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Key Skills Policy & Practice

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Key Skills Policy & Practice KEY SKILLS POLICY & PRACTICE Your Questions Answered INTRODUCTION Scope and Purpose This national guidance on key skills policy and practice is issued jointly by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES), the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) and the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA). It is the central authoritative reference point for the current position on a range of key skills policy and implementation issues in England only. Key skills practitioners in Wales and Northern Ireland should contact their own regulatory authorities and/or funding bodies to determine the local position. Readers are encouraged to incorporate relevant passages from this national guidance within their own briefing materials. Please use exact quotations, in the interests of consistency, and acknowledge the source where possible. Electronic copies of this guidance are available on the DfES, LSC and QCA websites. Hard copies are available, free of charge, from: The Key Skills Policy Team,Department for Education and Skills E3c, Moorfoot, Sheffield S1 4PQ Phone: 0114 259 3759 E-mail: [email protected] This document begins with the latest key skills guidance from the DfES, LSC and QCA. Sections follow on the inspection process and the expectations of the Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) and the Adult Learning Inspectorate (ALI). The document then looks at progression from basic to key skills, before answering a series of questions raised by key skills practitioners in schools, colleges and the work-based route. Chapter 10 ‘Sources of further information and advice’ features a list of useful contacts and web-links. Throughout this publication, references to annexes, sections or chapters are presented in bold type.The titles of other publications are presented in bold italicised type. References to annexes, chapters or sections in other publications are presented in italics. This guidance is now in its third edition.The contents of this publication will apply for the current academic year (i.e. at least until August 2004) unless otherwise indicated in the text. one CONTENTS Chapter Title 1 Guidance from the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) 1.1 The place of key skills 1.2 Government expectations 1.3 14-19 policy 1.4 The Skills Strategy 1.5 Flexibility and accessibility 1.6 Achievements in the key skills qualifications 2 Guidance from the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) 2.1 Consolidated guidance 2.2 The combined key skills 2.3 The wider key skills 2.4 Proxy qualifications 2.5 Test opportunities 2.6 Key skills standards 2.7 What the QCA is doing 3 Guidance from the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) 3.1 Summary table: funding of key skills in further education (post 16 and post 19), 2003/04 3.2 Summary table: funding of Adult certificates of Literacy and Numeracy (basic skills), 2003/04 3.3 Funding of key skills in further education (including sixth form colleges), 2003/04 3.4 Funding of key skills for school sixth form pupils from August 2003 3.5 Funding of key skills qualifications for adult learners in further education colleges 3.6 Funding of key skills in Foundation Modern Apprenticeships (FMA) and Advanced Modern Apprenticeships (AMA), 2003/04 3.7 Funding arrangements for partial achievement of key skills 3.8 LSC key skills ‘look-alikes’. 3.9 Funding of Adult Certificates of Literacy and Numeracy (basic skills) for full-time learners. two 4 OFSTED inspection of key skills in colleges 4.1 Introduction 4.2 How will inspectors judge learners’ achievements in key skills? 4.3 How will inspectors judge the quality of key skills teaching? 4.4 What are inspectors’ expectations of initial assessment? 4.5 How will inspectors judge whether programmes and courses meet the needs and interests of learners? 4.6 How will inspectors judge the planning of courses and programmes? 4.7 What do inspectors look for in learning support? 4.8 What are the characteristics which inform inspectors’ judgements? 5 Guidance from the Adult Learning Inspectorate (ALI) 5.1 What are the ALI’s expectations of key skills providers in work-based learning? 5.2 How well do learners achieve? 5.3 How effective are teaching, training and learning? 5.4 How are achievement and learning affected by resources? 5.5 How effective are the assessment and monitoring of learners’ progress? 5.6 How well do the programmes and courses meet the needs and interests of learners? 5.7 How well are learners guided and supported? 5.8 How effective are leadership and management in raising achievement and supporting all learners? 5.9 Key skills in Entry 2 Employment (E2E) 6 Progression from Adult Certificates of Literacy and Numeracy (basic skills) to key skills qualifications 6.1 National Qualifications Framework table 6.2 How should achievement of the key skills external test, but not the portfolio, be recorded? 