Investigation Into apprenticeship learning models

Apprenticeship ICT- An Investigation into the current Apprenticeship

Model

Carla George University of Warwick Doctoral Researcher

Carla George (Doctoral Researcher) University of Warwick

Apprenticeship ICT- An Investigation into the current Apprenticeship

Model Abstract— The paper explains elements of ICT learning and how it is adopted within the workplace.

Heutagogy I will be discussing elements of ICT support and Heutagogy relating to mobile learning. I will be exploring methods described by Hase S that describes e-learning works best with self-directed learning it provides opportunities also towards collaborative learning. The benefits relate to preparing the students with the skills that are relevant to the working world. Employers requires those that are innovative, ability to problem solve and good communication skills.

The design process within the workplace involves both learner and employer discussing the learning requirements and assessment strategies. The elements established are the relevant learning activities that are challenging and worthwhile. It is essential learner and employers collaborate to ensure autonomy, desire learning outcome and building strong working relationships. Employees should take responsibility regarding their approach towards developing solutions and acquiring their knowledge. This depends on how organisations approach towards knowledge management and their robust infrastructure system.

Carla George (Doctoral Researcher) University of Warwick

Workplace Learning Workplace learning depends on several factors in accordance to Ezekiel U. Okike1 and Zablon A. Mbero they reference Massingham (2014) that has investigated a variety of tools that will contribute towards work practice and are currently used to manage knowledge resources. Learners taking responsibility for their own learning is a huge adjustment that may cause a lack of confidence but with the correct support tools the restrictions are uplifted.

Apprentices can decide the standard of work to be produced, it is important that they are provided with the opportunities to develop their skills into the following areas.

1. Reflecting on their current experience and learning from this.

2. Results from problem solving based on real life situations this can result from informal and formal assessments that comprises of knowledge-based simulations and tests.

Marsick and Watkins suggest encouraging informal learning there should be individuals that are willing to support and be open to new experiences known as support in reflection and support in translating learning into practice. This area needs further research to capture the manner how apprentices acquire new experiences through work-based learning and their current learning conditions.

Carla George (Doctoral Researcher) University of Warwick

Reber and Underwood describes development of implicit learning and how it effects working behaviour. The journey relates to reflecting on past experiences and its relationship how this is applied consciously and unconsciously that will establish future behaviour. However tacit knowledge as described as no expression that is difficult to interpret through means of writing or verbal communication that is developed through the unconscious effects.

Apprentices identify themselves as persons that are undergoing a journey becoming confident and knowledgeable within their career paths. They are hoping to progress and have continuity towards becoming experts and are recognised for their hard-working efforts. Dreyfus identify five stages of skill development that a learner will encounter throughout their journey.

Stage1- The learner will learn facts that are relevant to their knowledge and skills Stage2- This is known as the advanced beginner stage the learner is confident and can recognise situated experiences developing competence.

Stage3- Competent Stage- The learner will utilise both aspects of information and competence towards developing problem solving.

Stage 4 and Stage 5 relates to proficient and expert it is assumed that the learner will expand all levels and perform to a high standard without assistance.

The focus on apprenticeship is to develop a learning process through practice stemming away from forms of traditional practices. Guile and Young further explain workplaces will vary in knowledge and work involved that are unique in developing apprentices.

Apprentices can decide the standard of work to be produced, it is important that they are provided with the opportunities to develop their skills into the following areas.

1. Reflecting on their current experience and learning from this.

2. Results from problem solving based on real life situations this can result from informal and formal assessments that comprises of knowledge-based simulations and tests.

3. M Eraut defines informal learning as being invisible, during his research where he interviewed participants to discuss their learning experiences on the job. Their responses were involvement of educational background alongside training and other working practices. His definition of informal learning is an experience that is unintentional, unintended and unstructured he explains this occurs during the stages of formal learning. He describes that the individual goes through a continuous process of learning, thinking or times act upon a decision without thinking.

4. Marsick and Watkins refers to on job learning that involves mentoring, coaching and training and development. There are a variety of learning methods that an employee will apply during their daily routine such as incidental learning, trial and error and experimental learning.

