Skills Development for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Asia-Pacific

Maclean, Rupert (Ed.); Jagannathan, Shanti (Ed.); Sarvi, Jouko (Ed.) Book — Published Version Skills Development for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Asia-Pacific Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Issues, Concerns and Prospects, No. 19 Provided in Cooperation with: Springer Nature Suggested Citation: Maclean, Rupert (Ed.); Jagannathan, Shanti (Ed.); Sarvi, Jouko (Ed.) (2013) : Skills Development for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Asia-Pacific, Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Issues, Concerns and Prospects, No. 19, ISBN 978-94-007-5937-4, Springer, Dordrecht, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-5937-4 This Version is available at: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/182364 Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. 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If the documents have been made available under an Open Content Licence (especially Creative Commons Licences), you may exercise further usage rights as specified in the indicated licence. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/legalcode Skills Development for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Asia-Pacific For further volumes: http://www.springer.com/series/6969 Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Issues, Concerns and Prospects Volume 19 Series Editor-in-Chief: Professor Rupert Maclean, Centre for Lifelong Learning Research and Development, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Hong Kong, China Associate Editors: Professor Felix Rauner, TVET Research Group, University of Bremen, Germany Professor Karen Evans, Institute of Education, University of London, United Kingdom Editorial Advisory Board: Professor Bob Adamson, Team Leader, UNESCO-UNEVOC Centre, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, [People’s Republic of] China Dr David Atchoarena, Division for Planning and Development of Education Systems, UNESCO, Paris, France Dr Andra ´s Benedek, Ministry of Employment and Labour, Budapest, Hungary Dr Paul Benteler, Stahlwerke Bremen, Germany Professor Michel Carton, NORRAG c/o Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva, Switzerland Dr Chris Chinien, Workforce Development Consulting, Montreal, Canada Dr Claudio De Moura Castro, Faculade Pita ´goras, Belo Horizonte, Brazil Dr Michael Frearson, SQW Consulting, Cambridge, United Kingdom Dr Lavinia Gasperini, Natural Resources Management and Environment Department, Food and Agriculture Organization, Rome, Italy Dr Philipp Grollmann, Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BiBB), Bonn, Germany Professor W. Norton Grubb, Graduate School of Education, University of California, Berkeley, United States of America Dr Dennis R. Herschbach, Faculty of Education Policy and Leadership, University of Maryland, College Park, United States of America Dr Oriol Homs, Centre for European Investigation and Research in the Mediterranean Region, Barcelona, Spain Professor Moo-Sub Kang, Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training, Seoul, Republic of Korea Dr Bonaventure W. Kerre, School of Education, Moi University, Eldoret, Kenya Dr Gu ¨nter Klein, German Aerospace Centre, Bonn, Germany Dr Wilfried Kruse, Sozialforschungsstelle Dortmund, Dortmund Technical University, Germany Professor Jon Lauglo, Department of Educational Research, Faculty of Education, University of Oslo, Norway Dr Alexander Leibovich, Institute for Vocational Education and Training Development, Moscow, Russian Federation Professor Robert Lerman, Urban Institute, Washington, United States of America Ms Naing Yee Mar, UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training, Bonn, Germany Professor MuntherWassef Masri, National Centre for Human Resources Development, Amman, Jordan Dr Phillip McKenzie, Australian Council for Educational Research, Melbourne, Australia Dr Theo Raubsaet, Centre for Work, Training and Social Policy, Nijmegen, Netherlands Professor Barry Sheehan, Melbourne University, Australia Dr Madhu Singh, UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning, Hamburg, Germany Dr Jandhyala Tilak, National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration, New Delhi, India Dr Pedro DanielWeinberg, formerly Inter-American Centre for Knowledge Development in Vocational Training (ILO/ CINTERFOR), Montevideo, Uruguay Professor Adrian Ziderman, Bar-llan University, Ramat Gan, Israel Rupert Maclean •Shanti Jagannathan Jouko Sarvi Editors Skills Development for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Asia-Pacific Editors Rupert Maclean The Hong Kong Institute of Education Tai Po, Hong Kong, China Shanti Jagannathan Regional and Sustainable Development Asian Development Bank Metro Manila, Philippines Jouko Sarvi Education Practice Leader Asian Development Bank Metro Manila, Philippines ISSN 1871-3041 ISSN 2213-221X (electronic) ISBN 978-94-007-5936-7 ISBN 978-94-007-5937-4 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-5937-4 Springer Dordrecht Heidelberg New York London Library of Congress Control Number: 2012954859 The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) or its Board of Governors or the governments they represent. 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The publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein. Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com) Foreword Appropriate policies and practices for skills development currently occupy a dominant place in development discourse. As countries in Asia and the Pacific recalibrate their growth models to consolidate their positions in the global economy, availability of a highly skilled and technically qualified human resource base will be a crucial determinant of success. In their quest to gain market shares in higher-order manufacturing and services, governments and other stakeholders are paying close attention to developing the requisite technical and scientific capabilities. If emerging economies in Asia and the Pacific are to maintain their robust economic growth rates, they need to respond to the challenges posed by the ascent of knowledge economies. The labor cost advantages in manufacturing of the past are giving way to innovation-intensive competitiveness based on the ability to generate new ideas, products, and processes. Mere cost advantages are no longer sufficient, and companies should have a holistic approach considering economic, social, environmental, and financial aspects. Advancement of societies is predicated on putting knowledge and innovation to work and developing new products and new services. This requires governments to have appropriate policies and incentives to deepen talent pools and to expand access to market-relevant skills development to the disadvantaged sections of the population. ADB has long collaborated with its developing member countries as a financial and knowledge partner on pressing development challenges. In the area of skills and training, ADB is working with governments to help them simultaneously achieve several interrelated objectives: inclusive economic growth, human capital development, innovation and technology absorption, and social cohesion. ADB attaches great importance to education and skills training, not just for their own merit, but also as enablers to fully realize gains from other key developmental areas, including infrastructure, environment, and finance sector. ADB convened an international skills forum at its Manila headquarters in December 2011. This was the first in an annual series of annual knowledge sharing events that ADB intends to organize. The forum brought together a diverse group of international experts, CEOs of companies and institutions engaged in skills and workforce development, and representatives of multilateral agencies, government, v and the private sector. This volume compiles their valuable contributions to advance thinking and practice related to skills development. We are deeply grateful to the participating individuals and institutions for sharing their insights and perspectives. This volume reflects our common desire to build a shared understanding of key priorities in the skills sector and more importantly a shared commitment, pooling our knowledge and resources. It is my hope that this volume advances dialogue on effective policies and practices for creating a highly skilled and creative workforce and talent pool that is essential to achieving inclusive economic growth in Asia and the Pacific. Asian Development Bank Bindu Lohani Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines Vice-President (Knowledge Management and Sustainable Development) vi Foreword Preface This volume brings together views, perspectives, and insights from policy makers, practitioners, and leading experts on skills development for inclusive and sustainable growth. ADB is privileged to have collaborated with such an eminent group of professionals in this endeavor to put together the combined wisdom and experiences for wider knowledge sharing. The volume is organized in four parts: the first part provides an introduction to major trends