Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills

How effective are teaching, training and learning?

2A:How to achieve success in teaching, training and learning

Principles of teaching

The best teachers often seem to know what to do, how to inspire learners and achieve good results, almost by instinct. Sound instincts however, are usually developed by those who plan effectively, who are well-trained and knowledgeable and confident in their fields. A teacher in the voluntary and community sector may be working in a more traditional setting in a learning centre, they may be working in a learner’s home or in the middle of a housing estate or on an environmental project in a rural area. Wherever they are working, they need the flexibility, interpersonal skills and appreciation of the way in which learners develop literacy, numeracy and language learning skills that can help to make a difference. The best teachers understand the relationship between what they teach, how they teach it, and how and why the learner learns.

What a teacher needs to know

A good literacy, numeracy or language teacher requires a repertoire of skills and knowledge, reinforced by continuous professional development. All teachers and learner supporters should be qualified to nationally recognised standards (details can be found at the Read Write Plus website. An effective teacher will be comfortable using the core curricula documents, and understands their use as a tool to enrich learning. He or she should understand how to use Access for All guidance in responding to the disparate needs of individuals. He or she should have a grasp of how learning styles and preferences may affect learning and learners’ performance.

A literacy or language teacher should understand the complexities and subtleties of the English language and how and why some people may find it difficult to use its forms and structures. Numeracy teachers should understand numerical and spatial concepts and operations. All teachers should also have some understanding of how learners develop language and number skills over time, and the factors that influence the learning process. They should know how to plan effectively for courses, sessions and individuals, and how to evaluate learning and their own performance.

What a teacher needs to be able to do

A good teacher should be able to meet the needs and interests of individuals, while at the same time meeting those of the whole group. He or she should use a range of activities, teaching methods and learning resources. He or she should understand how to respond to individual needs, learning styles and interests and how to motivate and inspire learners.

Learning is a complex process and learners bring a wealth of personal experience and knowledge to the learning environment. Good teaching builds on the rich resources that learners themselves provide, both to themselves and others. Any course is short in relation to the learning that takes place over a lifetime. The job of a teacher is to act as a catalyst in helping the learner to move further along the path of their learning journey. Some very short programmes afford little opportunity to do more than assist learners in developing one or two new skills. They can however, encourage learners to develop an eagerness to learn, together with sound ‘learning habits’ and practices that will stand them in good stead in other aspects of their lives. Short courses can inspire learners to move on, to other forms of education, voluntary or paid work or to more active participation in community life.

Learning does not take place in a vacuum. The voluntary and community sector offers a wide variety of programmes tailored to the needs and interests of individuals and communities. Teachers should know how to support learners in developing their literacy, numeracy and language skills whilst working towards learning goals in other subjects. They should know how to illustrate discussions, activities and materials with examples taken from other contexts, where those contexts are meaningful and significant for the learner.

One example of this is Kirti, a learner who was attending an ESOL class in a community centre in East London. Kirti was interested in gardening, and wanted to grow herbs and vegetables found more commonly in India. She expressed an interest in learning gardening terms and in reading instructions on seed packets. She also wanted to discuss with others her plan for a garden or allotment. The teacher arranged for her to visit the local allotments, and helped Kirti prepare an annotated plan, which she then presented to the rest of the group.

Teachers should be able to manage complex group interactions. They should plan for group discussions, and understand the role of questioning. All learners should be encouraged to participate in discussions, as far as possible, including the more reluctant and least articulate learners. A good teacher asks questions that are relative to the ability and understanding of the learner, and understands the purpose of those questions.

Equally, the teacher should be able to encourage learners to respond to each other, and to take the discussion in unforeseen directions, while working towards achieving the overall learning outcomes for the session.

Much teaching in the voluntary and community sector takes place on a one-to-one basis or in smaller groups than is usual in colleges. Learners here may benefit from a considerable amount of individual attention. They should also have the opportunity to enrich their learning through discussion and use of different media, such as information and communications technology (ICT). Learners should be encouraged to develop independent study skills, as far as possible.

Where teaching groups, teachers should pay attention to the individual needs of learners while working towards group learning objectives. In other words, they should be able to differentiate activities according to the disparate levels, needs and interests of learners. For example, a group working on writing a community newsletter may include those who are tasked with writing longer articles and editorials, those who write shorter pieces or announcements, and those who provide one or two sentences or captions to accompany photographs. A learner whose writing skills are mainly at Level 2 might provide peer support to someone with skills at Entry Level 2.

