The “Academic-Vocational Divide” in the Reform of England’s Qualifications System: A Case Study Focused on Academic Achievement and Regional Characteristics

Abstract

  In England, current political measures are aimed at promoting vocational education and dissolving the “academic-vocational divide.” This is because the governing Labour Party is worried about the low levels of education and training in England relative to those of other OECD countries. In this political background, new qualifications have been introduced: the GCSEs in vocational subjects in 2002 and “Diplomas,” which have “vocational” characteristics, in 2008, for people aged 14 to 16. In practice, however, academic (general) education has been prioritized and vocational education has been largely disregarded. In order to address this problem, it is indispensable to elucidate the current situation of the “academic-vocational divide” in England’s education system. In this paper, the author empirically clarifies important elements and obstacles to dissolving the “academic-vocational divide,” based on school research, while studying the situation of the two qualifications, curricula, career guidance, and entire school reform plans.

  For the purposes of this discussion, the concept of an “academic-vocational divide” is defined as follows: (1) a situation in which vocational qualifications are recognized as less important than academic ones, and (2) a situation in which vocational qualifications are not treated as one of the main options for students aged 14 to 16. In addition, this concept can be further examined from the following levels: (a) the political or institutional level, (b) the level of school curricula and career guidance systems, and (c) the level of the choice by students, parents, and employers. Currently, there is an attempt to dissolve the “academic-vocational” divide at the political or institutional level. School research in this paper is therefore focused on the level of school curricula and career guidance.

  Chapter 1 reviews the background of the introduction of the GCSEs in vocational subjects and “Diplomas.” It was found that the common background for the two qualifications includes that their purposes are to improve the status of vocational qualifications, secure the parity between vocational and academic qualifications, and increase the number of qualified people by diversifying career options. It was also observed that the two qualifications have some concrete, common characteristics: (1) not only practical learning but also theoretical learning are emphasized, and (2) qualifications are included in the requirements for admission to university. Next, the positioning of qualifications for people aged 14 to 16 was illustrated with two axes (theoretical-practical; general-vocational/specialized), revealing that the recently-introduced GCSEs in vocational subjects and “Diplomas” are positioned between the two extreme qualifications, the GCSEs in traditional subjects and BETC/NVQ.

  Chapter 2 explains the methodology of the case study, the outline of the research, the research framework, and the characteristics of main cases. As for the methodology of the case study, the method of Yin, R. K. was adopted, and the Grounded Theory approach was used to collect and analyze data. In addition, academic achievement and regional characteristics were considered when collecting and analyzing data and a hypothesis was set from each perspective. The outline of the investigations is as follows: the author traveled to England three times (for a total of 3 weeks) between December, 2008 and March, 2009 to conduct research at 14 state secondary schools in London, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Leicester, Nottingham, Oxford, and East Sussex, while focusing on the key stage 4 (14 to 16 years old). (View PDF for the rest of the abstract.)