IOL Approved HE Course - Application form/Assessors Report Aims of the approved HE course scheme HE courses are already validated, so the IOL Approval focuses particularly on the way in which the course is designed and delivered to be suitable as preparation for employment or post-experience CPD for outdoor practitioners. The Approval focuses on how the course meets outdoor sector needs, not just HE and HEI needs – IOL approval is not just looking at the course being a good thing in its own right. It is about links across the sector, increasing participation and helping graduates to find appropriate courses which will improve their employability. Approval therefore focuses on: 1. Course scope and aim – relationship to sector best practice, involvement of sector in course design, suitability of course for particular target markets etc 2. Course design and delivery – relevance of courses to IOL professional accreditation criteria, links between theory and practice, suitability of course learning and assessment methods to outdoor practitioners etc 3. Tutor competence and credibility – relevance and recency of tutor experience within the outdoor sector, evidence of tutor reflective practice and CPD etc 4. Course entry flexibility – how the course enables standard and direct entry 5. Quality Assurance – how you continuously evaluate and improve the course Documents required Because the IOL approval focuses particularly on the areas above, we need to be sure that we have information on the specific points listed. Simply sending in your course documentation is not therefore acceptable. Rather, please write focused statements to answer the specific questions below. Please ensure that your statements do not exceed the stated word limits and that you attach ONLY the documents requested. We hope you will find this exercise useful rather than onerous, as it will provide you with excellent marketing material (if you don’t already have it!) Notes for Assessor (for Office Use only) Please make notes in the relevant sections of the form about the information supplied and about your conversations with the applicant. Please complete the history statement below and email the completed form to Louise at the IOL office – louise@outdoor-learning.org. Name/organisation of applicant Date and comments on initial paperwork review: Feedback/action points from conversation: Application completion date: Any further comments IOL Approved HE course form 150613 V2 1 IOL Approved HE Course - Application/Assessor report form (please complete one for each course you wish to have approved) Name of course Validated by Please make focused statements against the criteria; please do not just submit pre-existing documentation. The statements in the boxes should make sense in their own right, but you can also refer to pages in the documents you have attached, if you want to make us aware of further detail. Criteria Section 1- course scope and aim – 400 words maximum Please list the clearly defined target markets and specific subject focus of the course within the outdoor sector Statement/Assessor Comments Please show how the course: Is clearly positioned on a philosophical/vocational continuum and states why these choices have been made - Involves sector representatives in course design and ongoing review - Has clear processes to ensure that the course is in line with HE and outdoor sector best practice Section 2 – Course design and delivery (400 words maximum) Please show how course design and delivery: - encourages reflective practice during the course - Balances theory and practical activity - Balances theory and practice in module content - Balances assessment activities between “academic” and practical activities - complies with or exceeds the standards of good practice required by the IOL Code of Professional Conduct, Environmental Sustainability Policy, Managing Diversity Policy Section 3 - Course entry flexibility (maximum 400 words) Please show how course enables both standard and direct entry, and that these are clearly articulated in: - Entry requirements for UCAS entry students - Entry requirements/routes for IOL Approved HE course form 150613 V2 2 - post-experience students with and without formal academic qualifications, including advanced standing APL and/or exemption processes relevant to this particular course Section 4 – Quality Assurance (maximum 400 words) Please show how you have used evaluation to continuously monitor and improve the course (ie HEI evaluation) Please show how you engage with the outdoor sector in order to evaluate the relevance of the course to sector needs, and develop/amend the course accordingly (ie sector/practitioner requirements) Please give a summary of DLHE data and 2 case studies showing typical career paths of your students after graduation (ideally over 3-5 years). Please also attach: Attachment 1. 1 page diagram showing course/module structure (core and options) and all module titles Attached? Assessor comments 2. Programme specification of the validated course 9 core module/unit outlines (max 400 words per module) covering APIOL criteria and which: State the: o Credit value o Learning outcomes o Delivery Methods o Assessment activities Highlight the specific areas of core content that cover the APIOL criteria and state which criterion they cover. (If all APIOL criteria are not covered, please give the rationale for this). The core APIOL pillars of practical competence and reflective practice are balanced within the module/unit 3. CVs for your core tutor team IOL Approved HE course form 150613 V2 3 (normally about 5) for the course (max 400 words each) particularly focusing on: a. Academic and outdoor qualifications b. APIOL or other evidence of ongoing reflective practice c. Ongoing CPD which specifically shows how they maintain their current links with the outdoor sector as well as developing their academic profile 4. 2 case histories (max 300 words each) to illustrate how you have facilitated the entry of students with non-standard histories to your course. These enable us to see how returning learners with sector experience are integrated into the course (rather than the HEFCE / QAA perspective of specific under represented groups and post code areas). If the course has been running for a number of years and not managed to attract any, comments are included on why this is, and what has been done about it. 5. One External examiner report and one end of year monitoring report IOL Approved HE course form 150613 V2 4