14 TO 19 EDUCATION The future of 14 to 19


Change is on the horizon for 14 to 19 and vocational


education. A new book by educationalists at Canterbury Christ Church University examines the ongoing and new skills that teachers of 14 to 19-year-olds will need. Andy Armitage explains


throughout its writing: the rapid, extensive and continuous change in the 14 to 19 educational landscape and the implications of this for the initial and continuous professional development of teachers of 14 to 19-year-olds. There are currently many uncertainties


D Union address: Voice Inside Mr Gove’s mind


Do you feel respected by the government


or undervalued? Philip Parkin asks what Michael Gove really thinks about teachers


I am really not sure what michael Gove thinks about teachers. at one moment he is talking down your


achievements in school and stigmatising the whole education system with collective “failure”, while on another occasion he is describing the current crop of teachers as possibly the best ever and talking about the high performance of schools being the result of the quality of their leaders. We hear that the system of teacher training in this


country is inadequate and must be totally reformed in order to produce the quality of teachers that we need; and then we hear that state-funded free schools need not employ qualified teachers because independent schools “draw in and welcome a wide variety of highly trained individuals, some of whom do not have qualified teacher status”. So, you are a badly trained, underperforming


workforce but, mr Gove says: “The principle of school improvement that will guide the Department for Education is teacher knows best,” and “It is about parents and teachers being in the driving seat.” Do you feel as if you’re in the driving seat?


Perhaps he just meant Sir michael Wilshaw and Katharine Birbalsingh. He can’t wait around for all of his newly trained, high-flying teachers to implement his changes so you are going to have to do it anyway. are you feeling loved, valued and respected by


the government, or undervalued and disenchanted? Would you qualify to be a teacher in the brave new Gove era? are you sufficiently qualified (at


least a 2.2 degree) to be considered for teaching? Do you have the required emotional intelligence as well as academic ability? But are you also a craftsman/woman? Because, remember: “I call it a craft because it is something you learn in a work- based environment.” Like the craft of being a doctor, or QC, or a banker, or a politician – no, not that one, it has to be a work-based environment. Then, unlike your teaching colleagues in Northern


Ireland, Wales and Scotland; and unlike doctors, nurses and lawyers; mr Gove decides that the General Teaching Council for England (yes, I know you don’t all love it now – but I think you’ll miss it when it’s gone) which establishes the status of teaching as a true profession is not needed and is to be abolished. Hang on a minute! I thoughtmr Gove said teachers were to be in the driving seat; so what gives him the moral right to abolish the body which gives teachers some measure of control over entry, exit and regulation of their own profession? In an interview he gave to The Guardian before


the 2010 Conservative Party Conference, mr Gove said: “It is part of a new approach that recognises that you cannot improve education unless you enhance the prestige and esteem of teaching overall.” So you do it by de-professionalising teaching? Is that right? Have you considered how much the abolition of


the GTCE undermines your status as a professional and enhances your status as a craftsperson? Have you looked at the proposals in the Education Bill about what will replace the regulatory part of the GTCE’s work? There will be no graded sanctions – you’ll either be banned or not banned. “Who will make the decision on banning?” I hear


you ask – the secretary of state, of course! He’s got a little list and they surely won’t be missed. Remember that now, under the GTCE, such


decisions are made by panels of teachers – your peers who you have elected to the GTCE to do this work – but no longer. Soon it will be central state control becausemr Gove doesn’t think your fellow teachers banned enough people! So teachers, you might be in the driving seat, but


you’ve been fitted with a disabling speed-limiter and you’ve got a back-seat driver operating the controls. I just don’t think you’re going to enjoy the ride.


• Philip Parkin is general secretary of Voice. Visit www.voicetheunion.org.uk


EvELoPING PRofESSIoNaL Practice 14-19 is the third book in a series aimed at developing professional understanding and practice for those involved with the education of children from birth to 19 years.


Its authors had to meet a particular challenge


about how the government’s policy, legislation and reforms will impact on 14 to 19 education when implemented. a key question is what the relationship will be


between academic and vocational education and will they have parity of status? The creation of an English Baccalaureate


(interestingly requiring five academic subjects a* to C GCSE at Level 2, rather than up to Level 3 as in the International, Welsh and overseas Baccs); the reform of the national curriculum likely to lead to a sharper focus on core subjects; and the new reporting figures for performance to include the EBacc (achieved by only 15.6 per cent of pupils last year), as well as fivea* to C GCSEs including English and maths (53.8 per cent of pupils last year), all suggest a greater emphasis on


the importance of achievement in traditional academic subjects. This may well result in schools opting out of


vocational education and leaving it to specialist institutions such as University Technical Colleges, Studio Schools, academies, free schools and further education colleges, altering a trend which saw vocational qualifications taken in schools rise from 15,000 in 2004 to 575,000 in 2010. Professor alison Wolf’s Review of vocational


Education 14 to 19, published this week (see page 2). could challenge this model, and we await the government’s full reaction to the review. Key questions are: • How will/should the raising of the participation age to 17 in 2013 and 18 in 2015 affect curriculum and qualifications at 14 to 19?


