Levels A should be eliminated and replaced by a “British Baccalaureate” in six subjects, according to the final report of the Times Education Commission, which is welcomed by Sir Tony Blair and Sir John Major.
The two former prime ministers and 10 former secretaries of education have signed a letter in support of a “re-establishment” of education when the one-year investigation is completed.
He recommends replacing GCSEs with exams reduced to 16, as digital skills are an integral part of the curriculum, 50 new college campuses, laptops for each child, an army of undergraduate tutors, and a substantial investment in the former. years.
The main recommendations include the introduction of a British baccalaureate, an equally rigorous but broader qualification than the A levels which include academic and professional itineraries or a combination of both.
It would be based on the International Baccalaureate, a Level A alternative that is mainly offered in private schools but customized for the UK and could be adopted to replace the higher degree in Scotland.
Students studying for the academic diploma program would take six subjects, with a main focus on three, covering both the humanities and sciences, as well as units of critical thinking, communication, and creativity.
The commission focuses on extracurricular activities, such as this 10 year yoga class
ADRIAN SHERRATT FOR THE TIME
A 12-point education plan
1 A British high school
It would offer a broader academic and professional degree at age 18, with parity funding per student on both routes, and a set of exams reduced to 16 to get the best out of each child.
2 “Optional Awards”
This should be offered to all schools for activities such as theater, music, dance and sports and a National Citizen Service experience for each student, with volunteer expeditions and outdoor activities for ensure that the complementary activities enjoyed by the most advantaged become. available to everyone.
3 New Charter of Career Academies
It would be the sixth technical and vocational elite course with close links to the industry, reflecting the sixth academic cycles that are being established and a new focus on creativity and entrepreneurship in education to unleash the economic potential of Gran Brittany.
4 Significant boost to funding in the early years
Additional funding should be targeted at the most vulnerable. A unique student number would be given to each child from birth, to match the playing field before reaching school. Every elementary school should have a library.
5 Army of degree tutors
Students would get credits for their degrees by helping students who fall behind catch up.
6 Making the most of technology
A laptop or tablet for every child, greater use of artificial intelligence in schools, colleges and universities to personalize learning, reduce the workload of teachers and better prepare young people for a future work.
7 Welfare at the center of education
An advisor should be placed in each school and an annual student welfare survey should be conducted to encourage schools to actively build resilience instead of supporting students once problems have arisen.
8 Get the most out of teaching
The status and attractiveness of the profession would increase with better career development, revalidation every five years and a new category of consulting teachers, promoted within the classroom, as well as a new teaching apprenticeship.
9 A reformed Ofsted
Ofsted should work collaboratively with schools to achieve sustained improvement, rather than operating out of fear, and a new “school calendar” with a wider range of metrics that include well-being, school culture, inclusion, and unleash the potential of schools.
10 Best training
Teachers need to be trained to identify children with special educational needs, focus more on inclusion, and schools should be required to be responsible for students who are excluded to extract the talent of every child.
11 New university campuses
New campuses should be created in 50 “cold spots” of higher education, including satellite wings in higher education schools. In addition, wages and conditions in the FE sector should be improved and a transferable credit system should be created between universities and colleges to boost stagnant British productivity.
12 A 15-year educational strategy
The strategy should be developed in consultation with business leaders, scientists, local mayors, civic leaders and cultural figures, putting education above party politics in the short term and bringing out the best in our schools. Laws and universities.
Those who choose the career-focused program would combine their courses, which could include existing professional qualifications such as Btecs or T-levels, with work experience. There would be the option for students to “mix and match” elements of both academic and vocational training programs to create the grade that suits them best.
All students would complete a broad project, similar to a dissertation, community service, and some literacy and arithmetic until the age of 18.
The age of completion of studies is 18, although many children change schools at 16 or do apprenticeships or on-the-job training. The commission suggests that students no longer need to take ten or more GCSEs, as is currently the case in many schools.
Instead, they would take a reduced set of exams in five core subjects instead of GCSE, with continuous assessment and online testing contributing to their grade. This form of assessment would allow children to advance to the next level and be accountable in schools, but it would reduce the stakes and reduce the amount of time spent on exams.
Presentation by the Times Board of Education
Other recommendations include a significant boost to early-year funding, encouraging college students to tutor students who are lagging behind, and providing a laptop or tablet for each child.
The work of the commission has been supported by Blair and Major, as well as former Education Secretaries Ed Balls, Justine Greening, Baroness Morgan, Lord Blunkett, Charles Clarke, Lord Baker, Ruth Kelly, Baroness Shephard, Baroness Morris and Alan Johnson.
While not everyone supports all the suggestions, a signed letter calls on the government to “take its recommendations seriously,” adding: “The pandemic has created a moment of restart and it is imperative that education be restored. to put it at the top of the political agenda to increase productivity and make the leveling agenda a reality.
“The committee has emphasized the importance of taking a serious and long-term approach to education, from the early years, through school, to higher and higher education and lifelong learning. to better prepare young people for the challenges they face. The changing world of work, stagnant social mobility, the growing mental health crisis and new technologies make reform more important than ever to capitalize on all the country’s talent. ”
The letter has also been signed by a number of business leaders, cultural figures and Sir Paul Nurse, the Nobel Prize-winning scientist.
Blair, who promised to make “education, education, education” his priority as prime minister, told the commission: “We need to refocus on education as a key priority. to build a better, more successful and more united country in the next decade.
“Education is an area where I would teach different things to schools in different ways. The whole concept of the exam system is due to a complete overhaul. “
Major said: “Over the last few decades, too much time and energy has been spent discussing the education system (grammatical or comprehensive, private or state, academic or technical) rather than its quality.
“Public education continues without funding; the size of the state sector classes is still too large and the teaching profession no longer has the respect and social cache it deserves ”.
He said he would “urge the Treasury to define spending on education as a capital investment rather than daily spending.”
Rachel Wolf, a former Downing Street education adviser who co-wrote the Conservative election manifesto in 2019, said: “The narrowness of our 16- to 19-year-old curriculum is a monumental weakness in our education system. how other comparative countries educate their children makes it harder for people to engage with the complexities of our world and reduces their choices later.If the commission’s recommendations lead to a system that unites academic rigor with “Amplitude, that would be a big step forward.”
Sir Peter Lampl, the billionaire philanthropist who founded the Sutton Trust, which aims to address educational inequality, said The times levels A should be abolished last month because students specialize too soon, saying, “I think everything should be reformed. Is it better to have taken seven subjects other than six or three? It’s obvious. “
Robert Halfon, chairman of the select committee on education of the Commons, said: “The Department of Education has said it ‘can’t embrace the world,’ but that can’t be an excuse to shut down radical thinking, especially after Covid We need to have a serious debate about the future of the curriculum and make sure that the competencies receive the equivalent: a high school diploma could make a big difference in ending the artificial divide between schooling and vocational training.
“The Times Education Commission is making important recommendations that I hope will start a debate across the country.”
A spokesman for the Department of Education said: “We thank the Times Education Commission for its report and always welcome new ideas and opinions from industry and education experts.
“Our ambitious education recovery program is already recovering children after the pandemic. Examinations are the best and fairest way to assess what students know and can do, and ensure that young people get out of the pandemic. school or university ready for the job and higher education …