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APPENDIX B: Topic Guide
Perceptions of Learners and Potential Learners
Draft Topic Guide
The following question areas have been developed to provide a framework for discussion. All topic areas of relevance should be covered at some point in the discussion but should be addressed in an order that facilitates easy and relaxed conversation. Be sure to allow opportunities for respondents to raise new or different issues that they consider significant to the core subjects
Background
- Introduce survey and reassure respondents of confidentiality etc
- Details of any education currently being undertaken and/ or likely to be undertaken in next 2 years, together with reasons for undertaking; what qualifications are already held, length of time studying etc;
- (Spontaneous and prompted) Factors taken into account when choosing any form of education (probing funding, delivery of course, course content, encouragement of employer, availability of crèche/ other facilities, desire to retrain, need to develop skills etc)
General Information Sources
- What is the chronology of applying for a course (probing on course selection, funding, obtaining information, type of information required, channels used to obtain information etc);
- Level of understanding of any funding information made available/ sought (probing on importance of different sources of funding information - friends/ advisers/ website(s)/ publications etc) and channels used to access information (saw on TV/ friend told me etc);
- (Spontaneous) Awareness of sources of information, advice and guidance in relation to funding needs (e.g. publications, career advisor);
- (For each source used), how did they hear of it; which channel was used to source it - directly/ indirectly (probing on Scottish Executive, local authority, local school, adult/ community education centre, careers advisor, job centre, colleague, friend, TV, internet etc);
- Which sources have been used/ will be used to access information, advice and guidance for any recent education/ future education funding needs? Which are most / least important and why;
- Level of understanding of funding arrangements (set up, comprehension etc); what gaps, if any, exist in information provided; was information provided relevant to Scotland (ie. was information downloaded relevant for English courses; was this understood etc)
- How do learners/ potential learners access each source and channel of information, advice and guidance and how easy is each to access; what access issues, if any, exist in relation to obtaining information on IAG for funding and how can these be overcome;
- What role do others play in IAG (probing on friends, peers, banks, education providers, local authorities) and what is their relative level of importance, together with reasons;
- What do learners/ potential learners think of the information, advice and guidance that is currently available in relation their possible funding needs? (helpfulness, clarity, user friendly, providing the required level of information, well presented, good quality, consistency etc);
Specific IAG sources
- (Spontaneous) Awareness of each of Funding for Learners publications/ learners website; which have ever been used and why;
(RESPONDENTS WILL BE SHOWN FUNDING FOR LEARNERS PUBLICATIONS/ SCREEN SHOTS OF THE WEBSITE AS RELEVANT)
- (Prompted) Awareness of Funding for Learners publications/ learners website
- (Spontaneous and prompted) Perceptions of ease of access to each form of IAG
- Ease of use for each
- What do learners/ potential learners think of the information, advice and guidance that is currently available? (helpfulness, clarity, user friendly, providing the required level of information, well presented, good quality, consistency etc);
- How does this information compare with any other they have accessed on funding, together with reasons;
- (Learners) Have perceptions of IAG changed over the time they have been "learning" and how has IAG affected the learning experience;
Barriers to use
- What are the barriers to accessing information, advice and guidance (lack of awareness of what is available, difficulty in accessing IAG, difficulty in understanding IAG, tone of publication/ website etc/ helpfulness of staff who they may seek advice from/ lack of helplines providing advice)?
- How can these barriers be overcome (provision of helplines providing advice); what are preferences for changes to current provision and why.
The Future
- How could the Scottish Executive ensure that individuals have access to each of the relevant publications?
- What other IAG should be provided above what is provided currently in order to benefit learners and potential learners with their funding queries/ needs?
Any other comments
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