STEM Improvement Programme Evaluation Report

Transcription

1 STEM Improvement Programme Evaluation Report

2 Contents Background and Overview 3 Labour Market Context 7 Share Workshops 8 Resources Bank 9 Recruitment of new STEM Tutors 10 Recruitment and Retention Guide 11 Employer Register 12 Apprenticeship Funding and 13 Delivery Reforms PR and Marketing 14 Impact and Return on Investment (ROI) 15 Conclusions and Recommendations 16 2

3 Background and Overview Colleges and training providers face major problems recruiting and retaining Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) teaching and training staff, leading to increased use of agency staff, wage inflation, increased teaching workloads and the risk of courses not running. This problem is exacerbated by an ageing STEM workforce. There are also key challenges in ensuring STEM training is responsive to changing employer needs, underlining the importance of increased employer and STEM workforce engagement in the development of STEM related learning resources. Addressing these issues is pivotal to successfully tackling widespread recruitment problems faced by employers in need of staff with STEM related skills and qualifications. The Education and Training Foundation has identified the importance of addressing these issues and in response commissioned and funded Semta to deliver a programme aimed at developing a higher level of competence, confidence and collaboration in the existing STEM teaching and training workforce and to improve the recruitment, retention and creation of new STEM teachers and tutors. The aim of the programme, delivered under the banner of The STEM Alliance, has also been to develop new opportunities to share resources and knowledge transfer within the Further Education (FE) and training sector. To address these aims, The STEM Alliance has: Encouraged STEM providers and practitioners to share STEM teaching resources through regional workshops Developed a bank of effective transferable practice and resources for STEM delivery for dissemination on the ETF s Excellence Gateway Supported recruitment of new STEM teachers and tutors through careers events and other steps Produced an on-line recruitment and retention guide called STEM Engage to increase numbers entering STEM teaching and reduce numbers leaving the sector early Provided a mechanism for employers to influence and support their local FE provision and increase the supply of well qualified, talented individuals equipped with the right skills to meet their business needs through The STEM Exchange initiative. 3

4 Background and Overview Outputs A number of outputs over and above what was originally expected from the programme have been achieved: Regional Share Workshops involving STEM tutors and practitioners have been held with participants highly valuing additional Continuing Professional Development (CPD) opportunities, sharing learning resources and networking with other providers and employers. The 201 STEM learning resources developed are available for sharing on the Excellence Gateway Two bespoke web-based platforms have been developed which are significantly more advanced than outputs specified at the outset of the programme. The STEM Exchange platform enables employers to offer high value CPD opportunities to STEM teaching staff, better engage with providers and influence STEM teaching and course content, over 1,000 employers are registered to date The range of materials and tools available on the STEM Engage platform will greatly help Heads of Department and HR Professionals understand how to successfully recruit and retain STEM teaching talent STEM graduates were engaged at regional careers events to help fill FE STEM teaching vacancies via a dedicated vacancy website, in partnership with the Association of Colleges (AoC). Engagement with STEM Sectors 7,567 Apprentice Learners 598 Graduates 326 Providers Impact / Return on Investment 1,000, Practitioners 1,042 Employers n Actual n Potential 800, , ,000 1,000, , , , , , , ,000 0 Reduction in recruitment costs Reduction in Labour turnover CPD - Share Workshops CPD - STEM Exchange Media Coverage 482,000 Media Coverage = 11:1 ROI 4

