Dead-end courses slammed as Gove plans education shake-up
HUNDREDS of thousands of teenagers in Britain study subjects that lead them towards a “dead end”, according to an influential report released today.
The independent Wolf review, commissioned by education secretary Michael Gove, claims up to 400,000 16-19 year olds take courses that do not lead to higher education or good jobs.
It says students are not adequately informed of the importance of their study choices and are ‘tracked’ into courses that perform well on league tables.
Undertaken by professor Alison Wolf, the report calls for all students who fail to achieve a ‘C’ in GCSE English or Maths to be forced to continue the subjects beyond the age of 16.
It also calls for more funding to be allocated to vocational courses, as well as apprenticeships.
Professor Wolf, launching her report today, will say: “The system is complex, expensive and counterproductive.
“The funding and accountability systems create perverse incentives to steer students into inferior courses.
“We must change course to give everyone a fair chance of a good education and a good job.”