In her thought-provoking FE News article, Phil Farrell, Director of Awarding at Gateway Qualifications, shares a heartfelt message over a fictional coffee with Skills Minister Baroness Jacqui Smith.
Drawing on nearly 30 years in education and skills, Phil highlights the persistent challenges faced by the 948,000 young people currently NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training).
She calls for three practical changes to better support these learners:
- Allow colleges and awarding organisations more scope to meet local needs, not just for adults in devolved areas, but for everyone. Over-prescriptive rules make it harder to design qualifications and courses that work for every learner.
- Open up assessment methods, allowing for accessible and innovative approaches. Practical tasks and hands-on, employer-led projects can give a fair and rigorous measure of achievement for those who do not perform well in formal exams.
- Simplify the funding system. Long moratoriums and complex rules hold back innovation and prevent awarding organisations and providers from responding quickly when they see a need.
Phil’s message is clear: we must trust those working directly with learners and remove unnecessary barriers. Only then can we offer meaningful opportunities to every young person.
Read the full article on FE News:
Over An Imaginary Coffee With Jacqui Smith: A Plea For The Forgotten Many