Newspaper
Pathway goes live
The Pathway to Chartership (P2C), the Landscape Institute’s new system for qualifying for chartership, has been officially launched.
The new system aims to help associates make the most of their period of qualifying experience by supporting them in developing the knowledge, skills and understanding they will need for their professional life.
While on the Pathway, associates are mentored by a fully qualified professional member of the LI and also receive regular feedback from the Pathway supervisor.
Once they have demonstrated that they are ready to move forward, they progress to the second and final stage, the oral examination. The Pathway is flexible, so associates can progress at their own pace. It also takes into account previous learning and development.
LI president Nigel Thorne said: “Becoming a chartered landscape professional, and helping candidates to achieve this high standard, benefits many other people too – employers, clients, fellow professionals and the public in general.
“The Landscape Institute’s Royal Charter requires us all to strive for the highest possible standards and to work for the public good. We believe the Pathway to Chartership is an important development in keeping that promise. We want to encourage as many of you as possible to embark on the journey.”
The P2C is supported by the new online Pathway Resource Centre, which will include tips and guidance on the system, a question bank, resource list and a new Pathway Discussion Forum, which will put candidates in touch with one another.
“The new Pathway puts candidates in the driving seat in terms of their learning towards chartership, so we are keen for candidates, mentors and others to share tips, advice and experiences to create a rich and supportive learning environment for users.
New resources will be added as time goes on,” said Sue Beard, director of Education and Membership. “Branches will continue to have a crucial role to play as a support network and a source of advice, training and support.”
At the heart of the P2C is the Pathway online system, which enables candidates to record their experience, mentors to submit their reviews and supervisors to give feedback, all online. Candidates and mentors will additionally be able to arrange meetings through the system, communicate with one another, as well as update their personal details. The system has been designed with the aim of guiding users through the system in an intuitive way.
Meanwhile, the LI has recruited the team of senior landscape professionals who will oversee the new system. They are Richard Burden FLI, Alison Campbell FLI, Peter Fischer, Nick Harrison, Mayda Henderson, Sue Illman, Dick Longdin, Mark Loxton, Paul Miller, Steve Plumb, Simon Rackham, Marc Rawcliffe and Paj Valley.
Supervisors will give feedback to mentors about their candidate’s progress along the Pathway, providing advice and guidance as appropriate and monitoring the progress of a portfolio of candidates. Through their assessment, supervisors determine whether a candidate may go forward to the oral interview, following notifications of readiness by the mentor.
Sue Illman was formerly joint chair of the Professional Practice Examination (PPE) Working Group, working alongside Chief Examiner Marc Rawcliffe and Paul Barrett, a director at Whitelaw Turkington.
She said: “The new system will serve candidates much better in training and improve competence in a deliverable way. From the mentors’ perspective – it enhances their CPD, while ensuring that they have better staff.”
The first oral examination in the new system will be in November 2007; candidates who wish to progress to the November examination will need to demonstrate their readiness within the Pathway by April. The examination will be offered twice a year from 2008.
To learn more about the system and register, visit the Pathway Resources Centre on the LI website. Discuss this article
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