Decolonising the curriculum engages learners – but needs time

Contemporary texts can draw parallels with learners’ own lives, writes Sarah Wilson

I work in a local community with a large African and Afro-Caribbean population. As the curriculum manager for English, it’s important to me that inclusion and promotion of equality and diversity are significant features of the curriculum.  

In my department we have come up with pedagogical strategies to decolonise the curriculum, in a way that makes teaching and learning a more transparent, relatable and inspiring experience.  

So we have embedded texts that are culturally rich and bring to the forefront challenging themes that address culture, disenfranchisement and the myths of colonialism. These texts also give a voice to the migrant experience and how those experiences have helped to shape contemporary Britain.  

For instance, we have moved away from using canonical texts such as Animal Farm by George Orwell, published in 1945, to excerpts from The Lonely Londoners by Trinidadian author Sam Selvon, published in 1956. 

Meanwhile, among the quick reads for lower-entry learners we now have Hello Mum by British-Nigerian author Bernadine Evaristo from 2010. This story explores gang culture from the viewpoint of a 14-year-old boy, who communicates with his mother through letters. 

The latter texts reflect the diversity of local community members and therefore create a necessary sense of connectedness with the reader. 

Recognition and promotion of black and female writers who address the “black experience” through various lenses, voices and genres are also a critical part of the curriculum.  

Dark comedies such as The Other Black Girl by black American author Zakiya Dalila Harris focus on the racial micro-aggressions within the workplace.

Published this year, this book follows a woman who is at first the only black person working at a publishing company, and what happens when another black woman is hired too. 

Meanwhile, fantasy novellas such as Given by Nandi Taylor, a Canadian author of Afro-Caribbean descent, take readers into an empire inspired by her heritage. The tale, published last year, helps to demystify assumptions about black writers.  

Contemporary texts with culturally relevant themes often have strong parallels with the lives of many young people. This can encourage engagement, even from the most reluctant readers. 

This is especially important for learners from marginalised backgrounds without pre-requisite English and maths qualifications, who have difficulty in accessing learning. 

So alongside changes to the English curriculum, offering bespoke, full-time English and maths programmes for 16-18 learners can also widen their participation.  

For example, a student who responded really well to Hello Mum was one of our male learners with additional learning support needs (ADHD and dyslexia). The student presented challenging and combative behaviour at times, so his reaction to reading the text was particularly rewarding.

He was initially reluctant to participate in reading out loud in class but as the weeks went on became increasingly engaged.

When we reached halfway, the student came to my office excitedly to reveal that he had predicted what would happen in the next chapters and was starting to analyse the motivations of the characters.

This culminated in the student writing a deeply layered book review. Despite being enrolled on a functional skills level 1 programme, the student was able to show high-level text analysis skills, recognise the wider societal themes and make valid connections between them.

This shows why texts should be decolonised and made relevant and engaging for marginalised communities. 

Leaders must factor in staff workload

However, the main challenge to transforming the curriculum is time: the time to construct resources that support innovative and advanced teaching, as well as re-shaping how Western frameworks have been taught.

Leadership must recognise the importance of factoring this into staff workload and planning. Opportunities also need to be created for more joined-up working across the sector, with providers actively engaged in decolonising the curriculum able to share best practice.

These are localised curriculum actions I am steering, to help address a much wider, national problem.

Behaviour management requires a united staff front

Even if you’re being shouted at, don’t raise your voice, writes Errol Ince

Having worked in FE for over 30 years, I have experience of dealing with behaviour in colleges in many different contexts. Whether I’m dealing with apprentices or with altercations in corridors, I have tried and tested an array of techniques.  

Above all else, I’ve learnt that establishing genuine relationships with students is by far the most effective tool in the behaviour management toolbox. A person’s ability to form a rapport with others will positively impact them in all situations. 

Making a connection with a student does not mean becoming their best friend. It’s about creating an environment in which people feel valued and supported to share their ideas in a structured way.

For example, I taught a student who was consistently looking out of the window. Each time he lost concentration, I asked him another question to draw him back into the conversation and into the learning.

