificant subsidy by local authorities.

Regarded as a whole, adult education embodies anumber of the key characteristics which would beevident in a 'lifetime learning' culture:

it is a self-motivated and increasingly self-funded area of adult learning (albeit thecosts are relatively small)it involves adults entering the educationsystem (voluntarily), and being re-introduced to the habit of learningit shows the post-16 education and trainingsystem operating as a market, withindividuals making free choices, and thesuppliers responding to demandit is increasingly being linked toqualifications.

. . Rather than being seen as a basis on whichto build for the future, it tends to be viewedmore as a legacy from an age of 'self-improvement' . . .

Research series No 68 brings together the compar-ative findings from all the earlier surveys. Individualsand employers both cited increased job satisfactionas the most likely outcome of employee training.

Both these actual and perceived outcomes tiedup very closely with the factors identified by

FE matters Vole No 3

individuals as motivating them to participate inthe learning process. The value of training wasmost commonly seen as coming from two sortsof benefits; first, those associated with more`concrete' matters, such as increased job satis-faction . . . and second, less tangible things suchas personal satisfaction, improved confidenceand increased sociability.

Non-qualification awarding courses wereassessed by the Providers' Attitudes survey . . .

providers were asked whether there were 'pos-itive outcomes' to such courses. Over nine outof ten said that there were, citing such things asincreased motivation or confidence, through asense of achievement, enjoyment or sociali-sation or in terms of improved skills or levels ofexpertise. (p31)

Among the special features of non-accredited adulteducation is the diversity of the curriculum and pro-grammes, and of the people involved. Because thescope of courses ranges more widely than 'voca-tional' (from personal leisure or development to roleeducation, community participation and citizenship;to life-stage and social adaptation, and so on) andreaches students at all stages of adulthood, the rangeof learning objectives, the application of learningoutcomes, the valued 'learning process outcomes' arealso more diverse. If lifelong learning is going to be areality, then 'more will mean different' and adulteducation will need to be acknowledged and valuedas a key sector. The 'vocational only' and the`accredited only' will not drive learning into a`resistant' society.

INSPECTORATE FINDINGSWe have examined a small range of providers in thisbrief survey. The main inspection agencies, OFSTEDand the FEFC Inspectorate, cover the full span ofproviders of adult education between them, and theirreports confirm our findings.

By 1995-96, 79% of students in FEFC (England)provision were adults, of which 81% were studyingpart-time. The Widening Participation committee'sguide on quality, 'How to Make Learning Work'(1997), proposes nine indicators of good practice.One indicator acknowledges the importance of iden-tifying and valuing broad learning outcomes:

Vole No 3

?EST COPY AVAILABLE

Mechanisms for recording students' achieve-ments which acknowledge all learning aremeaningful to students and are recognised byemployers, education providers and others.

In the OFSTED report, 'Adult education and youthwork within local education authorities' (reviewingthe year 1994-95), the section on Main Findingsreported:

Opportunities for a variety of progression routesare built into the best adult education pro-grammes. Nevertheless, both adult education andyouth services need to give more attention to iden-tifying and recording the outcomes of the wholerange of their work and not simply that which isexternally accredited or part of a short-termproject. (p4)

In the main, adults were achieving an impressiveand diverse range of outcomes as a result of theirinvolvement in LEA adult education: men whohad never cooked before were turning their handto complicated recipes; students with learning dif-ficulties had acquired the poise and control toperform an extract from a Shakespeare play; lan-guage students used their newly-acquired lin-guistic competence for their jobs, for theirholidays or for communicating with friends andfamily. Machine knitters, embroiderers, pottersand painters produced articles for sale or for exhi-bition; lace-making or heirloom quilt studentsdeveloped their skills whilst sustaining traditionalcrafts. Musicians and actors took the opportunityto demonstrate their newly-developed talents inperformance. In family literacy programmes,parents developed the skills and confidence tohelp their children with their reading and numberwork, working alongside them as well asextending their own learning in separate pro-vision; students on Basic Skills at Work pro-grammes were rapidly building up their oral andwritten skills as well as their confidence, whilstemployers confirmed that those who had followedsuch programmes now had the capacity toundertake more complex tasks in the work place.(p6 opus cited)

