Pre-employment vocational education and training in Korea

The Korean vocational education and training (VET) system is heralded as one of the key factors contributing to the countries past economic growth. VET has played an important role in developing a skilled labor force during Korea's economic development. However, with the increasing importance of higher education and general education, the status of VET in the country is declining. This paper explores recent Korean data to analyze the labor market outcomes of pre-employment VET institutions. The findings show that current vocational high school education is not associated with better labor market outcomes, in terms of employment rate, wage levels, prospect of permanent employment, and transition to the first job, when compared to general high school education. Among VET programs, the authors find that graduates of higher level, more comprehensive VET programs experience greater labor market achievements than graduates of less competitive, shorter programs. The authors also find that the VET institutes play an important role in supplying technical labor to small and medium enterprises (SMEs).Tertiary Education,Secondary Education,Labor Markets,Education For All,Teaching and Learning

Vocational education and training (VET) for ICT employment: preparing women for work

This paper attempts to articulate the problematic issues that contribute to women’s participation or lack of it in ICT technical and vocational education and training (VET ). This is the training and education that prepares women for employment in IT jobs, or helps re-skill or up-skill them once they are employed. The paper has three sections. The maps out what is encompassed by the category (technical and) vocational education and training (VET), to give some idea of the context and institutions in which the specific activity of ICT VET takes place, focusing on non-university institutions. The second section reviews data about women’s participation in ICT VET from four countries and one large commercial training provider in order to explore whether different educational systems and contexts produce differences in women’s participation in ICT VET. The third and final section of the paper explores the main factors that contribute to differences in women’s participation. It also raises questions about whether those active in initiatives for women in ICT training are using the best categories to understand the nature of women’s engagement in ICTs, or whether it would be more useful for gender equity to reconceptualise the nature of ICT work and skills

Disadvantaged learners and VET to higher education transitions

This paper synthesises what is currently published on the access and participation of disadvantaged learners in higher-level vocational education and training (VET) qualifications and higher education, and their transitions from lower-level VET qualifications to higher-level VET and higher education. Introduction: The VET system provides opportunities for individuals to undertake training for employment-related reasons, to enable further study, or for personal interest and development. Vocational education and training also often provides an entry point to the education system for individuals who have experienced barriers to participation in education. When considering VET for those individuals belonging to one or more equity group, access and participation alone only tell part of the story. How students participate, and the outcomes they achieve, is also important. For many people in equity groups, lower-level qualifications (certificate levels I and II, for example) may provide an entry point to the VET system. While these qualifications might offer some personal benefits, such as improved self-esteem, the employment and further study outcomes for prime- and mature-aged students have been shown to be limited. There is a question about whether disadvantaged students are using those qualifications as a stepping stone to further study at higher levels. Graduates of higher-level VET qualifications are more likely to be employed after training and the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) considers a certificate III to be the minimum-level qualification for improving employment outcomes. This trend has been shown to hold true in those equity groups where it has been investigated; for example, Polidano and Mavromaras showed that the completion of a VET qualification at certificate III or above significantly improved the employment of people with a disability. In response to the Bradley Review, the federal government set an objective to increase participation in higher education for some equity groups, especially those from a low socioeconomic background. Transition from lower-level VET to higher-level VET qualifications and into higher education is one way of meeting government targets and increasing participation at those education levels more likely to lead to employment. The focus of this paper is to synthesise what is currently published on the access and participation of disadvantaged learners in higher-level VET qualifications and higher education, and their transitions from lower-level VET qualifications to higher-level VET and higher education. Where possible, the aim is to focus on the learners’ perspectives. The paper will consider a number of equity groups: Indigenous Australians, people with a disability, those from rural/remote locations, those with non-English speaking backgrounds, younger people and older people. It needs to be noted that these are not homogenous groups and individuals may experience multiple disadvantage

Examining barriers to internationalisation created by diverse systems and structures in vocational education and training

In a global society, all educational sectors need to recognise internationalism as a core, foundational principle. Whilst most educational sectors are taking up that challenge, vocational education and training (VET) is still being pulled towards the national agenda in terms of its structures and systems, and the policies driving it, disadvantaging those who graduate from VET, those who teach in it, and the businesses and countries that connect with it. This paper poses questions about the future of internationalisation in the sector. It examines whether there is a way to create a VET system that meets its primary point of value, to produce skilled workers for the local labour market, while still benefitting those graduates by providing international skills and knowledge, gained from VET institutions that are international in their outlook. The paper examines some of the key barriers created by systems and structures in VET to internationalisation and suggests that the efforts which have been made to address the problem have had limited success. It suggests that only a model which gives freedom to those with a direct vested interest, students, teachers, trainers and employers, to pursue international co-operation and liaison will have the opportunity to succeed

Vocational education and economic environments : conflict or convergence?

