About Ingots (Learn More)

Who are we?

We are The Learning Machine Ltd (TLM). TLM is an Awarding Body Accredited by QCA, DELLS and CCEA, the regulators for qualifications in England Wales and Northern Ireland. TLM is responsible for developing and managing a new and innovative family of qualifications called The INGOTs. There are currently INGOT qualifications for Open ICT Systems and Office applications and Enterprise and Business growth. We will produce further qualifications with other subject contexts in the near future so watch the New Qualifications section linked from the home page.

For more detailed information download the assessors handbook which provides a complete guide to the certificates, the assessment criteria and how they should be used. There is further information linked to the items below.

Download the Assessor Handbook
Frequently Asked Questions
How to contact us

Contents:

- UK accredited ICT qualifications
- Suitable for primary and secondary schools
- Supports staff development
- Introduces pupils to open technologies
- Supports Specialist Schools community plans
- Reduces costs and administrative overhead
- Motivate students through positive rewards
- Up to date in contemporary ICT and the new Diplomas

UK accredited ICT qualifications

Accredited by QCA, INGOT certificates provide progression routes through the National Qualifications Framework starting with certificates suitable for young children and those with special needs and building through a series of positive rewards to the Gold certificate which is the equivalent of A*- C grades at GCSE.

Suitable for primary and secondary schools

Primary school children are motivated by certificates and rewards yet to this point there has been no accredited ICT certification suitable for children of this age. INGOTs enable all pupils to leave primary school with a recognised qualification in ICT that is complementary to the National Curriculum programmes of study.

In secondary schools, the Silver INGOT which is a Level 1 Vocationally Related Qualification, has been designed to be compatible with the Key Stage 3 National Strategy. This means that for very little additional work on behalf of teachers, students can achieve a recognised Level 1 qualification in ICT. In Key Stage 4, no matter how weak or how able the student, there is an INGOT certificate appropriate to their needs and there is progression through the certificates so that the student can start at the lowest level and work up to the level of a grade A GCSE.

Supports staff development

INGOT certificates are assessed by accredited people trained by The Learning Machine Ltd or Assessor Trainers accredited by The Learning Machine Ltd. Each centre has a Principal Assessor who has the power to confer assessor status to suitably capable colleagues at Bronze, Silver or Gold levels. This provides a staff development route with a low starting point that is integral to work in the school directly relevant to supporting student qualifications.

Introduces pupils to open technologies

The INGOTs is the only IT qualification in the UK that teach pupils about the fast growing fields of open source and open standards. Many believe that the effect of the growth of open source will be as profound for society as the growth of the Internet. The pupils who are now in primary and secondary will graduate into a world where open technologies are the norm and they need ICT qualifications that will prepare them for it.

Supports Specialist Schools community plans

The INGOT programme was designed to meet the requirement for quantified learning outcomes in specialist schools development plans. Specialist schools can use certification statistics to set the type of targets the DfES prefers for indicating whole school improvement. INGOT certificates are suitable for inclusion of hard to reach groups in the wider community as well as for certificating students in the family of schools.

Reduces costs and administrative overhead

INGOT Academies have the freedom to award certificates when the student is ready using the unique methods supported from the INGOT web site. Teacher assessment with verification through Awarding Body set tasks and comprehensive support from an on-line mark book reduce administration overhead and can reduce costs to less than half those of conventional qualifications.

Pricing structure:
Gold Academy - £2.00 per pupil in the secondary school (UK).
Silver Academy - £1.50 per pupil in the secondary school (UK).
Bronze Academy - £1.00 per pupil in the secondary school (UK).

Motivate students through positive rewards

Schools report better-behaved classes with the motivation of working towards a recognised certificate. Positive rewards have been shown to be the more effective behaviour management strategy. INGOTs provide additional rewards and can be used with any age group. Every certificate has a requirement for cooperative behaviour spelled out explicitly through the assessment criteria.

Up to date in contemporary ICT and the new Diplomas

The INGOT assessment criteria are designed to promote self-sufficiency and independence in the contemporary ICT environment. Every student has the potential to be entirely self-sufficient in their basic use of ICT using tools freely and legally available from the internet with the wealth of freely available software and content increases daily. The new vocational training is to educate students for technological change through understanding key principles. INGOTs support teaching up to date concepts in ICT such as the importance of intellectual property and Web 2.0 technologies and employs their use in the assessment as well as the learning process. The INGOT structure is compatible with the new Diploma structure due to come on-stream in September 2008.