Re-imagining the paths to socio-economic transformation (Pt 2)

Overcoming obstacles to TVET

Canute S. Thompson, GUEST COLUMNIST

In March 2012, I had the privilege of attending the first ever Caribbean Conference on Technical and Vocational Education and Training and Human Capacity Development in Montego Bay. The conference was organised by the University of the West Indies' School of Education, with support from UNESCO.

It was at this conference that I became more deeply interested in the role of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) in socio-economic transformation. One of the conference papers that I found particularly compelling was 'Comparison of Implementation of TVET in Canada, China, Taiwan & Jamaica', presented by Peter Joong and Raymond Scott.

The March conference was followed by the Third International Congress on TVET held in Shanghai, China, in May, under the theme 'Building Skills for Work and Life'. The conference had as its central focus how to transform and expand TVET to ensure that all young people and adults can develop the skills needed for work and life, a goal which required the mainstreaming of TVET in the education system.

It is, perhaps, more than mere coincidence that the First Congress, held in 1987, was held in Germany (the Eurozone's strongest economy) and the Second Congress (1999) held in Seoul, South Korea, another strong Asian economy.

Significant outcomes of these conferences were the Montego Bay Declaration on TVET in the Caribbean, and the Shanghai Consensus. Both outcomes were presided over by Dr. Halden Morris, a trained engineer and TVET professional, of the University of the West Indies School of Education.

OVERCOMING OBSTACLES TO TVET INTEGRATION

Law Song Seng (2011), former CEO of the Institute of Technical Education (Singapore), in a paper titled 'National Policies Linking TVET with Economic Expansion: Lessons from Singapore', points out that despite pronouncements by many governments about the importance of TVET to national economic development, TVET remains the "weakest" link in the education system in many countries.

Song Seng further points out that merely affirming the importance of TVET, as many governments have done, is not sufficient. He contends that there will have to be concentrated efforts in terms of policies, governance, leadership, expertise, capabilities and a government, willing and ready to invest in TVET, to make a real difference.

It is perhaps not without significance that in the late 1970s, Singapore extended the higher levels of skilled certification to include electrical, electronics, precision engineering and automotive technology, as Song Seng notes. Today, electronics, precision engineering, and automotive technology are among the leading industries of the world, with electronic component demand correlating with global gross domestic product growth as reported in the July 10, 2012 edition of the Wall Street Transcript.

The mistake many countries have made, which in large measure explains their treatment of TVET, is continue to perpetuate the notion that TVET equates to low-level manufacturing and agrarian activities. It is my contention that the most effective ways by which countries can remove TVET from under the stigma, isolation and rejection that it faces is to:

(a) Create a deeper awareness of the wide range of skills that are associated with TVET;

(b) Invest in setting up universities and polytechnics that provide high-level training; and

(c) Restructure the curriculum around TVET. For there to be widespread acceptability of TVET, the attitudes and perceptions of students, parents, teachers, employers and the public must change.

CULTURAL PERCEPTIONS

I conducted original research on this issue between March and June 2012. Data were gathered using two methods - survey questionnaires and focus-group discussions. The intended sample size for survey questionnaires was 200 students, spread across different levels of the education system and across urban and rural areas, while 20 per cent of that number would be asked to participate in focus-group discussions.

In the end, some 129 completed questionnaires formed the basis of the research. The majority of the participants were in the 11-15 (almost 56 per cent) and 16-20 (approximately 41 per cent) age group, with just about three-quarters of the sample being students at the secondary level.

The location of schools can influence students' attitudes and expectations, and as such, the data in the sample were stratified to allow for distribution of the sample across both rural and urban areas. The distribution of the sample was proportionate to the overall population wherein almost two-thirds of the population of Jamaica reside in urban areas. This pattern is borne out in the sample as is shown in Table 1.

Crucial Finding

Given that one of the purposes of this research was to determine the perceptions and attitudes of students in relation to TVET, one of the primary questions that needed to be addressed was whether or not students were able to say if TVET courses and programme are offered at their school. Almost eighty per cent of students said 'yes'.

Thus, while there appears to be increasing global awareness of the importance of TVET, there remains not only lack of commitment to its integration, but also pockets of uncertainty about its importance. This study found that almost one in five respondents (17 per cent) was unsure about the importance of TVET, though as many as 75 per cent either agreed or strongly agreed that TVET is a necessary component of a solid education, as shown in Table 2.

One of the first remarkable findings of this research was the fact that while 75 per cent of respondents either agreed or strongly agreed that TVET was a necessary component of a solid education, only 54 per cent agreed or strongly agreed that they would pursue a career in TVET. Of this number, as many as 34 per cent were unsure and almost 20 per cent either disagreed or strongly disagreed.

What the foregoing findings suggest is that more than 50 per cent of the students who took part in the research were either opposed to TVET as a path for their future, or were unsure as to whether they should pursue such a path.

If we accept that our ability to function is the natural world (moving about - by whatever means, creating shelter, feeding and clothing ourselves, diagnosing and combating diseases, protecting ourselves from natural and man-made disasters, communicating and creating all the comforts of life) requires TVET skills, what this means is that many students do see the extent to which TVET permeates all aspects of our lives and that many of the jobs for which they aspire are, in fact, TVET-type jobs.

This finding suggests that one of our agenda items as we pursue socio-economic development will have to be a radical reorientation of students' perceptions about TVET. These perceptions, I suggest, represent one set of the obstacles that must be cleared in order for TVET to be seen as a part of the normal education process and for students to embrace options and opportunities for careers in TVET.

In the final instalment of this series, we will look at some other obstacles that the process of socio-economic transformation via TVET faces and suggest some ways by which those obstacles can be removed.

(Author's note: I am indebted to Barrington Mighton, Rockhel Simon, Cassandra Young, Mitsy Graham, Remonia Stoddart-Morrison and Christine Shields, who assisted with collecting primary data for the research).

Dr Canute Thompson is a leadership coach and certified management consultant. This article is contributed by the Caribbean Leadership Re-Imagination Initiative, UWI. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and canutethompson1@gmail.com.