Transcript Document

Delivering a national qualifications
system for Wales
Owen Evans
Director General, Department for Education and Skills, Welsh Government
Kate Crabtree
Head of Qualifications and Regulation Division, Welsh Government
Background: Review of Qualifications
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Review launched September 2011
Concerns: complexity, clarity, relevance, value, progression
Independent Review Board
Evidence-based
Stakeholder engagement
Reported November 2012 with 42 recommendations
All recommendations accepted by January 2013
Vision
Qualifications that are understood and valued and
meet the needs of our young people and the
Welsh economy
Principles
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A national qualification system for Wales
Independent, rigorous quality assurance
Meet the needs of all learners, and our economy
Broad and balanced education 14 to 16
Coherent programmes of learning 16 to 19
Literacy and numeracy are central
Portable qualifications, internationally respected
Build on strengths, steady pace, listen to evidence and stakeholders
Key changes
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Establish Qualifications Wales
Rigorous new Welsh Bac with focus on skills
GCSEs to continue
New GCSEs to assess literacy and numeracy
A levels to continue – with coupled AS level
Vocational qualifications – new categorisation, stronger gatekeeping
Changes to performance measurement
Major communications campaign – awareness and confidence
Qualifications Wales: What’s changing?
• New independent body
• Emphasis on quality assurance and improvement
• In time, awarding most qualifications 14-16, most AS and A levels,
Welsh Baccalaureate
• Providing information and advice to stakeholders and Welsh
Government
• Aim to simplify the system and strengthen confidence and
understanding
Qualifications Wales: When?
• Consultation ‘Our Qualifications – Our Future’ – runs to 20 December
• Officials analyse responses to consultation with a view to the Welsh
Government bringing forward legislation
• Subject to legislation passing all the Assembly’s scrutiny processes,
the intention is:
• Organisation to be established September 2015
Welsh Baccalaureate: What’s changing?
• Strong focus on skills for learning and work
• Revised, more rigorous model:
– grading
– more demanding individual project
• Literacy and numeracy assessed through new GCSEs
• Skills assessed through ‘Challenges’ – same skills as in Curriculum
Review
• No requirement to take Essential Skills Wales qualifications
• Universal adoption at 14-19
Welsh Baccalaureate: Skills
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Literacy
Numeracy
Planning and organising
Personal effectiveness
Critical thinking and problem solving
Creativity and innovation
Digital literacy
Welsh Baccalaureate: When?
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Grading introduced this year at Advanced Level
Steering group and working groups advised on new model
High level model developed and agreed
Stakeholder survey is live – runs to 20 December 2013
Next phase: detailed development, workforce/support/CPD
Specifications available autumn 2014
First teaching of new model September 2015
Evaluation of new model from 2016
Vocational Qualifications: What’s changing?
• Adopt European categories:
– Initial or Continuing Vocational Education and Training (IVETs/CVETs)
– Only IVETs available pre-16
– Develop new generic IVETs for KS4
• Stronger gatekeeping
– Relevance, value, purpose, progression
– Sector bodies to do relevance checks
• Welsh Bac model gives equal status
Vocational Qualifications: When?
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IVETs/CVETs categorisation is complete
Only IVETs will be available pre-16 from 2014
Gatekeeping – DfES/Awarding Organisation Liaison Group set up
Pilot Sector Qualifications Advisory Panels being established
The Panels will consider the need for generic IVETs
GCSEs: What’s changing?
• Revised GCSEs in English Language and Welsh (first) Language
- greater assurance of literacy
• Two new maths GCSEs – greater assurance of numeracy
• Close links with LNF – progression from KS3 expectations
• New GCSEs in other subjects to incorporate subject-specific literacy
and numeracy
• Move towards a single suite – one specification per subject
But we will:
• Keep GCSEs – and modular courses where appropriate
• Allow controlled assessment, tiering, short courses – where justified
GCSEs: When?
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Strategy and subject planning groups set up
First new GCSEs being developed with expert groups
Draft design principles developed for new GCSEs
Stakeholder survey now live – runs to 20 December 2013
Further development and consultation 2014
Specifications available autumn 2014
Resources and CPD available from 2014
GCSEs: When?
• First teaching of new English/Welsh and Maths GCSEs 2015
• Next tranche of revised GCSEs taught from September 2016
(final list to be agreed)
A levels: What’s changing?
• New content for many A levels from 2015 (Wales, England and
Northern Ireland)
• While content will be the same as England and Northern Ireland
where possible, we will allow variation to meet needs in Wales
• One re-sit per module with the best mark counting
But we will:
• Keep A levels
• Keep AS levels as coupled qualifications
• Review relative weightings of the AS and A2 components of A levels
A levels: When?
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Strategy group set up
Policy announced – re-sits, January assessment, AS level
Stakeholder survey now live – runs to 20 December
No January assessment opportunities for AS or A levels after
January 2014
• Challenging timetable for A level redevelopment for 2015 across UK
• Aim to have revised specifications available autumn 2014
• Resources and CPD available from autumn 2014
Essential Skills: What’s changing?
• Essential Skills Wales qualifications will not
– be used pre-16 (except Entry level)
– be required for the Welsh Baccalaureate
• New revised Essential Skills qualifications will
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be available post-16
include new Digital literacy qualifications
include new employability skills (old Wider Key Skills)
have more robust assessment
Essential Skills: When?
• Comparison of range of skills frameworks is complete
• Set of skills areas developed – aligned with curriculum review
proposals
• Same set of skills to form core of Welsh Bac
• Development of new suites of qualifications underway
• Steering group and working groups are advising
• New qualifications to be trialled 2014
• New qualifications to be available for use 2015
Measurement of Performance: What’s changing?
• Key stage 4
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No qualification worth more than 2 GCSEs
Welsh Bac measures to replace threshold measures
Further work to consider measures and their use/weighting in reporting, etc.
Early entry issues to be addressed
• Post-16
– Consistent measures across sectors
Measurement of Performance: When?
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Working group set up
Some changes announced for reporting
Further development work 2014
Announcement of outcome by summer 2014
New equivalences for reporting 2016 (2 GCSEs max)
Welsh Bac measures introduced, reporting 2017
Post-16 measures to be considered through project to develop
consistent measures across sectors
Next steps
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Analyse survey and consultation responses
Roadshows for managers, spring 2014
Development of specifications
Development of CPD/teaching/resources/support
Analysis of workforce implications
CPD materials and events from autumn 2014
Further information
Further information available on the new website
www.qualificationswales.org