Vocational courses 'need education and training'

Vocational courses need to be a mixture of education and training, it has been suggested.

This will "enable students to respond and adapt and utilise their learning in a very broad range of employment contexts", according to Jane Artess, director of research for the Higher Education Careers Service Unit (HECSU).

This week, the secretary of state for education, Michael Gove, announced that there would be an independent review conducted into vocational education for 14 to 19-year-olds.

The idea of the review is to consider the ways in which job training and less academic education supports full and valuable participation and progression.

Ms Artess warned that the introduction of vocational courses may not be an immediate realistic prospect in the current climate.

"It is tempting to see vocational courses as a ready solution but given the length of time it takes to set up and complete a vocational course, especially at the higher level, where this could be four or five years, and the sort of labour market changes that can take place during that time – it is unlikely to be in the interests of individuals or companies to focus solely on vocational approaches," she said.

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