The use of level descriptions in natioanl gualification frameworks

Key expert Martin Gibson (Curricula Development Facilitator)
All education and training systems have some principles against which “levels” of qualification can be measured. These include length of time studied for a qualification, the degree of difficulty of the subject knowledge, the amount of specialisation or application of knowledge. Such principles though are not always explicit or coherent and different principles may operate in different parts of the education and training system. As students increasingly move across national borders to progress their education and workers cross borders for employment this becomes more problematic as it may be difficult to know what they are capable of in further study or in work. This paper draws heavily on the UK’s national qualification framework to show how 3 groups of factors (Knowledge and Understanding; Application and Action; Accountability and Autonomy) are used to distinguish between levels in the national vocational qualification system.
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