University of Strathclyde – further education teaching programme: consultation

Consultation Document

The information contained within this section of the consultation has been provided by the University of Strathclyde.

Part 1: The University of Strathclyde

The University of Strathclyde was founded in 1796, having received its Royal Charter in 1964 as the United Kingdom's first technological university. More than two hundred years after its foundation the university continues to make a contribution to society which is distinct, broad and deep. Established as the place of useful learning – with a mission to make the world better-educated, prosperous, healthy, fair and secure – the university continues to live by its socially progressive values, putting sustainability at the heart of strategy through its commitment to deliver against the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Its ambitions are delivered through 3 strategic goals:

1) outstanding education and the student experience;
2) world-leading research;
3) transformative innovation and impact.

School of Education

The programmes being proposed for approval as a TQFE draws on expertise, research and scholarship from the university's School of Education. The School inherits a tradition of teacher education which started over two centuries ago with David Stow. From the early days in the Drygate, the vision of David Stow grew to the Glasgow Normal Seminary in Dundas Vale, to Jordanhill College of Education and now the School of Education, located in the heart of the city of Glasgow. The foundations of this tradition originated in a principled response to social conditions in Glasgow in the early 19^th century and the current School of Education continues this through a steadfast commitment to equality and social justice, through education. We aim to provide challenging, research-informed programmes for those who aspire genuinely to make a difference in people's lives through education.

The School offers a broad portfolio of programmes including initial teacher education, the Specialist Qualification for Headship, PGCE (International), Masters and Doctorates in Education. It offers a comprehensive suite of career long professional learning and knowledge exchange initiatives. The School is the largest provider of teacher education in Scotland, and one of the largest in Europe. Whilst the programmes proposed in this document are a new development, the university did previously offer (until 2004-05) a TQFE in the then Jordanhill College of Education.

Socially progressive teacher education

The programmes proposed are informed by the university's vision for socially progressive teacher education. The University of Strathclyde asserts 'a relentless commitment to pursuing a globally socially progressive vision' (Vision 2025^[2], p. 6). In line with this, the School of Education states its overarching mission as 'making a difference for the better in people's lives through education in its widest sense', and identifies a strategic priority as being 'a focus on socially progressive activity, putting social justice at its core'. In seeking to fulfil these aspirations, colleagues in the School have been working together to develop a shared understanding of what 'socially progressive teacher education' looks like (teacher education, again, being considered in its widest sense and not restricted to initial preparation for teaching in school contexts). In developing a shared understanding of socially progressive teacher education, we draw on three separate, but linked, ideas: social progressivism as a political ideology; pedagogical progressivism as an educational movement; and social and environmental justice as ethical imperatives. Exploration of these three big ideas is fleshed out in Kennedy (2022, forthcoming), but in summary, the School identifies the following four principles as being important to socially progressive teacher education at Strathclyde:

1. Knowledge is important (both disciplinary and inter-disciplinary);
2. Context matters, and place-based approaches to learning are an important consideration;
3. Both the individual and the collective must be attended to explicitly;
4. Commitment to social and environmental justice must be conceptualised, understood and operationalised (rather than simply appearing in the discourse).

This vision is founded on an acknowledgement that education in general, and teacher/educator education in particular, cannot ever be neutral, despite some claims to the contrary. The School therefore assert a commitment to offering teacher education which is explicitly informed by social justice and which adopts deliberate pedagogical approaches designed to fulfil this commitment. The development of the proposed Leading Learning and Transformative Practice in Colleges (with TQFE) programmes has therefore been shaped by these principles, both in terms of the way students will be taught and the way they will learn. It has been developed in partnership with college sector colleagues, and with a clear sense of the wider national and global context. As well as fulfilling an occupational demand for professional registration, the proposed programmes are a means of widening access to higher education for groups of students not typically catered for at Strathclyde, in line with the university's mission to make a difference for the better in people's lives. Crucially, the university sees the development of these programmes as a powerful means of supporting learners in Scotland's colleges to access life-changing, empowering education through the transformative work that its graduates will do.

