SFEDI, working in partnership with Enterprise Educators UK, is currently developing a set of professional standards for enterprise and entrepreneurship educators.

What does it mean to be an enterprise educator? Fifteen years ago, there were few people who would describe themselves as enterprise and/or entrepreneurship educators. Now, there are a range of people in schools, colleges and universities involved with enterprise and enterprise education. A range of enterprise initiatives and programmes have been introduced, designed to help learners explore and build upon their entrepreneurial talents. They bring with them teams of people with job titles like Enterprise Champion, Enterprise Facilitator and Entrepreneurial Development Officer. However, a number of recent reports and surveys have identified that there is a growing demand for professional recognition of the role of enterprise and entrepreneurship educator and areas for professional development. That’s why SFEDI and Enterprise Educators UK together are developing these professional standards for enterprise and entrepreneurship educators. Leigh Sear, who’s leading the project, explained how the standards will be utilised:

“The development of the standards is the result of a national survey of enterprise educators, which highlighted both a need for professional recognition of the role, and a number of areas for professional development. We’re anticipating that they will be used in a number of ways to enhance the education experience of the learners enterprise educators work with.”

In order to produce the national occupational standards, Leigh and his team will initially create a ‘functional map.’ This is essentially a broad overview of the types of activities that an enterprise educator undertakes. A key part of the development of the standards is consultation with educators in schools, colleges and universities.

If you would like to share your experiences and views with us, please contact Leigh at [email protected].