Setting

22 March 2006

Inspectors use a four-point scale to summarise their judgements about the quality of learning sessions. The descriptors for the four grades are: • grade 1 - outstanding • grade 2 - good • grade 3 - satisfactory • grade 4 - inadequate

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22 March 2006

Inspectors use a five-point scale to summarise their judgements about the quality of provision in occupational/curriculum areas. The same scale is used to describe the quality of leadership and management, which includes quality assurance and equality of opportunity. The descriptors for the five grades are: • grade 1 - outstanding • grade 2 - good • grade 3 - satisfactory • grade 4 - unsatisfactory • grade 5 - very weak.

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Adult Learning Inspectorate

The Adult Learning Inspectorate (ALI) was established under the provisions of the Learning and Skills Act 2000 to bring the inspection of all aspects of adult learning and work-based learning within the remit of a single inspectorate. The ALI is responsible for inspecting a wide range of government-funded learning, including:

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Adult Learning Inspectorate

Inspections are carried out in accordance with the by teams of full-time inspectors and part-time associate inspectors who have knowledge of, and experience in, the work which they inspect. All providers are invited to nominate a senior member of their staff to participate in the inspection as a team member. Common Inspection Framework • work-based learning for all people over 16 • provision in further education colleges for people aged 19 and over • provision • Adult and Community Learning • training funded by Jobcentre Plus • education and training in prisons, at the invitation of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons. • adult information, advice and guidance services ( )

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Contents

Description of the provider 1 Scope of provision 1 About the reinspection 2 Overall judgement 2 Humanities 8 Foundation programmes 11 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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DESCRIPTION OF THE PROVIDER

1. Morley College (the college) is a specialist designated college in the further education sector which was founded in 1889 to enable working men and women to study subjects which were not narrowly vocational and to enhance their general education and skills. It developed from a series of ’penny lectures’ by eminent scientists and scholars at a local theatre, to become a provider of specialist adult education. It is a registered charity and in 1993 it became a company limited by guarantee. In 2004-05, about 13,000 learners made around 24,500 enrolments on over 1,400 courses. Of those courses that are accredited, most are accredited by the Open College Network London Region. The college specialises in provision for visual and performing arts, health and exercise, languages, humanities, English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) and preparation for life and work.

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DESCRIPTION OF THE PROVIDER

2. The college’s mission includes its aim to ’provide a range of learning opportunities for the dignity of self-improvement, the achievement of personal fulfilment, and the creation of a better society’.

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Humanities

3. At the time of the inspection, 213 learners were following humanities programmes. Of these, 44 were enrolled on the access to higher education programme. These learners can choose pathways in humanities, social science or social work. They can complete the course by studying full time during the day for a year or part time during the day or evening for two years. One hundred and forty learners are following non-accredited courses in philosophy, history, politics and social policy. These courses are generally taught for two and a half or three hours a week over 30 weeks. Twenty-nine learners are enrolled on accredited programmes in psychology, politics and social science. Seventy per cent of the humanities learners are women, 35 per cent are from a minority ethnic group and 8 per cent have declared a disability. Of the 275 learners enrolled in 2004-05, 72 per cent were women, 33 per cent were from a minority ethnic group and 7 per cent

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Humanities

4. Programmes are delivered by the college’s school of humanities, health and skills. The acting head of school and the curriculum manager for humanities are responsible for all aspects of the provision. There is a full-time access course leader, two fractional tutors and six part-time tutors.

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Humanities

© 2006 ADULT LEARNING INSPECTORATE 1 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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Foundation programmes

5. The college provides courses in literacy, numeracy and ESOL at the main college site and a secondary school in south London. The department is staffed by a director of ESOL, a curriculum manager for literacy and numeracy, 21 ESOL tutors and 18 literacy and numeracy tutors. Most tutors work part time.

