Enhancement of Learning Support Programme 2010/11 East Midlands Strand

Transcription

1 Enhancement of Learning Support Programme 2010/11 East Midlands Strand Involving Learning Support Assistants in Improvement: A Collaborative Approach to Organisational Development Jayne Ball Sally Faraday Michelle Iannantuonon Anthony Piper Brian Simpson March 2011

2 Contents An overview of the Enhancement of Learning Support (ELS) Programme... 3 Executive Summary... 3 Recommendations for provider organisations... 4 Recommendations for national bodies... 5 Introduction and background... 5 Aim... 6 Approach/Methodology... 6 Findings and Outputs - Case studies... 7 Evaluation...16 Summary of findings and outcomes...17 Recommendations...17 For provider organisations...17 For national bodies...18 Annex 1: Peer Shadowing, Staff Development Questionnaire and Guidance Notes...19 Shadowing...19 Anonymous Staff Development Questionnaire...19 Guidance for Completing the Questionnaires...24 Annex 2: Portland College Case Study...26 Annex 3: New College Nottingham Case Study...28 Annex 4: Hinwick Hall College Case Study...31 Annex 5: Homefield College Case Study...34 Annex 6: Stephenson College Case Study...38 Annex 7: Life Social Enterprise Case Study...40 Annex 8: Indicative examples of questionnaire responses...41 Annex 9: Examples of extracts from reflective diaries...45 College A Diaries of 3 review and transition sessions...45 College B...47 Annex 10: Project Members and Contributors...49

3 An overview of the Enhancement of Learning Support (ELS) Programme In January 2010 LSIS commissioned Natspec (the Association of Specialist Colleges) to explore the training and development needs of Learning Support Assistants (LSAs) and those who manage them across the lifelong learning sector. The first phase of the project, the Enhancement of Learning Support, involved talking to practitioners and learners and scoping existing work and expertise in order to make recommendations for future training and development activities. Drawing on all the initial research findings, the final report identified a series of recommendations, which were accepted by LSIS and used to form the basis of a national development programme. The 2 nd phase of the project has been jointly undertaken by Natspec and the Association of Colleges (AOC), between September 2010 and March lead colleges, both General Further Education Colleges and Independent Specialist Colleges, were supported by nine specialist advisers. Learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and learning support staff have continued to be heavily involved in the latest project. It aims to improve the quality of learning support for learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities across the learning and skills sector and to promote and enhance the important work of learning support staff. The development programme, which finished in April 2011, has produced a series of reports and resources. This report is one of those. The remaining materials can be accessed via the ELS section of the Excellence Gateway. Executive Summary The aim of this project was to develop a whole organisational approach to continuous professional development (CPD) for learning support staff. The approach for the project was developed by the two lead providers for the East Midlands region, Portland College and New College Nottingham. They examined the model of continuing professional development created for Coventry Adult Learning Service and decided to focus on CPD utilising a revised version of the questionnaire for LSAs, tutors and managers, together with shadowing. The approach was tested in organisations in the region and positive changes reported. During the project a number of consistent themes emerged. There was a widespread recognition of the importance of allocating time for tutors and LSAs to work together. This enabled LSAs to make a greater contribution to planning, review and evaluation, and to make better use of LSAs skills. Tutors recognised the value of LSAs contributions and increased their involvement. As a result, the most commonly reported change to practice was to allocation of time, although in some cases this created other difficulties as there were insufficient staff available to provide cover. The implication for managers is that consideration needs to be given to timetabling and the efficient deployment of LSAs. The shadowing process had identified some areas where LSA support was not required and this allowed for greater efficiency.

4 Improved communication between tutors and LSAs and a closer working relationship was another key theme. This gave both parties a greater understanding of their respective roles and responsibilities and helped to bridge the gap between them identified in the questionnaires. There were opportunities to share good practice and key information more effectively and to discuss support for individuals. As a result the quality of support improved. Ensuring access to training and development was another theme. The importance of training to develop LSAs knowledge and skills was clearly recognised as were the benefits that resulted from the investment. Shared approaches to CPD for both tutors and staff, the introduction of mentoring and inclusion of LSAs staff in development days were all were all identified as outcomes. Improvements to the appraisal process through the provision of better information from observations and the analysis of questionnaires, was another theme. It highlighted individual development needs and was valuable in prioritising and planning training. Other areas where positive changes had resulted were the inclusion of LSAs in the observation process and changes to timetabling for meet learners needs more effectively. The key messages from this project are: The approach developed in the project with the use of shadowing and a staff development questionnaire has been effective with providers who have implemented it; There have been many significant, positive outcomes for project organisations and there is potential for further development and refinement of the approach and resources to support its use; The project encouraged individuals to work together as a team; Support for learners improved as a result of the intervention; The process was effective in highlighting individual training needs for LSAs such as behaviour management techniques; The project provided a focus across diverse organisations and promoted a shared vision; and Providers welcomed the opportunity to network and to share good practice and experiences. Recommendations for provider organisations Ensure senior management involvement as it is essential for structural and organisational change and sustainability.

