ANGLO-SAXON VS GERMANIC TVET SYSTEMS: CAN NATIONAL

QUALIFICATION FRAMEWORKS STILL ENSURE INDUSTRY ENGAGEMENT ?

SANTOSH MEHROTRA, PROF OF ECON. AND DIRECTOR, CENTRE FOR INFORMAL SECTOR AND LABOUR,

JAWAHARLAL NEHRU UNIVERSITY, NEW DELHI

SANTOSHMEH@GMAIL.COM

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STRUCTURE OF PRESENTATION

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• Two world views of Industry engagement with skills ecosystem – Germanic and Anglo-

Saxon – NVQs within the latter

• Developing countries two major questions: how to ensure industry engagement? How to

finance TVET?

• Anglo-Saxon model: NVQF - The Indian experience; The Australian experience

• 4 models of SSCs in international experience

• Implications for QATAR?

DO WE NEED AN NVQF? UNTIL 2004 HARDLY ANY COUNTRY HAD AN EFFECTIVE NVQF

• Even now only a dozen have one – mostly Anglo-Saxon; although more than 100

‘working’ on one; but look at the counterfactual!

• Germany: an industrial superpower did not have one

• No East Asian countries (eg Korea, especially China) had a NVQF, but successfully

industrialized, reduced poverty, provided jobs

• Even India’s IT Industry flourished and became a global success story, without any NVQ or a

sector qualification framework

• They had some form of standards for competency, but not NVQ

• This evidence should make the advocates of NVQs sit up and take notice

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ROLE OF STATE IN TVET IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES?

• Lacking research capacity on TVET, conceptualisation of a TVET system in a LDC is never from ‘first

principles’. Primary role of State is provide PUBLIC GOODS a. public & basic curative health

services; b. school educ – most LDC States are providing poorly; c social ins for informal workers

• In TVET the State’s role can be a. regulation; b. some funding for the poorest & micro/small

enterprises, mostly informal; c. facilitation, including thru RPL & data generation on skill gaps.

• It cannot be a. main funder; b. main organizer and main manager of TVET facilities –

EMPLOYERS SHOULD TAKE MAIN RESPONSIBILITY, as they are main beneficiaries

• What complicates LDC govt’s decision-making is that there are pre-existing government driven

structures, which have evolved in ad hoc manner over the years – forcing a path dependence; a

NVQ is grafted on these structures; NVQs meant to provide industry-driven standards for

competency-based curriculums (CBCs)

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Two world views on skill systems & industry involvement: GERMANIC AND ANGLO-SAXON

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ANGLO SAXON MODEL GERMANIC MODEL

The production relationship characterized by non-

intervention in the market processProduction relationship features a community, with

trade unions, employers, government working

together in a tradition of reciprocal responsibility

Primacy of economics Primacy of societySocial Security was developed later in 19th/20th

centuries, freedom also takes precedence over securitySocial security was developed early and more

completely in Germany

Skill is regarded as an individual attribute or property;

is associated with tasks and jobs rather than occupations

set within an industrial context; is associated with

physical/manual mastery or ability; it has no particular

association with a knowledge base.

NVQs ARE a TOOL to IMPLEMENT THIS CONCEPTION

Germany’s understanding of threefold Kompetenze

includes: Fachkompetenz: expert knowledge.

Personal kompetenz: one’s own potential as well as

ability to make and develop life plans. Sozial

kompetenz: social relations, is needed to realize

personal competence

A narrow interpretation of the skills model Skills part of Beruf (occupation): has a body of

systematically related theoretical knowledge

(Wissen) + set of practical skills (Können), AND

social identity of person who has acquired these

Source: Derived from Bercusson et al., 1992; Mückenberger, 1998; p. 37 et seq.; Clarke and Winch, 2006.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF NVQS

• NVQs grew rapidly since mid-1990s when first frameworks were established in Australia, England, New

Zealand, Scotland, and South Africa. In late 1990s and early 2000s NVQs were developed in Caribbean,

modelled on competence-based training model of the original British NVQ (Allais 2016).

• Same time period, through ‘Bologna process’, the idea of levels and learning outcomes was introduced as part

of a process of aligning higher education systems within Europe. The adoption of European QF by EU in 2008

was the peak of enthusiasm for this policy mechanism.

