TVET in Palestine
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Action Plan
Introduction Following the meeting between the Minister of
Education & Higher Education and the Minister of Labor, in
which both Ministers reiterated their commitment towards the
implementation of the Palestinian TVET strategy, a Task Force,
comprising staff from the two ministries and local experts
has laid down a TVET Implementation Plan. The Task Force reviewed
the previous experience of implementing the strategy, assessed
the available and needed resources for the full implementation
of the strategy and recommended an overall vision and a systematic
approach towards a comprehensive implementation plan of the
strategy. The Task Force revisited the objectives and goals
of the strategy and has identified the needed inputs and expected
outputs and the specific tasks that should be taken by each
ministry within a proposed time frame.
Background
The overall objective of the National strategy for vocational
and technical education and training is to arrive at a TVET
system which is:
- Efficient: by achieving an efficient coordination between
the various education and training providers; especially
in using the available resources in an efficient way.
- Effective: through the development of human resources
and developing curricula and systems; including licensing
and accreditation.
- Relevant: by establishing a real partnership with industry
and business especially in the design and training provision.
- Flexible: by adopting the modular curricula and introducing
a flexible mobility between training levels and streams.
- Sustainable: through the provision of a minimum governmental
funding and diversifying sources of funding.
- Equitable: by providing equal education and training
opportunity for all groups.
The two ministries have been working towards the implementation
of the strategy since 1997. Certain progress has been recorded
in some components; however progress on other components has
not reached to the perceived expectations. In general, the
implementation plan has not yet inflicted real changes at
the system level; it was limited to progress in areas such
as developing tools and systems only. This was mainly for
the following reasons:
1- Adopting large and rather ambitious objectives compared
to the available resources: Much has been done in setting
the main objectives without trying to address transitional
achievable objectives. Furthermore, these objectives were
not connected with real and sustained sources of funding.
2- Failing to effectively establish and empower the
administrative structures at the system level. There was
an absence of a unified body for follow-up, and a clear
division of responsibilities between the different training
providers.
The TF believes that the success of any implementation
plan for TVET strategy should have the following pre-conditions:
- Laying down a realistic transitional approach for
the system management to enable its smooth implementation
in the academic year of 2004/2005, based on what is
available and based on adopting needed structural adjustments
to ensure efficiency, effectiveness, relevancy, flexibility,
sustainability and equity.
- Establishing and empowering system management levels.
- Defining specific, realistic and implementable tasks
within the available time frame towards the target date.
The Transitional Structure:
1- TVET Levels:
a: Vocational and Technical Education and Training Levels:
1- Apprenticeship Training
2- Short term training
3- Vocational Education
4- Technical Education
b: Vocational and Technical Education and Training Levels:
1- Continuing vocational & Technical Education and Training
2- System Management:
The Proposed Implementation plan recommends the establishment
of the Higher Council for vocational and technical education
and training comprising, Ministry of Labor, Ministry of
Education and Higher Education, and representative from
the employees association, employees union and representative
from the private and NGO training providers, and local experts.
The council will be responsible for laying down the national
policies for TVET in Palestine and to monitor the system
performance.
It is also recommended that a Steering Committee composed
from the two Ministries be empowered and will be mandated
to follow up the implementation of TVET policies and plans,
in addition to coordinating with the relevant stakeholders.
In addition a TVET planning and development center will
be established to assist the Steering Committee within the
structure of the two ministries. This center will be a part
of the permanent structure of the two ministries and will
deal with issues related to curricula development, HRD,
and projects development.
Components of The Implementation Plan
The implementation plan aims at meeting the following outputs
by September 2004:
1- Provision of apprenticeship training for students
completing basic schooling in 3 specializations.
2- Develop modern curricula based on the modular methodology
for 15 specializations.
3- Develop an efficient system for licensing and accreditation
for TVET institutions and programs.
To achieve the above outputs, the following set of activities
will be executed between the periods May 2003 to September
2004:
1- System Management: The Steering Committee will take
the responsibilities of developing a detailed proposal for
the formation and mandate of the Higher Council for Vocational
and Technical Education and Training.
The Steering Committee will perform
the above task between the period May 2003 to October 2003
2. Applying needed changes on TVET types in Palestine:
The Steering Committee will be responsible for concluding
the following activities:
1- Conduct a comparison study on the labor market and
available TVET programs in Palestine and the Ministries
available capabilities and those available in neighboring
countries. The main purpose of this study is to define:
a. TVET programs that should be provided in Palestine
and the distribution of these programs on the various
levels.
b. The type of aprentischip training to be adopted in
Palestine.
c. The set of measures to develop the capacity of the
Ministry of Labor to run and manage the apprenticeship
training.
d. The modifications which should be adopted on the different
TVET tracks.
2. Propose needed structural changes to facilitate the implementation
of the plan. Each Ministry would study these changes and
adopt it within their means.
3. Prepare a preliminary outline on a group of developmental
projects needed to be implemented by the two ministries
to apply the outputs of the above mentioned study .
4. Prepare a detailed outline on the needed human and
financial resources for implementing the study results.
The Steering Committee will perform
the above activity between the period April 2003 and October
2003.
