3A: How to achieve success in meeting the needs and interests of learners

Family learning is well placed to reach adults who have not previously been engaged in learning. The motivation to learn with their child or for their child is very strong. In order to make the most of this motivation, provision needs to be accessible, relevant, responsive and to have a range of well-planned programmes.

Access

For adults attending family learning programmes, having the provision in an accessible local venue is of paramount importance. For many, this will be the local school that their child attends. Alternatively, the programmes might be held in a children’s centre, a community centre or in another local public building such as a library. Some providers meet the challenge of finding a suitable site by using a learning bus, which can move to different locations. This can be for family learning alone or may be a shared resource with a basic skills or adult and community learning provider. A mobile resource can be particularly useful in rural areas. Remember though to consider the on-going running costs of such a resource as well as the capital expenditure.

Although schools will be the usual location, look for other venues as well. The DfES Green Paper Every Child Matters states that 25 per cent of adults surveyed said they would not go to a school for services. You should also consider the issues discussed under CIF Question 5 on achieving a balance between locally accessible venues and setting minimum standards of accommodation for adults.

The times of programmes also need to suit the learners. For some this will be during the school day but for others who are in employment, twilight or weekend sessions will be preferable. For some, residential courses can provide opportunities for families to learn together. Good providers have a range of provision at different sites and at various times.

Range

A good provider has a wide range of types of provision. This might include one-off tasters, workshops, whole-day family events, short programmes (30-49 hours) and drop-in tutorials as well as intensive programmes (usually 72-96 hours), family literacy, language and numeracy courses (as outlined in LSC guidance). Courses might incorporate arts, craft, sport, foreign languages, ICT, personal development, literacy, language and numeracy, key skills, volunteering in school and specific courses for groups such as foster carers. The age range can run from families with babies and pre-school children, and children at Key Stages 1 and 2 through to secondary-age children at Key Stage 3. Family literacy, language and numeracy provision needs to be part of this rich tapestry.

Some learners will move from one type of provision to another, others may just sample one event. All are equally important. The adult who attends a one-day family event may take up a different learning opportunity within family learning or with another provider some time later.

Wider family learning is valuable in its own right, giving opportunities for intergenerational learning. Family learning is a professional technique that consciously builds on what we know about how people learn together in intergenerational groups or families. Ofsted (2000) has defined family learning as ‘planned activity, in which adults and children come together to work and learn together’. This definition was refined by one family learning network to be activities for families that are ‘planned, purposeful and progressive’. Even fun family days can include some elements of literacy, language and numeracy.

Literacy, language and numeracy development needs to be an integral part of family learning, not a ‘stand-alone’ component. Within the spectrum of provision there need to be opportunities for adults to gain accreditation for their skills. This might be OCN accreditation for a short course or a national qualification in literacy, numeracy or ESOL.

Coherence and planning

Increased funding, together with the recognition by schools and other agencies of the value of family learning, have led to the development of ad hoc provision. Providers have responded to requests and the opportunities provided by the LSC, regeneration budget or early years funding. The increased number of learning opportunities needs to be planned to ensure range, coherence and progression.

A good provider plans the family learning curriculum. Take stock of what is currently on offer. Look at the types of courses in your programme.

Consider where they are located and if there is an appropriate geographical spread. This does not necessarily mean running a programme in every district. Some provision will be specifically targeted at disadvantaged areas. Consider whether there are opportunities for accreditation of learning and whether a learner can progress within and beyond family learning. You will need to balance progression opportunities with the need for learners to study close to home.

Consider also what other providers are offering. There may be opportunities for jointly developing new provision to meet identified gaps in the curriculum. You may have to consider switching some resources if you are not covering all the areas you need to. On the other hand, you may feel that with limited resources it is better to concentrate on a particular aspect where your service has expertise and agree that another provider will cover other aspects of family learning.

Ensure that the course details are clear so that a learner knows exactly what they are signing up for. It is also important to ensure that all learners on family literacy, language and numeracy programmes have been assessed as having literacy, language or numeracy needs. Once the course is running, ensure that the programme meets the individual and group learning needs. Learning outcomes, achievements and evaluation of the programme should be documented and analysed to support further programme and curriculum planning.

Socially inclusive programmes

The curriculum analysis may indicate that particular groups of learners are under-represented in programmes. There also may be low take-up of family learning in some disadvantaged neighbourhoods. Good providers develop strategies to ensure that programmes are socially inclusive and that there is equality of access and opportunities for all learners.