The proposed programmes have:

• Been designed in collaboration with partners and are research-informed;
• An explicit focus on teaching in colleges as a means of making a positive difference to society;
• Are student-centred with a clear focus on context-relevant learning and active participation;
• Models a transformative learning pedagogical approach for and with students;
• Uses professionally authentic assessment approaches (including professional enquiry and viva);
• Are positioned as part of an ongoing learning journey for college lecturers.

Part 2: Aims of the Programme

Two programmes are being proposed for approval as a TQFE:

• Graduate Certificate in Leading Learning & Transformative Practice in Colleges (with TQFE)
• Postgraduate Certificate in Leading Learning & Transformative Practice in Colleges (with TQFE)

The Graduate Certificate is an undergraduate award at SCQF level 9 and the Postgraduate Certificate is a postgraduate award at SCQF level 11. Both programmes contain 3 x 20 credit modules (60 credits in total). Entry requirements are provided in part 3.

The programmes have not been given the sole title of 'Teaching Qualification in Further Education', given the fact we position them as part of an on-going learning journey for college lecturers. The programme titles indicated reflect the socially progressive and transformative approach that has informed the design and will shape their delivery.

Both programmes will be delivered part-time, online and uniquely, students will be able to choose to engage over either 9 or 21 months. The 21-month (extended) route will widen access and allow students e.g. who work part-time, to access TQFE provision more easily in order to allow them to complete the required minimum of 120 hours teaching practice in a college setting. Students, in conjunction with their employing college, will decide whether to undertake the 9 month (standard) route or 21 month (extended route).

As the programme will confer a TQFE, they are designed in such a way to support students to understand and work towards meeting the Professional Standards for Lecturers in Scotland's Colleges. All modules within each programme have been mapped against the Standards, and module 3 also requires students to evidence achievement of the Standards via a portfolio and viva discussion (oral examination).

We have engaged extensively with the sector through our College Partnership Group and have had informal discussions with General Teaching Council forC Scotland (GTCS), EIS-FELA, the College Development Network, sparqs and Scottish Enterprising Schools. We have taken a proactive approach to embedding and building on baseline lecturer digital capabilities. These can be found at: CDN - Developing Digital Skills for college lecturers. We truly embrace a collaborative approach to the programme. We are also actively exploring opportunities to enhance links with WorldSkills and Advance HE on our programme.

Programme Aims and Objectives

The programme aims to provide a student-centred, socially-progressive and research-informed journey to enable students to lead learning and transformative practice in colleges. It will allow students to demonstrate achievement of the Professional Standards for Lecturers in Scotland's Colleges and subsequently register as a college lecturer with the GTCS.

The demands placed on students at SCQF level 9 and SCQF level 11 are different and therefore, separate learning objectives for each programme are provided.

By the end of the Graduate Certificate (SCQF level 9) students will be able to:

1. Understand and articulate factors (including pastoral) that may impact on learning, teaching, assessment and student pathways;
2. Plan, develop and justify student-led, socially progressive and inclusive learning, teaching and assessment experiences;
3. Demonstrate they can lead learning through student-centred, socially progressive and inclusive approaches (including digital), in line with ethical, professional, legal, external body and quality assurance requirements;
4. Plan and undertake professional enquiry to promote social progressivism, transform practice and enhance the student experience;
5. Reflect critically upon their own practice, informed by a range of sources (including peers), to inform next steps for their students and their own professional learning;
6. Draw on a range of sources (academic, professional and policy) to support arguments and ideas;
7. Communicate with others to demonstrate they have achieved the Professional Standards for Lecturers in Scotland's Colleges.

