Embrace Vocational Education for Sustainable Economic Transformation

First Published in the Nation Mirror news papers South Sudan, on Thursday 30^th /October/2014

Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) is defined by UNESCO as: "Those aspects of the educational process involving, in addition to general education, the study of technologies and related sciences and arts, together with the acquisition of practical skills, attitudes, understanding and knowledge relating to occupation in various sectors of economic life"

 

TVET thus equips people not only with vocational skills, but with a broad range of knowledge, skills and attitudes that are now recognized as indispensable for meaningful participation in work and life. These knowledge, skills and attitudes combine to become "competencies" such as communication, problem-solving, co-operation and entrepreneurial abilities.

 

The establishment offering this kind of education in South Sudan is either named Technical School, Vocational Training Center, Commercial School or Agricultural School. The technical schools usually offers four years program and are more academics due to the fact that about 80% of their syllabuses are theoretical subjects and the practical/technical subject constitute 20% only. Therefore, the graduate of technical school may not compete in the world of work. Instead he/she could opt to go for Higher Education to become an engineer within specific area of Engineering.

 

Vocational Training Centers (VTCs), offers wide range skills trainings and the duration varies depending on the nature of the course. Usually it can range from 3 weeks, 3 – 9 months up to 2 years of training. The focus of the VTCs is provision of skills for employment and self reliance. Due to this, the training on practical skills constitutes 70% while academic subjects are about 30%. The graduate of Vocational Training has better chance for either employment or starts his/her own business.  A well-trained labour force could play an important role in the South Sudan labour market. Additionally, vocational training is associated with real needs and practical labour use. It helps create local jobs, contributes to economic structure transfer, and labour restructuring in rural areas, thus contributing to poverty reduction. In other words, vocational training is closely connected to production and business labour use.

  

To achieve South Sudan economic and social transformation through TVET, there is a need for balanced education, there is a need to build awareness nationwide about its importance. Technical and Vocational Training is widely regarded as kind of education for those who have not competed or dropped out from general education. Thus attitude has badly damaged the image of this valuable aspect of education and skills development and reduced the enrollment rate. Sadly enough this attitude is being confirmed by some of the so call academician as well as some politician and decision makers. When it comes to budget allocation general education is allocated much higher budget compared to TVET. 

 

There is a hug demand for skilled South Sudanese to deliver sustainable services, such as running water, constant power supply, roads, transports, hospitality as well as access to better health services etc. It is widely believed that knowledge and skills are important, first, to improve food production, nutrition, hygiene, and health care, and second to acquire skills for earning the money necessary to improve the quality of life and emerge from poverty.

 

The History of TVET in South Sudan is as early as 1970s and it has been in the mainstream of skills training offered at Vocational Training Centers (VTCs) and Technical Secondary School (TSS). The skills training offered in these establishments include Building and Construction, Carpentry, Welding and sheet Metal Fabrication, Automotive, Electrical Installation, Tailoring and food processing etc. The training durations varies from 3 - 9 months, and up to 3 years. VTCs and TSS, among others, were Juba, Malakal, Wau, Lanya, Torit, and Amadi. Unfortunately some of these establishments are either destroyed during the war or underfunded to execute their mandate.       

 

Vocational Training is being offered currently by the public government institutions, and private sectors. The total number of vocational training centers and vocational training providers is not yet known due to lack of official documentation. However, the Directorate of Vocational Training at the Ministry of Labour, Public Service and Human Resource Development manage and supervise five public vocational training centers, namely, Multiservice Training Center, Juba, Malakal, Wau, Maban, and Aluakluak.     

 

The emphasis on Vocational Training is that of providing relevant skills training for the South Sudanese, for reconstruction and development. In this context, the Ministry of Labour, Public Service and Human Resource Development (MoLPSHRD) continues to develop and review policies and programs, which enhance the rate of human resource development to meet targeted social and economic growth.

 

On the other hand the Ministry of Education Science and Technology (MoEST) has embarked efforts to revive TVET in various dimensions, currently there are few number of TSS and VTCs Under its supervision. Last month the MoEST conducted TVET Secondary Technical Schools Curriculum Development Workshop. The objective of this workshop was to Make a statement of the role of TVET schools within the overall system, Recommend a structure and balance of the TVET school curriculum, Define the subjects that should be core to this curriculum and how these should fit with the syllabuses of academic schools, among others.

