McDonald's can award A-levels in UK
The British government has granted McDonald's the right to hand out A-levels, "a qualification ... recognized around the world and ... used as a sort of entrance exam for some universities" on the basis of its training programme. This is the same qualification one gets for sitting exams at Cambridge.
Link (Thanks, Grey!)
Fast-food giant McDonald's has become one of the first firms to offer its own nationally recognised qualifications.It will offer a "basic shift manager" course, training staff in skills such as human resources and marketing.
The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority said the company had been approved to develop courses up to the equivalent of A-level standard.
The QCA will also allow Network Rail and Flybe to award qualifications based on their workplace training schemes.
(Image: Remains of a McDonald's Meal, a Creative Commons Attribution licensed photo from Taekwonweirdo's Flickr stream)
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What a strange coincidence.
I find this post at the top of boingboing imdediately after watching Super Size Me, the movie that McDonald's claims had nothing to do with their removal of super size fries and addition of salads.
I highly recommend this very informative, somewhat black comedy/docu-drama. There are many interesting aspects to this independent movie.
imdb.com reates it high:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0390521/
The A-Level isn't the same as a qualification from Cambridge (unless it's a secondary school).
The UK school system is based (mainly) around GCSE's (which are taked during the compulsory years at school) and A-Levels, which are (normally) an 2-year course which are optional - and are used to gain entry into university (if that is your wish).
Of course, the university bit is optional - it's not for everyone... ;)
Yeah, unless you're talking about a secondary school in Cambridge, or remedial classes at the university, the suggestion that these are the same as Cambridge courses is a little misleading.
Unlike the US, it's possible to leave school at 16 with basic qualifications (GCSEs). I believe that a combination of GCSEs and A levels is considered roughly equivalent to a good high school diploma in the US, so this would be equivalent to McDonalds offering part of a GED. I might be wrong about that, but that's how I understand it.
Either way, you're talking about *part* of the entry requirement to the average university (many insist on 3 or more good A level passes)
I don't understand, why would McDonald's want or need the UK government's certification on their "shift management" course? If it's only by and for McDonald's employees, they can do whatever they want; all McDonald's globally will recognize a program that the head office says is good. If it's supposed to be applicable to the fast-food industry in general, it would seem they should have set up some sort of consortium with Burger King or whatever to decide on the qualifications. I really don't understand why the government needed to be involved.
And important to note, they won't be handing out A-Levels but "qualifications equivalent to"
My guess is GNVQs, these are more vocational and I'm sure someone will correct me - I don't think you can get into somewhere like Cambridge with them!
I think it's great. The skills [especially management/financial] that one gains in the workplace at a supervisory level are FAR more applicable and important than ones learned in any classroom.
[I spent years in retail management, and years in Uni... guess which one taught me more]
Too bad Rose Tyler didn't know about this before she went zipping off to Pete's World.....
At least it's not a Disney A-level, Cory. :-)
This is all part of the dumbing down of the British education system. Paper qualifications have always been worth very little, now they can be valued at precisely one "crappy meal"
It's one of several businesses that have signed on for a scheme that allows students to get some of their credits from on-the-job training programmes. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing, and it's certainly not McDonald's giving away free University degrees with your hamburger.
But please, by all means everyone, go ahead and freak out.
I'm quite pro this, on the whole, provided that the QCA ensures that the courses are maintained to a suitable standard, and develop skills which are sufficiently generic, and not too specific to the company administering them. Since that's exactly what the QCA's role is, there's no reason to believe that they won't do their job properly.
Julian Baggini's book "Welcome to Everytown" makes it clear that there is still (as if we needed to be told) a class divide in the UK, and that the middle-class norm of children being expected to continue higher education into university does not apply to the working class to the same extent: getting a job (i.e. getting an independent income) at a relatively early age is a priority, and an understandable one at that. For McDonalds, FlyBe et al. to offer these courses is to allow people to get a paying job, and at the same time gain the qualifications they need to get to university, if they want to, at a later stage. This includes not only young people, but also mature students who need a regular income to support a family, for example.
There is another issue, of course, and that is of the distinction between vocational courses (which are really "training" by another name) and the academic university courses, including the sciences and humanities, and the extent to which the NVQs are appropriate pre-qualifications to enable the recipient to take a more traditional academic course. That's a whole 'nother debate, but I personally think it's vital that there is a gateway for people to move from one track to the other.
Since the story is actually a bit old now (in the UK, anyway), your headline threw me a bit. I thought the announcement was that McDonald's was going to "can" the idea now that it had attracted so much criticism.