Alternatively, small groups of learners at similar levels might work on an appropriate task together. Some learners may benefit from support from a trained adult learner supporter.

Learners and teacher alongside computers

Learners also may respond well to materials and activities that accommodate the way in which they learn, or their preferred learning styles. Someone who is a predominantly visual learner for example may find it easier to follow instructions for self-assembly furniture in diagrammatic form, whilst an auditory learner may prefer to follow oral instructions. A kinaesthetic learner on the other hand, who prefers to learn by doing, may find it easier to experiment with the actual parts for assembly.

Session planning

Good learning sessions have distinct beginnings, middles and ends. They will be set at a pace that is sufficiently challenging, but that leaves no learner struggling to keep up. Learners should be clear about what they are learning and why, and how their needs are being met within the group.

Session plans should also:

contain SMART targets and achievable learning outcomes
be mapped to the core curricula
accommodate needs of individuals and the group
be informed by initial and formative assessment
show the activities that teachers, learners and learner supporters (if appropriate) should complete in order to achieve the learning outcomes
include the materials and resources that learners will need
be evaluated.

An effective teacher plans sessions thoroughly, in the knowledge that learners are not empty vessels waiting to be filled: they bring their own ideas, values and attitudes to the session. Sometimes their learning will be incidental, and not directly attributable to the planning process. The skill lies in knowing when to deviate from the plan, either so that learners can achieve unforeseen outcomes or so that they can achieve those outlined in the plan through different means.

The example of a plan below for a session on managing a budget sets out timings, activities, methods and required resources. This session plan could be improved by adding the planned learning outcomes for the group, and by linking activities to the core curricula where possible. Use the prompts on the activity sheet on session planning to evaluate your own session plans.

SAMPLE SESSION PLAN

Download a sample session plan PDF (665Kb)

ACTIVITY SHEET FOR TEACHERS AND MANAGERS ON SESSION PLANNING

View activity sheet for teachers and managers on session planning

Marking and feedback

Learners’ work should be marked promptly, and should contain sufficiently detailed and clear explanations and guidance. Marking practice should also conform to the standards stipulated by awarding bodies. Learners should receive both verbal and written feedback, and should be encouraged to identify, and learn from, their errors. In a numeracy session, for example, it is good practice to ask learners to work out why they have made mistakes rather than relying on the teacher to show them. In fact, learning how to analyse and deal with errors is an essential part of the learning process.

Learner supporters

Adult learner supporters, trained to Level 2 (of the national framework of specifications and qualifications for teachers), can be a valuable resource for teachers and learners. They can act as ‘ sign posters’, identifying people with weak literacy, numeracy or language skills, advising them about appropriate classes and supporting them in taking the first steps in joining a Skills for Life course. They can act as mentors and be pivotal in persuading those who are reluctant learners to take up learning opportunities. They can also support learners within a taught session under the guidance of a teacher qualified to Level 4 of the subject specifications in literacy, numeracy or ESOL. They may be able to support learners outside the confines of a formal learning session, again where their work is supervised by a qualified Skills for Life teacher.

Support for learners

Good teachers establish sound relationships with learners that are founded on mutual respect. They know when to praise, encourage and reassure learners, and understand how to establish a rapport with people from very different backgrounds and cultures. Where learners are particularly vulnerable, lacking in confidence or hard to engage, it may be necessary to earn their trust over a period of time, sometimes before any actual teaching or learning takes place. The voluntary and community sector may be able to offer learning venues in less formal settings than are found elsewhere. This relative lack of formality may be echoed by the kind of relationships that develop between teachers and learners.

There may be occasions when a teacher has to exercise considerable skill in managing conflict or hostility, for example when teaching learners taking opposing sides in armed conflicts, from groups who have traditions of antagonism towards other cultures or religions, or who have behavioural problems exacerbated by substance misuse.

Teachers should respect all learners, and value and celebrate diversity through their actions, the support they give to learners and the materials they provide. Learners learn best when they feel adequately supported and where their individual needs, interests and learning styles are accommodated. They should be clear about the literacy, numeracy and language targets that they are working towards, even if these are not the primary driving force of their engagement with learning. They should be involved in negotiating their ILPs and understand their responsibility in completing records of their work and progress. They should feel secure and safe in their physical and social environment, and feel able to ask questions to aid their understanding, or to clarify a task. They should feel that they can work at their own pace, whilst also being sufficiently challenged.

