Undergraduate Programme Specification for Foundation Degree Teaching Assistants

The programme is designed to meet the requirements of the government's initiative on Foundation Degrees, the requirements set out in the HEFCE Foundation Degree Prospectus document (HEFCE, July 2000, re f. 00/070 and the QAA Foundation Degree Qualification Benchmarks (QAA, 2004).

In the forward to the Foundation Degree Prospectus, the Minister of Higher Education stated that the Foundation degree:

• has the potential to raise the skill level of our workforce, particularly in the new industries;
• will forge new alliances between universities, colleges and employers;
• will bring more people into higher education with a richer mix of backgrounds than ever before;
• will fuse the academic and vocational paths to high-level qualifications.

The Foundation degree for Teaching Assistants is designed to enable personnel engaged in work with children and young people, supporting learning in a variety of ways to work towards a recognised qualification at a Higher Education level. Successful completion of the Foundation degree will allow participants to progress onto level 3 of the BA Facilitating Learning and Development honours degree and then onto a PGCE Primary programme. Successful completion of the PGCE will lead to the recommendation to the General Teaching Council (GTC) for Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).

The Foundation degree for Teaching Assistants is run in collaboration with Havering College of Further and Higher Education, Redbridge College and Barking and Dagenham LEA. In Barking and Dagenham the programme is taught by UEL staff at Barking Learning Centre. With Havering College of Further and Higher Education and Redbridge College the programme is taught by staff at the colleges. All modules are core. The programme tasks are based on work that teaching assistants will already be carrying out in schools. The progressive programme is designed to enable participants to develop their confidence and skills for studying at HE level whilst in a supportive environment and using their practical day to day work as teaching assistants.

All participants will be asked to find a critical friend (possibly the class teacher in the class in which they are based) with whom they can discuss their Foundation degree work.

The role of the critical friend

The term 'critical friend' is used to describe a teacher within the school or setting who is prepared to support the student following the programme. Most Teaching Assistants will be working with one or more teachers and one of these is asked to take responsibility for ensuring that the Teaching Assistant can seek advice and support with regard to classroom based activities.
Below is an example of the notes for the critical friend which gives some more indication about the role.

Notes to the critical friend

Thank you for agreeing to support your Teaching Assistant completing the Foundation Degree. The help we ask you to give is largely in terms of being there as a sounding board to answer questions, perhaps read through plans and give advice. If you would like to play a more active role we would, of course, be delighted. We hope to be able to organise at least one meeting per year for critical friends to meet together with staff involved in the Foundation Degree for the exchange of ideas, but we know how very busy you are and are reluctant to invite you to do too much.

The programme is designed so that for all but two of the modules over the two years the students are asked to relate what they are learning through reading, seminars, workshops and tutorials to what they do in the classroom. For all of this they need your approval and so we ask you to talk through their plans with you. For some of the modules we also ask that you offer a written comment if you have the time. This would be included with the student's assessed work but would not count towards the assessment. Please feel free to add anything additional where you are able.

Students are also asked to select a study partner from colleagues on the Foundation Degree programme. This study partner will be someone to bounce ideas against and for 2 of the modules at Level 2 students are asked to go and visit their study partner in their setting to observe them and vice versa. So we ask you to support the student in doing this.

Much of the programme will involve students in working alone, reading through materials and writing up their ideas. Having both a study partner and a critical friend is crucial to ensuring that students do not feel alone in what can be a lonely process.

We thank you, in advance, for your support and feel confident that this will be a useful and productive process for us all.

All students will choose a study partner (see above), someone with whom they can talk either on the telephone or by email.

The learning strategies needed for success include:

• The ability to read critically and with comprehension a wide range of texts (internet sources, textbooks, monographs, newspapers, scholarly articles etc.)
• The ability to write fluently and in an appropriate voice, for the types of audiences specified in module guides
• The ability to discuss with a critical friend, personal tutor or study partner their developing ideas
• The ability to read UEL/college handbooks and handouts and use these to ensure that they are aware of what is required in terms of presentation of work, deadlines for assignments, assessment regulations, and so on
• The willingness to reflect on what they are learning and to seek help where necessary
• The ability to use what they are learning through their studies to enhance their practice in the classroom so that theory influences practice

The emphasis in the first module, Critical Reading and Writing is on core skills for success at HE level. All students on all programmes in the School of Education take this module. This module also works within the UEL wide skills remit. All modules make use of websites for student reference. Details of the use of information technology can be found in the module guides which students receive at the beginning of each module.

