School/College Review Partner Document to the Interim Report

A REVIEW OF COLLABORATION BETWEEN SCHOOLS AND FURTHER EDUCATION COLLEGES IN SCOTLAND: Partner Document to the Interim Report

SECTION 4 PURPOSE AND NATURE OF SCHOOL/COLLEGE COLLABORATION

Overall Rationale for Collaboration

4.1 The overall rationale for school/college collaboration is to help develop the attributes and abilities of young people to enable them to become successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors to society and at work by assisting schools to deliver the 3-18 curriculum. It can be encapsulated in the following purposes:

to widen pupils' opportunities for progression and prepare them for further study;
to ease pupils' transition from school to further learning, training or employment;
to broaden pupils' curriculum choices; and
to enrich pupils' educational experiences.

Other Purposes

4.2 We encourage collaboration between schools and further education colleges in order to help ²⁸:

give pupils' access (appropriate to their educational development) to specialist staff, materials and facilities, which schools may generally be unable to offer (because of too few student numbers or other constraints such as accommodation);
give pupils the opportunity to undertake courses in vocational areas, such as hospitality;
give pupils the opportunity to study non-traditional subjects, including academic, such as Psychology and Philosophy;
provide pupils with a different learning environment from that of school;
provide pupils with a wider range of learning opportunities (e.g. open and distance learning);
improve pupils' access to a wide range of educational opportunities to deliver social justice;
demystify post-school learning, encouraging pupils to see the value of post-school education and understand the 'lifelong' nature of learning;
re-engage pupils most at risk of disengagement with the education system;
support the learning of pupils with additional needs, and from special schools;
improve pupils' retention rates at school and their acquisition of qualifications, both of which have a positive impact on pupils' lifetime earnings;
give pupils the opportunity to explore career options within the context of the 3-18 continuum of career planning;
place into context for pupils the relevance of aspects of their learning;
improve pupils' general work-readiness, including through Enterprise in Education activities under Determined to Succeed;
give pupils over school age technical skills to improve their chances of securing employment in their chosen field;
promote to pupils over school age career opportunities in key areas of Scotland's economy and where skills gaps exist or are emerging;
break down pupils' gender stereotyping of occupations;
encourage pupils' interest in science, technology, engineering and maths; and
encourage pupils' interest in creative and cultural subjects, including sports, art, theatre and dance.

Nature of Collaboration

4.3 The sharing of resources between the two sectors is essential to the delivery of a modern flexible school curriculum. All secondary and special schools in Scotland should have effective, meaningful and appropriate partnership with at least one further education college for S3 pupils and above. In any given case, having considered a pupil's educational needs in full consultation with the pupil and their carer (as required under section 2(2) of the Standards in Scotland's Schools (etc) Act 2000, which is in accord with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child), schools should examine the most suitable means of meetings those needs (which may or may not suggest school/college collaboration). If such collaboration is being considered for a particular pupil, the school and college need to be clear about its educational or other benefits. Early discussion should take place between both partners. A key issue to be considered is whether the pupil would be able to cope with the level and format of the learning.

4.4 The activity should have clear objectives and outcomes expressed in terms of pupils' achievement and attainment (in relation to, among other things, social skills, life skills, and self-reliance). Collaborative activity should only take place with the full agreement of the pupil and their carer. It should be a positive choice to access specialist provision in further education colleges - it should not be regarded as opting out of school for young people with additional support needs or disaffected or disengaged pupils.

4.5 Section 2(1) of the Standards in Scotland's School Act 2000 requires education authorities to "secure that the education is directed to the development of the personality, talents and mental and physical abilities of the child or young person to their fullest potential." We do not consider that further statutory obligations on education authorities are necessary to ensure collaboration between schools and further education colleges.

4.6 We recognise and commend the fundamental re-alignment which further education colleges themselves have undergone in recent years to satisfy local demand from schools. This is evidenced by 9% of Scottish Further Education Funding Council funded activity in colleges being devoted since 2000 to school/college collaboration. Partnership will be developed with a view to the long term and we anticipate that it will grow in an evolutionary way over the coming years. We set no target on the eventual increase in such activity, because collaboration is not an end in itself. It is meeting the identified needs of pupils that is important. Partnership with schools is an essential and significant part of colleges' work, but it is - and will remain - a minority activity for colleges. We have no intention of turning further education colleges into schools. The distinctive contribution that colleges can make to pupils' education arises from their role as centres of voluntary learning for adults. It is therefore essential to the success of collaboration that that ethos is not altered.