We joked about this – rather than me shouting at him to pay attention – and the student’s engagement increased. 

We all learn from our mistakes and I certainly have. Many years ago, a student made a comment about the shirt I was wearing. I responded with a comment back about his own dress sense and immediately realised that I’d crossed a line.

Focus on the most dominant character within a group

I’d been too personal, and rather than “making a rapport”, I’d upset the student and lost my connection with him. It took some time to repair this relationship and was a clear lesson to me. 

As a teacher, raising your voice rarely has a positive impact. I’d go as far as saying NEVER escalate your voice. If a student is shouting, the calmer you need to stay.

Not always easy, but two angry people will have a phenomenally worse outcome than one angry person. The only time I would break this rule is if a student was putting themselves, or someone else, in danger – “STOP!”. 

I’ve come across many lively characters in the classroom – all vying for the attention of others and myself. Low-level disruption in this setting can severely impact learning, so needs to be dealt with swiftly and firmly.

Focusing on the most dominant character within a group is key – picking them out, addressing them by their name and challenging them politely and positively where possible. 

As well as teaching, I’ve spent much time as senior manager and an associate inspector, helping to maintain behaviour across communal areas in the college. This often brings different challenges from those we face in the classroom, but the golden rules remain the same. 

Colleges need rules to keep people safe, such as wearing ID, not having hoods up and (at the moment) wearing face coverings. Young people rarely respond well to constantly being told to do something they don’t want to do, so delivery is key to ensuring a positive response. 

Unlike your own class of students, you are unlikely to know the names of everyone walking around the campus. However, all should be wearing their college ID, so make a point of looking at this and addressing them by their name.

This immediately establishes a connection and indicates that you are talking very personally to them. 

Taking a positive and friendly approach will almost always elicit a better response. Rather than shouting, “Take that hood off”, I’d approach a student, ask them what course they are on and then ask them to remove their hood, explaining why we have this rule in place. 

Luckily, serious incidents at our college are rare, but we know they can happen. If staff have formed effective relationships with students through high-quality day-to-day behaviour management, there is a far better chance that more serious situations can be de-escalated quickly. 

Consistency is key. All staff members need to be enforcing the same rules and challenging unacceptable behaviour in the same way.

Behaviour management requires a united front across the board – so students know what is required of them and when, no matter who is patrolling the corridor!

TEC Partnership leader appointed new Hull principal

Hull College has appointed a leader at a grade one college group as its new permanent principal and CEO.

Debra Gray, currently principal of the grade one Grimsby Institute and deputy chief executive of the TEC Partnership, will start on 4 April 2022.

She will be the sixth leader at Hull in two years, after Chris Malish handed in his notice in August having only served since April, owing to difficulty working away from his family.

College ‘delighted’ Gray will be taking over as principal

College chair Lesley Davies said she was “delighted that Debra will be taking over the leadership of the college at such an exciting time.

“Debra’s experience not only as a leader of an outstanding college, but in curriculum quality and innovation will be a perfect complement to the ambitious strategic plan we are setting ourselves.”

Gray was made an MBE for services to education in the Queen’s 2020 birthday honours.

Appointment comes after bailouts, campus closures, and investigations

Hull College has been through the wringer, having faced multiple financial and management problems, which first became public when it received a £42 million bailout from the government in 2018 as part of a Fresh Start process.

Michelle Swithenbank resigned as principal in December 2019, after an investigation into nepotism and financial wrongdoing at the college found “no impropriety” on her part. 

Around that time, the then FE Commissioner Richard Atkins launched his own investigation into the college and a report leaked to FE Week last year revealed how the close family of senior postholders had been handed jobs at the college while staff did not speak out for “fear of being exited at short notice”.

Since Swithenbank left, the college has been led by the college’s then-vice principal for finance Darryn Hedges; followed by Hull’s former deputy principal turned Hopwood Hall leader Derek O’Toole; followed by then Newcastle College principal Tony Lewin; before former Dudley College boss Lowell Williams stepped in as interim before and after Malish.

