What goes wrong?
Does the – only slightly exaggerated - scenario below ring any bells?
“Now we’ve got do the ILPs!” announces Harassed Tutor. (Her attitude
says, “It’s a complete waste of time – but The Powers That Be insist on it
…..unfortunately.”)
I recognise my name on the form she hands me …Oh, there are some
numbers as well.. I seem to have “assessed” myself at some time in the
past. Let’s have a look:
 Have a profound understanding of the role of propitiation in sacrifice ceremonies
1,2,3,4
 Understand how to conglomerate ungulates in the fluctuating controvertible
1,2,3,4
What?????
Now, I have two minutes to indicate that I have made progress these
strange areas. I’ll just underline the next number along, I think.
Harassed Tutor gathers the forms back and- as she stuffs them into a file –
rolls her eyes and asks, “ I wonder if anybody ever reads these things!”
It’s wrong on so many levels isn’t it?
1. The ILP process is seen as a worthless interruption of the “real business” of
the class. This is self-fulfilling.
2. The criteria are written in language that is inaccessible to the learner.
3. There is no time for any meaningful reflection.
We could go on…..
SSeton 2015
For a positive view of how ILPs can be used constructively, to benefit learners
and contribute to high quality of further and adult education, look at a leaflet
produced as part of the QIA Skills for Life Improvement Programme, and
archived at:
http://sflip.excellencegateway.org.uk/PDF/4.2sflguidance_4.pdf
This leaflet describes very clearly how an ILP , at its best, contributes to “the
learner journey”.
Not all negative attitudes to ILPs are based on superficial thinking! Thoughtful
arguments have been made that ILPs can actually trivialise learning. Examples
can be found on the National Research and Development Centre for Adult
Literacy and Numeracy, Institute for Education, University of London website,
in a debate available at:
http://www.nrdc.org.uk/content.asp?CategoryID=586&ArticleID=497
SSeton 2015
Mary Weir – an ESOL tutor and trainer - voices four major concerns about the
value of ILPs in the ESOL classroom. I urge you to read Mary Weir’s paper in
full – it is not very long. Here is my summary of some key points she makes :
 ILPs present a misleadingly simplistic profile of learners - such as a tick
against a particular learning style, for instance – which do not reflect the
complexity of individual responses.
 Useful goals are difficult to convert into SMART targets.
 “Soft” targets – such as “gain confidence in using English outside the
classroom” are under-valued. To illustrate this, Mary Weir describes
how a student was delighted to tell her that she now chatted to a
neighbour whom she had previously only nodded at – as a result of the
general confidence gained from classroom interaction and practice.
 ILPs give learners ( and teachers) a false impression of how learning
happens – at least where languages are concerned. I understand Mary
Weir to mean that learning a language is not like working your way
through a checklist - which is how you might learn how to put together a
flat-pack. She describes learning a language as “essentially social and
holistic.”
Mary Weir urges a reassessment of the purpose and content of ILPs in ESOL.
She recognises that ILPs are no going away, and makes a number of
suggestions as to how they can be made to support learning more effectively.
One of the suggestions she makes is that the true value of so-called
“soft”goals should be acknowledged.
Again, I encourage you to follow the link above to read the paper in full. In
addition, you will find other interesting contributions to the ILP debate on the
site.
SSeton 2015
So what do we do?
We don’t need to put up with a “One-Size-Fits-All” format! We are
the experts on our course and our learners. If there is an aspect of
the standard ILP which is a barrier for our learners, we can work out
a way to make it more accessible and useful for them, that it helps
them to reflect on their progress and make constructive plans.
And we are already doing this ………
In this section of the site there are examples of ILPs which have been
adapted to suit particular groups of learners. For example:
 Deaf learners at Oak Lodge may find written English
impenetrable, so the new version ILP uses images and colour
cues to guide reflection.
 Learners with mental disabilities and/or debilitating mental ill
health, attending an art and craft workshop, not all of whom
write, are supported by adapted language.
 Older learners of Tai Chi have an ILP which acknowledges the
“progress” that shows itself in daily activities –such as getting
out of a hair unaided.
If you have ideas about how to make the ILP more appropriate for
your learners, we want to hear about them!
Contact Mary Zinovieff.
[email protected]
SSeton 2015
SSeton 2015