By the end of the Postgraduate Certificate (SCQF level 11) students will be able to:

1. Critically examine factors (including pastoral) that may impact upon learning, teaching, assessment and student pathways;
2. Plan, develop and justify in detail, student-led, socially progressive and inclusive learning, teaching and assessment experiences;
3. Demonstrate creativity and/or originality in leading learning through student-centred, socially progressive and inclusive approaches (including digital), in line with ethical, professional, legal, external body and quality assurance requirements;
4. Engage in practitioner enquiry to disrupt assumptions about learning, teaching and/or assessment, showing some creativity and/or originality, to promote social progressivism, transform practice and enhance the student experience;
5. Reflect critically and extensively upon their own practice, informed by an extensive range of sources (including peers), to inform next steps for their students, their own professional learning and where appropriate, others.
6. Critically review and synthesise an extensive range of sources (academic, professional and policy) to support arguments and ideas, showing a critical understanding of recent thinking and research;
7. Exercise substantial autonomy and take responsibility for communicating with others to demonstrate they have achieved the Professional Standards for Lecturers in Scotland's Colleges.

Part 3: Access to the Programme

Programmes will be marketed via our College Partnership Group, the university website and through other programme-specific channels (e.g. social media). We appreciate the programme at this stage will be subject to Scottish Government approval. The university's admissions policy underpins the approach to admission of all students and can be found at: University of Strathclyde - Admissions Policy

Students who meet the minimum entry requirements noted below will be eligible for admission. Students will be required to complete an application form on the university website and have support of their employing college to provide the necessary college-based mentor and a minimum of 120 hours of teaching practice over the duration of the programme. The student will need to indicate which programme they are seeking admission (Graduate Certificate (level 9) or Postgraduate Certificate (level 11) and duration of study (9 months or 21 months). The final decision to admit a student to a programme will be made by the Programme Director (or their nominee) on behalf of the university, taking into account all relevant information and our commitment to widening access.

Entry requirements are based on Annex C of the Professional Standards for Lecturers in Scotland's Colleges (2006), as required by Scottish Government. University commentary is provided in italics.

For entry to the Graduate Certificate (level 9 programme), students require:

• A relevant Higher National Diploma (or equivalent) at SCQF level 8 or a Higher National Certificate (or equivalent) at SCQF level 7* where this is the highest level of qualification available in the UK in the subject area concerned;
• In certain subject areas, other qualifications which are of an equivalent standard to those listed above will be accepted;
• A National Qualifications course award in English at SCQF level 6 (or evidence of being able to attain this standard);
• A National Qualifications course award in Mathematics or Numeracy at SCQF level 4 (or evidence of being able to attain this standard);
• ICT skills to the equivalent of SCQF level 5.

Holders of the PDA Teaching Practice in Scotland's Colleges or PDA Developing Teaching Practice in Scotland's colleges automatically satisfy the English, Numeracy and ICT requirements.

*Where an HNC or SCQF level 7 award is the highest available in that subject area, applicants are strongly advised to obtain the level 8 unit 'Teaching in Colleges today' via the College Development Network prior to entry. However, relevant industry and teaching experience will be taken into account.

For entry to the Postgraduate Certificate (level 11 programme), students require:

• A relevant degree from a higher institution in the UK or a degree of an equivalent standard from a recognised institution outside of the UK;
• A National Qualifications course award in English at SCQF level 6 (or evidence of being able to attain this standard);
• A National Qualifications course award in Mathematics or Numeracy at SCQF level 4 (or evidence of being able to attain this standard);
• ICT skills to the equivalent of SCQF level 5.

Holders of the PDA Teaching Practice in Scotland's Colleges or PDA Developing Teaching Practice in Scotland's colleges automatically satisfy the English, Numeracy and ICT requirements.