In April 2019, the college announced it would offload its Harrogate campus to Leeds City College as part of restructuring plans following the Fresh Start bailout.

During Williams’ time at the helm, Hull announced it would close its campus in Goole, which he said they had “no need for”.

College intervention – six things we learned in the FE Commissioner’s annual report

The Further Education Commissioner (FEC), Shelagh Legrave, has published her first annual report. The report covers the intervention work of the commissioner and her team from August 2020 to the end of July 2021.

Here’s what you need to know.

1. Number of colleges entering intervention sharply falls, but might go up again

Four colleges entered formal intervention last academic year (July 2020-August 2021), down from 13 in the previous year. Three of those were due to tripping financial triggers and one was due to quality concerns. The colleges are not identified in the report.

The most recent intervention reports listed include Northern College, Nottingham College, City of Wolverhampton College and Shrewsbury Colleges Group. 

One college had a “refreshed intervention assessment” this year due to the “extended” period of time which it has been subject to intervention measures.

However, income and cost pressures in 2022/23 are a risk on the new commissioner’s radar.

Speaking to FE Week ahead of the launch of the annual report, Shelagh Legrave said that she has heard anecdotally that colleges have under-recruited 16-19 year olds this year “because they’ve stayed on at school.”

“I think the challenge is going to come in 2022/23, when income will be down” Legrave said, adding “there are huge cost pressures on colleges this year. You’ve also got the national insurance increase and you’ve got inflation running significantly higher with no increase in funding rates. It’s going to be tough.”

2. More colleges exited intervention

Ten colleges had their intervention status lifted, up from five in the previous reporting year.

Of the ten, six exited due to improvements in performance.

FE Week investigated the improvement journeys of West Nottinghamshire College, Lancaster and Morecombe College and Warrington and Vale College earlier this year.

Two colleges exited due to structural change and two because of education administration. 

As of the end of July 2021, there were 22 colleges in formal intervention in total.

3. FEC-backed mergers continued

The year also saw the completion of five FEC-backed structural reviews, detailed in the annual report. These include college mergers such as East Riding College joining TEC Partnership in August 2020, Cheadle and Marple Sixth Form College merging with Trafford College in May 2021, and Highbury College merging with Portsmouth College, forming City of Portsmouth College, in July 2021.

4. Diagnostics double

During the 2020/21 year, 25 diagnostic assessments took place which is more than double the number that took place last year (11). 

These assessments, usually conducted over two-days by a team of deputy FE commissioners and FE advisers, involve discussions with senior executive staff, governors, staff, students and stakeholders and are designed to give an objective view about a college’s financial and/or quality plans. 

Plans can either be endorsed by the commissioner, or there will be recommendations for changes and follow-up visits. Only two college plans received immediate endorsement.

In “exceptional circumstances”, a diagnostic visit can lead to formal intervention if the commissioner’s team finds “significant risk”. 

One such escalation took place this year. 

Northern College received a diagnostic assessment in February 2021 due to financial health concerns and received an intervention visit a month later. A structure and prospects appraisal of the college was ordered and, as FE Week reported in August, the college retained its independence having fought off a potentially terminal ESFA clawback. 

The findings and outcomes of diagnostic assessments are not published.

5. National leaders are keeping busy

Teams of serving college leaders and governance experts, the ‘national leaders of further education’ and ‘national leaders of governance’, supported 40 colleges this year, according to the annual report. This is down from 50 in the previous year. 

The national leaders’ programme, as well as the wider FEC team of deputy commissioners and advisers, have been criticised for not having any non-white members within their ranks. 

In an exclusive interview with FE Week earlier this year, Shelagh Legrave said this was “reflective of the small number of BAME leaders in the sector” adding “I will certainly work with everybody to try and ensure that there is a greater diversity.”

Applications are currently open for new national leaders of further education and national leaders of governance. Applications close on 31 December 2021.

6. ‘More resources’ might be needed in the future

Since assuming office this October, Legrave has talked about reshaping the further education commissioner role in to one that more actively supports colleges. This already includes a number of new ‘active support’ measures including allowing any college to request a diagnostic assessment, a new ‘curriculum efficiency and financial sustainability’ programme and publishing best practice management accounts. 

