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The Adult and Community Learning Fund provided grants for
voluntary and community organisations and local partnerships
in England to :
- encourage more people and organisations to get involved
in community-based learning activities of all kinds
- reach the 'hardest to help' adults
- open up access to learning
- improve the basic skills of adults
- build the capacity of community based organisations to
deliver learning
- develop partnerships;
- innovate
There were two strands to the fund, one managed by the National
Institute for Adult Continuing Education (NIACE) and the other
by the Basic Skills Agency (BSA). All the BSA projects had
a focus on developing basic skills - literacy, numeracy or
ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages). Over 300 projects
were managed by the BSA.
For more on the Adult and Community Learning Fund from the Basic Skills Agency visit www.basic-skills.co.uk
Sue McMeeking, Monica Taylor, Robat Powell, David Sims
National Foundation for Educational Research, 2002.
Background to the research
The Adult and Community Learning Fund (ACLF) was established
in 1998 to explore innovative ways to expand the provision
of, and increase access to, local community-based learning
opportunities. It was managed by the Basic Skills Agency (BSA)
and the National Institute for Adult Continuing Education
(NIACE). This evaluation was undertaken by the National Foundation
for Educational Research (NfER) for the BSA, to evaluate the
59 programmes which it managed under Round 5 of the ACLF,
from April 2001 to March 2002. Qualitative research was undertaken
through nine case studies of programmes which targeted different
groups at risk of social exclusion, for example rough sleepers,
visually impaired people and refugees.
Key findings
- The most successful method for marketing the programmes
was word of mouth, although attracting and retaining 'hard-to-
reach' learners was a major challenge. An effective outreach
strategy was when staff visited groups in the community
to talk about the programmes, especially when they were
accompanied by learners.
- The main strategies used to remove barriers to recruitment
and retention included providing for travel costs, materials
such as books and pens, and sometimes also for childcare.
Three aspects that were critical to learner retention were
the quality and relevance of the learning experience, the
social atmosphere of the programme and the personal commitment
of tutors.
- Learners felt that the best form of support was that provided
by programme managers, coordinators and tutors. In some
programmes learners provided useful support for each other.
- The greatest impact on learners was in terms of their
personal development (including their self-esteem, motivation
and ability to think for themselves), and their progress
in developing new skills was dependent on their confidence
and emerging identity as learners.
- The programmes did help improve learners' basic skills,
and in some cases also their practical skills, knowledge
of where to get information, and their ability to cope with
problems. Examples of learners' gains in literacy included
reading more, and more advanced material, improvements in
spelling and using a wider range of vocabulary in writing.
- The ACLF helped to increase the capacity of providers
to deliver basic skills, for example through raising staff
awareness and providing resources, as well as raising providers'
profile in their communities and strengthening their links
with other agencies. The effectiveness of programmes was
enhanced where all staff had received some training in basic
skills awareness.
Types of programmes
The programmes embedded basic skills tuition in other activities,
including cooking, childcare, computer skills, motor bike
maintenance and riding, the art of nail extension, photography
and recycling waste, as it was felt that clients would be
deterred by pure basic skills courses. The report concludes
that it is best that the basic skills component of the course
is made explicit so that learners know what to expect and
so can become aware of the skills that they have developed.
This also makes the evaluation of their learning easier. The
report recommends that innovative and effective ways of measuring
"soft" outcomes of programmes (such as impact on
self-esteem, confidence and learning readiness) be identified
and disseminated, so that basic skills programmes that have
these impacts on the hardest to reach learners are not undervalued.
A common feature of the programmes was an informal style
of delivery which allowed learners to work at their own pace
and was unlike school, of which many had bad memories. Some
learners valued the practical experiences offered, which helped
them to develop new interests in life. Many of the learners
experienced a sense of achievement and some progressed to
further education, employment or training.
Challenges
The report points out that the hardest to reach learners may
often have a range of personal problems, including health,
housing, finance, family or crime, which are often more immediate
than their basic skills needs. Programme staff should be prepared
for the fact that learners may therefore need constant support
in these areas, and it is beneficial if the programme can
offer specialist staff to provide that support. The evaluation
also finds that one year is not enough time to set up and
run a programme that will be truly effective in reaching these
client groups.
One factor that hindered some learners was the fact that
they had been involved in formal education very recently:
some had had bad experiences of school within the past year
and did not see the need for basic skills tuition. The report
also warns that for some learners the end of the programme
is a personal and social disappointment, and that programmes
should make sure that they prepare learners both for progression
and for life after the classes have finished.
The experience gained through the ACLF projects fed into
initiatives such as the National Strategy for Neighbourhood
Renewal and the Skills for Life strategy.
- For a summary of the research or to download a copy
of it visit www.nfer.ac.uk
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