Introduction to the Engagement Team at EAL

This piece was written by David Pye, Lead Technical Advisor - Building Services Engineering at EAL. The views and perspectives shared are the author's own and reflect their personal insights. We're excited to share David's voice with you.

The new academic year has started for new and returning learners, and the enthusiasm of a new term is quickly upon us.

Does any of the following sound familiar? You’ve completed your recruitment; you’ve inducted new staff, and the timetables are still all over the place. Learners are settling in, some want to change courses, many are eager to get ahead, registrations are happening, and there’s already a pile of paperwork to complete. It’s just another start to a new year – just as chaotic but exciting as ever.

Things soon start to settle down, but for the tutors and assessors your mind turns to scheduling the various formative and summative assessments, quality assurance and tracking learner progression. What could go wrong?

Worry not, EAL’s engagement team is at hand. We can walk you through delivery, assessment planning, good practice quality assurance, and everything in between. At the centre of this team our product and industry managers are continually reviewing, amending, and developing technical education.

But if the mind of the operation is the industry managers, the technical advisors are the heart and soul. All our EAL TAs have industry and FE experience, so they know just how difficult these periods and challenges can be. Our technical advisors travel the UK providing face-to-face support for providers and colleges. They run webinars, create video support, and field calls from members of staff to support with the various questions and issues that pop up throughout the academic year.

EAL has significantly increased collaboration in the past 12 months with many BSE and Engineering networks up and down the country. Find our library of webinars on the recently adopted EAL YouTube channel, or contact a TA to arrange a meeting, whether face-to-face or over a video conference. In recent months our team of TAs has logged on for somewhere in the region of 50 dedicated support sessions.

Our support reach goes beyond just the qualifications that EAL helps deliver – the team is also here to support on curriculum planning, funding, and horizon scanning.

So, if you’re now settling into this academic year and have queries, questions, or just need a catch up with someone who knows your journey, get in touch with a TA today. The team consists of:

• Engineering: Jonathan Porter. Jonathan is a highly experienced engineer with extensive FE experience. Jonathan has worked as a TA for various awarding organisations, and is always on hand to support providers.

Email Jonathan

• BSE: Andy Beresford.  A former gas engineer and plumber with a strong FE background, Andy transitioned from external quality assurance to his current role as technical advisor. His understanding of FE proves invaluable when working with tutors and assessors.

Email Andrew

• BSE: David Pye. David began his career as a heating engineer, with over 14 years’ experience across domestic and commercial plumbing, heating, and pipefitting before moving into FE. After 10 years in college education and 12 years as a technical advisor, David joined EAL as a Lead TA.

Email David

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