DISSEMINATING EXPERTISE RESEARCH IN PRACTICE


Exploring immersive technology and data skills in teaching fellowships


The Education and Training Foundation (ETF) and the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 launched the Technical Teaching Fellowship programme in June 2018 with the aim of celebrating, developing and disseminating exceptional practice in technical teaching. inTuition invited two of the first Technical Teaching Fellows, James Maltby and Stephen Mariadas, to outline their research.


By James Maltby


I am exploring how immersive technology can support training in technical education and industry, and disseminating emerging practice across local, regional and nationally networks. I have four broad strategic aims:


1. Prepare students for the future workplace;


2. Develop the skills and confidence of specialist practitioners to deliver innovative curriculums that embed technical and digital skills;


3. Engage employers with technical education to enhance curriculum planning, design and delivery;


4. Disseminate emerging practice. The following is a small sample of the work I have undertaken:


Supporting students and teachers Students created virtual reality video content as part of their end-of-year assessments. This content was then used to showcase the college to prospective students, and to demonstrate the growing importance of STEM in the rural sector. I also worked with the college’s learning


support team to develop a version for high-needs students, addressing inclusion, transition and social mobility for all.


Working with employers and industry Cottage Farms is an apple-packing company which sends more than 2,500,000 boxes every year to supermarkets, at peak times handling 55,000 apples per hour for growers. My project describes how my work with virtual reality could be used with their apprentices. In a series of 360-degree videos, trainees can now experience


each part of the sorting and packing operation.


Disseminating practice Work in this area has included sharing practice with Sussex Council of Training Providers, the UK’s largest network of training providers, and facilitating a webinar for the ETF. I have also shared my work at the joint conference of the European Agenda for Adult Learning (EAAL) and the Electronic Platform for Adult Learning in Europe (EPALE). The Fellowship has been incredibly


rewarding. Next steps include publishing training modules for practitioners, produced with Landex, and presenting and exhibiting at events and conferences.


James Maltby is learning technology manager at Plumpton College.


By Stephen Mariadas The purpose of my Fellowship is to develop the right infrastructure for teaching data skills to the next generation. I want to inspire students of all ages in the potential of Data Science and Big Data, and promote these exciting opportunities and future careers in a significant growth area of the economy – one that currently has a skills shortage. Over the past eight months I have been able to host a ‘Data Conference’ for dozens of local businesses, introducing the potential positive impact that staff with data skills can have. I have also helped manage a Data Science Summer School to promote essential data skills to school leavers.


Outside of these local events, a key aim of the Fellowship was to share my approach on the national stage and to increase the number of teachers confident in delivering data skills. The number of college staff confident in data skills delivery has increased to five, including a person who also focuses on employer engagement and curriculum improvement. There has been an increase in interest from other teachers and there are plans to have at least 12 more staff involved in delivering data skills. I have been able to share this work with practitioners across the country by presenting at events like the Society for Education and Training Conference in November 2019. In this, the Fellowship has gone beyond my expectations in terms of generating national exposure for the work which I hope will have a far-reaching impact on the sector. Since starting the Fellowship I have become responsible for one of the first Institutes of Technology in the UK. I have taken on responsibility for all higher level digital and engineering courses delivered by five FE colleges and the two South West universities, Exeter and Plymouth. This has increased my ability to shape the strategic direction and share effective practice in the wider technical curriculum. The Fellowship played a significant part in my being able to do this.


Stephen Mariadas is chief executive of the South West Institute of Technology.


inTUITION ISSUE 39 • SPRING 2020 15


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