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Achieving 14-19 Reform in Wales: Reaching the Tipping Point

Achieving 14-19 Reform in Wales: Reaching the Tipping Point. Professor David Egan University of Wales Institute Cardiff degan@uwic.ac.uk. Overview. WHY 14-19 reform? HOW is effective educational reform achieved? WHERE is 14-19 reform in Wales now?

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Achieving 14-19 Reform in Wales: Reaching the Tipping Point

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  1. Achieving 14-19 Reform in Wales: Reaching the Tipping Point Professor David Egan University of Wales Institute Cardiff degan@uwic.ac.uk

  2. Overview • WHY 14-19 reform? • HOW is effective educational reform achieved? • WHERE is 14-19 reform in Wales now? • WHAT now needs to happen to achieve genuine 14-19 reform?

  3. WHY 14-19 REFORM?

  4. Why 14-19 reform? • Educational engagement/performance • The costs of the current assessment system • Consequences • The needs of the future economy • Higher education

  5. Educational engagement performance

  6. PISA: Reading 479 Luxembourg 477 Croatia 472 Portugal 470 Lithuania 469 Italy 466 Slovak Republic 461 Spain 460 Greece 447 Turkey 442 Chile 440 Russian Federation 439 Israel 410 Mexico 402 Bulgaria 396 Romania (13 Countries with scores under 430 omitted) 496 Taipei 495 UK 495 Germany 494 Denmark 494 Slovenia 492 Macao 492 OECD average 490 Austria 488 France 484 Iceland 484 Norway 483 Czech Republic 482 Hungary 481 Wales 479 Latvia 556 Korea 547 Finland 536 Hong Kong 527 Canada 521 New Zealand 517 ROI 513 Australia 510 Liechtenstein 508 Poland 507 Sweden 507 Netherlands 501 Belgium 501 Estonia 499 Switzerland 498 Japan

  7. As in many countries, in Wales there is a strong link between disadvantage and academic performance: Percentage of pupils getting five or more GCSE grades A*-C in schools grouped by FSM entitlement percentage Coverage: Wales. The percentage of children at a school who are entitled to free school meals (FSM) is a proxy for disadvantage

  8. Costs of the current assessment system

  9. Costs:financial • QCA 2008 estimate that the costs of the secondary examination system are £700m a year. • Large comprehensive school in South Wales estimates cost of £130,000 a year. This suggest that the cost across Wales is c£26 m just for schools.

  10. Costs:human • UNICEF study in 2007 placed UK bottom of table of developed countries in relation to overall student wellbeing. The burden of assessment was identified as part of this. • Significant loss of learning time lost through GCSE/AS/A level over a 3 year period. • Why? Nothing gets heavier by weighing it all the time

  11. Costs:educational ‘The costs of national assessment are disproportionate to their value. We suspect that that the true figure (for the current assessment regime) would be so large as to provoke public outrage, since the money and time could be spent on education. In some countries, such as Finland, national tests are at a minimum but performance in international tests is outstanding’. David Hargreaves et al. System Redesign; 2007

  12. Consequences

  13. Consequences • Child and family poverty:44% of mothers of children in severe poverty have no educational qualifications • Teenage pregnancy • Drug related problems • Ill health • Involvement in crime • Mental health • Youth unemployment:£975,000 a week in Wales

  14. The needs of the future economy

  15. Skills • By 2014 two thirds of jobs will require intermediate skills • By 2020 40% of jobs will require graduate skills(currently 29%) • 600,000 fewer semi/unskilled jobs by 2020 • 3.5 million more level4/5 jobs by 2020

  16. The future skills demand

  17. Q. HOW IMPORTANT ARE THE FOLLOWING TYPE OF QUALIFICATION AND SKILL FOR YOUR ORGANISATION? LSEB 2007

  18. In words... ‘When Ed Balls asked James Reed of Reed Employment what he looked for, the answer came back; people who can work in teams, communicate verbally, take risks and make decisions. And what does the current education system throw up? People who work alone, communicate on paper, are risk-averse and prefer to look up last year’s exam papers. Its a solitary, solipsistic preparation for a gregarious and assertive world.’ Jackie Ashley. The Guardian. 29 Nov, 2007

  19. Skills shortages ‘The Aerospace industry is one of the most successful in the UK. ..At Airbus UK 60 per cent of its senior managers came through the apprenticeship route... In common with other manufacturing and engineering sectors, the industry has an ageing workforce...there is a shortage of young people joining....Another problem for aerospace is the slump in the young people opting for science, maths and physics in schools. The industry is pinning its hopes on new developments including ..the engineering diplomas for 14 to 19 year olds’. TES 20 July 2007

  20. Higher Education

  21. Devalued A levels? • ‘Sir Richard Sykes, Rector of Imperial College, London University, delivered a withering attack on the ability of A levels to differentiate between bright pupils because so many had straight A grades. He announced that Imperial would become the first university in the country to introduce a common entrance exam for its students from 2010’. TES 6 June 2008

  22. A levels failing to deliver ‘Science is key to the UK’s competitive edge in economic performance....We believe that the recent problem in generating the right numbers of scientists lies deeper in the 14-19 education system....The introduction of the new 14-19 diplomas is a serious attempt to address a matter of national importance and it is crucial that higher education gets acquainted with these new qualifications..There must be greater clarity over the way 14-19 year olds learn science and how we are to improve our current national performance in science education’ Michael Arthur (VC of Leeds Univ) and Deian Hopkin (VC of South Bank Univ) THES 10 August 2007