5 Embed the use of shadowing and questionnaires within quality assurance procedures as part of formal observation processes and appraisal/performance review. Use the approach to remove the velcro by considering alternative methods of support such as providing more group than individual support. Allocate time to LSAs and tutors to improve the effectiveness of their partnership working and the quality of support for learners. Recognise that CPD is not just about gaining formal qualifications that are nationally recognised. It can include meetings team and curriculum area, planning, reviewing, evaluating, communicating, informal discussions, sharing ideas knowledge and experience, shadowing, observing, and listening. Encourage the sharing of good practice, joint training of LSA, tutors and managers and promote reflective practice. Recommendations for national bodies Promote the further development of the approach and supporting resources, ensure that it is trialled in a wide range of organisations and promote its implementation sector wide. Encourage and support the development of sustainable networks for learning support such as those developed in the region through this project. Introduction and background The East Midlands Regional Strand of the Enhancement of Learning Support project was led by Portland College and New College Nottingham. They worked together to develop a model and associated resources, tested in colleges, that promotes a whole organisation approach to improvement, resulting in a more effective approach to continuous professional development (CPD). The research indicates that customised approaches to CPD, which link to the context in which LSAs are working, are likely to be most effective. The model adopted in this project is adapted from the work undertaken with Coventry Adult Learning Service and outlined in the Enhancement of Learning Support report (2010) 1. This model promotes the involvement of all staff in identifying barriers to effective working and devising solutions to address. It leads to organisational development, enabling providers to develop their capacity to identify training and development activities that will really make a difference to the quality of the provision. The methods to be used in the regional project were shadowing and the use of anonymous staff development questionnaires. 1 O Brien A., O Brien, K. (2010) The Enhancement of Learning Support The training and development needs of learning support assistants. Key findings and recommendations. Natspec

6 Aim The aim of the project was to develop a whole organisational approach to CPD for learning support staff. It was based on a model that recognises that effective CPD involves LSAs, teachers and managers being developed together and not separately. This project explores the application of that model and provides one that: has been tested in colleges; promotes a whole organisation approach to improvement; and results in a more effective approach to CPD. Approach/Methodology The approach for the project was developed by the two lead providers for the region, Portland College and New College Nottingham. They examined the model of continuing professional development created for Coventry Adult Learning Service and decided to focus on CPD, utilising the questionnaire as a basis. The approach for the project consisted of the use of a revised version of the questionnaire for LSAs tutors and managers, together with shadowing. The two lead colleges would then identify target groups of staff with whom to test out the approach in their own organisations. The questionnaires were designed to be anonymous although those who completed them were to be given the option of self identifying. The lead colleges were to analyse the questionnaires and look at what changes needed to be implemented or take the issues identified forward. The first regional event, held in November 2010 was designed to set the scene with the two lead providers presenting what inroads they had made in using the Staff Development Questionnaire and what the early outcomes were. Providers were then invited to use the Staff Development Questionnaire and present their findings, thinking and future planning at the second event in January Providers taking part in this exercise were sent a Case Study Proforma to record what they did, why they did it and what the outcomes and impact were. The event also aimed to offer participants the opportunity to see the specialist equipment on offer at an Independent Specialist College (ISC) and a memory stick with IT applications to take away. The second event was held in January 2011 at the Basford Hall Campus of New College Nottingham. At this event the lead colleges presented the findings from their developmental activity. This event focused on hearing feedback from these providers about what they did, how they did it and what the impact had been. Shadowing was used in this project as a technique to enable staff to: observe how colleagues work with each other to support learners; identify good practice and identify areas for development. It was to predominantly involve LSAs shadowing tutors, tutors shadowing LSAs and LSAs shadowing learners. Providers were to

7 decide on how to use shadowing in line with their own priorities and intended outcomes. Guidance was provided on the process for shadowing and is described in Annex 1A. The Anonymous Staff Development Questionnaire (see Annex 1B) was developed in order to understand the importance of valuing each others knowledge and expertise by different groups of staff within a range of learning environments. Three options were identified: Learning Support Assistant to complete and reflect on working relationship with Tutors; Tutors to complete and reflect on working relationship with Learning Support Assistants; and Curriculum Managers to complete and reflect on working relationship with Tutors. The questionnaires were to be administered anonymously. This was to give the teams the power to feel confident about the issues that they identify as part of their working environment and daily responsibilities. Seven questions were produced, supported with some prompts to help respondents think about some of the areas that are part of their everyday activities. The questionnaire was to be used to report findings for each statement. The statements were designed to extract the experiences with other professionals and of the respondents professional working relationship with others. In some organisations staff also used reflective diaries to collect information and examples are included in Annex 9. Findings and Outputs - Case studies This section has six case studies from providers who implemented the approach in their organisations. They were the two lead colleges, Portland College, Independent Specialist College, (ISC) and New College Nottingham, Further Education College (FE), plus Hinwick Hall College (ISC), Homefield College, (ISC) Stephenson College (FE) and the charity LIFE. Each case study describes what the provider did and how they did it and why. The outcomes are outlined and the impact identified. Further details of the case studies are included in Annexes. Portland College

8 What we did and how we did it: We prepared a questionnaire and guidance for staff based on the original work undertaken with Coventry Adult Learning Service 2 which we distributed to all staff in Foundation Learning (including Curriculum Managers). A Tutor and LSA were chosen to work together for at least a third of their timetabled sessions, as a shadowing exercise. The timetables were changed to allow this to happen. This in itself posed a challenge, as we then did not have the flexibility to release these staff as cover for sessions that needed it. The Tutor was asked to keep a reflective journal and both Tutor and LSA agreed to meet regularly to collaborate on planning and evaluation of teaching sessions. The benefits identified by the Tutor and LSA included the positive effect on planning and delivery of sessions as well as the development of a closer working relationship which benefitted the learners. Why we did it: This was done to inform future planning and to make changes that would benefit the staff team and the learners, we were mindful we had to stay within the staffing model we had and to make changes would have an impact somewhere. The outcomes: LSAs now have an extra hour a week on top of their usual hour and a quarter to meet with their line manager. This was funded by not appointing an additional LSA. LSAs and Tutors are now fully included in review and evaluation meetings as well as Student Council and staff forums. The impact: Appraisals will now be easier to arrange and follow up. One to one meetings. Session planning. Improved communication between tutors, LSAs and management. Specific training identified. 2 O Brien A., O Brien, K. (2010) The Enhancement of Learning Support The training and development needs of learning support assistants. Key findings and recommendations. Natspec

