Recognising Prior Learning The Experience of the Open University in Scotland Jean Gordon, Sue Dumbleton and Christina Miller

Recognising Prior Learning Why? Acknowledges past learning/experience Opens doors to more students from different backgrounds Credit and Qualification Frameworks enable ‘levelling’ Why not? Students may struggle to make transition/ to learn May compromise University/ professional standards Vocational vs ‘academic’ It’s complicated!

What we did Awarded up to 120 points of credit to students with HNC Social Care with SVQ3 Social Care against the 1 st year of the 4 year BA (Hons) Social Work Used the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) to ‘level’ the awards Developed transparent RPL systems understandable to students, employers and the University RPL pilot in 2005/6 -> SSSC funded Research -> Further development -> RPL for first year of degree increasingly the norm for students

What helped Scotland is a small country Support and endorsement of SSSC, SQA and employers A strong commitment to work based leaning in Scotland Political and cultural drivers in Scotland and the OU A small scale research study funded by the Scottish Social Services Council which revealed positive outcomes

Our Research Small scale, qualitative study Semi-structured telephone interviews with 24 students from 3 Universities: -6 students without advanced entry -18 students with advanced entry: Degree or HNC/ SVQ3 Qualitative data analysis

Findings: Main Themes There were more similarities than differences between the 3 student cohorts. Nearly all:- Had to adjust to new learning challenges and a new learning environment Struggled to balance home and work with study Identified the importance of practice, life and academic experience in developing a secure foundation for learning

But there were subtle differences.. Students with HNC/SVQ were the most anxious at first: “I think all of us thought we would be dunces” HNC/SVQ students found it was “a big step up” from previous study, but also had skills (e.g. reflective writing) and experience that other students lacked Differences became less significant as students settled into the programme and gained in confidence in their capabilities and the validity of their prior experience

What helped students to make the transition? Life and practice experience Generic study skills Enabling social environment/ peer support Tutor support and feedback High quality (access to) learning resources Employer and colleague support Pre-degree information/ induction

What we’ve done with the findings We’ve acted on the message that good quality information, preparation and ongoing support are vital for effective transition: Information: for students, tutors, employers Support: for advanced entry students, tutors and module teams Curriculum and assessment: has strengthened case for acknowledging and drawing on students’ prior as well as current learning/ experience throughout degree Influence: credit for SCQF 7 and above introduced in all Scottish OU modules Exploration: of other transitions e.g. between universities

References Dumbleton, S., Gordon, J., Kelly, T., Miller, T. and Aldgate, J. (2007) Making Advanced Entry Work: The Experience of Social Work Education in Scotland, Dundee, SSSC 923/task,doc_details/ 923/task,doc_details/ Gordon, J., Miller, C. Dumbleton, S. Kelly, T. and Aldgate, J. (2010). A smooth transition? Students’ experiences of credit transfer into a social work degree in Scotland. Social Work Education, 30(1), pp. 55–69 Gordon, J., Dumbleton, S. and Miller, C. (2010). ‘We thought we would be the dunces’ – From a vocational qualification to a social work degree: an example of widening participation in social work education. Widening Participation and Lifelong Learning, 12, pp. 169– journal.metapress.com/content/n42282r87r120lg3/fulltext.pdf

Contact Details Faculty of Health and Social Care The Open University in Scotland 10, Drumsheugh Gardens Edinburgh EH3 7QJ Sue Dumbleton: Jean Gordon: Tina Miller: