Deputy Minister for Skills John Griffiths has outlined the progress being made in relation to post-16 education provision across Wales. Following the launch of the Welsh Assembly Government’s policy ‘Transforming Education and Training Provision in Wales’ last September, post-16 providers across Wales have brought forward proposals.
‘More needs to be done to encourage and support pupils to study modern foreign languages in secondary schools throughout Wales,’ says Dr Bill Maxwell, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector for Education and Training in Wales. In a report last week, inspectors highlight that there has been a substantial decrease in the number of pupils choosing to study modern foreign languages for GCSE from 41% (1999) to 28% (2007). Press release
The purpose of this paper is to inform the Welsh Assembly Government about the range and the quality of approaches used by adult community-based learning providers to involve learners and would-be learners in the development, planning and improvement of learning programmes. WAG response
A florist who presents her own gardening TV programme, and a fashion designer who worked on Topshop’s Kate Moss collection, have been named as the winners of this year’s prestigious Vocational Qualifications (VQ) Hero Awards 2009.
This document provides information on the teacher training incentives. It outlines what funding is available, grant eligibility and how payments will be made. This guidance applies to students in Wales who between September 2009 and August 2010 start courses of initial teacher training leading to the award of Qualified Teacher Status run by a teacher training provider accredited by the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales.
This paper sets out the Future Work Programme for the Wales Employment and Skills Board. It is intended to provide a framework for the three years from April 2009 to March 2012, but is focussed principally on 2009-2010.
These documents provide centres with a searchable comprehensive list of all qualifications available through the medium of Welsh or dual language. It also provides a list of contact names, telephone numbers and e-mail addresses for Awarding Body contacts on Welsh-medium or dual language issues. This data was collated directly from Awarding Bodies during January - March 2009 and is the most up-to-date data currently available.
The letter introduces a guidance document on designating units as shared or restricted within the QCF. This guidance has been developed by the qualifications regulators to assist organisations recognised to submit units into the QCF to determine whether the units they submit to the QCF unit databank should be identified as shared or restricted.
There were 4,445 student enrolments at Welsh HEIs with some teaching through the medium of Welsh, 9.1 per cent greater than the number in 2006/07 (4,075). 3.5 per cent of student enrolments at Welsh HEIs had some teaching through the medium of Welsh, compared with 3.2 per cent in 2006/07.
The key points from the latest release (compared to January 2008) are: 31 fewer primary schools, 1 new secondary school and 2 fewer pupil referral units. There are just over 5,000 fewer pupils; 220 less teachers (full time equivalent) and 2,150 additional support staff (the majority recruited in foundation phase settings). The pupil-teacher ratio is 17.5 (the same as in 2008).
For full-time first degree graduates from Welsh HEIs in 2007/08 whose destination was known at around 6 months after graduation: 61 per cent were in employment; 8 per cent were in a combination of work and study; 17 per cent were in further study only; and 8 per cent were assumed to be unemployed.
New arrangements for the delivery of a fund set up to tackle economic inactivity have been announced in Wales by Deputy Minister for Skills John Griffiths. The Deprived Area Fund (DAF) was set up by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to reduce unemployment in the most disadvantaged areas of the UK.
For the last two years we have published booklets of summaries of our survey reports, highlighting the key findings and recommendations. Feedback has told us that the booklets are useful and popular, encouraging us to produce them again this year. The booklets include summaries of all Ofsted’s reports published between April 2008 and April 2009.
Intelligence - Research and policy e-bulletin covering employment and skills issues
The focus of this e-bulletin from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills is on employment and skills issues from research and policy perspectives. Issue 12 has now been published.
A small survey of effective extended schools in particularly disadvantaged areas was undertaken to determine whether their extended provision was a significant factor in explaining their success. The report contains many examples of good practice found in these schools, emphasising the successful attention to detail in meeting challenges and overcoming barriers to achievement.
Published on 12 May 2009 by the Department for Work and Pensions, this desk-based research reviews the evidence on the impact of the recessions of the early 1970s, 1980s and 1990s on the PSA 8 (indicator 2) disadvantaged groups. Such groups include disabled people, ethnic minorities, lone parents, people aged 50 and over, the 15% lowest qualified, and those living in the most deprived local authority wards, as well as ex-offenders and the self-employed.
A small survey of effective extended schools in particularly disadvantaged areas was undertaken to determine whether their extended provision was a significant factor in explaining their success. The report contains many examples of good practice found in these schools, emphasising the successful attention to detail in meeting challenges and overcoming barriers to achievement.