Part 4: Programme Design

The programme can be undertaken at undergraduate level (level 9) or postgraduate level (level 11). The programme structure, module titles and delivery pattern are the same regardless of what level is undertaken. The programme consists of 3 x 20 credit modules:

Module 1	Leading Learning in Colleges	20 credits
Module 2	Transforming Practice through Enquiry	20 credits
Module 3	Achieving Professional Standards	20 credits

To be awarded the Graduate Certificate (level 9), all 3 modules at level 9 must be passed. To be awarded the Postgraduate Certificate (level 11), all 3 modules at level 11 must be passed. Both programmes are governed by the university's academic regulations which can be found at: University of Strathclyde - Academic Regulations

In line with our commitment to widening access and meeting the needs of a wide range of students who may have e.g. professional, personal and/or caring commitments, students can undertake the programme over 9 months (standard route) or 21 months (extended route). We recognise students may need to take a break from their studies or require extra time to complete. Consequentially, the maximum period of study for the standard route will be 24 months and for the extended route 36 months. The planned delivery of the programme is as follows:

	Standard Route (9 Months)		Extended Route (21 Months)
Aug	Pre-boarding		Pre-boarding
Sept	Module 1	Module 3	Module 1
Oct	Module 1	Module 3	Module 1
Nov	Module 1	Module 3	Module 1
Dec	Module 1	Module 3	Module 1
Jan	Module 2	Module 3	Module 2
Feb	Module 2	Module 3	Module 2
March	Module 2	Module 3	Module 2
April	Module 2	Module 3	Module 2
May	Viva		Module 2
June			Begin module 3
July
August			Module 3
Sept			Module 3
Oct			Module 3
Nov			Module 3
Dec			Module 3
Jan			Module 3
Feb			Module 3
March			Module 3
April			Module 3
May			Viva

The programme starts with a comprehensive 'pre-boarding' period. This will consist of a one-day online session followed by a variety of asynchronous online activities. Pre-boarding will introduce students to the programme, the programme team, their peers, the Professional Standards and level 9 or level 11 learning (e.g. study skills, reading, writing, using the literature). NB - students who require additional support with study skills will be able to access the University's Learner Development Service at any time. More information can be found at: University of Strathclyde - Supporting Online Learning

Early in the programme, students will also undertake a comprehensive self-evaluation and audit against the professional standards to identify areas for development. In conjunction with their tutor, they will then create an action plan for the remainder of the programme. Depending on the student's prior experience, qualifications and background, the audit and action plan will be a very personalised task to ensure the individual needs of each student are met.

Indicative Module Content

Module 1 – Leading Learning in Colleges

Professional Standards coverage: 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.5, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5

• Role of a college lecturer
• Assumptions and beliefs about themselves, learners, college and communities
• Who are our learners?
• Learner diversity, inclusion & intersectionality: equalities, neurodiversity, trauma, care experienced, mental health, school/college partnerships, work-based learners
• Factors impacting learning, teaching, assessment and student pathways
• Pedagogy, andragogy, heutagogy
• The learning environment (including physical, virtual, outdoors)
• Models of student engagement
• Planning learning, teaching and assessment experiences (including the role of others)
• Curriculum alignment, backwash design and decolonisation
• Progressive, sustainable and socially-just pedagogies (including digital)
• Ethical, professional, legal, external body and quality assurance requirements
• UN Sustainable Development Goals
• Promotion of personal responsibility for learning, social justice, health & wellbeing and sustainability

The focus in this module is on planning for leading learning and subsequent professional dialogue, rather than preparing lengthy lesson plans and/or plans of work.

At level 11, there will be greater focus on power and hegemony, creativity and/or originality, use of research to inform practice and criticality.

Module 2 – Transforming Practice Through Enquiry

Professional Standards coverage: 1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 2.3, 2.5, 3.1, 3.5

Students will decide an area for enquiry from a range of themes including but not limited to: digital pedagogy, sustainability, student voice and empowerment, WorldSkills methodologies, meta skills and enterprise. Themes will change depending on student interest. They will be required to link their enquiry where appropriate to college, regional and national priorities (including sustainability).