and concerns relating to skills development. The second part addresses prominent issues and strategies that are emerging in the TVET and skills development sector in the countries of Asia and the Pacific region in response to the key challenges confronting them. The third part looks at the link between technical and vocational education and training and the imperatives of greening economies – if and how education and training are responding to green growth. The fourth and the last part draws together prominent trends to articulate an emerging framework for policy and action in the skills and training sector that development partners could consider in their future activities and investments. Chapter 1traces the trends and developments associated with skills development and the experiences of Asia in comparison with other parts of the world. Chapter 2explores the issue of lifelong learning in the context of skills development. Chapter 3discusses how secondary and tertiary education systems are incorporating vocational education and training. Chapter 4articulates the important ecosystem that is needed for the successful translation of training into employment and occupations. Chapters 5and 6analyze the influence of movement of labor from rural to urban areas and the role of ICT and their implications for skills development. Chapters 7,8and 9elaborate upon the challenges in moving from technical and vocational education and training (TVET) to workforce development, in measuring skills and qualifications and appropriate models for skills development that permeate the large informal sector that is widespread in many parts of Asia. Chapters 10 and 11 provide insights into recent policy measures to address skill shortages particularly by engaging the private sector in India and in responding to underemployment and migration in South Asia. Chapters 12 and 13 dwell on the challenges vii 9 Skills Development Pathways in Asia ....................... 155 Cristina Martinez-Fernandez and Kyungsoo Choi 10 Public–Private Partnership to Meet the Skills Challenges in India .............................................. 181 Dilip Chenoy 11 Skills Training and Workforce Development with Reference to Underemployment and Migration ........................ 195 Brajesh Panth 12 Rural Transformation Index: Measuring Rural–Urban Disparities ............................................ 213 Li Wang, Qutub Uddin Khan, and Dian Zhang 13 Retire or Rehire: Learning from the Singapore Story .......... 241 James Yonghwee Lim Part III TVET and the Greening of Economies 14 Skills for a Green Economy: Practice, Possibilities, and Prospects ......................................... 255 John Fien and Jose Roberto Guevara 15 Education and Skills in Asia: Responding to Greening Economies ............................................ 265 Shanti Jagannathan 16 Redesigning of Curriculum and Training for Skills for Green Jobs in the Republic of Korea ............................. 281 Namchul Lee 17 Hong Kong, China Employers’ Perspectives on a CarbonConstrained Economy and How Technical and Vocational Education and Training Should Respond .................... 309 Rupert Maclean, Eric Tsang, and John Fien 18 Advancing Employability and Green Skills Development: Values Education in TVET, the Case of the People’s Republic of China .... 327 Margarita Pavlova and Chun Lin Huang (Chandler) 19 Schooling’s Contribution to a Sustainable Future in Asia: Can Schools Develop ‘Green’ Citizens? ..................... 345 Kerry J. Kennedy and Joseph Kui Foon Chow Part IV Going Forward: Possible Next Steps for a Skills Framework 20 Skills for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Asia and the Pacific ..................................... 369 Shanti Jagannathan Index ................................................... 381 xiv Contents Contributors Dilip Chenoy Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, National Skill Development Corporation, New Delhi, India Kyungsoo Choi LEED Programme (Local Economic and Employment Development), OECD, Paris, France Joseph Kui Foon Chow Faculty of Education Studies, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Tai Po, Hong Kong, China John Fien Sustainability, Design & Social Context Office, RMIT University, Hamilton, VIC, Australia Jennifer Gibb National VET Equity Advisory Council, TVET Australia, Canberra, Australia Skills Australia, Canberra, Australia Jose Roberto Guevara Global, Urban and Social Studies, RMIT University, Hamilton, VIC, Australia Chun Lin Huang (Chandler) Vice President, Zhejiang Technical Institute of Economics (ZJTIE), Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, People’s Republic of China Shanti Jagannathan Regional and Sustainable Development Department, Asian Development Bank, Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines Kerry J. Kennedy Faculty of Education Studies, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Tai Po, Hong Kong, China Department of Curriculum and Institution, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Tai Po, Hong Kong, China Qutub Uddin Khan UNESCO International Research and Training Centre for Rural Education (INRULED), Beijing, People’s Republic of China Namchul Lee Director General, Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training (KRIVET), Seoul, Republic of Korea xv James Yonghwee Lim Arrow Electronics, Singapore, Singapore Rupert Maclean Department of International Education and Lifelong Learning, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Tai Po, Hong Kong, China Cristina Martinez-Fernandez Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs and Local Development (CFE), LEED Programme, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris, France Brajesh Panth South Asia Department, Asian Development Bank, Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines Margarita Pavlova Griffith Institute for Educational Research, Griffith University, Brisbane, QLD, Australia Colin Nelson Power Emeritus Professor, University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia Shayla Ribeiro School of Education, Skills Australia, Canberra, Australia Manish Sabharwal TeamLease Services Pvt Ltd, Bangalore, Karnataka, India Jouko Sarvi Regional and Sustainable Development Department, Asian Development Bank, Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines Andreas Schleicher Deputy Director for Education and Special Advisor on Education Policy to the Secretary-General, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris, France Greg Shaw Senior Lecturer Teacher Education, School of Education, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia Robin Shreeve Skills Australia, Canberra, Australia William Thorn Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris, France Eric Tsang Science and Environmental Studies, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Tai Po, Hong Kong, China Tapio Varis Research Centre for Vocational Education, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland Li Wang UNESCO International Research and Training Centre for Rural Education (INRULED), Beijing, People’s Republic of China Dian Zhang UNESCO International Research and Training Centre for Rural Education (INRULED), Beijing, People’s Republic of China xvi Contributors Part I Major Trends and Concerns in Skills Development Chapter 1 Skills Development Issues, Challenges, and Strategies in Asia and the Pacific Rupert Maclean, Shanti Jagannathan, and Jouko Sarvi Introduction The Asia-Pacific region is renowned for its size, diversity and complexity, whether it be geographical, socioeconomic, cultural, political or developmental, all of which impact on every aspect of life, including employment, labour force considerations, education and training. The region is home to some 63% of the world’s population of seven billion. Countries with the largest populations (People’s Republic of China, 1.34 billion; India, 1.22 billion) and the most rapidly growing megacities are to be found in the region, as are countries with relatively small populations (Bhutan, 695,000; Niue, 1,398) (UNDESA 2011). Levels of economic development vary widely, with some of the richest countries (such as Japan) and some of the poorest countries on earth (such as Bangladesh). Asia contains the largest number of poor of any region in the world, the incidence of those living below the poverty line remaining as high as 40% in some countries in Asia (UNESCAP 2011). At the same time, many countries are experiencing a period of great economic growth and development. The growing prominence of Asian economies and corporations, together with globalisation and technological R. Maclean (*) Department of International Education and Lifelong Learning, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, 10 Lo Ping Road, Tai Po, Hong Kong, China e-mail: [email protected] S. Jagannathan Regional and Sustainable Development Department, Asian Development Bank, ADB Avenue, 1550 Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines e-mail: [email protected] J. Sarvi Education Practice Leader, Regional and Sustainable Development Department, Asian Development Bank, Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines e-mail: [email protected] R. Maclean