April 1st - a special edition bringing breaking news!
STOP PRESS ..... STOP PRESS ....it has taken quite a bit of work, but “our mole” at DfE has eventually got advance notice of the Government’s response to a number of consultations including the Wolf Report and National Curriculum Review. Also in this special edition, we get advance news on FFS, LVA and changes to League Table measures.
Progression and Grade Boundaries
Awarding organisations support Professor Wolf’s theory that AOs should be able to decide on which qualifications they introduce, but that all qualifications should have progression built in. Our “mole” has seen several proposals including:
- GCSE Stuff – a new course based around employability skills, English and maths that is aimed at those students whose achievement expectation is “in quartile 4”. A further development of this course - GCSE Harder Stuff will be aimed at quartile 3 students, but in a fight for equivalence, AOs say they will be worth the same number of points. AOs refused to comment on the availability of GCSE Really Hard Stuff and GCSE Virtually Impossible Stuff aimed at further progression for quartile 2 and 1 students respectively.
- GCSE grade boundaries are being revised. A*-C continue but the lowest achievable grade in a single exam will now be D. E grade will be awarded to students for effort, if they re-sit both exams at least twice over 2 years post-16. E* will be reserved for those who try at least 3 times. While equivalence is a dirty word at DfE we understand an E grade will be counted as higher than a D grade but less than a C grade and E* grade will be the new minimum requirement for all apprenticeship programmes. We understand that a proposal to change the alphabet in the National Curriculum to reflect these changes will not be implemented.
- The National Curriculum review also has progression as a theme. In an effort to engage a wider and more popular audience, the National Curriculum Review will link up with the new series of Britain’s Got Talent. Each week, the public get to vote for their favourite act ... plus their favourite subject, with the final 6 subjects all getting a guaranteed place in the National Curriculum from 2012.
FFS - Funding Following the Student Proposals
In a further development of FFS (Funding Following the Student), a new trial scheme is launched today with FE colleges in the South West. All students will be given a LRS (Learner Response System) to vote on the worth of the lesson using LVA (Lesson Value Add) measures.
Colleges will be paid for each DL (Delivered Lesson) based on a FF (Funding Formula) that includes SNV (Student Numbers Voting) and LVA. We understand that RM, IBM, and BMW are all shortlisted bidders for the IRO (Initial Roll-Out) of the LRS handsets and LVA software.
If the pilot is successful, we understand that the software can be adapted for school use with LVA replacing Ofsted inspections and a further optional add-on that will enable teachers’ pay to be linked to students assessment of lesson performance.
Performance Table Changes!
The Government has already floated a number of ideas to change the way that school league tables are judged, but they haven’t captured the public’s imagination.
The latest from the internal think tank is "measurement against ambition".
A new question will be introduced at KS1 called “When I grow up, I’d like to be a …………".
Students can choose from a list of over 300 occupations including the usual doctor, nurse and TV presenter but with some unusual choices thrown in such as celebrity, WAG and Banker with Bonus. Secondary schools will be ranked on how many learners ultimately achieve their ambition.
The Greatest Day!
On a serious note, did you know that the Guroo guys are offering an incredible prize involving Take That. Get in the mood by clicking here for the official YouTube Take That channel! And our insider (a genuine insider this time) tells us that the new Take That show will be absolutely amazing.
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