Education Minister, Jane Hutt, today (Thursday 16 August) congratulated Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Diploma students as their exceptional achievements were announced. The Minister said:
I am delighted that hard work by students and teachers all across Wales is being rewarded by the successes in the Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Diploma. Each year the numbers completing and achieving this exciting new qualification are growing and this year the final cohort in the post-16 pilot of the Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification have made further big strides, as we move towards roll-out from next month.
Since becoming Minister for Children, Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills I have been struck by how much hard work is required to complete the Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification. Achieving the Advanced Diploma is a great achievement and students and their teachers, lecturers and all other staff involved should be very proud.
The Welsh Baccalaureate is a demanding qualification and this is reflected by the fact that, as part of the Advanced Diploma, the Welsh Baccalaureate Core Certificate has been awarded 120 points by UCAS, equivalent to an A grade A Level. This is a strong vote of confidence by UCAS in the qualification.
Students efforts will bring benefits that they richly deserve. The skills they have developed will stand them in good stead in Higher Education, employment and in their personal lives.
Higher Education Institutions and employers are increasingly recognising that the Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification produces students who have the skills, attitudes and knowledge that are needed in higher level studies and the workplace. Recognition in offers for Higher Education is growing apace – and I am confident that this will continue.
To achieve the Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Diploma, students must complete a compulsory Core as well as Options of a minimum of two GCE A-levels or an equivalent qualification. The Core has four components – the six Key Skills; Wales, Europe and the World; Work-related Education; and Personal and Social Education.
Of the 1317 students who completed the programme, 1063 have achieved the Core Certificate and 964 have been awarded the full Advanced Diploma.
The Minister continued:
As we move towards roll-out, today’s results confirm that the Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification is bedding in well. Completion and achievement continue to improve and we can look forward to increasing success as the qualification becomes embedded as a feature of the 14-19 learning landscape.
It is also important to remember that one of the big differences with the Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification is that even if students do not complete all of the requirements of the programme, their achievements are recognised. Many will have gained Optional and Key Skills Qualifications that are valued in higher education and in the workplace, as well as developing new ways of studying and working that will benefit them in whatever path they choose to follow.
http://new.wales.gov.uk/news/ThirdAssembly/Education/2007/1751928/?lang=en