4.7 There are a number of related policy developments that are likely to lead to increased demand for school/college collaboration. These include:

Enterprise in Education activities under Determined to Succeed (further education college activity is one way of delivering this);
the introduction of Education Maintenance Allowances ²⁹ (and the anticipated increase in retention rates in schools in S5/S6);
ending the Age and Stage regulations to remove unnecessary bureaucracy in the exam system. This will allow schools and education authorities to maximise their use of flexibility to ensure students meet their full education potential. This may increase the number of pupils undertaking courses more likely to involve some form of school/college collaborative activity;
the continued delivery of our target to reduce the proportion of 16-19 year olds not in education, employment or training (NEET) and the delivery of our target to increase the average tariff score of the lowest attaining 20% of S4 pupils by 2008. Flexible learning opportunities are key to achieving these targets; and
the delivery of our Partnership Agreement commitment, the details of which we go on to explain below.

4.8 The nature of provision for different age cohorts has to be necessarily different because they will have different needs. Further education colleges are able to engage with pupils of school age, and we do not intend to place legal obstacles in the way of colleges working with schools if that is what they both choose to do.

4.9 We do not intend to seek to impose a statutory obligation on further education colleges to make provision for school pupils. However, we expect all of Scotland's further education colleges (with the exception of Newbattle Abbey College, which is an adult residential college) to have effective, meaningful and appropriate partnerships with secondary and special schools.

4.10 We regard further education colleges' collaborative work with schools to be a priority for the further education sector that sits alongside its other priorities. It supplements and supports the sector's other priorities. Subject to maintaining colleges' central ethos, we see no conflict between them. Growing Scotland's economy and closing the opportunity gap require that we help realise the full potential of our school pupils.

4.11 Options should be made available to school pupils as they are with all other students in further and higher education - on the basis of available capacity. We expect pupils of all abilities in S3 and above to be able to be considered for college courses. That said, given that there is a limit on capacity we expect that due regard is paid to those pupils for whom collaboration is especially beneficial in activities that particularly broaden pupils' educational experiences and enhance their life chances.

Vocational Education

4.12 Education should open up a range of opportunities to young people and give them a variety of social, personal and educational skills that are transferable to many different situations, including the workplace and community life. There should be no dead end to learning. It should provide opportunities for further learning and training.

4.13 The nature of further education college provision relates to the local economies that colleges serve and in some cases to a strategic element of the economy. For example, in rural areas this may be land-based and fishing related subjects. We will not serve school pupils well if we do not ensure that their learning is relevant. That is why our lifelong learning strategy sits alongside our strategy for enterprise A Smart, Successful Scotland, which we refreshed earlier this month. Further education colleges work closely with Futureskills Scotland ³⁰. Colleges and local economic forums should also work closely together to ensure the continuing relevance of college provision.

4.14 For school age pupils, vocational education can provide a suitable context, something which may better engage some pupils to learn. It gives pupils general skills for life and work, including core skills such as communication or team-working. It should help prepare pupils for the workplace - not for a particular occupation (though there may properly be exceptions to this in a student-centred approach to the assessment of need).

Primary Pupils

4.15 We would expect any college engagements with primary pupils to be limited to activities such as special project work. All visits of primary school pupils to further education colleges should be supervised by schools in the same way as on any other school excursion, including in respect of the ratio of pupils to school teachers.

S1 and S2 pupils

4.16 Similarly, for pupils in S1 and S2, we would expect the experience of college to be limited, typically involving the provision of 'taster courses' to engage pupils' interest in a training course or particular subject before embarking on a more extensive course of study at a future date in college or elsewhere. Such 'taster' courses we believe also have a particularly important role in helping to break down gender stereotypes of occupations, as they give opportunities which might otherwise not be available to pupils to sample a field of learning and discover what the subject is really about. Again, we recommend that S1 and S2 school pupils are supervised by schools in the same way as on any other school excursion, including in respect of the ratio of pupils to school teachers.

S3 and S4 pupils

4.17 The key means by which we plan to deliver our Partnership Agreement to "enable 14-16 year olds to develop vocational skills and improve their employment prospects by allowing them to undertake courses in further education colleges as part of the school-based curriculum" is through the development of skills-for-work courses leading to nationally recognised qualifications for pupils in S3 and S4 in vocational subjects as another option choice, for example as an alternative to one or more Standard Grades. They would be also available at Access and Higher levels. The Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) and the Executive are working closely to develop courses. These courses would be within the framework of new National Qualifications at Scottish Credit and Qualification Framework levels 2-6 and would have the same SCQF credit value as a National Course ³¹.

