In earlier blogs, I explored the rise of physiotherapy apprenticeships, first as a workforce innovation that could widen participation and strengthen local talent pipelines, and later as a structured model integrating academic learning with employment. This piece takes that conversation forward. Having now been been through the re-design and delivery of our BSc Physiotherapy apprenticeship curriculum, I want to reflect on what we’ve learned, not only about apprentices, but about the changing role of educators, mentors, and employers in shaping learning that’s truly embedded in practice. It feels as though physiotherapy education is living through what Charles Handy once called the “second curve”,  that point where systems renew themselves before the first curve declines (Nawoor 2025, 2025).

 

Learning in Context, Not in Hierarchy

Physiotherapy education, whether through a traditional or apprenticeship route, demands the same professional standards and HCPC requirements. The distinction lies not in what is learned, but in how learning unfolds. For apprentices, theory is not stored for future use; it’s encountered through the lens of lived experience, with clinical reasoning becoming active, with immediate application in practice. The educator’s task is therefore to help learners make meaning of what they already know and do, transforming experience into understanding, with relative context.  Research on work-based learning supports this integration, with authentic work settings deepening conceptual grasp and professional identity when theory and practice are purposefully aligned (Atkinson, 2016; Lillis, Bravenboer, & Tynan, 2020). This is not about superiority or comparison between routes as both paths lead to capable, reflective practitioners. It is about designing learning that works within each context.

 

Designing for Integration: The Role of Block Teaching

To align academic and workplace rhythms, our programme has adopted a block teaching model. Learners study one module over a shorter period, allowing greater focus and coherence, particularly valuable for apprentices balancing professional responsibilities, academic study and life! Emerging evidence suggests that this immersive approach can enhance focus, satisfaction, and belonging (Edward et al., 2024; Muscat, 2023). Block teaching has been more than a timetable shift , it’s a been a pedagogical reorientation. Teaching becomes concentrated, feedback loops tighten, and learning gains brought to life with workplace reflection. For educators, it requires planning differently, curating learning that builds momentum within each block and connects meaningfully to practice between blocks. It also calls for collaborative curriculum design, where academic teams, employers, and mentors co-shape how learning outcomes are experienced in real clinical environments.

 

The Workplace Mentor and Employer Partnership

The workplace mentor sits at the heart of this collaborative model, the touchpoint that bridges academic intent and workplace reality. Acting as guide, supporter, and connector, mentors translate curriculum aims into the nuances of day-to-day physiotherapy practice. Transparency and wider understanding of the curriculum for mentors has been a key shift to allow continuity and alignment of Knowledge, Skills, and Behaviours (KSBs) linked to learning outcomes. For this to work, mentors need more than goodwill, they need understanding. They must see how modules link to the (KSBs) and how progress will be evidenced. When mentors engage with the university team, they move from supervisory roles to becoming co-educators and our implementation of Mentor Workbooks is helping facilitate this. Employers are central to this learning ecosystem, as their investment in mentoring capacity, protected study time, and creating a culture that values reflection, is what makes integration possible. Apprenticeships flourish where organisations view learning not as time away from work, but as part of workforce development.

The progress review meetings (PRM), bringing together learners, mentors, and academic tutors, are where these partnerships converge. They provide structured reflection and shared accountability, ensuring that learning remains aligned, supported, and purposeful. There should be no surprises when we get to PRMs and the importance of ongoing conversations has been an important message during Mentor training workshops.

 

Supporting Educators: Building a Shared Pedagogy

As apprentices adapt to this model, educators are also on their own learning journey. Teaching apprentices isn’t about delivering more content in less time; it’s about teaching differently. Educators need space to experiment with new methods, to act as facilitators, coaches, and reflective partners, with a strong link to ‘Start’ and ‘End Points’ as well as grappling with integration of KSBs and British Values. Garnett and Cavaye (2017) remind us that without deliberate reflection, workplace learning risks staying undervalued or mis-understood in its application. The same applies to teaching, as without reflection, innovation can easily revert to habit. What’s helped us most is not a checklist of training, but a culture of shared pedagogical inquiry.

That’s meant:

• Bringing academic and practice educators together to co-design learning, ensuring relevance and continuity.

• Using collaborative reflection sessions where staff share what’s working (and what isn’t) in real time.

• Recognising and celebrating adaptability, valuing educators’ creative approaches as professional scholarship in their own right.

This collective, relational form of development has built confidence and community and it models the same reflective practice we ask of our learners.

 

The Second Curve of Physiotherapy Education

Handy’s (2015) idea of the second curve suggests that renewal happens when we reimagine before necessity forces us to. Physiotherapy education is now doing just that. Apprenticeships are not replacing traditional degrees; they are expanding the field of possibility. Both pathways produce competent, compassionate clinicians. What differs is the scaffolding and the way learning is structured, mentored, and supported. If the first curve of education was about stability and structure, this second curve is about flexibility and partnership. It’s about recognising that quality learning arises not from any single institution, but from the shared commitment of educators, mentors, and employers working in synergy.

 

Reflection

When I first wrote about physiotherapy apprenticeships, I described them as a bridge between education and employment. A year later, that bridge feels broader, built not just from curriculum and assessment, but from relationships. We’ve learned that successful apprenticeship teaching depends as much on people as on pedagogy. It’s about trust between universities and employers, about mentors who champion learning in the workplace, and about educators willing to rethink their own practice. Perhaps that’s what this second curve really represents, not a new route, but a shared journey of renewal.

As always , thank you for reading.

 

 

 

References

• Atkinson, G. (2016). Work-based learning and work-integrated learning: Exploring similarities and differences. National Centre for Vocational Education Research.
• Nawoor, S. (2024, February 16). Empowering the next generation: The rise of physiotherapy apprenticeships. Stevenawoor.co.uk.
• Nawoor, S. (2025, February 12). Integrating education and employment: Structuring learning in physiotherapy apprenticeships. Chartered Society of Physiotherapy.
• Edward, J., et al. (2024). Block learning: Evaluation of a new teaching approach. Teaching in Higher Education, 29(4), 512–526.
• Garnett, J., & Cavaye, A. (2017). Re-evaluating work-based learning pedagogy. Higher Education, Skills and Work-Based Learning, 7(2), 129–140.
• Handy, C. (2015). The second curve: Thoughts on reinventing society. Random House.
• Lillis, F., Bravenboer, D., & Tynan, P. (2020). Best practice in work-integrated learning for degree apprenticeships. Higher Education, Skills and Work-Based Learning, 10(1), 1–12.
• Muscat, E. (2023). Teaching on the block: Exploring academic perspectives of immersive learning.Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, 20(3), 211–223.
• Roche, M., et al. (2024). Immersive block models and pedagogical transformation in higher education.Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 61(1), 14–29.