As some of you might have noticed prior to Christmas, I was busy ranting and raving with regards to the lack of quality learner engagement structures within further education institutions in Wales, but also the rest of the post-16 education sector. Why in Wales are schools council’s compulsory and why does the HE sector employ and invest in quality learner engagement mechanisms through students’ unions, whilst the FE sector is left far behind? Yes, some colleges are excellent at learner engagement, others are not so good, and some don’t do anything whatsoever to engage with their students. And no, I don’t include satisfaction questionnaires in this, as these only cover a tiny proportion of what affect learners, and what learners want to get out of their education!

I never understood the reasons myself as to why Wales has lacked behind so much, especially when the Welsh Assembly Government have signed up to the United Nations Rights of the Child charter which states that children and young people should be allowed to participate in the decisions that affect them as people, and this is no different within education, and more accurately the post-16 and FE sector in Wales. Despite Wales lacking behind England and Scotland, we now finally have a strategy for learner involvement within post-16 education, which has been signed off by the new Minister for Children, Education and Lifelong Learning, Leighton Andrews. This represents a significant win, not only for NUS Wales, but more importantly its members- those students that we represent in those colleges out there right across Wales. These students now have the opportunity to really engage with their institutions, focusing on the real issues that affect them as students.

I remember speaking to one Deputy Principal over the summer regarding student engagement in FE, and he said he was sick to death of hearing about the price of cans of coke in the refectory; he wanted to know what students thought about their teaching standards, issues regarding marking and how they felt they were learning at college. When students have the empowerment and opportunity to partake in these processes, they are more confident and happier in their learning environment.

But the fight hasn’t finished yet. The important final step is to ensure that the proper resources are put into this strategy, right across Wales. As I have mentioned previously, some FEIs are great at learner engagement, but some are going to require a great deal of resource from training to strategy implementation to ensure that learners are actively being included. This strategy CANNOT, and WILL NOT during my time in office, become another tick box for colleges or another add on requirement as part of their funding from the Government.

I have every confidence that this will happen, and NUS Wales will be an active stakeholder in the development and furthering of this part of the strategy. It is essential, after securing such a massive win for student engagement in further education, that the strategies are embedded properly and that we build on the win that we have already secured.

It’s not often I receive such good news in January, but I am thrilled with this and I intend on building further on it, to really deliver and make a difference to our members.

Lleu

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