Donald Hiscock | Articles | The Independent
What a relief it must be for hard-pressed school
teachers to get rid of some of their darling little charges for a while by
lending them out to the local college. The pupils would no doubt benefit from
demands on their maturity made by a more grown up kind of place of learning,
while the teachers could manage a smile and then get on with the latest round
of paperwork.
This is what it might have been like in the past,
but the pathfinder programme, a new government initiative, seeks to make workable
links between schools and colleges that have lasting benefit for all concerned.
The scheme arose out of a Green paper on extending
opportunities and raising standards in 14-19 education. Twenty-five pathfinder
projects are currently underway across England. Looking at ways of increasing
flexibility of learning for students of all abilities, the buzz words on the
lips of local education authorities in the pilot areas are ‘enhancement’,
‘collaboration’ and ‘entitlement’.
“If the learner is not motivated, then the
lesson will not be a success; to motivate the learner they need to share a
sense of ownership of and commitment to the studies in which they are engaged;
and that requires a system suited to the needs of the individual, not a timetable
suited to the needs of the institution,” said Schools Standards Minister,
David Miliband, earlier this year.
This is a view endorsed by Rosemary Tong, Chief
Inspector for education in Southampton, the only authority in the south-east
region involved in the scheme. She has overseen earlier city-based initiatives
that have allowed school students to work with colleges.
“Such an experience really motivated students
and made them see the benefit of staying in education after sixteen,”
says Tong. “And we’re not just talking about the least able with
the current Pathfinder scheme, but how we can accelerate learning for those
who need to go at a faster pace.”
The authority in Southampton has established a
series of master classes to enable school students to gain the benefit of
working at a more advanced level in the three further education colleges in
the city.
Students in year ten from Cantell and Woodlands schools have had the opportunity
to be taught AS Critical Thinking by staff from Taunton’s College and
Itchen College. Other taster classes have been offered in a variety of subjects
at all three further education institutions, some linked to the work done
for GCSE in schools.
“Doing a course in critical thinking has
been absolutely brilliant for the students,” says David Burge, head
teacher of Cantell School. “Their confidence has been significantly
enhanced.”
Burge has found himself on the receiving end of
his students’ newly developed skills in reasoning and argument. Following
a successful series of classes the students drafted a letter arguing convincingly
for them to be allowed to take the subject at AS level. The head had no option
but to agree.
Rosemary Tong is optimistic that 14-19 education
partnerships in the city will see an increase in the transition to further
education. She is also hoping that the scheme will raise awareness of higher
education and address the city’s current low take up rate for degree
courses.
“Pathfinder is also about increasing opportunities for HE. A future
stage will see the involvement of the university and the Institute of Education,”
says Tong.
There are also issues of raising awareness among
parents and of involving employers. The city has close involvement with Solent
Skills Quest and is seeking to provide combinations of qualifications between
schools and colleges that will lead to the achievement of Advanced Modern
Apprenticeships.
What about the hard pressed teachers? Does the
Pathfinder scheme mean a strain on the timetable in schools and a requirement
for college lecturers to learn how to deliver Key Stage 4 and then produce
on-line teaching materials? The answer is yes, but Tong talks in terms of
curriculum flexibility.
“The scheme offers such a wide range of possibilities,
particularly in terms of sharing expertise across the city” says Tong.
“There is positive support from everyone involved. The government funding
for Pathfinder has helped to really get things established.”
“There is a good foundation for Pathfinder
to move things on in the city,” adds Burge. “In the past there
has been a focus on further education and vocational teaching, but these new
initiatives have filled in the gaps in the overall picture of education beyond
school.”
The school students involved in the programme so
far are enthusiastic in voicing their approval. The chance to work with digital
cameras and editing software, for example, to enhance their GCSE work has
understandably proved popular. What they have also approved of is the fact
that they are not necessarily learning directly from college lecturers but
from the college students.
“The college offers a lot more than you can
get in school,” says Cantell School student Pardeep Singh Bhakar. “Working
at college is a good idea because you get to learn from other people. I think
it’s good for the college lecturers as well, so that they get to find
out what kids are doing in school.”
The DfES will be using the evidence gathered from
authorities like Southampton as an indicator of what would make an effective
14-19 system to be implemented nationwide.
“By next year we aim to have a co-ordinated city curriculum, with almost any school having an opportunity to work with college and university staff,” says Tong. “We want to make Southampton’s education provision something special.”