Microsoft UK Public Sector - Using Software - Pioneering education services reach broader audiences

It’s local authorities who pick up the pieces financially when individuals and families fall into the spiral of social deprivation. Early interventions can change lives for the better – and prevent all sorts of costs later on. One such intervention is the use of aspirational e-learning to take the opportunity for self-improvement beyond the traditional classroom. Kim Thomas finds out more.

The digital divide is alive and well. In the richest 10 percent of UK households, 90 percent have Internet access; in the poorest 10 percent, only 20 percent do. Among the most socially deprived people in Britain, the vast majority are excluded from the digital resources that most of us now take for granted.

The government recognises that if we are to tackle social exclusion effectively, then we have to tackle digital exclusion too. Without access to the Internet, people from the poorest families won’t be able to acquire essential computer skills or obtain access to resources that will help them find jobs or gain qualifications.

But addressing digital exclusion isn’t easy. Many people from socially deprived backgrounds are nervous of formal educational settings, and often have poor literacy skills. They may want to learn, but don’t want to go anywhere near a classroom.

Founded in 2001, New Life Learning is an elearning provider that helps schools and local authorities tackle just that problem. Recognising that traditional courses designed to bring socially excluded groups back into learning have drop-out rates of about 50 percent, New Life Learning has developed courses that are engaging learners and keeping them through to completion. “People who start our courses have said they wouldn’t have gone to other forms of learning. However, after completing our courses, they realise learning can be enjoyable and are more open to pursuing other types of training,” says the organisation’s CEO, Ann Donnelly.

So what’s the secret? Part of it is to do with the content, which is designed to appeal to the interests of students and to relate to their own experience. There are parenting skills courses, for example, as well as digital inclusion courses, and courses on improving self-esteem and getting back to work. Content for these courses has been designed by internationally-recognised specialists, such as parenting psychologists, to make sure it is of a very high quality.

But much of the courses’ success is down to the delivery. Whilst adult learning is often delivered in classrooms, most New Life Learning courses run in places that are familiar to participants, such as family centres and community centres. The courses, which are led by trained facilitators from the local authority, will typically consist of six or seven sessions, run weekly, with each session lasting two hours.

Each student sits at a computer, but instead of having to read through lots of material, or take notes from a teacher, students listen to the content through headphones. They can read the content on screen, too, but for those who have difficulty with literacy, it isn’t essential to do so. There is no written work, but students are given materials to take home.

After about 10 minutes, the facilitator invites students to discuss what they’ve heard. These discussion breaks continue throughout the session. There is no obligation for people to speak, says Donnelly, but usually people want to join in: “At the end of the two hours, it’s hard to get people out of the room. They’ve engaged with the content and they’re enjoying what’s happening.”

Part way through the course, students are given the opportunity to learn to surf the Internet and to use email, an experience that gives many of them the incentive to go on to take an introductory IT course. Completion rates for New Life Learning courses run at 80 to 100 percent, with 60 percent of students saying they want to carry on learning once the course is over.

A motivational course called Dare to Dream is especially popular, says Donnelly, because it helps people examine their skills and talents and encourages them to set personal goals, such as going into further education or setting up in business. In the current climate, there is an increasing demand for courses that help people to get back to work, she adds: “There is a realisation that innovative rapid responses need to happen, because local authorities have realised that their initiatives weren’t fully reaching the people they need to reach, and there are now more and more people actually coming down the track.”

For New Life Learning’s customers, implementation of the elearning software is simple and straightforward. The software runs directly from a link on the local authority website – increasing traffic to the website - and on all Windows PCs, integrating seamlessly with existing Microsoft software. Customers do not need to buy any additional software or receive technical support and training.

Keen to tackle the problems of social deprivation and digital exclusion in parts of the county, Warwickshire County Council is working in partnership with New Life Learning on a pilot to offer courses on parenting and self-esteem. The courses, which begin in June, will be delivered by a group of Warwickshire schools - Kingsbury, Anker Valley and Rugby Town Centre - through their extended services Cluster Coordinators.

Carol Bunyard, extended services strategy officer at Warwickshire, is particularly excited about Kingsbury, which is running two courses: Dare to Dream, a course for year 9 and 10 secondary school students, and Self-esteem for your Child, a course aimed at the parents of those students. “We’re excited about the potential of the courses and will be interested to see what happens when we have parents and carers doing the programmes simultaneously with pupils,” she says.

Carol Bunyard hopes that the courses will reach people who would normally be reluctant to attend adult learning classes: “Learners can have perceived barriers sometimes, and although being part of a group can be supportive, people can feel threatened or uncomfortable with the fact that they may have to say something in a group setting.

This way, although the support’s there through the facilitator if any issues come up, they don’t have to say anything immediately or directly with anybody else if they choose not to.” The use of audio to deliver the content is particularly appealing, she adds: “Hearing the materials can be a great support to somebody. They’re not thinking ‘I have got to read something, I have got to write something down.’ It’s just easy!”

When the pilot is complete, Carol Bunyard hopes that the participating schools will want to continue offering more courses once the initial run is over. The courses, she believes, could offer a stepping-stone to further learning as well as a route back into work: “It’s about gaining a qualification, gaining confidence in their learning abilities, about developing the community, and providing opportunities for adults to learn. This can be the first step for people to go onto other things.”

Kim Thomas is a freelance journalist, who specialises in writing about technology, business and education. Her clients include the Financial Times, the Economist Intelligence Unit and The Guardian as well as a number of B2B publications.