Skills for Life is QIA's national strategy to improve the literacy, numeracy, and language skills of adults to meet national targets. The new Improvement Programme, which CfBT Education Trust is delivering throughout England from November 2006, aims to build on the work of previous Skills for Life programmes and initiatives by supporting both individuals and organisations.


Design and consultation phase


The programme started by consulting practitioners on topics for the films. The four most-favoured themes were:

• embedded learning and partnership teaching
• teacher education
• literacy teaching and learning in a range of contexts
• approaches to numeracy teaching - a range to include language and maths, dyslexia and maths, adult numeracy and self development of personal maths skills.

Respondents also fed back some useful ideas for a future list, such as training bilingual job seekers and effective use of RARPA (Recognising And Recording of Progress and Achievement in non-accredited learning, http://www.niace.org.uk/Projects/RARPA/Default.htm).


The responses were discussed in the project Advisory Group, and it was decided to work with the top four themes, as well as to try and incorporate some of the other suggestions. Each film will be approximately one hour in length and will have footage from four different lessons or learning sites, in a range of settings.


The responses were discussed in the project Advisory Group, and it was decided to work with the top four themes, as well as to try and incorporate some of the other suggestions. Each film will be approximately one hour in length and will have footage from four different lessons or learning sites, in a range of settings.


Concerning the format of the films, the Advisory Group wants a flexible design, with the films broken up into small chunks that can either be shown separately or continuously. The group felt that, often, showing how not to do something is more illuminating than showing good practice. The project team decided to take up this point through the teacher education film. In this film, the teacher would simulate facing a particular challenge, such as dealing with a confrontation in the classroom. Epic would then film two different endings, one where an effective response is made to the challenge and another that does not work so well.


The project team also consulted trainee teachers on what they would find useful in a film of effective practice. The results of the consultation phase resulted in the drawing up of a design document that was agreed upon by the consortium partners and the QIA.


Filming and evaluating the prototype


Filming for a prototype took place in January and is being edited now. There are three films for the prototype: two lessons of ESOL embedded into construction and business studies and one entry-level-2 literacy lesson. The film will show short extracts from these lessons followed by an interview with the teacher, some learners, and a panel of experts. The aim of the prototype is to demonstrate the format. If the Advisory Group and consortium partners agree with it, then Epic will go ahead with the other eleven films.


Filming the final product


Plans are already underway to film on further sites about interesting topics, including:

• Literacy embedded into football coaching
• Numeracy for kitchen design
• Literacy embedded into family learning (Holloway Prison)
• Skills for life in the electronics workplace
• Numeracy for ESOL learners (15 - 19 year olds)
• Working on literacy through a library reading group

The films, with accompanying booklets, are expected to be ready in the summer.


Dissemination of the films


Epic sees the films as being helpful in all aspects of quality improvement, from initial teacher education to continuous professional development. The films will be delivered on DVD and via the QIA website. In addition, the possibility is being discussed of running short awareness-raising seminars to disseminate the films and to brief teacher educators and managers on how they can be used.