Qualifications are changing Policy update

Ongoing policy work Specifications, guidance and support Progression, hierarchies and recognition Skills for learning, life and work Assessment Quality Assurance arrangements Appeals

Specifications, guidance and support New ways of specifying requirements – shorter, more open, less prescriptive: Course Specification: outlines Course structure and what is required to pass the Course Unit Specification: outcomes and assessment standards Course and Unit Assessment Specifications: mandatory assessment requirements

Specifications, guidance and support (continued) More guidance and support, for example: Course and Unit Support Notes: guidance on delivering Courses and the Units, approaches to learning and teaching Exemplification: approaches to Course and Unit assessment

Progression, hierarchies and fallback Key messages from engagement: Maximise curricular continuity between levels Ensure consistent steps between levels Use hierarchical structures where-ever possible, as appropriate to subject and level Facilitated by skills-based outcomes Credit for positive achievement

Skills Greater focus on skills development Skills for learning, life and work: –Literacy –Numeracy –Skills for health and well-being –Employability, enterprise and citizenship –Thinking skills

Assessment Course assessment: added value – breadth, challenge and application methods defined Unit assessment: broader outcome statements and assessment standards more open, flexible evidence requirements flexibility for practitioners to make decisions about assessment methods