et al. (eds.), Skills Development for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Asia-Pacific, Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Issues, Concerns and Prospects 19, DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-5937-4_1, #Asian Development Bank 2013 3 innovation, is leading to long-term changes in trade, business and labour markets. There is a rebalancing of power, centred on Asia and the Pacific region. Asia’s economies have achieved remarkable growth rates. If Asia continues to grow on its recent trajectory, it could, by 2050, account for more than 50% of the world Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (compared to 27% in 2010), with a sixfold increase in per capita income, to reach European levels of today. Seven economies – the People’s Republic of China (PRC), India, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Thailand and Malaysia – are projected to account for 87% of the GDP growth in Asia and almost 55% of global GDP growth between 2010 and 2050 (ADB 2011b). A number of directions for economic development have been identifiedintheUNESCAP(2011) report: • Trade within the region is growing more rapidly than the region’s trade with the rest of the world, potentially leading to a deeper level of regional integration. • Services are an important emerging sector, and various developing Asia-Pacific economies are leading the recovery in exports of commercial services, with the group recording on average a growth rate of more than 20% in 2010. There is scope to expand intraregional trade in some services. • Some Asia-Pacific countries are already world leaders in the production and export of climate-smart goods and services. • It is important to include small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the exports of Asia-Pacific economies, as they play a crucial role in creating employment. • An increase in regional cooperation is also viewed as a major avenue for regional development. However, realising the ‘Asia-Pacific Century’ is dependent upon countries in the region being able to sustain growth, reduce poverty and ensure inclusiveness in the distribution of gains. On the one hand, it is crucial to address inequities, while on the other, it is important to implement strategies for productivity gains so that countries are not caught in a ‘middle-income trap’ (World Bank 2007). The notion of a middle-income trap refers to a well-established economic principle whereby a developing nation gets ‘trapped’ when it reaches a certain, relatively comfortable level of income but cannot seem to take that next big jump into the true big leagues of the world economy, with per capita wealth to match. Every economy in Asia has confronted this ‘trap’ or is dealing with it now. Breaking out of it is extremely difficult since escaping the ‘trap’ requires major re-engineering which includes skills development for employability and sustainable livelihoods. Asia also faces demographic challenges – some economies have a predominantly working age population, while there are economies that will be confronted with an aging, large elder population (UNDESA 2011). The case of the Asian giants, the PRC and India, is particularly interesting and significant. Being the world’s two most populous countries, together they represent 36% of the world’s population. These populations will continue to increase with India and the PRC having predicted population growth rates of 1.32 and 0.42%, respectively. GDP growth forecasts for India and the PRC in 2012 are 7.5 and 9%, respectively (International Monetary Fund 2011a,b). Large-scale migration to urban areas is a major feature in both countries, this being particularly the case in the PRC. This is fuelled by a desire for 4 R. Maclean et al. improved employment opportunities and higher standards of living (UN Population Fund 1999). In Asia, the informal sectors take up 65% of nonagricultural employment. Together with informal employment in agriculture, the proportion of informal employment significantly increases, in India, for example, ‘from 83% of non-agricultural employment to 93% of total employment’ (Asian Development Bank 2011, p. 1). Skills development for the informal sector presents specific challenges to governments. A deeper level of economic integration, which is required for sustainable development, calls for regional cooperation in skills development. Although challenges for HR development vary from country to country, the overall directions for the region could be identified based on the assumption that countries need to progress towards aligning skills development strategies with socioeconomic goals. The Asian Development Bank has a competitive advantage to support countries in the region in formulating skills development strategies and in increasing regional cooperation in TVET through formulating overall priorities. In this chapter, an example of European Union (EU) regional cooperation in TVET and key challenges and current TVET trends in Asia and the Pacific are considered, and a framework to move forward to support TVET in the region is suggested. Global Issues: Skills Development for Employability (TVET) In this chapter, skills development for employability, which stresses practical, technical and vocational, rather than largely academic knowledge, skills and understandings shall be referred to as technical and vocational education and training (TVET). Over time, and in different countries, various terms have and are being used to describe elements of the field that are now conceived as comprising TVET. These include apprenticeship training, vocational education, industrial arts, technical education, technological-vocational education, occupational education, vocational education and training and career and technical education. At the second International Congress on Technical and Vocational Education, held in the Republic of Korea in 1999, UNESCO and the ILO (in consultation with their respective member states and partner agencies) jointly agreed to use the term technical and vocational education and training (TVET) 1 in future in order to unite the field. TVET is very much back on the global educational agenda after its virtual disappearance from international aid in the early 1980s, when the World Bank radically shifted its policy from TVET support towards investment in primary education. A return of TVET to the development agenda is partly a reaction to the emerging skills divide with the least developed countries falling further and 1 The definition of TVET that has been most widely adopted is ‘Those aspects of the educational process involving, in addition to general education, the study of technologies and related sciences, and the acquisition of practical skills, attitudes, understanding, and knowledge relating to occupants in various sectors of economic and social life’ (UNESCO 1999). 1 Skills Development Issues, Challenges, and Strategies in Asia and the Pacific 5 further behind, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Currently, TVET is regarded as important to achieving relevant and high-quality education for all (EFA), education for sustainable development (ESD) and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and is also viewed as part of the lifelong learning agenda (King 2011). There is overwhelming evidence to demonstrate that TVET can play an essential role in promoting sustainable poverty alleviation, human development and economic growth, with clear benefits for individuals, their families, local communities and societies in general (Maclean and Wilson 2009, Chapter 1; NORRAG 2003). This is to be expected since it is estimated that some 80% of occupations centre on the application of technical and vocational skills to the worldofwork(UNESCO-UIS2006). The World Bank (2010) highlights the importance of skills for individuals and economies as ‘skills are at the core of improving individuals’ employment outcomes and increasing countries’ productivity and growth’ (p. 1). UNESCO’s strategy on TVET (2008) stated that more and more governments are calling for assistance in TVET development (UNESCO 2011). TVET has been identified by the international community and ADB member states in Asia and the Pacific as a priority area within ADB’s range of programme activities. TVET refers to education and training that prepare people for gainful employment (Finch and Crunkilton 1999). TVET can take place either in formal schools (e.g. from kindergartens to grade 12 or 13) or increasingly in postsecondary community and/or technical colleges or informally by means of training at the workplace and increasingly by distance learning. In many developing countries, most TVET skills development for employability occurs through informal and nonformal means, rather than in formal TVET institutions (UNESCO-UIS 2006;2010). Investment in TVET is not without its critics (Maclean and Wilson 2009). Some politicians and policy makers point to the heavy expenses required to develop curricula, training staff and equip classrooms for specialised TVET subjects in secondary schools or postsecondary learning centres, which can generally cost three times more than academic courses. Also the fact is that TVET provides training, but no guarantee for jobs. According to the World Bank report (2010), ‘the global imperative for more jobs, and more productive jobs, is a major challenge for development. Global unemployment, estimated by the ILO at 212 million in 2009, is at an all-time high’ (p. 1). A jointly prepared ILO and OECD statistical report has noted that ‘all G20 countries are facing substantial labour market challenges to promote productive employment and decent work opportunities for all’ (ILO and OECD 2011, p. 1). The report has indicated that ‘in the context of rapid technological change and globalization, another priority has been to improve labour market prospects for the low-skilled, especially in the more advanced economies’ (p. 8). Better integration of youth, women and migrants into the labour market is also viewed as key issues. TVET has moved from beyond the narrow confines of economic planning and become part of a larger vision for promoting sustainable development in the region. 