What are BTECs?

BTEC (Business and Technical Education Council) was formed in 1986 by the merger of BEC (Business Education Council) and TEC (Technical and Technical Education Council). In 1996, BTEC merged with the London Examinations and Assessment Council (ULEAC). The history of the London Examination and Assessment Board can be traced back to 1838, with a history of more than 160 years. It is one of the three major examination and assessment institutions in the UK along with Cambridge and Oxford. After the merger of BTEC and the London Examinations and Assessment Board, it became the UK's largest examination certification body - the British Edexcel National Academic and Vocational Qualifications Examination Board (Edexcel).

BTEC courses are branded educational products of Edexcel, the UK’s largest examination and certification body. More than 2 million students in the UK and overseas study Edexcel's various qualifications courses every year. BTEC courses and Edexcel qualifications are recognized by many higher education institutions and employers around the world. In addition, Edexcel also works closely with many institutions around the world to provide high-quality training courses to company employees.

British academic courses not only develop students' learning skills but also teach students the necessary academic knowledge. These learning skills help students carefully analyze theories and concepts, apply problem-solving skills, conduct independent research, and make independent judgments, thereby developing students' originality and self-awareness skills.

BTEC courses perfectly combine the best of British academic traditions with the development and assessment of key skills required in real-life work. Therefore, students who complete a BTEC course are well placed to apply the knowledge they have learned in their professional and personal lives. The main purpose of the BTEC program is to enable students to obtain an education that is beneficial to their career development and to improve their vocational skills to the greatest extent. BTEC courses are based on the concepts of vocational education and training. The BTEC course is very rigorous from an academic point of view and very practical from a career point of view. It can well develop students' potential and improve students' analytical skills. Students' information gathering and evaluation skills are greatly developed through the application of models and skills from their chosen courses. In addition, the perfect combination of coursework and practical work experience can cultivate students' independent working ability and teamwork spirit, thereby laying a good foundation for their future professional and personal development. After completing each BTEC course, students have mastered some specific industry knowledge and can self-assess problems encountered in real work and ultimately find solutions to problems. Students who successfully complete the BTEC program are able to use the academic theory and vocational skills they have learned to evaluate themselves and plan for future personal development. Therefore, BTEC students can not only successfully complete specific tasks, but also effectively evaluate their own methods of completing tasks.

The teaching theories and methods of BTEC courses are at the forefront of the UK. There are many opportunities for students to be mentored by mentors. Work placements, lectures, team work, computer labs and more to develop their academic and vocational skills. Students must learn to evaluate, analyze and differentiate using different methods and using multiple forms of information and data in diverse business environments, for example: using quantitative methods to analyze and understand information obtained from multiple sources, and evaluate Factors affecting modern enterprises, etc. Students also develop their own independent judgment and are able to discover solutions to different problems and their respective limitations. Students will be encouraged to engage in learning activities related to international work where possible, develop critical self-awareness through self-evaluation in team activities, and be able to identify their own shortcomings through the comments of others on their own reports and speeches.

Many colleges in the UK have professional career development consultants who maintain close contact with students, guide them to develop their general abilities, and also assist them in solving academic and even personal problems. The main role of these professional development consultants is to assess students' general skills by assessing their unit learning outcomes. Students can understand their own learning progress through course evaluation and communication with instructors, and can obtain ratings in this area by applying general skills in learning activities.

Therefore, in addition to mastering professional knowledge, BTEC students will be able to:

Manage themselves effectively to achieve goals;

Apply the general skills they have acquired to To perform better in all aspects;

Work effectively with others, understand your role in the team and the relevant theories of effective teamwork;

Communicate effectively, whether it is Active or passive, oral or written;

Effectively control problems and ultimately find solutions to them;

Use digital and high-tech technologies in various situations;< /p>

Use creativity in your work and keep thinking to prepare for future development.

Qualified BTEC HND graduates who meet the undergraduate admission requirements of British universities can continue to study for undergraduate degrees in related majors.

