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Empey hails success of special needs training lecturers

10 June 2009

Employment and Learning Minister, Sir Reg Empey, today congratulated the first lecturers from Northern Ireland to graduate in delivering specialist needs assessment training.

Delivered by The Beattie Resources for Inclusiveness in Technology and Education (BRITE) Centre in Edinburgh, the qualification enables these lecturers to carry out special needs assessments of learners’ additional support needs to staff from Further Education Colleges.  Staff from the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise were also among today’s graduates, the first from outside Scotland to achieve the qualification.

The Department for Employment and Learning (DEL) launched the qualification - the Advanced Diploma in ‘Promoting Inclusiveness for Learners with Additional Support Needs’ -  in 2007, which aims to improve the facilities and experiences of learning for students through working with lecturers, teachers, advisers and support staff who have direct contact with students.

Congratulating the successful participants at a graduation ceremony in Belfast, the Minister commented: “Today marks an important achievement for the FE Sector in Northern Ireland, with staff from the Colleges being the first people from outside Scotland to receive this Diploma.

“The introduction of this qualification is one of a series of measures aimed at ensuring that Colleges provide a fully inclusive environment for students with additional support needs.

“My Department is continually working with the FE sector to introduce initiatives which support and encourage students with additional support needs.  For these measures to work it is important that trained staff are on hand to help these students realise their potential.”

The course consisted of training and mentoring/assessment sessions over a period of two years.

NOTES TO EDITORS:

  1. DEL has funded the BRITE centre to deliver this training to FE College staff.
  2. The following lecturers who have achieved the Advanced Diploma in ‘Promoting Inclusiveness for Learners with Additional Support Needs’:
    Lorraine Loughlin – South West College (Enniskillen campus)
    Jean Liddell – South Eastern Regional College (Bangor campus)
    Margaret McCormack – Northern Regional College (Coleraine campus)
    Michelle McGillion – South Eastern Regional College (Lisburn campus)
    Anne Bradley – North West Regional College (Derry campus)
    Kate Semple - Dept. of Agriculture and Rural Development.
    The BRITE Initiative was established in 2001 by the Scottish Executive and is funded by the Executive and the Scottish Further Education Funding Council.
  3. The Advanced Diploma in ‘Promoting Inclusiveness for Learners with Additional Support Needs’ is at Vocational Qualifications Level 6 on the National Qualifications Framework/Framework for Higher Education Qualifications.  The awarding body is the Scottish Qualifications Authority and the award is benchmarked through the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework.
  4. For media inquiries please contact DEL Press Office on 028 9025 7872 or out of hours call the EIS Duty Press Officer on pager 0769971 5440 and your call will be returned.