6 R. Maclean et al. An Example of Regional Cooperation: EU The ADB Asia 2050 report identified a number of reasons for the growing importance of regional cooperation for Asia and exemplified areas that would benefit from cooperation (e.g. transport, health, food security). The move towards economic cooperation needs to be accompanied by HRD strategies and skills development. Systematic developments in TVET cooperation in Europe could serve as an example of such cooperation, although strong supranational institutions in Europe are unique. Systematic strategies at the policy level, and the development of common tools and principles for TVET, are an indication of the recognised value of cooperation on common priorities. The need to ensure the quality and relevance of education and training has been reflected in policy development since 2002 when the ministers responsible for TVET and social partners committed themselves to cooperation in TVET, making TVET in the EU region the best in the world. There has been a change in EU region priorities, reflects the change of HRD policy orientation and the setting of goals. The most visible part of the Copenhagen process concerns the development and implementation of European TVET tools. Such instruments as Europass (a framework for transparency of qualifications and competencies), EQF (the European Qualifications Framework) and ECVET (the European credit system for vocational education and training) have impacted transparency, comparability and the quality of TVET. In particular, the EQF serves as a common European reference system that is aimed at linking different countries’ national qualifications systems and frameworks together, so it can function as a mapping device helping learners and workers to ‘move between countries or change jobs or move between educational institutions at home’ (EC 2008,p.3). The European Qualifications Framework classifies ‘knowledge’, ‘skills’ and ‘competence’ into eight levels. Common reference points help Europeans to collect reliable statistics to be able to forecast skills demands. The EQF provides a means of comparing qualifications in different European countries. Almost all EU and European Economic Area (EEA) countries have indicated their intention to introduce NQFs covering all parts of their education, training and qualifications system. 2 One of the main reasons for the development of NQFs was the establishment of the European Qualifications Framework for Lifelong Learning. This was adopted in 2008 by the European Parliament and Council. Since the mid2000s, NQFs in Europe have become the key instruments for reforming education, training and qualifications systems. The majority of EU, EEA and candidate countries are now working on the development and implementation of national frameworks. In Belgium, Flanders, Estonia, Lithuania, Malta and Portugal, formal 2 According to the CEDEFOP (2010) report, of the 32 countries having signed up to the EQF, Lichtenstein is not developing NQF for LL. Lichtenstein is, however, developing a framework for HE in line with the Bologna process. A total of 34 NQFs are covered by the analysis. The UK has separate NQFs for England/Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland, and Belgium is developing separate frameworks for Flanders and the French-speaking community. 1 Skills Development Issues, Challenges, and Strategies in Asia and the Pacific 7 adoption has been achieved. The UK, Ireland and France, which are the countries with established frameworks, have carried out, or are in the process of carrying out, reviews (CEDEFOP 2010). The development of NQFs confirms that the EQF is regarded as an important reference system for individual countries. Most countries have (or will) use an eightlevel structure and have used the EQF level descriptors as the starting point for their national work. While NQFs are important to achieve European objectives, they are also regarded as a means of achieving national objectives. NQFs are generally seen as a means of clarifying the relations between the different parts of a national system. The objective is to make national qualifications easier for national citizens and migrants to understand. Experience in Europe has shown that NQF development is a highly political process that can result in conflicting interests (CEDEFOP 2010). To what extent European experience could be applicable to Asia-Pacific as the socioeconomic challenges are different in these regions? For Europe, a forecast on skills demand and supply up to 2020 identified three major requests: • Developments in skills supply towards a more highly qualified workforce • Continued sector trends towards jobs in services • Dominance of knowledge and skills intensive jobs (CEDEFOP 2010) For Asia and the Pacific, skills demand and supply vary greatly within subregions since they are facing different challenges (such as higher urbanisation rates in East and North East Asia; unemployment has been highest in North and Central Asia; poverty is most severe in South and South West Asia (UNESCAP 2011)). Although the socioeconomic challenges in Europe and Asia are not the same and the demand for changing skills needs is somewhat different, overall directions towards regional cooperation could provide a long-term goal for TVET development in Asia. This involves such needs for TVET development as: • Reinforcing links with the labour market • Improving the effectiveness of governance and financing of TVET • Raising the attractiveness of TVET • Increasing access to TVET by addressing equity issues • Lifelong learning through TVET • Improving the quality of TVET • Improving available statistics and performance indicators for evidence-based decision making These matters are just as relevant to Asia as they are to Europe. Therefore, the European model provides a useful example of a regional framework for cooperation which can be a role model for Asia-Pacific, with necessary changes or adjustments being made to accommodate local contexts. 8 R. Maclean et al. competency standards-based qualifications. The introduction of competency-based training has been associated with a relative shift in control of the content of training from providers to industry (World Bank and ILO 2011). Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) are another important means to develop dynamic and demand-based TVET planning. These help establish a common understanding of skills required for specific occupations, in particular the need to match the requirements of the labour market through the links between TVET providers and industry. These are usually state controlled but involve employer-led organisations that monitor training and qualifications in specific economic sectors. The overarching objectives of SSCs are 6 • To reduce skills gaps and shortages and to provide advice on skills needed to the TVET system • To be involved in the development of standards • To improve productivity • To boost the skills of their sector workforces • To improve learning supply In the UK, there are 22 SSCs 7 , covering approximately 85% of the British workforce. Internationally, there is the International Network of Skill Sector Organisations which comprises the members Australia, Canada, India, Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa and the UK 8 . These countries take a leadership role in promoting the SSC concept and the development of occupational standards. Many countries in the Asia-Pacific region, and worldwide, have expressed an interest in developing NQFs and establishing Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) and believe that there will be many benefits. Issues of interest include the relevance of European models to Asia, the role and limitations of NQFs and country and regional experiences. An issue of considerable interest is how countries have overcome the traditional resistance to NQFs, such as resistance from trades unions, a lack of teachers/trainers with national qualifications and employers’ acceptance of such standards. Another matter of importance concerns the role of SSCs and whether this is a proven model for the implementation of NQFs. The experiences of moving from national to regional NQFs are also important (Young 2009). Green