Colleges lecturers professional standards

Initial Professional Standards for Teaching / Facilitating Learning

Context and Rationale

Lecturers must be able to work both independently and cooperatively within a diverse range of learning, teaching and assessment environments. They will carry this out with learners from a wide range of social, cultural, economic and educational backgrounds. Within their lecturing practice they will use a variety of approaches to empower, motivate and support learners to achieve success, develop knowledge, skills and attitudes for learning, personal development and employment. Lecturers will also evaluate and reflect on the impact of their practice and their professional development on learning and on sustainable education.

Standards

The lecturer should be able to:

1. Create and maintain an interactive, supportive and safe learning environment that promotes learning.
2. Communicate effectively and develop an ethos of mutual respect with learners, fellow curriculum team members and other professionals and external agencies to promote learning and positive behaviour.
3. Implement effectively a broad range of strategies to promote active and independent learning at various levels by using different modes of delivery and technologies.
4. Identify and take appropriate actions to address the collective and individual needs of learners.
5. Promote positive attitudes to human diversity and global citizenship through accessible learning and teaching resources.
6. Use learning, teaching and assessment and feedback strategies and resources effectively to meet diverse learning needs.
7. Implement a range of strategies to evaluate the quality and impact of teaching on the learning experience and reflect on the implications for future practice.

Indicative Content

• relevant legislation, standards and guidelines as they apply to children, young people and adults: health and safety, protection and welfare, antidiscrimination and equality
• the lecturer as a positive role model for learners
• methods for promoting positive behaviour and dealing with inappropriate behaviour
• codes of conduct, e.g. college, partner schools, CLD, employers
• the impact of lecturers' and learners' individual behaviours and attitudes
• group dynamics
• management and delivery of learning and teaching activities
• institutional, cultural, technological and individual barriers to learning and how to overcome them
• challenge and motivation of learners; high but realistic expectations
• interpersonal skills, professionalism, ethics
• information literacy skills required by learners
• improvement of broad generic skills required by learners
• awareness of techniques for profiling essential skills
• information about learners' previous experiences
• social, cultural, environmental and emotional factors and their effect on learning
• differentiation strategies that contextualise and personalise the learning experience
• contextualisation of learning linked with industry
• effective and appropriate communication with learners, colleagues, other professionals, employers and external agencies
• appropriate use of ICT and appropriate emerging and assistive technologies to address different learning needs
• the reflective practitioner
• promotion of independent learning strategies
• identification and use of relevant and appropriate resources to enhance the learner experience
• implementation of a range of strategies to support the management of equality and diversity issues and promote inter-culturalism
• promotion of equitable and productive relationships in the learning environment
• meaningful participation and debate and encouragement of learners to recognise alternative perspectives.
  Strategies to:
  • promote sustainable development education
  • develop the active and independent learning skills of learners
  • develop the enterprising skills of the learner
  • obtain, respond to and give feedback for learning.