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Having recently purchased an iPad (e-portfolio purposes only, you’ll understand) I was interested to see that the Pad-thingy / Tablet-thingy Wars had finally commenced.
As no-one knows what the actual use is for this type of device, we have yet to discover the ongoing name for this genre of technology. Are they Tablet Computers or Big Smartphones? Or maybe something in between? Here are a few of my own attempts at naming the genre, delivered in the context of a broadsheet headline. (Remember – you heard it here first):
Battle of the Finger-wand Rectangles
Slither Slate sales on the slide
New release brings pressure to Stroke Surfer market
OK, that last one sounds a bit sensual, I agree.
But what’s it for?
Who knows? But the interesting thing is, the iPad doesn’t actually solve a problem. It creates an opportunity. Necessity was not the mother of this invention. No-one knows what they are for, but everybody wants one, all the same. Being the first to market allows Apple to not only charge a premium for the product, but also name the genre, very much like the Hoover company did so long ago.
The demand for University places this year is much higher than it’s been in previous years. There has also been a huge surge in demand for apprenticeship places, which are seen by some as more likely to provide a secure job (or a job at all) at the end of the course. Have a look at the following article in the Guardian: School leavers choosing graduate employers over university
A City and Guilds? What’s that?
It feels like a long time ago now that I attended University in Scotland. At the time of applying I hadn’t heard of vocational qualifications. In fact, the first time I heard of Vocational Qualification was a “City and Guilds” that my cousin did in some sort of automotive discipline, aged 16. Since then, he and his two litre hot rod have won a cabinet full of trophies, which essentially makes him the famous (and fastest) cousin in the family.
Making Mistakes
I maintain that the year of my degree that taught me the most was the year placement I had two years into the course. Why? Three reasons: It helped me figure out what I didn’t want to do for the rest of my life. It gave me a context to fit my remaining academic studies around – a context that I hadn’t realised was missing beforehand. But, it also taught me how to behave in an office environment and allowed me to make mistakes that I could learn from (and boy did I make a few howlers).
The Employer’s Perspective
As there is likely to be more vocal calls for employers to create opportunities for apprenticeships, I think it is fundamental that we consider the impact that taking on apprenticeships will have to our businesses – and there are many plus points. Apprentices can be moulded to fit your business. In my experience, they can be extremely innovative too, given the right tools. However, it is imperative that apprentices must be allowed to make mistakes, and be supported once they have made them. The tricky thing is, it all comes down to how good you are at finding the right apprentices…
I’ve finally returned from my holidays and after a couple of days ploughing through a gazillion unimportant emails (apart from those emails that you sent me which were very important…) I’m back into the swing of things. It almost feels like I’ve never been away. If only I had some top-up tan lotion to keep the dream alive…
The Vocational Market
There is clearly a bit of anxiety and nervousness in the vocational market caused by a government which is in full cuts mode. Learning Assistant has over 250 centres across the UK and abroad, delivering predominantly NVQ, SVQ and QCF qualifications and we’re always trying to learn what’s going on in an ever-changing marketplace.
I recently received the following feedback from a Public Sector organisation interested in moving to electronic portfolios:
I love how the system works. I’m aware of the massive benefits it will bring. The costs are fine. However, we are under pressure to reduce expenditure immediately…
And so I thought I’d share with you a case study of one of our clients, who talks about how the e-portfolio has dramatically saved delivery costs. In the movie below, Gabriel describes why Learning Assistant was so easy for his Learners and Trainers to adopt and how this has benefitted his business.
Just when you thought I was going to keep this exciting news to myself, here is a sneak preview of the upcoming new release of the Learning Assistant e-portfolio. The main focus of this release is, as expected, a bunch of tools under the hood to help your training centre get to grips with the new Qualification and Credit Framework. Just wait till you hear that baby purr!
Introducing – QCF Engine
nice pipes...
In keeping with our history of innovation, Learning Assistant is delighted to announce the launch of a new set of tools designed to help our customers benefit from the new Qualifications and Credit Framework or QCF.
We call this new feature QCF Engine. Like all engines, our new feature consists of a variety of individual parts that work together. They are: The Unit Cloud, The Builder, The Rules of Combination Editor, The Wizard. This will allow you to deliver your current NVQ and SVQ awards in parallel with the new QCF courses.
The Unit Cloud
Up until now, courses within Learning Assistant have been managed within Course Manager as separate entities. With the introduction of The Unit Cloud, Learning Assistant can now provide a more unit focused solution, in accordance with QCF.
The Unit Cloud contains all the units that are associated with your qualifications. Units can now be associated with more than one course, allowing easier management by providing a central access point for unit customisation. Units can also be duplicated if the same unit needs to be customised in two different ways.
The Builder
Within the new Course Manager, Units are incorporated into Qualifications and ordered using the Course Builder tool. Adding units to the course can be done in three ways: Firstly units can easily be added from the Unit Cloud. Secondly, units can be automatically imported. Units can also be manually created and edited. The Builder also supports the creation and editing of Task Units.
The Rules of Combination Editor
Once a course has been put together using the Builder, rules of combination can be applied to the Course Units by using the Rules of Combination Editor. Within the ROC editor, units can be organised into sub-groups beneath the two top-level groups: Mandatory Units and Optional Units.
The QCF Wizard
The QCF Wizard allows you – and your Learner – to see exactly which combination of Units is required to complete a course. The wizard provides an overview of the available units whilst also highlighting the rules of combination which need to be met in order for the qualification to be achieved. Additionally, the wizard also highlights the requirement for both the total number of credits required by the learner, and the total number of credits required at the level of the qualification.
If you’re anything like me, the thought of parting with your hard earned cash makes you quite nervous. I know I’m far more inclined to trust the opinion of a fellow consumer than I am the marketing department of the company that’s trying to sell me the product. That’s why when I’m looking at a page on Amazon, I skip right past all the stuff about how wonderful the product is and go straight to the buyer reviews at the bottom of the page. And with the exception of a few easily-spotted crackpots, these product reviews tend to be spot-on.
So when it comes to buying an e-portfolio, who can the customer trust? I’d like to think it was me, but for the reasons I’ve just described above, I know it probably isn’t. As the Managing Director of an e-portfolio provider, I know my opinion will never be viewed as objective.
So who is impartial in all this? Well, for me, there’s only one type of organisation that work hard to maintain their impartiality – the major Awarding Bodies. For example, Learning Assistant has recently become the first e-portfolio endorsed by SQA (Scottish Qualification Authority). This was achieved by successfully completing SQA’s stringent evaluation process for e-portfolios.
As an e-portfolio supplier, I know this an important measure for my customers as it demonstrates our commitment to being the best solution available. But it’s also of great value to anyone looking to purchase an e-portfolio, as you no longer just have to trust what the suppliers are saying…
Sue Macfarlane, SQA’s Head of Specialist Awards and Services said: “SQA is delighted to announce that we have endorsed Learning Assistant’s e-portfolio, which supports the delivery of a range of SQA awarded SVQs. Our Endorsement of Learning Assistant’s e-portfolio demonstrates that it is a robust and high quality resource that will be of great use to both candidates and delivering centres.”
If I were a Training Provider delivering SQA awards, I know who’s opinion I would value most…
