Workshop 1

1.  Full Steam Ahead – A New Suite of Qualifications and Apprenticeships for the Games, Animation and Visual Effects Industries

Gina Jackson, Managing Director at NextGen Skills Academy
The games, animation and visual effects industries have much in common when it comes to skills. Employers have identified that despite the huge number of qualifications and university courses that are available, the recruitment of new entrants possessing the fundamental STEAM skills remains a huge challenge. Over the last year, AIM Awards has been working in close partnership with NextGen and its major employer partners to develop and deliver a new technical qualification with direct progression routes to university and new Trailblazer Apprenticeships. Join this workshop to find out how this process of collaborative working is opening up opportunities not only for learners, but also for teachers to develop new skills with industries where arts and science are no longer viewed as separate fields. 

2.  Access to HE: How can we best support Access learners throughout the student lifecycle?

Bethan Michael, Course Co-Ordinator for the BA (Hons) Childhood and Youth Studies at the University of Bedfordshire
Nikita Hayden, Access and Outreach Officer at the University of Bedfordshire
 We have gathered the views of Access students who are about to embark on their Higher Education journey, spoken to those who are current university students and kept in touch with those who have graduated. We have also collected views and opinions from practitioners working with Access learners throughout the student lifecycle. This interactive workshop will provide you with the opportunity to both share your views and experiences and explore those of students and practitioners. The aim of the workshop is to facilitate critical reflection and fruitful discussion regarding how, through collaboration and knowledge sharing, Access providers, Further Education and Higher Education Institutions and other stakeholders might best enhance the learning and experiences of Access students. Please join us to explore the following questions and more in a lively and engaging workshop format: What might Access students’  expectations of Higher Education be? What challenges might Access students face in Higher Education environment? How can we best support the varying needs of learners amongst the many competing pressures at play in FE and HE environments?

3. E- Learning – The Benefits Explained

Simon Hilton and John Gorton, Capital E-Tutorials
A workshop related to E-learning and Moodle and the numerous benefits of it including the value of it for senior management and how it satisfies FELTAG and the new Ofsted Common Inspection Framework. You will learn to design and develop an effective collaborative, cooperative and individual tasks as well as learner centred course in Moodle. Learn how to evaluation of eWorkshops and opportunities to reflect on your own design processes.

4. Quality Assurance – A Remote Model

Pete Bennett
A session looking at Quality Assurance practices and how they can be completed remotely and the benefits for your practice. This workshop will introduce you to the emergence of remote methodologies for Quality Assurance. Presented by a leading provider of Distance Learning education courses, this session will explore the use of technology in moderation and the benefits for your Quality Assurance protocols. An interactive session designed to benefit everyone involved in the Quality Assurance of their programmes, addressing both processes and techniques for Quality Assurance as well as demystifying the concept of remote practice.

5. GAME ON: Using Play in Project Management

Marie-Claire Isaaman
A playful, thought provoking workshop exploring strategies to achieve a shared vision that is essential to the success of any collaborative project. This workshop introduces powerful concepts used in the design of interactive media products, which eschew prescriptive processes in favour of a more people centred approach placing the end-user/customer at the centre of the project. Join this workshop for a toolkit of strategies and tactics that can be tailored to any collaborative work, from designing a lesson to implementing major organisational change.

Workshop 2

1. How to collaborate on an online project 

Ross Elliot

Ross is the Managing Director of Chrysalis Not For Profit LTD, Chrysalis have been running counselling courses since 1998 and Ross has been with the company since 2009. As well as Chrysalis, Ross is heavily involved with Aspire courses which run courses in Access to Higher Education Diplomas solely via online learning. Aspire is set to grow into other course provisions in the not too distant future.  During this workshop we will be looking at how to prepare for an online project from the start to the finish, also what are the pitfalls of an online course and where to turn for help to guide you through an online project. We will also look at why would you choose to look at online over traditional methods of teaching.

2. Enhancing the learner journey through data and analysis

Dr Joanna Parr, Data Analyst (Access) at QAA
This interactive workshop will consider how data and analysis can be used to enhance the quality of the learner journey. The first part of the workshop will begin with an overview of the data available on the Access to HE Diploma and students that complete this qualification. This will be followed by a discussion of how Access to HE providers can utilise these resources. The second part of the workshop will explore more generally how a connected approach to data can improve understanding of learner cohorts and how this, in turn, can feed into good practice. 

