‘Advances in technology are rapidly changing the way that people learn and teach – particularly for younger learners says John Yates, Product Development Director at City & Guilds. ‘By having our own e-portfolio company, we will be able to offer our customers the latest in cutting-edge technology and tools, integrated with our qualifications and learning materials, to help their students succeed and also enable them to realise greater efficiencies.’
Currently, most colleges and training providers rely on paper files to store and track evidence of students’ progress towards completion of a qualification. Learning Assistant e-portfolio is an easy-to-use and secure online tool, which can replace the bulky paper files for NVQs level 2 and above. Learners, tutors, assessors, verifiers and employers can upload evidence, assess competence and verify qualifications from anywhere with an internet connection, providing a more flexible learning environment for students and greater control and transparency for tutors, assessors and verifiers.
Combining City & Guilds qualifications with Learning Assistant will help students learn, increase retention and success rates and complete courses more quickly. This in turn will reduce costs for customers, and speed up the funding application process.
‘We are thrilled to join the City & Guilds family,’ says Bryan Mathers, Managing Director of Learning Assistant. ‘We will be exploring ways of working more closely to continue to develop new innovations in this area for our customers.’
Nothing will change for customers of either company immediately. City & Guilds will continue to endorse and work with other e-portfolio companies, and likewise Learning Assistant with other awarding organisations. In the longer term, City & Guilds and Learning Assistant plan to develop a joint package that makes it easy for customers to consolidate their awarding and e-portfolio activity.