4.18 These courses will be integral to the school curriculum. They will not stand alone. Nor will they be an add-on. It may be possible for some schools to provide such courses, but for many we envisage that they will be delivered in partnership with further education colleges. We recognise that the success of these qualifications will depend on the quality of the progression routes they present to pupils, the extent to which the qualifications are respected in the labour market and the learning community, and how they improve job prospects and career development. The SQA will develop the qualifications, with quality experiences at their core, in close partnership with the education and training community, including employers' organisations. They will be piloted during the academic years 2005/06 and 2006/07, with a view to rolling them out nationally from 2007/08.

4.19 The availability of such courses to S3 pupils and above will provide a wider range of activities that will constitute a balanced education.

4.20 During phase II of the review the SQA and Executive will also work closely with Learning and Teaching Scotland, the Scottish Further Education Unit and the Colleges Open Learning Exchange Group in respect of the development of new course materials.

4.21 At this stage, we are minded to recommend that S3 and S4 pupils should be generally taught in discrete classes in further education colleges. Where that is not the case, we suggest measures are put in place to ensure that S3/S4 pupils are not left in a class of adults without the supervision of a college staff member who holds an Enhanced Disclosure from Disclosure Scotland. We know that there are many cases where interaction between S3/S4 pupils with adult learners is beneficial to the pupils concerned. However, there are pupil welfare issues that need to be considered.

4.22 Also, in providing courses for school pupils, schools, pupils and parents/carers need to be satisfied that course provision will not be withdrawn before pupils complete the course without satisfactory alternative arrangements in place. This is especially important for courses that last two years. We are sure that colleges and awarding bodies will give such assurances.

4.23 The SQA initially developed Scottish Progression Awards (SPAs) to meet an immediate need from schools for a vocational qualification. While SPAs will continue to be a qualifications option, they will be more suited to adult learners than school pupils.

S5 and S6 pupils

4.24 It has been suggested to us that school/college collaborative activity need not cover pupils over school age because these pupils can choose to leave school and apply for enrolment in a further education college. However, if a school pupil over school age chooses to stay on at school and still wishes to undertake a part-time college course, then we consider that to be a matter for the pupil. Student-centred learning demands that the wishes of that pupil should be accommodated as far as possible by the school (though like any other potential student it is a matter for the further education college concerned whether to enrol the pupil). For the sake of clarity, we should explain that it seems wholly reasonable to us for pupils over school age to be taught alongside other adult learners.

'Winter Leavers'

4.25 Provision for school pupils who have not reached statutory leaving age in time to leave school at the end of S4 has been offered by further education colleges since the raising of the school leaving age, and it is expected that opportunities for 'winter leavers' to pursue the options most suitable to them will increase as closer partnerships between schools and colleges develop. We will consider the position of 'winter leavers' further during phase II of the review.

Pupils with Special Circumstances

4.26 As school/college collaboration is predicated on the identified needs of the individual pupil, there may be special circumstances where it is considered to be in the educational interest of a pupil below S5 to attend a further education college full-time. There are issues here to be considered, not least of which is that attendance for a college full-time programme does not match a full five-day school week. This is a matter which our working group on 'best practice' will discuss with a view to preparing model national criteria for considering full-time college attendance for such pupils.

Pupils with Additional Needs

4.27 We suggest that the needs of pupils with additional needs are considered on a case-by-case basis by schools and further education colleges.

4.28 The Executive will publish early next year Partnership Matters: A Guide to Local Authorities, Health Boards and Voluntary Organisations on Supporting Students with Additional Needs in Further Education.
The guidance aims to provide greater clarity on the roles and responsibilities of all agencies that support students with additional needs studying in further education. It will, among other things, outline the role of Skill Scotland: National Bureau for Students with Disabilities and Lead Scotland. Further education colleges, local authorities and health boards have statutory responsibilities while other organisations such as the voluntary sector provide support outwith a statutory basis.

4.29 Students experience barriers in accessing and participating in learning for many reasons and may therefore require additional support. In some cases, the needs of students cannot be met by the further education college alone. In such cases, the college will liaise with local authorities and health boards about adjustments involving the provision of personal or health care, for example, intensive support, therapy or assistance with medication. The learner must always be at the centre of these discussions to ensure that their individual needs are taken into account.

