Supporting Vocational and Technical Learning in Post-16 Education in England

This chapter focuses on systems, policies and processes for supporting vocational and technical learning in post-16 education in England. In England, this sector of education consists of a range of levels and types of provision in both public and private providers of further, adult and continuing vocational and skills based learning. The analysis considers expectations, challenges and responses at the education system level, at institutional level and at practitioner level in the context of shifting government policies. At the system level, the analysis considers societal perceptions of academic and vocational learning and the provision and quality of training and continuing professional learning for VET teachers. At the institutional level, policies and support systems developed by VET providers to support students in colleges and workplaces in partnership with employers on different forms of college and work-based training, including apprenticeships, are considered. At practitioner level, the chapter examines teaching, learning and assessment strategies used by VET teachers to enable vocational learning in different settings, from classrooms, workshops and laboratories in colleges and simulated learning environments to work placements in real working businesses. To support the highest standards of vocational and technical learning, colleges, VET teachers and employers have to work in sustained partnerships to provide inspirational teaching in innovative learning environments, both college based and in workplaces.