According to the annual report, this could go further in the near future, with the commissioner gaining additional responsibilities through funding and accountability reforms. 

It will be the FEC’s responsibility to support colleges that are found to not be delivering local skills needs and that underperforming on the new ‘skills measure’ which is currently under consultation.

Asked whether these new responsibilities will trigger a change in the expertise required within the FEC team, Legrave told FE Week that “as we extend active support to more people, we will need more resource” but added “we haven’t been given a budget yet for 22/23.” 

Employers keep asking for unnecessary maths and English grades from apprentices

The issue facing aspiring apprentices will be even more pressing if BTECs are defunded, writes Henry Faulkner-Ellis

Imagine a school leaver has just completed their GCSEs and wants to get on to an apprenticeship scheme. They search through the vacancies online but find that almost every advert asks for qualifications they don’t have.

This is currently the case for a significant number of young people.

To address this issue, the government needs to re-assess how minimum English and maths requirements are incorporated into apprenticeship training.

The government must consider how they can better support employers in taking on apprentices who do not meet them.

In 2014/15 the government made it mandatory for all apprentices to continue studying towards a level 2 qualification in English and maths (e.g. achieving a minimum GCSE grade of 4), where an apprentice did not already meet this requirement.

While this was intended to ensure apprenticeships were preparing individuals for the labour market, the extra requirements created disincentives for employers and providers to take on apprentices who did not already meet minimum requirements.

Both providers and employers have reported filtering out candidates without minimum English and maths requirements, as these candidates are seen to be less likely to pass the end-point assessment.

Only half of all young people from disadvantaged backgrounds (as measured by eligibility for free school meals) achieved a grade 9-4 in English and maths at key stage 4 in the last academic year.

Because of this low rate, the requirement to continue studying towards level 2 qualifications in English and maths may have contributed to the particular decline in apprenticeship starts among disadvantaged young people, as highlighted in our recent NFER research report.

But until now it has not been possible to assess how widespread minimum English and maths requirements are.

For the first time, the DfE has published detailed vacancy information from its Find An Apprenticeship (FAA) service, where employers can advertise apprenticeship vacancies.

While the platform only includes a subset of all apprenticeship opportunities, it still provides the most comprehensive picture yet of apprenticeship entry requirements.

Our analysis finds that almost 80 per cent of all apprenticeship vacancies advertised on the FAA website between August 2018 and October 2021 mention English or maths as qualifications required to fill the vacancy.

While this percentage increases with the level associated with the apprenticeship, we still find that 71 per cent of intermediate apprenticeships (level 2) mention English or maths in their qualification requirements.

Considering only half of disadvantaged young people achieve these qualifications at KS4, these requirements are a significant obstacle to having more disadvantaged young people doing apprenticeships.

While some apprenticeships require high levels of English and maths skills, there are apprenticeships where only some aspects of these skills might be required. For example, a social care apprentice is unlikely to require the same levels of numerical skills as an engineering apprentice.

Despite this, we find that the majority of vacancies across all sectors mention English or maths requirements – even in the sectors where an apprentice might not necessarily need to meet minimum requirements at the start of their apprenticeship.

This suggests that employers are imposing minimum requirements because of how the system is designed, and not because they are a prerequisite for the actual apprenticeship.

These are not prerequisites for the actual apprenticeship

While there is no doubt that numeracy and literacy are important for young people to succeed in the labour market, it is clear that the current minimum requirements act as a barrier to young people accessing apprenticeships. This is particularly important as these young people will be even more restricted in their options if plans to de-fund some BTECs go ahead in 2024. 

To ensure that all young people are able to access a suitable route at post-16, the government needs to re-assess how English and maths requirements are incorporated into apprenticeships.

They should also consider how they can better support and incentivise employers to take on apprentices who do not meet minimum requirements before starting their apprenticeships.

The new white paper is far too vague about prison education

The strategy is making the right noises, but key details – including any new funding for prison education – are worryingly absent, writes Jon Collins

The focus on getting people leaving prison into jobs in the government’s new prisons strategy white paper is welcome.

