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Skills Minister Nick Boles has revealed that new apprenticeship frameworks will no longer have to be graded using pass, merit and distinction. Instead, it will be assessed whether apprenticeships should be graded on a ‘case by case basis’ as a compromise position. The change in direction follows concerns raised by the sector regarding apprenticeship reform. However, it will only be a small number of cases where apprenticeships will be exempt from grading and there will need to be good justification to warrant this exemption.

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As the campaign trails of the 3 major political parties rumble onward to the general election in May, I’m encouraged by the growing emphasis being placed on lifelong learning. Addressing industry leaders at the Confederation of British Industry’s (CBI) annual conference earlier this week, Prime Minister David Cameron spoke about the importance of the nation’s workforce engaging in continual education throughout their working lives.

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Throughout our lives, career decisions can be amongst the most defining and important choices we have to make. These can feel especially daunting for those about to make their initial steps onto the career ladder from Further Education or school. It’s therefore not surprising that when making these important decisions, many young people turn to their parents as the first port of call for advice and guidance.

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‘Dramatic changes’ lie ahead with Progress 8 (p6) – The forthcoming changes to school performance tables could lead to ‘hundreds’ of schools facing government intervention. Research by the Fischer Family Trust has measured schools performance in 2013 against the new ‘Progress 8’ target (which measures schools students’ progress across a broader range of 8 subjects); under this regime 325 schools would fail to meet the new minimum standards.

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I applied for the scheme because I wanted to learn more in-depth about programming. I think it's every young boy's dream to become a game developer, and the same could be said for me! From a young age, I always involved with games, mostly through my uncle, and I decided that if I made one of these games it would be so much better.

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At some point in their employment, most teachers have been asked by pupils for a degree of careers guidance – what qualifications they need to get where they want to be, what training they should undertake and what skills are required. Now, the Government’s Information Advice and Guidance (IAG) strategy places schools at the heart of this process.

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As the 3 major political parties begin to set their sights on the General Election, which is now less than 6 months away, apprenticeships are becoming one of the hot topics of the election build-up. With the parties now jostling for pole position as their campaigns begin to build momentum, the subject of apprenticeships has cut through the noise and conflicting standpoints with a refreshing degree of consensus.

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The Further Education sector has come under criticism lately as Sir Michael Wilshaw, Head of Ofsted, has suggested that students in further education “are not being well served,” and that there is a “worryingly wide” gap between education and employment. In addition, colleges have been accused of delivering ‘irrelevant’ courses that don’t prepare learners for employment. At NCFE, we know that colleges work incredibly hard in order to prepare their learners for the world of work and we have seen many fantastic examples of this.

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Over the last few weeks there has been a number of news stories linked to vocational qualifications. Whether it’s been the growing recognition that vocational qualifications offer a valid alternative to GCSEs, or the increasing acceptance of a number of higher level vocational qualifications as valid entry into university. The debate goes on about the merit of both of these elements and within this is the long running discussion about careers advice and guidance within schools

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A recent survey carried out by NCFE has outlined that the high cost of further education has prevented almost half of UK adults gaining advanced qualifications. This comes as figures show that the average graduate debt is now £53,000 after tuition fees rose in September 2012. With an average of 250 people applying for each corporate job, and with 20% of graduates unemployed in their first 6 months after completing their university course, there is an increasing demand for vocational courses and Apprenticeships.

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Changes to Apprenticeship grading

The future of lifelong learning

A tipping point for vocational education

Policy Corner - 3 November 2014

Rising Stars - My journey so far - Ben McQuade

Information Advice and Guidance in Schools

Political parties focus on Apprenticeships

Responding to criticism of the FE sector

Changing perceptions of vocational education

Apprenticeships vs university

Authors

Lindsay Plumpton

David Grailey

Andrew Gladstone-Heighton

Esme Winch

Michael Lemin

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Authors

Lindsay Plumpton

David Grailey

Andrew Gladstone-Heighton

Esme Winch

Michael Lemin

Categories

Archive