Mick Fletcher of the Policy Consortium reads between the lines. It is always important when reading government papers to look for the sub text as well as at the surface but in the case of the recently concluded consultation on …
Has the government secretly given up on 16–19 apprenticeships? Read more »
Andrew Morris explores the potential for a radically new approach to building a research culture in further education. Further education (FE) colleges and other providers are better placed than ever to create a new kind of vocational education and training …
Linking development and research: an opportunity for the new vocational Centre Read more »
As the time for the next Chief Inspector’s Annual Report approaches, three members of the Policy Consortium look for messages that may emerge about the past year, as well as some of the possible implications they might have. Colin Forrest, …
Ofsted and improvement – living up to expectations? Read more »
Mike Cooper reflects on current and past prophecies of the brave new worlds of ‘work’ and ‘leisure’ – and their implications for further education A recent ‘OECD Insight’ blog again raises some familiar, and hard, questions: just what are we …
Further education – does it need to prepare young people for ‘leisure’? Read more »
First roll out then roll back? is an interesting piece by RSA’s Chief Executive Matthew Taylor about outsourcing and payment by results (PbR) in the public sector, with what is a fairly chilling conclusion: “Opponents of outsourcing focus on the …
What are the implications for vocational learning if loans take-up crumbles? Read more »
The Apprenticeship Funding Consultation, launched by the government at the end of July, is full of good intentions. It aims to increase the number and quality of apprenticeships and at the same time get better value for money from public …
New proposals for a College of Teaching offer a unique opportunity to raise the status of the teaching profession and encourage high quality, evidence-based professional development. But the measures are certain to prove counter-productive and divisive if they fail to …
College of Teaching must include further education Read more »
Creeping privatisation and competition in state education has been a disaster across the globe almost everywhere it has been tried and yet the Coalition government seems hell-bent on pursuing it. Michael Gove, the Education Secretary, is repeatedly accused of putting …
The recently published report from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) on college governance [350KB PDF] is in many ways a model of how to develop policy. Unlike many announcements, which appear out of the blue and seem only to …
Mick Fletcher questions the wisdom of tackling college governance in isolation Read more »
Lasting success in education does not come overnight For truly outstanding performance a school or college needs the ‘three Ps’ – patience, professionalism and partnership, says Andrew Morris, author of a 20-year progress report on the path to success in …
Andrew Morris celebrates twenty years of City and Islington College Read more »