This paper is best viewed as a .pdf document as it is quite long in length.. We have included below a section of the document. Please click the icon above in order to view the complete document.
Or click
Simon Roodhouse... Part of the problem with perception is that there is no ultimate goal. If you do A-levels it is pretty simple what the choices are and what you can aim to do. If you get good grades in your A-levels you get a chance of going to the top ten universities. Where is the vocational route? Where is the vocational Oxbridge? How does a young person know how to move through the system to achieve the highest possible
levels of vocational learning? It is downright confusing. The answer to the perception question is not to talk about esteem but to talk about a clear route that somebody can aim for and achieve.
The levels of competitiveness worldwide are frightening. From where I sit, we need continuous re-invention. We have to produce new products and services all the time; more and faster. This places greater emphasis on creativity or where is that in all of this? Creativity used to be one of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority’s (QCA) key skills. It was suddenly dropped, but if we are serious about what we are saying here, we need to re-introduce the importance of innovation and creativity. We are looking for people who can create and develop businesses. How are the FE and HE systems going to achieve that? We are not joining these things together effectively with the business support agencies to achieve that level of conversion and growth of businesses. We need to create the supportive context in which that happens. Large businesses are important, not only in terms of the numbers of people they employ and what they do with them, but in terms of how they are engaging with their supply chains on the issue of training, development and learning. Why are we not working with the large employers and their supply chains to improve performance all round? If you improve the productivity of your suppliers, the quality of what you get is far better and it is delivered on time. We also need to understand markets better.
Markets are constantly changing. We should look at the way that universities’ research capacity can be used to provide the kind of information needed tosupport this kind of growth. As regards FE and HE interaction with business and employers, as Bill has already said, a lot brokerage and interaction can be done. With the BP and GlaxoSmithKline project, we are working to convert a global managers’ training programme – by adding critical thinking, accreditation of prior learning and experience, and work-based assessments – into a postgraduate certificate with 60 credits towards a masters degree. This builds on what the company already does and adds value. Let us stop having too many initiatives and look much more closely at what we already have and how we can add value vi newstatesman l 8 May 2006 l practical learnings to that. We could look at new financial packages, a triangulation between the employer, the state and the employee. Companies are not interested in certification and assessment. The employee is interested in certification for progression and for career development. The state could and should support certification, assessment and diagnostics. Companies should provide the training for their employees. Put those two packages together with the commitment of the employee to provide time and we might have the basis for a sensible discussion.....
|