9 Highlighted areas of best practice. Improved understanding of tutor group needs. Increased rapport. Increased involvement within planning and preparation. Increased reflective practice. Sharing of good practice. Improved line management performance. (See Annex 2 for full Case Study) New College Nottingham What we did and how we did it: Staff we identified and the process are briefly outlined below: 3 groups identified managers, LSAs and tutors; Staff identified to shadow support workers; Staff timetabled for shadowing; Shadowing undertaken over a period of 4 weeks; All aspects of learner s experience shadowed; and Results collated from questionnaires. Why we did it: To reinforce planned restructure and bridge the gap between LSAs and tutors that was clearly evident. The outcomes: Having time to discuss individual students as a team (1/2 hour lunchtime slot); Lecturers planning with LSAs; Lecturers sharing key information with their LSAs;

10 Sharing good practices with others working with students; LSAs having joint observations with tutors; Shared staff room with curriculum; and Shared CPD training to help build solid working relationships. These outcome are to be implemented and will all be in place by September 2011 The impact: Developing working relationships between tutors and LSAs and bridging the gap that was outlined in the questionnaire. Support for students increased due to improvements in communication. A more comprehensive support plan produced to increase the effectiveness of support for the learner. LSAs have more contact time with their Lecturer. LSAs skills fully utilised in the planning process. (See Annex 3 for full Case Study) Hinwick College What we did and how we did it: The Senior Management Team met and changed the structure of the day. The problems to be addressed included; Students not getting to lectures on time; No time allocated for training/support staff meetings; Not enough staff to cover students lunch and staff lunches; Wasted time at the beginning of the educational day; Students breaks too short for some students with high personal care needs; To improve communication across different departments; and To improve training for residential teams. During Term 1 there was no External/Internal Work Placements. These were successfully found for 23 students. The provision of these however had a knock on effect for other

11 students. The Day Students (who are supported primarily by LSAs) needed to be supported by the remaining LSAs. Having put a timetable to address LSA s time with their Lecturers we found that some Tutor Teams did not meet regularly due to the needs of the Day Students over the lunchtime period. We conducted a survey about the LSA s duties over the Break Time and Lunchtime period. Why we did it: The timetable changes were made to improve the quality of the Student Experience, during their time at Hinwick Hall College. The outcomes: Starting Lectures at 9.15am not 9.25am; Having time to discuss individual students as a team (1/2 hour lunchtime slot); Lecturers planning with LSA s; Lecturers sharing key information with their LSA s; Sharing good practices with others working with students; LSA s having individual observations; Residential Managers having time slots each day for training; Students having a longer break to improve quality; and Adding a transition time (5minutes) to and from break time and lunchtime. The surveys that were given to the LSAs showed that the LSAs working on the residential units were not required. This Term, Term 3, we have a slightly different timetable to address the LSA s time with their Lecturers by moving their ½ hour slot to break time. We have piloted 3 teams and hope this will improve our service to the Day Students. The impact: Students quality of Care over the longer Break Time has improved; Students arrival times to lectures have improved; LSAs have more contact time with their Lecturer; and Education Support Staff meetings have highlighted Individual Training needs and this has helped with planning Training Days more effectively. Due to findings from the LSA survey staff were removed from all but one unit (total care unit), and those LSAs are now supporting Day Students. This will be reviewed again at the

12 end of Term 3. (See Annex 4 for Full Case Study) Homefield College What we did and how we did it: Below is a timeline illustrating how the college approached the project and what they did in order to achieve conclusions: November 2010: Identified the problem through a tutor who was the subject of a case study. The tutor wrote a reflective diary as to which support staff were supporting her session and the problems which arose due to the inconsistency in staffing (see Appendix 1); November 2010: The tutor collated problems of inconsistent staffing over a 3 week period. The problems were taken to the area co-ordinator to address (see Appendix 2); December 2010: Area co-ordinator and tutor worked together to research the problems stated. They paired ten tutors and ten support staff in order to work together over a 4 week period. The support staff were to consistently support their link tutor s sessions, working with them to plan and enhance teaching delivery and learning; December 2010 January 2011: Both tutors and support staff wrote a reflective diary to monitor their experiences with the regular support of sessions; December 2010 January 2011: Following the 4 week period, tutors and support staff completed the questionnaire produced by Portland College (see Appendix 3). Tutors and support staff were to reflect on their experiences through the use of the questionnaire (see Appendix 4); January 2011: Questionnaire results were collated by the administration office. Fundamental themes were extracted from the results in order to obtain conclusions and future actions within the college; and January 2011 on-going: Actions to be sent to area co-ordinator and relevant managers to come to solutions. Barriers faced during the running of the project: Staffing levels caused a variety of challenges to ensuring the availability of identified staff to provide regular support; Providing time to briefly run through the session aims and keys learning objectives for students before a session proved problematic on occasion; Administration time for support staff was limited due to their supporting roles within the college;

