What do training instructors become when they’re not instructing students?

It’s a question that the sector will need to start considering in earnest as the UK continues to debate the implications of the apprenticeship levy. Concerns persist over how well prepared school and university leavers are for the working world, and there is growing support for further education to bridge the gap.

For most providers this takes the form of vocational training, with instructors leading courses where they impart their expertise and offer a content-centric approach to preparing students for work in a certain job or industry.

This approach can work - and it can be a valuable component of training - but it doesn’t quite fulfil the potential of the FE sector to produce a workforce that enters the job market with the skills required to succeed. We’re starting to see a growing awareness that colleges and providers must rethink the way they deliver courses in the new world.

Modern, meaningful learning

Current literature in the educational sector identifies learning as the mash-up of information which learners progressively acquire, and individually piece together, into a network of knowledge - meaningful to each learner - through a process which is social, context-dependent and reflective.

The increasing requirement for this new pedagogical approach, supported by businesses’ thirst for well-rounded skillsets, is forcing educational institutions to face the question: “Can our offerings meet all of these emerging needs and offer a training fit for the lifelong learners of the 21st century?”

At QA Apprenticeships, we have faced a similar question and felt the need to react to this pressing requirement. Our response was the research and development of a new generation of apprenticeship programmes: the delivery of solutions that scaffold learning experiences around businesses’ objectives, increasing opportunities for contextual learning and empowering learners to work on real-life projects.

To achieve this, we’ve turned to a challenge-based model. This sees programmes kick-off with an online interactive introduction to deliver each module’s fundamentals, but from then on it’s a different prospect.

Virtual learning environments

In practice, learners are asked to solve advanced topic-related challenges at the start of each module, which are facilitated by the learning community and educators throughout. Each learning experience is aligned with each learner’s individual learning plan, which is based on his or her professional and personal context.

This allows learners to bring in their own professional tasks, making sure their training marries up with their in-work apprenticeships - allowing them to set their own problems or challenges at the heart of their programme, and giving them access to QA’s pool of knowledge and ongoing support from our educators. In fact, learning technologies enable us to get closer to our learners and offer personalised ongoing coaching.

In other words, authenticity is key and technology is the enabler of this shift. We use our virtual learning environment, called Canvas, to help us integrate a wide range of educational components and give us the flexibility needed to let our students drive their own learning experiences.

As well as making the challenges highly relevant, the approach hones those soft skills that help students learn for life, such as organisation, critical thinking and collaboration.

Rising to the challenge

Moving to a new learning model is a challenge in itself for students. It can be a real culture shock for those used to a far more passive approach to education, as is the case in many schools. Similarly, the greater independence and use of tech to facilitate learning can mean some learners initially wonder how much they’ll be able to interact with others, sharing ideas and support.

Once learners adapt though, they realise that tech can facilitate these interactions and put them at the core of learning and feedback. They’re also far more likely to feel satisfied with how they learn.

One of the starkest differences can be seen between feedback on the content-centric approach and learner-centric, challenge-based approach.

When we reviewed the new approach, before the change, 38 per cent said they were confident that what they’d learn would improve their job performance, with the new focus, that’s up to 92 per cent.

Soft skills for life

This is why the theory works with the realities of the apprenticeship levy, which requires employers and providers in England to give all apprentices at least 20 per cent of their total working hours for off-the-job learning.

With learners developing their own challenges in line with their in-work activities, they’re able to bring those two components of their educational experience much closer together.

All in all, it is clear that a broader, more holistic approach to skills training is needed. It’s a necessary step for students to thrive in today’s global economy, by creating a workforce that’s not only prepared for a vocation, but also prepared to use those soft skills to keep adapting and learning for life.

Andre Silva is the blended-learning implementation manager at QA Apprenticeships