 

It worth mentioning that there are some others line ministries offers some sort of skills development such as, Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, as well as Ministry of Gender among others. There are also ranges of NGO, NNGO and Faith Based Organization offers some sort of Vocational Training however, this also needs to be regulated to meet with quality and standards.   

 

All these efforts are being made to skill South Sudanese with the necessary skills for nation building and economic prosperity. Much more there should be strong political will and commitment to invest on skills development. 

 

The currently operational TVET institutions with the support of the Government and the development partners have relatively done well but not enough in building the skills of South Sudanese much more should be done to achieve economic and social transformation in South Sudan. Still there are a lot of challenges need to be address such as lack of machineries, tools and equipments, low human resource capacity and the absence of policies and regulations to assure quality deliverance of skills training etc.

 

As the negotiation goes on in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, we are optimistic that peace for sure shall prevail in our beloved South Sudan soon or later. The concerns are many among others, there is a need for people with the Skills and knowledge of how to do construct and rehabilitates the physical infrastructure, another area of concern is the status and the future of the huge numbers of youth holding guns of which majority are illiterate and lacks the basic requirement for making a living. Given this challenge their reintegration in the society to my understanding shall be the trickiest part.

 

Written by

Daniel Ruben Ateng

TVET researcher

danielruben2@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

TVET Secondary Schools Curriculum Development workshop

22 to 25 September 2014, Rock City Hotel,

Juba - South Sudan

Introduction:

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology in collaboration with UNICEF organized a four days workshop drawing participants from the Ministry of Education Science and Technology, Ministry of Labor Public Service and Human Development Resource, Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports; and Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.  Instructors from various states' Technical Secondary Schools and Vocational Training Centers were invited making the total number of 50 participants in this workshop. The workshop was facilitated by two facilitators from the Curriculum Foundation, this is a U.K based organization specialized in curriculum development and had worked with more than eight countries from Asia, Africa and Europe. The main objective of this workshop is to develop an understanding among the TVET stakeholder on the TVET curriculum framework. 

The workshop was officially open by acting Undersecretary Mr. Lino Grifio; in his remarks, he emphasized much on bringing TVET programs visionary with clear objectives.

 

TVET is defined by UNESCO as: "Those aspects of the educational process involving, in addition to general education, the study of technologies and related sciences and arts, together with the acquisition of practical skills, attitudes, understanding and knowledge relating to occupation in various sectors of economic life"

TVET thus equips people not only with vocational skills, but with a broad range of knowledge, skills and attitudes that are now recognized as indispensable for meaningful participation in work and life. These knowledge, skills and attitudes combine to become "competencies" such as communication, problem-solving, co-operation and entrepreneurial abilities

Purpose of the Workshop:

•      Make a statement of the role of TVET schools within the overall system

•      Agree if there should be distinct Aims and Principles for TVET Schools

•      List the TVET competencies

•      Recommend a structure and balance of the TVET school curriculum

•      Define the subjects that should be core to this curriculum and how these should fit with the syllabuses of academic schools, together with any supplementary syllabuses that might be necessary

•      Recommend the structure and range of vocational courses to be offered

•      Recommend ways of working with employers

•      Recommend actions that might be taken to establish an overall qualifications framework

•      Recommend the process for writing and revising the TVET syllabuses.

 

Workshop Activities

The methodology used in this workshop was a combination of lectures, power point presentation as well as  group discussion where by the participants were divided into four groups based on the area of their specialization i.e. Technical Secondary School Group, Vocational Training Group, Commercial Secondary School Group and Agriculture Secondary School Group. In each day of the workshop the groups discussed questions posted by the facilitators and wrote the answers they had agreed upon. In this part we shall present a summary of what had been discussed in these groups each day.

First day group discussion:  Status of TVET

The groups were asked to discuss the below question and thereafter present their findings to the participants. The answers presented herein are a sum up of what had been presented.  

·         How should the vocational education offered TVET schools fit with post-school vocational training?

The group agreed that, the vocational education offered in TVET School should fit with post-school vocational training by designing courses that directly linked to fit post-schools VT and enables the trainees to get employed.

 

·         Should TVET schools be more than an alternative route for students who have dropped out or who cannot cope with an academic curriculum?

 

The group came out with the position that; the TVET schools should not be an alternative route, but a route by itself, parallel to general education. It was emphasis that there should be balance education in South Sudan and that means TVET should be given the same accord.

