Thematic report |
Welsh-medium and bilingual provision for 14-19 learners - May 2008
The vast majority of general qualifications are available in Welsh. However, the number of vocational qualifications available in Welsh is very small compared to the number available in English. There is a shortage of Welsh-speaking examiners and verifiers, which limits the number of Welsh-medium qualifications which can be made available.An increasing number of providers are introducing bilingual teaching as a means of extending Welsh-medium provision, but there is too much variation in the quality of bilingual teaching.
Recommendations
The Welsh Assembly Government should:
- identify baseline data and set targets for 14-19 networks to increase Welsh-medium provision and monitor progress against those targets; and
- promote new Welsh-medium online resources and raise providers’ awareness of what is currently available.
The 14-19 networks should:
- identify gaps and weaknesses in Welsh language provision across providers and set targets to address them; and
- inform providers and learners about qualifications that are available in Welsh.
Providers should:
- market their Welsh-medium and bilingual courses more actively;
- evaluate the cost-effectiveness of courses, and collaborate more to provide Welsh-medium courses jointly with other providers when numbers are low, for instance, by extending the use of peripatetic teachers; and
- increase tutor support for learners undertaking distance learning courses through video-conferencing or e-learning.