  23. A wasted generation • 60,000 pupils who at age 11, 14 or 16 are among the top fifth of academic performers do not subsequently enter higher education by age 18 • Pupils on FSM are 19 per cent less likely to enter higher education

  24. HOW IS EFFECTIVE EDUCATION REFORM ACHIEVED?

  25. Key Factors in Education Effectiveness • High quality teaching • Strong focus on learning pedagogy • Strong leadership • Rich and balanced curriculum • Professional learning communities • Networking • Intelligent accountability • Data • Environment for learning • External partnerships

  26. School Effectiveness Framework

  27. WHERE IS 14-19 REFORM IN WALES NOW?

  28. Professional learning communities/networking for 14-19 • In schools? • Between schools? • Schools and FEIs? • Schools and WBL providers? • Schools and employers?

  29. 14-19 learning pedagogy • Examples at school level? • Links between schools and FE? • The National Pedagogy Strategy? • Student voice?

  30. Leadership • HTs working together on 14-19 reform? • School and College leaders working together? • Educational leaders and employers? • Strategic role of LEA in relation to community etc.

  31. High quality teaching (Estyn 2006/07) • Secondary schools: 76% grade 1 or 2 (19% grade 1) • FEIs: 83% grade 1 or 2. • A profession without a practice?

  32. Partnerships • Lots of interesting models developing in Wales and a real feeling that step changes might be about to take place. • ‘...in most areas in Wales there is still a long way to go before the number of courses is as high as it should be. Most learners can only take the courses that are available in their school...Schools do not work together enough to organise sixth form courses..The current pattern of provision for 14 to 19 year olds still fails to offer a full range of courses’. Estyn Annual Report. 2006-07 • Networks of high quality providers offering appropriate courses in a high quality environment with suitably qualified staff

  33. Curriculum • What ever happened to ‘differentiated’ as in ‘broad, balanced and differentiated’? • GCSE/AS/A level represent a particular type of approach to learning. Not suited to most young people and were never intended to be so (GCSE designed for 40% of cohort!): but they now dominate the curriculum. • 2006/07 of 321,866 examination entries for 15 year olds in Wales, only 12,807 (4%) for vocational awards. • Figures for 17 year olds show 2% at 16 and 3.5% at 17 for vocational entries. • These figures have hardly changed in a decade.

  34. Vocational curriculum • Wales (like rest of UK but not Irish Republic) has not developed a vocational/applied route for students of all aptitudes and abilities as in other parts of the world. • Still often seen as a default mode for those ‘not of academic ability’/’disengaged’/’alternative curriculum’. • Reflects academic snobbery, vested interests and ignorance. It is uneducational.

  35. ...but not all bad news • Increasing strength of work based learning. • High take up of Apprenticeships in Wales. • Labour market increasingly rewarding vocationalism. • 14-19 Diplomas

  36. Roll out timetable of the Diplomas Phase Diploma Area Availability Phase 1 ICT Health Society & Development Engineering Creative and Media Construction September 2008 Phase2 Environmental& Land-Based, Manufacturing Hair and Beauty Business Admin, Finance Hospitality and Catering September 2009 Phase3 Public Services Sport and Leisure Retail Travel and Tourism September 2010 September 2011 Science Humanities Languages Phase 4 National Entitlement 2013

  37. additional and/or specialist learning generic learning principal learning functional skills: English, maths, ICT complementary learning sector-related personal, learning and thinking skills mandatory progression pathways work experience (min. 10 days) newly-developed, unitised qualification choice extended project Key components of the Advanced Diploma

  38. Advanced Diploma in engineering additional and/or specialist learning 360 GLH generic learning 180 GLH principal learning 540 GLH 9 mandatory units New 120 GLH mathematics qualification (additional) functional skills at level 2 x 3 (prerequisite) • investigating engineering business and the environment • applications of computer aided designing • selection and application of engineering materials • instrumentation and control engineering • maintaining engineering plant, equipment and systems • investigating modern manufacturing techniques used in engineering • innovative design and enterprise • mathematical techniques and applications for engineers • principles and application of engineering science extended project qualification (120 GLH) and Level 3 Diploma in ICT Communications Systems (240 GLH; additional) 10 days work experience personal, learning and thinking skills (60 GLH) (examples) (examples)

  39. Other changes • Versioning: coursework/A* at A level/L3 extended project/GCSE changes from 2009 • Different versioning: no separate GCSEs in Functional Skills/KS and BS to be converged/extension of Applied A levels? • But not: iBac/iGCSE/pre-U/Foundation Learning Tier? • ? Humanities/ Languages/Science and Extended Diplomas?

  40. The Welsh Bac • Expanding rapidly: from September 2008 in 102 schools/colleges/WBL providers • All parts of Wales and some LEA buy-in • Huge interest in Wales and outside • Current objective is for 40% of 14-19 year olds to be involved by 2010 • Level 1 still being piloted. • Still an overarching award that captures and broadens

  41. Impact measurement tool • Wider curriculum opportunities • Improvements in achievement and attainment • Other wellbeing measurements • Improvements in key and basic skills • Increased collaboration • Increased participation in Welsh Bac • Improvements in quality of student voice • Growth of 14-19 PLCs and pedagogy • Improvements in quality of teaching

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