NEWS FOCUS

SecEd: On Your Side

The good, the bad and the undecided

SO AT last we have it. Our new coalition government this week published a 36- page document setting out its combined policies and included within this were 17 bullet points dedicated to education (see our news pages for the full report). While compromise has been seen in many areas of

Pete

Henshaw Editor SecEd

government it seems that education is not one of them as the bulk of the policies match with the Conservative manifesto on which the election was fought. It does worry me that the Liberal influence, which has had an impact in certain areas, has not been brought to bear on education. So what are we left with? Here’s my take on the main

coalition education policies. Good: “A significant pupil premium for disadvantaged

pupils funded from outside the school budget by reductions in spending elsewhere.” I am keen to know where these reductions will come from, but this initiative has to succeed and is long-overdue. Bad: “Free schools” are here to stay it seems, and they

deeply concern me. We need more information on how this agenda will be taken forward, and the government has to acknowledge that this concept is not a proven success in Sweden and will not provide an instant solution for schools in challenging areas or with high numbers of disadvantaged pupils. It is clear that this is a recipe for further social division. Undecided: “Giving heads and teachers the powers

they need to ensure discipline.” From my understanding, heads and teachers have these powers already but don’t feel confident in using them. Are more powers needed? Or do we need to hold parents more to account? Good: More flexibility in the exams system. I want to

hear more about what this means, but any nod towards addressing the restrictive curriculum and assessment system in England is welcome. I eagerly await news on this. Bad: While increasing the flexibility for 14 to 19-year-

olds to study vocational areas of learning sounds fine, I am yet to be convinced that the planned technical schools will not drive an even deeper wedge into the academic-vocational divide. Should we really be siphoning off our vocationally talented pupils at age 14 or even 16 and despatching them to schools down the road? Will this see us return to the stigmatised 1970s when pupils who were “good with their hands” were sent to these kinds of schools? And no mention of Diplomas! Where are these tremendously exciting qualifications heading? You need to tell schools, Mr Gove, so they can get on with planning their future Diploma delivery. Good: Any mention of league tables reform is

heartening, and the coalition has committed to this in its policy document, but again we need more information on how the new government intends to “demonstrate the progress of children of all abilities” in its new-look tables. Bad: Plans to reform the national pay and conditions rules

are of concern to me. The government calls them “rigid” and wants schools to be able to pay good teachers more. But offering freedoms could well mean paying teachers less as well. An independent commission on the “long-term affordability” of public sector pensions makes me nervous. Teachers’ pensions cannot be attacked as part of the spending cuts. We shall be keeping a close eye on this. Undecided: The review of key stage 2 SATs is welcome,

but the government is committed to external assessment. Again, we need more information. Good: The plans to give teachers accused by pupils

anonymity is absolutely welcome and long overdue. SecEd’s Don’t Abuse My Name campaign has long fought for more protection for teachers who are accused and for the end to the abuse of “soft information” that has been collected and kept on record against innocent teachers. So a mixed bag indeed. Some good things to celebrate,

and some dangerous ideas to keep an eye on. And that is exactly what we shall be doing in the coming months. SecEd

• Pete Henshaw is publisher and editor of SecEd. Email him at editor@sec-ed.co.uk or visit www.sec-ed.co.uk. SecEd also produces Delivering Diplomas magazine. Visit www. deliveringdiplomas.co.uk or email the editor, Chris Parr, on chris.parr@markallengroup.com

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Filling the skills gap

EMPLOYERS FEAR that they will not be able to find enough people with the skills they need to fill high level jobs unless more youngsters study science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM), according to a survey by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). The survey found that, of the

