What is the key to curriculum planning for apprenticeships?
Posted on 5th November 2024 at 13:04
Effective practice in curriculum planning
Fareport considers curriculum planning strategically vital as it ensures that the training and apprenticeship standards aligns closely with industry needs. A well-planned curriculum helps bridge the skills gap, equipping apprentices with practical, job-specific competencies that meet employer expectations. By carefully mapping out learning outcomes and competencies, we provide consistency in delivery, enhance learner engagement, and improve retention rates. Additionally, a strategically designed curriculum can adapt to evolving industry trends, helping Fareport remain competitive while supporting apprentices in gaining relevant, transferable skills for long-term career growth.
How do Fareport plan the curriculum?
We review intent (curriculum design) implementation (curriculum delivery) and impact (personal development and achievement) by considering:
Target group/demographic
Sector need
Benefit to employers
Learner experience
Delivery methods
Teaching and learning methodologies and technologies
Social impact
Attainment of qualifications
Attainment of knowledge and skills
Personal achievements (Within the apprenticeship and the local community)
Career development
Apprentices securing increase salaries on completion of apprenticeship
Promotion
Recognition of a career not just a job
Social impact
Destinations
Employer attainment
Length of stay data
What is the key to curriculum planning for apprenticeships?
Work backwards! What do we want the learners to achieve??
When planning an apprenticeship curriculum, you should consider the following:
Introduction
Career aspirations
Milestones
Assessment
Adaptability
Teaching and learning
Sector changes
End-point assessments (first and last!)
You then create an apprenticeship training plan and agreement, which outlines the training and development activities that the apprentice will undertake.
Curriculum planning in action
Natasha's role as Curriculum Manager involves taking a lead on the design and curriculum of programmes to support learners with the knowledge and skills to achieve their potential throughout their training and end point assessment.
I asked Natasha how she planned our curriculum at Fareport and this is what she had to say:
"How do you plan the curriculum?
When planning a curriculum, my approach has always been to design a thorough training programme which ensures aligning learning outcomes with the end-point assessment to ensure that all activities, modules, and experiences lead logically to the competencies expected at the end of the programme. I aim to ensure throughout the programme we are preparing learners for their EPA while being able to embed their learning straight into their role to see the impact of the training and their development.
I start by thoroughly understanding the requirements of the end-point assessment, including the skills, behaviours, and knowledge that learners must demonstrate. From there, I break these down into smaller, manageable components, and then develop learning objectives that directly address these K,S,B’s.
I also work closely with stakeholders such as employers, subject matter experts, and learners. A lot of this I can do myself by communicating with learners and employers, and analysing course evaluations. However, I also ensure I listen to feedback from others who are directly speaking to our stakeholders.
Additionally, I ensure that there is a mix of teaching strategies, including interactive sessions, hands-on projects, assessments, and reflective activities, so that learners have a well-rounded experience that suits different learning styles. This approach also enables a balance of standardisation amongst are trainers while allowing them to be flexibility within their teaching.
How do you stay up to date?
To stay up to date, I make it a priority to stay informed about both industry trends and educational best practices. I do this by:
Engaging with industry: I maintain strong connections with professionals in the field and try to be aware of the latest trends and requirements for several of the qualifications.
Collaborating with experts: I consult regularly with subject matter experts to ensure the content is relevant. It is great to work with many people within our organisation who come together to create great training and assessment resources. We all have the best interest of the learners and employers at heart.
Monitoring updates from awarding bodies: I stay updated on the standards and changes from relevant awarding bodies and regulatory authorities to ensure our curriculum aligns with new policies and expectations.
What are the challenges?
One challenge I can think of, Fareport work with adult learners, particularly those on an apprenticeship who are working, learning with the added pressure of home life plus, everyone needs time to relax.
The challenge is ensuring we can maintain motivation and engagement throughout the whole of their programme for our learners can be tough. This requires thoughtful design of learning experiences that are relevant and flexible however when needed the learners can be stretched and challenged to achieve.
What's been the most difficult or most rewarding situation?
One of the most challenging situations I faced was during the curriculum redesign for a programme that had consistently learners being out of target, The difficulty lay in identifying where the curriculum was not meeting learner needs, while also ensuring compliance with the standard. I worked hard to ensure I gathered different perspectives and analysed learner feedback, and closely examined assessment outcomes.
We made changes to the programme that added structure, balance and allowed for stretching activities for learners that need that.
The result was a learner progressed on programme which supports learner motivation, engagement and tackled programme standardisation which was incredibly rewarding."
In summary, the curriculum needs to be constantly reviewed and updated to keep up with the ever-evolving demands of our workforce and personal development.
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Tagged as: Achievement, action plan, apprenticeships, Benefits, curriculum, employers, End Point Assessment, learning and development, planning, Strategy, Success
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