STEM take up needs to be higher say skills chiefs
ACADEMICS in Birmingham have backed new moves to improve the number of students in the UK taking up Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) subjects.
The Skills Commission wants to see the higher take up of skills in order to rebalance the economy and create more jobs. The commission said UK employers urgently needed such skills to compete globally in high-growth sectors.
Its approach is addressed in a new report, Technicians & Progression.
Professor Alison Halstead, chair of the Skills Commission inquiry into the issue and Pro-Vice Chancellor at Aston University said: “Technical education has long been the middle child of our education system.
“Government and the education sector must start valuing, promoting and supporting our technician workforce. We need to send clear signals to learners that becoming a technician is not second best, but a first choice that leads to a challenging and rewarding career.
“I believe that for the first time we have the opportunity to develop a technical pathway through schools, colleges, universities and into the professions.”
She said the report built on the recommendations of the Wolf Review of Vocational Education, as well as the recent development of University Technical Colleges, and outlined steps could be taken.
The UK currently employs 1,069,000 technicians, only 3.7% of its workforce compared to an EU average of 5.3%. In contrast, China has increased its technicians seven fold over the past decade.
Prof Halstead said considering that UK GDP growth was 0.1% in Q2, the UK urgently needed to take advantage of new emerging markets and become more export-led.
She said to do this, it was critical the UK started training more technicians, because current levels were insufficient.
Technicians and Progression is the result of a six month parliamentary inquiry examining the role of university technical colleges, apprenticeships, further education colleges and universities in training technicians.
The report recommends:
• Technician registration should be promoted as an alternative route into higher level learning and the professions.
• Professional bodies should play a bigger role in the provision of technical and professional skills, and recognise work-based education and training.
• The Government should re-introduce personal, financial Learner Accounts dedicated to an individual’s post-compulsory education. These could be contributed to by a range of parties (from employers to the state, to the individual themselves) and would be spent as the individual chose.
• The Government should establish a single-funding agency for post-compulsory education, as employers currently find dealing with both the HEFCE and SFA cumbersome.
• The Department for Education (DfE) and BIS should renew their focus upon developing skills in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, and devise a cross-departmental strategy to address their provision.
