The Korean Experience with Technical and Vocational Education:

1
The Korean Experience with Technical and
Vocational Education

• Does It Offer Any Lessons?

Chong Jae Lee Seoul National University

• A Presentation to be presented to the Norwegian
  Post Primary Education Fund for Africa (NPEF)
• Seminar organized by The Norwegian Ministry of
  Foreign Affairs and World Bank on Sep 13-14, 2006
• at Oslo, Norway.

2
Contents
?. Introduction
?. Development Stages of Korean Education
?. The Expansion of Educational Opportunities
and Approaches
?. How Education contributes to Economic
growth?
?. Relevance of TVE at Upper Secondary
education
3
?. Introduction

• Purposes
• Identify Korean approaches to Expanding Access to
  Education and educations contribution to the
  successful economic growth in Korea
• Overview Korean experiences with Technical and
  Vocational Education (TVE) Relevance of TVE and
  Emerging Challenges to TVE
• Highlight key lessons learned from Korean
  Experiences to the Three policy questions

4
?. Development Stages of Korean Education

• Four stages
• Economical Development Phases
• - 19451960 Economic disruption and recovery
• - 19611979 Export-oriented, high growth
  strategy under
• the Parks regime
• - 19801997 Structural adjustment and
  stabilized growth
• - 1998Present Transition into
  knowledge-based society
• Stages of Educational Development
• - 19481960 Educational reconstruction
• - 19611980 Educational Expansion and Economic
  Growth
• - 19811997 Exploration for the Qualitative
  Improvement
• of Education
• - 1998Present Restructuring Period

5
?. Development Stages of Korean Education

• Modern Korean education begins in 1945
• The situation since 1945
• Korea was liberated from Japanese colonial rule
  with the end of the World War ?
• Divided into two countries South and North Korea
• US Armys Military Government in South
  Korea(1945-1948)
• Republic of Korea was founded in 1948
• Ideological struggle and political instability
• Korean War(1950-1953) 80 school buildings
  destroyed
• Shortage of everything except students (P.H.
  Cooms)

6
?. Development Stages of Korean Education

• Major Economic Indicators

Population of 1945 is 1944s. data.
7
?. Development Stages of Korean Education

• Social, Economic index of The Economic Growth
  Period

Source National Statistical Office
(http//www.nso.go.kr)
8
?. The Expansion of Educational Opportunities and
Approaches

• Net Changes in No. Students
• (Unit 1,000 Persons)

9
?. The Expansion of Educational Opportunities and
Approaches
Elementary Education Completed
Expansion Period of Secondary Education
Expansion Period of Tertiary Education
10
?. The Expansion of Educational Opportunities and
Approaches
Educational Expansion Period
Restructuring
Quality Improvement
11
?. The Expansion of Educational Opportunities and
Approaches

• Development Approach to Korean Education Major
  Policies
• Six-year Compulsory Education plan (1954-1959)
• Open Door Policy to Secondary Education
• Abolition of Entrance Exam to Middle School
  (1968)
• High School Equalization Policy (1974)
• Open Door Policy to Higher Education
• July 30 Educational Reform (1980)

12
?. The Expansion of Educational Opportunities and
Approaches

• Low Cost Approach (LCA)
• Lowering educational standards (Large class,
  Double shift classroom, Low level of teachers
  salary) to accommodate more students given
  resources Constraints
• Application of LCA
• - Expanding Primary compulsory education
• (1954-1959)
• - Expanding Lower Secondary Education(1968)
• - Expanding Access to Tertiary Education (1980)

13
?. The Expansion of Educational Opportunities and
Approaches

• Six-year compulsory education plan(1954-1959)
• Outcome
• Universalization of primary education
• Emerging Problem
• Successive strong educational demand for middle
  school resulting in the exam hell in elementary
  school to prepare entrance examination to
  selective middle schools

