Are T Levels Struggling?

What exactly are T Levels for?
In October 2007 at the CBI , flanked by Richard Lambert of the CBI, Mike Tomlinson ,the former head of Ofsted and Steve Smith VC of Exeter University, Ed Balls, the then Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, pronounced , with much brio ,that the” Diploma range could become the qualification of choice over the next decade.”
He intoned “If Diplomas are successfully introduced and are delivering the mix that employers and universities value, they could become the qualification of choice for young people. But, because GCSEs and A-Levels are long-established and valued qualifications, that should not be decided by any pre-emptive Government decision, but by the demands of young people, schools and colleges.”
It turned out to be a big ‘ if’. The demand simply wasn’t there. Designed by a committee of ‘experts’, they were neither academic nor technical qualifications, but a hybrid instead . It was a qualification, moreover ,that no employer had ever asked for. Nobody ever said that ‘the one thing we really need now is a qualification that is neither academic, nor technical but somewhere in between? Yet that is what the Diploma was. With the demand not there, aswell as being expensive to deliver, Diplomas quickly disappeared from the qualifications landscape. The fear now must be that T Levels may well go the same way, unless some radical action is taken.
The government wants level 3 BTECs, which are taken by around a quarter of a million students each year, to be largely replaced by T Levels. So that we have a binary system either A levels or T Levels.
In late 2021, ministers asked universities “to accept T Levels for entry to, at a minimum, all courses of study for which you currently accept other technical qualifications”.
But as FE Week revealed last week, not all universities have responded positively to this .Indeed, less than half of all UK universities so far have confirmed they will accept T Levels for entry this year, with most Russell Group universities opting out. The most obvious reason why universities are not opting in, at the moment ,is fear of the unknown. T Levels are untested. It takes time for any qualification to bed in and demonstrate its relevance, and robustness. Universities will be concerned that the T Levels on offer may not adequately prepare students for their courses. As things stand students with BTEC qualifications are more likely to drop out of courses than those with other’ academic’ qualifications. The fear must be that the T Level students carry the same, if not greater, risk for universities. The Office for Students, which is taking a more robust stance on drop- outs and value for money in HE courses, will be all over any university like a bad rash, that is seen to be failing in these areas. So, universities are being entirely rational in showing some caution.
Mary Curnock Cook argued, last week in FE Week, that three things need to happen. First, they should make things much clearer to T Level students – many of whom might have expected a wealth of HE course opportunities on the back of the fanfare about UCAS points being awarded. Second, if universities have doubts about the suitability of T Levels, they should engage with the DfE to ensure that future waves of T Level development take those concerns into account. And finally , all of this would be easier for universities, she says , if the government were clearer about exactly what and whom T Levels are for. A qualification highly specified against occupational standards and clearly tilted towards specific job roles might never do well in supporting pathways to higher education.
Curnock Cook added that ‘Positioning T Levels as all things to all pathways is unfair to students when the choices they make at 16 are so critical to their future working lives’
HEPIs Nick Hillman suggests that Ministers should now discuss with universities whether there are enough resources to ensure applicants with T Levels will thrive on degree courses. In return, universities should, wherever possible, give the benefit of the doubt to those applicants who are , what he terms, ‘T Level guinea pigs’ .( I think we should also remember, at his juncture and with some sympathy, the Diploma Guinea Pigs! )Young People are adversely affected by these policy errors and there is also much waste of taxpayers money. (although one wonders given how much money is being written off by the Treasury in the wake of the Covid 19 Furlough scheme whether getting value for money for us taxpayers is a government priority anymore)
Hillman also shares others concerns over government attempts to create a simple binary qualifications scheme in the complex interconnected landscape that has evolved over the years, ie either A Levels or T Levels. It is premature, he argues (FE Week 25 Jan), to start shutting down the proven BTEC route. In this many would agree.
The Times Education Commission has just issued some interim findings of its Inquiry, (its full report is out this summer) which provides a depressing picture of the inadequacies of our education system and how it is failing both our children, and employers. On the vocational side it says that ‘ Despite government promises to boost technical education, there has been a 36 per cent drop in apprenticeship starts over the past five years. The new vocational T-levels are proving problematic in areas where it is hard for students to get the work placements that are required and many universities are not accepting the untested qualification.’
What is clear is that there are a number of issues that need to be addressed, short term, that require action and collaboration between the government, HE providers, FE Colleges ,trainers , UCAS and the Regulator too , if these teething problems are to be sorted out . At the moment the drop in Apprenticeships available , the drive to end BTECs , and the problems with T- levels and universities, paint a picture of some chaos in our technical and vocational education landscape , presenting a massive challenge for the new education secretary. It is far too important for this particular Can to be kicked down the road, yet again.