Carla George (Doctoral Researcher) University of Warwick

The apprenticeships can provide the opportunity towards higher education progression from a Level four qualification to a Level five qualification. Some full-time qualifications offer an opportunity of a one-year work placement dependent on the type of subject you are pursuing.

Expansive Apprenticeships- A combination of both on job and off job training. The employer is working alongside the academy/establishment to ensure the learner’s needs are met and that the employer is providing the scope to ensure that the knowledge and skills fall in line with the requirements of the apprenticeship. The advantages are that the learner is gaining an overall experience both knowledge and skills wise and there is scope towards planning and career progression.

Restrictive Apprenticeships- All knowledge and development are to take place 100% on the job only. There is no scope for off job training due to business needs therefore you are treated more as a full-time employee rather than an apprentice. Disadvantages of this there is no opportunity to reflect on the learning as you are more focused on meeting the needs of the organisation rather than the structure of the apprenticeship.

Samples from my Research Company 1 The company provides products and services for Health and Safety and as a requirement they require staff to attend courses to further their development to support their job roles. The apprentices have progressed from Admin to specific roles such as marketing and management.

The apprentices attend the training provider once a week to achieve their functional skills and administration skills. They also are involved in promotional and marketing events for the organisation. The staff members are ex external verifiers and assessors which is a huge bonus as they can mentor the apprentices with concerns regarding their apprenticeship.

Expansive Restrictive Apprenticeships- However there is some justification why companies would take this approach due to limited resources, and resistant to change. This is viewed as limiting apprentice’s vocational experience and personal development. The apprenticeship is structured towards meeting the organisational needs and there is limited scope for the apprentice where they can negotiate their learning.

Company 2 The company is a small comprises of 5 people they hired two apprentices to support their day to day tasks involving visiting sites that require network support and installation. There are times where the students had to miss out sessions from their day release due to issues with short staff and sickness/absence. Their recommendation that the apprentices remain 100% at the workplace and to come to a negotiation that all learning must remain at the organisation due to limited resourcing.

The focus on apprenticeship is to develop a learning process through practice stemming away from forms of traditional practices. Guile and Young recaps on the relationship that occurs between work and education. They analyse models that has failed to capture the opportunities where students negotiate their learning within the workplace and support during informal and formal learning focusing on knowledge management and how this is embedded using contexts.

They suggest that there should be more focus towards supporting learners regarding their vertical and horizontal development.

Carla George (Doctoral Researcher) University of Warwick

New apprentice joined social media new company Makers & Me she originally was pursuing a full-time vocational education at Henley College within a couple of months she didn’t enjoy the course until she decided to go on the government website. Her friend introduces her to apprenticeships, so she applied to the company and she was employed. She is currently working as a social media apprentice her starting point is completing basic administration until the manager is confident that she is capable then he can progress to deal with social media applications such as twitter and Facebook feeds.

I was advised this venture is quite new to him as he started his business over a year ago and it has taken all this time to reach to gain trade now he is expanding to other locations in Coventry.

He is still new in employing an apprentice when I asked what she was meant to do he want so clear, but he was willing to support with training and portfolio evidence.

She is well pleased that she has made the decision her opportunities that she is gaining work experience and earning at the same time. She also asked about progression to higher apprenticeships she is hoping to pursue a degree after completion she will speak with Coventry university.

Overall, she is very motivated with completion of her work and she is focused. She is encouraging her other friends to pursue apprenticeship based on her experience. When she was learning throughout her job her previous supervisor as she asked for advised will always advised to go to google it de-motivated her as she felt he didn’t really knew the answers to her questions.

She mentioned it the business is family owned and her supervisor is her cousin so there is that barrier between acting as a family member and supervisor.

She was leaving to go to another marketing company, but they decided to offer her the position as Marketing Lead during the process they ended the supervisor’s contract and she decided to take the job offer at her current company even though she got another job offer at another job location. She mentioned she took their offer as they provided reduced hours/flexibility as she has child and she needed time for this. Overall due to the changes she is enjoying it but the responsibilities are great and she is getting use to this change.

