Blogs

  • Two students studying together in classroom

    Flexible learning – how far can higher education bend?

    In UK higher education post-pandemic, we see a tension emerging between the government’s  push for universities to get students back on campus and the fact that many students liked and benefited from online learning over the past two years. While there are many advantages of a campus-based programme – a key one being the sense of belonging – a flexible approach to programmes can allow institutions to reach more students in varied locations and circumstances.

    The shift to online during the pandemic was, for the most part, a quick fix and not necessarily designed around learner needs. Last month, an expert panel joined our HE Innovate community webinar to share best practice and advice about flexible learning. Here are some of the nuggets of wisdom they shared:

  • Our new report: Onscreen assessment can open the door to so much more for learners, teachers and our sector

    The global pandemic accelerated innovation in many areas of education – and increased further the ambition for the use of technology in high stakes teaching assessment in our schools.   

    At Pearson, as we continue to develop the technology and capabilities for onscreen assessment, we’ve also taken the opportunity to explore some of the big questions ahead for the sector: how do we facilitate change? What are the big opportunities? And what are the barriers?

    Today we publish a new Pearson report: ‘Spotlight on Onscreen Assessment’ that forms part of our wider education policy series on assessment. 

  • Supporting Teachers and Educators in Black History Month

    October 2021 marks the UK’s 34th annual Black History Month – which, this year, is based on the theme of ‘Proud to Be.’ 

    Suha Yassin, Pearson’s Lead for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, offers ideas for educators to get fully involved in events, and better integrate learning about Black History into school life this October, and throughout the whole school year.

  • Pearson BTEC and Early Education partner up to deliver additional benefits to your learners

    We're pleased to announce that we're relaunching our ongoing partnership with Early Education. 

    Early Education are a national charity campaigning for quality education for the youngest children. They support early years practitioners with training, resources and professional networks.

    This exciting development introduces more exclusive benefits to Pearson centres, including discounted membership and free CPD sessions.

  • Embracing accessible learning for SEN pupils - A ‘Q and A’ for educators

    This week, Global Accessibility Awareness Day will strike an especially deep chord for many involved in SEN education. During months of challenges induced by the pandemic, many SEN learners across the country were confronted with extra layers of accessibility issues, facing disruption to the stable, supported and often specialist environment offered to them. In our work with schools, SEN educators and families, we’ve been inspired by the dedication to ‘surviving’ this period and finding new ways for learning to ‘thrive’. 

  • Post-16 education reform - what the regions are saying

    Post-16 education in England is at a crossroads. The recently published Skills for Jobs White Paper set out the proposed reforms to post-16 technical education and training. A lot of this work is already underway within Government, and we anticipate further measures to be introduced as part of the programme announced in this week’s Queen’s Speech.

  • The Office for Students’ new proposals offer an opportunity to improve access to further education for all, let’s not miss it

    The Office for Students’ (OfS) decision to launch a consultation on proposals to raise the bar on quality and standards in higher education is good news. According to the OfS, in 2018-19 around 3% of students were on courses that did not meet its standards across all subjects, cohorts and year groups. This clearly must be addressed.

    While we welcome the proposed definitions of quality and standards, further careful consideration of these definitions is needed. For example, is progression to a managerial or professional level job the fairest way to measure the quality of a course? Student progression to such roles is affected by so many factors and we fear that such a metric may unintentionally reduce access to certain courses.

    Assessing the success of a course by progression to managerial and professional jobs will limit access to higher education, unless the definition of a “professional job” is made clearer. For example, someone graduating from a prestigious performing arts course would not take the same route into employment as an economics graduate, who has a clear route to a graduate scheme, but may be no less successful in their chosen field. That individual’s employment could be part-time, precarious, or reliant on voluntary work until more permanent employment is gained. At a time when we should be broadening the reach of higher education by making it accessible to everyone, this proposal could restrict it.

    We are also concerned by the OfS’ assumption that the average student has a defined path of three to four years study. We know that this is increasingly not the case as students look to tailor their studies around their lives, rather than the other way around. These assumptions would be particularly damaging to the carer who is working the degree around their other responsibilities or the parent retraining while raising a family. Such a definition would be at odds with recent government moves to encourage more of us to become lifelong learners, as set out in the Skills of Jobs White Paper.

    The OfS’ ambition to tackle low-quality courses is the right one, but if they are to improve quality and standards, they must keep in mind that not everyone approaches higher education in the same way. While well-meaning, ill-thought through changes have the potential to close the door on an opportunity to truly make education accessible to all.

    By Gary Gates, SVP Higher Education