Both BTEC Nationals and Higher Nationals are recognized as a requirement for entry into UK higher education institutions. In the UK, many students who are entering the second or final year of undergraduate studies have studied BTEC Higher Nationals courses in their own country before that. In most cases, BTEC courses are structured according to British national standards. Students can apply directly to continue their studies in undergraduate-related majors at these universities. The biggest benefit for BTEC HND students is that they can enjoy the same experience as students in similar undergraduate majors. In addition, what is very popular among students is that BTEC HND students only need to continue studying at a British university for one year to obtain a bachelor's diploma.

(Compiled by Jia Jianfang based on information provided by Disley, First Secretary of the Cultural and Education Section of the British Embassy in China)

BTEC courses in China

August 1998 In September, my country introduced BTEC courses at the ND (National Diploma, equivalent to a technical secondary school in my country) level for the first time in Beijing Business School, No. 1 Light Industry School, and Radio Industry School as pilot projects. The pilot achieved good teaching results. This group of students graduated with BTEC certificates in July 2001. In order to adapt to the new situation of my country's accession to the WTO, further expand the opening of education to the outside world, meet the people's diverse educational needs, and realize the basic concept of "study abroad without going abroad", in the spirit of "introducing high-quality resources in the field of foreign vocational education and promoting our country's vocational education" Education and teaching reform, to realize the leap-forward development of my country's vocational and technical education and approach or reach the international advanced level as soon as possible." my country's (Ministry of Education) Study Abroad Service Center introduced the HND (Higher National Diploma) level BTEC in June 2001 Educational Programs. BTEC courses have been offered in Tianjin Vocational University, Graduate School of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Capital University of Economics and Business, Guangdong Agricultural and Commercial Vocational and Technical College, Shanghai Vocational and Technical College of Commerce, Dalian University of Technology and Beijing Yuda Industrial and Commercial College in several cities including Tianjin, Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Dalian. 7 colleges and universities of the college offer HND courses. In the past few years, ND courses have also flourished in many cities in my country.

my country’s first batch of BTEC HND hotel graduates (Tianjin Vocational University) graduated in July this year. Compared with non-BTEC students in the same major, their employment channels are smoother. While other students are still worrying about finding jobs, they have already been "ordered" by employers and started working in April. When former US President Bush visited Tianjin, 11 of the 17 carefully selected waiters were from the BTEC class of Tianjin Vocational University. These 11 students successfully completed this foreign affairs service task with high-quality services, which won praise from George H.W. Bush and won reputation for Tianjin City and Tianjin Vocational University; during their internship at Tianjin TEDA Center Hotel, BTEC students With his solid foundation in spoken English, confident, generous and decent behavior, excellent communication and adaptability, and hard-working work spirit, he has won praise from guests and internship units. Ms. Ma Guimin, Director of Guest Services Department of TEDA Center Hotel, said that BTEC students are really the talents they need and fervently hopes that BTEC students can work in TEDA Hotel after graduation. In May this year, Yu Weiwei from this class will go to Taiwan as a representative of the 9th Tianjin Outstanding College Students. Zhang Shuming, a first-year BTEC student at Guangdong Agricultural, Industrial and Commercial Vocational and Technical College, won first place in the "If I were the General Manager" competition held in Shenzhen during the summer vacation of 2003, and was awarded the honor of serving as the general manager of Shenzhen Causeway Bay Company. BTEC students from all over the country have shown their unique advantages.

Guangdong Agricultural, Industrial and Commercial Vocational and Technical College passed the center qualification review by British experts in May 2002 and established a BTEC center. In the same year, it began to recruit students in the two majors of "Business & Marketing" and "Business Information Technology". On September 5, 2003, it passed the professional external review once every semester. Opening ceremony for new students on September 22, 2003.

