Frequently Asked Questions

In September 2007 the Government introduced new regulations to reform the training, qualifications and continuing professional development (CPD) of teachers, tutors, trainers and instructors in England. The reforms included changes to Initial Teacher Training (ITT) and impacted on all those delivering learning within the lifelong learning sector, and particularly learning funded by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC).

Each year, over four million people of all ages attend government-funded courses in the lifelong learning sector and the aim is for the reforms is to benefit learners, by having a positive impact on the quality of teacher training, learning delivery and learner achievement within the sector. The aim is to have a teaching workforce that is fully and appropriately qualified or working towards a qualification by 2010.

The reforms mean that since 1 September 2007 all new staff are obliged to:

• register with the Institute for Learning (IfL)
• gain the appropriate qualification or have their equivalent professional experience officially recognised.
• within 5 years of starting to teach gain the appropriate professional status of QTLS or ATLS in order to become licensed to practice
• undertake at least 30 hours of CPD per year for full-time teachers and (a pro rata equivalent of at least six hours for part-time teachers) and keep a record of the CPD activities they have undertaken.

For teachers who started teaching before 1 September 2007 there is no requirement to achieve one of the new qualifications or become a licensed practitioner. However they do need to register with the IfL and meet the annual CPD requirements and would find a qualification beneficial to their careers.

All teachers starting to work in the sector since 1 September 2007 must achieve the Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector (PTLLS) award within one year of appointment. Following PTLLS they continue on to a CTLLS or DTLLS course depending on their teaching role (see below). Teachers in the full teaching role need to complete Diploma in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector (DTLLS), and those in an associate role complete CTLLS.

The Lifelong Learning Sector includes: adult and community education, further education colleges, work-based learning, prison / offender education, armed forces and LSC funded training in the Third Sector.

From January 2010 Ofsted will be specifically looking at the % of staff who are appropriately qualified or working towards a qualification during inspections.

The tariff of initial ITT is a tool that acknowledges the value of any teacher training qualifications that teachers may already hold. It measures old qualifications against the new teacher qualifications (PTLLS, CTLLS and DTLLS), and provides information that ensures experienced staff who wish to work towards becoming licensed practitioners start their journey at the appropriate stage.

For general information on the tariff, see http://www.standardsverificationuk.org. For the tariff tool http://tariff.svuk.eu

The General Professional Recognition Learning and Skills scheme (GPRLS) is aimed at experienced staff for whom an ITT qualification would be inappropriate. It enables experienced staff who are already competent teachers to have their prior experience recognised and to apply for licensed practitioner status. You can find out how to apply by visiting http://www.standardsverificationuk.org.

There is growing evidence that the PTLLS, CTLLS and DTLLS qualifications are increasingly being asked for as a quality benchmark, regardless of whether they are ‘legally required.’ Already we have evidence from our learners that some local authorities and police authorities are asking for PTLLS as a minimum to deliver learning. A number of specialist awarding bodies are also requiring qualified staff on delivery teams before they will grant or maintain scheme approvals.

Lifelong Learning UK is the sector skills council responsible for those working in lifelong learning.

The Institute for Learning (IfL) is the professional body for teachers and trainers in the learning and skills sector. All tutors who work on LSC funded provision must join the Institute for Learning (IfL). Ifl will confer the licensed practitioner status either QTLS or ATLS based on qualifications, annual CPD, professional formation or recognition.

Associate teaching role – in this role, the teacher might undertake the same activities as a full teacher in relation to the teaching cycle, such as initial assessment, preparation and planning, delivery, assessment, evaluation and revision, but they have significantly fewer teaching responsibilities than would ordinarily be carried out in a full teaching role. The associate teacher does not need to demonstrate an extensive range of knowledge, understanding and application of curriculum development, curriculum innovation or curriculum delivery strategies, and they may be delivering learning that has been designed by someone else in the full teaching role. Teachers in this role who started teaching in the sector after 1 September 2007 need to achieve the Certificate in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector (CTLLS) and gain ATLS status (see below).

Full teaching role – in this role, the teacher carries out the full range of teaching responsibilities. A teacher in the full role is the person responsible for designing learning and assessment. This means that they will determine the learning to be covered; design a scheme of work with lesson plans. Teachers in this role who started teaching in the sector after 1 September 2007 need to achieve the Diploma in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector (DTLLS) to gain QTLS status.

For teachers who started teaching before 1 September 2007 there is no requirement to achieve one of the qualifications under the new reforms or become a licensed practitioner, but they do need to register with the IfL and meet the annual CPD requirements, and their career may benefit from doing so.

`Teachers` means anyone who is responsible for planning and carrying out teaching or learning delivery with a learner irrespective of the number of hours they do or their job title. Teaching’ includes: tutoring, training, instructing, lecturing, facilitating, teaching literacy, numeracy, skills for life or job skills.

The first step for all people teaching in the lifelong learning sector is to complete the PTLLS course. This can be done before starting to teach or during the first year in employment.

Whether you work part time or full time the qualification routes are the same and not linked to the amount of teaching you do. So the first step is to complete the PTLLS course and this can be done before starting to teach or during the first year in employment.

We deliver the City & Guilds 7303 Award in Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector at level 3 & 4. The PTLLS is not a teaching qualification but a preparation for one. PTLLS allows you to teach unsupervised and you can apply for teaching or assessing jobs and then work towards further qualifications either CTLLS or DTLLS.

We deliver the City & Guilds 7304 (CTLLS) Certificate in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector at levels 3 & 4. This is the qualification for people in the associate teaching role which includes people who are NVQ assessors or teaching prepared teaching packages or in other restricted roles. CTLLS learners will be qualified / experienced in the subject they intend to teach, and have access to 30 teaching practice hours and possess appropriate levels of language, literacy and numeracy.