In particular, there may be a low take-up by minority ethnic families despite there being a significant number within the local population. Working with other community groups, putting provision in venues that are familiar and delivering taster programmes are all good ways of encouraging participation by under-represented groups. As well as offering family language courses, provision of bilingual support or working through topics of cultural interest can break down barriers. Some providers have had significant success with innovative programmes that are provided in partnership with voluntary and community groups.

Male learners are generally under-represented on family learning programmes. The timing of programmes during the day prevents many fathers and male carers from attending. Provision in the evening and at weekends attracts more male learners. Programmes that specifically target men are proving successful. Popular examples include ‘Dads and Lads’ programmes on robotics, ICT courses and Literacy Through Football. The gender and ethnicity of development workers can also make a difference. One provider employed a male neighbourhood worker specifically to bring men into family learning and support their work. Some providers have found that employing a male teacher has encouraged more male parents and carers to join programmes. Another recruited a development worker because she was from the same minority ethnic group and neighbourhood as the learners.

There is some targeting of parents with children with special educational needs, often in conjunction with a local parental partnership scheme. A group that appears to be under-represented nationally is that of parents who have physical and/or sensory impairments. As part of the Skills for Families project some work was developed with parents with learning difficulties and disabilities.

Family learning is increasingly seen as a tool in social and economic regeneration, especially since low levels of literacy, language and numeracy correlate with low income. Some funding is specifically targeted at areas of deprivation. Increased confidence and improved skills can lead to adults becoming more involved in their communities, in paid or voluntary capacities or in order to gain employment.

It has also been demonstrated that when parents become more involved in their children’s education, the children’s achievement rate improves. For that reason, family literacy and numeracy courses are usually targeted at schools where children’s attainment is low or lower than that would be expected. Good providers work with the school improvement service to plan where family literacy, language and numeracy courses would best be provided. Where this works well, an ethos of professional trust exists between providers and the school improvement service, and they are able to share sensitive information about schools at risk. Such joint work means that the family learning service is closely involved in post-inspection action-planning. Family learning can also play an important role in extended schools and children’s centres.

Community

Family learning programmes can have a long-term impact on communities. Some local authorities have seen family learning together with community learning as a way to engage whole communities in lifelong learning. In areas where there is second or third generation unemployment due to declining industry, learning may not be seen as relevant. Engaging adults through their children is a powerful motivator. Consider ways of reaching out to those who are not accessing provision. Outreach workers, community development workers, community learning advocates, family learning champions and ‘barefoot’ workers are all approaches that some organisations have adopted to make contact with learners and then to encourage them to join a family learning programme.

Of course, your resources may not allow the employment of specific family learning outreach workers. In that case, consider whether there are other agencies or other parts of your organisation that have outreach workers that you could work with in partnership.

The community can also be a source of enrichment for learning or the context of learning. Recall the example given under CIF Question 2 of adults and children orienteering together as a precursor to a classroom numeracy session on direction. Another example is the family treasure hunt in subsection 3B that used a town’s geography and history as well as local resources such as the library, the local museum and a heritage centre to teach numeracy and literacy. One course made a garden in a school as the context for family literacy and numeracy. As well as the completed garden, there were lasting spin-offs for the school – one learner became so enthused that she enrolled on an NVQ Horticulture course.

Raising awareness

The promotion and marketing of family learning need a clear strategy and collaboration in an area by all providers. Recruitment campaigns can be carried out with schools and community groups. New courses can be piloted to encourage different groups of learners. Family learning fun days can be widely publicised for maximum participation.

Many providers have made excellent use of family learning week to promote and market family learning. One family learning network mounted a ‘showcase’ day in order to engage with parents and children, but also to allow different providers to see what each was able to provide locally. It is acknowledged that word of mouth is the best form of publicity. Some organisations train local people to be learning advocates or learning champions in their own neighbourhoods to encourage adults to return to learning.

The Step into Learning programme has trained significant numbers of staff in nurseries and children’s centres who have identified parents with literacy, language and numeracy needs and sign-posted them into family literacy, language and numeracy provision. Although the focus of this Guide is on family literacy, language and numeracy, placing these programmes within a coherent curriculum of wider family learning is the best way to attract new learners.