Non-motoring > FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... Miscellaneous
Thread Author: RattleandSmoke Replies: 16
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New Wed 27 Jun 12 21:49 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - RattleandSmoke
complaint.

I recently did a basic PTLLs course (basic adult teaching) at level 3 and I handed everything in in Mid May. A month passed with no contact from the college.

I then get an email from my tutor saying I need to add something to it, when I got my assignment back there was a page missing, the page I was supposed to add. I simply printed off again and resubmitted my assignment.

Over a week later I get an email saying I still haven't handed in my assignment, I handed it last Monday :(

So it looks like they have lost it.

So who I do complain to? There is a lot of hand written forms in the assignment and it won't be a simple matter of just printing it off again.

I am humming, three years of university submitting probably well over 30 assignments and nothing like this ever happened, yet one assignment at a college and they loose it.

So who regulated these FE colleges? If they don't find the assignment I am going to put in an official complaint and even take them to small claims court to get my fees back if needed.

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New Wed 27 Jun 12 22:26 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - R.P.
Crap isn't it Rats. As a Governor for a FE college I'd be horrified to hear of this happening in "my" institution.
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New Wed 27 Jun 12 22:27 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - Number_Cruncher
>>I still haven't handed in my assignment, I handed it last Monday :(

Did you get a receipt when you handed it in?
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New Wed 27 Jun 12 22:33 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - RattleandSmoke
No receipt system its very informal :(. It is actually in a university college department, but my course was just level 3 so wasn't higher education.

Hopefully they will be able to find it now I have told them that I have handed it in.

Is very bad timing too as I am having a bit of hassle with BT at the new office, it seems even getting a phone line working is beyond people these days :(.

I also don't like it when the tutors assume we haven't paid for the courses, on my course I reckon at least 1/3 including myself paid for the course. If you have paid a lot of money for a course you're not going to not hand it in.
Last edited by: RattleandSmoke on Wed 27 Jun 12 at 22:34
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New Wed 27 Jun 12 22:35 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - Zero
My dog ate it.
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New Wed 27 Jun 12 22:41 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - RattleandSmoke
I have worked out I have about half of it saved on the computer, there is about 4 pages of stuff I would have to rewrite. It is not the end of the world but it would be a major set back.

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New Wed 27 Jun 12 22:43 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - rtj70
The lesson for others - for the handwritten bits... scan a copy.

I hope you get it sorted.
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New Wed 27 Jun 12 22:45 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - RattleandSmoke
Yep most annoying thing is I almost scanned them in on that Monday but I was in a bit of a rush and didn't bother. Is a major lesson learnt though :).

I am hoping the tutor will just discover it hidden on her desk tomorrow. I have told them the exact time I handed it in, and I am sure I could even get CCTV footage of me walking into college with it, so I can prove it was handed in. I parked in the college car park on the day.
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New Wed 27 Jun 12 22:48 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - Number_Cruncher
>>No receipt system its very informal

So, if push came to shove, it would be your word against theirs.

This informality is the main criticism I would level against this department.

That an error was made with your script is not good. The lack of a robust receipt system is, however, far more serious in my view.
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New Wed 27 Jun 12 22:53 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - RattleandSmoke
Isn't that the norm in HE colleges though? When I was a different college between 2000 and 2002 it was very informal then you just handed in to the tutor.

Of course university had a very strict system, you got a receipt for everything and if anything was handed in even 2 minutes late you could be awarded no more than 40% for that piece of work.

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New Thu 28 Jun 12 07:41 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - L'escargot
>> I recently did a basic PTLLs course (basic adult teaching) at level 3 ...........

If you passed that course, what subject(s) would you be qualified to teach?
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New Thu 28 Jun 12 08:57 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - RattleandSmoke
Nothing as such, but it would allow me to legally teach A levels, HNDs and possibly foundation degrees in FE colleges and over 14 in schools providing that I either study for a DTLLS or a PGCE. In terms of subjects it probably would be IT and Business Studies and maybe even photography at a basic level.

The PTLLs is a basic teaching qualification and I took it mainly because I do have to teach occasionally in my job.
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New Thu 28 Jun 12 09:41 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - Robbie34
FE and sixth form colleges were removed from local authority control in 1992 and became independant corporations. You could complain to the Chief Executive - formerly the College Principal - or the chairman of the Corporation - formerly Chairman of the College Governors.

It's probably better to write to the lecturer's head of department in the first instance, then to the Chief Executive if you get no satisfaction , and escalate it to the Chairman if it is not dealt with satisfactorily.
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New Thu 28 Jun 12 10:09 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - Bromptonaut
And if the internal complaints mechanism fails there's an independent adjudicator:

www.oiahe.org.uk/

I'd hope though that the sort of complaint you've got could be resolved more proportionately.
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New Thu 28 Jun 12 11:35 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - Tigger
>> So who regulated these FE colleges? If they don't find the assignment I am going to put in an official complaint and even take them to small claims court to get my fees back if needed.

Legally, they are incorporated institutions. There should be a complaints procedure - I'd expect it to be head of dept --> Principal --> Chair of governors.

Colleges are inspected by Ofsted, but unless it was a protection issue I can't see them getting involved. www.ofsted.gov.uk/adult-learning-and-skills/for-learners/how-complain

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New Mon 2 Jul 12 15:59 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - RattleandSmoke
All sorted now, turns out it wasn't lost but she forgot I had taken the assignment to addend it so she just assumed I had never done the work. So it was never actually 'lost'. The wording of the email could have been better but its all sorted now and it looks like I have passed.

A major lesson has been learnt though - always photocopy the hand written stuff.
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New Mon 2 Jul 12 18:33 
 FE colleges who regulated them? Got a major... - Fullchat
Indeed Rats. Part of the experiential learning cycle :)
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