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| > TVET Issues: Improving Access to TVET
-2005-02-25 3:15 pm |
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Improving Access to TVET
During the  World Education Forum held in 2000 in Dakar, Senegal, an international conference organised jointly by several international agencies under the lead of UNESCO, more than 1,100 participants agreed on six main goals to achieve “Education for All” (EFA) which together form the Dakar Framework of Action for EFA.
One of these goals is to “ensure that the learning needs of all young people and adults are met through equitable access to appropriate learning and life-skills programmes” (Goal 3). It is clear that TVET is an essential component of such programmes, since it is one of the providers of learning and life-skills programmes for young people and adults and so it is important that access to TVET is provided in all countries, worldwide, as part of EFA. However, in many countries, and particularly in developing countries, individuals who would like to acquire competencies and skills are excluded from TVET. The reasons are manifold: |
- In many countries TVET programmes are delivered in official/mainstream languages only, which are often the languages of former colonial powers and not spoken by everyone in the society.
- Women often find it difficult to enter TVET programmes because they are either denied access, or because they are not expected to enter certain male-dominated occupations. Furthermore, women may be required to stay at home to help with housework and farm work.
- Learners from low-income backgrounds are confronted with difficulties in entering TVET programmes because training providers may demand tuition fees.
- In rural areas there are generally restricted training opportunities available since, in most countries, the best vocational schools and training schemes are located in the capital or major cities. Entering a TVET school or training institution may mean living far away from home with all the financial and social implications, including absence from work, family and friends.
- People beyond a certain age may find it difficult to gain access to TVET. Not only is the TVET system in many countries only prepared to cater for younger people, but potential older candidates for courses are often needed as income-generators and so are not free to attend courses. In many cases, funds (such as government grants) to cover living costs during a training period are not available.
- Even in cases where the individuals concerned face none of the above problems, in many countries stereotypes are predominant that render it undesirable for individuals to acquire vocational qualifications. The reason is the low status of TVET. TVET is often regarded as a ‘last choice option’, only to be taken if access to further general (including higher) education is not available or denied. White-collar jobs are preferred to blue-collar jobs, which are usually learnt through TVET. The relatively low status of TVET can also originate from lack of quality and the fact that TVET does not necessarily prepare individuals for the world of work since, in many cases, curricula do not match with the requirements of the workplace.
However, TVET does not need to be this way. There are examples of countries where TVET prepares learners very well for the world of work, where facilities and qualified teaching staff are available in sufficient numbers, where the status and attractiveness of TVET are high, and where disadvantaged groups enjoy special support to encourage their involvement.
These countries are, however, in a minority. Most UNESCO Member States – together with the UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre – need to make greater efforts to strengthen and upgrade TVET. Improving access to TVET ensures that countries have a cohort of vocationally qualified citizens who have a good chance to find, or create, employment, and who will thus become the ‘human resource pillars’ of the economy and the society involved.
On this issue, see also the website Access and Equity of the TVE Section of UNESCO Paris. |
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Motivation Campaign Package, Pilot Version
As part of the “Education for All” (EFA) initiative the UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre has developed a package of materials that will help facilitate the organisation and running of awareness and motivation campaigns, aimed at marginalised groups in least developed countries.
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