Purposes and outcomes of the review
The programme reviewed
Section A Framework
Section B Overall educational aims of the programme
Section C An evaluation of the emerging standards of the programme and the emerging achievements of students
Section D An evaluation of the quality of students' learning opportunities
Section E An evaluation of the monitoring and enhancement of quality and standards
Section F Good practice and/or innovative features
Section G Summary of the main review outcomes
The Higher Education Funding Council for England has commissioned the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education to carry out a second programme of reviews of a sample of Foundation Degrees (FDs) in England in the academic year 2004-05. The major purposes of the review process are:
The findings from the reviewers' lines of enquiry result in a published report containing two threshold judgements. In the case of programmes where there are students who have graduated, the report contains judgements on the confidence, or otherwise, the reviewers have in:
In the case of recent programmes where no students have graduated to date, the report contains judgements on the confidence, or otherwise, the reviewers have in:
The report also comments on the maintenance and enhancement of standards and quality, and on the examples of good practice and innovation which may be worthy of wider dissemination.
Each review looks at one FD programme. It covers the entirely of that programme and includes, as applicable, the provision at all sites of delivery, all pathways, sites of work-based learning and modes of study.
The review takes place within a framework that includes a range of activities common to all reviews. Each review is structured around a series of 11 key questions to be considered by the provider in preparing its self-evaluation and by the reviewers when summarising evidence to be used to reach the two threshold judgements. The same questions form the structure of the report.
1 The FD in Early Years is offered on a full and part-time basis by the University of Central England in Birmingham (UCE). The programme started in 2003 and is franchised from UCE's Faculty of Education and delivered by South Birmingham College (SBC) Division of Early Years, Care and Health Studies. SBC has developed the programme in partnership with UCE to support widening participation, inclusiveness and lifelong learning. The College's Department of Early Years, Care and Public Services has built up strong links with a variety of early years providers, National Training Organisations (NTO), Early Years Development and Childcare Partnerships, and was awarded a pathfinder Centre of Vocational Excellence (CoVE) for Early Years in July 2001. For the session 2004-05, there are 12 part-time students enrolled in level 4 (year one) and 21 in level 5 (year two). Most of the students who enrol hold the BTEC National Diploma in Early Years and a small number hold the Council for Awards in Childcare Education (CACHE) Diploma.
2 The programme is designed for early-years practitioners who wish to enhance their skills in delivering care and education in early years settings. The FD is expected to provide both enhanced career progression and academic credibility for the skills and knowledge embedded in the practitioner's role in early-years, playwork and school-based settings. Students who complete the programme successfully will be able to work in a variety of settings including nurseries, primary schools, early excellence centres and health centres. Students will also be able to proceed to UCE's BA (Hons) degree in Early Childhood Education Studies (ECES).
3 Work-based learning (WBL) is undertaken in 22 locations, within an eight-mile radius of SBC; 40 per cent of the WBL is undertaken at small private and Local Education Authority (LEA) funded institutions, and 45 per cent in large LEA-funded suburban and innercity institutions. The remainder are located at the Green Hall campus of SBC, a small New Deal for the Community-funded suburban institution and a large primary care trust-funded institution.
4 Sector-endorsed FDs in Early Years are based on the NTO standards for the sector and the FD is Department for Education and Skills (DfES) approved way of demonstrating that an employee is able to perform at the level appropriate to Senior Practitioner posts.
5 The FD in Early Years aims to:
6 There are clear links between the programme aims and the intended learning outcomes (ILOs) for the FD, which are informed by the Foundation Degree qualification benchmark. The aims refer to students' acquisition and development of knowledge-based, practical, analytical, management and communications skills as preparation for employment. There is emerging evidence that these aims and the overall aim of the programme, to enable students to become committed, confident, reflective early-years practitioners, are being met. This is evidenced particularly in the reviewers' examination of the student work, interviews with students, mentors and headteachers in the workplace.
