13.44 Much of the pressure in quality assurance work in recent years has focused on the identification and monitoring of planned, and quantifiable outcomes from learning programmes. To some extent, this has privileged predicted learning outcomes over those revealed, learned in the process, and has focused on the short-term and easily measured rather than longer-term measures, and those involving qualitative judgement. It has also centred on individual as against group learning.
13.45 Changes in the pattern of work have posed challenges to auditors, in the audit of non-waged work and its contribution to the national economy. A similar challenge exists for educators, and the quality assurance agencies, to develop rigorous audit tools that better reflect the complexity of `learning gain' in lifelong learning. This task would be helped if the inspectorates currently working for OFSTED, FEFC, the new Training Inspectorate and the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education could harmonise their approach to inspection, establishing common methods, criteria and perspectives in inspection. Inspection staff could either conduct joint enquiries or work in discrete arenas, but within a broadly common framework, increasingly sharing their experience and the outcomes of their work.
13.46 The aim should be to move to a situation where all certificated and uncertificated lifelong learning provision is backed by effective quality assurance. This should be based upon a common framework for inspection and self-assessment. Progress should be made towards the establishment of common standards and benchmarks and by systematic training and development in quality assurance for the staff concerned.
13.47 We propose that Government should encourage early discussions between the main educational inspectorates, with a view to moving towards the harmonisation and standardisation of quality assurance systems across the sectors where adults learn. Within such discussions, consideration should be given to how the overlapping but different duties of OFSTED, the FEFC Inspectorate, the HE Quality Assurance Agency, and the new Training Inspectorate might be performed within a common inspection framework, enabling inspection staff to work together or even across boundaries where necessary. In addition, the various inspectorates could share staff training and development events, exchange experience, carry out joint investigations and produce joint reports.
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