Abstract
The distinction between external assessment and internal assessment underpins a major reform to vocational qualifications underway in England. To be approved by the Department for Education, vocational qualifications must now include a minimum proportion of external assessment, regardless of subject. This paper discusses the nature and implications of this constraint on qualification design. First, it clarifies the meaning of external assessment and the key arguments underpinning the reform. Second, it evaluates the use and implementation of this blanket rule. The final section discusses the nature of internal assessment in more detail, highlighting its heterogeneity and potential advantages over external assessment.
Highlights
The education system in England is currently undergoing major reform by the Department for Education (DfE), affecting both vocational and academic qualifications
This paper provides a commentary on the DfE’s decision regarding external assessment in vocational qualifications taken by 14- to 19-year-olds, with a focus on school-based Key Stage 4 provision
The DfE has specified that all vocational qualifications in England must include a minimum amount of external assessment in order to gain government recognition in performance tables
Summary
Vocational qualifications, the object of the external assessment rule, remain by nature a heterogeneous set of qualifications (for example, in terms of subject area and specific occupational content), despite recent reforms reducing their number. External assessment has wider scope than, for example, the requirement of exam assessment that has affected GCSE reform, because it does not specify the type of task that a student needs to do.
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Published Version
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