AONTAS COMMUNITY EDUCATION NETWORK

:

 

Community Education Network Meeting

 

Date: Tuesday 24th March 2015

Time: 10.00am – 3.00pm

AimAim: To reconvene the CEN and explore current issues

ObjectivesObjectives: •Overview of the lobbying and advocacy work for community education•QQI reengagement for community education legacy providers (previously FETAC providers)•Issues facing community education as voiced by CEN members•Community Education in a Digital Era•Reflection on community education practice

OutcomesOutcomes:1.Detailed list of demands for QQI2.Highlight any other areas for advocacy work3.Explore new methods to engage CEN members virtually4.Information about an online learning model5.Collective solidarity and support

OVERVIEW

10am Registration 10.15am Meeting starts 10.30am Overview of the work of the CEN to date 11.00am QQI reengagement - group discussions11.30am Tea/coffee11.45am Current issues facing community education

practitioners - group discussions12.15am Strengthening the CEN to address issues at regional and national level

New structures at local level (Nora Fahy, Roscommon Women’s Network) Mapping out networks within the CEN – how can we strengthen these?- Discussions

12.45pm Lunch 1.30pm Community Education in a Digital Era

Strengthening the CEN and local community education groups through online networking (Michael Hallissy, H2 Learning and Chairperson D8CEC)

How to support community education groups to engage in online learning provision (An Cosan example) Liz Waters and AONTAS President

2.45 pm Reflection on practice: Reflections on Community Education Research

Update and dialogue on research – Camilla Fitzsimons (Community Education Practitioner, CEN member, PhD student and Lecturer at Maynooth

University)

3.00pm Meeting Close

AGENDA

CEN – COLLECTIVE LEVELS OF WORK

• Organisational • Classroom

INFLUENCING POLICY REGARDING COMMUNITY EDUCATION (NATIONAL AND EUROPEAN LEVEL)

SOLAS

Leargas

QQI POBAL

Community Education

HEA

EUOECD

UNESCO

Teaching Council

ETBI

Adult Learners

Practitioners

NGOs

DES

INFLUENCING POLICY REGARDING COMMUNITY EDUCATION (NATIONAL AND EUROPEAN LEVEL)

Community Education

EUOECD

UNESCO

Adult Learners

NGOs

Policy Work at European Level How? Through the European Association for the Education of

Adults (EAEA) - Membership organisation for non-formal adult education advocacy/policy influence

Why? Influence European and International adult learning and education policy

Who? Mainly European Commission and European Parliament European Commission European Social Fund co-funding e.g. BTEI and SICAP New policy alignment/cohesion Country Specific Reports (e.g. partici

pation in lifelong learning lower EU average (7,3%, as compared with 10,7% in 2013)

EAEA – Civil Society Response including Ireland European Agenda on Adult Learning (EAAL) – Onestepup.ie

European Parliament Create an interest group on lifelong learning amongst MEPs

Also international influence: OECD, UNESCO In collaboration with International Council of Adult Education

(ICAE)

European CommissionPRESIDENT OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION, JEAN-CLAUDE JUNCKER 1. A new boostboost for jobs, growth and investment

2. A connectedconnected digital single market

3. A resilientresilient Energy Union Energy Union with a forward looking climate change climate change policy

4. A deeper and fairer internal market internal market with a strengthened industrial base

5. A deeper and fairer Economic and Monetary Union Economic and Monetary Union (EMU)

6. A reasonable and balanced free trade agreement free trade agreement with the United States

7. An area of Justice and Fundamental Rights based on mutual trust

8. Towards a new policy on migration

9. Europe as a stronger global actor

10. A Union of democratic change

Reference: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/EPRS/EPRS-Briefing-538963-Setting-EU-Priorities-2014-19-FINAL.pdf

Policy Work at European Level What about Community Education?

