Welsh Baccalaureate: Conservatives vow to scrap qualification

The Welsh Baccalaureate brings together a number of qualifications

School pupils would not have to do the Welsh Baccalaureate if the Conservatives form a government in Cardiff, the party has vowed.

Tories said they were responding to the concerns of young people by promising to scrap the qualification.

Education spokeswoman Suzy Davies said there was "confusion" over whether universities accepted it.

The Welsh Government said it would do more to promote the baccalaureate's benefits.

Re-launched four years ago the Welsh Bacc, as it is also known, is supposed to teach skills and activities that might not be part of traditional classroom subjects.

Last month, a report by the assembly's education committee said it could have a "bright" future if problems were put right.

However, it said parents and young people had doubts about its value and employers and universities did not know enough about it.

The report said there was confusion over whether the qualification was compulsory. Ministers have said they expect it be offered for all 16-19 year old learners "with a view to achieving full adoption for enrolment in 2019-20".

What do sixth-formers think?

Noor Akeel, Alex Greenhouse and Lowri Jenkins (l-r) said they benefited from working towards the Welsh Bacc

Sixth-formers at Crickhowell High School in Powys said they benefitted from working towards the Welsh Baccalaureate at the same time as A-levels.

Noor Akeel, who wants to study dentistry at university, said: "You definitely do build a lot of skills throughout completing the different challenges which are extremely valuable."

Alex Greenhouse worked on a plan to set up a cookie-dough business as part of his course and said it "tries to make you an overall better person".

Lowri Jenkins said she enjoyed being able to explore her own interests, but not all schools had specialised teachers to teach it.

Ms Davies said the new curriculum would achieve the aims of the Welsh Bacc and abolishing it would "lighten the load".

"The effort that's gone into this will not be lost because the teachers who are really doing this well - and I'm afraid that's not all of them - will be the very people who are driving the new curriculum," she said.

The assembly committee report found not all universities count the Welsh Bacc alongside A-levels when offering places to students.

Ms Davies, a committee member, said: "That in itself should be a big warning bell as to the future of this particular qualification."

David Evans, Wales secretary for teaching union NEU Cymru, said: "We are broadly supportive of the Welsh Bacc, but believe it has had some problems which mean it has less value than originally intended."

A Welsh Government spokesman said last month's report showed "there is clear merit in studying the Welsh Bacc, particularly in terms of the breadth of skills developed by learners".

"However, we recognise more needs to be done to promote the benefits of the qualification and we're working closely with partner organisations to ensure parents, learners, universities and employers understand the key skills that learners develop through the Welsh Bacc."

What is the Welsh Baccalaureate?

• Brings together a number of qualifications but at its heart is the Skills Challenge Certificate (SCC)

• Can be studied by 14-to-16 year olds, and then at sixth-form, and since 2015 it has been graded

• To achieve the SCC students must complete an individual project and three other challenges - testing enterprise and employability skills, knowledge of global issues and participating in community-based activities