November 13th - the Functional Skills
newsletter
Lots in the newsletter this week and we
feature coverage of the BIS report into Apprenticeships published
last week that essentially called for an improvement in standards to ensure
that Apprenticeships were rigorous, worthwhile and on a par "with
university". Schools in particular are criticised for doing little
to publicise them as an alternative learner option at 16+.
We also have news of a great value
major new conference to be held in Birmingham in the New Year called "All
Things Functional". On the subject of events, OCR
are running a series of half day events in Functional Skills and we have links
to all those not completely "sold out" although the OCR events are
free to join!
And finally, we have news of this
week's webinar which will go ahead on Wednesday at 4.00pm. This week
we're doing the "Functional Skills Learner Journey".
Plus we have links to previous webinar recordings too – a reminder that you
will need to login as a guest and the password is always password.
As always, your comments and thoughts
are appreciated - let us know what you'd like us to cover in the newsletter by
emailing the editor - jwells@guroo.co.uk
All Things Functional - 25th January,
Birmingham
A major new event for everyone involved in Functional Skills and
supported by all the major players in the market led by EM SKills and Industry Qualifications plus support from Guroo, Forskills, BKSB, Runway Training and Nelson Thornes.
The event, which is very competitively
priced at £99, has been designed by practitioners for practitioners and as a
delegate you will:
·
Hear from expert speakers about
Functional Skills policy and funding
·
Have the opportunity to participate
in three hours of Functional Skills training
·
Choose from an extensive range of
workshops delivered by Functional Skills practitioners and industry experts
·
Hear about new approaches to the
delivery and the assessment of Functional Skills
·
Receive information about new
qualifications for Functional Skills practitioners and adult learners
·
See demonstrations of the most
up-to-date Functional Skills resources
·
Have the opportunity to network with
other Functional Skills practitioners and experts
"The
development of functional skills should be a feature of, not a bar to,
apprenticeships."
There has been a lot of press comment
about Apprenticeships since the publication of the BIS report.
The title of this news item is a direct
quote from the official report conclusions and recommendations. The quote is
in paragraph 22.
This link will take you to the bdaily report on the publication giving a slightly different
view.
And here's the BBC's take on the report.
The bottom line is that more focus
needs to be applied to improve standards and to make sure they are rigorous and
worthwhile and much more needs to be done in schools to offer them as an alternative
to 16+ learners.
Free Functional Skills training events
from OCR
A series of 6 events this month
covering all subjects and levels aimed at experienced practitioners, heads of
department, curriculum managers, centre assessors and professionals with an
interest in Functional Skills.
These are half day events in London,
and include updated materials focussed on innovative teaching and
learning. Just click on the links below to go to the relevant OCR Event
Booking page. And just in case you think we've accidently left Entry
Level Maths off, sorry but that one has been and gone!
- Entry Level English, Maths and ICT - Innovative
teaching and learning input
- Entry Level English - Getting to grips with delivery
and assessment
- Entry Level ICT - Getting to grips with delivery and
assessment
- Levels 1&2 Maths - Getting to grips with delivery
and assessment
- Levels 1&2 English - Getting to grips with
delivery and assessment
Wednesday Webinar at 4.00pm
This week’s webinar is entitled "The Functional Skills Learner Journey". Jonathan will take you through a
15 minute look at how the learner journey for a typical Functional Skills
student is developing including a look at the very latest teaching and learning
videos designed to support key concepts in Functional Skills.
Email info@guroo.co.uk for joining instructions and then join
Jonathan on Wednesday at 4.00pm
Previous webinars are recorded and
available anytime for playback - login as a guest and the password is password.
Simply click on the links below and don’t forget, if you’d like to have your
own 1:1 webinar looking at how Guroo can help you support Functional Skills,
just call us on 0191 305 5045 or email info@guroo.co.uk and we’ll take it from there.
Guroo group and user admin 
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