7 The ILOs are set out clearly in the FD programme specification and are aligned with the intermediate level, as defined in the FHEQ. They provide a sound basis for achieving the defining characteristics of FDs with which they fully engage, for example, the arrangements for the accreditation of prior certificated learning (APCL), which facilitate entry to the programme by suitably qualified students. In addition, the WBL links students' work experience with academic study
8 The programme ILOs have been well developed, are appropriate and are understood by staff and communicated effectively to students. However, the number of WBL ILOs in the Evidence Log Book is too extensive.
9 The aims and ILOs are communicated clearly to the students in the student handbook and module guides and through oral dissemination.
10 The curriculum is well designed to meet the needs of a range of vocationally qualified, non-traditional students in appropriate employment. It combines college-based modules, exploring the wide range of knowledge, understanding and skill required by early-years workers, with WBL experience. It encourages students to make links between the content of the college-based modules and practice. Student feedback indicates that the programme is successful in integrating academic and WBL. Students appreciate their developing ability to understand and apply theory in the workplace. Employers are generally appreciative of their employees' enhanced academic knowledge and understanding of professional practice.
11 The content and structure of the programme is appropriate to the achievement of its aims. The programme is based on the DfES Early Years Sector-Endorsed Foundation Degree Statement of Requirement and is consistent with the Subject benchmark statement for education studies. The programme is supported by policies that ensure the conditions of the workplace comply with the relevant health and safety, equal opportunities and European Union employment legislation.
12 The programme comprises 240 credits, 120 of which are delivered at level 4 and 120 at level 5 of the National Qualifications Framework (NQF). It includes 12 core learning outcomes that are generic to early-years practice. There is a strong emphasis on the links to the workplace, which is fully reflected in the modules, with mentors aiding students to achieve the ILOs. Its structure facilitates flexibility by offering part-time as well as full-time modes of study and a credit accumulation and transfer facility that enables students to interrupt their studies and resume at a later date. Should recruitment levels fall, precluding the delivery of some modules, the breadth of the curriculum offers alternative negotiable patterns of study matched to students' choices. The flexibly delivered curriculum offers a coherent and progressive learning experience for students and meets the skills requirements of a range of vocationally qualified, non-traditional students in appropriate employment.
13 The programme is offered on two evenings to enable participants to mix and match modules and so complete the programme in two years instead of three. However, on the last occasion, the two groups ran separately.
14 Graduates from the FD have automatic right of entry to level 6 of UCE's BA (Hons) ECES. This is offered as either a one year full-time or two year part-time course that is specifically designed as a top-up course for FD graduates, allowing them to pursue different patterns of study to match their work commitments.
15 With the support of work-based mentors, personal development plans (PDPs) are to be introduced, linked to the Developing and Managing Self module. The PDPs will help students to reflect upon their own learning, performance and achievement enabling them to plan for their own educational, academic and career development. Despite the efforts of the College Mentor Coordinator to engage all the mentors in appropriate training through training events and visits to schools, their involvement is sporadic and their effectiveness could be improved.
16 The assessment strategy is generally sound and offers students ample opportunity to reflect on and analyse their professional practice in the light of theoretical models. The reviewers confirm that the assessment is consistent with and appropriate to the intermediate level of the FHEQ and level 5 of the NQF.
17 The assessment arrangements are consistent with UCE's Standard Foundation Degree Assessment Regulations and reflect the Code of practice for the assurance of academic quality and standards in higher education, Section 6: Assessment of students, published by QAA, and are appropriate for the programme ILOs. These arrangements are communicated to students in the student handbook, in assignment specifications and in module guides. However, students indicate that some of the assessment briefs lack clarity. In addition, the reviewers feel that the format and information in the module specification booklets is insufficiently transparent to students.