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Foundation programmes

6. Courses range from pre-entry level to level 2 and are provided in the day and evening. In 2004-05 there were 29 literacy and numeracy courses and 35 ESOL courses. Most courses are taught over 34 weeks. Learners in ESOL and literacy attend for six to 12 hours a week and numeracy learners attend for three hours a week. A range of short ESOL courses is also provided for specific purposes such as preparing for the citizenship test. All courses include a weekly one-hour tutorial.

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Foundation programmes

7. In 2004-05, 1,014 learners made 742 enrolments on ESOL courses, 257 enrolments on literacy courses and 151 enrolments on numeracy courses. Seventy-two per cent of learners on literacy and numeracy courses were women and 87 per cent were from minority ethnic backgrounds. Sixty-six per cent of learners on ESOL courses were women and all learners were from minority ethnic groups. Nine per cent of learners declared a learning difficulty or disability. In 2005-06, 1,068 learners made 772 enrolments on ESOL courses, 264 enrolments on literacy courses and 154 enrolments on numeracy courses.

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OVERALL JUDGEMENT

8. At the previous inspection in February 2005, the college’s leadership and management and all areas of learning except for humanities and foundation provision were satisfactory or better. At the end of the reinspection process, provision was found to be good in humanities and satisfactory in foundation programmes.

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ABOUT THE REINSPECTION

Number of inspectors 2 Number of inspection days 10 Number of learners interviewed 45 Number of staff interviewed 48 Number of locations/sites/learning centres visited 2 Number of visits 3

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ABOUT THE REINSPECTION

© 2006 ADULT LEARNING INSPECTORATE 2 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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GRADES

grade 1= outstanding, grade 2 = good, grade 3 = satisfactory, grade 4 = unsatisfactory, grade 5 = very weak Grades awarded at previous inspection

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Hospitality, sport, leisure & travel 2

Contributory areas: Contributory grade Number of learners Leisure, sport and recreation 1004 Adult and community learning 2 -

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Health, social care & public services 2

Contributory areas: Contributory grade Number of learners Complementary health services 577 Adult and community learning 2 -

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Visual & performing arts & media 2

Contributory areas: Contributory grade Number of learners Design 1892 Adult and community learning 2 - Dance 1102 Adult and community learning 2 - Music 2215 Adult and community learning 2 -

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Humanities 4

Contributory areas: Contributory grade Number of learners Other contributory areas 751 Adult and community learning 4 -

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English, languages & communications 3

Contributory areas: Contributory grade Number of learners Languages 1760 Adult and community learning 3 -

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Foundation programmes 4

Contributory areas: Contributory grade Number of learners ESOL 399 Adult and community learning 4 - Literacy and numeracy 237 Adult and community learning 3 -

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Foundation programmes 4

© 2006 ADULT LEARNING INSPECTORATE 3 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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Humanities 2

Contributory areas: Contributory grade Number of learners Other contributory areas 213 Adult and community learning 2 -

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Foundation programmes 3

Contributory areas: Contributory grade Number of learners ESOL 650 Adult and community learning 3 - Literacy and numeracy 418 Adult and community learning 3 -

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Foundation programmes 3

© 2006 ADULT LEARNING INSPECTORATE 4 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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Language of the Adult and Community Learning Sector

Terminology varies across the range of education and training settings covered by the Common Inspection Framework. The table below indicates the terms appropriate to

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Relating the term to Adult and Community Learning

Provider Any organisation providing opportunities for adults to meet personal or collective goals through the experience of learning. Providers include local authorities, specialist designated institutions, voluntary and community sector organisations, regeneration partnerships and further education colleges

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Provider

Learner Includes those learning by participating in community projects, as well as those on courses. Learning, however, will be planned, with intended outcomes.

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trainer

Person teaching adult learners or guiding or facilitating their learning.

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trainer

Person providing individual, additional support, guidance and advice to learners to help them achieve their learning goals.

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goals

Intended gains in skills, knowledge or understanding. Gains may be reflected in the achievement of nationally recognised qualifications. Or they may be reflected in the ability of learners to apply learning in contexts outside the learning situation, e.g. in the family, community, or workplace. Learners’ main goal/s should be recorded on an individual or, in some cases, group learning plan. Plans should be revised as progress is made and new goals emerge.

