P-05-788 Remove the compulsory aspect of Welsh Baccalaureate
P-05-788 Remove the compulsory aspect of Welsh Baccalaureate
This
petition was submitted by Katharine Drinkwater having collected 60 signatures
online.
Petition text
We call on
the National Assembly for Wales to urge the Welsh Government to remove the
compulsory aspect of the Welsh Baccalaureate and review the structure of the
course to ensure it is fit for purpose. Currently it includes a task that
encourages underage gambling and fiscal irresponsibility.
Our
children deserve the right to excel in a global arena. Around 70% of their studies are already
compulsory subjects and the Welsh Baccalaureate takes away opportunities from
them as they cannot study all the subjects they want to pursue. This 'qualification' may cater to box ticking
exercises but does not help Welsh students achieve their potential (please see
excerpt from a WG report that follows).
This will have a detrimental effect on the rest of their lives and
future career prospects. Give children
studying in Welsh schools the same opportunities as those from the other home
nations and make Welsh education something to be proud of again.
Additional information
The
following is taken from The Welsh Governments own report into the WBQ (The
Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification, January 2015) states - The findings of
WISERD’s report were primarily two-fold. It concluded that the WBQ was
enormously valuable in preparing young people for higher education, quite
possibly due to the weighting given to it by the UCAS tariff. At the same time,
the report supported a previous finding in a 2011 report specifically on
Cardiff University that the WBQ Core was not equivalent to an A grade at
A-level. Furthermore, it concluded that students with the WBQ were more likely
to withdraw from university and less likely to achieve a ‘good degree’ which is
defined as a First Class or Upper Second Class.
The report
argues that these two findings may be related. It concludes that having the WBQ
seems to improve the probability of getting in to university, all other things
being equal; but this advantage seems to come at the expense of successful
university outcomes.
Pupil
Status
This petition was considered completed by
the Petitions Committee at its meeting on 11/06/19.
The Committee considered correspondence
from the WJEC and agreed to close the petition in light of the removal of the
specific exercise referred to in the petition, the scrutiny of the Welsh
Baccalaureate very recently carried out by the Children, Young People and
Education Committee, and the Minister’s commitment to publish updated guidance
on the Baccalaureate and its delivery.
Full details of the consideration of this
petitions by the committee and related documents can be seen on the Meetings
tab above.
It was first considered by the Petitions
Committee on 05/12/2017.
Assembly Constituency and
Region
- Islwyn
- South Wales East
Further information
Business type: Amendment
Reason considered: Senedd Business;
Status: Complete
First published: 27/11/2017