Thanks Ken, this topic will I suspect become increasingly relevant. I will feed back on views about this from the 4th Dec. NTA meeting. Andy

________________________________________
From: Addiction Course Convenors [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Ken Barrie [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 25 November 2009 14:48
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: core skills

Hello
On Placements:
Our PG programme has offered placements as a requirement since the dawn of time.
They are very labour intensive in terms of both setting up/arranging as well as assessment/review( perhaps 6-8 hours per student).
We run
1.standard type placements:a service/setting where the student has never been before(just like nursing, social work etc).
2.work based learning placements where eth student completes in their own work setting.
3. Research placements with a research group/agency
In all cases a learning contract is devised and reviewed and graded.

The placement requirement is a big draw for students who want to evidence their employability and "enter" the drink and drugs field, as well as (work based learning) demonstrate their "promotability". For the latter it also means getting credit for being at work.

Getting agencies to agree to providing placement has become increasingly tricky. The encroachment of social work and nursing etc professions has meant that many of these agencies(both statutory and non statutory) are contracted to provide placements to nursing and social work courses. Us wee guys are getting the squeeze.
Anyway I think placements are important and am happy to discuss/research as suits.

Ken

-----Original Message-----
From: Addiction Course Convenors [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Daren Britt
Sent: 25 November 2009 12:21
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: core skills

Hi,

An interesting point here, certainly for course which seek to develop
'practitioners' then an assessed work placement is a valuable component.
It is a core aspect of training in other professions so why not ours?
Perhaps something we can be looking at as a group/association is how to
support the development of relationships with community/service
providers to provide placements. Maybe guidelines or examples of best
practice. Where courses currently have placements maybe we can undertake
some research to identify how this is experienced by the service
providers? Our first joint venture with the SSA?

On a separate note I have started to point out to service providers and
others who raise the issue of being 'too theoretical' that (certainly at
Brighton) we have a huge range of professional courses e.g. Social work,
Nursing and midwifery, counselling, a medical school (with Sussex Uni),
a School of Management, a School of Computing, Pharmacy, Wine studies
etc etc... in fact if they wish to draw the (false) distinction between
'theoretical' and 'Practical' it is we who deliver a far wider range of
practical courses than any of our FE colleagues. That is another one of
our strengths. Perhaps we need to start being more proactive and
integrating this into our presentation/narrative at the Skills
Consortium (and elsewhere)"HE: the home of vocational education".

Best wishes

Dr. Daren D Britt
(01273) 643548
Senior Lecturer in Substance Misuse
School of Applied Social Science
University of Brighton
Falmer
Brighton. BN1 9PH


-----Original Message-----
From: Addiction Course Convenors
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
A.C.Ashenhurst
Sent: 25 November 2009 09:36
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: core skills

I'll include assessed teaching programmes as a curriculum criterion.
Non-assessed teaching programmes were, understandably,  a key complaint
from service providers - where QA cannot be determined. Andy

-----Original Message-----
From: Addiction Course Convenors
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Priest,
Tony G. (Dr.)
Sent: 25 November 2009 09:27
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: core skills

I think Jim has a good point here.  Perhaps we should add something
about assessed work placement to address possible perceptions that we
are "too theoretical"?  Or would that run into the problem that not all
courses have assessed work placements?

Are we up against the limits of what can be considered "Core" for all HE
courses on this issue?

Regards,

Tony Priest
Course Director, Foundation Degree in Drug and Alcohol Counselling
University of Leicester
01604-736231

Course Website:  www.le.ac.uk/lifelonglearning/counselling/courses
________________________________________
From: Addiction Course Convenors
[[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Jim Jones
[[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 24 November 2009 20:25
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: core skills

I do fear that the NTA and commissioners do not really understand the
nature of HE. The recent debate about graduate nurses (a fact since
1968) may be repeated regarding 'graduate' drug workers. Some explicit
HE learning outcomes related to critical analysls, synthesis and relvant
transferable skills in information handling would not go amiss.

Jim Jones
(retired from HE but now immersed in practice in the field)

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