Please note that this is the last edition of the Newsletter. We would like to thank readers for all of their feedback and we hope that the newsletter has provided a valuable resource for both subscribers and casual readers. An alternative source of research news can be accessed via The UK Commission for Employment and Skills newsletter called Intelligence which looks at the latest news on employment and skills from a research and policy perspective and contains a spotlight feature which looks at a topical issue each month in more depth.

Provision in FE for 14-16 Year-Olds with SEBD

An article in the British Journal of Special Education explores the implications of placing young people aged between 14 and 16 with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties (SEBD) in further education. It looks at what it means for college staff and examines the issue in relation to themes of ‘college culture’, ‘managed transfer’ from schools and the ‘appeal of teaching young people with SEBD’. The article calls for the professional development of staff in order for them to build relationships with these young people and thus promote their social inclusion. It also promotes the need for strategic planning by all agencies working with young people with SEBD so that FE is not seen as a ‘quick fix’ solution to the problem of social exclusion.

The full reference of the article is: Macnab, N., Visser, J. and Daniels, H. (2008) ‘Provision in further education colleges for 14- to 16-year-olds with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties’, British Journal of Special Education, 35(4), 2008, pp.241-246.

Post-16 Education: Learner Participation and Outcomes in England 2007/08

This statistical first release (SFR) has been produced by the Data Service in consultation with DIUS and DCSF statisticians and provides 2007/08 estimates of participation and attainment for post-16 education (excluding Higher Education and schools) in England. Information from the different post-16 learning options has been drawn together to give a coherent and comprehensive picture of the participation and attainment of young people and adults after the age of 16. This includes:

• Further Education organisations
• Work-based Learning (including Apprenticeships and Entry to Employment)
• Train to Gain
• Adult Safeguarded Learning

Key findings for 2007/08 are that:

• 299,000 adults achieved a full level 2 qualification (equivalent to five good GCSEs) in 2007/08. This is a huge increase on 2002/03 when 72,800 adults achieved a full level 2 qualification;
• 127,900 adults achieved a full level 3 qualification (equivalent to two good A-levels) - up from 67,300 adults in 2002/03;
• 215,100 adults achieved a level 1 literacy qualification and 42,000 entry level numeracy;
• the number of people completing an apprenticeship has increased to 112,600; and
• the overall apprenticeship completion rate increased from 58.9 per cent in 2006/07 to 63.7 per cent in 2007/08.Additionally, the number of people starting an apprenticeship has increased from 184,400 in 2006/07 to 224,800 in 2007/08.

For the full breakdown, click here

Unfinished Business in Widening Participation: The End of the Beginning

We are a nation of ‘two halves’, divided at the age of 16 into those who achieve five or more ‘good’ GCSEs and those who do not, according to a new publication on widening participation in higher education.

Amid concern that those from disadvantaged backgrounds are still under-represented in higher education, author Geoff Stanton argues that attempting to address this by concentrating on university admissions processes is too narrow. He says we should look at the social class composition of the institutions they progress from.

The crucial divide comes at 16, when half the population do not gain passes at grades A* to C at GCSE, denying them the ‘royal route’ to university via immediate access to A-levels. Most in this half of the population are capable of greater achievement given more time, but they tend to be excluded from the most prestigious and best-resourced forms of 16-19 education.

Geoff Stanton is one of seven contributors to a new collection of essays - Unfinished business in widening participation: the end of the beginning - published by the Learning and Skills Network (LSN).

To download the full report click here

Working Futures 2007-17

Working Futures 2007-2017, from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills, is the third in a series of reports which provide a comprehensive review of the implications of technological change, changes in government policy and legislation, and changes in other economic and social drivers for the UK labour market. It presents a detailed analysis by industry and geography of the changing demand for labour.

This latest iteration finds that despite the current crisis in both the world and the domestic economy, a more optimistic picture is projected for the labour market over the long term to 2017. Employment is projected to continue to rise over the decade as a whole, with the creation of 13.5 million job openings, of which two million will be new.

For more information click here

Research Shows that Literacy Changes Lives

Research published by the National Literacy Trust has demonstrated the significant relationship that literacy has with a person’s happiness and success. Inspired by similar work done in the US and drawing evidence from a range of research findings, it highlights the dangers of poor literacy and also the benefits of improving literacy for the individual, the community, the workforce and the nation. The report describes how reading for pleasure is the most important indicator of the future success of a child and notes reasons why people from all ages struggle with their literacy. These difficulties range from severe educational needs to a disaffection from learning and low aspirations. Poor literacy is described as being part of a vicious cycle of socio-economic factors that lead to economic and personal deprivation. It is suggested that addressing literacy skills is a key first step in beginning to address and helping to overcome other related factors that lock individuals into a cycle of disadvantage.

