Technical education: Parity, parity, parity

I believe that there should be parity between academic education and vocational education that is designed to meet students’ and future employers’ needs, rather than focusing on a narrow range of academic subjects.

The recently published government Green Paper, Building our Industrial Strategy, recognises the technical skills shortage facing this country – a shortage to be addressed in part through the education system for the survival of a post-Brexit Britain. Addressing this objective will, like many others, require government, employers and the education profession to work together.

Of course, the ability not only to listen but also hear and understand perspective and context is, sadly, something of a work in progress for governments with set political agendas, which is a source of constant frustration for the education profession.