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goals

These may include planned-for gains in self-confidence, and inter-personal skills. These should also be included in learning plans where appropriate.

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learning skills

These include being able to study independently, willingness to collaborate with others, and readiness to take up another opportunity for education or training.

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learning goals

© 2006 ADULT LEARNING INSPECTORATE 5 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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outcome

Adults often experience unanticipated gains as a result of being involved in learning. These include improved self-esteem, greater self-confidence and a growing sense of belonging to a community. Gains of this kind should be acknowledged and recorded in any record of achievement.

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programme

A programme organised around a body of knowledge, e.g. the structure and usage of the French language or ceramic glazing techniques. Students could be expected to progress from one aspect of the subject to another, to grasp increasingly complex concepts or analyses or to develop greater levels of skill or to apply skills to a new area of work.

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programme

A programme that is based on the concerns, interests and aspirations of particular groups, for example members of a Sikh Gurdwara wanting to address inter-faith relations in their town, or parents worried about the incidence of drug abuse in their locality. Issue-based learning tends to be associated with geographically defined communities, but the increasing use of electronic means of communication means that this need no longer be the case. Progress is defined in terms of the group's increasing ability to analyse its situation, to access new information and skills which will help it resolve its difficulties and generate solutions and its growing confidence in dealing with others to implement those solutions.

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provision

Provision established in a community setting in addition to provision made at an organisation's main site(s). Outreach programmes may be similar to courses at the main site(s) or be designed to meet the specific requirements of that community.

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based work

The provider’s staff have a long-term presence in a local community with a specific remit to understand the concerns of the local residents and develop learning activities to meet local needs and interests.

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regeneration

The process of improving the quality of life in communities by investing in their infrastructure and facilities, creating opportunities for training and employment and tackling poor health and educational under-achievement. Community regeneration requires the active participation of local residents in decision-making. Changes and improvements are often achieved either directly or indirectly as a result of the adult learning activities which arise from this.

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regeneration

© 2006 ADULT LEARNING INSPECTORATE 6 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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building

The process of enabling local people to develop the knowledge, skills and confidence to take advantage of opportunities for employment, training and further education and to become selfmanaging, sustainable communities.

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citizenship

The process whereby people recognise the power they have to improve the quality of life for others and make a conscious effort to do so: the process whereby people recognise the power of organisations and institutions to act in the interests of the common good and exercise their influence to ensure that they do so. Adult learning contributes to active citizenship.

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Relating the term to Adult and Community Learning

© 2006 ADULT LEARNING INSPECTORATE 7 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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Humanities 2

Contributory areas: Contributory grade Number of learners Other contributory areas 213 Adult and community learning 2 -

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Other contributory areas

Strengths good achievement rates ! much good teaching and learning ! good intranet site in philosophy ! very effective management action to improve provision !

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Other contributory areas

Weaknesses poor attendance and punctuality on some access to higher education courses ! poor monitoring of learners’ destinations !

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Achievement and standards

9. The achievement rate on the access programme has improved significantly since the previous inspection and is now good. Of the 58 learners who started an access programme in 2004-05, 62 per cent achieved the qualification. The achievement rate for those learners who reached the end of the programme was 86 per cent. The retention rate was satisfactory at 72 per cent. Of the 44 learners who started an access programme in 2005-06, 82 per cent are still on programme.

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Achievement and standards

10. The standard of learners’ work is high in many classes. Learners on access programmes develop confidence and skills in academic writing and research. Attainment for these learners is good. They demonstrate their grasp of difficult social science concepts during lessons and in written work. In a non-accredited philosophy class, learners were invited to read and discuss a very difficult passage from the work of the philosopher Richard Rorty on the debate between the foundationlist and anti- foundationlist view of ethics and politics. Learners responded well to the activity. Many were able to articulate the difference between the aesthetic and the moral in Rorty’s work and to deepen their understanding of ethical absolutism.