Self-evaluation

The best practitioners are self-critical, and they reflect on and seek to improve their practice. They are supported by managers in developing these skills. There are many ways of doing this, some of which can be built into the organisation’s quality assurance systems, appraisal and staff development programmes.

The sample developed by RNID below is a self-audit for teachers to evaluate and measure their own practice and performance. Teachers are encouraged to complete these and reflect on the results of the exercise. Try your own self-audit, using the self-audit activity sheet provided as a prompt.

SAMPLE SELF-AUDIT FOR TEACHERS

Download a sample self-audit for teachers PDF (290Kb)

ACTIVITY SHEET FOR TEACHERS AND MANAGERS ON AUDIT

View activity sheet for teachers and managers on audit

Assessing and monitoring learners’ progress

Learners’ progress is affected by many factors, not the least of which are their starting points, their level of motivation and the intensity and duration of their learning programme. The challenge for the teacher is in establishing their starting point with some degree of accuracy and using the information to guide the development of literacy, numeracy and language targets within an individual learning plan (ILP).

Successful teachers find ways of regularly assessing learners and recording their progress. They involve learners in the process and ensure that learners understand the purpose of assessment and the implications for their learning programme. Many learners in the voluntary and community sector are hesitant about coming back to a learning environment. The most supportive and effective organisations and groups ensure that learners feel as comfortable and secure as possible, especially in the early stages.

Information provided by assessment is vital for strategic planning and programme management purposes. Even more important than this, however, is the impact that assessment has on the learner and the teaching and learning process. Without sound assessment, it is unlikely that it will be possible to gauge what learners have both learned and achieved.

The assessment process is an important component of the new Skills for Life learning infrastructure. Effective and appropriate assessment:

identifies strengths and needs
allows accurate target-setting
leads to effective teaching and learning
includes self-assessment
enables progress to be measured
involves the learner from the start.

Teachers of adults should work with learners to ensure that the outcomes of initial and diagnostic assessment lead to the development of an ILP that sets out specific learning objectives and goals against which progress can be measured.

Remember that any kind of assessment is a tool, and as such is only as competent as the person using it. Do not only rely on the results of formal assessments in judging what learners know or have learned. There is no such thing as a perfect assessment tool as no assessment process can capture the wealth and complexity of someone’s knowledge and experience. Make the best judgement you can, given the results of assessment, but refine this in the light of your own observations over time.

Initial assessment

Any form of assessment can be an intimidating experience. For those who have had negative experiences of education in the past, perhaps who were excluded from school, were bullied or who were low achievers, assessment can be a particularly thorny issue. In addition, those with weak literacy, numeracy or language skills may be reluctant to acknowledge that they have Skills for Life needs. It is important that teachers in the voluntary and community sector themselves feel positive about assessment and so are able to affect learners’ willingness and confidence to participate in the process in positive ways.

It is essential to establish a relationship based on trust before assessing a learner. Some voluntary and community groups allocate learner supporters to work with the learner for a period of time before starting a learning programme. Others have very supportive induction arrangements. One national charity encourages peer mentorship and support, so that learners are reassured about the assessment process beforehand. Initial assessment does not have to be carried out in the first session, although it should be completed sufficiently early in the programme to inform the ILP.

Assessment tools should be adequate for the purpose, reliable and give consistent results. Learners should always receive the results of assessment, understand its purposes and the implications for their learning. Assessment should be carried out by a member of staff trained at the appropriate level of the national standards for teachers and learner supporters. Teachers should have a sound understanding of how the results of assessment inform the ILP, and how individual results can be used to plan group sessions. Where someone other than the teacher carries out assessment, for example a manager who is also a qualified teacher, they should be sufficiently familiar with the learner’s profile to enable them to agree SMART targets.

Learners should be screened before joining a programme to establish whether they have literacy, numeracy or language needs and to ensure that they are placed on the right programme. In the voluntary and community sector, many groups and organisations use materials such as the Basic Skills Agency Fast Track assessment. This has an oral version which may prove useful with vulnerable or hard-to-engage learners. Screening can be carried out by the teacher or a trained learner supporter.

Initial assessment should give an indication of the level of the national standards achieved by a learner, for example ‘numeracy at Entry Level 2’. Such results paint a ‘broad brush’ picture, however, and do not provide a detailed analysis of a learner’s skills and needs. Many learners are at different levels across the skills framework. Learning styles should also be evaluated and the results of this analysis should inform the ILP.