Full details here

The Impact of Lifelong Learning on Poverty Reduction

A paper published by the National Institute for Adult Continuing Education (NIACE) summarises research-based evidence concerning the impacts of lifelong learning on poverty reduction. It provides a definition of poverty and sets the scene for learning opportunities for poor people in the UK before going on to review literature on the income effects of adult education. It also looks at the impact of financial literacy, the employment and health effects of adult learning and the impact of lifelong learning on reducing child poverty. Amongst the headline messages are the following:

• For individuals in employment, improved income has been the result of continuing learning and training opportunities.
• Adult education with provision of financial literacy and support to access public funds can help fill the gap in financial services for low-income, disadvantaged families.
• There are important health benefits of adult learning. Particularly important for the poor are the benefits of health literacy and numeracy.
• Upgrading adult skills can bring large returns for their children.
• There is a particularly strong need for continuing longitudinal studies investigating the net impact of lifelong learning on poverty reduction in the UK.
• Lifelong learning will only be fully effective in interaction with other policies.

Full details here

Employer Investment in Apprenticeship Training

A report entitled “The Net Benefit to Employer Investment in Apprenticeship Training” has been produced for the Apprenticeship Ambassadors Network

By the Institute for Employment Research.  The overall aim of the study was to provide a detailed assessment of the contribution made by employers to the provision of Apprenticeship training to Level 2 and Level 3, and to indicate some of the longer-term benefits to the employer from engaging in such Apprenticeship training. The evidence from the case studies highlights many interesting results by sector, but overall key findings are as follows:

A wide range of benefits were mentioned (although the relative importance of benefits varied across sectors). These benefits included the following:

• Apprenticeships allowed the business to secure a supply of people with the skills and qualities that the business required and which were often not available on the external job market
• Apprenticeships were especially important in establishments where they were seen as potential replacements for an ageing workforce - even if external recruitment was possible it was often more expensive to recruit experienced workers from the external labour market
• Apprentices ensured that the supply-chain (i.e. sub-contractors) had a sufficiently skilled workforce
• Lower labour turnover – Apprentices tend to stay with the organisation
• Apprentices provided a cadre of employees from which to select future managers;
• Apprenticeship training could increase interest in training amongst other employees;
• Apprenticeships were more practical and job-related than other forms of learning
• Apprentices can bring new ideas and innovation to the business
• A good Apprenticeship scheme could be reflected in an enhanced reputation for the business both within the industry and in the local community.

To access the full report click here 

Quality Skills, Quality Services

The Learning and Skills Task Group of the TUC’s Public Services Forum (PSF) has published the executive summary of its final report - Quality Skills, Quality Services - including a number of key recommendations designed to improve workforce skills across public services. The Task Group began its work in autumn 2006 and following the first year it published an interim report which recommended that the following four priority areas should be incorporated into a joint action plan to be taken forward by employers, trade unions and Government:

• Build a joint commitment on delivering the Skills Pledge across public services
• Develop new skills pathways for young people entering public services employment, especially by expanding Apprenticeships
• Establish a skills investment strategy and Train to Gain service for public services that will support the planning and delivery of skills priorities and enable employer investment and publicly funded provision to align more effectively
• Identify good practice in leadership and management facilitating access to skills in public services.

For full details click here

Measuring Improvements in Learning Outcomes

How can school performance be measured accurately to improve learning outcomes? This is explored in a new OECD publication which proposes a value-added model of measuring which provides a fair, precise and quantitative tool for assessing students’ progress. Unlike some league tables which rely on raw test scores, value-added modelling measures what students have learnt while in school by monitoring their performance at two or more points in time.

For more details click here

New Skills for New Jobs

The European Commission has published a new Communication on responding to structural economic change. The report presents the familiar analysis of a changing economy as the product of increasing economic competition, technological change, demographic change and the need to respond to environmental concerns. The report proposes that skills forecasting has improved as a first step to improving the matching of skills provision to future skills needs. The report also includes ‘a first assessment’ of the changing nature of the European labour market and skills needs up to 2020. This assessment suggests that the service sector will continue to grow as part of an overall expanding labour market. In this context, the report suggests that there will be labour shortages resulting from ageing. The report also suggests that all occupations will witness increasing skill requirements.  Alongside the creation of new high skilled jobs, the report indicates that some growth in elementary occupations will occur, and that unequal financial reward at these two ends of the labour market may lead to increasing polarisation. 

The Commission Communication is available here

A New Strategy for Assessing Adult Competencies

An article in the International Review of Education describes how the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) is developing a new strategy for assessing the literacy skills of adults. PIAAC (Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies) aims to form an internationally relevant measure of key cognitive skills as well as formal educational attainment. The range of skills includes familiarity with information and communication technologies and the ability to manage information, construct new knowledge and communicate with others. It is argued that high quality comparative information on adult skills can provide evidence that will assist governments in their policy making.

The full reference of the article is: Schleicher, A. (2008) ‘PIAAC: a new strategy for assessing adult competencies’, International Review of Education, 54(5-6), November, pp.627-650.

This month we focus on research into increasing apprenticeships in the Public Sector.

To view the Hot Topic click here