There is a welcome emphasis on meeting the needs of all learners in the final report of the Curriculum and Assessment Review (CAR) panel published today. It is also good to see a clear acknowledgement that while the current system may have been working well for many young people, it has created unhelpful barriers for a significant minority – many of whom eventually make their way into the FE sector. We welcome the fact that the majority of the reforms recommended are focused on improving the system for this disadvantaged minority, including those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
We are very pleased to see the words ‘inclusive’ and ‘accessible’ repeated throughout the report. The call for curriculum specifications and for assessment approaches to be inclusive and accessible by design is particularly welcome. Too often in the past, these considerations have been an afterthought rather than the starting point.
While a number of key changes are recommended for 16 – 19 provision, there are no surprises in the report. New V levels to replace existing applied general qualifications and a level 1 stepping stone qualification in English and maths had already featured as firm proposals in the government’s recent FE and Skills white paper. There is greater consideration in the CAR report, however, than in the white paper of the needs of those working at Entry and level 1.
The panel has clearly heard – from Natspec amongst others – that a one-size fits all approach for post-16 learners working at Entry and level 1 is not the answer and that tailored programmes built around learners’ needs offer the most successful approach. They appear to have accepted that there are no significant issues with the status quo and concluded that there is no need for the cull of personal, social and employability (PSE) qualifications that the last government had been proposing. Presumably this is why they decided not to make any specific recommendations about Entry and level 1.
What they do, however, is call on government to ensure that high quality PSE qualifications are available for learners working at this level and that pathways exist to support learners to engage in their education and make positive progression. Furthermore, the panel advises that Entry and level 1 provision is particularly important for those who may not be progressing to higher levels of study, but instead building core personal, social and employability skills to support success in employment and independent living. Numbers of such learners may be small, but they make up the majority of those in the specialist college sector. We are very pleased, therefore, to see that they have been factored into the panel’s thinking as they seek to shape a system that is inclusive and accessible for all.