• What is professional enquiry and why is it important
• Enquiry as stance and enquiry as project
• Enquiry as a model for enabling change and transforming practice
• Professional enquiry vs 'traditional' research approaches and designs
• Metacognition for professionals
• Deciding upon and defining an area for enquiry within own context
• Tools for undertaking enquiry (data collection, analysis of data)
• Understanding and reflecting upon enquiry findings and impact
• Using digital tools to present, engage and share findings and impact
• Presentation skills

At level 11, there will be greater focus on disrupting current assumptions about learning, teaching and/or assessment, use of research and criticality. Students will be required to show some creativity and/or originality in the design and execution of their enquiry.

Module 3 – Achieving Professional Standards

Professional Standards coverage: all

• Professionalism, professional formation and evaluation
• Models of self-evaluation and critical reflection
• Audit and action planning
• Models of professional learning
• Professional learning planning cycle
• Observation as a tool for professional learning
• Collaborative practice (with learners, peers, colleagues, employers and other stakeholders)
• Articulating own professional values, knowledge & understanding and practice
• Constructing a portfolio
• Preparing for viva

At level 11, there will be a greater focus on creativity and/or originality, enhanced critical awareness, extensive critical reflection and exercising substantial autonomy.

Observation of Learning Episodes

Two formal observations of 'learning episodes' will be undertaken in students' workplaces. The first will be carried out by the university tutor and second by the college-based mentor (see part 5). Each observation will be a minimum of 45 minutes. The first observation will be undertaken within the first half of the course and the second observation in the second half. Observations of practice will be supportive and developmental in nature, with the focus explicitly on learning and teaching strategies, learner engagement and the learner experience.

Prior to each learning episode, a brief learning and teaching plan will be submitted to the observer. The observer will carry out the observation and afterwards, engage in professional discussion with the student about their lesson. Feedback on each learning episode will be based on the 3 elements of the Professional Standards:

• Professional values
• Professional knowledge and understanding
• Professional practice

In addition, students will be able to decide on 1 or 2 specific areas that they would like feedback on from the observer. There will be no 'tick-box' approach or grading of observations of practice. Feedback will relate explicitly to what was observed and/or discussed with the observer. Students will be required to reflect upon their observed learning episodes and to submit a brief written or oral reflection as part of the programme.

As the course as a whole is delivered online, the observation conducted by the university will be digital and will take one of 3 forms:

1. A recording of a learning episode (in a physical or virtual space) chosen by the student;
2. A live stream of the learning episode in a physical space;
3. A live link to the learning episode in a virtual space.

In case of number 2 and 3, no audio or video recording will be made.

It is anticipated that most observations carried out by the college mentor will be face-to-face, but a digital format as described above will also be suitable. Any recording of a learning episode for the purpose of no 1 above is strictly confidential between the university tutor, college mentor and the student. The only exception to this is when the recording is needed for quality assurance purposes by the university. Under no circumstances will a recording be shared with anyone else or used for any other purpose without the written permission of the student. Any recording will be destroyed after the student has been awarded the qualification, unless otherwise agreed with the student in writing. General Data Protection Regulations will, of course, be followed at all times.

Part 5: Learning and Teaching Approaches

Teaching Approach

The programme adopts a transformative pedagogical approach for and with students, drawing on the work of Mezirow (2006^[3]). Students will be actively encouraged to challenge assumptions, beliefs and the status-quo. We will encourage students to think about how these have formed and subsequently make them see, feel and behave. Students will be active participants and co-constructors on the programme; they will gradually take control of their own assumptions, learning and development. The programme recognises the importance of context and place.

