Digital inclusion, volunteering and cost-effective technology

Our WEA colleagues Steve Stocks and Andria Birch (@infostocksy and @andiabirch) were tweeting yesterday from an event that celebrated “Innovation, Transnationality and Mainstreaming” projects that had been supported by the European Social Fund. Steve was showcasing how people who have been involved in a Digital Activists’ Inclusion Network (DAIN) project are using Raspberry Pi technology for cost-effective digital inclusion.

DAIN is an exciting volunteer project working across the East Midlands. The project has promoted digital inclusion by encouraging people to use technology with the help of volunteers (Digital Activists). DAIN won a NIACE Adult Learners’ Week Award in 2012 and used the associated funding to develop online learning materials for more digital activists to use. They also used the prize money to pay for Raspberry Pi computers for 12 DAIN students who enrolled and completed 9 hours of course content to support their further Pi learning.

The Raspberry Pi is a credit-card sized computer that plugs into a TV and a keyboard. People can use it for many of the things that a desktop PC does, such as spreadsheets, word-processing and games. It also plays high-definition video and is used in education to encourage computer programming.

Andria Birch spreading the word about DAIN

Andria , the DAIN project manager, paid tribute to Steve for, “applying huge IT experience and giving back to the local community through DAIN volunteering.” Steve has gone on to become a WEA tutor and started teaching a Raspberry Pi course which started in Nottingham this month. The course had its own twitter hashtag. Other Digital activists have also progressed into more formal teaching, including several who have gone on to work for the WEA.

Steve Stocks with Mike Attwell (WEA Director for East & West Midlands)

The first phase of ESF funding is now finished but it’s clear that the work has only just begun. Digital activists in Northamptonshire and Chesterfield have set up new WEA groups for student and volunteers. Nottingham Digital Activists are developing 3 new organisations to support digital inclusion and colleagues are now working on a 5-year digital inclusion strategy and aiming to expand the work and aims of DAIN across the WEA so that more people can cross the digital divide together.

The DAIN project’s web archive is at: http://www.dainproject.org/

Will pensioners become NEET?

Here’s a scenario. Retired people who are fit for paid work will be treated as being NEET – not in employment, education or training – and required to get jobs.

No-one’s pushing this as a policy but David Willetts, the universities minister, has been in the news this week encouraging older people to return to higher education to keep their skills updated for employment throughout their sixties and beyond. (See: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/universityeducation/9884301/Over-60s-are-told-go-back-to-university-and-retrain.html)

He made the comments after a recent government report said that the UK’s future economic success will depend on older workers’ skills and contributions. Campaigners for older people aren’t convinced that many will want to commit to degree-level courses and to the possibility of student debt, but figures from the Office of National Statistics show that the average life span in England and Wales increased by around 10 years for a man and 8 years for a woman over the 50 years from 1960 to 2010. The most common age at death in England and Wales in 2010 was 85 for men and 89 for women.

There many issues to think about as people are living longer and technology is changing the ways that we live, learn, work and socialise. Will 60-year-olds be expected to train for extended careers – competing against younger people who aren’t in employment, education or training – or for long, active and healthy retirements?

Joyce Patrick, featured in a past edition of WEA News, learnt to read at the age of 83.

Willetts’ proposal is set against a current decline in the number of older students in higher education. A recent report, ‘Older People’s Learning in 2012: A Survey’ by Professor Stephen McNair, Senior Research Fellow at NIACE, found that the proportion of older learners (aged 50+) studying in further education colleges and universities had dropped significantly between 2005 and 2012, from 21% to 9% in colleges and from 14% to 8% in universities.

The report is available at: http://shop.niace.org.uk/older-peoples-learning-2012-summary.html

Stephen McNair reported that more than a quarter of older people said that learning had helped them to pass on skills and knowledge to others. 14% reported ‘Getting involved in society’ as a benefit and 13% cited the value of ‘improving my health’. ‘Getting involved in the digital world’ was a benefit for 10% of respondents in his research and significant numbers reported that it had helped them to manage caring roles and to cope with life crises.

Despite these benefits, older people are much less likely than younger people to be learning. Only 20% of over-50s are ‘learners’, compared to 40% of the adult population as a whole. The proportion falls to only 7% of those aged 75 and over.

The WEA is not a university but we have a long tradition of attracting students of all ages into high quality adult education covering a wide range of courses. 37,749 WEA students in 2011-12 were aged 65 or older and a recent analysis of our student data showed 11 active learners who were 100 years old or older.

It’s worth noting the 96.3% retention rate for students aged 65 or older in our part-time, community-based courses last year. Their 96.2% success rate shows that age didn’t stop them meeting their learning aims.

