The broad thinking around 21st century learning acknowledges the need for new “form and
function” to be added to education goals. This thinking is informed by a belief that learning must
leverage the affordances of new technologies, employ better pedagogies based on recent research
on how people learn, and be cognizant of the characteristics of a new breed of learners. This is
not say that “basics” and “core subject learning” need to be done away with Smartbean, 2009.
To summarize, the 21st century skills can be stated as the following, “To be productive
contributors to society in our 21st century, you need to be able to quickly learn the core content of a
field of knowledge while also mastering a broad portfolio
of essentials
learning, innovation,
technology, and careers skills needed for work and life” Trilling Fadel, 2009, p16.
15. Enhancing
TVET efficiency
and effectiveness
To enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of TVET, there are few suggestions to be considered:
horizontal and vertical articulations, breaking down the barriers between formal, non-formal and
informal approaches, and enhancing school- business and industry partnerships. Increased
possibilities for transfer between vocational and academic courses have been initiated in Indonesia,
including improved progression routes into, and out of, the vocational tracks. In practice, however, there
are many obstacles in the fields. For vertical articulation, a further development has been to
devise progression routes for the vocational tracks so that successful students may have further access
to tertiary level education and some courses taken at secondary level can be matriculated for tertiary
level courses.
The implementation of National Qualification Framework NQF that recognizes all forms of
learning at various levels will minimize the barriers between formal, non-formal and informal learning
and promote lifelong learning. NQF
incorporates the qualifications from each education and
training sector into a single comprehensive national qualifications framework which is
very useful for recognizing various types of learning.
To improve
the relevancy
of TVET
programmes, partnerships between school and industry is necessary. School and industry can share
resources that will benefit both parties. The strong partnership with industry can also improve job
information and career guidance for the students.
To address the issue of access and equality, TVET should open to all by including minorities,
disadvantages groups, and reaching the unreached regardless of gender, ethnic, and religious
background by using the ICTs and other approaches,. This expansion, however, should
correspond to the needs of labour market and national economy. The government has a role to
provide education, especially TVET for all, providing career guidance to the students, and in
the end let them decide what type of education they want to pursue.
16.
Continuous Improvement
through Research and Development
The initiation of research division at the school level or district level is necessary at least to
tackle institutional research in this knowledge- based economy. Secondary and postsecondary
educational institutions should work hand in hand to conduct research to proliferate research-based
policies
and practices.
Some of the research
agenda that can be tackled
are TVET
management and
quality assurance
that eventually can improve of overall
TVET quality and the image of TVET.
By
utilizing the
data from school, alumni,
and industries, a school
management should encourage
their staff
to conduct
institutional research. This type of research can among others continuously update school statistics,
tracer study, and labour market prediction. To
improve teaching-learning
process, teachers should be equipped with skills in
conducting classroom action research. This will provide opportunity for teachers to share their
experiences with others in conferences or through publication of their findings that eventually will
inspire them to improve their teaching, improve their creativity and innovativeness.
17. Concluding remarks
TVET does not exist in a vacuum; it is shaped and should correspond to the changing demand of
labour market, economy, and socio-cultural phenomena that is affected by globalization. TVET
roles in the 21st century are paramount, providing opportunities for individuals for better careers and
lives,
helping industries
improve their
Top: Represent students
outcomes
Bottom: Represent the
support system
76
performances, and improve quality of national workforces that will help country’s prosperity.
In the past, material forces were dominant in national growth, prestige, and power; now products
of the mind take precedence. Previously, developed countries were thinking hard about how to
continuously improve the quality of products while the developing countries were focusing on
producing cheaper products. In this era, where knowledge economy is getting more dominant, the
dichotomy between “head” or thinking countries and “body” or manufacturing countries including
the types of work that TVET graduates perform is getting blur. The results of this blurring dichotomy
are new and productive partnerships between developed or nations, which design products, and
the developing nations Brown Lauder, 2010. TVET, therefore, can be the mediator between
developed and developing nations by exchanging their workforces and expertise to complement each
other.
In this 21st century where technological changes are fast moving and labour mobility is
continuously increasing, TVET should be able to address the current trends and issues. From the ten
selected trends and issues identified by SEAMEO VOCTECH, CPSC, and UNESCO-UNEVOC, this
paper offers some initiatives in response; among others are the needs to integrate 21st century skills
in the curriculum. To integrate these skills, TVET institutions should integrate academic learning with
technical learning across the curriculum, maintain high academic standards for all students, and focus
on careers in growing or emerging industries.
To address
TVET efficiency
and effectiveness, we can introduce articulation, both
horizontal and
vertical, initiate
National Qualification Framework, enhance partnership with
industry, and reaching the unreached especially by using ICTs. Allowing students to earn college
credit for college-level courses taken in high school can promote TVET and attract students.
Continuous improvement of TVET through research and sharing should be encouraged, starting
from institutional research, classroom action research, and can be expanded to applied research.
This 21st century is an era full of challenges; innovations are happening all the times and in large
scale; the world becomes “smaller” and “flatter” in the sense that people can access to information
easier and can participate in collaborative works across nations regardless of their differences. To
face this era, TVET practitioners should think and practice differently to prepare graduates with
competencies, not only relevant skills but also general knowledge that can be applied in the fast
changing working environment.
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