1. CRC Inspection Process & Outcomes
Andrew Nightingale
18th October 2013

2. What do we think Ofsted are looking for in a VLE
What do we think Ofsted are looking for in a VLE? What are they likely to ask to see?
Please post your responses at:

3. Overview Inspection was carried out w/c 22nd October 2012
The following areas of provision were inspected:
Construction crafts
Hairdressing & Beauty Therapy
Hospitality & Catering
Sport, Leisure and Recreation
Business
Report is available at

4. The Quality of Teaching, Learning & Assessment
“Accommodation and resources to support learning are excellent. Technology and practical demonstrations are used well in most lessons to illustrate topics and often include the imaginative use of the college’s virtual learning environment. Learners value this environment highly and use it effectively to catch up on missed work and prepare materials for their next lesson. However, the virtual learning environment contains much better materials, and is therefore more useful, in some subject areas than others.”

5. Construction Crafts
“Resources for learning are good (…) Learners have good access to learning resources, including animations, course materials and assessment exercises on the college’s virtual learning environment. Learners appreciate that they can gain access to these materials from any place where there is an internet connection.”

6. Construction Crafts (cont)
“The college has devised a new sign language to cover technical terms for deaf learners and provided video clips on the virtual learning environment which feature a signer so that deaf learners are able to participate fully.”

7. Hairdressing & Beauty Therapy
“The college’s virtual learning environment provides a comprehensive range of resources for learning and is very well used by learners for independent study outside their timetabled lessons. Learners particularly value the opportunity to catch up on work missed or to prepare materials in advance of lessons.”

8. Hospitality & Catering
“Teachers make effective use of information and communications technology to provide good quality learning resources, including for learners who do not attend college. Good text materials and video clips of current kitchen practices help learners link theory to practice and to improve their skills in professional cookery.”

9. Hospitality & Catering (cont)
“Learners’ progress is supported well. College-based staff use a social networking site to communicate with apprentices while they are in the workplace and to ensure that assessment takes place at appropriate times.”

10. Media & Communication
“Assessment is well planned. Media learners have assignment course books that contain all the briefs for the year with associated learning materials that are supplemented by some excellent resources on the college’s virtual learning environment including book lists, video clips, links to useful websites, drop boxes where learners can deposit their assignment work for marking, and discussion forums. However, not all areas of the virtual learning environment are as well populated or interactive, leading to frustration for some learners.”

11. Process
Inspectors asked for open access to the entire VLE, facilitated through a single account.
E-Learning Development Manager was called to speak for minutes with each subject area inspector, usually in conjunction with the e-Learning champion for the area.
T&L development manager for the college requested a meeting with the one of the inspectors to which several learners were invited to provide their views on the VLE and e-learning in the college.

12. ..and now for something completely different…
During the meeting with the lead inspector he asked what we were doing to ensure that materials and content on the VLE were being checked for equality & diversity compliance.