 

·         Who should TVET schools serve?

In this group discussion it was agreed that TVET schools should serve every South Sudanese citizen, regardless of race, gender or physical ability and interested ones to get equip with knowledge and skills.

 

 

• Should there be minimum entry requirements / qualifications?

The group in their deliberations accepted that, there should be minimum entry requirements/ qualifications for some categories of enrolment levels

 

• Should TVET schools provide a general TVET- focused education, or should they provide a qualification for one specific vocation?

It was agreed that TVET should provide qualification for one specific vocation instead of being general.

• If specific, how specific?

To be specific to a trade, For example the trainee can be trained in automotive only. 

 

·         What categories of training are you offering in the vocational Training centers?

The groups listed the following trades that are offered in their various training centers and technical schools:

1.      Auto-mechanic

2.      Building and construction

3.      Carpentry and joinery

4.      Electrical installation and solar fitting

5.      Secretarial courses

6.      Computer literacy

7.      Welding and metal fabrication

8.      Tailoring and fashion design

9.      Plumbing and pipe fitting

10.  Agriculture

a.       Crops

b.      Animal production

c.       Poultry 

11.  Commercial

a.       Book keeping and accounting

b.      Banking

c.       Office management

d.       Commercial

 Second day group discussion

 

 On this day after presentation the groups were asked to formulate the TVET policy statement 

 The statement could be TVET policy to be flexible, accessible equitable and demand-driven.

Third day group work

 

TVET pathway and certification

 TVET consultant from the Ministry of Education Science and Technology presented the proposed structure of South Sudan TVET as shown in the below diagram.

 

It was notice that the proposed structure did not provide a pathway from Primary 8 to Vocational Training as well as there were many exits. Secondly there is no possibility for the Apprentices from the world of work to joint TVET any time they wanted. Therefore it was recommended that this structure to be revise in order to cater for the needs of the various group.  

 

 

The vocational group has amended the proposed TVET pathway and certification organogram in the side of vocational training from short term constant certification to only three levels; that is,

1.      The foundation level to accommodate access to the school dropout and illiterate trainees

2.      Level 1 – for primary leavers joining the vocational training which is equivalent to those joining the technical secondary schools and this must be two year course for craft certificate certification.

3.      Level 2 – for the craft certificate students who requires advance course and those who has been in the world of works after attending the craft certificate courses. The advance course programs takes also two years and access the chances to enrolment to the polytechnic college.

 

 

 Fourth Day group work discussion:

 

On this day all groups were requested elaborate on the proposed certification system as shown on the proposed South Sudan TVET structure. The groups agreed that there should unified certification systems i.e. the graduates of Senior Secondary Technical Schools shall be award South Sudan National Technical Certificate. Vocational Training graduates could be given certificates based on their training modular. The certification should range from foundation certificate to craftsman certificate level one and two. 

General Education Act 2012

The education system in the Republic of South Sudan shall be directed towards meeting the following goals:

 

• Eradicate illiteracy, improve employability of young people and adults and promote lifelong learning for all citizens;
• Provide equitable access to learning opportunities for all citizens to redress the past inequalities in education provision;
• Achieve equity and promote gender equality and the advancement of the status of women;
• Contribute to the personal development of each learner and to the moral, social, cultural, political and economic development of the nation;
• Promote national unity and cohesion;
• Enhance the quality of education and encourage a culture of innovation and continuous school improvement and effectiveness; and
• Develop and promote a general scientific approach in education.

                                                           

How should the vocational education offered in TVET schools fit with post-school vocational training?

Purpose of TVET Schools

TVET Schools should provide a wide range of vocational education and training to anyone who wishes to take vocational courses.  They should cater for the whole range of people from those with high academic ability who have successfully completed their primary school course, to those who dropped out of school or were never able to attend.

They should be seen as a prestigious stage of education that offers high status courses, valuable qualifications and entry to employment, and also offers a route to higher education for those people who wish to continue.

The range of course offered should include access or catch-up courses, and functional literacy and numeracy for those who have not successfully competed primary education.  They should also offer short, medium and long courses that lead to vocational, trade and professional qualifications for student who are starting at a higher level.  There should be some general courses that allow students to survey a range of professional options before deciding on one, as well as courses that focus specifically on one vocation.

