Stakeholder Forum on TVET

Stanley Hotel Nairobi, 8th July 2018

TVET Education in Kenya

•Objectives of the education sector policy - the realization of a Kenyan

workforce that is well trained and specialized to international standards;

competitiveness and prosperity of individual

•Kenya - realize an innovative economy through technological innovation

•Skills acquired through TVET are essential in preparing students for a

multiplicity of positions in the industry and the informal sector

•Focus under TVET - Providing skills that meet the needs of the workplace as

well as self employment

•TVET Policy - target of gross enrolment rate of 30% by the year 2030, places

emphasis on enhancing access to Tertiary Education

TVET Education in Kenya

•Youth Polytechnics - means to provide technical skills for

industrial and economic development consistent with the

aspirations of Kenya Vision 2030

•Youth unemployment - insufficient vocational and professional

skills and an increasing skills mismatch

•Need to combine theoretical knowledge with practical skills that

match the needs and demands of the job market.

•Question of quality education and training in youth polytechnics

is important

TVET Students Enrollment in Kenya

127,691

148,009 147,821 153,314

202,556

68,386 74,898 75,105

79,846

91,209

45,452 52,616

49,454 52,927

74,432

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Total

Male

Female

TVET Education in Kenya

•2017 edition of the Global Talent Competitiveness Index, Kenya

is ranked 97th in talent competitiveness out of 118 economies

globally. The country is ranked seventh in sub-Saharan Africa,

behind Rwanda, Zambia and Namibia

•Kenya is lagging behind the Sub-Saharan mean in several key

indicators, including vocational and technical skills, retention of

skilled talent and opportunities for growth and development of

talent.

INSEAD Business School for the World

Why students enroll in the polytechnics

Kind of service students expect

• Electronic registration of modules and application of

documents during admission

• Electronic teaching and learning

• Career counseling

• Opportunity to nurture talent like music and sports

• Courses that provide skills required by the market

• Entrepreneurial skills and other skills relevant for the work

environment like communication and interpersonal skills

• Use of modern equipment and machines in course delivery

• Enough classrooms and workshops that are conducive and safe

for learning

Adequacy of classrooms and workshops Reasons for

inadequate

classrooms:

-Offering different

courses in makeshift

rooms partitioned by

cardboards

-Small classrooms

-Combining of classes

Reasons for adequate

classrooms:

-Each department

having a designated

and sizeable classroom

Equipping of workshops and laboratories

.

•Reasons for citing

inadequate equipping:

•Unavailability of some

equipment required for

courses

•Inadequate equipment

like computers

•Lack of tools and

equipment for practical

lessons

•Lack of modern

equipment

•Dilapidated and

dysfunctional equipment

Whether the workshops have modern equipment

Availability of materials for practical lessons

Reasons for inadequate

supply of materials:

•Students queue for

practical lessons, students

share the few available

materials

•Materials run out of

stock

•Available materials have

been used over the years

hence they are of poor

quality

•Students undertake

practical lessons in

groups and some hardly

touch the equipment

•Each student comes

with their own materials

Availability and adequacy of relevant

textbooks & resources

Availability, adequacy & reliability of

electricity supply Reasons for inadequate power supply: •Low power voltage that cannot power some equipment •Tapping of electricity from administration block as classrooms are not connected. •Polytechnics face instances of power outages – none of sampled polytechnics recorded 100% availability and/ or reliability. •Most polytechnics do not have power back up systems as indicated by over 93% of respondents.

Adequacy of instructors for courses offered

Reasons for

inadequate

instructors:

•Instructors are not

permanently engaged

•Lack of instructors

for practical lessons

•Not all courses have

instructors

•Inadequate number

of instructors

•Courses having only

one instructor

Instructor’s technical and vocational competencies

Reasons for technical/vocational competencies:

• Instructors had the ability to respond to questions raised by students

• Articulate issues

• Are knowledgeable in practical lessons

• Uphold professionalism

• Demonstrate mastery of subject content and have good teaching skills

Reasons for lack of technical/vocational competencies:

• Avoidance of some topics

• Inability to teach or install apparatus.

Whether courses are well planned in terms of logical flow

Well structured: Instructors guide students from basics to the practical lessons,

lessons are guided by the timetable, and the syllabus is completed on time allowing

students adequate time to revise for examinations.

Not well structured: Time allocated for lessons is inadequate to cover content, and

time consumed by theory leaves little room for practical lessons.

Opportunities for industrial attachment

Student - Instructor Relationship

Courteous: Attentiveness when approached, staff respond to student needs, willingness by staff to assist whenever approached for clarification on an issue, respect of student opinion, politeness, staff give students adequate time to express themselves in ways and languages that they best understand Not courteous: Use of abusive language, some staff are harsh and this has in some instances caused some students to terminate lessons and some staff commandeer students.

Relationship between administrative staff and students

Staff initiative to attend to students’ needs and render the services

At least 69% of respondents in each institution rated importance of staff

initiative in rendering services and addressing student needs as either very

important or important.

Recommendations

Changing Poor Public Perception on TVET

• Development of a communication strategy

• The strategy should link learning, earnings and career possibilities and target

society as a whole with the objective of changing the view on practical

“hands-on” activities as menial work.

Planning and Curriculum Development in the TVET Sub-Sector

• Policy makers and stakeholders should undertake regular review of youth

polytechnic academic curriculum so as to ensure that it meets the demands,

standards and trends of the current job market

Recommendations

• Industry players and researchers, should also identify priority courses that the

industry needs to develop skills standards, curriculum and training materials

• Market needs analysis tools should be developed to better inform all key

stakeholders of current and future labour market needs

Developing Pre-Learners

• TVET sub sector should recognize prior-learning especially for workers

including those in the informal (Jua Kali) sector who would like to improve

their skills through training in the youth polytechnics

Recommendations Improving Learning Facilities in Youth Polytechnics

• Adequate allocation of finances to institutions with the objective of

improving efficiency and effectiveness in their administration.

• Adequate finances will ensure youth polytechnics purchase state-of-the art

equipment, maintain existing equipment and facilities, develop requisite

infrastructure including classrooms and laboratories

Ensuring Quality of Training

• Service providers in youth polytechnics should be given service quality

training that promotes friendly and caring services

• Better trained instructors are able to deliver high quality education and

industry standard training and education

• Institutions should partner with relevant industries and invite lecturers from

relevant industries for practical exposure

Recommendations

Increasing Access through Subsidy and Bursaries

• Government should consider subsidizing tuition fees to students enrolling in

vocational training facilities to enable them complete their training courses

• Consider TVET students for bursaries like any other students as a way of

encouraging more people to enroll for vocational training

• Government should increase bursary allocations for the Sub-Sector; this

would enable many students from poor household access training in these

facilities

Recommendations

• Recruit adequate qualified staff and ensure that all staff receive continuous

training and development on course delivery using modern methods,

teaching methodologies and practical knowledge

• Emphasis on assessing quality service in youth polytechnics with the

objective of ensuring quality education and fostering students’ satisfaction.

Ensuring Accountability in Delivery of Services

• Technical and Vocational Education and Training Authority should ensure

accountability in delivery of training services in vocational training facilities

• Regular monitoring of service delivery in order to address the reliability and

quality dimensions of service delivery in order to deliver on promises made

to service users.