| Bluffers Guide to Diplomas |
| Tuesday, 10 June 2008 | |
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So what do you know about Diplomas? Are you going to be teaching them in September? Have you got any students signed up to take them? There still seems to be a great mystery surrounding these qualifications and many schools and colleges are worried about their introduction. In the next three years there is a great wave of changes sweeping across schools in England and the other UK nations. In England the 14-19 reforms will see GCSE syllabuses revised to make them more relevant, A-levels streamlined with a new A* grade to distinguish the most able, and crucially, from this September, the introduction of the Diploma, a brand new qualification combining the academic and vocational. The government is trying to reduce the dropout rate before the age of 18 to encourage more to go on to higher education. They also want to create school graduates who leave with skills that are relevant in business in a global market. Therefore from 2010, functional skills will become an essential element of teaching in English, mathematics, and ICT, and candidates will not be awarded top grade GCSE or Diplomas if they fail to achieve a benchmark score. Why then the confusion and worry? Some believe the implementation of the Diplomas has been rushed and complicated. Many of the institutions involved believe information has not been distributed quickly enough and logically parents and students are still to be convinced that the Diploma is the right qualification. Schools and colleges will need to collaborate and also work with local businesses to fulfil all the criteria for the Diploma and students could take parts of the Diplomas at different institutions. Managing and gathering this work may be problematic for some institutions, and online portfolios may actually help here. The Facts
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