Chapter 2. Progress towards the EFA goals - Unesco

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CHAPTER 2
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Education for All Global Monitoring Report
There is a
growing sense
in which ‘what
you know’ is less
important than
‘what you are
able to learn’
29. In the Republic
of Korea, the share
of secondary school
enrolment in technical
and vocational education
dropped steadily from
around 45% in the
mid-1990s to 29% in 2005.
As policy-makers seek to address the twin
challenges posed by rising unemployment and
an increasingly knowledge-based economy,
some important lessons may be drawn from
the better-performing programmes – along
with some cautionary notes.
Reinforce the links between education and labour
markets. A major strength of the dual system in
Germany is the direct link it establishes between
school, work experience and practical education
in vocational courses. Companies train students
to acquire skills relevant to the needs of the
enterprise and, through the involvement of
government agencies, the wider economy. Using
a very different approach, Japan’s system has
provided students with a route into company-based
training and employment. Contrasts with countries
including France and the United Kingdom, where
links between education and companies have been
far weaker, are striking. In the United States,
Career Academies operate through less formal
contractual arrangements, but establish strong
links between students, companies and educators,
combining practical employment opportunities with
teaching and job counselling. Rigorous evaluation
that controls for selection bias points to strong
benefits, including an average earnings increase
of about 11% (Kemple and Willner, 2008).
Recognize that past achievements are no
guarantee of future success. Rapid economic
change is continually shifting the environment
for vocational education. Germany’s dual system
has been coming under pressure as employment
growth slows in metalworking, engineering
and the automobile sector. The number of new
apprenticeship places available is in decline
(German Federal Ministry of Education and
Research, 2006). In Japan, the ‘lost decade’ of
protracted recession of the 1990s led companies
to lower their commitments to training and
long-term employment. This is reflected in the
large and growing share of young workers in
insecure or temporary work (OECD, 2009c).
The experience of Germany and Japan serves to
highlight the important role of economic growth
and employment creation in creating demand
among employers for technical and vocational
education and training. It also underlines the
need for state action to renew vocational
programmes in the light of changing
circumstances, a task heightened by the
current economic downturn.
Rethink the outmoded separation of technical
and vocational education from general education.
Successful participation in knowledge-based
employment markets characterized by rapid
change requires problem-solving and creative
thinking as well as specific technical skills. There
is a growing sense in which ‘what you know’ is less
important than ‘what you are able to learn’. Rigid
tracking into vocational training, especially at an
early age, diminishes the prospect of developing
flexible skills and restricts individuals’ choices.
Vocational students need sufficient academic
education to broaden their occupational choices
and general students need an opportunity to
develop practical skills. Innovative reformers are
breaking down barriers between vocational and
general education. In the Republic of Korea,
academic and vocational students in secondary
school share as much as 75% of a joint curriculum,
creating opportunities for transition in both
directions (Adams, 2007b). The share of students
enrolled in vocational education at the secondary
level has been declining as the emphasis shifts
to general education to equip students for postsecondary
specialization. 29 Several other countries,
including Australia and Switzerland, have actively
revised qualification systems to allow for greater
mobility between general and vocational education
(Hoeckel et al., 2008a; Hoeckel et al., 2008b).
Develop capability-based qualification systems,
involving the private sector. In job markets shaped
by rapid technological change, young people need
expertise that can be applied to acquiring a wide
range of skills. Many countries are introducing or
strengthening national qualification frameworks,
testing students on the basis of broad abilities
and allowing training to be used for transferrable
credits into technical and general education
(Adams, 2007b; Hoeckel et al., 2008b; Young, 2005).
Involving companies in the development of
capability-based training is important because
they are well placed to pick up employment
market signals. In Australia, programmes
developed through industry associations and
education authorities have been introduced in the
final year of secondary school. At the same time,
national skills bodies are bringing together
employers, teachers and education ministries
to develop and deliver curricula that are relevant
to the needs of industry. One of the big challenges
is to coordinate the diverse array of partners
involved into an administrative framework that
avoids fragmentation and duplication.
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