QAA recommends changes to the Lifelong Learning Entitlement policy to achieve its ambition

QAA’s latest policy paper in The Future of Quality in England series outlines how simple changes to the Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE) policy could help to unlock its full ambition.

The right ambition, the wrong solution? How the Lifelong Learning Entitlement can deliver a high-quality learning experience argues that the eligibility and scope of modules included within the LLE is too narrow, and that pathways for progression throughout a learner’s lifetime are unclear.

It outlines ways in which the learning experience will need to be adapted for modular learners and how this will impact the way quality is measured.

The paper recommends that policymakers should:

Balance the option of working towards a full qualification with accessing a suite of standalone modules, by:

• removing the requirement for modules to be drawn down from parent courses
• lowering the threshold of 30 credits to 10 credits.

Facilitate greater collaboration with the sector, by:

• enabling the sector to retain authority on the definition of credit by referring to a sector-owned definition in any future legislation
• consulting providers on the barriers, resources and capacity involved to present an accurate impact assessment
• consulting with providers offering short courses or micro-credentials to gather best practice and evidence on learner demand.

Use evidence to determine how quality is measured, by:

• collecting evidence on sector response, learner demand and progression pathways before producing proportionate and relevant quality measurements.  

The policy paper provides a case study from the Irish Universities Association’s ‘MicroCreds’ project, and a vision for what factors should be in place to deliver a high-quality modular learning experience under the LLE.