Courses should be practical and industry-related, responding to the latest developments in the sector.  They should develop the necessary specific sector-related skills, and also the general knowledge, skills and attitudes that student need for employment and for life.  Whilst equipping students for specific vocational competences they should also enable students to develop the capacity to adapt and to be life-long learners.

The vocational training center, according to the new vocational policy has to include the compulsory subject as the technical secondary schools to become core and these include physics, geography, chemistry, C.R.E, English language and computer. The TVET syllabuses should be demand –driven that meet the market and the need of the society. English language as communication language focus on paraphrasing the theoretical and principle contents and mathematics for problem –solving, estimates and calculations as functional demand

What is a Qualifications Framework

All UK technical and academic qualifications that receive government funding are mapped onto the qualifications and credit framework (QCF) (England, wales and Northern Ireland) and the Scottish credit and qualification (SCQF). Both these frameworks enable learners, providers and employers to understand achievements and plan future learning.

Learners take flexible, unit-based routes to full qualifications by accumulating credits. Progression to higher level learning is encouraged by ensuring that units and sometimes sector areas. This reduces repetition of learning and assessment.

Purpose of a Qualifications Framework

·         Set national standards

·         Relate one qualification to another

·         Enable employers to understand qualifications

·         Enable schools to relate to other providers

·         Enable learners to find appropriate routes

 

 What kind of learning structures shall we have? Should it be as below?

 

 

•      How can the suggested approach work for learners who have not completed primary education?

•      How can we construct parallel routes?

•      How could we arrange cross links?  Should these be pathways?  Or common experience?

•      What should be the exit points?

 

•      What qualifications do you offer at the moment for your courses?  How do these relate to one another?

•      How do these relate to the suggested certification framework?

•      What would you need to change?  What opportunities does this open up for the design of new courses?

What would a Qualifications Framework for South Sudan look like

 

Structure:  The structure of the qualification framework for learning should  in a modular structure, the set of modules at one level must be both a complete course in them (for those students who exit at this point) and also the basis for the modules at the next level (for those students who carry on). This has significant implications for course design and expectations

 

TVET Schools and Courses

·         Agricultural

·         Commercial

·         Technical

·         Vocational

 

Range of courses

·         Short term courses

·         Medium term courses

·         Long term courses

Range of providers

The public sector, privates sector and industrial enterprise

The implication of the workshop related to our activities at the DVT

This TVET curriculum process has no any implication of DVT activities, for students to access studies in the university we should consider to add advance levels (certificate level two) as well as addressing the below mention.

·         The issue of addressing the illiterate trainees

·         The supplementary subjects.

·         The technical and vocational training ladder which designed for technical education runs from primary (8) years, senior secondary (4 years) and those willing to join polytechnic college (3 years) and those directly joining the universities (4- 6 years).

·          Vocational Training institutions; the illiterate trainees starts from the foundation level (3-9months), one year level 1 – for proficient certificate , one year level 2 – for artisan certificate, one year level 3  for craft certificate  and one year level 4 – technician certificate making a total of 4 years before joining the polytechnic college and the university.

 

Recommendation:

The next stage of the TVET workshop deliberations should focus to:

·         Finalize and approve the structure and levels

·         Confirm the TVET  framework

·         Work with vocational sectors to identify sector needs

·         Hold workshop to write the curriculum content

CLOSING REMARKS:

The Director of Curriculum Development welcome the Minister for coming to close the workshop which has gone successfully four three days; although it was in a difficult time. Appreciating the effort exerted by the consultants as their contract has expired.

The consultants thanked the government of South Sudan for coming up with clear vision for TVET program and agreed on the curriculum framework to TVET schools with aims of the core values, principles and competence.

The representative of the participant who is the principal of Yei vocational center under ECS appreciated the move taken by the ministry of education, science and technology in organizing for this workshop which has involved all vocational training institutions.

The undersecretary in the ministry, Michael Lopuke, appreciated the workshop, calling it as train coming back from Scotland to London; he stressed very much on hard work to transform the man power of TVET to realized development in the industrial sector and TVET programs in particular. He urged the department of the curriculum to prepare a database that will include the list of every participant who has participated in this workshop and called them change agents of the world change.

His Excellency, the minister, presented his two points expressing building a strong foundation for TVET activities by next year TVET may expose their programs. He appreciated the outcome of the workshop and proposes the next step of the deliberations be taken to other states as assured that the planning of TVET is accurate and TVET became the center of curriculum development and declares the workshop closed.