6.3 If a learner is studying key skills and needs additional support, would we be able to draw down funding through the Additional Learning Support mechanism? 6.4 What support is available to those wishing to progress from basic skills to key skills? three 7 General questions about key skills 7.1 Are all learners who have not achieved GCSE A*-C grades in English, Maths or ICT expected to achieve the relevant key skills qualifications(s) at level 2? 7.2 What is a “relevant” key skills qualification? 7.3 Which categories of students do not need to be registered with an awarding body for the key skills qualifications? 7.4 Do universities value key skills? 7.5 How do universities recognise key skills achievement? 7.6 Where can I get help with bringing key skills into programmes? 7.7 What are the wider key skills? 7.8 Can learners follow the wider key skills units instead of the key skills qualifications? 7.9 How do key skills in the work-based learning route compare to schools and colleges? 8 Specific questions from schools and colleges 8.1 Can entitlement funding be claimed in year 2 if the expectation is met in year 1? 8.2 Will students who are re-taking GCSE qualifications be required to register for the relevant key skills qualification at level 2? 8.3 Can entitlement funding for the wider key skills be claimed in addition to entitlement? 8.4 What are the mandatory requirements on institutions to enable them to claim entitlement funding? 8.5 Will there be funding for Mathematics and English GCSEs and the corresponding key skills qualifications at level 2? 8.6 How will the delivery of key skills be monitored in colleges, now that the audit requirement for key skills has been reduced? 8.7 What information should the college document/ maintain in order to inform the monitoring visits? 8.8 How should key skills activity for learners who are not registering with an awarding body be recorded on the ILR? four 9 Specific questions from work based learning providers and employers 9.1 What is the position on the place of key skills, and of key skills external tests in particular, within Modern Apprenticeship frameworks? 9.2 What key skills are required in Foundation Modern Apprenticeships and Advanced Modern Apprenticeships? 9.3 Will all Modern Apprentices pursuing a key skills qualification have to take the external assessment (test) component? 9.4 How does this affect those apprentices already on programme prior to September 2001? Can they continue to submit portfolio evidence only? 9.5 What is the relaxation ruling? 9.6 What if a Sector Skills Council decides that even if an AMA candidate possesses English and Maths (A*- C) GCSE, he or she must still achieve Application of Number and Communication at level 2? 9.7 What action should Sector Skills Councils and other industry bodies be taking? 9.8 What about the wider key skills? 9.9 Can you tell me more about giving apprentices the chance to develop the key skills appropriate to their needs and abilities? 9.10 What progress can the learner expect to make on key skills while on the E2E programme? 9.11 What role do key skills have in work based learning where there are no Modern Apprenticeship frameworks? 9.12 How will training providers be monitored? 10 Sources of further information and advice Annex 1 Awarding bodies currently offering key skills qualifications Annex 2 Abbreviations and acronyms five 1. GUIDANCE FROM THE DEPARTMENT FOR EDUCATION AND SKILLS (DfES) 1.1 The place of key skills Key skills are a range of essential generic skills that underpin success in education, employment, lifelong learning and personal development. The Government is convinced that all young people whether in education or training post-16 need a solid basis in the key skills of Communication,Application of Number and Information Technology (IT). This is essential if they are to compete effectively in the labour markets of the 21st century. All post-16 programmes of education and training for young people should include the opportunity to improve key skills in these areas. For learners1 working towards the key skill qualifications in Communication,Application of Number or IT, assessment comprises an internal (portfolio) and an external (test) component. For those working towards the wider key skill units of Working with Others, Improving Own Learning and Performance or Problem Solving, assessment is via an internal (portfolio) component alone. The Government is committed to broader study post-16, drawing on more flexible approaches to GCE A levels and vocational qualifications, and underpinned by rigorous standards and key skills. The Qualifying for Success reforms, implemented in schools and colleges from September 2000 (and commonly known as ‘Curriculum 2000’), remain central to the Government’s strategy for raising standards in post-16 education.The Government believes that the new qualifications give young people the opportunity to take on programmes that are more flexible – and thus better suited to their individual needs – and more demanding overall.
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