Roles, Resposibilities and Relationships in the Lifelong Learning Sector

ASSIGNMENT 008 TASK A RESEARCH REPORT

a) Roles and Responsibilities

i) It is the responsibility of the teacher to make the teaching area a safe and fair environment to learn in and teachers should be aware of, and keep up to date with key legislation relating to this.
The Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) covers a number of duties relating to teaching and learning. Risk assessments should be carried out and risks properly controlled to ensure a safe working environment. Besides the Health and Safety at Work Act itself there are important pieces of legislation that would apply to a sewing workroom environment.
1. Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations. 1998: require that equipment provided for use at work, including machinery is safe.
2. Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992: cover the moving of objects by hand or bodily force.
3. Electricity at Work Regulations 1989: require people in control of electrical systems to ensure they are safe to use and in a safe condition.
The Equality Act (2010) aims to eliminate discrimination based on age, disability, race, religion, belief, gender and sexual orientation. It places a duty on teachers to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people. It also provides protection against discrimination relating to pregnancy and maternity.
Teachers must also adhere to the Children Act (2004) that places a statutory duty on them to make arrangements to safeguard the welfare of children. The Act gives responsibility to local authorities to make enquiries when anyone contacts them with concerns about child abuse. The aim is for every child, whatever there background or circumstances, to have the support to:
Be healthy
Stay safe
Enjoy and achieve
Make a positive contribution
Achieve economic well-being

ii) Following the Further Education Workforce Reforms 2007 New Regulatory Requirements state that all new teachers are to hold or acquire within a specified period of time:
A ‘Preparing to teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector’ (PTLLS) award or its equivalent as a minimum license to teach for all who have an element of teaching in their role irrespective of job title; and either
A diploma in teaching Level 5 status for those in a teaching role; or
A Certificate in Teaching in the lifelong learning sector at Level 3 or 4
All new teachers must demonstrate through professional practice that they meet the standards and can use effectively the skills and knowledge acquired in teacher training.

iii) The Institute for Learning (IFL) is an independent professional body for teachers, trainers, tutors and trainee teachers across the FE and skills sector. It has a code of conduct which outlines the behavior expected of its members. Briefly it states that members shall:
Behave with Professional Integrity
Respect the rights of learners and colleagues
Take reasonable care to ensure the safety and welfare of learners
Provide evidence of CPD according to IFL policy and Professional Practice guidelines
Ensure disclosure of any cautioning or conviction of a criminal offence
Be responsible for acting in accordance with the conditions of membership and assisting the Institute with any investigation.

b) Boundaries
The Teaching or Training Cycle consists of five processes namely:
Identifying Needs - The purpose is to identify if the students face any barriers which may affect their learning or if they have any additional needs. There are many ways to do this and could involve; looking at their initial application if one is completed before the course starts, an informal discussion, observation during a class activity or by an initial test or assessment. It is also important to ensure that the student is on the correct course and to offer any advice perhaps with funding or travel referring them if necessary. The process will also help with the planning of the course as it will help the Tutor design a course suitable for the skills and experience of individual class members.
Plan and Design Learning – This stage involves the planning of the content of the course. A scheme of work will be designed to plan the content of each session and lesson plans devised to organize them in more detail. When possible agreeing individual learning plans can be agreed with students and contingency plans made to take into account different needs of the learners. This would also be the opportunity to prepare learning resources and activities. Risk assessments need to be carried out and all attempts made to create a safe, positive and accessible learning environment.
Deliver – A Teacher should be well organized, well prepared and enthusiastic when delivering a lesson. They should be able to communicate appropriately and effectively and act and speak appropriately. It is essential to promote equality, value diversity and teach in an inclusive and engaging way with a good sense of humour.
Assess - Work needs to be assessed within a reasonable time to check that the students have gained the necessary skills and knowledge. Use a variety of assessment methods and keep a record of achievements. Feedback should always be constructive and given within a reasonable time.
Evaluate – A programme should always be evaluated in order to improve the teaching and learning process. To evaluate how well the programme was planned and delivered feedback should be encouraged, accepted and acted upon. The teacher should encourage student development and progression as well as maintaining their own teacher development and professional currency.
(GRAVELLS 2012)

There are boundaries within which a teacher must work and it is important not to overstep these by becoming too personal with the students. It is also important to know where the role of teacher stops and to work within the limits of that role. Some examples are:
If a teacher identified that a student was struggling to attend classes because they couldn’t afford the bus fare it would be inappropriate to lend them money. In this instance the student should be referred to the student support staff or the financial support staff.
If a teacher was planning a class but found the room had insufficient access to equipment or resource’s it would be unacceptable to voice their concerns to the students. This would be unprofessional, they should address it to the organization, or change the lesson plan to accommodate the resource’s available.
Students may choose to confide in their teacher about personal issues and, although a teacher should be understanding and sympathetic, it is important that they maintain a professional role. The student could be referred to a councillor, pastoral staff or support staff depending on the issue concerned. They should avoid getting involved in the personal lives of their students.
When assessing students it is important that teachers are fair in their judgments. They should not bebiased towards or against any one student.
When evaluating the teaching and learning programme the teacher should be able to listen to and react to feedback in order to improve.
If in doubt about the boundaries of their role a teacher should seek advice. This could be from another teacher, a colleague, their line manager or their mentor.
c. Points of Referral
A teacher may encounter learners with varying degrees of needs. They may be able to deal with some of these needs but some may need the support of other professionals.
A Support Worker will help a learner with additional needs. They will have had special training in the particular field required by that learner which the teacher won’t have had and will be able to support them in or outside the classroom setting.
There may be a student whose first language isn’t English and has trouble understanding the lesson so there may be a need to work with an interpreter
A teacher may also need to work alongside external agencies like the Job Centre. The students may be leaving the learning environment and looking for work and the Job Centre will have the advice and information that they need.

