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CEVAS
Due to popular demand more CEVAS courses are set for early 2008
Courses in Jan/Feb 08
Is CEVAS for me?
The best way to find out is to answer the following four questions:
Are you a farmer who encourages educational visits to your farm?
Are you thinking of making your farm available to schools in the future?
Would you enjoy giving talks to school children about farming and the countryside?
Are you thinking about educational access through DEFRA's rural development service?
To find out more information contact Ian Eggington Metters or phone 01373 302204.
Contents for the Resource Box
Acrobat Reader is required to view one of these documents - to download the latest version please click here
CEVAS portfolio cover sheet template - word document
CEVAS course summary for trainees - word document
CEVAS Registration Form -
word document
Researching the National Curriculum - template for part of Unit 2 -
word document
Searching Questions Proforma -
for part of Unit 3 -
word document
Visit Plan examples for Unit 2 -
word document
Visit Plan proforma for Unit 2 -
word document
Group Safety at Water Margins -
pdf document
Child protection - a brief intro -
word document
Criminal Records Bureau
Disclosure through FACE -
word document
Other Resources
Please refer to the Resources page
Countryside Educational Visits Accreditation Scheme
CEVAS stands for Countryside Educational Visits Accreditation Scheme. It was established in 2003 to help farmers and growers ensure that schools are guaranteed safe and worthwhile visits to all kinds of farms.
CEVAS may be studied at a 3 day regional training event or using the online distance learning package (see below).
Over 850 farmers have now passed through the scheme and are qualified. They are entitled to display the trained personnel logo that more and more schools are recognising as the sign of a high quality visit and farm experience.
CEVAS by Distance Learning ..... what's involved?
CEVAS training has traditionally been delivered through 3-day courses, each with a group of about a dozen farmers. We appreciate that farmers are busy people and that it may be difficult to attend for three days.
Now the CEVAS qualification can be obtained through a distance learning package which means that you prepare for the qualification in your own time, in your own home and at your own pace.
All the necessary resources and guidance are provided and can be printed out if you prefer. You will also have access to tutorial support while you are working through the course. There will be one occasion when you may have to attend a meeting with other people who are following the distance learning programme, but it may be possible for a trainer to visit you instead. When finished, you send in a portfolio of work to be assessed by a CEVAS trainer.
The learning package and how it's arranged
The package is arranged as an integrated course. There is an Introduction and 3 units of work. Each unit includes step-by-step learning guidance and a number of activities to help you complete the course successfully.
The CEVAS course is fully supported by a range of resources, including reading materials, examples of good practice and links to other sources of useful information. Many items are stored in the Resource Box (see left margin) and are accessed by a click of your mouse. You will not have to leaf through umpteen pages to find what you need! You are also provided with blank template pages for some tasks.
Certification
The course is accredited through the National Open College Network which is a national awarding body approved by the Department for Education and Skills. Successful participants will receive a certificate from the Open College Network. To gain certification you must enrol on a CEVAS course. Please contact Ian Egginton-Metters (see left margin).
Technical requirements and support
To follow the course you will need an internet connection, a computer programmed with the usual range of Microsoft Office programs, especially Microsoft Word. You will also need a printer as you may wish to use paper copies of some of the resources provided. If you have Microsoft Powerpoint available, a useful health and safety resource will be viewable. You will also need the latest version of Adobe Reader so that you can read .pdf (portable data format) files in the Resource Box and on other sites.
An email address would prove helpful for contact purposes. You can get a free email address at http://www.hotmail.co.uk.
Tutorial support
Although distance learning means that you are mostly working on your own following a series of guided activities, you are not alone.
When you register for the CEVAS programme you will be assigned a tutor trainer who will be available to answer queries and to provide any direct guidance you may need.
The same person may also be responsible for assessing your portfolio of work and for deciding if you have successfully completed the course.
There will also be a one-day meeting built into your course when you will meet other farmers following the CEVAS programme. This occasion will provide an opportunity for the exchange of ideas and the discussion of any issues that have arisen during your work. The same occasion may also be used to complete your portfolio and to assess the speaking part of the programme from Unit 3.
Please do not request technical support from your tutor trainer.
How is the course structured and how hard is it?
The course consist of three units validated through the National Open College Network which specialises in providing accreditation tailored to meet the needs of specific groups of adult learners. Obtaining a certificate does not depend on a "sudden death" examination where candidates pass or fail.
Assessment is through a series of tasks that you tackle while working through the course. There are no formal tests, but you will be observed giving a short talk. Although you will largely teach yourself on this course, tutorial support is available to answer your queries.
The units are:
Unit 1: Preparing for Farm Visits
Unit 2: Food, Farming and the Countryside in the National Curriculum
Unit 3: Talking to Pupils, Students and Teachers
Each unit consists of a small range of topics through which you will be guided. As to hardness, the best guide is to look at the nine assessment tasks you must complete successfully to be eligible for the CEVAS certificate:
|
Unit
|
Assessment Tasks
|
Work to be Produced
|
| 1 | 1. Preparation of a farm profile | The farm profile |
| 2. Components of an information sheet | An itemised checklist | |
| 3. Preparation of a risk assessment | A sample risk assessment | |
| 4. Preparation of a farm visit evaluation sheet and an outline of how the findings will be analysed. | An evaluation sheet for your farm and a written explanation of how the findings will be analysed. | |
| 2 | 5. Learning Opportunities in the National Curriculum. | Completed proforma |
| 6. Investigation of a QCA* unit of work or GCSE specification | Highlighted and annotated QCA unit work or GCSE specification | |
| 7. Preparation of a plan of work for a school visit | The plan of work | |
| 3 | 8. Preparing and giving a short talk (approx. 10 minutes) using visual aids | Written 'speaking note'; Live talk observed by trainer. |
| 9. Construction of a list of searching questions, with suitable responses. | The completed list |
* QCA= The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority
Please note that the required assessment items should reflect your own farm as far as possible.