18 The programme offers a good variety of methods of assessment that allows students to link theory and practice across all modules. Students appreciate the range of assessment offered. A module logbook is used to record and assess evidence of students' WBL experience and to encourage reflective practice. However, it is lengthy and there is a lack of consistency in its format. The extent of its use by students and mentors is variable between different modules. Employers and mentors do not contribute to the formal assessment of students, although mentors are expected to authenticate the evidence of achievement and improvement cited by students in their logbooks. Owing to the intensity of mentors' workload, their responses can be inconsistent and variable. In addition, students find completion of the logbooks time-consuming and unhelpful in fostering self-reflection. The programme team is aware of these difficulties and is committed to introducing appropriate changes, including alternative methods of assessing the WBL skills. In addition, the curriculum provides insufficient complementary opportunities for students to engage in reflective practice.
19 Although mentors and employers are not involved in the marking and grading process of student work, they are expected to provide appropriate WBL opportunities for the students in order that they can meet the demands of their assignments. Although employers are now issued with an employers' guide, further measures could be taken to explain their role in the authentication of students' WBL and aid their comprehension of the FD requirements.
20 The SBC staff are commended for their rigorous marking and effective internal moderation processes. However, there is some variability in the extent of written feedback and its relationship to the assessment criteria.
21 UCE operates well documented accreditation of prior (experiential) learning and APCL systems. Students who have completed modules on the Advanced Diploma in Childcare and Education and the HNC or HND in Early Childhood Studies have been able to apply for APCL. SBC students are informed of this and how they might apply in the student handbook.
22 The programme is in its second year, with the first graduates expecting to complete the FD in 2006. Emerging academic standards appropriate to the intermediate level, as defined in the FHEQ, are broadly being achieved by students and their work reaches the threshold requirements for the award of a FD. The module ILOs outcomes at certificate level are being achieved. However, standards are variable and some modules have low levels of achievement. In the first year of the course, the average first submission pass mark over nine modules was 45 per cent. In five of the modules, more than 25 per cent of work was referred or not submitted. In one module, Intellectual and Cognitive Development of Children, 29 per cent of work was referred and a similar percentage recorded as non-submissions. The reviewers commend the responses of the programme team in undertaking a comprehensive analysis of student attainment levels and implementing a range of procedures to support weaker students and to improve average grades. These include modifications to the curriculum, an extended induction period and increased study skills support at level 4. Their impact should be carefully monitored.
23 Students draw on their experience in the workplace to complete assignments, for example, in analysing pupil data and evaluating school policies. However, some work is too descriptive and lacks the critical analysis and depth required at certificate level.
24 Reflective practice is well developed through the Developing and Managing Self module and the Professional Practice Portfolio. In the case of the latter, a workshop is included to develop students' reflective skills.
25 Most of the employers interviewed are very positive about the quality of students' learning. In particular, students are demonstrating increased confidence and professionalism in the discharge of their duties. They cite examples of students taking on additional responsibility as a result of their learning.
26 In designing the FD, the University and the College sought the views of a wide range of organisations and individuals. These included the local Learning and Skills Council, the DfES Surestart, Birmingham Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership, the Playwork Partnership Worker, the Director of 3Es (a locally-based early-years training provider), employers and students. External practitioner advisers with subject expertise were involved in the validation process. Involvement of these employers and other stakeholders has helped to ensure currency and relevance in the curriculum. Consultation with stakeholders has led to the creation of an optional specialist level 5 route and to a flexibly delivered curriculum to reflect students' needs and employment constraints. The partnership for the design and delivery of the FD is founded upon a strong existing network of contacts that have been established over a number of years.
27 The College has recently appointed a College Mentor Coordinator to visit the WBL workplace of students and to liaise with mentors and employers. The College Mentor Coordinator also acts as a mentor to students where no work-based mentor has been appointed. The programme benefits from the College's well-developed relationships with sector-employers and relevant agencies through its CoVE status for Childcare Training. Employers and work-based mentors are invited regularly to partnership and briefing meetings to aid curricular development.
28 Students usually identify their own work-based mentors, whose role is to authenticate evidence rather than to assess students. Some mentors read students' work to give formative feedback. This provides valuable support for students' learning but there is no evidence that this is a planned feature of the programme. Some of the mentors are less willing to engage in this aspect of their role. This is being addressed through the introduction of a newly developed WBL Guide and the reinforcement of the role of the College Mentor Coordinator.