But education is the key building block that enables prison-leavers to secure employment. This must be a priority if the goals of the white paper are to be achieved. 

It is clear that reform of prison education is needed. On the same day that the white paper was published, Ofsted published its annual report, which identified prisons as being the worst of all the areas that they inspect.  

About 60 per cent of prisons are rated as ‘requires improvement’ or ‘inadequate’. The equivalent figure in other parts of the FE sector is just 20 per cent. 

Good education is key to helping prison-leavers find work, so it is unsurprising that only 14 per cent of prison-leavers are in employment after six months.  

More than 40 per cent of adults leaving prison reoffend within a year. 

But while there is much that is welcome in this white paper towards changing that, it is short on detail. 

For instance, it only commits to introducing in-cell technology in 11 more prisons by summer 2022. Plans for roll-out need to go further and faster. In-cell technology must also complement – not replace – face-to-face teaching.  

Employers often want transferable skills, and team building, problem solving and communications skills are best developed during group work in the classroom. And prison learners cannot access these classrooms if there are not enough officers to bring them from their cells.  

So a commitment in the white paper to increase the number of prison officers is welcome, but may be difficult to deliver unless low retention rates can be addressed.  

More training for staff to build a prison culture that values learning is also a positive step, as is the proposal for more specialist support on education for prison governors. 

There is, however, still a way to go. There is nothing, for instance, on how to better support prison teachers. 

There is nothing on how to better support prison teachers

The white paper also promises a new “prisoner education service”, a manifesto commitment from 2019, but two years on, it is still unclear how that will differ from what is already in place.

Prison education departments already provide the basic literacy, numeracy and vocational skills promised in the white paper, while assessments already take place when people arrive in prison.  

Meanwhile, the promise of better integration between classroom-based learning and the broader prison regime on literacy and numeracy (for example, by embedding work on functional skills into workshops) is also welcome. But again, little is said about how it will be achieved.  

At the same time, the focus on basic and vocational skills is too narrow. Prison learners, particularly those serving long sentences, need to have the chance to progress and to pursue a range of educational opportunities.

Learning has a broader value than solely as a route into work, and higher levels of education can also lead to better jobs. 

It is also unclear what further funding for prison education specifically, if any, will be forthcoming.  

At the same time, there are other elements of the white paper that are positive. The overarching focus on resettlement and on getting prison-leavers into work is the right approach.  

There is explicit recognition that prison education is currently “not good enough” and a commitment to “drive year-on-year improvements to Ofsted grades”. 

This includes the intention that in a decade, the majority of prisons will have provision of comparable quality to further education in the community. 

It also good to see the white paper reiterate the existing commitment to expand the use of secure laptops and develop new digital content.  

If the government wants to succeed in significantly boosting the employment opportunities of prison-leavers, they must first get prison education right.  

But without significant additional investment and much clearer detail, this will be impossible to achieve.

The vice principal role is now increasingly complex

The vice principal is expected to have multiple competencies but rarely gets enough development, writes Rhys Davies

The role of vice principal often covers responsibility for curriculum and quality. It has always been complex, requiring leaders to spin numerous plates at once. 

Now, the nature of these challenges has evolved. Vice principals may have had  time to reflect on the landscape and think what it may mean for them over the next two to three years.  

They will need to help the nation rise to the challenges that lie ahead, and preparing young people and adults for a transformed skills and labour market will be high on their priority lists. 

At the same time, they will also need to consider other prevailing and emerging issues that will impact on curriculum.

This includes the drive towards an environmentally sustainable future, addressing the consequences of increasing urbanisation and technological and demographic change, and the constant need to maintain high quality standards. 

An inclusive, decolonised and diverse curriculum is also an important feature for leaders to get properly to grips with. 

Meanwhile, the government’s Skills for Jobs white paper, published in January 2021, provides vice principals and other leaders with a framework for how this pans out.

It is clear that relationships with industry and other partners will be fundamental – whether they are focused on collaboration and curriculum co-creation, networking, or ensuring that the curriculum is future-proofed by close liaison with companies leading technological advances. 

