Case Ireland: the significance of Level 1 in the European EQF and National Framework of Qualificatio

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Case Ireland the significance of Level 1 in the
European (EQF) and National Framework of
Qualification (NFQ).a time when the periphery
speak to the centre on an equal footing Mary
Robinson, inaugural speech

• Presentation by
• Andrina Wafer, Development Officer
• Further Education and Training Awards Council
• June 2009

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Questions - roots, shoots, fruits

• What and who is the framework for? Recognition
  for all?
• Basic education and training - whats the span?
• NFQ/EQF relationship
• Practice - innovations, benefits and risks

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Background

• Qualifications (Education and Training ) Act,
  1999
• - National Qualifications Authority of Ireland
• - Further Education and Training Awards Council
• - Higher Education and Training Awards Council

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Background

• Legislative base for
• - the establishment of a National Framework of
  Qualifications (NFQ)
• - facilitation of lifelong learning through the
  promotion of access and opportunities for all
  learners, including those with special
  educational and training needs

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Background

• Policy priorities - Ireland and EU
• Promotion of
• - equality and access
• - life-long learning
• - recognition of learning

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National Context

• IALS - 25 of population under performing
• Focus on literacy nationally
• White Paper on Adult Education - concern with
  inequality, exclusion, low qualifications
  attainment, inclusion of older people
• Acknowledging link between education and health
• Global competitiveness, knowledge economy

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The National Framework of Qualifications

• Statutory instrument
• to establish a framework for the development,
  recognition and awarding of qualifications in the
  State
• to establish and promote the improvement of
  standards of awards
• to promote and facilitate access, transfer and
  progression

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The National Framework of Qualifications

• Definition
• The single, nationally and internationally
  accepted entity, through which all learning
  achievements may be measured and related to each
  other in a coherent way and which defines the
  relationship between all education and training
  awards.

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The National Framework of Qualifications

• Vision
• Needs of the learner taking priority
• Development of a lifelong learning society
• Facilitate cultural, economic, political/democrati
  c and/or social participation
• All learners to receive recognition
• Be totally open and accessible to all learners

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The National Framework of Qualifications, 2003

• National benchmarks, international practice,
  consultation
• 10 levels
• 4 award types (major, minor)
• Level indicators (knowledge, skill and
  competence)
• Level synopses
• National qualifications, represented by awards,
  recognising learning

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The National Framework of Qualifications
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The European Qualifications Framework (2004)

• Common referencing tool - translation devise for
  national structures
• Meta framework
• Promotes transparency and mobility, life-long
  learning
• Qualifications levels - outcomes, knowledge,
  skill and competence - broad expression
• 8 levels

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The European Qualifications Framework

• Member States relate qualifications by 2010
• Reference in national qualifications systems to
  EQF
• Designate National Co-ordination Points (NCP) to
  support relationship NFQ - EQF

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EQF NFQ
Alignment process result, 2009
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FETAC

• Functions include
• Determine standards, make and promote awards
• Maintain and improve the quality of education and
  training
• Charter meeting the needs of learners is central
  to the work of FETAC

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Implementing the NFQ

• The FET Sector
• 760 registered providers
• Education and training
• Public and private
• All learners
• 6 levels
• 750,000 awards since 2001

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Registered Providers

• VEC (upper secondary)
• State training agencies - FÁS, Fáilte Ireland,
  Teagasc, Bord Íascaigh Mhara
• Community and voluntary sector (VET)
• Schools sector - special schools, voluntary
  secondary, continuing education
• Work-based learning/employment
• Private/commercial training

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Implementing the NFQ

• Learners
• Typically achieve in a modular way
• Build to a major award over time (part-time)
• Over 50 are over 30
• Challenge existing structures
• Until recently, almost all were in workforce
• Benefits of education and training unevenly
  experienced

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Implementing the NFQ

• Listed, placed, classified all awards
• Now implementing a Common Awards System (CAS)
• Gap at levels 1 and 2
• Research phase, Expert Working Group

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Introducing new awards at levels 1 and 2

• View of learners rights based, agentive
• Rationale access, inclusion, choice, success
• Learner profile spiky!
• - rich and diverse group
• - systematic experience of poverty at formative
  life stage
• - learning disability
• - health issues

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Its all about.access

• Access to
• Recognition through a meaningful qualification
• Transfer and progression opportunities - range
  and choice
• Communities of knowledge, in a knowledge-based
  society
• Quality assured provision, continuous improvement

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New levels - differentiation

• Level 1 elementary, closely defined, highly
  structured, limited range of roles, familiar
  context, 20 credits, small volume
• Level 2 basic, well supported, well structured,
  under direction, familiar context, narrow range,
  30 credits, medium volume, literacies and logic
• Holistic definition of literacy - emotions,
  social, personal as well as technical skills

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Certificates

• Level 1 Certificate in General Learning (20
  credits, elementary learning)
• Level 1 Certificate in Communications (20
  credits, requirement from communications pool,
  elementary, awareness)
• Level 2 Certificate in General Learning (30
  credits, communications and numeracy
  requirements, basic learning, literacies, logic)

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Learner voices - the hardest thing

• What is key to know - pools of awards
• Communications
• Mathematics/numeracy
• Learning to learn
• Information and Communications technologies
• Visual and Performing Arts
• Sciences
• Health and Safety

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Providers and Programmes

• Registered providers (quality assurance)
• Policies for programme design and delivery,
  assessment, evaluation
• Programme validation - compliance, capacity,
  coherence, consistency
• Subject to monitoring
• 97 programme applications

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Ghettos - or communities of interest?

