A study conducted by the Skills Funding Agency found that 80% of employers said their retention rates increased as a result from hiring apprentices. This is a great way to retain talent in a difficult market.
Off-the-job training is a key component of a successful apprentice. It is an important part of the English apprenticeship system. The aim is to take time out from your day-today job to develop skills, knowledge, and behaviors that are essential to a particular job. This will help you to grow in your career and achieve business success.
Stacey Allen Hayes, Director of Corporate Partnerships, Arden University, explores in this article the importance of off-the-job training for apprentices, and how employers can support their employees as they earn and learn.
Enhancing the Learning Experience
The Education and Skills Funding Agency (EFSA), which provides funding, requires that apprentices complete at least six hours of off-the-job training per week. Apprentices must provide proof that they have completed at least six hours per week of off-the job training. The learning experience must include new skills, knowledge and behaviors. This structured learning outside of the workplace includes practical training, e-learning and mentoring, seminars, and visits to industry.
However, off-the-job training is not only an obligation. This is a great way to ensure that employees are actively practicing what they’re studying and allows employers the opportunity to integrate their apprentices into existing teams and workflow. It boosts their confidence, and they are able to retain and understand more of the information that they have learned in the seminars.
Apprentices who engage in a variety of learning activities gain more experience and become more flexible, allowing them to better prepare for the future. To make this work, employers must provide their apprentices with the tools, equipment, and learning materials they need. It is important to ensure that the rules for funding are followed.
Compliance to ESFA Funding Rules
Both the employer and apprentice must keep detailed records for all off-the job learning activities. This includes OTJ logs and evidence bundles as well as attendance sheets, certificates, and feedback forms. It is important to comply with ESFA rules and keep track of your apprentice’s progress.
This can be done by working with an educational provider that uses a Learning Management System. It allows you to manage and track off-the-job training activities, keep records, and generate reports. Both employers and apprentices can access training materials, perform assessments and monitor their progress. A digital tracker is a simple but effective way to record and monitor off-the-job hours.
Employers should also encourage apprentices keep a weekly log of learning or portfolio where they can record all their learning activities off the job, including dates and descriptions. These can be used as evidence in progress reviews and audits.
Active learning is required every month to ensure that apprentices are competent in their role. The apprentice must also be paid for the time spent on off-the-job learning. The apprentice must receive compensation if it occurs outside these hours.
Supporting continuous improvement
Off-the job learning encourages continuous improvement within the business, while encouraging the apprentices’ natural curiosity and fostering a growth mentality. Not just ticking boxes to meet ESFA rules.
It is important to have the right support in place so that you can ensure that learners are taken care of and that the correct learners are on your course. It is important to have a mentor or supervisor who can guide apprentices. Line managers are often able to play the role of mentor.
Mentors can create with their apprentices and their training provider a customized training plan that outlines off-the job learning activities. The plan will outline their objectives, duration and how these align with the apprenticeship. This plan must take into account that job demands may affect off-the-job training. To make up for the lack of time, someone on a Senior Leader Apprenticeship might need to delegate responsibilities to another team member.
Some industries have more busy seasons. A training plan will help apprentices prepare for the busy Christmas season.
Managers should encourage their apprentices, to ensure they feel comfortable with managing their work alongside their learning, to schedule regular progress meetings with them in order for them and their managers discuss any issues. Managers can also encourage apprentices to consult their learning provider about their off-the job learning to ensure that they are meeting expectations.
Off-the job learning is an important component of apprenticeships. It ensures that apprentices acquire the necessary knowledge, skills, and behaviors for their chosen careers. Understanding the requirements, and managing and tracking off the job learning effectively is important for both employers and learners.
The first time this post appeared was on Human Resources News.
