Schools and education
In an address to the 2015 Skills Summit, Chief Regulator of Ofqual Glenys Stacey announced that the regulator will propose and consult on a new descriptive framework for qualifications to replace the existing Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF), which provided detail of a qualification’s size and difficulty level but not its purpose or equivalence. The aim of the new framework is to provide employers with a greater understanding of how qualifications relate to one another, their equivalence, size, purpose, and the level of competence that a learner has achieved. A new database will be launched in May 2015 which will aim to bring together comprehensive information about qualifications for employers. The new framework will be linked to the European Qualification Framework which enables comparison between qualification systems across Europe.
Skills
A report by City and Guilds on apprenticeships has expressed concern that recent reforms have overly focused on the role of employers in specifying standards and organising training, with too little been given to the quality of learning received by apprentices. The report proposes 6 learning outcomes for apprenticeships that include the role of employers but place equal emphasis on apprentices’ learning outcomes. The outcomes include routine expertise in an occupation, resourcefulness, craftsmanship, functional literacies, business-like attitudes, and wider skills for growth. It invites professional bodies, apprentices and policy-makers to consider the 6 outcomes and further ways in which the quality of apprenticeships can be improved.
A report by the Institute for Public Policy Research into employee progression in a number of European countries between 2004 and 2011 shows that men are more likely than women to progress in employment. One of the reasons cited is a lack of flexible working provision alongside insufficient public support for childcare, meaning that many women are forced to take lower-skilled positions, often on a part-time basis, which have fewer opportunities for advancement. The UK ranks as one the best in Europe for occupational progression, only behind Latvia, Czech Republic, Estonia and Belgium. The report calls for education and training systems and career pathways that enable individuals to progress within and across employers from a wider variety of starting occupations.
The House of Lords Committee Digital Skills Committee has expressed concern that the UK does not have the skills and infrastructure to keep pace with rapid ‘digitisation’ of the global economy and warns that the UK is “at a tipping point” in time. The Committee’s report on UK digital skills says that there is a shortage of medium and high-level digital skills in the UK. One reason being the current careers guidance structure is outdated and does not support the needs of the future digitally-skilled workforce. The Committee contends that “digital skills are now necessary life skills” and calls for digital and technology to be a third ‘core’ subject alongside numeracy and literacy. Countries ranked higher than the UK for digital skills and literacy (including Switzerland, Singapore, the USA, Finland, Germany, Japan, Hong Kong and the Netherlands) have done so through heavy investment in up-skilling their citizens in technical expertise and digital capability, and driving universal access and usage.
A report on small firms by Conservative Peer Lord Young of Graffham has stated that many businesses require employees with relevant digital skills but do not have the capability to make effective use of digital tools and opportunities. The report recommends industry-designed short digital skills courses to enable small firms to hire skilled employees to enable them to take advantage of digital opportunities.
Higher Education
A draft report by the European Parliament Committee on Culture Education has called on European Member States to hasten reform on achieving Bologna Process goals and facilitate greater European-wide recognition of academic and professional qualifications; further development of study programmes that provide graduates with clearly defined knowledge and skills for employment and build their capacity for lifelong learning; and fostering greater public understanding and support for the Process.
The UK education system remains less integrated into the Bologna Process than many European higher education systems, due in part to conflict between UK and other countries education systems on the most appropriate metrics to assess course compatibility. If this endures, it may have deleterious effect on UK science. Many specialist STEM degree courses, particularly at postgraduate level, are made viable due to international students coming to the UK. Additionally, recruitment into UK science is strongly populated by international STEM graduates. International student are more likely to be attracted to the UK to study if UK courses are recognised as meeting certain standards in their home country. This attraction will fade if studying UK programmes diminishes their employability upon completion.
Regulation across the higher education sector is becoming increasingly complex, according to a report by Universities UK. Currently there is “no clear guiding strategy or leadership to shape its future direction” says the report. A more proactive response is needed to strengthen the regulation of sector entry but one that also recognises the increasing diversity of providers. The report calls on the creation of a new regulator, a Council for Higher Education England, from which HEFCE would eventually take over responsibility.
The UK Council for International Student Affairs’ (UKISA) ‘Manifesto for International Students’ has called on Government to “recognise and celebrate the financial, cultural and intellectual value of international students to the UK” and for international students to be removed from net migration targets. The Manifesto calls for a review of the rules and procedures governing international students as they have become too complex. The Science Council and Member Bodies have previously stated that international students contribute significantly to the UK higher education sector, to UK business and to wider society. Members have also stated that there should be a simplification of the language used by the sector so that all UK higher education institutions information is consistent, easy to read, and up-to-date.
The university think tank Million+ has published its higher education manifesto calling on all political parties to commit to increase investment in the higher education sector. Among the commitments it calls for is an increase to the science and innovation budget; increase spending on capital infrastructure; the removal of international students from net migration targets; and provide greater opportunity for those from disadvantaged backgrounds and with caring responsibilities to enter higher education.
Science and Industry
The House of Commons Science and Technology Select Committee has published its report on genetically modified crops and the precautionary principle, calling the current European Union legislation “not fit for purpose”. The report, to which the Science Council and Member Bodies responded, concluded that genetically modified crops pose no greater risk than their conventionally bred counterparts and “is supported by what the Science Council referred to as an “increasingly strong international body of scientific research which says that GM crops are safe for human and animal consumption”” thus threatening to stifle innovation in this area.
The National Academies have set out their key science and research priorities for the next Government. Among the priorities are providing adequate numbers of subject-specialist teachers at all stages of education, and ensuring the research workforce is more diverse. The document sets out priorities for science, research and innovation only. There is no mention of priorities for apprenticeships, vocational and other non-graduate pathways or for improving diversity of the science workforce in non-academic settings.
A report by ResPublica has called for cities to be given greater control over public resources in order to “shape local economies and design integrated place-based services that meet local needs and achieve local outcomes.” It points to international evidence showing that cities perform better in those countries that are less centralised and where cities have greater powers, resources and responsibilities. It calls for the devolution of responsibilities and budgets for all employment and adult skills programmes to city regions, and for all pre-19 education providers to be responsible for school performance and local careers advice.
The report follows on from an earlier Respublica publication on greater devolution long-term spending on policy areas such as education and skills, and is the latest in a line that have called for greater devolution of powers, particularly around skills and education budgets. In 2014 the Local Government Innovation Taskforce called for further education skills funding for 16-19 year olds and 19+ to be devolved to partnerships between local authorities at the city and regional level. In 2013 a report by Sir Andrew Whitty called for universities to work with Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) to assume greater responsibility to support local and regional economic growth. The Science Council has previously argued that LEPs, working with local employers, schools, colleges and universities, have the potential to play a key role in developing visionary and appropriate science, innovation and skills strategies at the regional and local level.