694 employers asked, a third do not believe they will be able to fill posts that require skills equivalent to A level, while around half said they are having difficulty recruiting staff with skills in STEM subjects. The findings were seized on by

the national press, with the Daily Telegraph declaring that companies were having to “pick up the pieces of school failure”, while the Times lamented the “lack of basic skills” demonstrated by school-leavers. Richard Lambert, director

general of the CBI, said the survey showed that businesses want tomorrow’s workforce to be “at the top of the new government’s policy agenda”. He continued: “As we move

further into recovery and businesses plan for growth, the demand for people with high quality skills and qualifications will intensify. In the future, people with qualifications in science and maths will be particularly sought after, and firms say it is already hard to find people with the right technical or engineering skills.” Mr Lambert called on the new government to encourage more

A CBI report published last week was heavily critical of the way schools engage students in STEM subjects. Chris Parr looks at one

scheme that is trying to turn things around

young people to study science- related subjects, adding that businesses could help by showing that these skills lead to “exciting and rewarding careers”. On the plus side, the businesses

surveyed acknowledged they had a role to play in encouraging more youngsters to study STEM subjects. More than 70 per cent agreed

that providing high quality work placements was a good way to do this, while two thirds said businesses should engage with schools to help enthuse pupils about science. One organisation that is

actively helping schools to link up with relevant employers is the government-funded STEMNET. Its network of “ambassadors”, who have a background in STEM areas, carry out free visits to schools across the UK to talk to pupils about their career options. Pat Langford, director of

programmes, told SecEd that although the CBI report pointed out a number of issues that needed to be addressed, steady progress was

IN RESPONSE…

A report commissioned by Wales’s education minister, Leighton Andrews, has found that a third of the country’s education budget – £1.3 billion – is spent on administration. The report, carried out by PricewaterhouseCoopers, called on education authorities to work more closely together to ensure money went into teaching, and said schools and colleges should share resources.

Leighton Andrews:

“I have made it clear that I want to ensure more funding reaches the education frontline – our schools, colleges and universities. Much has already been done

across the public sector in Wales, specifically within education to deliver efficiencies and improve services to achieve the highest possible standards of education and training.

The review is not about cuts in

funding, but freeing up resources by changing the balance in funding between frontline and support services.”

Rex Phillips, NASUWT Wales organiser:

“This report only tells us what we already knew. Many of the strategies identified, including simplification of the grants system in Wales and streamlining of

performance management, we have been calling for years. Also, we have repeatedly

questioned the economies of scale provided through 22 local authorities. For schools and local authorities, the issue is not one of tinkering with the support services, it about addressing the £527-per-pupil funding gap while maintaining the support and services that schools rely on in order to function effectively.”

being made in schools across the country. She said: “Over the last two

years there have been increases in the number of students applying to do A levels with STEM relevance – they are becoming more popular. For example, you can see a trend in maths where applications have risen markedly. “For our part, all we can do is

make sure more and more of our ambassadors are going into schools, and that is certainly happening year- on-year at the moment. A year ago we had around 15,000 companies involved, and that number has since jumped by 2,200, so more companies are recognising the need to partner with schools.” It is hoped that the ambassador

network will increase by a further 6,000 over the next 12 months. Ms Langford continued: “The

CBI report is useful in that it identifies there are still problems to be tackled, and we are doing everything we can to turn things around. “It is a relatively new concept to have schools and business working

closely together, so it will take a while to get everyone involved, but we have a bank of quotes from teachers saying the ambassadors have actively changed pupils’ attitudes towards their A level choices, and their career choices.” Elsewhere in the survey, which

was sponsored by the awarding body EDI, the respondents identified their key priorities for schools. They included improving basic

literacy and numeracy (63 per cent), raising overall standards (46 per cent) and providing high quality vocational options for pupils (43 per cent). Nigel Snook, EDI chief

executive, said: “The transition from school, college or university to the world of work is still one of the most challenging stages in many people’s lives. Despite the fact that employers and government invest considerable sums of money and effort in this area, the survey demonstrates there is still work to do to more effectively harness these resources. “The findings also suggest that

there would be real benefits from improving the guidance given to young people on the options available to them, and simplifying the contribution of employers to work experience and apprenticeship programmes.”

SecEd

Further information

• CBI: www.cbi.org.uk • STEMNET: www.stemnet.org.uk

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