A Basis for Skills Coherence and Quality or Relevance and Flexibility in Vocational Qualifications? Part of an LSDA Collection.

In response to an initial soundings paper issued by the United Kingdom's Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, the Learning and Skills Development Agency (LSDA) presented its views on ways of enhancing the United Kingdom's existing vocational qualifications system. Selected points of the position that LSDA presented are as follows: (1) the time has come for radical rethinking of the system for designing and regulating vocational qualifications; (2) the terminology associated with qualifications and awards must be clarified; (3) local authoring and local generation of qualifications within a nationally agreed upon framework for quality assurance is needed; (4) the vocational qualification system should aim to secure qualifications that would be fit for purpose, demonstrate vocational learning and skills, have credibility with users, support development of an educated and skilled workforce, and (when appropriate) provide licenses to practice; (5) a wide range of parties must have opportunities to participate in securing a relevant and comprehensive system of vocational qualifications; (6) suitable learning opportunities for 14- to 19-year-olds are needed; (7) for many adults in the workplace, units will be more accessible than whole qualifications; (8) regulating more devolved systems of quality assurance to allow local flexibility and responsiveness should be a key focus; and (9) the funding system should support development of a credit framework. (Contains 16 endnotes. An introduction to the series is appended.) (MN)