ALPSAssessment & Learning in

Practice Settings

An introduction

Working together for excellence in learning & teaching

A Centre for Excellence in Teaching & Learning

Students can also access learning resources on placement via their PDA and can use these to reinforce learning prior to undertaking assessments. They can reflect on their practice, uploading their reflections as part of their e-portfolio to a secure area on their university IT system.

Who will benefit from ALPS? Students will become more confident and competent, benefiting from an increased opportunity for valid assessments in practice, supported by mobile technologies. The use of generic assessment tools across professions will greatly enhance students’ learning in practice and ultimately service user care.

Staff in the partner HEIs will benefit from recognition and reward of excellent practice and will have the opportunity to progress their careers via scholarship and research. The profile of those involved in assessing students in practice will be enhanced and recognition given to the important role they play in student education.

Service users and carers are an integral part of practice assessment. ALPS works with service users and carers to develop user assessments and to incorporate their views, knowledge and experience into ALPS work.

What innovative practice will ALPS bring? • Uptodateassessmentmethodstoensurestudentsarefittopracticein

the modern workplace

• DevelopmentofabodyofALPStrainedassessorsinpracticewhocanassess within and across professions

• Involvementofserviceusersandcarers inassessmentofstudents inpractice

How do I find out more?Go to the ALPS website at www.alps-cetl.ac.uk

tel: 0113 343 6352

email: alps@leeds.ac.uk

www.alps-cetl.ac.uk www.alps-cetl.ac.ukGen/1208

What’s the aim of ALPS?ALPS seeks to ensure that students graduating from courses in health and social care are fully equipped to perform confidently and competently at the start of their professional careers. ALPS is achieving this through an innovative assessment process using interprofessional learning opportunities, generic assessment tools and mobile technologies.

Who are ALPS? Assessment and Learning in Practice Settings is a collaborative programme between five Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) with proven reputations for excellence in teaching and learning in health and social care. These are theUniversitiesofBradford,HuddersfieldandLeeds(leadpartner),andLeedsMetropolitanandYorkStJohnUniversities.Otherpartnersinvolvedare the NHS Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority, students, practice assessors, service users and carers. ALPS is also working in consultationwiththeProfessionalandStatutoryRegulatoryBodiesforthe16 professions involved in ALPS.

What are ALPS doing? ALPS has developed a set of tools to assess students’ ability to:

• gainconsent• provideinformationwithinaninterprofessionalteam• knowwhentoconsultorrefer• demonstraterespectforserviceusersandcarers• workinterprofessionally

These tools provide evidence of the students’ competence in Communication, Team Working and Ethical Practice. The competences form part of the ALPS Common Competency Maps and have been created by the 16 professions supporting student interprofessional learning, assessment and working.

The assessment tools are now being used by students on their practice placements. Assessors in practice, including practice staff, service users, carers, student peers and the student themselves use the tools to assess competence. Feedback is provided to students to facilitate their development.

In this way, for example, a midwife may assess a pharmacy student on their communication skills when dealing with a service user, or an occupational therapist may assess a nursing student on their

team working skills. The student is able to learn from many professions, maximising the opportunities that interprofessional learning provides.

ALPS has allocated mobile devices in the form of Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs). These give both the students and assessors access to learning and assessment resources whilst in the practice setting. Students may be assessed using both formative and summative assessment techniques. Tutors are able to create assessments which can be used on the PDA during a practice placement. Tutors are able to keep in contact with the progress of students in practice more easily.

www.alps-cetl.ac.uk www.alps-cetl.ac.uk