The learners recognise it, the providers andemployers recognise it, the inspection service recog-nises: that adult education is as much valued for theoutcomes like 'confidence', 'raised motivation', 'flex-ibility' and so on as for formal learning outcomesand the applications of learning. Furthermore, adulteducation represents an available gateway toextending participation to Lifelong Learning for thewidest range of adults. There is a further bonus for

FE matters 35

those seeking to extend provision to all who canbenefit: the bulk of the learning achieves valued out-comes without the additional burden and cost ofaccreditation. The model for funding such a break-through already exists in the way the FEFC funds theWEA and the London designated institutions. Boththe Scottish further education system and the pro-posed Northern Ireland post-incorporationframework have eschewed the Schedule 2/non-Schedule 2 divide.

CONCLUSIONWhile this paper has offered some possible frame-works and tools for thinking about adult learningoutcomes it is not possible to be narrowly pre-scriptive about the 'best tool' for collecting evidence.As we have seen, learners, especially perhaps thosewho are paying their way, do not always see the ben-efits of collecting evidence of learning outcomes;many small organisations see the need for simple,affordable approaches; some of the bigger stake-holders are taking fright at the cost and burdens ofthe shift to accreditation/qualifications, at a timewhen what is needed is a widening of tolerance ofdifferent ways of learning, of acceptance of people'sown judgements about benefits and learning applica-tions, and a return to making the 'habit of learning'enjoyable.

Organisations will choose approaches which reflecttheir values, their staffing levels and the tolerances oftheir students. A widening of tolerance will probablybe more effective than a narrow prescriptiveness ifwe are to accommodate the range of learners and themeans of the providers.

Whether adults are learning in FE colleges, voluntaryorganisations, local authority centres, universities orthe workplace, they will gain a greater sense ofachievement if their tutors recognise the value of abroader range of learning outcomes.

The findings of this report have beenconfirmed in`Learning for the 21st century', the report of theNational Advisory Committee for ContinuingEducation and Lifelong Learning (NAGCELL). Thereport was published after the completion of thisstudy. It strongly supports that 'lifelong learningshould be for all aspects of life and meet a variety ofneeds and objectives' and urges that 'Government,other funders and providers should seek to cherishequally those many forms of learning which canclearly demonstrate high quality, achievement forlearners and added value.'

36

It explicitly recommends that the Qualifications andCurriculum Authority should give a lead in thedevelopment of a national system of recording andsignalling learning activity and achievement. It sup-ports the development of a national, widely usedRecord of Achievement, or a 'progress file' such asthat recommended by the Dearing Inquiry intoHigher Education and currently being trialled infurther and adult education. It concludes that,properly organised and widely recognised, the use ofsuch a method of recording learning would con-tribute to learners' own sense of ownership and man-agement of their own learning, engaging them inmonitoring and reviewing their own progressthroughout life.

FOOTNOTES

1 cf the University of Cambridge Board ofContinuing Education definition of a learningoutcome as 'something that a person would beexpected to know, or to understand, or be able todo as a result of a course or other learning expe-rience.'

There is still debate as to the link between`knowing' and 'understanding'. Many wouldargue that unless you understand you do notreally know.

FE matters

cs. 8

VOI 2 No 3

AppendicesAPPENDIX 11 In essence, the FEFC's duty as laid out in Schedule

2 (S2) to the Act extends to:

qualification-bearing vocationally-orientedcoursesacademic programmes leading to GCE A-level, A/S-levels and GCSE qualificationscertificated programmes preparing studentsfor further, more focused study in furtherand higher educationadult literacy and numeracy provision(usually referred to collectively as 'adultbasic education', or ABE)courses in English for Speakers of OtherLanguages (ESOL)certain provision for students with learningdifficulties and/or disabilities (SLDD),where that provision developscommunication and/or independent livingskills and leads to student progression.

2 A local authority's duty is one which is defined byexception, and covers courses and other learningopportunities commonly referred to as 'non-Schedule 2' (NS2) provision. Traditionally this hasbeen regarded as relating to a range of 'non-voca-tional adult education' programmes, categorisedin Department for Education and Employment(DfEE) statistical returns as:

creative leisure and hobby pursuits(primarily arts and crafts, like paintingand music)'practical' programmes, including certaindomestic craft disciplines (such as basiccomputing, flower arranging, cake icing)physical activities (like yoga, keep fit,dance)foreign languages for non-business purposes(such as French for holiday-makers,introductory Italian)general interest courses (such as localhistory, art appreciation, literature).

