Teraknor

Time and time again I encounter further education establishments that expand, contract and reorganise their departmental structures. Leaving in their wake, confusion and a work force, if it survives disenfranchised and often unable to maintain a continuum of learning.  On one hand, senior management demand growth, success and performance. Yet fail to provide their educators with the time and opportunity to develop successful programmes of study. Looking back at programmes I have had to develop in further and higher education, it has been through maintaining and developing these programmes that has encouraged their success. They don't just happen; you have to work on them, tweak and manipulate them as well as watch over their ebb and flow.  Success does not 'just happen' you have to have a mind to the strategic and think in terms of three or more years. Progression, completion and retention is never overnight. So, please think on as you reshuffle when things ...

Was in conversation with a further education college recently, sadly the tale being shared were nothing unusual, having heard this many a time before. It focusses on the pedantry of external verifiers (now known as standards verifiers). In the particular case cited the verifier block a centre because they removed capital letters from an assessment criterion. I am not entirely sure of the detail and will take this citation as an allegory of when the verifier becomes too obsessed with needless detail and gains a self perceived God complex. We encourage centres to 'copy' the assessment criteria from the unit into the students assignment. They must not add nor remove anything from that criteria. This is appropriate and something I support. It is appropriate to 'advise' on minor indiscretions and direct a centre to 'not do it again' but block when a capital is a lowercase and vice versa is taking it to the extreme. The reason cited is that it changes the ass...

Some call her Shirley, our children call her mum and for me, after 23 years, she is my entrepreneur. From a long car journey conversation last September until now, the idea (her idea). Has moved from headspace, to social group, onto registered sole trader and now a business. With no loans, no external funding, imagination, the good advice of others and loads of enthusiasm. Shirley has moved from idea to income. Even more impressive, is the reality that she is doing something that does not seem to exist out there. Community bread baking courses. You can pay (through the nose) for an artisan course, at some fine dining establishments or well known cookery schools. But as a group in your own local kitchen, the easily forgotten art of baking ones own bread can be acquired. A Bun in the Oven is developing, growing and evolving at a sensible pace. From corporate packages for team building events to local community groups (or children's parties). Shirley can cr...