In this Education and Training Foundation National Technical Programme outstanding teaching, learning and assessment (OTLA) project Blackburn, Bolton, and Nelson and Colne colleges trialled an approach to employer engagement to boost the skills of digital teachers and align technical qualifications with the Post-16 Skills Plan and T-levels. The project supported teachers to bring real-world learning into the classroom; deliver an employer-led curri

Taking a proactive and creative approach that aimed to unlock potential and transform prisoners' lives, this national technical outstanding teaching, learning and assessment (OTLA) project by Weston College Prison Education Service sought to carve a pathway from entry into prison to entry into an apprenticeship on release from prison. The project focused on the hospitality and catering vocational sector.

All seven prisons in the North East of England and Cumbria took part in this NOVUS offender learning Outstanding Teaching, Learning, and Assessment (OTLA 3) project in 2017/18. The aim was to design and implement a “teach-meet” approach to promoting outstanding practice through teach-meet events, focusing on maths, English and ICT. Participants included maths and English teachers, learning support specialists, managers and vocational trainers, representatives from the prison and probation services, and prisoners.

Building on existing policies and procedures they used a combination of approaches, which included opportunities for groups of staff to openly discuss the challenges and opportunities which the general subject of E and D presented. This encouraged them to develop a bank of locally tested and validated resources and reworked ideas for E and D teaching alongside attendance at relevant community events such as College Pride. Learners contributed by exploring how E and D in teaching, learning, and assessment might better reflect their concerns, experiences and gaps in knowledge.