Institute for Learning
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Professionalism is key to skills strategy, says IfL

The Institute for Learning (IfL) has welcomed John Hayes’ speech at the Association of Colleges conference on 17 November 2010 in which the further education and skills minister said that he believed strongly in the “professionalism of the sector, the importance of a qualified workforce, and power of peer-to-peer approaches in supporting quality improvement”.

Toni Fazaeli, chief executive of IfL, said, “Teachers and trainers have a central role to play in delivering the vision set out in Skills for Sustainable Growth, which the government launched this week as its strategy for economic growth and a fair and progressive society.

I think that IfL’s members – some 180,000 teachers and trainers across further education and skills – will take heart that the government says it is committed to ensuring that the further education sector has a professionally qualified teaching workforce that takes responsibility for keeping its skills up to date and relevant. IfL believes that students and employers need to be confident that they will receive excellent teaching from qualified professionals, and we support our members to be the best teachers that they can.

“IfL has a growing body of evidence that teachers and trainers, as dual professionals, are keeping up to date in both teaching methods and their vocational or subject specialism. As in other highly regarded professions, IfL members carry out continuing professional development each year and confirm this to their professional body.

“IfL also welcomes the government’s announcement that, with the profession, it will look further at how to create the conditions to encourage flexible and innovative approaches to teaching and learning that are cost-effective, responsive to employer and learner needs, and make full use of the potential of technology. IfL has called on the government to set up an independent inquiry into the very best further education teaching in the world, so that as individuals and employers in this country are expected to pay more, they can be sure they are getting the top-quality teaching and training they need for their success. IfL is keen to work with the government on an inquiry.

“Overall, the new Skills for Sustainable Growth strategy has much that is positive, including the commitment to fairness and to vocational learning, the new all-age careers service and the protection for adult and community learning. Persuading employers and individuals to pay more for provision, and adults to take out the new loans to invest in their own education and training will, however, require a culture shift. IfL has particular concerns about the impact of the educational maintenance allowance (EMA) being phased out by the Department for Education, and we fear that disadvantaged young people will be deterred from completing their courses or from starting new programmes of study. We ask the government to review this decision carefully, to take the time to ensure that fairness is achieved, and to consider retaining the EMA in some form.”

NOTES TO EDITORS

About IfL

The Institute for Learning (IfL) was formed in 2002 by further education teachers and others, and is the professional body for teachers, tutors, trainers and student teachers in the further education and skills sector, including adult and community learning, emergency and public services, FE colleges, the armed services, sixth-form colleges, the voluntary sector and work-based learning. IfL supports excellence in professional teachers’ and trainers’ practice for learners.

All teachers and trainers working in publicly funded further education and skills provision are required to register as members of IfL, undertake continuing professional development (CPD) each year and abide by the IfL Code of Professional Practice.

As a key partner in ensuring an expert further education workforce, IfL is responsible for registering teachers and trainers, for keeping an overview of teachers’ CPD, and for conferring the professional licensed practitioner status of Qualified Teacher Learning and Skills (QTLS) or Associate Teacher Learning and Skills (ATLS). For 2010/11, the standard membership fee is paid by individuals, or by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) for teachers and trainers working in publicly funded provision, as an investment in professionalism.

An independent professional body, IfL is governed by an elected Advisory Council, with the large majority from its membership, and works closely with several sector organisations, unions and employer bodies.

 

Contact IfL

IfL press office:

Lindsay Baugh               01707 392 552 or 07736 246 697

 

Email                             lindsay.baugh@howardsgate.co.uk

 

Membership and other enquiries:

The Institute for Learning

First Floor

49-51 East Road

London N1 6AH

 

 

Telephone:                    0844 815 3202

Website:                        www.ifl.ac.uk

Email:                            enquiries@ifl.ac.uk

 

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