Growth and Skills Development for Employability At the international level, a clear link between TVET, environmental conservation and sustainable development has been expressed in 2004 in the Bonn Declaration (UNESCO-UNEVOC 2004) that was reached after deliberations by 122 experts 6 Department of Business Innovation and skills, UK no longer in existence: 7 Alliance Sector Skills Councils, UK.http://www.sscalliance.org/HomePublic/AbouttheAlliance/ About_the_Alliance.aspx 8 International Network of Sector Skills Organization.http://insso.org 1 Skills Development Issues, Challenges, and Strategies in Asia and the Pacific 15 from UN member states who met in Bonn, Germany. Pressure to train for green economic restructuring directly relates to issues of climate change and move to a low-carbon emission. Pathways to a low-carbon economy are often seen as technical issues, requiring engineering knowledge and skills (McKinsey and Company 2009). Clean technology has become the fastest growing sector in venture capital and private equity investment. In Hong Kong, China, the top 10 banks have committed 10–15% of project finance to renewable and clean technology (The Climate Group 2008). However, the development of appropriate skills in the general workforce is also necessary for meeting this challenge. As industries re-engineer their resource and energy inputs, supply chain management, logistics, design and construction of the built environment, production processes, services and water and waste management, current practices have to evolve in order to significantly reduce carbon emissions. The Asia Business Council report (Asia Business Council 2009) predicts that the number of green jobs created by 2030 could reach 100 million worldwide, which is estimated at 2% of the future workforce. Some of these green jobs will be new jobs, while others will be substitutes for existing jobs. Potentially, Asia could have 50 million green jobs, and many jobs in existing industries would require green skills as manufacturing industries may change their production processes or develop green products. Potentially expanded production capacity along with supply chains, and new servicing needs, would indicate that green skills will become an essential part of the future. TVET has a great responsibility to train workers in these new skills. This involves the training systems in different countries understanding, and anticipating, the needs of future employers, having the flexibility to adjust and so provide appropriate TVET in a timely manner and to adjust to changes in jobs that currently may not appear to require green skills but will in the future. It is clear that countries in the Asia-Pacific region will need to develop policies, training programmes and green skills qualifications frameworks and maintain close links with TVET providers. A UNESCO report (UNESCO 2012) highlights that multiple initiatives across the region (in Bangladesh, the PRC, India, Indonesia and the Philippines) are in place to train for green jobs. Although green growth is a relative newcomer as a driving force for employment and training, it has become clear over the last few years that many jobs are changing as green skills are introduced. Production and service industries are reacting to the need to reduce energy consumption and waste, as the costs of fuel and raw materials increase. It is important to consider best practices for investing in skills training to meet the demands of a greening economy and how TVET institutes can understand and react to industries’ requirements: for example, how to teach sustainable work practices, environmental management systems and sustainable resource reduction strategies and solutions to the difficulties faced by TVET providers in changing curricula due to the capital investment necessary in equipment and teachers. It is also relevant to consider the emergence of entirely new ‘green jobs’ such as those related to the development, manufacture and operation of renewable energy generating equipment, green accounting, carbon trading and carbon auditing. 16 R. Maclean et al. Vocationalisation of Education and the Reorientation of Skills Development for Employability Through Lifelong Learning Lifelong learning has emerged as one of the keys to improving the quality of life in the twenty-first century. 9 An initial education is no longer sufficient to enable people to benefit from new opportunities that advances in science and technology bring and other changes in the world of work. There is no doubt that continuing to learn is the key to securing employment and income stability. Higher levels of formal education and training lead to higher incomes and greater employability. Rates of return (RoR) studies have included both educational attainment and skills measures while taking account of other variables such as gender, occupation, work experience and geographic location (OECD 2005,2007). These studies show that the main reason that well-educated and trained individuals earn higher incomes is that they have higher knowledge and skills levels, or put simply, higher qualifications are a proxy for more skills. Lifelong learning goes beyond formal education and training to include ‘skills development’. This is an umbrella term to describe the ways in which individuals continue to learn and acquire skills and competencies which influence employment and earnings potential (Adams 2011). Schools, higher education and TVET institutions engage in skills development for work, but just as, or even more, important, are apprenticeships, enterprise-based training, professional development, informal learning in the workplace, and government and nongovernment training programmes. Vocationalisation of secondary education provides a foundation for lifelong learning in skills development for employability. As argued by many, it is desirable and appropriate that secondary schools are more accountable for developing the economic and labour force needs of society through placing a greater emphasis on skills development for employability (Maclean and Wilson 2009; Rauner and Maclean 2008; Fien et al. 2008). The social function of vocationalisation resulted in the opportunity for young people to stay in school longer than might have been possible if only an academic curriculum were offered. Previously, the notion of ‘vocationalisation’ was only related to inclusion of vocational content into general education programmes or to prevocational or pretechnical education programmes. Current trends are to ‘new vocationalisation’ that also includes vocational or technical education programmes that prepare participants for direct entry into specific occupations (Maclean and Pavlova 2011). The demand to enhance productivity and employability brings this vocational element at the secondary school level under the umbrella of ‘vocationalisation’, together with general and ‘prevocational’ options. The main reason for this is that in some contexts, TVET development at the level of secondary education can bring a maximum effect in increasing the employability of graduates. At the same time, more general education is included in the TVET stream, and the distinction between academic and vocational 9 This section on lifelong learning draws on the Background Concept Paper by Power and Maclean (2011). 1 Skills Development Issues, Challenges, and Strategies in Asia and the Pacific 17 is blurred across all three categories. Functional aspects of this training, relevant to labour market needs (e.g. technological knowledge, flexibility, better productivity), become increasingly more important than educational achievements. Therefore, a call by ADB in 2008 (Asian Development Bank 2008) for a shift from traditional TVET approaches to context-related world-of-work competences could be interpreted as a broadening of the notion of vocationalisation by including secondary TVET. The change is away from an education-driven to a functional model of skills development, at the secondary level. At the tertiary level, there has been a transformation of higher education in the past two decades as a result of the massification of higher education. The numbers of students in tertiary education worldwide doubled between 1991 and 2004 and continues to grow, particularly in high-population countries such as India and the PRC. The number of tertiary students has further increased between 2005 and 2009 by 21% in the PRC and 25% in India (UNESCO Institute of Statistics 2010). For other countries in East Asia and the Pacific, the increase has been 9%, while for North America and Western Europe, there has been little overall change over this period. As student numbers have risen dramatically, an increasing emphasis is being placed on skills development for employability which has resulted in the vocationalisation of higher education (Maclean and Wilson 2009). The boundaries between academic knowledge/work and vocational knowledge/ work have become blurred. As more people are engaging in higher education, there is a need to accommodate a more diverse range of interests and abilities. Many students want courses that are of a vocational nature to prepare them directly for the world of work. The massification and vocationalisation 