T Levels September 2023 Update

Pearson will be running an EO / Administration training on 12 October 2023 at 4.00 - 5.00pm - book your place using the link below:

Exams Officer/Administration training event 

This event is for anyone involved in the administration of the Technical Qualification, from undertaking Provider Approval, making Registrations and Entries, through to assessment scheduling.

Providers are now able to make student registrations onto the Technical Qualification for cohorts commencing this academic year.

The standard registration window will close on 1 November, with late registrations starting on 2 November. There is a support video on how to make registrations and manage student details can be found on our Training and Admin support page.

Entries for the Core Component Assessments for the autumn 2023 series are now open. Please remember, you must make an entry for every student wishing to enter the assessment.

Providers wishing to make entries for re-sits please ensure you are familiar with the re-sit rules.

There is a support videos on ‘making an entry’ and ‘assessment, results and re-sits' can be found on our Training and Admin support page.

Entries for the Occupational Specialism Assessment for the summer 2023 series are now open. Please remember, you must make an entry for every student wishing to enter the assessment.

The standard entry window is from 1 September – 5 October 2023.

The Key Dates Schedules for academic years 2023 – 2025 have been published on our Training and Admin page.

Following feedback from Providers we have made several adjustments to the schedules to give you as much teaching and learning time as possible, considering the number and size of the assessments.

You’ll notice for the Construction and Digital OS, we have reduced the window durations, enabling us to start the assessment later.

For the ESP, we have reduced the pre-release window and where possible some of the other window durations.

All Core exams now take place in June after the ESP; this moves them back a month for Construction and Digital.

Please note, we have not made any adjustment to the autumn 2023 series due to its proximity. 

We have worked with Middlesborough College to produce a set of Employer Set Project (ESP) training materials.

These on-demand sessions support all ESPs, regardless of the T Level you are delivering and cover the following:

• How the skills in the ESP draw upon the knowledge of the Core
• How to organise the ESP
• Ways to prepare learners for the ESP assessment
• Ways to teach the ESP

We have launched a new set of on-demand training materials called ‘Keeping it Simple’, these go back to basics and introduce what a T Level is, what the Core component is, and what the Occupational Specialism is. They are ideal to use to introduce T Levels to your teaching staff, prospective students and their parents, or employers supporting your industry placements.

View on-demain training materials on the T Level Training and Admin page

Following evidence from Providers delivering the first T Levels, the Department for Education (DfE) has confirmed changing the way in which students take the Core Exam and Employer Set Project at their first attempt.

From September 2023, students’ first attempt at the Core Exam and the Employer Set Project will no longer need to be in the same assessment series (this is already the case for students who re-sit assessments).

Students will still need to sit all the Core Exams in the same assessment series (if more than one exam paper is offered) and, as now, need to attempt both parts of the Core component (the Employer Set Project and Core Exams) by the end of their T Level course to be awarded a Core component grade.

To learn more you can read our Decoupling FAQs.

The T Level Transition Programme has had a name change and is now call the T Level Foundation Year. For those of you delivering the T Level Foundation Year please visit our dedicated webpage. Here you will find a range of information to support the delivery of several of the elements of the TLFY, including:

• Support for English and maths, plus our Functional Skills maths and T-Levels blog.
• Mapping into BTEC to support the delivery of technical skills.

Also, we have published guides specifically designed to support the delivery of:

• Work Preparation and Employability Skills via our Level 2 Award in WorkSkills.
• Pastoral Support and Personal Development via our Level 2 Award in Personal Growth and Wellbeing.

For students who undertake either of these TLFY components via successful completion of the above qualifications we are seeking to award their achievement with a digital badge.

We will commence a digital badge pilot this academic year, if you would like to get involved, please register your interest using the appropriate form.

• BTEC Personal Growth and Wellbeing Level 2 TLFY EOI if you are interested in the Personal Growth and Wellbeing Level 2 award,

or 

• BTEC WorkSkills Level 2 TLFY EOI if you are interested in the WorkSkills Level 2 Award.

Don’t forget we have several materials aimed at supporting your recruitment of T Levels. Our dedicated webpage for Students (which is also really handy for parents too), is ideal to signpost to or use during your recruitment activities.

Here you’ll find:

• Qualification Description: each T Level has one of these. It describes the outline of the T Level, the knowledge and skills that will be gained, and the progression routes available (realistic entry job roles, apprenticeships, higher technical qualifications, and degree programme).
• Student Journey: describing what a typical 2-year programme could look like.
• Qualification Brochure and Poster: ideal for supporting recruitment fairs or social media activity.
• Student Case Studies: enabling those interested in T Levels to hear from real life T Level students, why they chose a T Level, what they’ve learnt and what they want to do next.

In addition, Pearson support Linking London and regularly speak about T Levels at their events. In June they ran a Student and Parent event, at which Pearson and two universities spoke about T Levels. 

Our Q&A Networks restart this term, you can book via our T Level Live Training page. The next event is on 26 September at 4:00 – 5:00pm.

Please remember you can join the Construction group and T level: Construction to ask specific queries and get notified of updates. We have also recently launched a Facebook group for this T Level and invite you to join to share practice, ask questions and to network.

Potential new Occupational Specialism:IFATE have proposed a new specialism to be added to the T Level in Design Surveying and Planning for Construction relating to the Construction Support Technician standard. Although consultation via the survey has concluded, you can still view draft content on their website.

