The Department of Education has commissioned a review of vocational education for 14-19 year olds as ‘our education system has failed to value practical education, choosing to give far greater emphasis to purely academic achievements’, in the words of Education Secretary, Michael Gove. They have called upon Professor Alison Wolf who is the Director of Public Services Policy and Management at King’s College, London and has previously completed a number of research projects around education including vocational learning. She has been asked to answer four questions, for which she has issued a public call for evidence in order to address: 1. How can we improve the organisation of vocational education for 14-19 year olds? This would include funding mechanisms; institutional suitability, accountability and incentives; and the role of the third sector, private training providers, employers and awarding bodies. It would also include arrangements for developing qualifications, including who bears the cost, and whether there is a need for an official quality benchmark for vocational education and awards.
2. What is the appropriate target audience for a vocational education off, and in particular from what age is it appropriate for young people to be engaging in vocational education?
3. What principles should underpin content, structure and teaching methods? Specifically, how can vocational education best respond to the current and expected future labour market? And how can it provide a positive incentive to participation by young people, in particular those who are at risk of disengaging from learning.
4. How can we improve progression from vocational education to positive destinations (work, Apprenticeships, FE, HE)? The WITForum intends to provide feedback to these questions before the deadline on Friday 29th October 2010 to ensure that the views of the membership are taken into account. We must therefore look at these questions from the perspective about how the current, or possible change, will have on our industry and the recruitment of employees that results from this. If you have any comments or feedback on these questions, you can either email the WITForum Training Manager, Dave Campbell wolf.review-evidence@education.gsi.gov.uk.