Each module carries with it a detailed module guide. This explains what the aims of the module are, how it will be taught, what the programme will be, what any homework will be, what to read and how the module will be assessed. The module guide also details the balance of teaching in terms of:

• Lectures, seminars, tutorials and workshops
• Whole group, small group and individual teaching
• Student led and tutor led sessions
• Skills based, discussion based and knowledge based classes
• Student-tutor interaction
• Work-based learning

And results in students being able to:

• Communicate effectively in speech and writing
• Use ICT for the retrieval and presentation of information
• Work independently
• Collaborate with others
• Manage their own learning
• Gather, organise and deploy evidence, data and information (both educational and political)
• Construct reasoned argument
• Identify, investigate, analyse, formulate and advocate solutions to problems, and
• Accurately and appropriately reference the sources which have been so utilised

Participants who are not exempted from any modules will normally take two modules each term over three terms. Students will therefore be classed as Full time students for UEL purposes.

Students are required to submit work to be assessed for all modules. The first piece of assessed work will be formative in the sense that the feedback on the students' work will help the student to improve so that the final piece of coursework is more successful. There is considerable diversity in terms of the assessment tasks in an effort to move away from essays towards more meaningful tasks such as reports, book reviews, group presentations, child studies, analysed observations, portfolios etc. An underpinning theme for all assessments is that the student must show that he or she has read appropriately around the subject and has linked this to the question being answered.

Assessment methods include:

• portfolios including reflective commentaries on focussed observations and enquiries;
• critical appraisal of materials and resource use;
• investigations into attitudes and practices;
• case studies;
• accounts of plans for and evaluations of professional development;
• analysis of issues which arise out of work experiences, reading or seminars

All participants will be working in schools and it is hoped that teachers in schools will act as critical friends. Work based tasks will require participants to demonstrate their skills in the workplace and bring evidence to study sessions. Participants will be required to be involved in a workplace, at least six hours a week, and this work will form an essential part of the programme experience and assessment.

All modules are compulsory.

This programme has been developed in response to HEFCE's priority towards Foundation degrees. This programme provides wide options in employment and further undergraduate study. Prepared for a range of professions and occupations, graduates will be able to obtain employment in a diverse selection of fields.

This programme provides an opportunity for personnel who are engaged in work with children and young people to enhance their professional understanding and knowledge through the integration of academic study, vocational learning and professional reflection on experience.

At level 1 participants will gain core skills through critical reading and writing, personal professional development, including knowledge about current thinking in children's learning, play and learning, understanding behaviour, practical mathematics and science

At level 2 participants will learn about research methods, monitoring and assessing learning in primary classes, supporting learners in the literacy hour, professional development and children with special educational needs, as well as celebrating learning through an individual project on creativity, ICT and technology.

You will have the opportunity to build on your experience, your skills and knowledge by gaining some theoretical appreciation which will both enhance your work with children and your status within school. The students who undertake the foundation degree for Teaching Assistants come from a variety of educational, cultural and occupational backgrounds - some more traditional than others. It is this rich diversity of age and experience which enhances the debate and discussion. We welcome all students who demonstrate their interest in and their enthusiasm for this area.

After completing level 2 of the programme you will have gained a Foundation degree for Teaching Assistants and can then join the BA (Honours) Facilitating Learning and Development degree at level 3. If you want to do teaching then at the beginning of level 3 you will need to apply through the GTTR for the primary PGCE. You will also need maths and English grade c or above GCSE or equivalent, and science GCSE or equivalent if you were born after September 1st 1979. You will also have addressed the standards to allow you to be assessed as a Higher Level Teaching Assistant.

Each student is allocated a personal tutor. Your personal tutor is the person who will help you and will work with you to plan your learning and ensure that you are making progress. Your personal tutor will also help you with any personal or academic difficulties you may be having. Tutorials may be held with other students or individually. We will all work together with you to enhance your learning experience. All staff attempt to help students identify any additional learning needs at the earliest opportunity so that appropriate help and guidance can be sought. You will also have a study partner and a critical friend (usually your class teacher) in school. You will have access to all the support available to students at the college, including guidance on fees, loans, time management and study skills.

Your work experience will be something that you build on throughout the programme. Your learning will start to impact on the children and the teachers within school from the moment that you start the programme.