Many of our active volunteers are older people who are contributing to community life in their neighbourhoods. Audrey Constable, 77, voluntary chair of the WEA’s Great Missenden, Prestwood and Wendover Branch is good example. Audrey, a piano teacher, left school without going on to further education immediately. Taking part in a course with the Association in 1970 encouraged her to do a degree in philosophy and linguistics. She says that the WEA changed her life. Michael Davis, 79, a retired surveyor of Prestwood, has been involved in the same branch for 10 years. He says, “We all have a good common interest and enjoy the group learning. It is worthwhile.”

Older people are often overlooked in public debates about education so it’s refreshing that David Willetts has highlighted over-60s and their potential.

What do you think about education’s role in older people’s professional, social and personal well-being? What about pensioners’ rights and responsibilities compared to younger people?

Educational Thinkers’ Hall of Fame – Edinburgh women

Here are links to 13 extraordinary women whose contributions to education earn them a collective place in the Educational Thinkers’ Hall of Fame. They feature in a 2013 calendar called, Inspiring Edinburgh Women who advanced the cause of education in Scotland.

The calendar is available online at http://www.latebloomers.co.uk/wforum/weacalendar/index.html and has brief but informative biographies of each of the women in clickable links for each month.

Members and learners of the WEA Lothian Women’s Forum researched and compiled the calendar. The Forum is a self-organising student group of the WEA concerned with planning and organising women’s education workshops, classes and activities in Edinburgh and the Lothians

It’s worth clicking on the link to start with the striking cover photograph of WEA voluntary member Evelyn Muir who is pictured with the WEA Edinburgh and Lothian banner. Liz Beevers took the photograph as groups from across Scotland gathered at the Meadows in Edinburgh on 10th October 2009 to re-enact the 1909 Women’s Suffrage Procession.

The other featured women are:

Mary Somerville

Mary Somerville 1780-1872 – “Queen of 19th century science” – Science writer and polymath (January)
Mary Burton 1819-1909 – Educational and social reformer (February)
Naomi Mitchison 1897-1999 – Writer, politician and matriarch (March)
Priscilla Bright McLaren 1815-1906 – Women’s rights campaigner and mother and stepmother to activists (April)
Phoebe Anna Traquair 1852-1936 – Free spirit of the Arts and Crafts Movement (May)
E B K (Kitty) Gregorson ARCM MBE 1903-2004 – Music Teacher who inspired generations (June)
Dame Anne McLaren 1927-2007 – Pioneering scientist and campaigner (July)
Chrystal Macmillan 1872-1937 – Campaigner for women’s equality (August)
Sarah Elizabeth Siddons Mair DBE LLD 1846-1941- Pioneer, higher education of women (September)
Frances Melville MA BD LLD OBE 1873 – 1962 – Ambassador of women’s education and suffragist (October)
Anna Morton Geddes 1857–1917 – Music teacher, soulmate and partner in Patrick Geddes’ projects (November)
Joyce Connon OBE – Adult education leader and WEA Scottish Secretary, 1991-2012 (December)

Family learning and pupil premium funding

Writing in the TES FE Focus , Stephen Exley reports on Ofsted’s conclusions that ‘pupil premium’ funding is not being spent effectively. The funding amounts to £623 for every child who is entitled to free school meals. You can read the feature at: http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storyCode=6315806

David Hughes, Chief Executive of NIACE, the National Institute for Adult and Continuing Education, suggests that schools might use the funding for family learning.

Why might this be a good idea?

This extract from a Department for Education article, The role of parents in a child’s learning, from 26 April 2012 provides some background:

….research shows that parental involvement in children’s learning is a key factor in improving children’s academic attainment and achievements, as well as their overall behaviour and attendance.

The role of parents during a child’s earliest years is the single biggest influence on their development. Good quality home learning contributes more to children’s intellectual and social development than parental occupation, education or income.

A parent’s attitudes, aspirations and behaviour are all important, as is their ability to:
• understand their child’s day-to-day progress
• undertake family learning together
• talk regularly with their child about their learning.

For some parents, developing this confidence can be difficult – especially if they also need help with their own literacy, language and numeracy skills.

http://www.education.gov.uk/childrenandyoungpeople/families/a00203160/role-of-parents-in-childs-learning

The WEA has a tradition of working in many partnerships with parents, carers, schools and children’s centres. We know the benefits that come from working with two generations at the same time. Education doesn’t just take place during school hours and it’s to everyone’s advantage that a child’s home environment is supportive of their learning.

Adult and community educators can work closely with schools to engage and support adults who have written themselves off in educational terms and who don’t engage in their children’s learning because they don’t know how to do so. There are countless stories of adults who flourish and become better parents of children with raised educational attainment.

As a Commissioner on the current Independent Inquiry into Family Learning (England and Wales), I’m seeing a range of evidence being presented, including statistics, stories and some very impressive case studies and I’m looking forward to the Inquiry’s fndings being published later this year. We should wlecome this focus on family learning as it has significant impact but can fall between government departments, education sectors and funding streams.