The vocational education ideas and methods demonstrated by the BTEC education project are in a leading position in the world, and the courses and certificates provided are internationally renowned. The educational attributes reflected in the BTEC education project represent a world vocational education development trend. The introduction and promotion of BTEC education projects in my country will help my country's vocational education rapidly move forward along the world's vocational education development direction. Establishing an "overpass" across time and space for the growth of talents is a reform goal of my country's vocational education in the process of economic system transformation. The introduction of the BTEC education project, the authoritativeness of its certificates in the world, and the conversion and mutual recognition mechanism between different types and levels of certificates have provided institutional guarantees for students of our country’s vocational schools to go abroad and study overseas, and have provided a good foundation for our country. Constructing an "overpass" across time and space for talent growth provides methodological reference. BTEC theory and practice have attracted widespread attention from my country's vocational education circles, media and enterprises.

British universities have spoken highly of the promotion of China’s BTEC program.

British universities, as well as universities in Australia, New Zealand and other countries, generally hope to establish long-term cooperative relationships with Chinese universities through the BTEC project, and gradually improve the level of school running, and ultimately realize the widespread application of British excellent educational achievements in Chinese universities, thus building a network of educational resources* The most exclusive "Golden Bridge". Currently, Australia, France, Germany, Canada, China, United States, Russia, Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, Singapore, Thailand, Ireland, Japan, Brazil, Italy, Netherlands, Malaysia, Hungary, Argentina, Belgium, Iceland, Bulgaria, Myanmar, More than 100 countries including Cuba, Denmark, Egypt, Greece, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Mexico, Poland, Kuwait, Portugal, and Turkey are running BTEC courses. This provides a broad space for further study for Chinese students.

(Jia Jianfang)

N reasons to study BTEC courses

1. BTEC is a mature curriculum system and internationally recognized academic qualifications and certificates

BTEC is the UK’s premier academic diploma and vocational qualification development and awarding institution. BTEC is a world leader in secondary and higher vocational education and talent training, and has outstanding performance and authority in the expansion of key skills education. . BTEC’s standard curriculum requirements are recognized and accepted by more than 100 countries around the world. Whether any course is taught in the UK, China or other countries, students will receive international standards that are generally accepted and recognized. qualifications. BTEC is both an academic diploma and a vocational qualification certificate.

BTEC has a complete vocational education system, which includes certificate system, curriculum system, teaching system and evaluation system. These systems show that BTEC education projects have the following vocational education attributes:

Focus on the cultivation of key abilities, and the teaching objectives are comprehensive;

Focus on market demand analysis, and the courses are vocational;

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The teaching process is student-centered and the teaching is modern;

The quality assessment and review system is complete, strict and efficient;

BTEC certificate and other types of education The certificates communicate with each other and are cohesive.

In the education system of the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and other Commonwealth countries, the undergraduate course lasts three years, and those who pass the study will obtain a bachelor's degree. The first two years are HND. If you pass the study, you can obtain a higher national diploma issued by Edexcel. You can be directly employed, or you can continue to study in the last year of your undergraduate degree to obtain a bachelor's degree, and then study for another year to obtain a master's degree, or after passing the HND After three years of practical experience, one year of study leads to a master's degree. The BTEC course is vocational and is an education model for practical talents.

In short, BTEC is a vocational education model, which can be simply summarized as: internationally recognized academic qualifications, unified standard courses, and international standard qualifications.

2. BTEC attaches great importance to cultivating practical abilities

1. Training goals and requirements

BTEC HND enables students to acquire skills in their current or future careers. The knowledge, understanding, and skills necessary to succeed in or continue toward an undergraduate degree. These flexible skills enable students to respond to changing circumstances, whether that is due to changes in their own career environment or those resulting from promotion to management positions. This course can meet the main needs in relevant professional activities and can support students' professional development through recognition by other relevant professional institutions.

2. Professional training objectives

Provide educational support for professional management;

Provide professional learning directly related to the occupations students are engaged in or will engage in ;

Enable students to find employment quickly;

Provide flexibility, knowledge, skills and motivation for future study and career development;

Through effective utilization and combination The knowledge and skills learned in different aspects of the course are used to develop students' professional abilities;

Cultivate various skills, personal qualities and attitudes necessary for career success.