We deliver the City & Guilds 7305 (DTLLS) Diploma in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector at level 5. Candidates are required to undertake a minimum of 150 hours teaching practice and candidates will be observed for at least eight hours over a minimum of eight occasions throughout the duration of the course

Some providers of ITT offer qualifications that are endorsed by SVUK as equivalents of DTLLS. For example, a Certificate in Education can be a Level 5 or higher teaching qualification and equivalent to DTLLS but the qualification is the same.

For Skills for Life and ESOL teachers there are three routes to becoming fully qualified involving both a DTLLS and a subject specialism.

• An integrated DTLLS / subject specific program
• A generic DTLLS and a separate subject specific diploma
• A subject specific diploma for those already holding DTLLS or its equivalent

Joan Patterson Associates only delivering the generic DTLLS so you would need to do an additional subject specialist course to be fully qualified to teach ESOL or Skills for Life.

The route through the qualifications is that everyone does PTLLS and then either CTLLS or DTLLS depending on their teaching role. You do not have to do all three qualifications. There are no further qualifications above DTLLS.

Qualified Teacher Learning and Skills (QTLS) – is the licensed practitioner status to be acquired by those in the full teaching role. Once you complete your DTLLS you can apply for this status, from the Institute for Learning (IfL) who administers the scheme. This status needs to be renewed annually and requires teachers to complete and record up to 30 hours per year of continuing professional development activities. For full details visit http://www.ifl.ac.uk

Associate Teacher Learning and skills (ATLS) – is the licensed practitioner status to be acquired by those in the associate teaching role. Once you complete your CTLLS you can apply for this status, from the Institute for Learning (IfL) who administers the scheme. This status needs to be renewed annually and requires teachers to complete and record a mandatory amount of continuing professional development activities. For full details visit http://www.ifl.ac.uk

Professional formation is the post-qualification process by which a teacher demonstrates through professional practice the ability to use effectively the skills and knowledge acquired while training to be a teacher, and the capacity to meet the occupational standards required of a teacher. It is a process of workplace assessment based upon employer evaluation and referral, and is not time-related. Professional formation leads to the conferral of QTLS or ATLS status. The IfL has issued a policy statement outlining the background and context of professional formation; the personal and mandatory elements; and how it should be evidenced. Further information on professional formation, what it entails and the process of completing it is available from the IfL on http://www.ifl.ac.uk by calling 0844 815 3202, or by emailing enquiries@ifl.ac.uk

Our DTLLS courses start in October, January and April each year. You should apply as soon as you have decided to join the course since this will give plenty of time to apply for your maintenance grant.

You need to already have PTLLS or be undertaking it concurrently with the start of the course. You need to have 150 hours of teaching during the 12 months of the course, experience or qualifications in the subject you are teaching and appropriate literacy and numeracy skills and ICT.

You will have access to our dedicated DTLLS VLE giving access to:

• generic and session specific resources
• access to DTLLS assignment guides
• be able to upload assignments, learning journal entries, book observations and receive formative and summative feedback
• join forum discussions and participate in collaborative learning activities
• complete any course administration tasks

If you have been living in England for at least the last 3 years the cost of the DTLLS course is £1,750 as we have been able to access funding via our local college. If you do not meet the criteria then the full fee is £2,400.

Fees can be paid in full at the start of the course or by 3 instalments.

Our DTLLS course is built around 11 themed training days. These cover the following topics:

• The role of the teacher in the lifelong learning sector
• Legislation
• Record Keeping
• Planning and writing lesson plans and schemes of work
• Individual learning needs and learning styles
• Inclusion, diversity, differentiation and personalizing
• Teaching methods, learning activities and resources
• Communication
• Learning difficulties and disabilities
• Functional Skills and minimum core
• Assessing learning
• Giving feedback to learners
• Learning theories and strategies
• Behaviour management
• Curriculum models
• Evaluation
• CPD
• Developing and managing resources
• The broader context of the Lifelong Learning Sector
• The impact of learning on individuals, their community and the economy

The 11 training days are interactive and act as a springboard for further research and application of what has been learned to your teaching practice. This will help you to tailor the course to your own teaching situation and individual learning plan. The assignments for the DTLLS units relate to the course content and follow a logical order throughout this process.

The course takes you through a journey of self-evaluation and professional development. Reflective practice is central to the learning process and to the DTLLS assignments set by City and Guilds.

You will keep a reflective journal about your own learning experience and on-going evaluation of your teaching practice. You will log 150 hours of teaching during the 16 month programme.

You will complete 8 assignments during the 12 month DTLLS programme. The content for these will be covered in the training days and your own follow-up research, tailored to your own individual teaching context. Support is available via the Virtual Learning Environment, email and telephone. Individual tutorials are part of the programme. Feedback from our current students is that they feel well supported throughout the process of researching and writing the DTLLS assignments.

This is difficult to answer as people work differently. Some people spend a lot of time researching, others take time putting their thoughts on paper and writing DTLLS assignments. Planning, preparing, delivering and evaluating the 150 hours of teaching needs to be considered.

As a minimum, you will attend a training day once a month for 11 out of the 12 months. You will do follow-up research and write your journal (one day a month?). You will write your DTLLS assignments (one day a month?). You will prepare your teaching and evaluate this.

From September 2010 the DTLLS course is being treated the same as all other part-time Higher Education courses. This means you can apply for a means tested maintenance grant of up to £265 per year and a fee grant up to the maximum course cost. We will provide cohort specific information and guidance to support your application.

Because your DTLLS course is classed as Higher Education in addition to the maintenance / fee grant you can apply for the full range of student financial support if you have specific support needs.