60 Information, advice and guidance (IAG) in education

Submitted by Association for College Management

Congress believes that a lynchpin of educational success for young people is that they are placed on the right learning pathway in the first instance: that is, the programme that suits their talents, aspirations and interests. When the choice of programme does not suit the young person then their chances of success are dramatically reduced. In spite of this self-evident truth standards of IAG have been poor for decades. Too often guidance serves the institution rather than the student; it is often unimaginative and under-ambitious; it frequently acquiesces with stereotypes; too often it is ill-informed.

The September guarantee, the Diploma and the raising of the participation age are all policies that demand excellent information, advice and guidance for young people.

Congress calls on the Government to lift standards of IAG practice by supporting and resourcing the development of:

i) a culture of excellence, ambition and impartiality

ii) best practice benchmarks

iii) high quality training.