3. Facilitate Experiential Learning

Greg Brookes-Clayton

The bedrock of all purposeful learning is a positive learning culture. Positive learning cultures require learners to have good interpersonal, social and soft skills. The most effective ways of developing these is through a facilitated experiential learning process. This practical workshop to see how simple facilitated activity will develop essential skills required by students. Explore how ‘Personal Potential’ can provide the missing element to individuals’ confidence and provide clear progression evidence. Greg is a former head teacher with over 25 years teaching experience. He is passionate about facilitation and experiential learning and over a period of 10 years has developed approved resources and linked accreditations which are used across the UK in various sectors.

4. Working in collaboration: assessment outside the box!

Bill Leivers, Associate Co-ordinator at VESA
The workshop will draw upon the presenter’s experience in supporting the assessment process in a wide range of schools and colleges within the VESA AIM Awards Consortium, verifying assessments and encouraging collaboration.
Using actual examples of innovative assessments from Consortium schools, you will be engaged in practical activities designed to encourage you to ‘think outside the box’ with regard to assessment methods and to enhance your assessment practices.

5. Quality Assurance: The Bigger Picture

Quality Assurance is not just about checking on learners portfolios and supporting assessors to ensure that qualifications are awarded appropriately in line with the Awarding Organisations requirements. The integration of a Quality Management system will ensure that all systems support the Centres, their Staff, qualification legality, and process management.

The workshop will draw upon the presenter’s experience in quality assuring the delivery and award process, and the supporting quality management systems in a wide range of Centres. They will also share the experience gained through collaborative working partnerships with a range of Awarding Organisations including Aim Awards, City & Guilds, Pearson and CITB.

By demonstrating a current live system of quality assurance, delegates will be engaged in thought provoking activities designed to encourage them to ‘think outside the box’ and think about “what is in the box”. Thus ensuring that the quality assurance methods and processes are effective and to enhance their management practices.

Workshop 3

1. Investing in Futures

 AIM Awards Team
This workshop explores how you can use our exciting new ‘Investing in Futures’ quality marking to build innovative and exciting programmes of learning for your local flexibility offer. Our team will show you how to ensure your programmes can map across to the RARPA requirements for funding and deliver programmes that are tailored. Investing in Futures offers a truly unique approach that are designed to ‘fit’ the needs of the end user.

2. Developing and Delivering Access to HE Diplomas using Distance Learning

Andrea Beeney, Course Director Harriet Ellis
Natalie Sharpe, Director of Learning Infused Learning
 This workshop will introduce you to the concept of distance learning and its practical application in the successful delivery of Access to HE Diplomas. Delivered by two providers with exceptionally different business models, this session will explore the development of distance learning in varying contexts and address topical issues such as the benefits and drawbacks of distance learning, plagiarism and authenticity, differentiation and task variation and implementation strategies.

3. superSKILLs working group

“One of the most important questions that colleges seek to answer is: "How can we maximise the success of our students, so that they get the highest marks possible, and continue to be a success in their careers?" There is a way that we can answer this question; after all, success and achievement is a measurable, scientific process. However, very little emphasis is placed on these required "Super" skills, in favour of the central theme and traditional flavour of current qualifications”

This is a working group for the development of superSKILLS qualifications, designed to supercharge the success potential of candidates and support achievement within the more traditional subjects.

If you are interested in contributing or participating in the development of this new suite of qualifications this is the workshop for you."

4. FULLY BOOKED - Please see workshop 2. Quality Assurance: The Bigger Picture

Quality Assurance is not just about checking on learners portfolios and supporting assessors to ensure that qualifications are awarded appropriately in line with the Awarding Organisations requirements. The integration of a Quality Management system will ensure that all systems support the Centres, their Staff, qualification legality, and process management.

The workshop will draw upon the presenter’s experience in quality assuring the delivery and award process, and the supporting quality management systems in a wide range of Centres. They will also share the experience gained through collaborative working partnerships with a range of Awarding Organisations including Aim Awards, City & Guilds, Pearson and CITB.

By demonstrating a current live system of quality assurance, delegates will be engaged in thought provoking activities designed to encourage them to ‘think outside the box’ and think about “what is in the box”. Thus ensuring that the quality assurance methods and processes are effective and to enhance their management practices.

5. Repeat Workshop