A core aim of the national RPL project was to bring RPL “from the margins to the mainstream” of every HEI’s ATP activity. While theoretically with us for decades, RPL implementation was widely acknowledged to be fragmented, with the process often difficult to navigate, both for learners and for institute staff.
The National RPL Project in Higher Education has given structure to the efforts of all participating HEIs as we worked together to address these issues. The agreed Framework Document has united our planning and broken our workload into achievable tasks. The agreed Technical Definitions have streamlined our language and laid solid foundations for the collection of usable data. Staff training, both via the RPL Digital Badge and by internal mentoring, has developed the Institute’s ability to process RPL in a consistent and competent manner. Focus has now turned to the provision of useful resource material, tailored for use by learners, by staff, and for engagement with enterprise.
Dundalk Institute of Technology now has a clear RPL Policy Document which can be consistently applied across all four schools and in each department. RPL is promoted as an available access route on all applicable programmes, and there is a structured mechanism in place to support learners as they navigate the stages of an RPL application. As with any process, ongoing promotion, policy improvement, and staff training continue to be needed, but DkIT can say with confidence that RPL is making that positive progression ‘from the margins to the mainstream’.