• By 2013 at least 142 countries were developing frameworks, with a focus on labour market mobility. A Unesco

report (Keevy and Chakroun 2015) argues for world reference levels for qualifications.

• However, David Raffe (2012), in an overview of research literature, shows the evidence is inconclusive, the

impacts of NVQs have been less than expected, have often taken many years to appear, have been negative as

well as positive. This includes a large international study commissioned by ILO in 2009 (Allais 2010) - found

little evidence that frameworks have achieved their goals.

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NVQS: THE PROMISE AND THE REALITY IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

• Earliest/most successful in a small, homogeneous country: Scotland. Lessons from Scotland are limited,

precisely because of how the framework emerged from other reforms, and because of specificities of

Scotland (Raffe). These limitations have not always been understood by policy makers, particularly in

developing countries with weak institutions. In many situations, policy makers have taken the end result

or visible product of the long years of Scottish reforms and attempted to adopt them (Allais 2016)

• There are very few frameworks that are ‘actually existing’ in any meaningful sense, although many

countries claim to be developing frameworks.

• The Scottish framework gets held up as an example of a successful framework; but actual models

adopted by countries bear no relationship to this framework either in design or process through which

it was developed (Allais 2016)

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AUSTRALIAN NVQ

• The Australian VET system is in crisis & competency-based training is at heart of crisis as it is the

foundation VET in Australia. “CBT underpins a low-trust, highly regulated system, a market that is rocked

by corruption & scandals, & a fragmented system of qualifications” (Wheelahan, 2015)

• Policy objectives in 1980s & 1990s

• Align training with Australia’s economic policy objectives – through CBT – workplace tasks & roles

• Establish a national VET system with nationally recognised & portable qualifications based on CBT

• Develop a training market that includes private as well as public providers

• Currently, only a small proportion of publicly funded qualifications have the majority of enrolments, with

a significant proportion of qualifications having very few, or no publicly funded enrolments.

• EG, of the 3909 qualifications publicly delivered from 2002 to 2013, 395 (10 per cent) had less than 10

enrolments and 894 (23 per cent) had less than 50 enrolments over that period.

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AUSTRALIA: HOW CBT FACILITATES MARKETS

• Fragments work, knowledge & skill

• Point of policy was to create a market based on CBT – training packages, with competencies the

currency

• Off the shelf products; Buy this, not that competency or skill set

• Institutions don’t have to invest

• Low-quality qualifications in a market where arguably it is too easy for providers to gain

accreditation

• Share of publicly funded training drops, pvt trng providers share climbs

• Even though the link between qualifications & jobs is weak

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AUSTRALIA:NATURE OF THE LINKS BETWEEN VOCATIONAL EDUCATION & THE LABOUR MARKET

• Tying qualifications more closely to specific jobs reduces students’ options & results in

narrow training

• Need to prepare students for broader fields of practice

• Qualifications not identical with specific occupations

• Workforce development must encompass a broader range of strategies

• WHICH IS THE GERMANIC APPROACH : ONLY 340 occupations (not qualifications!)

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INDIA’S CHALLENGES IN TVET REFORM: BUT DID NVQ SOLVE THEM?

• Lack of uniformity in qualifications across TVET institutions

• Lack of clear recognized pathways of learning in TVET

• Lack of credibility of TVET among students, parents, employers

• Lack of horizontal mobility

• Lack of formal recognition of informal prior learning

• Lack of practical training/workex, due to input-based education system promotes rote

• BUT DID NVQF AS IMPLEMENTED RESOLVE ANY OF THESE PROBS?

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NO PROBLEM RESOLVED

• Lack of uniformity in qualifications across institutions survives

• Some vertical mobility has been achieved, thanks to introduction of B. VOC. At university level – but this

has nothing to do with NSQF

• Lack of horizontal mobility survives – one of the most difficult things to achieve

• V little done to ensure RPL – when millions of workers are informal, and acquire skills informally

• Pre existing problem of serious shortage of teachers with industry experience still continues

• Lack of industry engagement survives

• Industry engagement in TVET WAS and STILL IS of v poor quality

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ANGLO-SAXON invention: the need for SSCs? Why?

