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10/03/10

tpm attend QCDA 'Functional Skills Launch' at Westminster

tpm Director Paula Hayes, joined leading figures from business and education in Westminster on March 9th, as the Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency (QCDA) launched Functional Skills; a new qualification aimed at providing young people with essential life skills that will help them succeed in further education or employment.

tpm has participated in the Functional Skills Pilot since September 2007, and staff and learners recently participated in a DVD Case study commissioned by QCDA. Functional Skills provides students with practical skills for the workplace and higher education. Tasks such as writing a successful job application and communicating effectively with customers and employers are included, giving pupils practical experience of everyday situations to help them become independent and successful adults.

Speaking about our participation in the Functional Skills Pilot and the impact of Functional Skills in work-based learning, Paula Hayes stated that ‘’Functional Skills will represent a more rigorous assessment of learner’s on-the-job skills development and consequently raise employer’s skills profiles.’’

Iain Wright, minister for 14-19 Education, said: "Skills that were once only needed in highly specified professions are now basic requirements. It’s no longer simply quantum physicists and accountants who need maths skills; it’s now car mechanics, TV camera operators and football coaches. Tools that were once only in the minds of scientists are now in the hands of all professionals. Computers are all around us – affecting everything we do from the way that we manufacture goods, to the way we cook dinner or listen to music."

Sylvia McNamara, QCDA Executive Director said: "We have had an excellent response from all involved in the pilot process. The qualification has been designed with the involvement and backing of employers. They are now part of every Diploma qualification, every foundation learning programme, every apprenticeship and will be part of the new GCSEs from September. Underpinning all of this is the inclusion of functional skills within the new secondary curriculum, from 11 to 16."

Functional skills will be introduced this September. To find out more, visit the functional skills section of the QCDA website: www.qcda.gov.uk/functionalskills

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