The reviewers have confidence in the emerging academic standards and emerging achievements of students.
29 The learning and teaching strategies are consistent with the University Learning and Teaching Strategy. The strategies emphasise the role of active learning as central to the programme. All modules are linked directly to the WBL placement experience and provide participants with the knowledge, understanding and transferable skills essential for their development as senior practitioners. A variety of learning and teaching methods is employed by the tutors which are aligned with the programme ILOs and enable the participants to achieve professional and personal goals. These include small-group discussions, presentations, case-studies, student self-analysis and role playing, that are congruent with the range of learning styles displayed by students. They are also designed to stimulate students' self-reflection.
30 Students are taught in groups of varying size based on student-centred activities and small work groups called 'learning sets'. They favour the small-group teaching, as it is better able to address the learning needs of entrants with non-traditional qualifications. The students indicate that the teaching helps to reinforce the links between their professional working roles and the academic content of the curriculum.
31 Module guides identify a well-balanced range of forms of learning and teaching, divided between taught activities and directed or independent study. However, the schemes of work and lesson plans are unduly complex and could be made more consistent with one another.
32 The limited opportunities for visiting speakers from public and private sector enterprises to participate does not fully reflect the partnerships with stakeholders and the wide-ranging links with related organisations.
33 The ethnic and gender profiles of entrants helps to promote wider access. Imaginative timetabling of the delivery of the curriculum, in the evenings and at weekends, aids widening participation, so that students' work and domestic commitments are minimally disrupted. The College is proud of its 'outreach approach' and its success in attracting Asian female students to enter the programme that is reinforced by ethnically targeted and sensitive displays within the College.
34 In its first year (2003-04), of the 41 students enrolling at the start of level 4, over 50 per cent withdrew. The largest proportion of students who progressed onto level 5 held the CACHE Diploma in Childcare and Education and the smallest number the NVQ3 Early Years, Care and Education. The reasons for withdrawal range from domestic, work-related pressures to personal problems. As a response to the high level of withdrawals, the College has developed a strategy for improvement. This features clarifying potential entrants' expectations of the programme by an initial interview. The induction period is to be extended to include a guided induction assessment that will give feedback to students very early in the programme. In addition, the programme team is expected to respond rapidly to students' unauthorised absence. Annually, student retention figures will be scrutinised further, in the Annual Evaluation Report.
35 The student handbook communicates clearly the range of support that students can expect. Students particularly welcome the support from tutors at the programme level and enjoy the group-based learning and group tutorials that are used to develop study skills. The University ensures that students are supported, for example, in their entitlement to access to the University's facilities. Where a student is no longer able to work in an early-years setting, the College is able to offer the student a placement in the College nursery, to provide continuity of their WBL placement. The flexible and variable pattern of delivery enables students to study at a pace that suits their circumstances.
36 All of the students interviewed by the reviewers expressed their intention to progress to the top-up degree after completing the FD. Their progression is facilitated by a university link tutor who works closely with the programme team to forge close links between the University and the College.
37 There are 10 part-time teaching staff involved in programme delivery. The newly appointed Course Director is employed on a 0.5 basis and is continuing her former role as Mentor Coordinator. Given the pivotal role of the latter, the student numbers, and the flexible delivery patterns of the programme, the sufficiency of the staffing provision to support the FD including administration, is in need of review. The SBC staffs' teaching is regularly inspected and there are strategies in place to address weak classroom practice. The teaching staff at SBC can gain access to staff development modules accredited at UCE, and two team members have completed the UCE Postgraduate Certificate.
38 The vocational expertise of the staff team and their continuing involvement in networking, training, information and communications technology skills development and conferences, ensures that teaching is varied and has currency. This is complemented further by the deployment of a range of staff from the Early Years Department at SBC, which is a CoVE for the sector.
39 The Curriculum Resource Centre (CRC) at SBC offers appropriate access to information technology resources and strong support for the curriculum, providing a variety of relevant study and visual aids in a pleasant environment. On the request of students the CRC's evening opening times can be extended by the FD teaching staff.