According to the Times , Oxford and Cambridge are going off the A Level, mainly because the system tends to "teach to the test". The Scottish Advanced Higher, officially equivalent to A Level, is regarded as a better qualification by the top universities while many UK independent schools are offering the International Baccalaureate instead.
I don't see why people are so down on it. It's a vocational training course that has been recognised by the establishment. OK, you don't learn much about food prep - aside, probably, from how not to do it - but running a fast food outlet is going to give you some basic people- and money-management skills.
Yes, McDonalds are evil. But coming down on this because it's from the Clown and therefore baaaaaaad is pretty reactionary, not to mention stupid.
I just want to second Chimera's point that McDonalds are NOT planning to offer A-Levels, or even anything like them. It's just the more excitable newspapers lying in order to sell papers.
The BBC have a couple of good pages:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7213781.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7209276.stm
"An employee on one of these McDonald's courses will not be completing anything equivalent to a whole six-unit A-level or advanced Diploma - only part of one."
So McDonalds is permitted to award govt-approved credits to its staff. The modules offered include marketing, human resources, finances etc. These credits can be combined with courses from other institutions to fulfil the requirements of a "Level 3" diploma. This still isn't an A-Level, but a vocational qualification aimed at the same age group. For a bit of context, A-Levels and Level 3 Diplomas are primarily aimed at penultimate- & final-year Hich School students, typically 17-18 year olds.
#7 - especially since she already has that cafeteria work experience.
Och aye the GNU: My old school is one of the few in the UK to teach the International Baccalaureate and A-Levels. From experience, I can say it's worse than the A-Level system. More bureaucratic, more hoop jumping and the marking system is very transparent, so it's easier to 'teach to the test' than A-Levels.
It's also worth pointing out that an A-level is always *in* a specific subject, so whoever is looking at it won't be blind to silly or otherwise useless qualifications.
A programmer might grab him or herself A-levels in math, I.T. and communications, for example, while a med student might grab biology, chemistry and general sciences. If someone comes along with textile arts, scrabooking and McDonalds happy star A-Levels/GNVQs, they're not getting anywhere with them.
Is this BoingBoing or the Daily Mail? Come on.
You don't technically need A Levels to get into even top universities, it's just the most common path. They can offer places just based on a good interview as can happen with Home Educated students who don't always bother with A Levels.
I have my Bachelor's in Hamburgerology from McDonald's University. I'm going for my MBA - Master of Burger Applications.
The way America's education system is going, training at Mickey D's is probably the only education most of our citizens are going to receive.
If you don't believe this follows the trend of dumbing the general populous down I am not sure what will change your mind.
This reminds of the vocational technical classes back in the states. They have a program called supermarket technologies where specially educated students (mentally challenged) learn how to count change and stack food on a shelf. I am not sure what's the difference between receiving an A-List at MacDonald's or the Vocational Degree in Supermarket Technologies?
This is like Hamburger the movie, come to life
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091165/
So McDonald's Hamburger University is finally getting accredited? Sweet! I want to get a Masters in "Cholesterol Enhancement Technologies".
My point is do we really want to make 'branch manager' at the local McDeath's a valid or tempting career choice? By giving 'A level' accreditation to these courses the government is sending out what I consider to be the wrong message to students. This is probably sadly a true sign of Britain's future economy, based on retail sales of poor quality inexpensive product. But school is SUPPOSED to inspire you and to be aspirational - sure that is idealism, but no kid in their right mind would aspire to work at McDs for any length of time (I HOPE!!!)
I go to a snobby, middle-class, white british grammar school in the south-east, where pretty much everyone gets at least 3 "C"s at A-Level, and we're all having a wonderful time scoffing at this, I can tell you.
I do think it's been a bit overblown though... As someone remarked, a qualification "equivalent" to A-Level probably means something like a GNVQ or BTEC. Considering you can already get these in stuff like "childcare" and "leisure and tourism", one in McDonalds restaurant management doesn't look all that bad.
And yeah, the top universities are all out for A-Levels, International Baccalaureate or equivalent. This qualification would probably only help you in to a less good uni, where admission tends to be on "UCAS points" rather than grades.
"This reminds of the vocational technical classes back in the states. They have a program called supermarket technologies where specially educated students (mentally challenged) learn how to count change and stack food on a shelf."
Also probably a good thing?
#25- Maybe a kid doesn't dream of working at McDonald's but maybe a kid dreams of owning a couple of fast food franchises. Learning how to run one would be the first step in that direction.