Since implementation of the Further and HigherEducation Act, however, the concept of 'non-Schedule 2' has been extended to include:

VO1 2 No 3

non-certificated vocational and academiccourses, such as those designed to provide a`taster' for a longer period of qualification-focused studycertain aspects of 'access' work return-to-learn courses which fail to satisfy criterialaid down by the FEFC'role' education designed to assist people intheir life roles (such as parenting, pre-retirement) or in execution ofnon-work-related responsibilities (such asschool governor training, organisation ofcommunity groups)certain aspects of provision for people withlearning difficulties where courses andprogrammes fall outside the FEFC criteria,including provision which does not preparepeople for further study, or which leadsdirectly into employment (open orsheltered)other unaccredited courses, including thosewhich provide opportunities for personaldevelopment.

It should also be noted that any change to interpre-tation of Schedule 2, whether resulting from FEFCinterpretation (such as a review of ABE and ESOLqualifications now underway) or from proposals bythe Secretary of State (such as the DfEE consultationon criteria for approval of vocational qualifications),will automatically impact upon the extent of a localauthority's statutory duty.

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es, r.%.,4FE matters 37

APPENDIX 2Following the colloquium at which papers onlearning outcomes were presented by designated col-leges and others, a working party met to clarify thenext steps. Desk research was undertaken to inves-tigate different concepts of learning outcomes andrelated issues such as the accreditation of adultlearning.

Two conferences were held to share understanding ofthe benefits and problems associated with outcomes-based approaches with a wide image of adult edu-cators. One was at Fircroft College, Birmingham, theother at FEDA's residential centre in Blagdon. Themembership included 15 college participants, 19from adult and community education or LEAs, fivefrom higher education and a designated institution.The report builds on these consultations andincludes case studies of different approaches.

38

APPENDIX 3

Membership of FEDA colloquium and

consultative groupMaureen Banbury, HMI InspectorateSue Cara, Norfolk Adult Education Service(and NIACE)Carolyn Daines, WEA Eastern RegionJoyce Deere, Hillcroft CollegeMel Doyle, WEA National OfficerPablo Foster, FEDARobert Fryer, Northern CollegeUrsula Howard, FEDAOlga Janssen, Mary Ward CentreCaroline Mager, FEDAEvelyn Murray, Working Men's CollegeJoan O'Hagan, Fircroft CollegeChristopher Parkin, FEDAAnna Reisenberger, FEDAGary Smith, Northern CollegeSheila Stanley, Hillcroft CollegeMerillie Vaughan Huxley, Senior Inspector,FEFCAnsel Wong, Morley CollegeStephen Yeo, Ruskin College

FE matters Vole NO 3

APPENDIX 4

The specification of learning outcomes

Further Education Development Agency

Summary of Christopher Parkin's Paper

1 Learning outcomes describe what a person knows,understands and is able to do after a process oflearning. Making outcomes explicit can help bothlearner and tutor to understand what the learneris trying to achieve, to monitor achievement, andto decide what learning methods and activitiesmay be most appropriate.

2 A variety of terms are in use to describe more orless specific learning outcomes.

3 It is recommended that three categories oflearning outcome should be recognised and thatthese should be called general learning outcomes,specific learning outcomes and assessmentcriteria.

4 In stating the learning outcomes of a Unit ofAchievement or module of a curriculum, a

number of possible alternative combinations ofthese categories is possible. It is recommendedthat a style is adopted which comprises normally,one general learning outcome, several more spe-cific outcomes and further assessment criteria.

An initial general learning outcome is a usefulsummary description of what should be or hasbeen achieved and gives a ready sense of direction.More Specific Learning Outcomes then describewhat should be achieved, but excluding condi-tions and standards of the achievement.

Assessment Criteria define achievement morespecifically and enable judgements to be mademore easily as to whether or not the learning out-comes have been achieved.