5 Background and Overview Value added The overall programme has delivered excellent value for money, with impact and Return on Investment (ROI) for the different elements worth well in excess of 2 million. Through the design and delivery of 45 share workshops the project has provided a structure and process that has not only produced enhanced resources for the sector but has provided tutors and trainers with an environment and opportunity to increase their own skills, knowledge and development Within the Share Workshops participants highlighted several added value features including increased levels of competence and confidence and networking opportunities. Increased tutor competence has been achieved with confidence to try new approaches to STEM teaching. These new skills will ensure that young learners will benefit from improved delivery and resources in the longer term. Share workshops and Trailblazer activities have enabled tutors and trainers to gain an increased understanding of the sector and employer needs. In the process of gathering and processing the 201 successful resources it was established that learners particularly liked videos, worksheets, on-line Apps, electronic games/quizzes and on-line games as resource formats. This demonstrates the shift in the way that learners are now taking in and processing information and should be highlighted on a wider scale within the STEM teaching communities. The delivery of a bespoke CPD web platform STEM Exchange has given tutors and trainers the ability to source the CPD opportunities required to increase their own knowledge and skill, ultimately leading to increased job satisfaction and more informed delivery of higher quality, industry relevant provision. In spite of a slow start to the registration and activation of Employers the STEM Exchange has been a particular success story. With the original employer register having been superseded by a bespoke web based platform there is now true sustainability to the system which as well as offering live opportunities now has the potential to grow and flex with the needs of the user base significantly enhancing the potential impact going forward. The delivery of a bespoke Recruitment and Retention web platform STEM Engage has provided a framework of guidance and information networks designed to improve staff retention. The programme overcame a number of significant barriers in engaging HR professionals to support best practice solutions with recruitment and retention of staff, which resulted in the design and development of a bespoke web-based platform that has a much wider scope and is more advanced than the stand-alone written Recruitment and Retention Guide originally proposed. The resulting platform is much more interactive and user friendly than envisaged. Initial feedback from users is extremely positive and as with the STEM Exchange the legacy offers a model which is both sustainable and offers growth potential as the user base grows, increasing the potential impact to the sector. A series of 30 career campaigns along with a dedicated landing page has not only promoted the opportunities for the progression into a STEM teaching career but has also facilitated actual STEM teaching opportunities within the sector. The bespoke systems processes and outputs designed and delivered as part of the project have provided tools and outputs that will go towards reducing the skills gap within the industry, raising productivity and awareness of sector requirements and opportunities. It has delivered outputs that provide individuals with higher quality information upon which to make more informed career choices. 5

6 Background and Overview Lessons learned Semta has successfully engaged with employers and other stakeholders to deliver this project due to our strong relationships both inside and outside of the Industry. The project may have had a slow start due to the time taken to establish new contacts within the STEM sectors but we were able to deliver and exceed the contracted KPI s due to our existing networks and relationships. Gaining an understanding of the different bodies and institutions that are currently operating in the STEM arena would have been really useful up front and would have saved time and in some cases duplicated effort to achieve the same end goal. The completion and integration of the QA Process into the design and development of resources was a major learning point. It has ultimately given us resources that are proven, of a much better quality and could be rolled out and used on a wider scale. The biggest lesson learnt was the fact that there is a huge appetite for the activities that have been carried out over the course of this project. Peoples willingness to engage and participation has increased as awareness has grown. Stakeholders are however looking for continuity, partnership and sustainability. If these stakeholders are to continue in their efforts to create and enhance what is already out there, then they will want to know that it has a future and that they are going to have continued support and guidance to integrate these solutions into their current state ensuring that is has real and sustainable impact going forward. Semta recommends that the success of The STEM Alliance should be built on further to provide sustainable opportunities for the STEM sectors: Better co-ordination of STEM bodies and stakeholders through The STEM Alliance brand would reduce duplication and maximise use of learning resources and web-based platforms developed. There is also potential for expanding the functionality, reach and impact of some of these elements through additional funding or stakeholder sponsorship, particularly for: The STEM Exchange STEM Engage Processes for share workshop delivery Quality Assurance Process for the evaluation and delivery of benchmark resources 6