4.30 There will be a strong emphasis on partnership working to ensure the most effective and appropriate learning opportunities and support are offered to students. The guidance will encourage local partnership agreements to be developed between further education colleges, local authorities and health boards to ensure there is ongoing discussion about the provision of support, commitment to the provision of that support and a clear understanding of roles and responsibilities of each partner.

4.31 The guidance will be updated regularly to take account of policy developments. A section on support for school pupils with additional needs undertaking school/college collaborative activities will be added before the completion of the school/college review.

4.32 The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 ³² will give new focus on supporting all children and young people who may need additional support, for whatever reason, to benefit from school education. It makes provision for improving transition from school to post-school provision with a view to ensuring that there is a continuum of support for these young people. There will be a new duty on appropriate agencies, to assist education authorities with the preparation, planning and support for transitions from school for those pupils with additional support needs who would benefit from this extra help. This will include early provision of information about support available in college to meet the needs of potential students.The Executive is consulting ³³ on whether further education colleges should be considered as appropriate agencies for the purposes of the Act. A Code of Practice, which will provide guidance on how agencies should exercise their functions under the Act, will be published by Scottish Ministers prior to the commencement of the Act in autumn 2005. The Code will be published by Scottish Ministers prior to commencement of the Act in autumn 2005.

4.33 Section 12(3) of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 ³⁴ places an obligation on incorporated further education colleges to "have regard to the requirements of persons over school age who have learning difficulties." We intend to amend this provision so that it similarly applies to school age pupils so that incorporated further education colleges are required to have regard to their needs.

Other Schools and Pupils

4.34 During phase II of the review, we will consider further how further education colleges can help deliver appropriate provision for independent schools, specialist schools and home-educated pupils.

Articulation to Further Education Courses and Other Programmes

4.35 There should be clear articulation of progression opportunities from school/college collaborative activity. Further education colleges already deal flexibly with prior learning. It is clearly important that pupils do not have to tread water in courses they undertake after school because they covered those units while at school. We were asked to ensure that school/college collaborative courses provide pupils with articulation to, and credit for, full-time programmes where possible. This is something that will be built into the development of the new vocational qualifications. This presents the opportunity for pupils to either:

accelerate their programme of full-time study (i.e. the course could be shorter to reflect the work already undertaken);
study part-time (where previously full-time study would have been the norm); or
study further units.

4.36 The SQA will be taking forward discussions to ensure that there will also be clear articulation to Skillseekers and Modern Apprenticeships programmes.

Models of Delivery

4.37 We have no preferred model for the delivery of school/college collaboration (or for the delivery of vocational education more generally for that matter). However, we are clear that schools and further education colleges should work in partnership - not in competition.

4.38 In our response to Determined to Succeed we highlighted the value of work-based vocational learning opportunities so that pupils can apply their learning, and we remained convinced of their important contribution. As part of Determined to Succeed, pupils aged 14+ must have the opportunity to participate in work-based vocational learning with a relevant qualification. This requires a partnership approach between schools, businesses and further education colleges to ensure that both practical on-the-job learning is available in the work-place or in a realistic work environment, e.g. within college; and that the required underpinning knowledge is delivered to support competence development. While our aim is for pupils to do on-the-job learning in the work place, we recognise that it will be considerable time before employer commitment to Determined to Succeed is at a level to manage pupil capacity. In the interim, and indeed where there is a valid reason to use college provision in the long term, further education colleges are well equipped to deliver learning in appropriate simulated environments. Regardless of where work-based vocational placements take place there is a continuing role for colleges to provide underpinning knowledge that supports skills development. It is important that further education colleges continue to work with the business community to ensure that learning content and its application are relevant to employer needs.

4.39 In our Partnership Agreement we sign-posted that 14-16 year old pupils should also be allowed to undertake college courses to develop vocational skills. It is a matter for schools and education authorities whether they wish to invest funding available to them through Determined to Succeed or other sources to build vocational education facilities in schools. They may also be able to provide the necessary teaching staff to teach some vocational subjects. Education authorities and schools are free to do this. However, we would be concerned if this led to unnecessary duplication of facilities. Undefined roles risk such duplication and the inefficient use of resources. Community Planning Partnerships provide the local mechanism for co-ordinating the work of education authorities and further education colleges to ensure that these risks are minimised.