13 Ideally, common administration time needed to be provided for tutors and their consistent support staff, so they could plan together, however this was not always possible; and Time constraints and individual responsibilities meant it was difficult for tutors to arrange meetings with their consistent support staff. Factors which enabled the project: Interest in the results; The staff s belief in the benefit to teaching and learning of consistent support staff; and The staff s belief in the importance of support staff being involved in some elements of tutor s administration. Why we did it: Staff at Homefield College are committed to students learning and the development of their independence. Through bridging the gap between tutors and support staff, we predicted the teaching and learning levels would increase for all students educational careers within the college. The outcomes: Below is a list of key outcomes and conclusions which were identified from the project and its results: Tutors and support staff need the time to meet during administration time, and both need allocated administration time; Tutors and support staff to be offered training during in-house and external training time in order to bridge the tutor support staff gap; and Tutors and support staff to be allocated time at the beginning and end of a timetabled session in order to complete planning and reflective exercises. The impact: Below is a list of tangible impacts as a result of the project: Rota co-ordinator to liaise with tutors, support staff and co-ordinators to ensure the possibility of regular support staff; Support staff to be given regular admin time once every 2 weeks for 1 hour; Tutors to involve support staff within their planning and development in order to enhance teaching and learning within the college; and Support staff to be offered qualifications to develop their knowledge within their job roles e.g City and Guilds Award in Preparing to Support Learning (Level 2 3) and in-house training.

14 (See Annex 5 for Full Case Study) Stephenson College What we did and how we did it: Requests were made for volunteers from both support and teaching staff. Support and teaching staff were then matched and requested to shadow each other at their convenience. Time was short as the college entered the activity very late. Staff were issued with questionnaires and guidance. The work will conclude after the period of writing this report week and a meeting will be held to discuss findings. Why we did it: Improve the student experience; Find evidence of good practice and cascade; Find issues/concerns which are currently not known to other parties and resolve; Improve efficiency of provision; and Develop team work between ALS & tutors. The outcomes: So far only verbal feedback. One concern which has been voiced is the lack of 1:1 time for support staff in some areas of the college. The impact: The impact has yet to be confirmed. (See Annex 6 for further information) LIFE (Social Enterprise) The context and rationale: LIFE CIC To improve the standard of 1:1 support we can offer our clients and to introduce a new ethos around support in the work place. As a small social enterprise we don t have a formal process of observation so are unable to develop accurate staff appraisals. What we did and how we did it: 2 managers observed 4 support staff over activities that they undertake on a daily basis. These activities included lunch cover and transport cover to gain a true overview of the

15 support needs for clients. Why we did it: To improve the standard of support that we offer for the clients and offer a wider range of development for our support workers. As a small provision with limited resources we need to develop a cost effective career progression route for support workers. The outcomes: 2 main outcomes were identified from the questionnaire which were: 1) Mentoring for staff in the first 6 months (probationary period) to be introduced to enable best practices to be passed on and staff skills are increased; and 2) Staff development days to introduced to ensure that the staff are kept up to speed with any changes to practice. The impact: It is too soon to measure the impact. (See Annex 7 for further information) Themes: There were some consistent themes emerging from the case studies. There was a widespread recognition of the importance of allocating time for tutors and LSAs to work together. This enabled LSAs to make a greater contribution to planning, review and evaluation, and to make better use of LSAs skills. Tutors recognised the value of LSAs contributions and increased their involvement. As a result, the most commonly reported change to practice was to allocation of time, although in some cases this created other difficulties as there were insufficient staff available to provide cover. The implication for managers is that consideration needs to be given to timetabling and the efficient deployment of LSAs. The shadowing process had identified some areas where LSA support was not required and this allowed for greater efficiency. Improved communication between tutors and LSAs and a closer working relationship was another key theme. This gave both parties a greater understanding of their respective roles and responsibilities and helped to bridge the gap between them identified in the questionnaires. There were opportunities to share good practice and key information more effectively and to discuss support for individuals. As a result the quality of support improved. Ensuring access to training and development was another theme. The importance of training to develop LSAs knowledge and skills was clearly recognised as were the benefits that resulted from the investment. Shared approaches to CPD for both

16 tutors and staff, the introduction of mentoring and inclusion of LSAs staff in development days were all were all identified as outcomes. Improvements to the appraisal process through the provision of better information from observations and the analysis of questionnaires, was another theme. It highlighted individual development needs and was valuable in prioritising and planning training. Other areas where positive changes had resulted were the inclusion of LSAs in the observation process and changes to timetabling for meet learners needs more effectively. Evaluation Although recruitment at the events was well below target despite considerable efforts, the events were received very positively by those who attended. Participants evaluations indicated 100% overall satisfaction at both events (31% rating the first event excellent and 69% good). The evaluations indicated that networking and sharing of good practice were the most positive aspects. The fact that participants were able to see the specialist equipment on offer at an ISC and that they were able to take the applications away, was particularly highly valued. The evaluations from the first event were used to inform the planning of the second event which also went well on the whole. The timescale of the project, the adverse weather and Ofsted all had a big impact on turnout and it was a challenge to recruit for the second event. Providers attending these events were from: 9 General Further Education Colleges; 4 Independent Specialist Providers; 1 Land based College; and 5 Voluntary sector and training providers. The range of delegates attending was: 11 Learning Support Assistants, 6 Teachers, 13 Managers. Some of the organisations that undertook the implementation of the approach needed considerable support and briefing. For those that signed up later on, the timescale for implementation completing the task and feeding back - within the project, was just too tight and although they are continuing with the work, it was not possible to report the impact, as it was too early. However, participants reported that the process and the impact of the project had been positive. The lead colleges reported that there is scope for further refinement and customisation of the questionnaires and that it would be helpful to gather more in-depth information. A full list of participants is included in Annex 10.