• 9 providers offer programmes exclusively at level
  2
• 10 exclusively practice at level 1
• General Learning is the most popular stream (39
  level1, 41 level 2)
• 17 programmes address Communications at level 1
• Varied participation at level 3 (some new sectors)

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Ghettos - or communities of interest?

• Level 1 Communications - most offered by VEC,
  then Disability Services
• Level 1 General Learning most offered by
  Disability Services or Special Schools, followed
  by VEC
• Level 2 General Learning offered by VEC (23),
  Disability (11), Special School (1), NALA (1)
• Duration varies from 0-3 months to 36 months

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Meeting the needs

• Programme objectives, themes
• Independent living (22)
• Focussed/targeted lifelong learning -
  communications, mathematics, ICT (22)
• Lifelong learning (17)
• Quality of life, choices, enhanced leisure (5)
• Cultural Prize - independence, literacy,
  inclusion knowing how to be

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Ghettos or communities of interest?

• Level 1 duration 9-12 months most typical
• Level 2 duration 24-36 months
• Duration variance reflects
• - interventions/procurement
• - preparation for moving on/induction/
  transition
• - tradition primary purpose of programme,
  traditional access to funded participation

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Achievement

• Awards May 2008 - January 2009
• General Learning level 2 79
• General Learning level 1 10
• Communications level 1 11
• Total major 100
• Total minor 104

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Achievement

• Pools of minors
• Communications 100
• Mathematics 109
• ICT 55
• VPA 7
• L2L 35
• Most popular - Reading (82), Quantitative Problem
  Solving (47)
• Accumulation 2-4 minors at a time
• Small numbers!

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Achievement, issues and outcomes

• Health warning small scale national
  introduction of new systems
• Fears
• - Access would be governed by linear approach -
  1, 2, 3
• - Learning disabilities - literacy, numeracy
  -learning differently, pace
• - Credibility or awards - adults choose!
• - Retention, independence
• - Ghetto, progression
• Issues
• - Rhetoric of multiple intelligences, dominant
  traditions
• - Driving for language, comprehension skills
• - progression requirements V principle
  achievements
• - Assessment - continuous, formative, summative,
  for and of learning
• - Embedding literacy

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Outcomes

• First time globally awards are made as part of
  the NFQ at level 1
• First time nationally awards are made at level 2
  since 1966
• First time FETAC and providers fully implement
  NFQ and all new policies and procedures
• First time the majority of these learners achieve
  an award - transformative learning

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Outcomes

• Learners and providers voices
• - For the first time, the work of my staff and
  our learners has been made visible. It has
  brought us above the radar.
• - This has directly improved our health and
  safety record and compliance with policy
  requirements.
• - Bring it on. I cant wait. I want to go on
  and on.
• - I have never achieved an award before. Ive
  never been call successful before.

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Next Steps

• Independent review of awards and processes
• Extending the range of major awards
• National agenda future skills needs - 70,000
  progress from levels 1 and 2 to 3 (by 2020, 7 to
  move up one step between level 1, 2, 3)
• Ireland/Finland comparison pre-primary, primary
  or lower secondary - Ireland, 37 (2004), Finland
  23 (2004)
• OECD Education at a Glance

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Making a difference

• Insufficient scale to really draw trend progress
  will be slow
• Tackling barriers to education, training and
  lifelong learning - policy, informational,
  provider related, situational, dispositional
• Specific target groups least likely to
  participate are people with disabilities,
  travellers, homeless, substance mis-users, single
  parents, migrant workers

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Do recognition and inclusion matter?

• Progression, health, participation,
  transformational gains evident anecdotally
• Nuanced approach to levels works - learner
  friendly, IEP friendly, motivational
• Awards are part of the NFQ - not access to/credit
  towards. Fully included. Symbolic power.
• Informing and challenging awards practice at
  levels 3-6
• Focus on learning to learn welcomed

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• Let the smell of mint go heady and defenceless
• Like inmates liberated in the yard
• Like the disregarded ones we turned against
• Because we failed them by our disregard
• Seamus Heaney, Mint

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• Thank You
• Contacts/websites
• www.fetac.ie
• www.nqai.ie
• awafer_at_fetac.ie