7 Labour Market Context A range of economic and labour market drivers are ensuring that it is vitally important to increase the supply and quality of STEM skills delivered nationally. Demand for STEM skills Demand for STEM skills is expected to remain strong, exacerbating widespread recruitment difficulties for people with these skills already evident. In particular: Demand for more people with higher-level skills is expected to be strong in growth sectors such as construction, manufacturing, engineering and science. There are currently widespread difficulties in recruiting people with STEM skills at every level, from new entrants to train as apprentices to people with more than five years experience of STEM related work. Currently, 43% of employers have difficulty recruiting staff. Linked to expectations of continued strong demand for STEM skills this figure rises to more than half of employers expecting such difficulties in the next three years. Continuous Professional Development (CPD) Commitment to CPD needs to improve in order to ensure the STEM workforce keeps abreast of rapidly changing skills needs, with greater involvement of STEM staff in the design of learning resources an important aspect of these improvements: Currently STEM practitioners only undertake an average of 5 days CPD per year and only 10% of providers have staff undertaking employer work placements. Coupled with this, 30% of providers indicated that their STEM staff are not involved in the development of learning resources as part of staff training/cpd activities. Recruitment and Retention Available evidence indicates the STEM workforce is ageing, there is a need to address diversity issues and there are problems recruiting and retaining STEM staff, which, in turn, has led to a range of further issues. In particular: The current STEM teaching workforce has a high age profile (a third aged 50+) and low proportion of women and ethnic minorities. 60% of providers had difficulties recruiting STEM staff. Looking at this issue in more detail, private training providers are finding it difficult to recruit engineering related staff. For FE Colleges, the main subject areas for which recruitment of lecturers is proving difficult include, Mathematics, Chemistry, Physics, Science, Engineering and IT. Only 50% of STEM providers have a recruitment and retention strategy for their staff and only a third of providers have an organisational recruitment and retention guide in place. The average cost of recruiting STEM staff is 2,000 with recruitment and retention problems leading to increased use of agency staff, wage inflation, use of non-specialist staff, increased teaching workloads and the risk of classes being cancelled/ courses not running. 13% of STEM Initial Teacher Training places were unfilled. Commitment to CPD needs to improve to keep the STEM workforce abreast of rapidly changing skill needs Employer Engagement There is recognition by both providers and businesses of the importance of engaging employers in the design of STEM learning resources and training in order to ensure qualifications meet employer requirements and adequate numbers of students are encouraged to pursue STEM related subjects. For example: 32% of businesses identified a strong case for ensuring vocational qualifications are rigorous and 31% identified the importance of increased employer engagement in their design. A quarter of providers felt that a lack of employer engagement was a barrier to increasing student numbers. 7

8 Share Workshops Activities A key objective of The STEM Alliance is to encourage the sharing of further-education resources for STEM related subjects. This is linked to the recognition in relation to teaching STEM related subjects within FE that good quality, ready-made resources are hard to come by. Although Institutions are looking to deliver more course content online, due to limited time and resources it is clear that some tutors struggle with this unfamiliar technology. The STEM Alliance has therefore sought to encourage teachers, tutors and trainers to share their best practice STEM teaching resources through the implementation of regional share workshops for both practitioners and providers. Learner Forums and Time to Talk Cafes attended by apprentices and other learners were also undertaken. Achievements 45 Share Workshops. 820 practitioners participated in these workshops. 326 providers participated in the workshops. 23 Learner Workshops (Time to Talk Cafes and Learner Forums). In addition: An 85% participant satisfaction rate has been achieved at Share Workshops, indicating that they were highly valued by practitioners. 10 case studies of collaborative research based improvement and impact have been developed. Added value Participants highlighted that there were a number of features of the Regional Share Workshops that added value. In particular: Summary of achievements Share Workshops Share workshops Workshop participant feedback % who strongly agree or agree A good way to review resources Increased knowledge of STEM resources Enabled exchange of expertise Content was useful for my job/role Practitioners Participating 320 n Actual n Target 326 Providers Participating 93% 92% 88% 87% 8 They provided opportunities for networking and acted as forums to share ideas on training, learning, education and development. Led to a greater understanding of how different groups of people are using STEM learning resources and enabled identification of ways of developing learner s understanding of STEM. Helped participants gain an employer perspective, particularly around apprenticeships and improved links between providers and employers, helping to tailor college courses to their needs. Resulted in increased levels of competence and confidence of those attending. The average number of days CPD undertaken annually by those participating in the Workshops increased from 5 to 6 days. Learning will be applied in my job/role Participant demographics 100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0% 55% 45% Male Female Gender 91% 84% 16% White Ethnic minority Ethnicity