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Achievement and standards

11. Attendance and punctuality for learners following pathways in social science and social work on the access programme are poor. This weakness was not identified during the previous inspection, but it is recognised in the self-assessment report. Average attendance in access classes during the reinspection was 65 per cent. Managers have

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Achievement and standards

© 2006 ADULT LEARNING INSPECTORATE 8 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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Achievement and standards

put strategies in place to tackle this weakness but these measures have not yet had a significant effect.

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Quality of education and training

12. There is much good teaching and learning. Twenty-five per cent of lessons observed during the previous inspection were unsatisfactory. During the reinspection, inspectors found 70 per cent of lessons to be good or better. No lessons observed were inadequate. In the better lessons, teachers make effective use of question and answer techniques and pitch the material at a level that benefits all learners. Learners are enthusiastic and participate well in lessons. Many demonstrate high levels of understanding of difficult concepts in the social sciences. Lesson plans and schemes of work are satisfactory. The less effective lessons are too teacher-centred and learners have insufficient opportunities to participate. Teaching is pitched at too high a level for some learners. Group activities are too long, and the pace of the lesson is slowed.

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Quality of education and training

13. The philosophy teachers have developed a good intranet site for philosophy learners. All lesson notes are placed on this site, which is available to learners either from home or the college. Learners use the site to check their learning and to catch up on work they have missed or have not fully understood. The site is regularly updated.

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Quality of education and training

14. Teaching rooms are now satisfactory. Rooms are light and spacious and adequately equipped with overhead projectors, whiteboards, desks and chairs. Sound-proofing is satisfactory. There are no subject base rooms and some rooms are rather anonymous. There are few displays of learners’ work or of course material.

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Quality of education and training

15. Courses meet the needs and interests of learners. The access course is designed to enable learners to achieve the qualification in one or two years by following a daytime or evening programme. Some learners combine the two programmes. The range of courses offered by the humanities department is satisfactory and reflects the cultural diversity of the area served by the college. The college has a crèche for the children of learners on full-time programmes. Many learners receive financial support for their studies through the college’s hardship fund.

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Quality of education and training

16. Arrangements for identifying and meeting learners’ literacy, numeracy and language support needs are satisfactory. Access learners receive an initial assessment to identify whether they have a specific learning need. Many learners receive individual additional learning support to help them achieve their main qualification. Support for learners with dyslexia is good. There is insufficient formal monitoring of the effectiveness of learning support in raising retention and achievement rates.

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Quality of education and training

17. Monitoring of learners’ destinations is poor. This weakness was not identified during the previous inspection but is recognised by the college in its self-assessment. The college does not systematically collect and analyse data on the destinations of learners, especially access learners. It is unable to make sound judgements about the success of the access programme in helping learners to progress to higher education.

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Quality of education and training

© 2006 ADULT LEARNING INSPECTORATE 9 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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Leadership and management

18. Managers have taken very effective action to improve the provision since the previous inspection. The college has restructured the curriculum area to enable managers to focus on making improvements. An acting head of school has been appointed to give strategic direction and leadership. A curriculum manager for humanities has been appointed to promote improvements in teaching and learning. The number of part-time staff has been significantly reduced. Three fractional appointments have been made. Managers have successfully tackled all of the weaknesses found during the previous inspection. Teaching and learning are now good. There are good mentoring arrangements for new staff. Staff training and development are good. Tutors have attended training in management, improving teaching practice, supporting dyslexic learners and using information and learning technology.

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Leadership and management

19. Quality assurance arrangements are now satisfactory. Courses are now effectively evaluated and good use is made of learners’ feedback in this process. The self- assessment report is detailed and clearly focuses on strategies to resolve the weaknesses identified during the previous inspection. The departmental strategic plan is thorough and covers all aspects of the provision. There are clear timescales and identification of responsibilities. The observation of teaching and learning scheme has been revised and is now generally effective. Grading of lessons is now more realistic. However, the quality of judgements made by observers is inconsistent. Judgements do not always reflect the grade given. Too much focus is placed on completion of paperwork such as lesson plans and schemes of work and not enough on whether learning is taking place. There is insufficient recording of the actions to be taken by the teacher to improve

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Leadership and management

20. Promotion of equality and diversity is satisfactory. Teachers make appropriate use of learning materials which reflect the cultural diversity of learners. The proportion of learners from minority ethnic backgrounds has been steadily rising for the past three years. Staff have received training in equality and diversity. Learners’ understanding of their rights and responsibilities is good. In lessons, learners show respect for different cultures, religions and traditions.