Ensure the wider benefits of community education are recognised

Ensure European Commission policy includes non-formal adult education

Ensure European funding is targeted to non-formal adult education e.g. ERASMUS+

Ensure policy is influenced by the social action model of adult learning

Ensure projects are developed to support evidence base for non-formal adult education

Ensure proposed funding models will support the need of community education e.g. funding

Strengthening the capacity to be a recognised, valuable for of education provision

INFLUENCING POLICY REGARDING COMMUNITY EDUCATION (NATIONAL LEVEL)

SOLAS

QQI HEASOLAS

•Berni Brady on SOLAS Board•National Adult Learner Forum•Specific working groups

Higher Education Authority •Representation on the Access Advisory Group•Part-time fees issue•Provision of higher education by community education organisations•Widening participation

Adult Learners

COMMUNITY EDUCATION AND QQI

QQI

Community Education

Adult Learners

• Community education is on the political agenda: local TDs, policy makers in DES, QQI

• Greater awareness about community education• Greater voice for influencing QQI decisions that impact on

the community education sector • Open engagement with key civil servants in DES and the

QQI about accreditation policies that impact on community education

• A hold to the fees issue until there is an appropriate roadmap for community education groups to re-engage

• We are at the table to get full information about what is involved in the re-engagement process so that groups can make an informed decision on their best course of action

• We are working towards engaging in a meaningful dialogue with QQI in order to ensure groups can reengage

• Effectiveness of the advocacy work of the CEN and community education organisations

• Prompted groups at local level to come together and perhaps develop local networks, which is a great development that we will support.

• The benefits for groups benefits for groups are important for QQI work: if re-engaging independently, they have a source of support and expertise at local level: if going to go under the ETB’s QA, they can come together to negotiate as a collective with their ETB regarding this process (easier for groups and the ETB, they can look at coming together as a consortium to apply for their own QA. But also, it supports greater strength of community groups at local level, a greater advocacy voice which is important for community education groups in the future.

• Leverage for supporting legacy providers with QQI engagement – seek funding for groups dedicated to QA support

Policy Work Regarding QQI in 2015

QQI reengagement of voluntary legacy providers will now take place in 2016; we will be supporting the CEN in the preparatory process.

Outcomes from the meeting with the Department of Education and Skills from 9th December

QQI Community and Voluntary Working Group on reengagement

QQI reengagement for community education groups Broader context issues relating to QQI reengagement Sharing experience of Tara Farrell and Suzanne Kyle

at the QQI C/V working group, meeting 3rd March

QQI Response to Scenarios Paper

175 providers self-identified as community and voluntary QQI is examining this list and seek assistance of Working

Group Concept of ‘Capacity’ was described Fees are still on the table That Quality Assurance is context dependent and not

dependent on size or ability Concern about the level of activity by community and

voluntary group (programme certification/validation - question for QQI about QA systems.

No direct provision of support from QQI to providers about reengagement but will work with stakeholder and providers especially around communication

QQI Response to Scenarios Paper

The Joint Working group is mentioned throughout the paper, especially regarding supporting the development of QA Guidelines, models of reengagement including consortia.

Do we want to be part of the ETB QQI Forum to discuss the crossovers between community education QA/going under the ETB etc.

They are interested in the potential of regional networks to support QA Reengagement will not happen until 2016 at the earliest Scenarios:- QQI developed documentation which will be discussed at the Joint Working

Group in April 20th Draft QA guidelines for FET are already available

Draft QA Guidelines for the ETBs area available and they are discussing reengagement with ETBs at ETB QQI Forum

Joint Working group will example this - For a consortium, one must be a legal entity

Joint Working Group could help inform decisions (their recommendation)

Concept of Capacity

The concept of capacity requires the providers to show, amongst other things, that, they:

 established legal entity, with education and training as a principal function

have appropriate and up-to-date governance systems in operation can evidence structural and internal quality assurance systems, to ensure

that sustainable provision of education and training programmes, that meet the criteria as outlined in the QA guidelines,

can design, develop, provide, monitor and review programmes can assess learners, ensuring the achievement of learning outcomes

consistent with QQI requirements can continuously self-evaluate towards service improvement can engage with the formal external review process of QQI (as a provider

entity in its totality). This cyclical formal review is the agreed legal requirement of all providers with QQI. Current legislation also requires that the findings and outcomes of all of these reviews must be published.

QQI reengagement

•Views/comments on the QQI Response Paper

•What issues do you face regarding this process?

•What do you need to know from QQI?

•What can AONTAS do?

•What can you do?

Strengthening the CEN and local community education groups through online Networking

Dr. Michael Hallissy (H2 Learning and Chairperson of D8CEC)

How to support community education groups to engage in online learning provision

Liz Waters (An Cosan and President of AONTAS)

Community Education in a Digital Era

Camilla Fitzsimons (Community Education Practitioner, CEN member, PhD student and Lecturer at Maynooth university)

Reflections on Community Education Research: Update and dialogue on research