Ofsted round-up – This week: VLEs come under the eye of inspectors

Virtual Learning Environments: an evaluation of their development in a sample of educational settings

With the routine use of computers becoming all pervasive, there is an expectation that Virtual Learning Environments will form a significant part of the next generation’s experience of learning. Ofsted has inspected several providers to evaluate how VLEs are developing.

VLEs started to be introduced in educational settings around the year 2000 with computers allowing remote access to learning, and was encouraged in the Government’s 2005 strategy paper ‘Harnessing technology – transforming learning and children’s services’.

The Ofsted inspection found that in most of the provision surveyed, the use of VLEs to enhance learning was not widespread and that the exploitation of VLEs at curriculum level resembled more of a cottage industry than a national technological revolution. The best VLEs reviewed allowed learners to reinforce their routine work, or catch up on missed lessons.

Ofsted found that the main use of VLE by students in colleges was on site, albeit out of lessons and that where there was less access to computers at the provider, for example in some adult and community learning and work-based learning providers, more time was spent by learners on the VLE at home.

One of the main concerns to arise from the inspection was the cost of VLEs with the main resource concern for all those surveyed being the unquantified cost of teaching staff time to develop material for use on the intranet, and the routine work of specialist staff in maintaining the system and supporting tutors. Ofsted found that one work-based learning provider was using funds provided through a Learning and Skills Council scheme to pay for a developer on a short-term project; without that funding they felt they did not have the capacity to do any significant work on introducing a VLE. Although Ofsted found that none of the work-based learning providers were relying on specific external grants, all would welcome assistance.

Maximus Employment and Training UK – Workstep, Devon

Summary of grades awarded:

Effectiveness of provision Satisfactory: Grade 3

Capacity to improve Satisfactory: Grade 3

Achievement and standards Satisfactory: Grade 3

Quality of provision Satisfactory: Grade 3

Leadership and management Satisfactory: Grade 3

Equality of opportunity Contributory grade: Satisfactory: Grade 3

Sector subject area:

Preparation for life and work Satisfactory: Grade 3

In August 2008, MAXIMUS Employment and Training UK acquired Westcountry Training and Consultancy Service (WTCS). MAXIMUS Inc has been in operation since 1975 and provides welfare to work programmes in the USA, Canada, Australia, Israel and the UK. At the time of inspection, 76 participants were on the MAXIMUS Workstep programme, including some on the pre-employment stage.

Ofsted found that the overall effectiveness of MAXIMUS’s Workstep provision was satisfactory, with achievement, standards and that quality of the Workstep provision being satisfactory also. MAXIMUS demonstrates a satisfactory capacity to improve and has so far implemented improvements in performance monitoring and accountability with regard to contractual compliance and business needs. The self-assessment process was found to be satisfactory and includes observations of key processes and feedback from participants and employers.

Key strengths include good coaching and training provided by employment consultants and very effective support for participants. Ofsted found that the key areas for improvement include the insufficiently specific target-setting, insufficient focus on literacy, language and numeracy skills for the workplace and inadequate monitoring of the quality of provision.

The inspection found that achievement and standards are satisfactory with only 25% of participants having progressed into open employment. Of these, 60% have sustained progression in open employment for at least six months. The proportion of participants leaving the programme without progressing into open employment is high.

YMCA Derbyshire, Derby

Summary of grades awarded:

Effectiveness of provision Satisfactory: Grade 3

Capacity to improve Satisfactory: Grade 3

Achievement and standards Satisfactory: Grade 3

Quality of provision Satisfactory: Grade 3

Leadership and management Satisfactory: Grade 3

Equality of opportunity Contributory grade Satisfactory: Grade 3

Sector subject area:

Entry to employment Satisfactory: Grade 3

The Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) Derbyshire is a registered charity and a limited company by guarantee that began providing Government-funded training as a subcontractor in 2001 and obtained a contract in its own right in 2004. Providing Entry to Employment (E2E) programmes for 16-18 year olds, learners an achieve qualifications in childcare, hospitality and catering, literacy and numeracy.At the time of the inspection, there were 20 learners on E2E programmes.

Ofsted has found that the overall effectiveness of the provision is satisfactory, with the E2E provision, achievement and standards and the quality of provision all gaining satisfactory grades. YMCA is found to demonstrate satisfactory capacity to improve its provision with the provision growing substantially since it started to offer Government funded programmes two years ago.

Key strengths within YMCA Derbyshire include the good development of skills to improve learners’ lifestyles and well-being, good vocational training and a particularly effective strategy to respond to local needs. Key areas of improvement were found to be the low achievement of literacy and numeracy key skills qualifications, poor planning of individual learning and target-setting and insufficiently well developed quality improvement systems.

Achievements and standards were found to be satisfactory. The achievement rate for Council for Awards in Children’s Care and Education qualifications is very high with 89% of childcare learners achieving a qualification is 2007/08. The rate of learner progress has increased in the last year and overall learners’ progress is satisfactory. In 2006/07, 30% of learners progressed into further training, education or employment, however in 2007/08 this had improved to 48%. Only 6% of learners found work at the end of their course despite a high number of learners achieving the key objectives set out in the learning plan, of which Ofsted has found to be insufficiently challenging.

Natalie Hailes