Summary, Conclusions and Recommendations Teachers for Quality VET – The Changing Role of VET in a Knowledge-Based Society 21-22 October 2009 Budapest Angele Attard Coordinator, Education and Employment Unit, EI angele.attard@ei-ie.org

What have we Learnt? FROM Interventions Each other FOR Organising our work on VET better At National and European level PURPOSE  Identifying problems Overcoming them

Benefits of VET Contributes to individuals’ quality of life - Lifelong and continuous professional development ; Sustains job growth, economic growth and social development Helps to promote equal opportunities for women and men and help eradicate poverty; Acts as investment to solve social injustice

Key Problems (1): VET Teaching QUALIFICATIONS FOR VET TEACHERS: Organisation of programmes for VET teachers Length of teachers’ programme + industrial experience Trainers with little pedagogical experience Teachers with little industrial experience RESOURCES AND PRIVATISATION Declining resources in general vs high cost of VET teaching Increasing individual contribution to VET training/learning Less respect for working conditions of teachers MADE WORSE BY CURRENT CRISIS Cutting of VET teachers’ jobs in public service restricting  

Key Problems (2): VET Provision Ensuring transition from VET studies/training to the world of work Low status/prestige of VET Consequence: not likely for students to move down societal scales Need to better define and provide VET: For adults vs. for young people; For professional development vs. for non-achievers; and For industrial vs. post-industrial societies Challenge for VET to deliver the right skills mix: general/specific Challenge of place for better VET delivery: institutions/ workplace  

Larger Issues Surrounding VET What to do with dropouts from general education if they do not go to VET? No second chance otherwise Societal inequalities put pressure on VET provision; Social inclusiveness of migrant workers in the sector - their continuous professional development

Challenges of Teachers and Trainers High Workload Problem of status: part-time/casual staff/private provision Lack of Participation in VET reforms Lack of Autonomy Need to interpret and implement political reform agendas in school life Need to respond in an innovative way to declining resources Need to establish a link with the world of work: personal basis Dealing with students: Behavioural and attitude problems; demotivation of young people Young people with generally lower qualifications Diverse: young people and adults; different social groups

Challenges for National Education Unions Some lack of consultation on changes related to VET Ministries of labour/the economy that deal with VET reforms Trade union centres that are consulted on VET Development of EQF, Implementation of ECVET, EQARF etc. Dealing with teachers’ ‘reform fatigue’ in the face of an ‘avalanche of change’ (keynote) Attracting teachers and trainers to VET Unionising VET Teachers – esp. in private sector/part-time teachers/teachers who start later in life Pushing governments to think of incentives for VET and not just employment policy in times of crisis

Addressing VET at European Level: Challenges DEFINITION OF VET VET vs Technical and Vocational Education and Training In industrialised/post-industrialised countries GREAT DIVERSITY In practice of provision of VET In practice of definition of qualifications vs. competences in planning of VET studies: Western vs. Eastern Europe In required qualifications for VET teachers In development of policies and debate on recognition of prior learning informal Learning

What Can we Do at National Level (1) FOR VET IN GENERAL Set up a continuous dialogue on VET and spread more information on: Benefits of VET Parity of esteem between general and VET education Help to have long-term and sustainable interaction between VET institutions and the world of work Support for individual staff members to create links Establish relevant fora and their livelihood (e.g. curatorien, Austria) Pushing for enhancing provision of further training and work-based training Promote VET as means for LLL – not only as a repair station for education Integrate a discussion on guidance for students when we discuss VET

What Can we Do at National Level? (2) FOR THE VALUE OF VET QUALIFICATIONS Heavily engage in the discussion and implementation of the National Qualifications Framework – for parity of esteem of VET qualifications

What Can we Do at National Level? (3) FOR VET TEACHERS AND TRAINERS Have a professional charter and guarantee and the professional autonomy of teachers in the charter (e.g. Netherlands) Advocate for involvement of education unions in reforms with Governments and TUC Work to better unionise VET teachers: undertake active recruitment drives (esp. part-time, casualised, private sector teachers) Provide help with counselling/development of teachers (e.g. UK Union-Learning representatives) Negotiate equally across sectors: General and VET provision of education Private and public provision of VET Same working conditions, salaries, possibility of continuous professional development

What Can we Do at National Level? (4) INTERACTION WITH GOVERNMENTS Push for Governments to take responsibility: Good Practice in Crisis (OECD) Increase in number of government-funded places in education & training (Ireland) Monitor demand and supply of the apprenticeship market (Switzerland) Subsidies to employers who keep their apprentices (Germany) Provide government sponsored workshop-type apprenticeships (Austria) Increase in number of apprenticeship places in the public sector (England) Push Governments to (OECD): Integrate skills into national and sector development strategies Include skills in responding to global drivers of change: technology; climate change Develop more social inclusiveness via VET

What Can we Do at National Level? (5) MAKE PRESSURE BY USING INTERNATIONAL INSTRUMENTS Use of CEDEFOP/DG Education and Culture yearly report on implementation of EQF ETUCE has been successful in securing that all European Commission/Parliament recommendations on to the Copenhagen Process state that social partners have to be involved. This should be used at the national level. Where education unions are not consulted, the ETUCE is ready to support member organisations nationally in this process.  1966 UNESCO-ILO Recommendation on the Status of Teachers ILO Recommendation No. 195 on Human Resources Development: Education, Training and LLL

What Can we Do at European Level? Advocate for a better organised VET system at EU level - for better comparability Undertake a continuing dialogue on VET to become more aware of diversity and challenges Plan the VET discussion better, use multi-lingual glossary of terms Use the European discussion on VET as a basis for further discussion worldwide

EI Europe Website/Calendar/VET Round Table: All Presentations at EI Europe Website/Calendar/VET Round Table: www.ei-ie.org/europe/en/calendarshow.php?id=229&theme=vocational