Connectivity and responsiveness to vocational higher education to promote workforce development

Abstract

This paper sets out to explore the case for higher education engagement with workforce development with reference to media studies in the light of recent government policy initiatives including the trilogy of White Papers, 14–19 Years, The Skills Strategy, and The Future of Higher Education. It focuses on the problems and potential solutions to establishing an accredited work-based learning route supported by further and higher education as a major contribution to the knowledge economy. It is inevitable in any analysis of higher education and workforce development that consideration has to be given the nature of the qualification framework and the current schizophrenia between the national qualification framework led by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority and the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education framework. Until this unconnected and disjointed approach to a national qualification framework is resolved it will not be possible to establish coherent credit accumulation and transfer schemes all encouraging extensive use of accreditation of prior learning and experience in the workplace. Higher education, particularly subject disciplines with a direct interest in occupational sectors such as media have no choice but to engage in workforce development. However, this highlights the difficulties of providing a relevant education with the demands of employers often articulated through sector skills councils such as Skillset. The University Vocational Awards Council which is a consortium of 74 higher education institutions and the largest of the further education colleges devoted to higher level vocational education and training, sets out the general arguments for engagement with workforce development, sketches a way forward and indicates a potential role for the Association of Media Practitioners in Education.