A better understanding of the relationship between economic policies and human capital formation through vocational education and training (VET) will help both development strategists and education planners. With this in mind, the paper begins with a social systems model to trace the impact of the economic environment and policies on the internal and external efficiency of VET. It continues with a discussion of how specific economic policies can shape efforts to improve the internal and external efficiency of VET. Some evidence of this relationship is provided in a review of the VET experience in selected countries. The paper concludes with some tentative lessons for VET lending and sector work as drawn from this review and offers an agenda for the further study and validation of the economic environment thesis.Economic Theory&Research,Vocational&Technical Education,Teaching and Learning,Environmental Economics&Policies,Banks&Banking Reform

The likelihood of completing a VET qualification 2008-11

In order to fill a gap in performance measures for the vocational education and training (VET) sector, this publication estimates the course completion rates of publicly funded VET courses in Australia. Completion rates for qualifications commenced in 2008-11 are given for various groups, including by qualification level, by field of education and by state. The corresponding load pass rates are also shown.HighlightsFor qualifications commencing in 2011: The national estimated completion rate for VET qualifications at certificate I and above was 35.5%, up from 33.7% for qualifications commenced in 2010.For students in full-time study aged 25 years and under with no prior post-school qualification, the national estimated completion rate for VET qualifications was 44.2%, a decline from 45.7% for qualifications commenced in 2010.VET qualifications at diploma and above (43.6%), certificate IV (41.6%), and certificate III (40.9%) had the highest national estimated completion rates.For students in full-time study aged 25 years and under with no prior post-school qualification, the national estimated completion rate for VET qualifications at certificate III was 56.2%. VET qualifications in education (58.8%), society and culture (48.5%), and natural and physical sciences (43.8%) had the highest national estimated completion rates

Effectiveness of lending for vocational education and training: lessons from World Bank experience

This paper reviews the Bank involvement in the vocational education and training (VET) sub-sector in the 1990s. The paper aims to do just that, by mainly seeking answers to the following questions: 1) How has the Bank performed in its lending services to its clients in VET? 2) How have VET projects performed in terms of meeting stated objectives? 3) What factors led to the success, or failure of Bank operations? Based on what has been learned, the paper provides suggestions about how the performance of future VET interventions can be improved. This review concerns itself primarily with implementation performance, and proposes measures to improve project outcomes.ICT Policy and Strategies,Health Economics&Finance,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Teaching and Learning,Banks&Banking Reform

Expenditure on education and training in Australia: analysis and background paper

Education and training is a continuum, from early childhood, through schooling, to tertiary study and training. Yet our public policy and funding settings continue to reflect a piecemeal approach. This analysis and background paper shows that Australian governments are prioritising their investment in some aspects of education over others - with schools and universities the beneficiaries and vocational education and training (VET) in real decline. Further, this is occurring in the absence of an explicit, or even apparent, policy logic or rationale.  The analysis was previewed at the TAFE Directors Australia Conference on 2 September 2014 by one of the report authors, Mitchell Professorial Fellow Peter Noonan. Summary of key findings: Comparative analysis of expenditure on education across the three sectors shows a clear trend – while spending on schools and universities has risen significantly over the last decade, there has been a much lower rate of growth in VET spending. Total expenditure grew only 15 per cent for VET over the ten years to 2012‐13, while schools and higher education experienced growth of 23 and 40 per cent respectively over the same period. Expenditure on VET amongst the states and territories is uneven. In Victoria, expenditure on VET grew at an average of 4.2 per cent per year over the ten years to 2012‐13, whereas New South Wales and Queensland averaged zero and negative growth over the same period. Analysis of expenditure per student also saw VET falling short. In higher education, expenditure per student has been relatively stable, while spending per student in government secondary and primary schools has increased 20 per cent 30 per cent respectively. Meanwhile expenditure per hour of training in VET actually decreased around 25 per cent over the same period

Smart education for smart textiles

The aim of this paper is to present the main objectives and achievements of the Skills4Smartex project, according to its declared goals. The Erasmus+ project "Smart textiles for STEM training" is funded with support from the European Commission and it is a Strategic partnership - KA2 / Vocational Education and Training (VET), in the field of transfer of innovation from research providers towards textile enterprises & VET schools. The students within technical education acquire basic disciplines, such as mathematics, physics, technical drawing, chemistry, biology, mechanics, but the horizon of the end applications and usefulness of such basic disciplines is often not touchable. In correlation with these facts, the Skills4Smartex project is centred on improving knowledge, skills and employability of VET students in the STEM related fields, by providing the adequate training instruments to understand multidisciplinary working

A half-open door: pathways for VET award holders into Australian universities

Effective pathways from vocational education and training (VET) to higher education help to alleviate skill shortages as well as increase access to higher qualifications and lifetime earnings for people holding VET awards. Nationally, the proportion of students admitted to higher education on the basis of a VET award is now around 10%. However, there is considerable variation in the rates of admission between different higher education institutions. The authors investigate the extent to which these differences were the product of factors associated with specific fields of study or the result of factors related to the university, such as institutional policies and practices