The programme uses a flipped-learning approach. Students will engage in a variety of asynchronous activities (videos, reading, discussion forums, blogs, wikis, quizzes, interactive content etc) before attending a synchronous 90 'huddle' every fortnight with their peers and a university tutor. Huddles will allow students to engage in discussion, collaborative work, peer instruction, presentations, Q+A, debates, problem solving and quizzes. We will invite former and current college learners to engage with students. Students following the 21-month route will attend huddles less often. Students will be encouraged to work collaboratively with their peers from their own college and other colleges (particularly in their own subject or cognate area). Indeed, they will be placed in 'home teams' of 4-5 students for this purpose. They will have a dedicated space (channel) on the programme's Microsoft Team for their 'home team' and will be encouraged to collaborate outwith classes.

Students will use the university's Virtual Learning Environment and Microsoft Teams to engage with the programme and collaborate with their peers. They will also be exposed to and use other applications such as OneNote, Padlet, Wakelet, Kumospace, FlipGrid, Kahoot!, Plickers, Wordwalll, Mentimeter etc. Students will be required to include digital approaches and use digital content in their learning and teaching plans and in module 2, use digital technology to present their professional enquiry (undergraduate level) or create and present a digital artefact (postgraduate level). The programme team have taken an active stance to incorporating baseline lecturer digital capabilities^[4] into the programme. The use of digital pedagogy will be explored. Digital identity, cyber resilience and security will be practised.

The programme will require students to engage in enquiry, investigation and research throughout. Indeed, transformative learning promotes an active and questioning mindset. Students will also have to investigate examples from their own practice, locate information from a variety of sources, adopt a critical stance towards the synthesis of literature and for module 2, conduct a self-designed professional enquiry with the aim of promoting social progressivism, sustainability and enhancing the learner experience. Finally, throughout the programme, critical reflection will be encouraged, promoted and indeed required in a variety of assessment tasks.

College-based Mentor

The university recognises the importance of college-based mentors as a fundamental part of delivering the programme. On this programme, we adopt an 'educative mentoring' approach (Feiman-Nemser, 2001^[5]) whereby the student is an active participant in the learning process, engaging significantly in their environment, and the mentor assists in tailoring opportunities for students to enhance their practice. Educative mentoring is more than just providing technical advice, emotional and/or psychological support (ibid). All 3 modules on the programme have context and place-based education at the core. The mentor will regularly meet their mentee to critically reflect on progress against the Professional Standards, and their engagement with the programme. They will undertake an observation of practice and support students to submit their module 3 portfolio for viva (oral examination) at the end of the programme. It is likely mentors will meet with their students individually and as a collective group, as appropriate and when possible.

Mentors play a significant role in the learning and professional formation of their peers through formal and informal interactions (Husband, 2020^[6]). We therefore seek to promote and practice a collaborative approach (college, university and students) to supporting and challenging students on the programme.

We recognise the deployment of mentors to students in each college will be different depending on timetabling and operational requirements. With this in mind, we set out some guidelines to ensure a consistent approach across the programme in terms of expectations and engagement of mentors in the programme:

• The allocation of mentors to students should be based on dialogue between the college and student;
• Mentors must be GTCS registered;
• Mentors need to attend a virtual induction session at the beginning of each academic year organised by the university;
• Mentors will be required to attend professional learning on undertaking observations of practice before doing so;
• Mentors will be required to check-in with the programme team on a regular basis via informal virtual meetings and/or drop in sessions.

As noted, the university will, of course, support mentors in their role as much as possible. There will be a mandatory induction session at the beginning of each academic year as well as professional learning on undertaking observations of practice. Informal mentor briefings will be held during the year and there will be a Microsoft Team for all mentors to engage with each other and members of the programme team. Mentors will also be invited to participate in the university's Postgraduate certificate in Supporting Teacher Learning if they wish (this is a well-established course for practitioners who have responsibility for their colleagues' learning in schools, colleges, universities and other education settings).