•Will the future status and funding of individual specialist schools militate against the very fruitful range of collaborative working between institutions that has grown up over the years?


• How will the proposed increase in initial trainees going through employment-based routes and growth in school-based CPD affect schools and the quality of training?


In spite of these uncertainties, the authors felt


confident in identifying the knowledge, skills and qualities that those teaching 14 to 19-year-olds would need in the coming years.


Professionalism


The last decade has seen great strides in the professionalisation of teachers in the lifelong learning sector and it is crucial that teachers of 14 to 19-year- olds perceive themselves and are perceived by others as acting professionally, including the exercise of autonomy, self-management, the commitment to CPD, the capacity to reflect on practice, and research and enquire into practice.


Communication skills


also key is the possession of a minimum core set of skills, with a particular emphasis on communication skills. This would enable teachers to use effectively a range of teaching methods which encouraged participatory learning such as leading role-plays and managing discussion, as well as carry out complex communication tasks relating to interaction with learners and the management of learning.


Functional skills


Research indicates that young people develop functional skills more effectively when they learn them as part of a vocational or academic subject rather than in discrete sessions. It is therefore important for all 14 to 19 teachers to be skilled in the pedagogy of functional skills as it relates to their own subject.


Pastoral


In spite of the concerns about the current and future role of teachers as “edutherapists”, many consider the development and use of softer or people skills to be of central importance for those managing and delivering the 14 to 19 curriculum. These range from empathy to negotiating and


resolving disagreements, from inspiring and guiding groups to anticipating, recognising, and meeting the needs of others. There are now more professional roles in the sector which require the demonstration of these soft skills than before. There are roles as coaches, mentors, staff developers, team leaders, section, department and faculty heads, assistant headteachers, course leaders and convenors. The key learning approaches in 14 to 19 programmes – applied, personalised, experiential learning – are also


12


heavily reliant on such skills on the part of teachers to manage them.


Learning environments


Students are increasingly being taught in a wide range of contexts, such as a workplace, a simulated work environment, on field trips, outdoor activities, community based activities, and educational visits. Teachers need to be flexible enough to operate in those environments.


Vocational experience


although many further education staff enter the sector already skilled and experienced in their occupational area, few school recruits do and there is a real need for many more school staff to gain vocational experience in relation to their subject areas.


Guidance


as the 14 to 19 curriculum map becomes increasingly complicated, the role of the teacher in helping young people navigate it successfully becomes more important. It is therefore imperative that all teachers of 14 to 19-year-olds become proficient in giving information, advice and guidance.


Behaviour


as teacher educators, the most frequently requested area for development work by both initial trainees and in-service groups is in behaviour management.as the participation age rises and the 14 to 19 population becomes larger and more diverse, teachers will need support in the identification of difficult or unwanted behaviour, understanding their own responses to behaviours, and in developing practical strategies for promoting positive behaviours.


IT skills


We assume that those born after 1980 are “digital natives” whereas those born before 1980 are “digital immigrants”. However, we are sometimes surprised by the limited ICT literacy of trainees in their 20s and it does appear that although many are skilled in using hard and software in their own educational institutions, there is often limited ability to transfer those skills into other occupational or learning environments. However, it is vital that teachers are able to embed IT-based technologies in the teaching of their subject.


Assessment


Since assessment for, as opposed to of, learning is central feature of many programmes at 14 to 19, such as Diplomas, the skills required for carrying this out effectively will be at a premium for teachers. These include: • Being sensitive and constructive because any assessment has an emotional impact.


• Giving learners constructive guidance on how to improve.


• Developing learners’ capacity for self-assessment so that they can become reflective and self- managing.


• Recognising the full range of achievements of learners.


• Andy Armitage is head of the Department of Post- Compulsory Education at Canterbury Christ Church University. Any views expressed above are his own.


Further information


Developing Professional Practice 14-19, shortly to be published by Pearson, is the third book in a series aimed at developing professional understanding and practice for those involved with the education of children from birth to 19 years.


SecEd • March 10 2011


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16