SPOKE releases first collaborative project

SPOKE releases first collaborative project to support new qualifications for optometrists and dispensing opticians

The Sector Partnership for Optical Knowledge and Education (SPOKE), a cross-sector collaboration funded by the General Optical Council (GOC), and led and managed by The College of Optometrists, has published the output of its first project.

The new Indicative Guidance is designed to support qualification providers with the roll-out of the GOC’s new education and training requirements. It provides more detail on the content that is expected to be in the new pre-registration qualifications, and gives examples of the types of assessment that could be used for the new GOC outcomes.

Professor Lizzy Ostler, Director of Education for The College of Optometrists, says: “We’re excited to see the completion of the first project led by SPOKE, delivering to really challenging deadlines with strong engagement from across the sector. Our volunteer writing teams did an amazing job collaborating and agreeing on what students aiming to qualify in these professions need to study, and bringing the GOC outcomes to life for course teams adapting to the new GOC requirements. We hope the outputs from this project will lay strong foundations for the route to qualification in the years to come.”

Leonie Milliner, Chief Executive and Registrar for the GOC, says: “We warmly welcome SPOKE’s publication of its Indicative Guidance and want to thank everyone from across the sector who contributed to its drafting. This has been a highly collaborative effort and the guidance will assist providers as they develop their programmes to meet our new requirements for approved qualifications which we published in March 2021. In March 2022, our Council will review SPOKE’s minor amendments to the Outcomes for Registration which will reflect the content within the Indicative Guidance.”

Now that project one has been published, SPOKE is preparing to launch project two, which will focus on best practice approaches to teaching and learning for student optometrists and dispensing opticians. This will include case studies and examples of good practice from individuals and course teams from across the UK and internationally. SPOKE would particularly welcome examples that address the newer aspects of optical education expressed in the GOC outcomes 4-7, and methods to develop clinical competence through Miller’s pyramid.

If you would like to share, or recommend someone who might share, a case study or example of good practice in these areas, SPOKE would like to hear about it. Case studies from other professions are encouraged.

You can find out more information about SPOKE and project one, or sign up for project two, via our website: www.college-optometrists.org/spokehub. Alternatively, you can contact SPOKE via email spokehub@college-optometrists.org