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Leadership and management

21. The self-assessment report accurately identifies most of the strengths and weaknesses found by inspectors. However, the college did not identify teaching and learning as a strength. Inspectors gave a higher grade for the provision than that in the self-assessment.

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Leadership and management

© 2006 ADULT LEARNING INSPECTORATE 10 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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Foundation programmes 3

Contributory areas: Contributory grade Number of learners ESOL 650 Adult and community learning 3 - Literacy and numeracy 418 Adult and community learning 3 -

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ESOL

Strengths good development of learners’ confidence and personal skills ! good support for learners ! wide range of provision to meet learners’ needs and interests ! good staff development !

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ESOL

Weaknesses insufficient planning to meet the individual needs of learners ! some poor assessment practice ! unreliable management information !

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Literacy and numeracy

Strengths good attainment of literacy skills ! good support for learners ! good staff development !

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Literacy and numeracy

Weaknesses poor attendance ! some poor assessment practice ! unreliable management information !

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Achievement and standards

22. ESOL learners develop good confidence and personal skills. Learners are well motivated. They acquire the skills and confidence to speak and use English for a range of purposes relevant to their personal lives. Many learners have successfully progressed from entry level to level 1.

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Achievement and standards

23. Attainment is good in literacy classes. Learners improve their speaking and listening

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Achievement and standards

© 2006 ADULT LEARNING INSPECTORATE 11 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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Achievement and standards

skills and use these to communicate effectively in lessons. Reading and writing skills are developed particularly well in higher-level lessons. For example, in one lesson, learners read a range of reports on environmental issues. They then used the skills and knowledge gained about the structure and language of a report to produce their own piece on their local environment. Many learners on a level 2 literacy course had successfully progressed from entry level and level 1 courses.

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Achievement and standards

24. The achievement rate on literacy and numeracy courses is satisfactory at 65 per cent. Completion rates on ESOL courses which do not lead to a qualification are satisfactory at 78 per cent. All courses have appropriate retention targets. The retention rate has improved overall from 56 per cent in 2003-04 to 78 per cent in 2004-05.

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Achievement and standards

25. Attendance in literacy and numeracy lessons is poor at 52 per cent. This is recognised as a weakness in the self-assessment report. Managers have put strategies in place to improve attendance but as yet these have not had a significant effect.

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Quality of education and training

26. Support for learners is good. Learners benefit from a comprehensive and supportive tutorial system. Tutors provide additional support, monitor progress, set and review targets and provide pastoral support. They also provide advice and guidance on progression opportunities for learners. Learners receive effective individual support in lessons. Explanations and feedback provided by tutors are clear and constructive. Learners with additional learning needs are assessed and supported by the college’s student support service. In 2004-05, 27 learners on ESOL, literacy and numeracy courses received additional support.

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Quality of education and training

27. The college provides a wide range of ESOL provision to meet learners’ needs and interests. Courses leading to national awards are provided at all levels from pre-entry level to level 2. Classes are run during the day and the evening. Learners can attend additional non-accredited courses in speaking and listening practice, grammar tuition, English for academic purposes and English for citizenship. Many learners attend more than one course.

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Quality of education and training

28. Teaching and learning are satisfactory. Fifty per cent of lessons observed were good or better, and all were at least satisfactory. Course planning and lesson planning are good. On higher-level courses, tutors make good use of the internet, newspapers, magazines and audiovisual resources to support learning. However, on lower-level courses, a narrow range of mainly paper-based resources is used. Tutors make effective use of homework to give learners additional opportunities to develop reading and writing skills and to assess progress. All literacy and numeracy courses have scheduled access to an information and communications technology (ICT) resource room. ICT is used effectively in some lessons to provide learners with opportunities to practise previously learnt skills.