14
?. The Expansion of Educational Opportunities and
Approaches

• Egalitarian approach
• Achieving minimum level of uniform
  equality
• (Go Together approach)
• - Abolition of Entrance Exam to Lower and
  Upper Secondary
• Education and admission by assignment
  system in 1968
• and 1974
• - Providing Equal chance of being admitted
  to Middle school
• and High school
• - Lowering educational standards class size
  from 60 to 70
• - Providing Equal school conditions
• - Gradual extension of free compulsory
  education to middle
• school from rural areas in 1984 to all
  area in 2004
• - Priority given to Region, Low SES,
  Students at Risk

15
?. The Expansion of Educational Opportunities and
Approaches

• Quantitative expansion of Secondary Education
• School Enrollment Rate

Source KEDI, Statistical Yearbook of Education
2004
16
?. The Expansion of Educational Opportunities and
Approaches

• Qualitative Improvement of Education by School
  Level

Source The Statistical Yearbook of Korean
Education.
17
?. The Expansion of Educational Opportunities and
Approaches

• Years of achieving Universal Enrollment
• (Enrollment Rate 90, Entering Rate to Upper
  Education 90)

  Tertiary(a), High gt Tertiary(a)
Enrollment/Entering upper class ratio 60.      
  Tertiary(b), High gt Tertiary(b)
Enrollment/Entering upper class ratio 50.     
18
?. The Expansion of Educational Opportunities and
Approaches

• Key factors contributing to Expansion of Access
  to Education
• - Universal enrollment of Elementary Education
• - Low cost approach
• - Egalitarian approach
• - Sequential expansion with Bottom-Up approach
• - Govt budget support for Elementary-Secondary
  
• Education by Law (12.98 of Domestic tax)
• - Parents strong support to Education
• - High level of Economic growth

19
?. The Expansion of Educational Opportunities and
Approaches

• Quantitative expansion of Secondary Education
• Distribution of Educational Attainment of
  Population over 25 years old()

20
?. How education contributes to economic growth?

• Cooperative Correspondence relation between
  economy and education
• - Developing Infra-Structure of Human
  Resource
• - High economic growth to support
  educational
• expansion
• Korean education developed infrastructure of
  human capacity and significantly contributed to
  economic take-off in 1960's
• Human Resource Development in advanced to the
  manpower requirement

21
?. How education contributes to economic growth?

• How education contributes to economic growth?
• Development of Pre-condition to economic growth
• Harbison Myers's observation of Korean case of
  Human Resources development for a country with
  per capita GNP 380, when its per capita GNP was
  107.

Low Cost Approach
22
?. How education contributes to economic growth?

• How education contributes to economic growth?
• Sequential Bottom-up approach
• Sequential expansion of access to education from
  Elementary, Secondary and Higher Education in
  advance corresponded well to the manpower needs
  for Economic development
• Elementary Ed. ? Labor Intensive
  light
• Secondary Ed. Manufacturing
• (1960s)
• Vocational-Technical ? Capital Intensive
• High schools Heavy-Chemical
  Industry
• (1970s ? 1980s)
• Expansion ? Electronics, High-tech
• of Higher Education Knowledge Industry
• (1980s ? Present)

23
?. How education contributes to economic growth?

• How education contributes to economic growth?
• Expand and upgrade Technical and Vocational
  Education and Training Infrastructure to develop
  technical manpower
• 1960s Vocational High school
• Jr Technical Colleges
• Technical Universities
• 1970s Science Education
• Use of External Loans (IDA, IBRD etc)
• As part of 5 Years Economic Development Plan
  Compulsory Elementary School condition improved
• Special budget support from Economic Development
  Account
• Large class size reduced

24
?. How education contributes to economic growth?

