A new NFER-led study suggests
cognitive and behavioural skills gaps which emerge in early years
- if identified and addressed as children progress through
education - could support improved labour market outcomes.
The report is the latest instalment of the
five-year Skills Imperative 2035:
Essential skills for tomorrow's workforce research
programme, funded by the Nuffield Foundation.
It urges the government to incentivise and support schools to
develop the six Essential Employment Skills (EES) – (1)
communication, (2) collaboration, (3) problem-solving, (4)
organising, planning and prioritising work, (5) creative thinking
and (6) information literacy - as part of a broad and balanced
curriculum.
This comes after previous NFER
research projected workers will need to utilise EES more
intensively in jobs by 2035, but that up to seven million workers
could lack the required level of EES to carry out these
roles.
The latest study is based on a hypothesis that children's
cognitive and behavioural skills are precursors for their EES in
early adulthood.
It indicates inequalities in cognitive and behavioural outcomes
in young children become more entrenched and harder to impact as
they get older. However, the report stresses that there remains
considerable scope to influence young people's outcomes at an
older age, and that with the appropriate support, they can
catch-up.
Jude Hillary, the programme's Principal Investigator and
NFER's Co-Head of UK Policy and Practice, said:
“Intervening at an early age to support young people who
have low cognitive and behavioural skills and are at risk of
falling behind is critical to improving their future
outcomes. The consequence of inaction could see increasing
numbers of young people leaving education without the skills and
qualifications they need to enter growing occupations, which are
predominantly professional occupations requiring higher skills,
particularly EES. This will only add to the existing skills
shortages in the UK and further constrain national efforts to
stimulate growth.
“To deliver future skills needs and grow the economy, the
government needs to adopt a ‘cradle to grave' approach to skills
development, promoting the development of a broad mix of
cognitive, behavioural, and technical specific knowledge and
skills, starting from the early years.”
The report also says:
- Differences in children's material, emotional and educational
environments at home influence not just their starting points
when they enter school but also their progress through every
stage of primary and secondary education.
- Differences in school performance (based on the average
progress pupils make in a school) can compound inequalities in
children's cognitive and behavioural outcomes that predate their
start at school.
- Children's extra-curricular engagement is positively
associated with their behavioural and cognitive development
between the ages of eight and 17, but it is well documented that
children from disadvantaged backgrounds have less access to these
opportunities.
- Addressing future skills gaps is likely to require a
systematic approach that addresses the structural and behavioural
influences on children's development from the early years, both
at home and at school.
The report recommends:
- The government should create a clearer narrative linking its
growth strategy with its mission to break down barriers to
opportunity.
- The government should consider how to expand access to
rigorously evaluated and proven holistic family support
programmes for disadvantaged families. Supporting more
disadvantaged young people to access extra-curricular activities
more frequently between the ages of 7/8 and 16/17, for example by
providing additional funding to schools with disadvantaged
intakes to extend the school day or by introducing a national
extra-curricular bursary scheme.
- All schools should explicitly support the development of EES
as a critical part of a good education, including
socio-emotional, self-management skills, and cognitive
skills.
- Through the Curriculum and Assessment Review team, government
should explore whether and how more emphasis could be placed on
the development of EES – alongside knowledge acquisition - as
part of teaching core subjects within the curriculum.
Dr Emily Tanner, Programme Head, Post-14 Education and
Skills at the Nuffield Foundation said:
“This is the latest report from a substantial multi-year project
that is delivering significant insights and recommendations that
can help prepare young people - our future workforce - for
employment. The new research sets out ideas to tackle key factors
behind cognitive and behavioural skills gaps, providing
policymakers with actionable solutions to improve readiness for
the world of work.”