So, curriculum and quality leaders will be vital to UK’s Covid recovery, but are they ready to meet the evolving challenge?

Professor David Greatbatch at York University and independent consultant Sue Tate summarised the situation well in their joint government document, “Teaching, Leadership and Governance in Further Education in 2018”. 

It reveals that senior leaders are expected to have a sound understanding of pedagogy, knowledge of how best to secure high-quality outcomes, be astute in managing budgets and sources of income and possess considerable awareness of the driving forces behind curriculum design. 

Little wonder, then, in a publication this year entitled “Teachers and Leaders in Vocational Education and Training”, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development points to the need for high-quality and ongoing professional development for leaders of curriculum and quality. 

It reads: “While leaders in VET require multiple competences to carry out their diverse responsibilities, many of them are not well prepared before taking up their role, and might not receive the support they need throughout their career in terms of mentoring and professional development.” 

That need for ongoing professional development is echoed by college leaders in England. They recognise that today’s senior leaders must be able to access bespoke, high-quality CPD and mentoring.  

They point to the increased complexity of decision-making in recent years and warn that, without support, there is an intrinsic danger of siloed and prescriptive solutions that fail to achieve the needed outcomes. 

There is a danger of prescriptive solutions

Responding to this need and the views of senior figures across the sector, the Education and Training Foundation (ETF) is creating a new programme of support it believes will offer crucial support to senior leaders. It is called Strategic Innovation for Skills.

The first cohort will be delivered via residential stays, a conference and online workshops between January 7 and March 31. The cost is met by the participant’s institution.

It will help participants learn from effective practice both within the UK and overseas, showcasing innovative pedagogy and thinking around quality improvement.

It will also develop leaders’ networking and collaborative skills, which are vital for building close relationships with employers and other stakeholders.  

Feedback from senior leaders while the programme has been developed has been positive.

Moreover, it is designed specifically for those senior colleagues, such as vice principals, who are often reluctant to prioritise their own needs in the face of the many urgent, competing demands they must deal with. 

Its creation is an investment both in those individuals and the wider sector at a time when there are so many expectations being placed

The FE Week Podcast: Christmas review of 2020-21

In this episode, Shane is joined by deputy news editor Billy, commissioning editor Jess, and senior reporter Fraser to discuss their top story picks from the last year.

We wish you a merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!

IfATE grants extensions to more apprenticeship assessment flexibilities

The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education has extended three more flexibilities for apprenticeship assessments into the new year in response to the Omicron variant.

Instead of being switched off at the end of this month, the trio of discretions which apply to all apprenticeships will now run until midnight on 28 February 2022.

The three flexibilities allow:

  1. Changes to be made to who sits on the end point assessment interview/discussion panel (when someone in addition to the independent assessor is specified)
  2. Suitable evidence of achievements to be used in place of functional skills qualifications at gateway. IfATE say other mandated qualifications are covered under temporary discretions
  3. Extension to the length of the end-point assessment period where specified

Delivery director for the institute Rob Nitsch said: “Our priority remains the safety of employers, apprentices and off-the-job training and assessment providers, whilst allowing apprentices to carry on and complete their apprenticeships with minimum disruption whilst maintaining quality.

“We hope that the extension of the flexibilities for two months will play a significant role in doing just this and we will monitor the situation and make any further adjustments as necessary.”

This comes after seven other flexibilities, also introduced to help the sector through the Covid-19 pandemic, were extended for use until next March.

Education officials have scrambled together a response to the Omicron variant after prime minister Boris Johnson announced the imposition of new restrictions this week.

Ofsted suspended inspections set for next week, except where there are concerns about safeguarding, so providers can prepare contingency measures for next term.

The Department for Education also published an “urgent” update on Thursday, telling provider leaders what to do about January exams and plans to introduce daily contact testing for students under 18.

IfATE has updated guidance about using more than 60 temporary discretions for specific apprenticeships, some of which have been given a six-month extension following requests from their sectors. Others will be available until midnight 28 February.