The Construction Support Technician specialism is anticipated to replace the Hazardous Materials specialism and covers areas such as co-ordinating works, dealing with project documentation, contracts, or assisting in buying, estimating, planning functions. It could form the basis of an introduction to construction project management, subject to appropriate content coverage.

Use of the T Level to Progress to Architecture:
Please note that although the T Level can be used to progress to Architecture, students intending to use the T Level to progress will typically also require the submission of a portfolio of designs showing their skill and creativity, alongside qualification achievement. Some institutions expect learners to demonstrate not just technical design skills but also artistic technique which may not be possible to demonstrate during study of the T Level. Students therefore should be encouraged and supported to build such portfolios outside of the study of the T Level curriculum, having researched the requirements of their potential institution/s.

Pearson has stepped in to deliver these two contracts previously awarded to NCFE. Both T Levels will be available for first teach September 2024. Immediate activity to support you includes:

• A draft Qualification Description for each T Level has been published to give you more information about the qualification and support your recruitment in the Autumn term. These can be found in the ‘useful documents’ sections of the respective TQ webpage.
• Provider Update webinar on 29 September at 3.00 – 4.00pm where you can meet the team who are creating the Technical Qualification, hear about the qualification as it currently stands and the timescales for development and approval.
• Provider Validation Panel, giving you an opportunity to join our Provider Validation Panel and engage in the development process.

Our Q&A Networks restart this term, you can book via our T Level Live Training page. If you would like anything specific to be covered or have questions, then please ask in the Facebook Group or contact the Subject Advisor. Our first network event is on 20 September at 4:00 – 5:40pm and you can sign up suing the link below:

• Book your place

For future events we are looking at creating a panel or teachers to advise and update on the Digital T Level. If you are interested in joining our panel and sharing your experiences, then email us at david.pautsch@pearson.com to let us know.

We are launching our curriculum planner for Digital this month, which will be available on the website. We hope you find this useful when you plan your T Level.

Gatsby have been working on teaching resources for the Digital T Level which will support teaching and learning. These have been created by industry experts like Raspberry Pi and our own examiners to support you in class. They will be rolled out starting this term so watch this space and their website.

For the core teaching we have worked with Cisco and their netacad teaching resources for Python and other programming languages, used in the Occupational Specialism, are available on their web page and its completely free to sign up and become a Cisco netacad centre. Find out more.

Legal Services:Our Q&A Networks restart this term, you can book via our T Level Live Training page.  The first event for Legal Services this term is 27 September at 4:00 – 5:00pm. You will also find Getting Ready to Teach training events that are available for you to book onto as well as others available in October.

Teaching and learning materials are being launched over the coming months. On our website you will find a Scheme of Work for the qualification. We will share a release plan for other teaching materials over the coming weeks which will begin with materials for Fundamentals of Law.

Finance and Accounting:
Our Q&A Networks restart this term. The first session will join Accounting and Finance and concentrate on the Core. Following this there will be separate Q&A Networks focussing on the occupational specialisms; you can book via our T Level Live Training page.

Curriculum planners for the Core Component and Occupational Specialism Component are now available, you’ll find these on the Course Materials page.

The free training provided by the CII for the T Level in Finance (occupational specialisms Insurance Practitioner and Investment Banking and Asset and Wealth Management Analyst) have been postponed with new dates to be announced following Provider consultation this term.

Also – don’t forget about our professional body support for the Accounting occupational specialism.

Pearson has been awarded the T Level in Marketing; this will be available for first teach September 2025.

We have already started the development of the content; this will continue over the autumn. As with all our T Levels, your thoughts, comments, and guidance are a fundamental part of our development process. Therefore, we are seeking members for our Provider Validation Panel. This will give you the opportunity to feed into the content and assessment, making sure it is appropriate and accessible for your students and manageable for you to deliver as a Provider. If you would like to join our Provider Validation Panel and be part of the development process. 

On our Training and Admin Support page you’ll find everything you need in terms of training and events to support your T Level delivery, and videos and documents to assist in administrating the qualifications.

Our training includes:

On-demand Getting to Know the Specification briefings, giving you a generic introduction, and overview of the Core Component, and an Overview of the Occupational Specialist Component. On-demand Termly Policy Update, each update will be posted at the beginning of term and cover recent DfE policy changes that will impact your delivery.

A direct link to our T Level Live Training page, where you can search for events and book including:

• Live Q&A Network Sessions with the Product Manager and Subject Advisor giving you the opportunity to ask questions, discuss your experience delivering the T Level and share good practice with other Providers.
• Live Getting Ready to Teach training where you’ll cover planning your programme, reviewing elements of the content and practical ways it can be delivered, and signposting to the ongoing support available.
• Live Getting Ready to Assess training where you’ll learn how the assessment will work.Our aim is for you to have a good understanding of the approach we have taken in the assessments. We will look at the ‘command verb’ and discuss what is meant and the type of response required, and how the response changes depending upon the mark attributed to the question. We will also refer to the mark scheme for you to understand where marks will and will not be attributed.Our Training Archive if you are unable to attend any of our live training sessions or want to listen again.

Our administration section includes:

Videos to support making registrations and entries, understanding resit rules, the Key Dates Schedule and the Provider Approval Process

Support documents including all the Provider Approval forms, quality assurance and monitoring, fees and key dates.

Do not forget, if you need to contact us about T Levels you can do so by the Pearson Support Portal. The portal is an online tool you can use to raise your query and track its progress. We will inform you once a member of the team has a reply for you.

Go to the Pearson Support Portal.