3. Curricula Development
The main objective of this component is to develop modern
Palestinian TVET curricula which meet maximum flexibility
and relevancy to labor market needs. The Ministry of Education
and Higher Education will take the responsibility of implementing
this task, The following set of outputs will be developed:
a. Setting up the general structures for TVET curricula
according to type and level.
b. Developing Comprehensive curricula and training materials
for trainers and trainees for 15 specializations.
c. Training trainers and supervisors on implementing the
new curricula.
d. Developing a mechanism for continuous curricula development.
The Ministry of Education &
Higher Education will be responsible of achieving the above
activities between the period May 2003 and August 2004.
4. Developing the Apprenticeship Training System
The overall objective of this component is to develop and
apply the aprentischip training in Palestine in three specializations.
The Ministry of Labor will take the responsibility of developing
this system including the following outputs:
a. Identify the potential specializations that could
be implemented in Palestine.
b. Build the capacity of the Ministry of Labor to run
and manage the apprenticeship training system.
The Ministry of Labor will conduct
this activity between the period August, 2003 and August
2004.
5. Licensing and Accreditation System
The overall objective of this component lies in developing
and adopting a national unified system for Licensing and
accreditation of TVET institutions and programs. The Ministry
of Education & Higher Education and the Steering Committee
will take the responsibility for developing this component
in cooperation with the National Commission for Accreditation
and Quality Assurance. The following outputs are expected:
a. Establishing a specialized unit for the purpose of
accrediting and licensing TVET institutions and programs
within the structure of the National Commission for Accreditation
and Quality Assurance.
b. Setting-up the general rules and regulations for licensing
and accrediting TVET institutions and programs.
c. Establishing standards for internal and external evaluation
for TVET institutions and programs.
d. Starting the Licensing and accreditation of the various
TVET institutions and programs.
The Ministry of Education and
Higher Education and the Steering Committee will execute
the above mentioned activities between the period May 2003
and August 2004.
6. Information System The general objective of this
component is to develop the various administrative systems
needed to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of the
TVET system. The Steering Committee will continue working
on developing and operating the administrative information
system that was designed originally for the two ministries.
The Steering Committee will work
on implementing the above mentioned activity between May
2003 and September 2004.
Future Tasks
The above mentioned plan constitutes the minimum level
of intervention needed to implement the TVET strategy starting
the academic year 2004/2005. However, the following components
should be considered by the two ministries to ensure the
implementation of the strategy in its comprehensive manner:
A. Labor Market Monitoring System
The overall objective of this component is to arrive at
a labor market information system for the provision of supply
and demand indicators of the labor market. Such a system
will enable decision makers to set on the proper policies
and advise on the type and level of TVET programs. The Ministry
of Labor will be responsible for establishing such a system.
The following outcomes are expected:
a. A complete list of needed data and its relevant sources
which constitute the main input for labor market monitoring
system.
b. A list of indicators produced by the system.
c. An efficient system for the production of indicators.
d. A system for dissemination of information and reports
generated by the system.
B. Vocational Classification and Standards
The main objectives of this component is to set-up a Palestinian
system for classification of vocational workers into categories
within accredited levels of professions, and the production
of needed manuals. The Ministry of Labor will be responsible
for establishing such a system. The following outcomes are
expected:
a. An accredited system for classification of vocational
workers.
b. An accredited vocational classification manuals.
C. Human Resources Development in implementing TVET programs.
The general objective of this component is to build the
capacity of the human resources working in implementing
TVET programs. The Ministry of Education & Higher Education
will take the responsibility of this task and will include
the following outputs:
a. Qualification Standards for all human resources working
in implementing TVET programs.
b. Pre-service and in-service training programs for all
levels of human resources working in implementing TVET
programs.
c. Comparative study on qualification of existing human
resources to the qualification standards.
d. Long-term training plan for human resources.
D. Vocational Guidance & Counseling
The general objective of this component is to develop a
modern and sustainable system for vocational guidance and
counseling which enable youngsters and adults to explore
their aptitudes and abilities as well as exploring training
opportunities. The Steering Committee will assume the responsibility
of performing this task. The following outputs are expected:
a. A national center for the development and updating
of vocational guidance and counseling tools.
b. Mechanisms of provision of vocational guidance and
counseling services in different areas.
c. Qualified human resources in vocational guidance and
counseling.
d. National awareness campaigns.
E. Monitoring and Evaluation System
The general objective of this component is to develop a
unified tool for TVET system performance. The Steering Committee
will perform this task with the following expected outputs:
a. A specialized unit for the collection and analysis
of TVET system performance.
b. A complete list of qualitative and quantitative indicators
for measuring TVET system performance.
c. An annual reports of TVET system.
6. Implementation Plan Requirements: It is
of utmost important to secure financial support to enable
a number of activities to be carried out immediately. These
are:
A. The provision of technical assistance for the Steering
Committee for the purpose of:
- Designing a group of developmental projects needed for
the implementation plan.
- Setting-up the legal aspects for the establishment
of the necessary bodies and commissions for the development
and the management of the TVET system.
- Following-up the implementation plan with the various
parties.
B. Conducting a comparative study on the labor market and
available TVET programs in Palestine.
C. Establishing the National Council for Vocational &
Technical Education and Training, including:
- Setting
the internal by-laws of the council
- Specifying the legal and administrative status of the
TVET development Center
- Train and upgrade the human resources needed for the Center.