GRIT – the skills for success and how they are grown

I give you some tasty morsels from this very good and very well researched booklet, written by Yvonne Roberts for the Young Foundation.

“… the roots of such experimentation [now happening in schools, apprenticeships and further education] should be planted firmly in social and emotional learning, an understanding of the importance of resilience, self-discipline and grit as well as respect for the power of practical and vocational education, even for those judged academically bright.” (Introduction to GRIT)

While the popularity of practical learning has risen sharply from 35% in 1998 to 56% in 2008, many students see education as a passive ‘hands off’ even. Asked what they do most often in school, 65% of 11-16 year-olds say ‘copy from a board or a book’ (56% in 2000); 63% say ‘listen to a teacher talking for a long time’ (33% in 2007). Campaign for Learning

“We know that the ‘one size fits all’ industrialised model of education has to go. That model wasn’t built around the best way children can learn, but the best way to organise learning.” (Prof Stephen Heppell)

Around 40% of American school children have a fixed ‘mind set’. They believe they are bright or stupid or somewhere in between, and this ranking is fixed. This mind-set can paralyse potential. Those who believe they are dumb see no point in trying – while those who are deemed clever avoid stretching themselves for fear of failing.” (Prof Carol Dweck)

It is now 30 years since Pierre Bourdieu’s classic work showing why expanding education would be unlikely to increase social mobility. He argued that qualifications would act more as markers than as genuine signs of merit.

The UK Commission for Employment and Skills says in its first report (2009) that what is missing in pupils is ‘experiential action-learning’, ‘using skills rather than simply acquiring knowledge’.

The first headmaster of Stowe school, J F Roxburgh, declared that his goal was to turn out young men who would be “acceptable at a dance and invaluable in a shipwreck”.

Education has to be done with young people, not to them - how to make staying on a carrot not a stick

I’ve already talked about this week’s cross-party report on the professions and social mobility. There was another important report this week on raising the participation age to 18, by the Youth Commission; a project established by Barry Sheerman MP, chair of the Select Committee for Children, Schools and Families with the Edge Learner Forum.

The report is based on responses from over 4,000 young people to questionnaires, an on-line survey and workshops designed and run by young people themselves. They found:

• 58% are in favour of staying until 18, with 31% against
  
• 70% of bad experiences happen within the classroom, 64% of the best happen outside
  
• 78% feel there is too much pressure from exams, and 41% believe the best way of showing what they are good at is through a mixture of exams, coursework, practical work and performances
  
• changes they want to see are about how and what they learn; 48% say they learn best practically
  
• 44% do not feel they receive good advice on work options

The young people conclude with six solutions. I urge you to read them and consider which you think are better: the Youth Commission’s six or Milburn’s 80 recommendations? Seriously, check it out! You need look no further for proof of the importance of greater engagement of young people in their own learning. To misquote their sixth solution: education has to be done with young people, not to them.

Unleashing Aspiration

The big news this week has been the cross-party report on Unleashing Aspiration, chaired by Alan Milburn. A proper review of the professions is long over-due - and very important. It really is an area that governments completely ignore, even though huge numbers of people carry out highly effective professional development and training, which is very often self-financing and self-regulated. Endless reviews of FE and HE do not even consider the professions – simply because government do not control them.

The professional model is so successful because entry is controlled and a strong link is maintained between achievement of a professional qualification and occupational success/financial reward. What we have, in fact, are ‘vocational qualifications’ that are high quality and aspirational - and more highly sought-after by parents and young people than academic degrees. This is a stark contrast to many lower level vocational qualifications!

The down side of the professional model is that there is a tendency for professions to become elitist, in the sense of barriers being erected that hinder access through merit. So, the challenge is not only how to ensure such barriers are not erected (on which the report has some good recommendations), but also how the model can be employed more extensively as more jobs and roles become ‘professionalised’. Professional control is, in essence, the same as imposing a licence to operate. Sadly the report does not consider this aspect.

The general thrust of the report about the critical importance of social mobility for our future well-being and the fact that it is decreasing is right. And so are the comments about widening the talent pool and changing attitudes; indeed many recommendations are very closely aligned to Edge’s own manifesto Six Steps to Change. However it is a shame that there are more than 80 recommendations, many of which are unclear and seem to be just vague ideas. If implemented effectively the following four (which are combinations of recommendations from the report) would make a fundamental difference:

• Overhaul work experience, introduce more work tasters and enable more extra-curricular activity – this will ‘unleash aspiration’ and provide more effective and explicit development of the core ‘softer’ skills now required for success in life and work
• Improve careers advice – including on-line mentoring and introducing new forms of profiling records of achievement (there should also be annual reviews between students, teachers and parents)
• Stronger vocational routes into HE (including the importance of gaining HE qualifications at work, which the report omits) and integration of practical professional experience into all higher education courses
• New vocational routes into the professions

Dangerously, despite its strong assertions about widening the talent pool, the report sometimes drifts into an unquestioning acceptance of the out-dated approach that the answer lies in encouraging, cajoling and bribing more young people through the same, limited, ‘academic’ channel. This model can never bring about a ‘wider pool of talent’, change attitudes about inherited intelligence or bring about fair access. As the report makes very clear, there are many talents – and thus there need to be many paths to success. QED.

