March 2021
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Format: DOWNLOADABLE PDF
***Full-scale policy conference taking place online***
This conference focuses on the implementation of T Levels.
It takes place in the context of policy developments including:
- Skills for Jobs - the newly-published further education White Paper
- the Ofsted thematic survey on T levels - looking at implementation and the T Level transition programme in the first 2 years of operation
Areas for discussion include:
- the first wave - the experience and lessons learned
- the second wave - priorities for delivery
- content, assessment, and issues for providers
- recruiting and supporting T Level students
- the impact of the pandemic
- contribution to the wider vocational system and the potential role of T Levels in the post-pandemic economic recovery
The conference is bringing together stakeholders with key policy officials who are due to attend from the DfE; Ofsted; the Cabinet Office; the DIT; GDS; the MOD; the MOJ; the Valuation Office Agency; the Department of Education NI; and the Department for the Economy, NI.
The agenda:
- Experience of implementing the first wave of T Levels - initial impressions, lessons learnt, and steps going forward
- Rolling out the first wave - impact so far, industry placements and assessments, supporting providers, and provision in extraordinary circumstances whilst ensuring high quality
- Recruiting and supporting T Level students - awareness and marketing, parity of esteem with A Levels, experience of the Transition Programme, and student satisfaction and experience
- Priorities for delivery of the second wave of T Levels and incorporating best practice from the first wave
- Assessing the contribution of T Levels to the wider vocational system - progression to higher education, employer awareness, and addressing skills shortages in the post-pandemic economic recovery
Areas for discussion:
- the first wave of T Levels:
- implementation - what has been learned from the launch of the first wave during the pandemic, including for industry placements and assessments
- support - assessing the impact of government funding boosts and other measures for T Levels, as well as priorities for supporting providers moving forward
- standards:
- how providers have adjusted provision in extraordinary circumstances whilst ensuring high quality
- variation between the three initial T Levels
- how to ensure that adjustments made during the pandemic do not hinder long-term enforcement of standards for the new qualification
- what can be learned and carried forward - ways to ensure that insights and lessons learnt from the first wave are fed into the roll-out of the second wave this autumn
- recruitment and the experience of students:
- T Level profile - awareness of the qualifications, key features, structure and assessment methods, as well as their reputation amongst employers compared to other qualifications on offer
- COVID-19 and T Level rollout - the impact of challenges posed by the pandemic on student experience and satisfaction, and on awareness of the new qualification
- student satisfaction - the extent to which expectations have been met for students, taking into account adjustments in light of the pandemic
- communication - ensuring that students know what to expect and are able to effectively measure their satisfaction, as well as discussion on options for future communication strategies
- the T Level Transition Programme - initial experiences amongst the first student cohort
- contributing to the vocational system and post-pandemic economic recovery:
- skills - opportunities for best using T Levels, and the experience of those taking the qualification, to support the economic recovery from the pandemic, and priority areas for upskilling
- increased focus on STEM - how the role of T Levels might develop with the increased focus on the role of further, technical and vocational education, and on engineering, science and nursing
- awareness and employability - ensuring that the skills and competencies acquired by T Level students are understood by employers, and the smooth transition to employment and HE
- shortage occupations - maximising opportunities created by the qualification in addressing key skills shortages, such as through the T Level in construction workforce
Relevant developments:
- funding - Spending Review, with £162m in 2021-22 to support the rollout of the second and third waves of T levels
- COVID-19 pressures - the impact of the new national lockdown, including closing all schools and colleges
- VTQ assessment:
- Consultation on alternative arrangements for the award of VTQs and other general qualifications in 2021 - Ofqual and DfE reviewing responses to their recent consultation, which proposed:
- exams to be cancelled for this summer - but potential for them to be sat in the second year of the T level course
- students be given the option to take employer-set project assessment this summer
- remote assessment - expected to continue for most students, but most vocational exams to be cancelled in February and March
- the T Level profile - concerns over low levels of awareness of the qualification as an option amongst potential students as well as school leaders and classroom teachers, found in research by NFER
- industry placements:
- the DfE New package of support for T Level industry placements and an extension of the Employer support fund pilot to the 2021 academic year
- reports that some early years placements have been delayed, and flexibility has been introduced with regard to the required hours for placements for this group
- FE reform - the recently published further education White Paper, Skills for Jobs, which will be consulted on later this year and includes proposals for:
- funding and accountability reforms for the post-16 sector
- new powers for the DfE to intervene when a college is failing
- colleges to ‘be accountable for the outcomes they achieve with funding’
- standards - £5.4m to help colleges upskill the country from the College Collaboration Fund to 20 colleges for improving education, training and skills standards across the country
- post-16 qualifications reform:
- Next stage of qualifications overhaul gets under way - recent DfE consultation on qualifications to sit alongside T Levels and A Levels
- proposal to remove funding for those that overlap with T and A Levels
- employment - the Government’s Plan for Jobs, including a £2bn Kickstart Scheme for improving young people’s employability, as well as £5.8bn towards recovery of the construction sector
- the Lifetime Skills Guarantee - including T levels as an option for adults of any age
Policy officials attending:
Our forums are known for attracting strong interest from policymakers and stakeholders. Places have been reserved by officials from the Department for Education; Ofsted; the Cabinet Office; the Department for International Trade; the Government Digital Service; the Ministry of Defence; the Ministry of Justice; the Valuation Office Agency; the Department of Education NI; and the Department for the Economy, NI.
This is a full-scale conference taking place online***
- full, four-hour programme including comfort breaks - you’ll also get a full recording and transcript to refer back to
- information-rich discussion involving key policymakers and stakeholders
- conference materials provided in advance, including speaker biographies
- speakers presenting via webcam, accompanied by slides if they wish, using the Cisco WebEx professional online conference platform (easy for delegates - we’ll provide full details)
- opportunities for live delegate questions and comments with all speakers
- a recording of the addresses, all slides cleared by speakers, and further materials, is made available to all delegates afterwards as a permanent record of the proceedings
- delegates are able to add their own written comments and articles following the conference, to be distributed to all attendees and more widely
- networking too - there will be opportunities for delegates to e-meet and interact - we’ll tell you how!
Full information and guidance on how to take part will be sent to delegates before the conference