Learning from this the observation and informal discussions were successful as I was able to form an understanding and a sense of the experiences that apprentices, and employers must encounter throughout various stages of the journeys.

Carrying out the observations I was able to view their method of learning in a variety of situations. There is an element of Informal, Cognitive learning and organizational learning that is supervisor led as well as support from their colleagues. This has also been a learning experience for me as visiting organisations you can view their current resources and progression with their technologies.

Carla George (Doctoral Researcher) University of Warwick

Learning Strategies Traditional Model- During the1970s in the UK Conservative Party assumed that young people are equipped with the necessary skills to enter the world of work and that they would unconsciously make this choice after leaving school. There were a variety of vocational schemes developed to support this claim. The students were expected to adapt to recent changes and socially interact as part of their learning environment.

Experiential Model- This represents a variety of work-based programmes that are based on Kolb’s model to understand how students learn within the workplace. They emphasise their interpersonal and social development skills as the focal point for development of work experience. D Guile and Griffith suggested the reasoning behind all of this within Europe that they wanted to capitalise learning within a practical setting and to establish employer relations and meet the demands within the labour market.

Generic Model- Guile and Griffith suggests learner autonomy was being promoted during the early 1980s and late 1990s targeting low achieving students. In UK, their studies suggest that they wanted move away from the traditional curriculum. They are required to provide work-based evidence to reflect their own learning experience in the workplace this will be assessed by an assessor and quality assured through internal verification.

Current apprenticeship models vary in accordance workplace and apprenticeship support the one I use is quite useful is an informal approach this manner allows me to understand and mould their support in accordance to their requirements. During my sessions with learners I guide learners through the conversations that are relative to their job role and modelling approach.

This broadens my aspects and allows me to seek further opportunities to support their learning and focusing on areas surrounding their work. I am currently arranging to attend a launch event to observe a learner participating and promoting the event. Reviewing other models as discussed in my literature the cognitive approach is relevant as it mainly focuses on the learning perspective and participation from the individual.

Eraut explains that learners will contribute their own requirements and experience to allow for them to take responsibility for their own learning. He also mentions that skills and knowledge are gained through authentic situations and can apply them when required. In my literature review Assessment methods should be reliable to allow for consistency in reasonable critiquing or judgments, so this can be used as a basis for feedback that will be used towards enhancing learner’s achievement. They are supposed to be holistic and to assess competency within the work environment.

Tracking learning and support- This will involve good assessment practice and support methods in place to ensure completion. If the apprentice is at risk of not competing the apprenticeship this needs to be targeted through scheduled meetings, employer’s reviews and speaking directly with the apprentice. Ensure that you understand their situation as apprentices will also take this into consideration and feel encouraged if you can implement a process in place to support their situation.

Carla George (Doctoral Researcher) University of Warwick

Employer involvement- Ensure the employers are informed of the apprentices’ progress and support throughout the apprenticeship. Employers need to be aware of the commitment needed of them as well as the opportunity towards developing a respected relationship with them.

Quality assurance- Training providers will need to ensure timely completion and review existing practices towards improving their apprenticeship programmes. This will involve meetings, seeking feedback from employers and a suitable action plan in place to address concerns.

Summary During my observations I noticed that students develop a broad range of skills when trying to problem resolve a situation they can apply what they have learnt in an unexpected situation. In accordance to Hager that learners can construct their own knowledge using a variety of methods forming new learning developments. In the classroom they support one another and collaborate different ideas and for new knowledge structures. He explains that learners will contribute their own requirements and experience to allow for them to take responsibility for their own learning.

He also mentions that skills and knowledge are gained through authentic situations and can apply them when required. In my literature review Assessment methods should be reliable to allow for consistency in reasonable critiquing or judgments, so this can be used as a basis for feedback that will be used towards enhancing learner’s achievement. They are supposed to be holistic and to assess competency within the work environment.

References Eraut 2004 Informal Learning in the workplace ConwayM, Foskey R 2015 Simons P Constructive Learning 1980: The role of the learner Hase, Blaschke 2016 Heutagogy: A Holistic Framework for Creating Twenty-FirstCentury Self-determined Learners

Carla George (Doctoral Researcher) University of Warwick