A different type of snobbery

This is a story told to me by a former HR Director of a major retail company. It crystallizes the problem at the heart of our education system:

A new senior executive working for a major retail company decided to visit a range of stores to get to know the business better. When she got to one of the very biggest stores outside Glasgow, she discovered a young man of only 27 years of age who was responsible for the large, multi-million pound branch. This young man told her that he had left school and joined the business as a shelf-stacker and van driver, then worked his way up. He'd been hugely successful, learning sales skills and winning Store Manager of the Year which enabled him to take his then fiancée to Las Vegas for a dream holiday.

But that, he said, hadn't been the achievement that meant most to him. He produced a photograph from his wallet and showed it to the visitor. The picture showed him against a cloistered square at an Oxford college where he had attended a short course. The young man said that he kept this photograph with him because it had made his mother so proud that her son had been to an Oxford University college.

What does it say about the perceived value of practical achievement that his mother shows more pride in her son’s brief brush with academic life than in his extraordinary practical achievement in the workplace? And what do we infer from the fact that her reaction is so familiar to us - and so evocative of British culture? Of course it’s not news to anyone that Britain finds it challenging to perceive practical routes to success in the same light as academic ones; it’s ingrained in our social attitudes. In one generation we have replaced social snobbery with academic snobbery.

Many talents, many paths - I've seen the future...and it's in Ashfield!

Wednesday was Talent Matters, a day-long workshop for young people as part of Shine Week. It was a terrific day. The morning in particular was inspirational, with Darren Campbell, Levi Roots, Cath Kidston and Mark Miodownik (a materials scientist) talking about their talents and career paths. The message came over loud and clear; discover your passion, listen to other people, stick to your beliefs, have faith and use your failures to drive you on. It was great stuff and hopefully there are now 150 young people who will take the talent message out through their networks.

As ever, I was so proud of the Edge Learner Forum members who had helped organise the day and are leading the follow-through. They had even set up a small TV recording studio and soon there will be a new programme on LFTV - watch out for a special Levi Roots jingle!

Yesterday I had the opportunity to give the opening talk at the first conference run by Specialist Schools and Academies Trust (SSAT) for all the schools that have applied learning as a specialism, of which I am told there are some 200. The atmosphere was almost pioneering and there were some great examples of practical and vocational learning. One of these is definitely Ashfield School in Nottinghamshire, which I had the pleasure of touring. The school has a fabulous skills centre with high quality facilities in a wide range of areas, including: textile and fashion, construction, hair and beauty, joinery, childcare and catering.

Most of these areas were actually run by businesses such as RAC for motor mechanics and Cisco for ICT. Students know they are learning about the latest practice in the real world from teachers who are experts in their occupation, working alongside apprentices and other company staff. Selected not on academic ability but on commitment and enthusiasm, they have to abide by the ‘work rules’ of that environment, to the extent that the company could ‘fire’ them if they did not pull their weight. Every child in the school takes part in some vocational learning. They and their parents know that the experience and learning will help them develop key skills and give them an advantage when it came to getting a job.

It is early days, but apparently the students and their parents are very supportive – if anything the problem is parents with highly able children wanting them to do more than one vocational option as well as a full range of academic subjects, which could not be done! This is an example of everything that Edge advocates in our Six Steps to Change Manifesto - and it is the future. What a tragedy that so much money has been spent on building tomorrow’s schools in line with yesterday’s education – and now we are running out of cash.

Janet Street-Porter gets 'Edgy'

I was pleased to see Janet Street-Porter’s comment in this week’s Independent on Sunday; ‘Graduates leave with more debt than knowledge’. She observes that may graduates would benefit from having acquired more of the non-academic skills needed for a working environment:

“There comes a point when more qualifications aren't necessarily going to get you a better job. What employers are looking for is adaptability, positivity, and an ability to fit in. There's no point in getting a degree in graphics, computer science or animation if you can't communicate your ideas. It might seem petty, but that's the reality in the world of work.”

I believe it is through ‘learning by doing’ that young people can acquire the type of adaptability mentioned, along with a whole host of other skills that make someone highly employable. The current education system is failing many students by not providing these opportunities. Practical and vocational learning must be incorporated into the curriculum at a much earlier stage to ensure young people (whether they are leaving university or school) are enter the working world with the skills they require.

Having these important messages reiterated by high-profile voices is a valuable boost to the Edge revolution Thanks Janet!

And another White Paper....

I am not sure there are many people left with the energy even to read the latest White Paper on education. To quote various people who have spoken to me this week:

“A hotchpotch of ideas and initiatives many of which are already in operation and some have simply been re-presented or at least reheated.”

“A solicitor’s charter.”

“It reminds me of the dying days of the Major Government. If you have nothing new to say, say it at great length, and trumpet entitlements and guarantees which actually amount to very little.”

And of course the White Paper is virtually silent on Edge related issues – virtually nothing on more practical learning, people’s different talents and abilities, and the critical importance of ensuring many paths to success. There is a passing reference to the National Council for Educational Excellence recommendations on employer engagement; there is a reiteration of established policy on post-14 options (GCSE/A levels; Diplomas; Apprenticeships; foundation learning tier); and there's some fluffy words about teachers responding to the needs, styles and aspirations of their pupils, and having greater freedom and flexibility in relation to the national curriculum. All very disappointing.

This may seem all rather negative – and it certainly is for me. But I have little sympathy left. There has never been a coherent vision or strategy for education in recent years. There is a case to be made for a need for strong targets and central prescription at the outset of a concerted programme to improve standards - because standards did need to be improved. You could then argue there comes a time when responsibility has to be handed back to the professionals and to the consumers/customers. But as far as I can see no one in government has even been bothered to put forward this rationale!