Ray Isaacs, IT Diploma Consortium Lead, South Holland
Pam Brown, IT Lecturer, New College Stamford
Nigel Akers, IT Diploma Co-ordinator, Nottingham City
Mike Ryan, Managing Director, Idaho Technology Ltd
Barry Mallon, Pre-16 Co-ordinator, Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies
Narrator: Learners starting on the Diploma may not be confident in the workplace. South Holland consortium supports their learners by preparing them beforehand.
Ray Isaacs, IT Diploma Consortium Lead, South Holland: To go on a tour, it’s a lot of preparation. You have to give them some background to what the company is, what to expect on the visit, so they can see a purpose to going out to visit the employer, know what it’s about and look for what’s happening when they go out there.
Pam Brown, IT Lecturer, New College Stamford: I teach Level 1 learners, so, I think they have a different range of needs, arguably, from Level 2 and Level 3 learners. In order to be in the workplace they need the support of how important it is that they get there on time, how important it is during their work placement that they are actually there when they are supposed to be there and to that end when they are undertaken, they are going to undertake a ten day work placement, but one day per week, which has actually been designed so that I am mainly free on that day, so I will be able to make definitely one but possibly two visits to each of the work placements, so that I can liaise with the employers if there is any problem at all.
Narrator: Before starting a work placement, Nottingham consortium ensures learners are happy with their choice and have access to a practitioner throughout the placement period.
Nigel Akers, IT Diploma Co-ordinator, Nottingham City: With the Diploma placements all of the youngsters go through some form of interview process, go on a visit to the place so it is as much as about them thinking ‘Yes, this is where I want to do my work placement’ as much as the employer saying '..and we could work with these youngsters, and that’s the one we want to work with.'
I make sure that I go out to the youngsters to see them in the workplace. They’ve got my contact details they can phone me, they can email me. However, by the time they get to nine months into the Diploma programme, they are… they have developed quite a bit of confidence... and they didn’t really want me there holding their hand. But it’s there if they need it.
Narrator: Making the learners feel professional can also improve confidence in their work with employers.
Ray Isaacs: I have given them all a laptop computer so that when they go out to employers they are not reliant on an employer finding them a computer. It makes them look more professional and they feel more professional and certainly they feel more confident. You do have to go and visit them as well as mentoring them when they come back to the classroom and looking at the work they have done. It’s all about keeping that relationship between the learner, the employer and the person at school.
Mike Ryan, Managing Director, Idaho Technology Ltd: Supporting students as they are doing their Diploma course is something that has to be a shared responsibility between the college and a set of employers. I am very excited by the prospect that we can set challenges, because in many ways if we can try and guide them into independent problem solving and learning through actually engaging with us and the sort of things we are excited by, it will perhaps give them a different view of the world they are going in to. I think it is possible that we can start to really fire a spark up.
Barry Mallon, Pre-16 Co-ordinator, Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies: It’s about a gradual building process really, because obviously they’ll start with quite low confidence... so it’s about us building their confidence with the technology... giving them constant feedback, giving them praise when they have done things right. Building their confidence, getting them more comfortable with it, and then obviously helping them achieve and do much greater things as we progress through the course.
Narrator: As learners progress through the Diploma in IT, it is clear that employer involvement can really build on their independence and self confidence.
Ray Isaacs: I give my students quite a lot of freedom, I make it very clear to them at the beginning of any assignment what is expected, we go through what resources are needed, what help they think will be needed. But it is made very clear to them that the learning is their responsibility and the students have actually responded in a very positive manner. And I have had some very good work when we’ve been out on the visits, they’ve been very active in what they’re doing. People should be able to think for themselves, should be able to come up with ideas of their own, should be able to look back and say, 'Well, that didn’t work, ok fine, now what am I going to do about it? How I am going to make it work?' and that, I think, is part of the Diploma.
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