Part 6: Monitoring and Assessment

Monitoring of Student Progress

Monitoring of student progress will occur at a variety of levels. Each student will have a named tutor (their Personal Development Adviser) who oversees their journey and progress throughout their programme. The Personal Development Adviser is the point of contact for pastoral issues and can be contacted at any time. Each student will also have a named tutor for each module who will usually be the individual who engages with students at the fortnightly huddle. The Programme Director will oversee the monitoring of progress of each student throughout the programme and will meet with all members of the programme team at least once per semester. Finally, college-based mentors will also play an important role in monitoring the engagement and progress of students in the programme and where there is concern, will highlight this to the Programme Director at the earliest opportunity.

Assessment Approach

Assessment, teaching and learning are closely connected (Villarroel et al., 2018^[7]) and consequentially, constructive alignment (Biggs, 2003^[8]) has been used to ensure a close link between programme and module learning objectives, teaching and learning activities, and assessment. We know that assessment is a powerful way for students to respond to and behave on a programme (Gibbs, 1999) and feedback will be used throughout to adapt teaching and learning activities as required. This programme adopts an authentic assessment approach to ensure assessment tasks clone those that may be found in the workplace (i.e. college setting) as far as is possible (Wiggins, 1990^[9]). By adopting this approach, we aim to integrate the university experience with what the student may be doing naturally in their college. Authentic assessment is a key component of assessment design to promote learning and ultimately employment (Sambell et al., 2003^[10]) and the benefits are well-documented in the literature.

We have adopted the 4 stage model proposed by Villarroel et al. (2018) to construct the assessment tasks for this programme:

1. Consider workplace context and requirements (e.g. Professional Standards);
2. Design tasks of value emerged in context and requiring higher order skills;
3. Engage students in discussion and co-creation of assessment criteria and rubrics, ensuring students understand the standard required and evaluative judgement to be applied;
4. Use formative, summative and sustainable feedback and feedforward to engage students as active participants in the assessment process.

With the above in mind, the following assessment tasks will be used on this programme:

Module	Task
1 – Leading Learning in Colleges	A case study constructed over the duration of the module. The case study will consist of a series of small 'patches' that form a coherent whole. The case study will require students to identify a particular learner group and to plan how they will lead learning with that group. A reflection upon how the student has promoted social progressivism, sustainability and enhanced the learner experience will be required. (100% of module grade).
2 – Transforming Practice through Enquiry	The first task will require students to share the impact of a professional enquiry they have undertaken with a group of learners with their peers. At undergraduate level, this will take the form of a pre-recorded 10 minute presentation and at postgraduate level, the creation of a digital artefact that is presented at a showcase event. (65% of module grade). The second task will require students to reflect on the impact of their professional enquiry on their own learning, the student experience, and how social progressivism and sustainability was promoted. (35% of module grade).
3 – Achieving Professional Standards	Evidence of the student engaging with and collating (often naturally occurring) evidence of achieving the Professional Standards will be gathered in a portfolio throughout the programme. Students will be able to include evidence gathered elsewhere (e.g. as part of L&D awards or PDAs, as appropriate). The portfolio will be discussed at viva (oral examination) consisting of 2 assessors, including at least one university tutor. The other, ideally, will be a college-based mentor. (100% of grade).

The use of viva as part of the programme is unique for a TQFE, but as Kennedy et al. (2020^[11]) note on their use of viva in a school teacher education programme, will provide from the beginning of the programme an incentive for students to engage proactively with the Professional Standards and to take personal responsibility for their learning.

There will be significant opportunities throughout each module for students to obtain formative feedback from their tutor(s) and peers.

Quality Assurance

Marking of assessment tasks will be the responsibility of each module tutor. Each assessment task will be graded on a 0-100 scale. A second tutor will look at the work of every failed assignment. In addition, a 10% sample of all assessment tasks will be internally moderated. Where there are more than 2 tutors assessing a single module, a standardisation event to review a sample of assessments will take place to ensure consistency across marking. As already noted, 2 assessors will be present at the viva for each student. Module marks will be presented at Board of Examiners meeting in June each year. The Board of Examiners will ratify results and make awards (including awards with Merit and/or Distinction where appropriate) in accordance with university policy. A Board of Examiners will also be convened in September each year to ratify results that were not available (e.g. because of an extension) at the June meeting. Finally, an External Examiner will be appointed to oversee the assessment process.

