Vocational education in New Zealand : How the Open

Polytechnic and industry training organisations work together

Terry NealOpen Polytechnic of New ZealandJuly 2011

New Zealand

New Zealand

•4 million people (1/300 India)

•270,000 sq km (1/10 India)

•Agriculture, horticulture, fishing, forestry, mining, tourism

•2010 – 3rd most ‘developed’ (life expectancy, education and income)

New Zealand Education

•2009 - first equal global Education Index

•2/3 Adult literacy (99%)

•1/3 Gross enrolment rate

•Global vocational education measures

•2nd highest entry rates

•5th highest achievement rates

Vocational education

… acquisition of practical skills, attitudes, understanding and knowledge relating to occupations in various sectors of economic and social life (UNESCO, 2002)

TVET history in NZ

•1877 – basic education compulsory

•1885 – first technical school – evening study

•1895 – Plumbers’ Board – compulsory TVET for apprentices

•1944 – national distance provider, theory compulsory for apprentices, NZ Trades Certification Board

TVET history in NZ

•1970s and 1980s - Technical institutes stopped from offering degrees (stop academic drift)

•1990s – education sector reforms

•ITOs formed

•National qualifications system

Industry training organisations

•Standards and qualifications development

•Labour market forecasting

•Workforce development

•Address skills shortages

•Improve productivity

•Industry training

Standards and qualifications development

•Define occupational standards

•Competencies

•Unit standards

•Qualifications

•Ten levels

•Transferable

Qualifications review

•Too many qualifications – decrease local

•Easier for learners and employers to understand and compare

•More outcomes focused

•Less minutely descriptive

Industry training

•Unique model since 1990s

•25% NZ tertiary learners

•On- and off-job training

•Over 1000 national qualifications

•Trades, service sectors, primary industries, manufacturing, retail, community work…

Industry training

•Range of models

•Employer/workplace

•Trainee

•ITO advisor

•Training agreement

•Tertiary provider – public or private

Industry training •Ten fold increase in learners over 14 years

•50% increase in employers over 7 years

•25% of learners, 5% of tertiary education spend

•Industry 30% of cash costs, plus in kind contribution

Open Polytechnic

•Formal tertiary

•Began 1944

•30,000 learners

•Partner with many ITOs for industry training

•‘As distance as possible’

Disaggregated value chain

Accounting business degree

Foundation programme

Financial Services programme

Drainlaying programme

Ideal distance vocational education

•Relevant

•Transferable

•Flexible

•Quality

•Well-perceived

•Cost-effective

Relevant and transferable

•Industry-defined competencies

•National framework

•Link to workplace

•Industry advisory groups

•ITO involvement

Relevant

•Assessment

•21st century skills

•Problem-based

•Project based

•Team-based

•Work-based

•Flows back to teaching

•Technology changes the rules

Flexible

•Choose where

•National spread

•Choose when

•Open enrolment

•Self-paced - but supported

•Minimal synchronous activities

•Modular

Quality

• Learning design

• Blend of available tools and strategies

• Activity, not content, focused

• Materials development

• Academic support

• Learning support

• Library

• NZQA review

Quality

• Increased consistency

• Decreased impact of variable human element

• Decreased dependence on tutor expertise

• Greater range of subject matter expertise

Well-perceived

•Same quality standards and evaluators

•Not a problem in NZ

•Different product – different marketing

Cost effective

Distance economies of scale (cf India!)

•One off fixed cost - materials

•Decreased variable costs

•No or less need for physical infrastructure

•Range of models to use existing infrastructure

Conclusion

New Zealand has a mature, world-class vocational education system, in which industry training organisations play an

important role. The industry training and ‘as distance as possible’ models offer qaulity, cost-effective, scalable options

to help solve India's vocational education challenges.