d) Promoting Appropriate Behavior
i) Having a preventative strategy is a good way to promote appropriate behavior in a lesson. Be prepared and waiting for the learners in the classroom so you can take control of the space and organize it as you wish. Getting the student’s attention with an interesting starter activity shows that you are in control of the class. Present the aims and objectives and share the session plan explaining the purpose and reason for studying it. When planning a lesson ensure there is plenty of variety as students are more likely to behave well if they are stimulated and are not bored. You should have realistic expectations of your class for example, don’t expect a room full of teenagers to sit still through an hour-long power point presentation quietly. ii) Decide for yourself what rules and procedures would create a good atmosphere in your class and will maximize learning. Explain that you want an effective, fair and happy classroom and discuss the rules with the class. There will be rules that are non negotiable for example regarding safety or turning up on time but be prepared to negotiate and compromise to get commitment on others. Encourage the learners to contribute to the rules and procedures. Students are more likely to adhere to rules they have been instrumental in creating.
Consider asking the class to devise their own rules and if you reject a popular suggestion be prepared to explain why to justify your decision. The aim is to get the students onboard with the rules and procedures and see them as their own; they will then see them as worth keeping and enforcing. iii) It is important to develop a good rapport with the students as this creates a more positive attitude towards the teacher and to learning. It will also turn the classroom into a co-operative team and reduce antagonism. Get to know the students on a personal level, learn their names and use them. Learn something about each student like what they like to do in their spare time, their hobbies, interests or work and refer to it in conversation. These small details will make the students feel noticed, valued and liked by the teacher and therefore more co-operative. (PETTY 2006)

TASK B

a) I aim to be teaching dressmaking and curtain making to adults at evening classes and will be responsible to mid Cheshire College for delivering these community classes. I will have a line manager who is Head Of Community Learning at Mid Cheshire College and will also be working with the Community Learning Coordinator. I will have a responsibility to safely and effectively deliver the community classes and will be able to seek advice from my Line Manager for any issues regarding safeguarding or anything I feel unable to deal with. I will also need to complete forms and paperwork relating to the courses. I will have a responsibility to make sure these are completed correctly and submitted in a timely manner. The Community Learning Support Team is there to help and advise on these matters. The course will need to be carefully planned as it is only 6 weeks long and some students may have no sewing experience. I aim to have a comprehensive scheme of work that will need to be flexible to take into account the varying abilities of the class. Students will need to be constantly assessed, as it is difficult to move on to the next stage without successfully completing the first. I will have to make sure I am aware of student’s progress and give regular feedback to enable them to progress. The College requires written feedback but verbal feedback by way of an informal discussion will be useful in order to evaluate the course and improve for next time.
b) Identifying the need of the learners on the course will be a challenge as I will have very limited information about them prior to the course starting. Enrollment for the course can be done online or on the telephone and applicants need impart no more information than their basic contact details. This means that it will need to be done during the first session. If it is evident, I will aim to accommodate any physical disabilities within the classroom setting. I will offer the class the opportunity to speak to me confidentially if they feel they have any needs should to be addressed to facilitate their learning. I feel this will be useful as people may not wish to share it with the class but may need to make me aware as the teacher. I intend to have a short discussion in order to establish the level of skill and experience. This may begin by my asking specific questions and asking for a show of hands. That will give me a good indication of the level of experience and the expectations of the class but, as learners may not feel comfortable speaking in front of others will prevent them having to do so. There will inevitably be varying degrees of skill and ability in the class so I will need to be flexible with my aims and expectations to ensure that each student’s needs are being met.
c) As part of my responsibility of ensuring a safe and supportive learning environment I will ensure that the students are aware of the actions to take in case of a fire. There will also need to be some consideration as to the layout of the classroom given that there will be many trailing wires that could present a trip hazard. I will need to be familiar with the following regulations that will apply: Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations. 1998: as this requires that equipment provided for use at work, including machinery is safe. Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992: as this covers the moving of objects, namely sewing macines, by hand or bodily force and the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989: as this requires people in control of electrical systems to ensure they are safe to use and in a safe condition.
In order to support the class in their learning I will work alongside them giving advice and encouragement. I will give practical demonstrations, samples and written handouts where necessary to support what has been learnt in the classroom. I believe these strategies will help all the students to achieve the best they can.

Gravells, A (2012) Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector 5th Edn. London: Sage
Petty (2006)