17 Summary of findings and outcomes The key messages from the East Midlands regional project are: The approach developed in the project with the use of shadowing and a staff development questionnaire has been effective with providers who have implemented it; There have been many significant, positive outcomes for project organisations and there is potential for further development and refinement of the approach and resources to support its use; The project encouraged individuals to work together as a team; Support for learners improved as a result of the intervention; The process was effective in highlighting individual training needs for LSAs such as behaviour management techniques; The project provided a focus across diverse organisations and promoted a shared vision; and Providers welcomed the opportunity to network and to share good practice and experiences. Recommendations For provider organisations Ensure senior management involvement as it is essential for structural and organisational change and sustainability. Embed the use of shadowing and questionnaires within quality assurance procedures as part of formal observation processes and appraisal/performance review. Use the approach to remove the velcro by considering alternative methods of support such as providing more group than individual support. Allocate time to LSAs and tutors to improve the effectiveness of their partnership working and the quality of support for learners. Recognise that CPD is not just about gaining formal qualifications that are nationally recognised. It can include meetings team and curriculum area, planning, reviewing, evaluating, communicating, informal discussions, sharing ideas knowledge and experience, shadowing, observing, and listening Encourage the sharing of good practice, joint training of LSA, tutors and managers and promote reflective practice

18 For national bodies Promote the further development of the approach and supporting resources, ensure that it is trialled in a wide range of organisations and promote its implementation sector wide. Encourage and support the development of sustainable networks for learning support such as those developed in the region through this project.

19 Annex 1: Peer Shadowing, Staff Development Questionnaire and Guidance Notes Shadowing The aims of shadowing are to: observe how colleagues work with each other to support learners; identify good practice; and identify areas for development. Shadowing predominantly involves LSAs shadowing tutors, tutors shadowing LSAs and LSAs shadowing learners. This could be extended to include, for example, managers shadowing LSAs and tutors, and learners shadowing LSAs and tutors. How a provider decides on how to use shadowing will be very much down to its priorities and what the intended outcomes are. Before starting shadowing it would be useful to have a clear process that might include the following: What are we looking for? The main focus is to observe how colleagues work with each other to support learners. The questionnaire can be a useful prompt for this or a provider can identify its own criteria; Where and when does shadowing take place? Any time of the day and for any length of time. It can be within a session, at break and lunch times, in the community, for short or longer periods (15-60 minutes); Formal or informal? Shadowing is meant to be informal but could be used within a provider s more formal observation framework; and What happens after shadowing has taken place? The colleague shadowing take notes on what has been observed, using the questionnaire if need be. This can be used as a basis for informal discussion between colleagues or used within team meetings and staff training and development. Anonymous Staff Development Questionnaire This questionnaire has been developed in order to understand the importance of valuing each other's knowledge and expertise within a range of learning environments. Three options have been identified: Learning Support Assistant to complete and reflect on working relationship with Tutors; Tutors to complete and reflect on working relationship with Learning Support Assistants; and

20 Curriculum Managers to complete and reflect on working relationship with Tutors. There is no requirement for you to add any personal information as the information obtained is to remain anonymous. Introduction A Staff Development Questionnaire has been tested in colleges that promotes whole organisational approach to improvement. Research indicates that customised approaches to CPD, which link to the context in which Learning Support Assistants are working are likely to be most effective. The model used promotes the involvement of all Foundation Learning staff in identifying barriers to effective working and devising solutions to address them. It has led to organisational development, enabling the provider to develop their capacity to identify further training and development activities that will make a difference to the quality of the provision. What are the questionnaires used for? The purpose of the questionnaires is to establish whether an organisational approach to the removal of barriers between support teams and tutors has a positive impact on the ability of both teams of professionals to carry out their duties and responsibilities. What is this likely to demonstrate? As an employer committed to continuing professional development the questionnaires hope to crystallise the benefits from sound working practices, opportunities for training and development and removal of professional barriers and continuing training and development. Advice on gathering information In gathering the required activity information the questionnaires are completed anonymously. By doing this it gives the teams the power to feel confident about the issues that they identify as part of their working environment, daily responsibilities. The questions that have been produced are supported with some prompts to help you think about some of the areas that are part of you everyday activities. The activity and time frames must be agreed between all parties involved. Questionnaires are to be returned by anonymous means. Using the questionnaire you need to report your findings for each statement. The statements are designed to extract your experiences with other professionals and your professional working relationship with them. Throughout your timetable you must agree with your tutor to follow a learner for a period of time and reflect on your experience using the questionnaire as a prompt.

21 Please complete your questionnaire and hand in to Administration by 15 th November This is completely anonymous and no personal data is required.

22 Questionnaire Please complete the following questions. Learning Support Assistant to complete and reflect on working relationship with Tutors/Tutors to complete and reflect on working relationship with Learning Support Assistants/ Curriculum Managers to complete and reflect on working relationship with Tutors What I think works really well about our work together is Prompt: Good communication / Supportive / Knowledgeable I think you are really good at Prompt: Supporting / Directing / Listening / professional / positive What I think we should do to make sure all our individual knowledge and expertise is used well is Prompt: Communicate / share ideas / reflect / learn from experiences / structure and guidance Our planning would be more effective if Prompt: Worked together closer / utilise time more effectively / create solutions to own problems When we review our working relationship, how do you think we could improve on our practice? Prompt: Sharing ideas / listening to one another / training and development / shadowing

23 Our training and professional development would be improved if Prompt: External training / internal training / training needs analysis / realistic appraisal targets What training and development would improve what we do in our work together? Prompt: Looking at cohort, identify trends