9 Resources Bank Activities The purpose of this element of the programme was to develop a bank of effective transferable practice and resources for STEM delivery for dissemination and publication on The Education and Training Foundation s Excellence Gateway This has been achieved by getting teachers, lecturers and providers to share their resources, so that others can benefit from them; careful vetting of the uploaded content of these resources for quality and usefulness and the generation of new content and teaching resources that previously did not exist. Achievements 201 STEM resources have been produced for upload on to The Education and Training Foundation s Excellence Gateway. 66% of the 304 resources submitted passed the Quality Assurance Process. 75 of these STEM resources relate to science. 67 relate to Maths. 26 relate to Technology. 12 relate to Engineering. 21 are generic STEM resources. 7,567 apprentice learners reached on 3 Learner Forum webinars. Added value In addition to the specific achievements set out above, wider benefits resulting from the development of the Resources Bank have included: A rigorous, structured QAP for assessing and vetting STEM resources, including the use of an external chair and external testing has been developed. This will vastly improve the development of resources in the future, particularly in terms of appropriate user testing and copyright checks. The STEM resources produced are high quality. Of the 201 resources uploaded to the Excellence Gateway, 75% had to be reworked with only 25% immediately passing the QAP. Time to Talk Cafes with learners were used to identify themes for resource development. Additional investment has been made in producing learning resources in new user-friendly formats, including interactive tools, games and videos, making them fun and accessible to a wider audience. Learner Forums were used to test resources and gain learner feedback. Learners particularly liked videos, worksheets, on-line Apps, electronic games/quizzes and on-line games as resource formats. Learners felt that these resources would increase their interest, enjoyment, attention, understanding and confidence in applying what they learnt. STEM learning resources were viewed as a good approach to learning and would help their teachers deliver better lessons. Summary of achievements Resources Bank Summary of achievements Resources developed by STEM subject area STEM Generic 21 Science Technology Resources submitted Engineering 103 Resources that failed QAP 150 Resources produced 75 n Actual n Target 201 Maths 67 9

10 Recruitment of new STEM Tutors Activities In order to support recruitment of new STEM teachers and tutors, a range of careers events and national recruitment campaigns have been undertaken, along with participation in The Skills Show. Achievements University graduate career events were very successful. 12 careers events were held, involving 598 participants that expressed an interest in a STEM career. 427 graduates expressed an interest in STEM teaching, with 76 of these graduates requesting further information on opportunities. 18 national recruitment campaigns have been held to attract STEM tutors and trainers. Added value A number of additional benefits have resulted from these activities. In particular, the profile of graduates attending careers events has been much more diverse than the current STEM workforce profile, with just over half of the graduates interested in STEM teaching being female and just under half from an ethnic minority. The diversity of those expressing an interest in STEM teaching would greatly help with current STEM teaching recruitment difficulties and help widen the demographic profile of the current STEM teaching workforce. Summary of achievements Recruitment of new STEM Tutors Ethnic profile of those interested in STEM Teaching White Career events participants Other ethinc group 20% EOI s in progressing STEM teaching 28 n Actual n Target 30 National Campaigns 54% Overall, graduates engaged have shown a high level of interest in STEM teaching, particularly for Science, implying a significant potential impact in terms of improved STEM recruitment in the future. 6% 14% Mixed/multiple ethnic group Asian/Asian British The STEM Alliance engagement with the Association of Colleges (AoC) through a dedicated vacancy website ( will actively help these graduates fill FE STEM vacancies. 4% Black/African/Carribean/Black British 2% Prefer not to say 427 graduates expressed an interest in STEM teaching these graduates requested further 76of info on opportunities 10