5 Note: A Framework for Credit, FrameworkGuidelines (FEU 1995) takes forward this adviceby equating a General Learning Outcome with aUnit Title referring to Specific Learning Outcomesas Learning Outcomes and adopting the categoryAssessment Criteria.

6 The above framework can be applied to alllearning provision. To what extent is it applicablefor describing learning and achievement by alladult students? Certainly many Access coursesand much Open College Network provisionspecify both learning outcomes and assessmentcriteria.

7 Level is determined by the:

choice of verbs used in the outcomestatementschoice of content, i.e. the structure andlearning demands of the chosenknowledge, skill and attitudes whichaccompany those verbs, and the choice ofqualitative and quantitative phraseswhich qualify the verbs.

8 Learning outcomes statements alone are not suffi-cient to express a curriculum. In addition,description of valued teaching and learning activ-ities and examples of assessment requirements,where appropriate, facilitate consistency andeffectiveness in communicating what is to beachieved.

Figure 8: Terms used in specifying learning outcomes

Aims

Goals

Increasing specificity

General objectivesAttainment targets

Principal objectivesStatements of attainment

Learning objectivesSpecific objectives

Behavioural objectivesElement of competence

Assessment criteriaPerformance criteria

Competence statements

Statements of general intent Statements of behavioural performance

Vole No 3 FE matters 39

APPENDIX 5 Sample proformas

NORTHERN COLLEGEPATHWAYS PROGRAMME

STUDENT LEARNING DIARY

STUDENT NAME:

COURSE TITLE:

DATE OF COURSE:

To help you keep a record of what you learn during your Northern College short course wehave produced this learning diary.

If you wish to obtain credit for your course your learning diary will be collected from you atthe end of the course and used as evidence of your achievement. The tutors will assist you tofill in the diary .

Section 1

To be filled in at the Course Introduction.

(a) Is there anything you have done previously which might be relevant to this course?

In the community?

In your voluntary group or trade union?

At work?

At home?

40 FE matters VOi 2 No 3

(b) Have you previously read or heird anything about the subject of this course?(Tick the appropriate box)

Yes No

If yes, where did you read or hear about the subject? (e.g. TV, radio, book,newspaper, magazine, meetings, talking to friends.)

Can you give an example of what you read or heard?

(c) Have you previously taken any courses on the same or relevant subject?(Tick the appropriate box)

Yes1. 1

If yes, which course(s) and where?

No

Can you give an example of something which you learned on the previous course?

VOI 2 No 3 FE matters

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4: 341

(d) Is there anything else which you want to mention which is relevant to this course?

(e) What do you hope to get from the course?

Section 2

We suggest that you briefly note down what you have learnt at the end of each session. Thetutor will assist you to do this, but we have given you some suggestions for things to thinkabout at the end of each session.

42 FE matters/.; 4

VOi 2 No 3

End Session 1

(a) Can you give any examples of new information you have been given during the session?

(b) Can you give any examples of skills you have learnt or developed during the session?(e.g. reading, note taking, writing, using the Library, using a computer, using numbers,

public speaking.)

(c) If the session has made clearer or changed your view on a topic, can you give an

example?

(d) Is there anything else which you have learnt from this session?

Vole No 3 FE matters 43

Section 3

To be filled in at the end of course.

(a) Can you give any examples of how you might use what you have learnt on this course?

In the community?

(b)

In your voluntary group or trade union?

At work?

At home?

Do you propose to continue your learning after this course?(Tick the appropriate box)

Yes

If yes, what more would you like to learn?

No

44 FE matters

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Vol 2 No 3

(c) How might you continue your learning?(Tick those boxes which you will explore)

Check out courses at my local College

Contact the Workers Educational Association

Organise a study group at my local community centre

Enquire with my trade union on possible courses

Contact the Open University

Come back to Northern College to take another course

Check out course information at the local Library/local press

Contact my Training and Enterprise Council for information on courses

Ask my employer about possible training and education

Any other ideas?(Please write them down)

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Vole No 3 FE matters 45

(d) Have you been working in small groups whilst doing dre course?(Tick the appropriate box)

Yes No

If yes, have you learnt anything about yourself from working in small groups?

Have you learnt anything about other people from working in small groups?

