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SECTION 11
Delivery in Rural Areas
11.1 Although the network of Scotland's
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
31 - we acknowledge that for
some schools and colleges partnership will be challenging.
In this section we outline measures mentioned
elsewhere in this strategy and the guide specifically to
address the delivery of school/college partnership in rural
areas.
11.2 School/college partnership 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.
[Strategy/5.16]
11.3 It is likely that in autumn 2005 the
new corporate plan for learndirect scotland will
acknowledge the role that learndirect scotland and
learndirect scotland branded learning centres can
play in the engagement between schools and colleges. This
should allow learning centres to provide support for S3
pupils and above. Learning centres' own distinct ethos -
which are neither schools nor colleges (though some are
physically located within schools and colleges) - will be
maintained as this is crucial to their success.
[Strategy/5.17]
11.4 The activity of pupils undertaking
college activity will be funded by
SFEFC in the same way as other activity
including fee waiver and usual funding supplements for
pupils in rural or deprived areas. The funding methodology
will also take account of those pupils requiring extended
learning support. [Strategy/6.6]
11.5 Transport arrangements can be
challenging, especially for pupils in geographically
inaccessible areas and for pupils who cannot access public
transport because of physical or mobility impairments. The
innovation and pragmatism of existing local arrangements
will be developed further by education authorities and
schools. Even with this, transport arrangements have the
potential to frustrate partnership. We will grasp the
opportunity which the two years of piloting the skills for
work courses presents to establish clearly the evidence of
the pattern and resource implications of transport
arrangements (and other direct costs borne by the local
authority and school) to support the growth in the full
range of school/college partnership activities, including
growth as a result in the delivery of skills for work
courses. This will help inform consideration for future
Spending Reviews. Funding currently available to local
authorities and schools through
Determined to Succeed can be used to
support vocational partnerships, including associated
transport arrangements. [Strategy/6.10]
11.6 In the meantime, as a temporary
measure pending the outcome of that review, we have asked
GTCS to confirm by summer 2005 that
college staff registered with the
GTCS (or with conditional registration)
who have or are working towards a teaching qualification in
further education (
TQ(
FE)) within an appropriate timeframe,
will be able to teach pupils in S3 and above in schools.
College staff without such registration will be able to
teach pupils in schools if a teacher is present in the
class. [Strategy/10.6]
11.7 Colleges have well developed
work-based curriculum programmes and have established a
comprehensive network in the private, public and voluntary
sectors. This could be utilised to help deliver
school/college partnership activity. [Guide/3.21]
11.8 Local authorities, schools and
colleges may also wish to consider joint-funding of
facilities in schools or in colleges. Colleges may also
wish to consider the possibility of setting up outreach
centres in schools. [Guide/3.22]
11.9 In some areas consortia of schools
could work together with a range of colleges, including
colleges at a distance through online courses and outreach
delivery and accreditation arrangements. [Guide 3.23]
11.10 One more lateral approach to
partnership working of which we are aware involves Banff
& Buchan College, which had noticed a steady increase
in demand for college 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 who
subsequently went to university to become teachers of this
subject. This has happened, and a teacher is now in post.
[Guide 3.24]
11.11 Further modes 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. 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. [Guide/3.28]
11.12 As part of the Scottish Schools
Digital Network project, the Scottish Executive has
provided a national broadband interconnect linking all the
32 education authorities and national bodies such as the
SQA and Learning and Teaching Scotland.
More than 70% of Scottish secondary schools have a
broadband connection of 2Mbps or better. This means that
there is potential for accessing
FE college online learning environments
from within secondary schools. However, achieving this in
practice will depend on the policies of the colleges and
the technical configuration of both college and local
authority networks. [Guide/3.29]
11.13 We intend that school/college
partnerships should link with wider partnerships to ensure
that pupils' needs are met in an effective, integrated way.
Work-based vocational learning is an integral part of our
national strategy for enterprise in education,
Determined to Succeed. The Scottish
Executive Enterprise, Transport and Lifelong Learning
Department is reviewing how public and private training
providers can extend their partnerships to include the
business community in order to ensure quality experiences
for pupils with appropriate pupil welfare and support.
In
Working and Learning Together to Build Stronger
Communities the Scottish Executive set out how
local Community Learning and Development Partnerships
(which generally include local schools and colleges) should
take a strategic approach to the provision of formal and
informal community-based learning opportunities.
[Strategy/2.16/17]
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