24 Guidance for Completing the Questionnaires This questionnaire has been tested in colleges to promote whole organisational approach to improvement. Research indicates that customised approaches to CPD, which link to the context in which Learning Support Assistants are working are likely to be most effective. The model used promotes the involvement of all Foundation Learning staff in identifying barriers to effective working and devising solutions to address them. It has led to organisational development, enabling the provider to develop the capacity to identify further training and development activities that will make a difference to the quality of the provision, reshaped timetables for LSAs, improved support offer and increased opportunity to share best practice. What are the questionnaires used for? The purpose of the questionnaires is to establish whether an organisational approach to the removal of barriers between support teams and tutors has a positive impact on the ability of both teams of professionals to carry out their duties and responsibilities. The activity includes a range of open questions that focus on 7 areas that are needed for development to be effective. These questions can be adapted to suit the needs of individual establishments and different work activities. Management of the process is of utmost importance and it is also vital that staff are fully informed of the purpose of the tool. This will ensure they feel supported and understand that the process is intended to enhance the professional learning environment and promote reflection of the sessions that have been utilised for this purpose. By using the tool, with Learning Support Assistants, Tutors and Managers you are promoting an inclusive membership and this shows that all levels of staff are to be actively involved in the process. The tool can be used to extend partnerships and networks by using the questionnaires across a range of partners, thus encouraging involvement from community partners, schools, colleges and Independent specialist providers to compare and evaluate the findings. What is this likely to demonstrate? As an employer committed to continuing professional development the questionnaires hope to crystallise the benefits from sound working practices, opportunities for training and development and removal of professional barriers and continuing training and development. Therefore hopefully demonstrating a culture of: Building trust and collaboration across a variety of establishments;

25 Developing the CPD requirements of all staff involved; Teams being encouraged to discuss good practice on one to one basis, meetings and with management; Encouraging staff to share their own ideas in relation to the curriculum, resources and planning etc; A shared focus and learning vision; and All staff are valued equally for their particular experience and expertise. Advice on gathering information In gathering the required activity information the questionnaires are completed anonymously in the first instance. By doing this it gives the teams the power to feel confident about the issues that they identify as part of their working environment and daily responsibilities. The questionnaires that have been produced are supported with some prompts to help you think about some of the areas that are part of your everyday activities. However once the activity has been carried out several times the opportunity to include names is an option as hopefully by this stage sufficient trust will have developed to make this viable. You can also use observation as an opportunity to use this resource. The activity and time frames must be agreed between all parties involved.

26 Annex 2: Portland College Case Study The context and rationale Portland college have 107 Foundation learners, most of whom are residential they are supported by Care and Independence staff in the residences. There are also occasions when the care and Independence staff support them in the class room. All learners have a Pastoral tutor who has a caseload of between 4 and 6 learners, and all tutorial sessions would have the support of at least one LSA depending on funding and needs of individuals. In Foundation Learning we have a staff team off 22 tutors and 45 LSAs, LSAs are line managed by their tutors and are allocated to specific sessions (not always with their line manager). What we did and how we did it: We prepared a questionnaire and guidance for staff based on the approach used with Coventry Adult Learning Service, which we distributed to all staff in Foundation Learning (including Curriculum Managers); A Tutor and LSA were chosen to work together for at least a third of their timetabled sessions, as a shadowing exercise. The timetables were changed to allow this to happen and this in itself posed a challenge as we then did not have the flexibility to release these staff as cover for sessions that needed it; The Tutor was asked to keep a reflective journal and both Tutor and LSA agreed to meet regularly to collaborate on planning and evaluation of teaching sessions; and The benefits identified by the Tutor and LSA and included the positive effect on planning and delivery of sessions as well as the development of a closer working relationship which benefitted the learners. Why we did it: This was done to inform future planning and to make changes that would benefit the staff team and the learners, we were mindful we had to stay within the staffing model we had and to make changes would have an impact somewhere. The outcomes: LSA staff now have an extra hour a week on top of their usual hour and a quarter to meet with their Line manager; and LSAs and Tutors are now fully included in Review and Evaluation meetings as well as Student Council and Staff forums. The impact:

27 Appraisals will now be easier to arrange and follow up; One to One meetings; Session planning; Highlighted Individual Training needs, which will be supported through the staff training days; and Cost unable to support an additional post for LSA due to cost implications of supporting current staff with the additional hour of support time. Logo of your organisation For further information contact: Karen Stewart Quality and Outcomes Manager Telephone number ext 371 address Example Shadowing Feedback from Tutor and LSA Following 7 weeks of shadowing between Tutor and LSA Having engineered opportunities within both timetables to observe one another the following positive impacts have been identified which we believe enables us to undertake our roles more successfully. Improved communication. Improved understanding of Tutor group needs. Increased rapport. Increased involvement within planning and preparation. Increased reflective practice. Sharing of Good Practice. Improved Line Management performance.

28 Annex 3: New College Nottingham Case Study The context and rationale New College Nottingham has a large ALS department consisting of 60 staff. 45 of these are LSAs. Staff are spread over 5 main sites and support learners on a 1-1 basis across the whole of central Nottingham At the moment LSAs have a strict remit to only support the learners they are 1-1 with. LSAs are not currently involved in the planning stage or assessment process at New College Nottingham. What we did and how we did it: Staff we identified and the process was as below: 3 groups identified managers, LSAs and tutors; Staff identified to shadow support workers; Staff timetabled for shadowing; Shadowing undertaken over a period of 4 weeks; All aspects of learner s experience shadowed; and Results collated from questionnaires. Why we did it: To reinforce planned restructure and bridge the gap between LSAs and tutors that was clearly evident. The outcomes: Identify the key outcomes from what we did as a series of bullet points Having time to discuss individual students as a team (1/2 hour lunchtime slot). Lecturers planning with LSA s. Lecturers sharing key information with their LSA s. Sharing good practices with others working with students. LSA s having joint observations with tutors. Shared Staff room with curriculum.