You can find out more about the Inquiry at: http://www.niace.org.uk/current-work/family-learning-inquiry

Schools will want to spend the pupil premium funding flexibly, making local decisions and there are many demands for extra resources, but persuasive arguments can be made for family learning as head teachers consider the options.

20 reasons to use Twitter in adult learning

It’s famous for starting revolutions and keeping Sally Bercow busy but what can Twitter do to supplement and enrich adult education?

Twitter is best used alongside more deep and detailed consideration of learning and professionalism. It can be too superficial, random and addictive if we use it unthinkingly but it can also be informative and valuable. The rise of the Heads’ Roundtable shows its power to bring people together quickly around educational matters. (See: http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2013/feb/04/ebc-headteachers-on-twitter-baccalaureate)

Here’s a list of 20 benefits of Twitter for students and educators.

1. Useful addition to Personal Learning Networks (PLNs) for students and educators to support continuing development
2. Is democratic with no hierarchies
3. Is inexpensive and flexible
4. Offers intellectual freedom with self-selected and user-generated content
5. Provides customised content based on people you choose to follow
6. Can raise public awareness of educational and linked campaigns
7. Enables students to follow specialists, experts and historical figures
8. Can make international connections, enabling learning from different countries’ approaches to education
9. Supports online communities of practice, with links to longer articles, blogs. videos and other resources
10. Hashtags give access to selected subjects or conversations
11. Provides immediate reporting of current affairs and policy updates
12. Provides a virtual common room for students, tutors and researchers
13. Supports networking without conference fees
14. Provides a forum for multi-agency connections around specific issues
15. Creates alliances between people and organisations
16. Is ready when you are to dip in and out of
17. Encourages new ideas and different perspectives
18. Shows citizen journalism in action
19. Enables communication of messages about course updates
20. Has wide appeal to tech-savvy students, staff and volunteers and is comparatively easy to learn

Do you agree with the list? Are there more benefits?
Do you think it’s over-hyped or a waste of time?
What about digital exclusion?

Reflective practice and feedback in leadership and management

Reflective practice is a feature of good teaching and learning. It’s important for governors and managers in education too.

Last week WEA Trustees and senior managers met to work on the next stages of our strategic planning. We used critical thinking and questioning to challenge any ‘fixed mind-sets’ in the planning process. Our working principles for more detailed strategic planning included the following:

1. Stick to core principles – education first
We agreed not to work on finance and funding strategies until we had focused on the priorities and direction of our educational work. Our vision, mission and values are central to planning. We concentrated on plans to improve outcomes for our students and their communities based on our prioritised themes of employability, health and wellbeing, community engagement and culture.

2. Avoid the ‘echo chamber’ effect
We recognise that talking among ourselves could lead to predictable thinking as we read the runes, even within a lively, democratic organisation, unless we consider other sources of information and interpretation. Contributions from external experts can ginger up our approach to strategic planning and help us to review our work in the light of wider social, economic, policy and educational trends.

3. Keep challenging stereotypes
People are individuals with different interests, talents or aspirations, whatever their circumstances. Inclusion has to be on the basis of personal aims, ambitions and circumstances and not on a patronising tick-box approach. There’s more about some of our current work on equality and diversity at http://betterforeveryone.wordpress.com/.

4. Empathy and involvement
We discussed the need to think about things from the perspectives of students, tutors, volunteers and partners, trying to see the impact of plans from their points of views. We recognise the dangers of second guessing other people’s opinions on their behalf without wider, inclusive discussions.

5. Identify historical ‘drag’ factors that slow down progress
We challenged the attitude of, “We can’t change this because we’ve always done things this way.”

The meeting released some fresh questions and ideas to discuss at Scottish, regional and local levels in England and was a productive way to review and update strategic planning assumptions.

Meeting the matrix Standard
We received the feedback from an intensive two-and-a–half week assessment for the matrix Standard on the day after our Strategy Day. (The lower case m isn’t a typo.)

The matrix Standard is the unique quality framework for the effective delivery of information, advice and/or guidance on learning and work. It promotes the delivery of high quality information, advice and/or guidance by ensuring organisations review, evaluate and develop their service; encourage the take up of professionally recognised qualifications and the continuous professional development of their staff.

See http://matrixstandard.com/ for more information.

We were delighted with the feedback, although we’re never complacent. The report won’t be available for a few weeks but it is very encouraging. We enjoyed hearing the independent validation of the WEA’s strengths after a rigorous assessment of 5 English regions. We’re also pleased that the suggested areas for improvement aligned very closely with those that we had identified in our own Self-Assessment Report, Improvement and Development Plan and during our Strategy Day.