QLD Cert. of Education
From 2006, students in Year 10 will work towards a new school qualification.
It is the Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE). The first QCEs will be
awarded to eligible students in 2008.
Why a new qualification?
The QCE was introduced as part of the Queensland Government’s package
of education and training reforms. The Queensland Government has committed to
increase the number of young people who complete Year 12 from 68% in 1998 to
88% by the year 2010.
Our developing society, based upon the “knowledge economy”, requires new definitions of skills, knowledge, education and training. The transfer of these skills and knowledge to new situations depends directly on the quality of the education system. So, on one level, the QCE is responding to new work and education environments by broadening the scope of student learning and achievement that can be recorded.
Major elements of the Youth Participation in Education and Training Act, effective
from 2006, will require all young people to be “learning or earning”
until they are 17.
The reality is that the QCE means a big change to the way schools work in the senior phase of learning. And it’s happening now. In 2006, approximately 55,000 Year 10 students will be completing some form of career planning such as a Senior Education and Training Plan. Hopefully, the vast majority of those students will receive their QCEs in 2008. The Youth Participation in Education and Training Act 2003 has been designed to fulfil the Queensland Government’s agenda to increase the school leaving age for its students, thus increasing young people’s participation in education and training. The Act means that from 2006, young people must stay at school until they finish Year 10 or have turned 16, whichever comes first. Then they are required to participate in further education and training for:
- a further two years
- until they have gained a QCE or a Certificate III vocational qualification, or
- until they have turned 17.
There is provision for exemptions for young people who enter full-time work after they have either completed Year 10 or turned 16. The Act requires that students participate.
Why a Queensland Certificate of Education?
The QCE has been developed in response to community and stakeholder expectations expressed during statewide consultations. The expectations on the QCE were very clear. They wanted the QCE to:
1. Allow learning providers to prepare young people for post-school pathways in further education, training, employment and other life roles, as well as learning leading to other qualifications on the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) gained through partnerships with other learning providers such as TAFE, the workplace, or community.
2. Represent a significant amount of learning able to be completed during two years of full-time study following completion of Year 10 and enable learning in combination with other accredited courses to be also completed on a part-time basis.
3. Be founded on known set standards for achievement.
4. Attest to standards of literacy and numeracy.
For the first time students will be required to achieve a significant amount
of learning at a set standard and to demonstrate minimum standards of literacy
and numeracy to secure the QCE. The keys — the enabling strategies —
to making sure all students can achieve a QCE, while maintaining standards,
will be flexibility and choice.
Flexibility in where, when and how students can learn — this may mean
subjects taught over one semester only, entirely in the workplace, or entirely
online.
Choice in what students can learn. Students working towards a QCE can count
a wider range of learning. This can include traditional school subjects, VET
certificates, school-based apprenticeships and traineeships, university subjects,
International Baccalaureate, awards and certificates including music, dance
and sport, and community, workplace and job readiness programs.
The Senior Phase of Learning currently is doing a great job for the 30% of students who go directly from school to university. That pathway is successful and it’s well established. The challenge now is to establish equally successful post-school pathways for the other 70% of students.