29 Shared CPD training to help build solid working relationships. These outcome are to be implemented and will all be in place by September 2011 The impact: Identify the tangible benefits of the activity as a series of bullet points. Developing working relationships between tutors and LSAs and bridging the gap that was outlined in the questionnaire. Support for students increased due to increase in communication. A more comprehensive support plan produced to increase the effectiveness of support for the learner. LSA s have more contact time with their Lecturer. LSAs skills fully utilised in the planning process. Questionnaires are implemented in the observation process from September 2011 Logo of your organisation For further information contact: Anthony piper anthony.piper@ncn.ac.uk How NCN conducted the process Guidance Notes for Questionnaire The questionnaire is designed for tutors and LSAs to record the value of knowledge that LSA support workers and tutors use to enhance the learners experience in college and other learning environments. You will be asked to shadow a learner through an activity such as lunch or break and any learning activity at college i.e. classroom tasks. Using the questionnaire you need to report you findings for each statement. The statements are designed to extract your experiences with other professionals (e.g. Tutors/ LSA support workers) and your professional working relationship with them.

30 This is completely anonymous and no personal data is required. Please complete this as honestly as you can. The feedback will help generate improvements for the learner and their experiences while in college. You can fill in the questionnaire by hand or electronically and return to Anthony Piper at Bath Street by the 13 th October Questionnaire Points Points 1&2 are designed to extract how well you work together to enhance the learning and learner s experience during the activity. You should comment on anything you felt had gone well and why. Point 3 & 4 lets you indicate how you utilise each other s knowledge and how well you prepare for each activity. You should comment on how each of you prepare for the activity and include specifics like levels and types of differentiation. Point 5 requires you to comment on how you review your working relationship and how you can improve and develop this to benefit the learners and their experiences. Point 6 & 7 asks you to comment on any CPD needs that you feel you may require that aren t already in place to develop your professional role and maximise the learning in activates. Questionnaire This questionnaire has been developed in order for us to understand the importance of valuing each others knowledge and expertise within the classroom. There is no requirement for you to add any personal information as the information obtained is to remain anonymous. Please complete the following questions. Tutor to complete 1) What I think works really well about our work together is 2) I think you are really good at 3) What I think we should do to make sure all our individual knowledge and expertise is used well is 4) Our planning would be more effective if 5) When we review our working relationship, how do you think we could improve on our practice? 6) Our training and professional development would be improved if 7) What training and development would improve what we do in our work together?

31 Annex 4: Hinwick Hall College Case Study The context and rationale: At Hinwick Hall College, Learning Support Assistants are allocated to Tutor Groups. They work as a team with the Tutor, and support the same group of students throughout the week. LSA s are timetabled to meet with their Tutor every other day for ½ an hour. On a Monday at 9am, we have an Education Team meeting with the Head of Education and the Head of Care, which lasts about minutes. Here information is shared such as what the residential students have accessed over the weekend, and information from the running diary. Any other information can be shared with the team. We also have LSA team meetings 2 or 3 times a half term. This is headed by the Higher Level Teaching Assistant (HLTA). The content varies, depending on the needs of the students/staff. In the past, LSAs have identified their training needs and what they would like to explore more. We also have a programme of LSA observations. Behaviour Strategy Meetings have been implemented and a timetable for those meetings distributed to Lecturers and their teams. Having enrolled in the Enhancement of Learning Support Programme, we have distributed the questionnaires to the LSAs, the Lecturers and Pathway Leaders. What we did and how we did it: The Senior Management Team met and changed the structure of the day. The problems to be addressed were Students not getting to lectures on time. No time allocated for training/support staff meetings. Not enough staff to cover students lunch and staff lunches. Wasted time at the beginning of the educational day. Students breaks too short for some students with high personal care needs. To improve communication across different departments. To improve training for residential teams.

32 During Term 1 there were no External/Internal Work Placements. These were successfully found for 23 students. However a knock on effect for other students need was identified. The Day Students (who are supported primarily by LSAs) needed to be supported by the remaining LSAs. Having created a timetable to address LSA s time with their Lecturers we found that some Tutor Teams did not meet regularly due to the needs of the Day Students over the lunchtime period. We conducted a survey about the LSAs duties over the Break Time and Lunchtime period. Why we did it: The timetable changes were made to improve the quality of the student experience, during their time at Hinwick Hall College. The outcomes: Identify the key outcomes from what we did as a series of bullet points Starting Lectures at 9.15am not 9.25am. Having time to discuss individual students as a team (1/2 hour lunchtime slot). Lecturers planning with LSAs. Lecturers sharing key information with their LSAs. Sharing good practices with others working with students. LSAs having individual observations. Residential Managers having time slots each day for training. Students having a longer break to improve quality. Adding a transition time (5minutes) to and from break time and lunchtime. The surveys that were given to the LSAs showed that the LSAs working on the residential units were not required. This Term, Term 3, we have a slightly different timetable to address the LSA s time with their Lecturers by moving their ½ hour slot to break time. We have piloted 3 teams and hope this will improve our service to the Day Students. The impact: Identify the tangible benefits of the activity as a series of bullet points.

