REFORMING VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING

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International Labour Organization
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ABOUT THE ROOTS AND NATURE OF REFORMS IN
VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING
a presentation by Fred Fluitman
International Training Centre of the
International Labour Organization Turin, Italy,
2002
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a presentationproposing an analytical framework
with some examples
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mainly based on findings of a joint World
Bank/ILO research project on innovation and
constraints in reforming vocational education and
training in selected developing countries and
transition economies
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The roots of VET reform

• concern about the relevance of training
• concern about the effectiveness and the
  efficiency of the VET system
• budgetary constraints

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relevance, effectiveness and efficiency
demand side
supply side
economic social objectives
training
efficiency
effectiveness
relevance
( internal efficiency)
( external efficiency)
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Concerns about the relevance of training

• The training system does not, or no longer,
  produce (enough of) the skills that would
  contribute towards meeting the countrys
  macro-economic and social objectives it does not
  adequately respond to changing circumstances it
  is essentially supply-driven.

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common symptoms of relevance problems

• obvious, skill-related productivity problems in
  the national economy
• persistent vacancies in certain skilled
  occupations and surpluses in others
• people being trained for jobs which do not, or no
  longer, exist
• curricula unrelated to the realities of the
  workplace
• lack of training opportunities, notably for
  people in disadvantaged groups

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Concerns about the VET systems effectiveness

• The VET system is not, or no longer, capable
  of doing whatever it may set out to do, either in
  terms of quantity or quality of outputs it lacks
  flexibility.

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common symptoms of an effectiveness problem

• complaints by employers about the quality of
  outputs of the VET system
• or about the time it takes training providers to
  respond to new demands
• limited portability of skills acquired
• high drop-out, low pass rates
• beneficiaries reluctant or unwilling, rather than
  unable, to pay for training

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Concern about the systems efficiency

• The VET system, in doing whatever it does, is
  not making the best use of the resources at its
  disposal it is not sufficiently cost-conscious

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common symptoms of an efficiency problem

• obvious underutilisation of training staff or
  facilities
• training courses lasting too long or overburdened
  with unnecessary contents
• fragmentation and multiple sponsorship of
  public-sector supported training
• heads of training institutions complaining about
  bureaucracy
• and about being unaware of training costs

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Budgetary constraints

• Government or other sponsors are not, or no
  longer, able or willing to pay for vocational
  education and training as they used to the
  public system is currently underfunded and/or
  financially unsustainable

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common symptoms of budgetary constraints

• essential staff lacking or demoralised
• facilities and equipment inadequate or beyond
  repair
• declining quality of training
• declining enrollments

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The nature of VET reform

• reorientating the VET system
• i.e. training for new purposes
• reorganising the VET system
• i.e. training in new ways
• refinancing the VET system

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reorientating the training system

• new purposes , new priorities
• alternative products
• new clients

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some examples

• training for new industries, occupations, and
  skills
• training for self-employment in small enterprises
• developing competency-based, modular training
• reducing early, narrow specialisation
• shifting focus towards life-long trainability
• training for larger numbers
• training for disadvantaged groups

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reorganising the training system

• alternative structures
• new management
• new procedures
• improving product quality

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some examples

• adjusting the links between education and
  training
• adjusting the links between training and the
  world of work
• seeking greater private sector involvement in VET
• decentralising public provision
• reducing red tape and unnecessary or unfair
  regulation
• involving various stakeholders in making
  decisions
• improving skill standards, testing and
  certification
• training trainers and their managers

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some examples

• adjusting the links between education and
  training
• adjusting the links between training and the
  world of work
• seeking greater private sector involvement in VET
• decentralising public provision
• reducing red tape and unnecessary or unfair
  regulation
• involving various stakeholders in making
  decisions
• improving skill standards, testing and
  certification
• training trainers and their managers

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refinancing the training system

• reducing costs
• reducing expenses
• exploring new sources and new channels of funding
• changing funding criteria

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some examples

• reducing in-school training duration
• reducing or eliminating boarding facilities
• devolving budgetary discretion
• thinking cost recovery
• introducing levy/grant or similar schemes
• introducing training vouchers

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concluding remarks

• good reasons for change in many countries
• widespread interest in reforming VET
• no models, no recipes, no shortcuts
• but global trends in policy development
• and common obstacles to implementation
• which need not be insurmountable

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global trends in training policy reform

• decentralisation, devolution and privatisation
• public-private partnerships
• giving enterprise a greater role
• cost recovery from beneficiaries
• reduced specialisation in pre-employment training
• shift towards competency-based, life-long
  learning
• interest in recognising and certifying competence

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international labour organization
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International Labour Organization