3. Comprehensive quality training objectives

To enable students to possess general abilities in the following seven areas:

Management and development of self-ability;

Communication skills;

Communication and communication skills;

Manage project completion tasks and problem-solving skills;

Use digital technology skills;

Utilize equipment and software capabilities;

Innovation and design capabilities.

3. Student-centered proposition

Fully consider students’ interests, potential and personality, pay attention to the development of personality, and encourage the development of personal potential;

Advocate the student-centered educational idea so that students can learn how to learn and become the masters of learning;

Tutors guide students to actively participate in learning activities, and students are responsible for their own learning;

The teaching content is related to work and oriented to the real problems of society and enterprises;

Learning results (professional abilities) and general abilities are developed simultaneously;

Continuous assessment through task-based "curriculum" , promote development and progress;

Equal opportunities, students have equal opportunities and rights in all aspects such as obtaining learning guidance, using learning resources, demonstrating abilities and assessment and evaluation

4. Students benefit a lot

Students can obtain internationally recognized HND certificates and diplomas. There is an urgent need in our country to be familiar with international practices, master new technologies commonly used internationally, and be proficient in foreign languages. Today, middle and high-level talents with professional skills have more employment opportunities;

BTEC is both an academic diploma and a professional qualification certificate, killing two birds with one stone;

Taught in English , while acquiring professional skills, it also improves the ability to apply English;

It is not a simple sum of English and majors, but an education model with innovative thinking and future-oriented development capabilities;

The idea of ??BTEC is that knowledge does not mean knowing. Through practical learning methods, one can quickly adapt to future professional positions;

Credit accumulation, international standards, and bridging, increase opportunities for further study;

Internationally, BTEC has the advantages of high employment rate, low unemployment rate and high salary. According to AGCAS2000 statistics, 1/3 of students who have completed HND are employed and 2/3 are continuing their studies. The unemployment rate is less than 4.5%; while the undergraduate unemployment rate is higher than 5.5%. A survey conducted by the Department for Education and Employment in August 2000 showed that the annual income of students with HND was on average 7.5% higher than that of students without HND. The salary of HND graduates from Shell in Malaysia is 15% higher than that of non-BTEC undergraduates.

5. Teaching quality is guaranteed

In order to ensure that BTEC courses can meet unified standards in global operations, BTEC has a complete set of systems to ensure teaching quality.

BTEC has unified requirements for teaching activities;

The teaching activities of the center are strictly implemented in accordance with BTEC regulations;

Teachers are strictly selected and trained, and It has a regular training system;

The center has set up internal auditors to review teaching activities in strict accordance with the internal audit system;

The BTEC headquarters regularly conducts professional external audits of the center;

The BTEC system has a smooth information feedback channel;

Students can report problems that arise in teaching to all levels at any time through written, oral, direct, indirect and other channels;

Students play an extremely important role in teaching evaluation.

6. The assessment focuses on practical abilities

The assessment of BTEC courses is not focused on students’ memory, but on the development of thinking, application skills, general abilities and comprehensive qualities. BTEC does not conduct special examinations, but conducts comprehensive assessment through 3-4 assignments per course and other forms of daily learning activities. Students don’t have the pressure of exams.

1. General assessment strategy: open, fair, and fair

2. Assessment methods:

Diversified: Do not use only one exam as the basis for assessment. Assessment methods include coursework, case studies, role plays, group tasks, design, planning, installation, debugging, reports, surveys, discussions and exchanges, demonstrations, etc.

Procedural: Instead of taking the final assessment decision as the final assessment result, a final overall fair assessment of the course is achieved through several staged and process-based assessments.

3. Grading levels and standards

BTEC HND course results are divided into Distinction (excellent), qMerit (good), and Pass (pass). If you fail, you need to retake or make up for it. There are no failing marks. The scoring standards are unified.

7. Have smooth channels for help and appeals

During the BTEC study process, students will encounter various problems and will receive help from all aspects. For students' learning, in addition to seeking help from the teaching teachers, the center will provide students with an instructor other than the teaching teachers, and the contact information will be disclosed to each student. Students can report the problems they encounter to BTEC institutions at all levels through direct or indirect means.

(Jia Jianfang)

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