33 Students quality of Care over the longer Break Time has improved. Students arrival times to lectures have improved. LSAs have more contact time with their Lecturer. Education Support Staff meetings have highlighted Individual Training needs and this has helped with planning Training Days more effectively. Due to the findings of the LSA survey, staff were removed from all but one unit (total care unit), and those LSAs are now supporting Day Students. This will be reviewed again at the end of Term 3. For further information contact: Jane Webb HLTA

34 Annex 5: Homefield College Case Study The context and rationale: Homefield College is an independent specialist college, catering specifically for learners on the Autistic Spectrum. The college aims to teach students independent living skills within a residential setting, incorporating life skills, vocational skills as well as a wide range of creative subjects. Within this project, Homefield College chose to focus on the use of anonymous questionnaire surveys, rather than the impact of shadowing within the organisation (this was due to low staffing levels). The questionnaire, set out by Portland College, was used to investigate the benefits of having a regular support staff during timetabled sessions. Although Homefield College have attempted this approach over time, this has never been a concrete policy in which the college consistently adheres to. The aim of this project was to look into the benefits of having regular support staff within sessions. It was intended that the identified support staff should work consistently alongside their partner tutor in order to heighten teaching and learning within the college, reflecting upon their experiences through the questionnaire. What we did and how we did it: Below is a timeline illustrating how the college approached the project and what was done in order to reach the conclusions: November 2010: Identified the problem through a case studied tutor. The case studied tutor wrote a reflective diary as to which support staff were supporting her session and the problems which arose due to inconsistencies in staffing; November 2010: Case-studied tutor collated problems of inconsistent staffing over a 3 week period. The problems were taken to the area co-ordinator to address; December 2010: Area co-ordinator and tutor worked together to research the problems stated. They paired ten tutors and ten support staff in order to work together over a 4 week period. The support staff were to consistently support their tutors sessions, working with them to plan and enhance teaching delivery and learning; December 2010 January 2011: Both tutors and support staff wrote a reflective diary to monitor their experiences with the regular support of sessions; December 2010 January 2011: Following the 4 week period, tutors and support staff completed the questionnaire as produced by Portland College (see Annex 3). Tutors and support staffs were to reflect on their experiences through the use of the questionnaire;

35 January 2011: Questionnaire results were collated by the admin office. Fundamental themes were extracted from the results in order to obtain conclusions and future actions within the college; and January 2011 on-going: Actions to be sent to area co-ordinator and relevant managers to come to solutions. Barriers faced during the running of the project: Staffing levels caused a variety of challenges to ensuring the regular support of identified support staff; Problems arose in consistently ensuring time before a session to briefly run through the session aims and keys learning objectives for students; Administration time for support staff was limited due to their supporting roles within the college; Joint administration time needed for tutors and their consistent support staff, however this was not always possible; and Tutors arranging meetings with their consistent support staff was difficult due to time restraints and individual responsibilities. Factors which enabled the project: Interest in the results; The staff s belief in the benefit to teaching and learning of consistent support staff; and The staff s belief in the importance of support staff being involved in some elements of tutor s administration. Why we did it: Homefield College is committed to students learning and the development of independence. Through bridging the gap between tutors and support staff, we predicted the teaching and learning levels would increase for all students educational careers within the college. The outcomes: Below is a list of key outcomes and conclusions which were identified from the project and its results: Tutors and support staff need the time to meet during administration time, and both should be allocated administration time;

36 Tutors and support staff to be offered training during in-house and external training time in order to bridge the tutor support staff gap (see Appendix 5); and Tutors and support staff to be allocated time at the beginning and end of a timetabled session in order to complete planning and reflective exercises The impact: Below is a list of tangible impacts as a result of the project: Rota co-ordinator to liaise with tutors, support staff and co-ordinators to ensure the possibility of regular support staff; Support staff to be given regular admin time once every 2 weeks for 1 hour; Tutors to involve support staff within their planning and development in order to enhance teaching and learning within the college; and Support staff to be offered qualifications to develop their knowledge within their job roles e.g. City and Guilds Award in Preparing to Support Learning (Level 2 3) and in-house training. Supporting documentation: 1) List of problems as identified by Case Study tutor 2) In-house Training Itinerary demonstrating joint training of tutors and LSAs Problems faced due to inconsistent staffing Time spent explaining session to staff. Time spent explaining to staff how the room needs to be set up. A drop in staffing levels hindering teaching and learning. Students feeling anxious due to unfamiliar staff within the session. Tutor absence support staff unable to cover and run the session. Staff feeling anxious due to unfamiliarity with routines within the session. Staff not familiar with student s capabilities, strengths, weaknesses and behaviour plans. Staff not familiar with risk assessments.

37 Staff not familiar with relevant subject knowledge and skills in order to aid students learning and development. Staff not focusing on students objectives within the session due to unfamiliarity. For further information contact: Name: Amy Julian Role: Tutor Telephone number: address: 6th January training AM pm Communication Tips Equality & Diversity Foundation Learning Foundation Learning Equality& Diversity Communication Tips FE Classroom St Gregs Lounge Lounge St Gregs FE Classroom

38 Annex 6: Stephenson College Case Study The context and rationale: The College is set up in clusters with a number of learning support assistants (practical and theory) assigned to each cluster. These are a mix of permanent fulltime (36 weeks and 44 weeks), part-time and sessional staff. When the need for support exceeds these persons then we have a balance of staff who work across the clusters wherever the gaps are. Support staff work with a variety of Further Education and Work Based Learning tutors and trainers and anecdotal evidence as well as observational evidence suggested a broad spectrum of experiences. The college needs to collate this evidence/ experience to seek to provide a better service to all parties particularly the students. What we did and how we did it: Volunteers, both support and teaching staff were requested. Support and teaching staff were then matched and requested to shadow each other at their convenience. Time was short as the college entered the activity very late. Staff were issued with questionnaires and guidance. The work will conclude after the writing of this report and a meeting will be held to discuss findings. Why we did it: Improve the student experience; Find evidence of good practice and cascade; Find issues/concerns which are currently not known to other parties and resolve; Improve efficiency of provision; and Develop team work between ALS & tutors. The outcomes: So far only verbal feedback. One concern which has been voiced is the lack of 1:1 time for support staff in some areas of the college. The impact:

39 To be confirmed For further information contact: Chris Ison Learning Support Co-ordinator & Disability Officer Ext 198