• Need for Industry bodies for skills arose as manufacturing technologies became more

complex and VET systems were unable to deliver skilled manpower which could

improve productivity, quality, GVA. Govts and industry realized VET system has become

supply-driven; not able to meet exact skill needs of employers. So SSCs were

conceptualized to transform supply driven system to a demand-responsive VET system.

• As the UK Skills White Paper says, “Employers will have new powers to shape the design,

content and delivery of training to meet their needs. In return we look to employers to invest

more in training, where there is a clear return to the employer and the learner. “

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4 MODELS OF SSCS INTERNATIONALLYEmployer- involved ( 2 variants)

a) Voluntary engagement of employers in

sectoral skills debates, via

consultation:United Kingdom, Australia,

Canada, New Zealan

b) Statutory engagement of employers in

financing sectoral skills delivery and

voluntary consultation: South Africa, France,

Quebec Canada

Employer-modelled

Best practice model of skills development used to

shape training practices within the sector; Singapore

Employer-owned (Hongkong)

Employer- funded sectoral approach which ties

into sectoral skill strategies and needs, as

identified by employer’s association and

representative groups

Employer-driven ( 2 variants); Netherland

a) Public VET system determined by employer-

demand

b) Private Partnerships bringing employers together

in order to identify and invest in training

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India: 40 SSCs within 4 yrs: Functions? Performance?• The SSCs are required

• to identify skill needs of their sectors,

• develop skill development plan and skill inventory,

• determine skills/competency standards and,

• develop norms and standards for accreditation, affiliation, assessment, certification,

• carry out training of trainers, promote academies of excellence,

• create a credible and real time sectoral labour market information system and

• ensure placement of all trained persons at decent wages.

• Huge manpower is required to carry out all above important functions. However, most SSCs have a

skeleton staff which cannot meet even the day-to-day minimum functioning of the SSCs.

• India followed a centralized planning model for skill development, largely supply driven. To make system

demand responsive, first function of SSCs was identification of SD needs

• However, no SSCs has been able to design a credible demand aggregation system with exact skill needs

of sectoral employers

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Functions? Performance?

• Second major function of SSCs prepare sector skill development plan and maintain skill

inventory. Purpose to consider holistic growth of the sector by providing skilled

manpowerThis was dependent upon identification of skill development needs.

• Third function of SSCs was determination of competency standards and qualifications

and getting them notified as per National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF). SSCs

did develop National Occupational Standards (NOSs) and Qualification Packs (QPs) but

the process followed and the persons used for this purpose was highly flawed.

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Functions? Performance?

• 4th function of SSCs was training of trainers. Normally, training of trainer

after basic qualification is of 1 year duration consisting of 4 modules of 3

months each out of which Technical Training I and II are hardcore subject

skills, III is engineering and workshop calculation and IV is pedagogy and

communication skills. The trainer must have industry work experience. We

found training program of 2-5 days !!

• 5th function of SSCs: persons trained according to norms laid down are to

be employed at decent wages. However, SSCs trained 1.8 mn in 2015-16

under PMKVY of which only 12.4% were placed.

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Finally: most developing countries have large informal employment – how are these to be skilled? NVQs have nothing to say about them – as NVQs emerged in an Anglo-Saxon environment

• LAC: 50% of WF is informal – where skills are acquired informally

• Sub Saharan Africa: 80 % + is informal

• East/SE ASIA: 60% + is informal

• NVQs have nothing to say about how VET is to be ensured

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Implications for Qatar?

• Consider carefully the German vs Anglo-Saxon models

• Consider how the different components of models could be adapted

• Consider how to avoid supply-driven model: all successful sector body models have in common:

sector financing levy – 63 countries have levy-based demand-driven, INDUSTRY-LED model of

TVET

• Anglo-Saxon model focuses on specific workplace requirements; rather focus shd be on

development of person, attributes & knowledge & skills;

• Starts with the person within vocational stream not workplace tasks & roles

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Implications for Qatar?

• Consider: how existing industry associations will engage? How actual employers engage?

• Consider: what will be functions of sector bodies? How Will they engage with employers?

• Who will train trainers? Who will prepare training content and curriculum?

• Who will assess trainees? Standalone bodies? Tripartite (which is the German way)

• Will industry experience be arranged by sector bodies during training (dual sys)?

• Will there be a placement role?

THANK YOU

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