The university's assessment and feedback policy can be found at:

University of Strathclyde - Assessment and Feedback Policy

The university's policy on moderation and double-marking can be found at:

University of Strathclyde - Policy on Moderation and Double Marking

The university is committed to ensuring students are treated fairly and are not disadvantaged by circumstances out with their control, yet at the same time ensuring academic standards are upheld. A Personal Circumstances & Academic Appeals Procedure is in place to achieve this and can be found at: University of Strathclyde - Personal Circumstances & Academic Appeals Procedure

Programme Success

Programme success will be measured through a number of mechanisms including end of module survey and module representatives meetings. College-based mentors will be asked for feedback regularly. We will regularly evaluate the success of the programme via our College Partnership Group and discussion with other stakeholders.

The Programme Director will meet with the Programme Team at least once per module to evaluate programme success. The Programme Director will also meet with other Programme Directors from across the School at a monthly meeting. Finally, an External Examiner will be appointed in line with university regulations. The External Examiner will provide an external perspective on the quality assurance processes and academic standards in place for the programme.

Awards

The Board of Examiners (consisting of a Chairperson, the External Examiner, the Programme Director and staff involved in the delivery and assessment of each module), are responsible for recommending to Senate whether a student be awarded a qualification based on their performance on the programme.

The Board of Examiners for this programme can award, subject to meeting the necessary conditions outlined in the programme regulations and approval of Senate:

For students on the undergraduate (level 9) programme a -

• Graduate Certificate in Leading Learning & Transformative Practice (with TQFE) OR
• Graduate Certificate in Leading Learning & Transformative Practice (with TQFE) with Merit OR
• Graduate Certificate in Leading Learning & Transformative Practice (with TQFE) with Distinction

For students on the postgraduate (level 11) programme a -

• Postgraduate Certificate in Leading Learning & Transformative Practice (with TQFE) OR
• Postgraduate Certificate in Leading Learning & Transformative Practice (with TQFE) with Merit OR
• Postgraduate Certificate in Leading Learning & Transformative Practice (with TQFE) with Distinction

Part 7: Progression

We position this programme as part of an on-going professional learning journey for college lecturers. For some, it will be at the beginning of their careers, and for others, after a period of time in industry, education or other employment.

Undergraduate

At undergraduate level, we are currently exploring how students can use the 60 level 9 credits achieved on the Graduate Certificate towards other undergraduate qualifications. Due to the diversity of prior qualifications a student may enter the undergraduate programme, this is a complex task. For example, those entering the programme with an HNC (i.e. 120 credits at level 7) will require a different progression route to those entering the programme with an HND (i.e. 120 credits at level 7 and 120 at level 8).

Postgraduate

At postgraduate level, students will be able to transfer the 60 level 11 credits achieved on the Postgraduate Certificate into a Masters of Education (MEd) programme at Strathclyde, provided they do this within 5 years of achieving these credits. Currently, this could include our MEd in Education Studies or Professional Practice. However, we intend to explore the option of designing an MEd programme in Leading Learning & Transformative Practice in Colleges, subject to demand and subsequent university approval. An agreement has also been made with the Programme Director of our Doctor of Education programme (EdD) to allow students to transfer 60 credits into the EdD, and fast-track the taught phase of this programme, if they have achieved an average grade of 60%+ and do so within 5 years of completing the Postgraduate Certificate.

Other

At the time of writing, we are actively exploring how college lecturers completing the TQFE with us could use some of the evidence towards Associate Fellowship (AFHEA) or Fellowship (FHEA) of Advance HE (formerly the Higher Education Academy). This would involve an additional cost and other conditions to be met.