10 of higher education have profound implications for what knowledge is regarded as being of most worth in tertiary institutions. At the political level, the detachment of university degrees and their academic curricula from the labour markets could be regarded as a negative aspect of university development (Pavlova 2005). Academically, education detached from reality was regarded as providing insufficient skills for appropriate employability of university graduates. The challenge is to link higher education with the constantly changing needs of society, and this is seen as an increasingly important issue by universities and politicians (European Commission 1995). Creating a fruitful and dynamic partnership between higher education and society has become one of the basic objectives of universities. In terms of development skills for employability through the lifelong learning framework, continuous TVET includes employer-led training, adult training programmes and informal training. Formal learning is getting more and more inclusive of informal and nonformal learning to vocationalise education by devising most effective ways in which education institutions can best prepare learners for the 10 By vocationalisation, we mean a way of empowering individuals through development of their capabilities and providing them with an opportunity to orient and adapt for the work environment. The main goal of vocationalisation is to improve the vocational relevance of education. Usually, vocationalisation means the introduction of practical and/or vocational subjects, industry visits, vocational guidance and more applied way of teaching general education subjects. 18 R. Maclean et al. world of work and for a smooth transition from education institutions into the world of work. As a result, programmes aimed at skills development for employability increasingly stress learning which is lifelong and life-wide. The move to vocationalise secondary and postsecondary education can be achieved through adopting a lifelong learning model which represents a major paradigm shift in how best to achieve skills development for employability and sustainable livelihoods. Multiple pathways between vocational and academic education, as observed in the region, provide additional opportunities for learners in skills development. Skills Development for Employability and Inclusion: Expanding Opportunities for Youth and Other Marginalised Groups and for Poverty Alleviation and Equity One function of TVET is social. For individuals with low skills levels, having the opportunity to acquire skills for employability at strategic points throughout their lives is a crucial factor in improving their prospects for gaining employment and a secure income and thus in combating poverty and improving the quality of life for themselves and their families. Many education and development policies are based on the assumption that literacy and primary education play a key role in poverty reduction, while higher education is crucial for economic development in the global knowledge society. While both of these are true, evidence is also mounting that all levels of education and types of training (formal and nonformal) can contribute to both these things: that is, learning throughout life is the key to sustainable development and poverty alleviation. For example, work in India indicates that higher education not only contributes to economic development (in India), but it also makes a significant contribution to a reduction in absolute, as well as, relative poverty and particularly to increasing life expectancy and reducing infant mortality (Tilak 2007). When higher education institutions use their expertise to work with schools serving poor communities and act as their advocates, progress can be made in combating poverty, raising the basic skills levels of both children and adults, improving crop yields and improving health and nutrition (Arini et al. 2007). The effectiveness of training programmes for the unemployed is different across countries. For instance, in developed countries, generated employment for trainees is only 38% of cases and raised the incomes of the unemployed in only 23% of the programmes. Within these totals, however, better results were reported for women in general and for training programmes that started before mass layoffs (ADB 2009a). For transition economies, results for programmes were better in securing employment for graduates. This may reflect the economic situation affected by structural change when jobs are available at the end of the training. Enhancing the level of skills among vulnerable groups such as the unemployed (and in particular, youth), rural and informal economy workers who are difficult to 1 Skills Development Issues, Challenges, and Strategies in Asia and the Pacific 19 reach (a large proportion of whom are women and people with disabilities and lowincome families) is regarded by many governments as the means to break the cycle of low skills, low productivity and poverty. Considerable effort is being deployed by the countries to increase the participation of disadvantaged target groups in the region. Soft Skills, Including Values and Ethics, as Part of Skills Development for Employability Although there is an increasing emphasis on skills for employability (implicitly understood as workplace skills) because of what is often the highly specialised nature of TVET, there is a danger that ‘life skills’ will not be developed. The workplace is not just about production or service: ethics and values also have an important role to play so that workers are aware of, and can distinguish between, ethical and unethical behaviour in the workplace. It is important for young people to develop a personal code of work ethics and to be able to solve ethical dilemmas in the workplace. An understanding of labour rights and an understanding of the ethics of corruption and bribery are important workplace ‘soft’ skills. There is also a need to consider TVET’s role in developing noncognitive skills that are also important for employment and self-improvement, such as the noncognitive skills of selfworth, confidence and motivation. Soft skills are defined differently across countries. In Australia, for example, the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Business Council of Australia define these skills as employability skills, ‘skills required not only to gain employment, but also to progress within an enterprise so as to achieve one’s potential and contribute successfully to enterprise strategic directions’ (2002, p. 3). This framework identifies eight main employability skills. 11 These ‘employability’ skills have a broader application as they are relevant to a variety of tasks in personal, social and work contexts. These skills can also help individuals to cope with change (Callan 2003). Employers are looking for employees who are adaptable and who have skills beyond technical (Maxwell 2010); 33.1% of employers consider employability skills to be the most important factor when employing graduates (Australian Industry Group and Deloitte 2009). Their multidimensional nature comprising of ‘know-how, analytical, cultural and communication skills, and common sense’ can help to provide an active and reflective approach to life for the employees (Allen Consulting Group 2004). 11 Communication, teamwork, problem-solving, initiative and enterprise, planning and organising, self-management, learning and technology. 20 R. Maclean et al. Employers want employees who are creative problem-solvers and innovators who are constantly updating their knowledge and expertise. The development of appropriate values and ethics through TVET has not been well documented in the region, and so specific projects and research are required to fill this information gap. Quest for Improved Frameworks for Skills Development Different agencies and organisations have variously developed their approaches and conceptual frameworks for skills development. For example, a conceptual framework for Skills Toward Employment and Productivity (STEP) has been established by the World Bank (2011). It includes a series of steps to get children off to a good start, ‘ensuring that all students learn, building job-relevant skills that employers demand, encouraging entrepreneurship and innovation and matching the supply of skills with demand’. It is based on the concept of lifelong learning. The Asian Development Bank (2008, p. 26) in its report Education and Skills: Strategies for Accelerated Development in Asia and the Pacific depicted the economic and social rationale for TVET. The report highlights the importance of skills development to increase productivity, alleviate poverty, increase human capital in ways which complement ‘physical investment’, initiate technological and structural change and attract foreign direct investment. ADB has recognised the importance of the Human Resource Development (HRD) strategic framework and action plan for the region (Asian Development Bank 2009b). Following the work of the Working Group on Human Resource Development (WGHRD) established in 1995 at the Fifth Ministerial Conference of the ADB member states, the 2007 midterm review of the government