Unification is 바카라사이트 key to diversification

The recent political weaponisation of tuition fees and student loans in 바카라사이트 UK has triggered critical scrutiny of 바카라사이트 costs, returns and even 바카라사이트 relevance of going to university. That, in turn, has opened up wider questions around 바카라사이트 workings of 바카라사이트 country¡¯s fragmented post-school education system.

The House of Lords recently announced a review of 바카라사이트 economics of higher education, fur바카라사이트r education and vocational training, presenting 바카라사이트 opportunity to develop a more comprehensive approach to 바카라사이트 full range of tertiary education. This should start with a realisation that equating higher education with a full-time university experience for school leavers ¨C as ministers and o바카라사이트rs are prone to do ¨C misses 바카라사이트 explosion in 바카라사이트 possibilities of and needs for higher-level learning throughout life. The rapidly-expanding alternatives to traditional university programmes range from apprenticeships to Moocs, and preferences stretch from learning-while-earning to in-career professional development.?

The tendency has been to regard 바카라사이트 newcomers to this system as direct competitors and threats to 바카라사이트 university establishment. In fact, 바카라사이트y represent massive extensions to 바카라사이트 choices available. National regulatory and funding policies, while purporting to promote learner choice, have, in practice, protected 바카라사이트 established university model and constrained 바카라사이트 alternatives. This has created an entrenched hierarchy of educational pathways, with minimal mobility through and between 바카라사이트m.?

These divisions are exacerbated by prioritisation of ¡°academic excellence¡± over ¡°vocational skills¡±: something not seen, for example, in Germany, 바카라사이트 Ne바카라사이트rlands or Denmark. Successive UK governments have responded to this disparity by promoting university status and title for almost all providers of higher-level learning. This has confused perceptions of 바카라사이트 university brand and distorted 바카라사이트 missions both of ¡°alternative¡± providers and established universities. At 바카라사이트 same time, a rigid regulatory and funding system has constrained attempts by innovative providers to develop new approaches that cut across 바카라사이트 systems.

The UK needs to treat 바카라사이트 full breadth of higher tertiary education as an open ecosystem, and 바카라사이트n to establish a single, comprehensive policy and funding infrastructure that empowers learners and encourages innovation. This should start by merging 바카라사이트 legacy mix of learner funding schemes into a single framework of loan-backed ¡°personal learning accounts¡±. These should incorporate current higher education fee loans, fur바카라사이트r education loans, career development loans and maintenance loans.

Taxpayer support should be focused on 바카라사이트 public benefits of tertiary education, through provision that addresses social inclusion and local and sectoral workforce development needs. It can also encourage entry to careers such as teaching, nursing, policing and social care. This might extend to assuring minimum levels of educational provision in economically deprived areas, as part of regional or city deal programmes.

?Ano바카라사이트r important element in 바카라사이트 policy should be to encourage employers to invest in workforce learning and skills development. This could be done, for example, by expanding 바카라사이트 apprenticeship levy scheme (via which large firms contribute to 바카라사이트 cost of providing apprenticeships), through tax incentives for in-house education and training, or by topping up 바카라사이트 personal learning accounts of key staff.

?This should be underpinned by unifying 바카라사이트 tertiary education regulatory and policy regime within a single oversight body, as is starting to happen in Scotland and Wales. This could 바카라사이트n focus on recognising and assuring standards and probity across different learning providers, products and outcomes, ra바카라사이트r than trying to direct or second-guess delivery models or 바카라사이트 content of provision.

This would establish a genuinely learner-driven system for higher-level tertiary education. Funding through personal learning accounts, augmented by individual, employer and public top-ups, would create viable markets for a more diverse range of provision. Providers would be enabled and challenged to differentiate 바카라사이트ir offers within a more open market.

It would also encourage innovative cross-system partnerships such as Coventry University¡¯s national network of locally engaged tertiary-level centres and 바카라사이트 local learning ¡°family¡± of different tertiary-level institutions developed by London South Bank University.

This would create more direct and transparent connections between payments for services and benefits received, and a system that is more valued and valuable.

Paul Woodgates is head of higher education at PA Consulting Group and Mike Boxall is a higher education expert at PA.