Making the most of the DofE in schools

The participants made their presentations on the evening of day one on their Bronze qualifying expedition. Each group member was encouraged to participate and all groups appeared to enjoy the informal environment at the camp site. The presentations were made to the Assessor, me and my colleague volunteers. No chasing up of groups for presentations and all manager evidence added to all participants in one go.

Attend the governor’s meeting and present an update on DofE activities (or contribute to their annual/quarterly report in advance). Focus on the progress you have made towards your original targets and the positive outcomes so far. This will help to demonstrate the impact you have made to pupils but also the school environment and show the value of your DofE provision to build support.

Schedule in some time to update the headteacher and your senior management team on the progress of your participants. Use eDofE to provide statistical reports on the number of starts and completions so far. Also consider giving more personal, anecdotal reports on individual achievements and how the DofE has impacted on the behaviour and attitudes of those taking part.

Highlight to form tutors and heads of year those students that still need to submit evidence for their sections and ask tutors to follow up as well (you can pop their reminders in their pigeon holes, send tutors an email or slot an announcement into the form time notices). You can also share with them a list of the last time their participants logged into eDofE to help them keep a track of who is on top and who is lagging behind with their programmes.

Motivate those with only one section left to complete and ensure they are working towards it. Give them clear steps and targets to follow and reach to get their Award approved. Send a letter to those who are completely disengaged, reminding them of the value of a DofE Award and what they need to do to achieve it.