member states (GMS) strategic framework noted that, ‘although the WGHRD has addressed key HRD concerns in GMS, programme development and implementation has been essentially project-based and lacks a clearly defined strategic framework’ (ADB 2009b, p. 1) to address key HRD concerns and issues in education and skills development, labour and migration, health and social development. Among the main objectives of the Working Group on HRD are to: • Promote investment in people • Identify and prioritise key human resource issues and problems • Exchange information on human resources development matters • Address subregional human resource development requirements (Greater Mekong Subregion Inception Meeting of the Working Group on Human Resources Development 1996). The WGHRD for the Greater Mekong Region, which includes Cambodia, the People’s Republic of China (PRC), the Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam, was established in 1995 ‘to address issues in education and skills development, labour and migration, health, and social development’ (Asian Development Bank 2009b). The WGHRD has agreed to develop a strategic framework and action 1 Skills Development Issues, Challenges, and Strategies in Asia and the Pacific 21 plan to increase the effectiveness of subregional cooperation in HRD and to strengthen synergies with other subregional initiatives. At the Joint Summit Declaration of the Third GMS Summit (2008), the heads of governments ‘endorsed and underscored the importance of making early and substantial progress on the implementation of the HRD Strategic Framework and Action Plan’ (Asian Development Bank 2009b, p. 1). Since its inception meeting in December 1996, the Working Group on HRD has met regularly and has identified numerous HRD issues of common and regional interest and has ‘led in many cases to subregional HRD initiatives involving some or all of GMS countries’ (Asian Development Bank 2009b, p. 2). The key common human resources development challenges identified by the group include ‘to reform, strengthen, and harmonize GMS vocational and technical training standards, and to harmonize labour migration policies to meet labour demand across the region and provide skilled and unskilled workers with cross-border employment opportunities’. The Human Resources Development action plans and strategies include ‘to promote regional cooperation in education and skills development’, including ‘harmonization of competency standards, skills standards testing, accreditation systems including in the higher education sector, and training standards for technical and vocational teachers in occupations required by migrating workers’; ‘to finance GMS HRD priority’; and ‘to monitor the process of implementing the action plan’ (Asian Development Bank 2009b). Key issues, challenges and prospects concerning skills development for employability and sustainable livelihoods in Asia and the Pacific region include regional and global networking in order to: • Share innovative and best practices in skills development for employability • Improving productivity and teaching and learning for skills development for employability • Training and educating the trainers and teachers working in the area of skills development for employability, including career long professional development Other issues include: • The importance of skills in improving education systems throughout the world • Aligning economic and industrial policies with education and skills for employment and competitiveness, with the lessons learned from successful countries in Asia • Applicability of the apprentice model and its application in Asia and in societies where high-tech and value-added industries are developing • How to improve the status of TVET Strategic networking for action could include the national, subregional and regional levels and could focus on the economic, social and environmental functions of TVET. It also needs to accommodate effective public–private partnerships and strategic skills development reforms. Martinez-Fernandez and Powell (2009) identified three approaches applied by international cooperation 22 R. Maclean et al. agencies in skills development in South Asia: poverty reduction, economic and social development and governance. Future actions on the regional and subregional levels should take into account existing cooperation in Asia and the Pacific. The results of this cooperation should be analysed, and the lessons learnt should inform the development of the framework. ASEAN, CAREC (Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation) and the Greater Mekong Subregion Program have been identified as the most successful of the non-EU regional institutions worldwide (ADB 2011b). These structures could be used to set up and strengthen the skills development for employability component of cooperation. Moving Ahead and Work in Progress This chapter has discussed current issues, challenges and prospects regarding policy making, practice and development concerning skills development for employability internationally but with particular reference to Asia and the Pacific. The analysis presented in this chapter demonstrates the importance of regional economic cooperation for future development. Examples of successful countries’ developments in the region highlight the importance of government leadership in aligning skills development strategies with a country’s socioeconomic goals. It is suggested that these two trends could provide the main directions for TVET strategy in the region, with regard to (i) support of governments in developing coherent TVET strategies aligned with socioeconomic goals and (ii) development of a regional strategy and tools to support regional and subregional TVET cooperation in Asia and the Pacific. Three broad goals are suggested for national TVET development. The first two are directly related to the economic, social and environmental roles of TVET, while the third is aimed at the improvement of governance for the effective formulation and realisation of required measures. Key issues and challenges identified in the region and discussed in this chapter could guide the formulation of specific projects to support TVET development in Asia and the Pacific. External and internal efficiencies of TVET are the major criteria for effectiveness and the evaluation of TVET interventions. Although TVET cannot solve all labour market/economic problems faced in the region, well-structured and well-targeted skills development is worthwhile as it benefits individuals, employers, industry and the economy. Research suggests that human capital is the key driver of economic development. Countries investing most in developing their human capital are the ones enjoying the most rapid and sustained economic growth and the highest quality of life (Deutsche Bank 2008; Banks 2008). The next steps in TVET development should be framed by the recognition of the specific needs of different groups (e.g. school leavers who have not completed secondary school; students from different backgrounds and with different experiences; workers with different skills levels; working people and casual 1 Skills Development Issues, Challenges, and Strategies in Asia and the Pacific 23 employers; disadvantaged people who are not engaged in the labour market, including gender based causes; people with disabilities; youth; people in rural areas; migrants from rural areas to cities and between countries). The needs of different economies and the specific training needs of different groups of employers (of various sizes and industries) should also be recognised. Acknowledgements Thanks to Margarita Pavlova, Karina Veal, William Douglas and Jenny Xie who made helpful comments on an earlier draft of this chapter. However, the authors take full personal responsibility for the chapter as it appears here. Open Access This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial License which permits any non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited. References Adams, A. (2011). The Role of Skills Development in Overcoming Social Disadvantage (Background paper prepared for the Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2012). UNESCO. Asian Development Bank. (2005). Technical assistance implementation of Pacific education strategy: Skills development (Technical Assistance Report Project Number: 38634) (Financed by the Japan Special Fund). Asian Development Bank. (2007). Report and recommendation of the President to the Board of Directors on a proposed loan to Indonesia for the senior secondary education project. Manila. (Draft) Asian Development Bank. (2008). Education and skills: Strategies for accelerated development in Asia and the Pacific. Manila: ADB. Asian Development Bank. (2009a). Good practices in technical and vocational education and training. Manila: ADB. Asian Development Bank. (2009b). Greater Mekong Subregion economic cooperation programme, strategic framework and action plan for human resource development in the Greater Mekong Subregion (2009–2012). Asian Development Bank. (2010). Public–private partnerships in ADB education lending, 2000–2009. Manila: ADB. Asian Development Bank. (2011a). A handbook on using the mixed survey for