(e) Have you been staying overnight in the College whilst on the course?(Tick the appropriate box)

Yes No

If yes, has staying overnight helped you to learn more on the course?(Tick the appropriate box)

Yes No

If yes, how has staying in the College helped you to learn more?

46 FE matters

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VO1 2 No 3

(f) Are there any key points which you want to note down for action after you leave the

College?

Section 4

Have you any additional comments or notes?(Please write them down)

LJ/H:ComdocamDiary

VO1 2 No 3 FE matters S 47

WORKERS' EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION EASTERN DISTRICT

Description of Learning and Course Evaluation

You are invited to use this form to help you to reflect on what you have learned from your course. Your responseswill also help your tutor to make future courses more effective and enjoyable and will assist the WEA in ensuringthat it is providing courses which really do promote adult learning.

Your Name (if you wish to give it):

Tutors Name: Branch:. Term:

Course Title:

(A) Learning Outcomes: Please tick the column which expresses the progress you think you have madetowards achieving the learning outcomes agreed with your tutor at the start of the course.

I think I I am I cannotcan do this working do Ws

towards thisVI ICI

1. Identify the main reasons for change in the last 50 years

2. Classify the changes in terms of their economic, social and political origins

3. Assess the changes with reference to local, national and global events

4. Judge the consequences of the changes in both the short and medium term

(B) What else did you gain from the course?

48 FE matters Vole No 3

(C) What next? What has the course helped you to go on to (another similar course, a course on anothersubject, a more advanced course, membership of a society, voluntary or paid work, private study/research,creative work, etc)?

(D) Course Evaluation: Comment on any aspects of the course, how it was taught, the materials used, thearrangements and accommodation. Your tutor and the WEA will value your criticisms and suggestions.

If you would like this form returned to you for your own records by the District Office, please write your name andaddress here.

Vol 2 No 3

...al .1

FE matters

WEA

49

Course Code.. Title.

Student's No... Student's Name

At the start of the course

Agree with your tutor a minimum of one and a maximum of three learning objectives.

Please enter these in order of importance in the boxes below.

Your most important learning objective

OFFICE USE

1

2

3

T

A

Your second most important learning objective

Your third most important learning objective

At the end of the course

Now far have you achieved your objectives?

Use only the following scores:

1 I have not achieved this objective

2 I have not quite achieved this objective

3 Broadly speaking I have achieved this objective

4 I have achievid more than I anticipated

5 I have achieved much more than I anticipated

Tutor's comment:

Write in your score

Your first objective

Your second objective

Your third objective

Yj N

Student's signature Tutor's signature...

50 FE matters

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Mary Ward Centre

Vol 2 No 3

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE for men & women

1996/97 Course Review Forms

To be completed by the College

Course Tide: Course No:

Tutor:

No. Enrolled : I I No. Completing:

Exam Results: (where applicable)

Average Attendance:

To be completed by the Tutor

a) Referrmg back to the aims and objectives you gave for this course, what proportion of students do you considerhave:

i) Largely achieved the course objectives:

ii) Partially achieved the course objectives:

ill) Achieved few or none of the course objectives:

b) What proportion of the contau given in your units of work has been covered in the course:

100%75-100%

aO

50-100%less than 50%

c) What methods have you used to assess and record your students' progress?

d) Do you have any further observations on the progress of this course?

Please complete and return this form, no later than 30 May 1997, to:Lee Ban-, Working Men's College, 44 Crowndale Road, London, NW1 ITR

00

V012 No 3

r e-

FE matters

Working Men's College

51

ReferencesAstor, H (1995) The Introduction of LearningOutcomes. Mosaic

Burke, J (ed.) (1995) Outcomes, learning and thecurriculum. London: The Falmer Press

Coare, P and A Thomson (eds.) (1996) Through theJoy of Learning: diary of 1,000 Adult Learners..NIACE

Conference report (1993) Assessing Outcomes inAdult Education. Adult Learning Vol 5 No 2pp 49-50

Dearing, R (1997) Higher Education in the LearningSociety. SCAA

Department for Education and Employment (1995)Lifetime learning: a consultation document. DfEE

Ecclestone, K (1993) Accreditation in adult learning:how far can we go? Adult Learning Vol 4 No 7pp 178-180

Foster, P and R Powell (1996) Pragmatic Prospects:Developing Local Authority Adult Education. FEDA

Fryer, R (1997) Learning for the 21st century.National Advisory Group for Continuing Educationand Lifelong Learning

Further Education Unit (1993) A Basis for Credit?FEU

Further Education Unit (1995) A Framework forCredit. FEU

Jessup, G (1991) Outcomes: NVQs and the emergingmodel of education and training. The Falmer Press

Jessup, G (1995) Outcomes, learning and the cur-riculum. J Burke (ed.)