4.40 Decisions on the best model of delivery in any given circumstance should be guided by the interests of pupils and adult students and in achieving best value. This may mean that school pupils go through college doors. It may also mean that it is more effective and efficient for further education courses to be delivered by college staff in schools (though we recognise that some of the benefits to pupils derived from being taught in the college environment would be lost. One of the findings of the research the Executive recently commissioned into the attitudes of school pupils to further education study was that for many learning in college was itself the best thing about the experience ³⁵). For some courses, a mix of both may be possible: for example, delivering the theory in school with the practical aspects delivered in college. Education authorities, schools and colleges may also wish to consider joint-funding of facilities in schools or in colleges. Further education colleges may also wish to consider the possibility of setting up outreach centres in schools.

4.41 One more lateral approach to collaborative working of which we are aware involves Banff & Buchan College, which had noticed a steady increase in demand for collaborative activity from local schools. The reason for the demand was the lack of teaching staff in schools to teach technology courses. The local solution to this problem was not to provide college staff to teach the school pupils, but instead to educate students to become teachers of this subject. This has happened, and a teacher is now in post.

4.42 Glasgow City Council and John Wheatley College have also advised us that there have been cases of lecturers partially funded by further education colleges and schools.

4.43 Our suggestions are not meant to be an exhaustive list, but are indicative of the different sorts of partnership working that we would like to see explored locally.

Geographical Inaccessibility

4.44 Although the network of Scotland's further education colleges is extensive - 90% of the Scottish population live within 30 minutes of a college and 40% live within two miles of their local college ³⁶ - we acknowledge that for some schools and colleges collaboration will be challenging because of geographical inaccessibility. This is both a rural and an urban problem. We will ensure an equitable national framework for all Scotland's pupils with decision-making at a local level on the most appropriate means of delivery.

4.45 Further models of delivery may need to be considered, principally in respect of the use of new technologies to provide distance-learning, including open and flexible learning and videoconferencing. There may be scope too for residential block release from school to college. Another possibility is a travelling college workshop for more remote schools. Dumfries and Galloway College, for example, employs mobile facilities to provide demonstrations in areas such as catering and hairdressing.

4.46 Learning centres are also a valuable resource which have made great strides in supporting learners especially where there is no local further education facilities. At present the mission of the network of learndirect scotland centres relates to students over 16. School/college collaboration in rural areas through the use of learning centres has the potential to provide a solid core of activity that may help support sustainable learning communities in such areas. We will therefore discuss with learndirect scotland the extent to which its network in rural areas can help facilitate such collaboration.

Performance Statistics

4.47 We recognise that both schools and further education colleges play a role in helping the pupil achieve awards and that outcomes should therefore be included in each sectors' performance statistics. However, to achieve this approach, further information is required on which pupils are participating in collaborative arrangements and the qualifications that they attain. We will work during phase II of the review to explore the possibility of linking data from both schools and colleges in order to identify where this activity is taking place and the resulting outcomes. Pilot work undertaken so far indicates that linking should be possible, although this work is at a very early stage in its development.

4.48 As there are already performance indicators for schools and for further education colleges, we do not consider it necessary to develop new quantitative indicators specifically for school/college collaborative activities. It would be sufficient to consider separately the contribution which such activities make to existing indicators. In addition school/college collaboration will impact on the performance indicators identified in the Executive's lifelong learning strategy, including reducing the proportion of 16-19 year olds not in education, employment or training (NEET). There would, however, remain a need to introduce qualitative measures of success, which will be monitored via returns from questionnaires and/or case studies. These will focus on issues such as the percentage of pupils who:

found the course worthwhile;
intend to go on to further study;
thought it would enhance their employment options; and
thought it prepared them for the world of work.

4.49 In addition, the Scottish Further Education Funding Council's Survey of Student Experience will allow the Funding Council in future to present separately the views of school pupils.

4.50 We also intend to use the Scottish School Leavers Survey to monitor the progression of pupils who have completed school/college collaborative courses leading to a recognised qualification.

Evaluating School/College Collaboration

4.51 We intend to implement our joint strategy for schools and further education colleges from academic year 2005/06 onwards. In 2007/08 we will evaluate its effectiveness by obtaining answers to the following:

what were the benefits of allowing individuals to undertake college courses?
which groups of individuals benefited particularly, i.e. the ones who most needed this intervention? Was this as envisaged?
how did the benefits compare to the cost of intervention? and
were the resources most effectively targeted in order to achieve maximum net benefits for the investment?

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