11 Recruitment and Retention Guide Activities The purpose of this element of the programme was to produce a recruitment and retention guide in order to increase the numbers entering STEM teaching and reduce the numbers leaving the sector early. The guide is aimed at helping Heads of Department and HR Professionals to understand how to successfully recruit and retain STEM teaching talent and contains related research, materials and tools. The resources are designed around the three main strands of recruitment: attraction, engagement and selection and the three main strands of retention: induction, culture and talent management. Achievements The Recruitment and Retention Guide originally envisaged has been launched on an enhanced online STEM Engage web-based platform. 57 resources are currently available on the site (case studies, videos, reports and other tools). Added value A versatile, bespoke web-based platform has been developed, which is much wider and advanced than the stand-alone, hard copy, Recruitment and Retention Guide originally envisaged. Improvements in the quality of resources and accessibility of the site include: A range of recruitment and retention resources, in a variety of formats such as case studies and videos. Enables practitioners to submit ideas for enhancement of current resource and development of new ones. Initial feedback from those that have tested the site has been very positive in terms of the quality and effectiveness of the resources provided and the ease of access. Knowledge of specific recruitment techniques has improved through testing the resources. Issues STEM Engage is designed to tackle The initial Recruitment and Retention Survey conducted at the start of the programme indicated: The average cost of recruiting STEM staff was 2,000. Improving retention rates amongst STEM staff can therefore lead to significant recruitment savings. 60% of providers indicated they had difficulties recruiting STEM staff. These problems are leading to increased use of agency staff, wage inflation, use of non-specialist staff and increased teaching workloads. A number of providers have no strategies in place to retain STEM staff. Only 35% of providers surveyed indicated they had an organisational recruitment and retention guide in place. 57 resources are currently available on the site case studies, videos, reports and other tools 11

12 Employer Register Activities The STEM Exchange is a unique opportunity for employers to influence and support their local FE provision and increase the supply of well qualified, talented individuals equipped with the right skills to meet their business needs. The STEM Exchange is an on-line matching service bringing together individual teachers, tutors from colleges, private training providers and charities involved in FE, with employers within their area who have agreed to support professional development activities. Achievements Live online platform up and running. 1,042 employers registered. 311 active employers. 561 opportunities available for CPD on The STEM exchange. 10 case studies showcasing and evaluating employer workbased professional development activities. Added value The potential impact of The STEM Exchange has been significantly enhanced. The Employer Register specified at the outset of the programme has now been superseded by a bespoke STEM Exchange web-based platform offering enhanced functionality and upgrade possibilities, including a specific landing page for managing STEM jobs and YouTube promotional videos. The new web-based platform provides an effective mechanism for employers to influence both provision and the supply of skills to meet employer needs. In particular, employers can communicate the skills and qualities they require and influence STEM teaching by: Ensuring STEM teaching keeps pace with advances in modern industry and is closely aligned to business needs by ensuring course content, teaching and delivery is up to date with industry requirements. Providing Information, Advice and Guidance. Demonstrate their credentials as industry leaders. Increase business competitiveness to help UK plc compete on the global stage. The main types of opportunities available from active employers on The STEM Exchange include: mentoring/coaching; regular phone/ support; site visits; training; and work experience/ job shadowing. Summary of achievements STEM Exchange ,042 1,000 Employers registered as active or interested Employers registered as active 10 n Actual n Target 10 Case studies of employer workbased CPD Providing teaching practitioners with access to work-related experience anything from bite-sized work-shadowing to attending a company induction. Improving the quality of STEM teaching and training by supporting CPD. 12