40 The opening times of SBC's Hall Green library can limit students' evening access to learning resources. Additionally, the location of UCE's library facilities can be inconvenient for some students who are located close to the Hall Green Campus. The UCE facilities include a daily 24-hour one-stop portal covering subject pages, study and research support. Given that the provision of relevant early years books in the Hall Green library is limited, recent additional funding has been released to rectify this shortfall. In addition, nearly all students have each received a funding allocation of £200 to purchase copies of key texts.
41 Teaching space at the College is barely adequate to meet the needs of larger student groups. SBC is aware of this and is expecting to relocate the programme within the next 18 months. Given the smaller size of the current cohort, the facilities are adequate. As part of its building development plan, £1.5 million has been spent to improve access for the disabled, which is now more appropriate to meet students' needs.
42 It is a requirement of the programme that all the students on the FD are in childcare employment. They are supported by a work-based mentor either from the workplace or by the College Mentor Coordinator. The qualifications and experience of work-based mentors is variable, ranging from the highly qualified to those with limited experience, for example, in some of the private nurseries. At present, neither the work-based mentors nor employers are inducted on their roles in supporting the students.
43 Employer and mentor meetings are an integral part of the programme. Given that employers' time is limited; the programme team has experienced some difficulty in achieving an appropriate level of employer involvement. To date there is no employer representative on the Programme Board of Studies. Nevertheless, a parent partnership worker and a playworker have been involved in the delivery of the programme.
44 The programme team is becoming more aware of both the national and local context of the programme, for example, tutors have joined the Midlands area Sector-Endorsed Foundation Degree in Early Years Delivery Network. This will help them to keep up to date with changing employment patterns, policy changes and further funding support opportunities for students. Most students are very positive about the WBL experience and value its role in linking academic studies to their practice.
The reviewers have confidence in the quality of the students' learning opportunities.
45 The University's operations manual for franchised programmes identifies clearly the roles and responsibilities of individuals, the committee structure, the quality assurance procedures, regulations and assessment for the FD. There is a well-integrated system for quality monitoring and enhancement at programme, college and university level .The programme has been running since 2003 and has completed one review and evaluation cycle. The Annual Evaluative Review (2003-04), includes action plans, which are in the process of being implemented.
46 Feedback from students is provided by mid-module and end-of-module evaluations, personal and academic tutorials and through the Board of Studies. Students have access to a suggestions box for anonymous feedback. To date, this has not been used as the students take issues directly to the tutors.
47 The College Mentor Coordinator is beginning to gather evaluative information from employers and WBL mentors to allow more regular feedback for the purposes of quality enhancement. The securing of more systematic feedback from employers would aid the development of the programme.
48 The format of the external examiner's report is standard to all University programmes. In its present format it is insufficiently developed to provide systematic feedback from external examiners on the effectiveness of the WBL in meeting appropriate standards.
49 A link tutor is appointed to strengthen the relationship between the University and the College-based FD students. The link tutor is a member of the programme team, attends boards of study and examination boards and is involved in regular meetings with the Course Director and students. The role is wide-reaching and includes moderating of the FD assignments, meeting with students during induction and will, in future, extend to effecting the smoothing transition of students to the degree.
50 A well-designed Saturday workshop encourages students to develop reflective skills through the preparation of a journal analysing critical incidents in the workplace. The majority of these journals are thoughtfully produced and provide a record of individual student's progress in developing professional skills, knowledge and attitudes and are considered to represent good practice.
The Foundation Degree (FD) in Early Years validated by the University of Central England in Birmingham and delivered by South Birmingham College (SBC) was reviewed in the academic year 2004-05. Judgements were made about the emerging academic standards and emerging achievements of students and of the quality of the learning opportunities provided.
Overall, the reviewers have confidence in the emerging academic standards and emerging achievements of students.
Overall, the reviewers have confidence in the quality of the students' learning opportunities.
Features of good practice and innovation include:
Strengths of the programme include:
Areas for development include: