AEIAG0080

Written evidence submitted by The Open University

 

  1. The Open University (OU) welcomes this opportunity to contribute to the Education Select Committee Inquiry on Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance (CEIAG). We have responded to select questions based on our expertise as a provider of part-time higher education via distance learning, which includes a dedicated and extensive careers information and advice service.

Summary

-          Careers education should be woven more into the curriculum across levels, to ensure learners of all ages and backgrounds are properly prepared for work.

-          Additional resources should be provided for schools and colleges to develop local partnerships (with businesses and universities) and volunteering opportunities, which will help students understand how they might use their skills.

-          More training should be provided for teachers on employability to enable them to help students navigate a complex landscape.

-          The Baker Clause needs to be more effectively enforced, with the widest range of post-16 options being presented to students.

-          Careers support should be proactively offered to individuals for up to three years after they leave formal education, and should be delivered via accessible formats.

-          To deliver on the CEIAG proposals in the Skills for Jobs White Paper, the approach must: showcase all options and pathways for learners; be relevant to learners of all ages and from all backgrounds; and be embedded into capacity building and community development models.

-          CEIAG needs to be futureproofed to support wider government initiatives that seek to encourage and incentivise lifelong learning for instance the Lifelong Loan Entitlement.   

How careers and skills guidance could be better embedded in the curriculum across primary, secondary, further, higher, and adult education, to ensure all learners are properly prepared for the world of work 

  1. Guidance on skills and behaviours, along with careers education more broadly, should be woven more into the curriculum at all levels and for all ages. There should be greater focus on including real life examples and activities in the curriculum where students might use new knowledge and skills to help understand their application in the real world. The starting place for each student will colour their perspective on the world around them and the possibilities open to them, so it is important that education helps them to see a wide range of opportunities and to recognise that the world of work is changing at an accelerating speed.  For instance, the Open University has developed an Employability Framework, with all qualifications in the process of being mapped against it to ensure that there are a range of opportunities to develop skills and behaviours that are valued by employers. 
  2. Informed decision making should also be built into the curriculum. Young people are not used to making their own decisions, especially given the ever-present influence of social media in their lives which adds to peer and family pressure. Including decision making and reflection as an explicit part of their learning will support their ability to choose a path that is right for them.  Offering a flexible and modular mode of study, as we do, helps facilitate this. The OU’s careers & employability service is available to students for the entirety of their study (and three years beyond), but our modular model of operating gives our students marked points for reflection, and to assess what they should study next. These points for reflection should be embedded in the learning programme, using responses to the reflective activities the student has completed. This builds a coherent and integrated CEIAG model contextualised to the student’s world and subjects. Should students wish to specialise in their future careers, when they come to look at new modules, our careers service can help advise on what might be relevant and support them to achieve their goals. All our modules set out what skills and knowledge students can expect to gain, and this helps inform their decision making. Seventy percent of OU students are already in work, but many still use our careers service to help them to change and develop their careers, hone their skills portfolio, develop their networks through employer event and mentoring, apply for an internship (face to face and virtual), and improve their employability throughout the duration of their course and three years beyond. The success of this is clear as 45% of OU alumni agree that their study has enabled them to progress more quickly to their chosen career.
  3. Partnerships with local businesses and universities will further illustrate to students how they might use their skills and therefore need to be encouraged. For example, following Michelin’s announcement of its intended closure of its Dundee factory in 2020, the OU worked with the factory, unions, and other partners in the city to develop a skills employability package for Michelin’s workforce and their families.  This helped accelerate alternative employment opportunities and strengthen the employment potential of family units. The programme not only helped individuals upskill and reskill but, by linking with local employers to build in careers advice, ensured that the recommended courses met local demand. Over the programme, the workforce gradually reduced with staff finding new employment in Dundee and surrounding areas. Volunteering opportunities can also help to develop confidence and skills, and assist in building a greater community culture in society. Where unemployment may be high in low socio-economic areas, volunteering can also introduce young people to work. Resource is, therefore, needed to support the development of opportunities for young people - it cannot be an afterthought or ‘nice to have’ in more affluent schools.  The Careers and Employability Service at the OU, for example, has developed relationships with several leading charities - such as Citizen’s Advice Bureau, the Wildlife Trust, and The National Trust - to offer opportunities specifically to OU students. This recognises that - where students want to develop or change their careers – volunteering can prove a valuable addition to their education. It helps develop employability in terms of understanding about a new sector, develops confidence, and increases the motivation to continue studying.
  4. More training should be provided for teachers on employability; such as the process and practice of reflection, stages of career readiness, barriers to employment and social mobility; and the related languages of skills, goal-setting behaviours, and capabilities. At the OU, for example, our fantastic body of Associate Lecturers (Als) – almost 4,500 in total - provide personalised teaching to students.[1] Many of our ALs either have previous experience- or still are- working in the field in which they teach, and the support they provide can go beyond the curriculum. They bring a wealth of workplace expertise that they can directly impart to their students. Many provide advice based on their own experience and – during tutorials - will impart their knowledge of behaviours and capabilities, which can be hugely important in some industries. This knowledge compliments the professional support available for students and alumni from our dedicated Careers and Employability Service.  There is also a CPD module available to ALs on employability which they work through as part of their induction.
  5. Careers support should, rightly, be targeted at the most disadvantaged, but in as broad a manner as possible, so as not to exclude those who may feel it is not directly focused on them. For example, those who have a disability, caring responsibility, are care experienced, from particular ethnic minority cultures, or are from lower socio-economic backgrounds may not be accessing careers support because they believe it is for those in receipt of benefits which they are not. At the OU, to address this kind of issue, we embed diversity and inclusion language in our inclusive marketing approach. This has assisted in increasing the number of disadvantaged students accessing our careers support; of students engaging with our careers and employability service, 49% identify with characteristics associated with underrepresentation and disadvantage.

How schools could be supported to better fulfil their duties to provide careers advice and inform students of technical, as well as academic, pathways.

How the Baker Clause could be more effectively enforced

  1. The Baker Clause needs to be more effectively enforced.  It is essential that the widest range of post-16 study options are presented so as to support alternative pathways, thereby readdressing the balance away from the dominance of the traditional full-time campus university model.  More needs to be done to showcase alternative routes, such as apprenticeships, technical qualifications, or even part-time and distance higher education.  The latter is of growing interest to school leavers.  For instance, at the OU 10% of new undergraduate students were aged 18 to 21[2].
  2. More and deliberate marketing activity is needed to address outdated and incorrect perceptions of what apprenticeships are, and that the most valuable mode of study is always full-time, campus-based, and academic. Otherwise degree apprenticeships will struggle to reach the most disadvantaged.  For example, more work needs to be done on the National Careers Service website to ensure this information on alternative education routes is presented effectively, is up to date, and accurately reflects all providers.
  3. Ofsted inspection criteria should be expanded to assess whether a provider’s careers education offer includes a broad range of pathways.  Recognition should also be given to those that support their learners through diverse routes. 

How can the Government ensure more young people have access to a professional and independent careers advisor and increase the take-up of the Lifetime Skills initiative. 

  1. Those not continuing with education at either 16 or 18 should be entitled to annual careers support for three subsequent years. From our experience providing teaching to a cohort where a large proportion have been out of education for some time, we find many lack the knowledge and confidence to navigate not only the careers landscape, but the education landscape more broadly, and are unlikely to know the best option for what they want to achieve. For example, 37% of potential OU students strongly agree that they need help deciding which subject or course is right for them.[3] This insight confirms that, whilst many potential students are clear that study is the correct route, a significant number need help and advice to identify the most suitable course.
  2. Furthermore, the most disadvantaged can lack the ambition or belief to even identity with careers support, thinking that it’s ‘not for the likes of me.’ Therefore embedding it as an active part of school learning is what genuinely widens and impacts on opportunity.
  3. Support needs to be delivered via the most accessible formats, with the greater use of relevant technologies as one way in which to address this. For instance, the OU’s Careers and Employability Service is digitising its services to ensure that we understand a student’s career planning needs, and can guide them through resources and tools to support those needs in their preferred medium and in a timely way.

Whether the proposals for CEIAG in the Government’s Skills for Jobs White Paper will effectively address current challenges in the CEIAG system

Whether the proposals for CEIAG in the Government’s Skills for Jobs White Paper will effectively address current challenges in the CEIAG system

Whether greater investment to create a robust system of CEIAG is needed, and how could this be targeted, to create a stronger CEIAG 

  1. While the recommendations are welcome, over one year on from the publication of the Skills for Jobs White Paper, we would suggest an update on how the proposals are being developed and rolled out as being very timely and helpful. 
  2. As guiding principles, we call for an approach that is:
    1. Inclusive as possible – The NCS must showcase the range of options and pathways for learners if it is to be regarded as the 'single source of government-assured information for young people and adults.’
    2. Unfortunately, at present, information about flexible distance learning, such as that offered by the OU, is very limited. 
    3. Relevant to potential learners of all ages and from all backgrounds.  Currently, too much of the focus from careers advice is provided at key transition points, when it needs to holistically run through the entirety of our lives, including in our working careers.
    4. Embedded into capacity building and community development models.
  3. Moreover, CEIAG needs to be futureproofed to support wider government initiatives that seek to encourage and incentivise lifelong learning.  The Government’s aim to introduce the Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE) by 2025 (described in the Skills for Jobs White Paper as ‘a new transformative funding provision, enabling people to access four years’ worth of student loan funding across further and higher education providers throughout their lifetime’) marks a potential watershed moment in supporting adults of all ages to make more flexible choices.  It will be essential that learners have effective support in making the most relevant and meaningful choices when deciding how to use their loan entitlement.  As already highlighted, many people once out of education have little knowledge of the education landscape or what courses might be suited to help them improve their employability.  Equally, the need for information, guidance and support in accessing the LLE is not a one off. Adults must be able to reengage with their entitlement (i.e. use more of it) at any stage. Support could, therefore, be needed on a number of occasions, and must also reflect how study intentions and motivations can evolve throughout life.

 

 

 

About The Open University

 

  1. The OU’s mission is to be Open to people, places, methods and ideas. For most of our undergraduate qualifications there are no academic entry requirements. We believe students should have the opportunity to succeed irrespective of their previous experiences of education.

 

  1. The OU is the largest university in the UK with 205,420 students, including 158,000 directly-registered students, and operates across all four nations. We teach more than four in ten part-time UK undergraduates (47%). There are OU students in every single local area in the UK – we are among the five biggest providers in nine out of ten Parliamentary constituencies in England – and tend to be stronger in higher education “cold spots” with limited face-to-face provision and/or low young HE participation rates.

 

  1. The OU is a world leader in distance learning. Our undergraduates do not attend a campus; they live in their own homes throughout the UK.  Our students study flexibly and value the ability to fit their study around the demands of their home and work lives.

 

  1. The OU’s curriculum is comprehensive. We provide courses across the full breadth of science and technology, arts and social sciences and business and law. We have specialist capabilities to teach science and technology using digital media and our award-winning OpenSTEM labs. We also have over 3,300 students on our apprenticeship programme at over 882 employers, making us one of the largest degree apprenticeship providers in England.

 

  1. The OU works with a range of employers from the public and private sector and from SMEs to large multinationals to support their skills needs.  75 companies from the FTSE 100 have sponsored staff on OU courses in 2020/21. Our Careers and Employability service have engaged with 680 employers, including 219 SMEs so far this year.

 

  1. The OU is crucial to social mobility –we are the largest provider of widening participation provision in England, and we are the 14th biggest provider for disadvantaged young people (those aged 21 and under from the lowest IMD quintile). Nearly two thirds of OU students are from a Widening Participation background.

 

  1. There is no typical OU student. People of all ages and backgrounds study with us and for many reasons – to update their skills, get a qualification, boost their career, change direction, prove themselves or keep mentally active. 

 

Ends.

March 2022

[1] As of 2020/21

[2] As of 2020/21

[3] OU Potential Students Brand Tracker (Base: 2,965) May-Oct 2021