13 Apprenticeship Funding and Delivery Reforms Activities Although major changes in the ownership of apprenticeships, now residing with employers, has taken place, in most cases, providers of training and education will still form a vital part of the overall development of apprentice s skills and knowledge as they progress through their respective programmes. The strong partnerships that have been developed between industry and providers will still exist even though the relationship between them will change to some degree. The Trailblazer Provider Briefing Workshops undertaken as part of this programme, enabled the sector to be informed about the latest changes and developments in Standards and delivery, as modeled by the initial Trailblazer sectors. Achievements 6 Trailblazer workshops held. 200 delegates from a total of 121 providers attended the workshops. Over 90% of attendees were satisfied or very satisfied with the Workshops. Added value Positive feedback from stakeholders (GTAs, private training providers and FE), has led to further seminars being planned for autumn 2015, regarding to the impact of changes to the delivery of STEM apprenticeships, as new information on Trailblazers and funding is made available. In terms of impacts, the Workshops have already led to an increase in stakeholder awareness of changes to funding, Standards, delivery and Trailblazer activity. The Briefing Workshops were led by industry representatives and supported by Semta, AoC, NFEC and GTA England in order to emphasise the key role of industry in apprenticeships. Apprenticeship delivery reforms - Issues Although funding reforms are aimed at encouraging employers to increase apprentice recruitment and financial contributions, the actual reforms are still not yet finalised. Potential implementation issues include: administrative burdens and reduced incentive to recruit younger apprentices that will need to be addressed. Given this, it will be important to monitor the funding trialled in Trailblazer activity to better understand the practicalities of funding for apprenticeships. With no clear employer preference for either the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) or Apprenticeship Credit models, the government has to do more detailed design work on the best funding mechanism to implement. Given this, it will be important to monitor the funding trialled in Trailblazer activity to better understand the practicalities of funding for apprenticeships. Trailblazer workshops held 200 delegates from 121 providers attended the workshops 13

14 PR and Marketing Activities A full communications strategy was implemented to support the PR and marketing activities undertaken to deliver the programme, including: Design and development of The STEM Alliance brand; Creation of social media channels including Twitter and LinkedIn; Dedicated STEM Alliance website pages and production of STEM Newsletters. Through these actions The STEM Alliance brand has been widely promoted and has successfully engaged with STEM providers, employers and other key stakeholders. Achievements 482,000 of media coverage realised. 11 STEM Newsletters circulated. 420 new Twitter followers. 625 retweets, replies or mentions. 133,553 impressions. 4,698 Website visits. 3,913 unique website visits. Added value As a result of these PR and marketing activities a wider range of benefits have resulted in addition to the specific achievements set out above. This includes strengthening of The STEM Alliance brand, increased partnership working amongst STEM stakeholders and a high Return on Investment (ROI). In particular: Summary of achievements PR and Marketing ,250 4,698 Website visits 1,700 3,913 Unique Website visits Social media statistics Retweets, Replies, Mentions New Twitter followers n Actual n Target STEM Newsletters A full brand has been designed and developed for The STEM Alliance including logo, strapline, key messages, and branding guidelines. A high profile launch of The STEM Alliance was undertaken at the House of Lords with over 100 attendees, many of which have been engaged with the programme throughout. Various STEM bodies have worked in partnership under The STEM Alliance banner endorsing the strapline Greater Together. Extensive PR and marketing activity, including events, website development, press releases, social media, videos and development of case studies, has enabled a 11:1 ROI of over 500,000. LinkedIn impressions 420 LinkedIn new followers LinkedIn clicks Twitter mentions Twitter replies Twitter favourites 32 Twitter retweets 30 Twitter clicks 22 Twitter new followers 1,064 14

15 Impact and Return on Investment (ROI) The impact and ROI measures have been developed to assess the actual and potential future impact of activities undertaken within this project: 1 Impact on reduced recruitment agency costs. FE Colleges spent 65 million on agency staff in 2011, with agencies charging three times the cost of directly employing staff. 1 Given that STEM FE teachers represent 13% of all FE staff, 2 this implies an estimated spend of about 8,450,000 on STEM agency staff in England at this time. This is likely to be a significant under estimate given the more acute difficulties faced by FE Colleges in recruiting STEM teaching staff. It is not possible at this time to estimate the actual impact of The STEM Alliance project in terms of reduced use of agency staff but it is clear that the potential for savings through such a reduction are very significant. For example: - A 10% reduction in the use of STEM agency staff would reduce FE College recruitment costs by an estimated 845, Impact of reduced rates of labour turnover. According to Further Education workforce data for England for the annual turnover rate for Science and Mathematics teaching staff was 16.9% and for Engineering, Technology and Manufacturing teaching staff 22.2%, compared with an average for all FE teaching staff of 15.4%. The Semta Recruitment and Retention Survey indicated that in relation to those organisations that responded to the survey, the average cost of recruiting STEM training staff was 2, If this figure is used it implies that: - A 10% reduction in the use in the annual turnover rate for STEM FE College staff would reduce the annual recruitment bill for STEM FE College staff in England by an estimated 575, The value of increased CPD amongst STEM teaching/training staff. a. Learning Resources Workshops Value to the FE STEM sector of the CPD delivered to 820 practitioners: 287,000 b. STEM Exchange Opportunities There are currently a total of 311 active employers providing 561 CPD opportunities, equivalent to an estimated 814 days CPD at an estimated added value to the STEM FE sector of 285,000. If this figure increases to 1,042 active employers it is estimated that the added value to the STEM FE sector would be about 954, PR and Marketing The value of PR activity through the programme has a media value of 482,000, giving a 11:1 ROI against PR spend. Conclusions in relation to ROI The STEM Alliance, commissioned and funded by The Education and Training Foundation, has delivered excellent value for money. The impact and ROI for the different elements are worth well in excess of 2 million including a number of additional outputs over and above what was originally expected of the Programme. 1 UCU FE National Joint Forum 2013/14 2 Based on Further Education workforce data for England; Analysis of the Staff Individualised Record (SIR) data; Education and Training Foundation and Frontier Economics 3 Further Education workforce data for England; Analysis of the Staff Individualised Record (SIR) data; Education and Training Foundation and Frontier Economics 4 Semta Recruitment and Retention Survey