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Quality of education and training

29. There is insufficient planning to meet learners’ individual needs in ESOL. Individual

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Quality of education and training

© 2006 ADULT LEARNING INSPECTORATE 12 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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Quality of education and training

learning plans based on the outcomes of diagnostic assessment are in place for all learners. In the better classes, individual learning plans are used to plan differentiated activities to meet individual needs. However, in many lessons, individual learning plans are not used and all learners follow the same programme. Learning activities do not take account of the different ability levels and needs of learners.

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Quality of education and training

30. Some assessment practice is poor. The monitoring and recording of progress against individual learning plan targets is inconsistent. In the better lessons, tutors use planned tutorials to monitor progress against individual targets and record this on the individual learning plan and the learners’ progress records. However, no record is kept of the learners’ progress in many lessons. Examinations in ESOL take place in June each year. Tutors decide whether learners are ready to take it. If learners are not entered for the exam, they are unable to take it until the following June. Assessment practice on courses which do not lead to national awards is inadequate. Tutors do not assess learners against the specific course objectives or learners’ individual targets.

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Leadership and management

31. There is good staff development which is specifically related to weaknesses identified through inspection, self-assessment and the college’s scheme for observing teaching and learning. Most tutors have received training in student-centred learning, differentiation, equality and diversity, learning styles and the use of ICT. Staff development events are well attended. Part-time tutors attend team meetings three times a year with the curriculum manager and full-time tutors. Meetings are relevant to the needs of tutors. Detailed records are produced with actions and responsibilities clearly identified. New tutors are mentored by managers and full-time and fractional tutors. Mentoring provides effective individual support.

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Leadership and management

32. A new manager for literacy and numeracy has been appointed. Fractional posts have been created to provide support for part-time tutors. Access to ICT has been improved for learners on literacy and numeracy programmes. All accommodation is now adequate. Staff are appropriately qualified. Most tutors have a teaching qualification and a relevant subject qualification.

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Leadership and management

33. Strategies for improving the quality of provision are satisfactory. Since the previous inspection, managers have implemented actions to improve the quality of teaching and learning. All tutors are observed at least once a year. Most observation reports give clear judgements about learners’ attainment and the quality of teaching and learning. In some observation reports there is insufficient detail about specific strengths and weaknesses. All reports have an action plan which includes actions to be taken by the tutor to improve performance. However, arrangements for monitoring the action plan are weak. The self-assessment report provides a clear evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the provision. It gives sufficient weighting to unsatisfactory teaching and to the use of inadequate data. There is a satisfactory action plan which identifies actions to be taken to make improvements. However, weaknesses identified in the self-

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Leadership and management

assessment are not always thoroughly tackled in the action plan. Part-time tutors are not involved in the self-assessment process. The college has an effective course review

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Leadership and management

© 2006 ADULT LEARNING INSPECTORATE 13 MORLEY COLLEGE REINSPECTION

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Leadership and management

procedure. Tutors are set achievement, retention and attendance targets at course level. Progress against the targets and actions is reviewed each term by the tutor and the curriculum manager.

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Leadership and management

34. The promotion of equality and diversity is satisfactory. Lessons reflect the different cultures, backgrounds and experience of learners. Displays are used appropriately in classrooms to promote cultural awareness and diversity. Most tutors have attended staff development events on challenging discrimination, promoting diversity and dyslexia support. The college has links with a local children’s centre and a Bangladeshi community group. It is currently working with these partners to develop a range of ESOL courses to widen participation among under-represented groups.

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Leadership and management

35. Management information is unreliable. The collection and analysis of data has improved since the previous inspection but managers still lack confidence in the accuracy of the data produced. Achievement data in ESOL is inaccurate. Managers are unable to use data effectively to improve the quality of provision.

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Leadership and management

36. The self-assessment report accurately identifies some of the strengths and weaknesses found by inspectors. Inspectors gave the same grade as that in the self- assessment.

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