From September thousands of schools will be offering the new Diplomas. I’ve written a summary of what they’re about. School Councils can fit with the PLTS element which is the personal, learning and thinking skills part. JL 20/8/08
Diplomas and PLTS
PLTS – Personal Learning and Thinking Skills
Diplomas are being offered in thousands of schools from this September. They work alongside GCSEs and A’Levels to provide a broader curriculum.
The Diplomas currently on offer are:
- Construction and the built environment
- Information Technology
- Creative and Media
- Society, Health and Development
- Engineering
All students will:
- Choose their Diploma subject (Principle Learning)
- Study English, Maths, ICT (Functional Skills)
- Have to complete a project
- Do work-based learning
- Develop PLTS
- Be able to choose additional subjects, not all of which need to be related to the diploma topic
The Diploma is offered at 4 levels and ahs a GCSE/ A’Level equivalent:
Foundation Diploma
o 5 GCSE grade D to G
Higher Diploma
o 7 GCSE’s A* to C
Advanced Diploma
o 3 and a half A’Levels
Progression Diploma
o 2 and a half A’Levels
After Foundation or Higher, they can enter employment, take the higher Diploma or an alternative qualification such as GCSEs, A levels, an Advanced Apprenticeship, a BTEC or an NVQ.
More info at http://yp.direct.gov.uk/diplomas/