16 Conclusions and Recommendations Conclusions Semta set out to bring together further education and industry to deliver a higher level of competence, confidence and collaboration in STEM teaching and learning, to inspire the next generation of engineers, scientists and technicians with the skills to succeed. This was an ambitious aim but results clearly show The STEM Alliance has had a major impact, creating awareness, new resources, partnerships between employers and FE with CPD opportunities for employees, teachers and lecturers. It has created excellent foundations to build on placing STEM education where it should be: at the forefront of business development! There is significant demand from employers to see an improvement in the quality of teaching and learning delivered within FE. Some of the key achievements of the programme are set out below: High quality learning resources have been developed and practitioner involvement in the development of new learning resources and networking with other practitioners and employers has been highly valued. There is an issue with the quality of resources developed independently by practitioners. A third of resources submitted failed the Quality Assurance Process. The functionality of The STEM Exchange portal will greatly enhance the ongoing need for FE CPD opportunities, particularly with employers. The work on careers events has highlighted a trend within recruitment agencies to move applicants within FE institutions rather than attracting new entrants. Due to the low proliferation of STEM providers with a recruitment and retention strategy, FE will benefit significantly from the STEM Engage platform. The STEM Alliance brand, combined with extensive marketing and PR for individual elements of the programme, has far exceeded original expectations. Recommendations The following recommendations would ensure future sustainability and impact of the programme: Better co-ordination of STEM bodies and stakeholders through The STEM Alliance website could reduce potential duplication and maximise usage and development of STEM resources. The STEM Exchange and STEM Engage systems to be developed further and build on The STEM Alliance brand. Further promotion will be required to capitalise on the good work already done. Additional practitioner workshops to be undertaken to build on the momentum of The STEM Alliance workshops, possibly as a paid for service. Adoption of the QAP process by practitioners would ensure further quality STEM learning resources are produced in the future and increase levels of practitioner CPD and learner pass rates. Ability for The Education and Training Foundation s Excellence Gateway system to download metrics for learning resources to be enabled. The relationship developed with AoC jobs to promote FE vacancies to be converted to a self-funding model. STEM Engage platform functionality to be further enhanced using feedback from practitioners to develop new downloads. STEM Exchange platform functionality to be further enhanced e.g. promotion of work experience opportunities, an open platform for the FE community to share experience and best practice, a calendar of STEM events and enhanced use of blogs and social media. STEM Exchange to be sponsored by employers and other stakeholders to enable sustainability post Education and Training Foundation funding and promoted by Government bodies and institutions. Further employer and stakeholder seminars to be undertaken, regarding to the impact of changes to the delivery of STEM apprenticeships, as new information on Trailblazers and funding is made available. 16

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18 For more information call Commissioned and funded Follow us: STEM Alliance STEMAlliance