Diagnostic assessment should be used to provide a fuller picture of learners’ literacy, numeracy and language skills on longer learning programmes. As a general guide, carry out diagnostic assessment if the course is long or intensive enough to allow learners the opportunity to make substantial progress.

Try the suggested activity sheet on the learning journey to test your organisation’s approach.

ACTIVITY SHEET ON THE LEARNING JOURNEY

View activity sheet on the learning journey

Individual learning plans

The individual learning plan (ILP) enables the learner and the teacher to map a route from where the learner is currently to the achievement of new skills. Good ILPs, with SMART targets, show how far a learner has travelled, and how far they have yet to go to achieve those targets. The best ILPs will help the learner and the teacher to get the right kind of learning to the learner in the right way.

A good ILP will:

be informed by assessment and previous learning experiences
be negotiated with the learner
be at the right level
show clear priorities
provide opportunities for positive learning experiences
create a sense of moving through mapped-out, achievable steps
identify appropriate materials to use
contain short- and long-term targets (and possibly medium-term targets depending on the length of course), which are mapped to the literacy, numeracy or ESOL core curricula
provide space for the learner’s and teacher’s comments
record achievement
be reviewed regularly with the learner
accommodate alterations to targets.

Progress reviews

All learners should regularly review their progress with their teacher. On longer courses, this date should be fixed at regular intervals. On short programmes, there should be at least one review opportunity halfway through the course. Where learners do not achieve accreditation, they should complete some form of summative assessment that demonstrates their achievement of targets outlined in their ILPs. This is especially important where learners attend short courses and move on quickly to other learning venues, for example colleges or learndirect centres. One national charity provides learners with a record of achievement that clearly shows the progress that learners have made by the end of the course. This is written in the language commonly used by colleges or training providers so that it can travel with the learner to these new learning venues.

Progress reviews provide the opportunity for learners and teachers to discuss their progress in working towards the targets in the ILP. They also:

allow learners to discuss any problems, or factors that may be affecting their progress
demonstrate to the learner that the teacher is taking an active interest in their progress
enable teachers and learners to discuss progress towards achieving accreditation, or in achieving a learning goal such as passing a course or work-related entry test
enable teachers and learners to review the extent to which progress towards the literacy, numeracy and language targets set may help learners with aspects of their lives, such as job applications, taking minutes at residents’ committees or reading with their children.

Attendance

In the voluntary and community sector, some learners do not or cannot attend regularly. Obviously teachers should encourage learners to attend regularly and explain that they will make quicker progress if they do so. However, some learners, for example the homeless, those on medication or those with domestic responsibilities, may be erratic participants. Take particular care with these learners to make sure they are achieving their targets, and that their progress is recorded. In one example, a housing project for homeless young people ensures that those returning to learning after an absence carry out a ‘spot check’ of their literacy, numeracy or language skills. They use a short set of assessment questions online available on the Move On website.These results are recorded in the ILP and inform the review of targets.

The following example follows the progress of a learner, Rose, from her individual learning plan, through a progress review, to a summary of assessment, the revision of her short-term targets and feedback on progress. The sample ends with the certificate Rose was awarded on completion of the programme.

Use the activity sheet to evaluate your own approach to individual learning plans.

Learning materials

Successful teachers use a wide range of materials to support individual learning needs and interests. These could include paper- or computer-based materials, CD, and audio- or videotapes. Written materials should be clear, readable and attractively presented. Materials and activities should be designed to take the learner through a series of steps. Where commercially produced materials are used, remember to adapt them as necessary to meet the individual needs and interests of your learners.

The commitment, enthusiasm and creativity that teachers bring to their work should be evident in the physical resources that they use and create. Skills for Life learners deserve the very best, not only from their teachers, but from learner supporters, from learning materials and equipment and from the physical environment in which they learn. In the voluntary and community sector, where funding is often tight, this often means making the very best of what you have, or entering into partnerships with others to gain wider access to resources that you would not otherwise be able to provide.

Skills for Life learning materials

The DfES has published a suite of literacy, numeracy and language learning materials. These are suitable for use or adaptation by any Skills for Life teacher, and are accompanied by extensive guidance notes.

The Skills for Life materials for embedded learning aim to help learners improve the literacy, language or numeracy skills learners need to succeed at work, in community-based activities or as part of vocational training programmes. The materials are professionally produced, and by June 2006 they will cover 20 vocational and community contexts. The materials are mapped to the adult core curricula for literacy and numeracy, the key skills standards and the national occupational standards wherever relevant.

