Key stage 4 policy reform and its potential impact on at-risk young people

01 January 2013

This paper, published in parallel with NFER's evidence-based response to Department for Education's consultation on reform of key stage 4 qualifications, argues that robust evidence from NFER research could help prevent hundreds of thousands of young people from disengaging.

Current policy dialogue is incredibly positive in terms of giving all young people, whatever their background, the chance to succeed, but unless policymakers listen to the research evidence, the opposite may happen.

Ultimately, everyone working in education shares a desire to reduce the number of young people who drop out of education, employment or training, which would have important economic and social benefits far beyond the classroom.

This paper is the first in a series of "NFER Thinks... What the evidence tells us".