The Government deserves top marks for the new diplomas which will widen educational choice and increase opportunity for young people
IT IS surprising that educational diplomas for 14-19-year-olds are being developed at the same time as the Government is pursuing the strange idea of academy schools. The latter are being introduced even though they have never been agreed as Labour Party policy. And the evidence quoted to support their introduction is not always based on facts. It is often inaccurate and sometimes plain wrong. Academy schools actually contradict the concept behind the new diplomas, which are supposed to involve all schools and further education colleges working together in partnership, not competition.
Diplomas should mean less individual school autonomy. However, such autonomy is the basis for academy schools, especially where they choose to re-introduce sixth forms in areas where for many years there have been successful schools for 11-16-year-olds and highly rated post-16 colleges.
The new diplomas are not about offering vocational education courses as alternatives to academic ones. Students take part in academic and applied learning. The notion that somehow engineering is vocational while law and medicine are academic is a false one.
The diplomas will offer a much more varied choice for all 14-19 year-olds. Students will spend about 50 per cent of their time on the diplomas. They will learn other important skills such as decision-making and how to work in a team and under pressure. Universities are already coming to regard these new courses as a more suitable and contemporary preparation for higher education than outdated GCSEs and A levels.
The revolutionary development is the involvement of employers in the design of course content. The diplomas are made up of various modules and there is a huge variation in the material students can choose to study in additional and specialised units. Students will also have the opportunity of being taught by staff at their local university.
Schools and colleges will increasingly work together in block timetables. School autonomy will be less relevant, as money will begin to follow the learner instead of being allocated to an institution.
The TUC is becoming involved and trade union representatives at local firms will work with employers and student representatives with the aim of ensuring that the new diplomas give greater opportunities to all young people to enter employment or higher education.
This month, more than 20,000 students are starting this new learning experience. By 2013, there will be 17 different diplomas. Students will be able to choose any of them and be entitled to choose the course of study they want. Many will opt to do more than one diploma, as they can switch at 16. They will also be also do various GCSEs, A levels or undertake an apprenticeship. Students will be taught in a number of settings with different young people from various educational institutions. All this will widen the choices they can make at 16 and 18.
This Government has introduced a radical and progressive education policy. As a result, we are beginning to see innovative ideas and practices being developed throughout the country. So far, the new diplomas are confined to England, but Wales is planning to adopt them from 2009, linked with the Welsh Baccalaureate.
Other European countries are sure to be watching with interest, because the diplomas are designed to address the skills deficit and tackling that is essential for the future prosperity of the entire European Union. So the introduction of diplomas has seen the Labour Party at its best, determined to give more opportunities to all and allow students to make more individual choice.
Graham Lane is a former chair of the Local Government Association’s education committee