Kennedy, H (1997) Learning Works: WideningParticipation in Further Education. FEFC

Office for Standards in Education (1996) AdultEducation and Youth Work within Local EducationAuthorities. OFSTED

Sanders, J and A Reisenberger (1997) AdultLearners: Pathways to Progression. FEDA

Sargant, N et al (1997) The learning divide. A studyof participation in adult learning in the UnitedKingdom. National Institute of Adult ContinuingEducation

52

Tait, T (1997) FEDA's 20/20 vision: why we need acredit-based qualifications system. FEDA

Tuckett, A and N Sargant (1996) Creating twonations? Headline findings on lifelong learning fromthe NIACE/GALLUP survey 1996. NationalInstitute of Adult Continuing Education

Wilde, FFEDA

FE matters

and R Hardaker (1997) Clarity is Power.

54

VO/ 2 No 3

FEDA publication seriesDeveloping FE: Volume

Student tracking2 Case loading

3 Assessing the impact: provision for learnerswith learning difficulties and disabilities

4 Adults and GNVQs5 On course for next steps: careers education

and guidance for students in FE6 Marketing planning7 Managing change in FE

8 The effective college library9 Appraisal in FE where are we now?io Clarity is power: learner outcomes, learner

autonomy and transferable skills

FE Matters: Volume

Environmental education throughout FE 1:policy and strategy

2 Environmental education throughout FE 2:a model and unit of environmentallearning outcomes

3 Colleges working with industry4 Towards self-assessing colleges5 Evidence for action: papers prepared for

FEFC's Learning and Technology Committee

6 Student retention: case studies ofstrategies that work

7 Getting the credit: OCN accreditation andlearners with learning difficulties anddisabilities

8 Moving on from Key Stage 4 thechallenge for FE

9 Monitoring student attendanceio Educational psychologists in further

educationAssuring coherence in individual learningprogrammes

12 Adult learners: pathways to progression13 A real job with prospects: supported

employment opportunities for adults withlearning difficulties and disabilities

14 Transforming teaching: selecting andevaluating teaching strategies

15 Information and learning technology:a development handbook

16 Delivering Modern Apprenticeships17 Planning a merger of FE colleges

Vol 2 No 3

18 Tackling drugs together: addressing theissues in the FE sector

19 Security is not an option learning in asafe environment

20 Give us some credit: achieving acomprehensive FE framework

FEDA Bulletins: Volume

Quality assurance in colleges2 The impact of voucher schemes on the FE

curriculum3 Enhancing GCE A-level programmes

4 Developing college policies and strategies forhuman resource development

5 Maintaining quality during curriculum change6 Action planning and recording achievement7 Implementing modular A-levels8 Comparing content in selected GCE A-levels

and Advanced GNVQs9 Engineering the future: monitoring the pilot

GNVQ in engineeringio Charters in FE: making them work

Access to accreditation12 Back to the future: what are Modern

Apprenticeships?13 Competing for business: colleges and the

Competitiveness Fund14 Information systems: a strategic approach15 Strategic approaches to processes, cultures

and structures

tiFE matters 53

FE

Learning is central to economicproductivity in the information andcommunications age. This book is aboutthe accreditation of learning in itswidest sense, not as part of theframework of formal qualifications. Thesense of achievement which successfullearning offers can come from a varietyof sources. This book illustrates howlearning can be identified, recorded andvalued in a way which starts withlearners' needs. Learners need to takeaway a knowledge and recognition oftheir own achievements: new skills orpersonal development.

56ISSN 2362-9977 FE matters Vol 2 No 3 Price £7.50

(9/92)

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