• How education contributes to economic growth?
• The Law of Grants for Elementary-Secondary
  Education are enacted. This is the return from
  Economic Growth to Education Sector
• 12.98 of Domestic Tax
• Salaries for elementary school teachers legally
  secured

25
? .The relevance of TVE at Upper secondary
education

• Relevance of TVE The most important dimension of
  TVE
• Three factors related to the Relevance of TVE
• 1) Demand demands of job competency()
• 2) Supply side level of technical
  competency()
• technical core competency()
• social capital ()
• self-directed learning capacities()
• 3) Relative Position of TVE lowered
• As tertiary enrollment level higher,
• As Economy developed,
• Job training for lower sec graduates (-)
• TVE at Upper Sec Edu(-)

26
? .The relevance of TVE at Upper secondary
education

• Emerging Challenges to TVE at Upper Sec Education
• (1) Demand change As economy grow and develop,
  the demands of TVE and job competency are
  changing.
• - demand of simple, low level, technical
  competency
• decreased
• - and demand of higher level, multi-tasking
  job
• competency increased.
• (2) Quality Upgrade Unless TVE at Upper
• Secondary Education upgrade its quality
  level, TVE at
• USE lose its relevance of TVE.

27
? .The relevance of TVE at Upper secondary
education

• Upgrading the Quality of TVE at USE
• (1) Horizontal Upgrading Dual mode approach
• - Establish a few but Specialized
  Intensive Elite Technical and
• Vocational Schools. They should be
  Leading and Model TV Schools at
• USE.
• - Establish a Generalized Technical
  and Vocational Schools with
• Vocational Orientation and guidance.
• - General education
• - Objective Minimize total
  training costs
• - Basic exercise and training at
  School
• - Intensive training at the
  Workplace with Governments financial
• support.
• - 2 1 system (two years school
  education and one years practice
• in the workplace
• - General TV Schools provide the
  flexibility maintaing the
• balance between General and TV
  Schools.

28
? .The relevance of TVE at Upper secondary
education

• (2) Vertical Upgrading Relocating the Core
  TVE
• function from Upper Sec Ed to Junior
  Technical Colleges
• (Polytechnic Institute)
• Making the relationship closer between TVE and
  Work places (Industry) to upgrade the relevance.
• - demand orientation in Governance,
  Program, teacher
• recruitment, and evaluation.
• - cooperative relation
• - implementation of the customized
  programs

29
? .The relevance of TVE at Upper secondary
education

• Development of institutional infrastructure to
  support TVE.
• - Developing the system of Qualification and
  License
• - Job-Information system (Work-net)
• - Expanding the opportunity to acquire
  qualifications and Licenses.
• Development of Life-long Learning system for Job
  Competency.
• - National agenda for HRD

30
Policy Question (1)

• Significance of Universalizing Lower Secondary
  Education
• - Expanding the base of Human Resources
• Development
• - Universal Primary education became the
  base of
• Manpower development for economic take-off
  in
• Korea in 1960s.
• - It develops the beginning stage for
  Sequential
• Bottom-Up expansion.
• - How to Universalize Low Cost Approach

31
Policy Question (2)

• Upper Secondary Education Policy Issues
• (1) Optimum enrollment level
• - Upper limit social demand for USE
• - Lower limit Govt financial constraint
• - Increase with Low cost approach plus
  
• Parents support
• - Increase up to the level that 80 of
  
• graduates either go to work or move to
• Higher education.

32
Policy Question (2)

• (2) Quality Assurance of Secondary education
• - teacher quality the most important
  factor
• - trade-off reducing the Class size
  vs
• 
  recruiting high quality teachers.
• - At 45 per class, priority given to
  recruiting high
• quality teacher

33
Policy Question (3)

• Balance between General Secondary Education and
  Technical-Vocational Education and Training.
• (1) The portion of TVE has changed according
  to the
• demand from Industries. It increased
  from 30 to
• 48.5 and decreased to 28.
• - due to decrease of students demand
• - Dual mode is the response to this
  decrease.
• General TV vs Specialized Elite
  TV
• (2) balancing roles of General TV Schools.
• (3) Provide vocational orientation
  program in
• General Upper Secondary Schools.

34
Policy Question (3)

• Specialized Elite Technical-Vocational Schools as
  alternative model for upgrading status of
  Technical-Vocational Schools.
• - High status
• - diversity
• - Model school for TV Schools