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555 words with 475 words without Evaluate a range of ways to embed elements of Functional Skills in your specialist area. Introduction In this task I will find out what Functional skills are and how I can evaluate ways to embed them into my specialised areas of Maths and English. What are Functional Skills? Functional skills are described as being practical skills used in English, ICT and Mathematics. www. guruu. co. uk accessed 21/02/2009 The QCA have said ‘that from 2010, with the first exams in 2012, students will not be able to pass GCSE English maths or ICT without also passing Functional Skills’.
That will mean that maybe 600,000 students a year are going to go through the qualification. It means that Functional Skills will become the de facto standard as without it, you won’t get credited for anything else’. Fact: ‘September 2010 is likely to be when Functional skills qualifications in English, ICT and mathematics are available’. I deliver Basic Skills from Entry Level 2 – Level 2 in both Maths and English. This is delivered through the use of online learning using a computer. I incorporate paper based assignments to consolidate the learning.
Learners are using the 3 elements of functional skills without realising and to actually have the learners include the 3 elements into a specific subject could entail me to: •Embed English with maths and ICT by asking a learner to write feedback relating to their course, to include adjectives to describe the course, to proof read this with no spelling mistakes. I could cover the speaking and listening by asking the learner questions relating to feedback. The reading is already in the course as there are several instructions that the learners need to follow.
The learner uses ICT to access the course at learndirect website, uses the mouse to move around on screen and uses the keyboard to type in answers, but ICT can be embedded by having the learner print out assignments using specific criteria. •Embed maths with English and ICT by asking the learner to count how many words in a specific document (not by using word count), be able to find telephone numbers that contain specific area codes. Ask learner to write an essay detailing the cost of a holiday for 4 people. This information could be taken form a holiday brochure.
Or, ask learner to use a search engine to look for holiday destinations and extract this data from the website. This can be analysed and presented using a spread sheet with details of the holiday typed in and printed using criteria, depending on level. Conclusion Although the above ideas are early thoughts I believe that they can be effective as they can all work together and cover the standards at each level. I do not see a great need to change the way I embed ICT into maths or English as the learners already use ICT skills to access the learning online, although there is room for improving this for more usage.
These skill levels will of course depend on the level of learning being delivered and I would need to ensure that the learner’s needs are met. I do however; see a need to include the 3 elements in any planning for future courses. There are standards to help with this and they can be downloaded from the following link: http://orderline. qca. org. uk/bookstore. asp? FO=1169415=SearchResults References: http://www. qca. org. uk/libraryAssets/media/qca-08-3762_Functional_skills_essent