Other learning resources and equipment

Other items that can be used to stimulate and support learning include newspaper articles, games suitable for adults, photographs, maps, dictionaries, reading books, weighing and measuring equipment and calculators. Indeed, anything can be used that is suitable for the purpose, limited only by financial resources and the imagination of the teacher.

In selecting the best materials for the job, assess the extent to which they are fit for the purpose, that is whether:

they match the learners’ reading levels (including numeracy materials and those on CD)
they are, or can be, mapped to the core curricula
they are easy to follow and use
they take the learner through a series of steps to achieve a desired learning outcome
they are clear, attractively presented and uncluttered
they are suitable for learners’ preferred learning styles – for example a visual learner will prefer to use materials that are clearly illustrated
they are suitable for those with physical disabilities – for example written in large print for those with sight impairments. For more ideas, consult Access for All
they are suitable for those with specific learning disabilities (again, consult Access for All for ideas)
they are not culturally specific and they illustrate diversity in a positive light
they are up to date and suitable for adults
they use contexts and subjects of potential interest to the learner (although note that just because someone is interested in gardening, it does not necessarily mean that a worksheet on gardening will engage their interest)
they are stimulating, interesting or enjoyable to use (or all of these).

ICT

Reasons for using ICT to support literacy, numeracy and language learning include to:

motivate learners
provide opportunities for learners to progress at their own pace
help encourage learner autonomy
provide interactive learning opportunities, sometimes with feedback
boost self-confidence and self-esteem
give a sense of achievement
encourage learning outside the learning session, for example in the home, workplace or library
attract men and young adults
encourage feelings of 'being in control', or 'on an equal footing' for those learners, frequently women, who have experienced the computer as a territory in their own home or workplace from which they feel excluded.

ICT is more than a tool to support and enhance learning: insofar as the written word appears on screens and monitors it is often the medium people use to read and write. Many young adults, for example, are more likely to write an e-mail or text message on a mobile phone than they are to write a letter.

Even those learners with very weak reading skills can learn to conduct searches on the Internet and write simple e-mails. The experience of printing a piece of writing or composing and sending an e-mail for the first time is usually a memorable one for anyone, especially if they are a Skills for Life learner.

There are many ways to use ICT effectively to enhance literacy, numeracy and language learning. These include the use of:

word-processing, for example in developing presentation skills, using the spellchecker and thesaurus, proof-reading and editing
spreadsheets, for example in understanding charts and graphs, performing calculations, using simple formulas
presentational programmes (such as PowerPoint) for giving presentations, telling stories, experimenting with audio-visual media to illustrate text or illustrating the properties of two- or three-dimensional shapes
the Internet, for example in performing searches, webquests, investigating numeracy websites, comparing prices for online shopping, researching projects, writing e-mails or text messages or discovering information about one's country of origin
CDs, for example online literacy, numeracy or language programmes, encyclopaedias, driving theory test support packages or programmes to support those with specific learning difficulties
digital cameras or camcorders, for example to illustrate a community project or newsletter.

Some national charities and organisations are able to provide suites of new computers or banks of laptops. Even smaller groups and organisations should provide some access to ICT. Where funds are limited, investigate ways of sharing equipment with other service users or organisations. Consider approaching libraries or other services or agencies that may have access to computers. One national charity working in partnership with community groups visits libraries with learners and supports them at the place of learning. Provide one or two laptops for learners to use in turn. Handheld computers with additional keyboards and wireless Internet access are cheaper than desk-top computers or laptops. There is no need to buy expensive CDs as it is possible to use a wealth of online material at little or no cost.

The most successful groups and organisations in the voluntary and community sector recognise the impact that using ICT can have on learners' motivation and achievement. The best teachers support learners in using ICT to achieve their literacy, numeracy and language targets.

Remember too that learner supporters can play an invaluable role in assisting learners in using materials and equipment. They can for example, enlarge newspaper articles so that they can be read by someone with a sight impairment, or help a learner access a website, or use a calculator.

Evaluation

Evaluate learning materials and resources and ask for feedback from learners and colleagues. Some centres have schemes for sharing materials, for example on a website or via e-mail. One national charity both commissions materials where teachers or managers identify a need, and also arranges for materials produced locally to be shared throughout the entire organisation. All materials should be subject to a rigorous quality control process.

Forward to 2B: What is ‘success’ in teaching, training and learning?