In The Guide:

• Background & Context
• Standards & QA
  • QTT Standards
  • Quality Assurance
• The Process
• Monitoring & Feedback
• Provider Checklist
• Mla Checklist
• Trainee Checklist

Downloads

How can Mla Placements Meet the QTT Standards? [64.2kb]

Activities for ITT Students in Mlas [51.4kb]

Placement Record - Blank [31.0kb]

© Eureka! The Museum for Children

In relation to placements, each provider has a slightly different way of assessing if trainees are meeting the various standards in the classroom. We have provided a generic document, Record of Student Placement 1 - Template [30.0kb] which can help to assess trainees on a placement in a museum, library or archive (mla).

When we talk to providers they are of course concerned about quality assurance. Here are some their common issues:

• Placements need to offer substantial experience for trainees, not just one day / one student / one school;
• Placements should be viewed as an alternative / instead of, not an add-on / enhancement;
• It is essential that mlas are responsible for assessment of trainees on placement. There has to be a significant contribution from mlas. Therefore training for mla mentors is essential;
• All partners and institutions need to achieve the same outcomes, how they get there can be achieved by a variety of means;
• Placements should offer consistency but demonstrate flexibility;
• OfSTED is a key issue. Inspections are a particular concern for providers. Innovative placements within this initiative need to open up a dialogue with OfSTED. Any proposed placements need to demonstrate validity, time spent, and experience gained;
• How can outcomes be assessed and or quality rated? How might such placements impact on OfSTED's assessment of the provider's quality of training? Any reduction in the provider's overall quality rating could have a severe impact on the numbers of ITT trainees they are allowed to recruit and thus on funding.

OfSTED is a big issue for Providers. We are in dialogue with OfSTED and have received very positive feedback from them. At a previous meeting with OfSTED we presented a mapping exercise we'd researched matching the QTT Standards against possible placement activities. This gained much support from both OfSTED and the TTA. The results of this exercise can be seen in the following document: How can Mla Placements Meet the QTT Standards? [64.2kb]

The role of mlas re QTT Standards

Museums, libraries and archives have the potential not just to support the QTT standards relating to making a visit to a museum, placements in a museum, library and archive can meet many more of the QTT standards than perhaps might be initially considered. Our research recognised by OfSTED demonstrates this quite clearly. Refer to the document, How can Mla Placements Meet the QTT Standards? [64.2kb] for further information.