measuring informal employment and the informal sector. Manila: ADB. Asian Development Bank. (2011b). Asia 2050: Realizing the Asian century. Manila: Asian Development Bank. Asian Development Bank and United Nations (2012). Green Growth, Resources and Resilience: Environmental Sustainability in Asia and the Pacific. Allais, S. (2010). The implementation and impact of national qualifications frameworks: Report of a study in 16 countries. Geneva: Skills and Employability Department, ILO. Allen Consulting Group. (2004). Development of a strategy to support the universal recognition and recording of employability skills: A skills portfolio approach. Canberra: Department of Education, Science and Training. Alliance Sector Skills Councils, UK. (2012). http://www.sscalliance.org/Home-Public/ AbouttheAlliance/About_the_Alliance.aspx 24 R. Maclean et al. skills) and more context-specific skills (e.g. livelihood, health, marketing) and vocational skills that are usually acquired in more formal settings. In developing countries, field studies suggest that effective programmes respond to the expressed needs of the poor and are closely linked to income-generating activities and provide training in entrepreneurship and practical knowledge of science and technology (UNESCO 1997; Mahbub ul Huq 1997; Sachs 2005). In developed countries, education and skill levels are strongly related to a person’s employability and productivity. Persons who have higher language and quantitative skills are not only more likely to find work, to earn more and to be more productive, and they are less vulnerable to long-term unemployment (OECD 2005). The evidence suggests in many countries, governments and formal education institutions give little attention to the unmet learning needs of disadvantaged and vulnerable young people who are not in school – their needs are generally left to NGOs (Mahbub ul Huq 1997; UNESCO 2010). Many initiatives exist to reach youth and adults who are poor through nonformal vocational skills training, but they are often locally based, short-lived, underfunded and not part of a comprehensive national strategy for the alleviation of poverty and for sustainable development. Reviews of skills development suggest that countries can begin to design national skills development strategies only if there is adequate information on the learning needs in disadvantaged communities, programme providers, course content, duration and cost-effectiveness (IIZ-DVV 2004; UNESCO 2010). LL ¼Social Benefits (Productivity, GDP, Social Capital, Health) While there is a fairly sizable body of research on the benefits of education for the individual, much remains to be done to clarify the benefits to society stemming from investing in various forms of learning and education throughout the life span. The research certainly suggests that human capital is the key driver of economic development: countries investing most in developing their human capital are those enjoying the most rapid and sustained economic growth and the highest quality of life (Deutsch Bank 2008). The social benefits of education and training are usually measured in terms of ‘social internal rates of return’, that is, as the sum of the private and public benefits. Given the limitations of the national data and international indicators being used, estimates are available only for a handful of countries. The estimated long-term effect on economic output of one additional year of education or training in OECD countries generally falls between 3 and 6% (OECD 2005). Learning throughout life leads to improved human capital and labour productivity, and this in turn is the major contributor to economic development (Banks 2008). To be successful in the global knowledge economy, public and private organisations and industries need information-age workers. Knowledge is growing at an exponential rate: employers need managers and employees who are creative problem-solvers, innovators who are constantly updating their knowledge and 32 C.N. Power and R. Maclean expertise, reflecting on what can be done to improve productivity, seeking to be at the cutting edge of knowledge in their field, and are good team players. Successful organisations take the notion of lifelong learning for their employees and the organisation seriously (Ordonez and Maclean 2006). As a general rule, the payoffs from investment in basic skills training for the masses are highest in low-income agricultural economies and those still in the early stages of industrial development (UNESCO 1997). It also seems that investing on lifelong learning for all raises the productivity of the whole workforce and also contributes to a lowering of fertility and infant mortality rates and to increases in social capital (UNESCO 1997; OECD 2005). The existing RoR research is of limited salience to our principal concern: lifelong learning. From a life span perspective, there needs to be shift from the focus on formal levels, GDP and incomes to learning across the life span, poverty alleviation and sustainable development. As Sachs (2005) and others have shown, the obsession with economic growth and rates of return does not necessarily translate into poverty alleviation and sustainable development: in reality, growth often means that the rich get richer and the poor get poorer and even greater exploitation of natural resources. LL and Poverty Alleviation The wider social benefits of education in terms of poverty alleviation have been set out in the literature since the early 1980s. For developing countries, the case is almost always made in terms of formal education and specifically primary education, and there is ample evidence that provided primary schooling is inclusive, a good quality and focus in teaching is on learning, and completion of primary education contributes to productivity and thus to the alleviation of poverty (Power 2007; UNESCO 2010). For girls, basic education (particularly if it extends to the secondary level) translates into lower birth rates and lower mortality (Klasen 2002; Jha 2009; Sachs 2005; Power 2007). What evidence there is on female literacy suggests that continuing to develop skills and learning about the Facts for Life (UNICEF et al. 1992) also pays off in terms of improved health, nutrition and family stability. Literate, educated women have fewer and healthier children and better health themselves than those with little or no education. Moreover, the higher the education and skill level of the mother, the more likely it is that her children will stay on to complete their formal education and perform well (Power 2007; UNESCO 2010). Many education and development policies are based on the assumption that literacy and primary education play a key role in poverty reduction, while higher education is crucial for economic development in the global knowledge society. While both are true, the evidence is also mounting that all levels of education and types of training (formal and nonformal) can contribute to both, that is, learning throughout life is the ‘master key’ to sustainable development and poverty 2 Lifelong Learning: Meaning, Challenges, and Opportunities 33 alleviation. For example, recent analyses of Indian and cross-national data indicate that higher education not only contributes to economic development in India but also makes a significant contribution to the reduction in absolute as well as relative poverty (Tilak 2007). When higher education institutions use their expertise to work with poor communities and act as their advocates, progress can be made in combating poverty, raising the basic skill levels of both children and adults and improving crop yields, health and nutrition (Arini et al. 2007; Power 2007). The key issue, however, is whether it is that exposure to initial formal education that makes a difference or whether it is continuing to develop skills and learning about the Facts for Life which ‘pays off’. One suspects that both are important. LL as the ‘Master Key’ for MDGs For most international organisations, the policy of providing additional learning opportunities throughout life is viewed as ‘the master key’ that opens the doors to poverty alleviation, greater social justice, equity, peace building and sustainable development (Ordonez and Maclean 2006). Nations with low levels of investment in education and training tend to have low levels of school life expectancy andwideskillsgaps.Theyareverymuchindangeroffallingevenfurtherbehind in terms of human and economic development and are the countries least likely to meet their Millennium Development Goals (UNDP 2009). On the other hand, the Asian developing countries that have invested heavily in meeting the learning needs of both children and adults have made, for the most part, remarkable social progress in achieving their key MDG targets (UNDP 2009; Power 2007,2009). Moreover, all children and adults will constantly need to update their understanding of how the environment is changing and its implications for how we will need to act in the future as the planet warms, and new scientific evidence on the impact of human activity comes to light. The MDGs relating to climate change and carbon emission will not be achieved in the absence of effective ESD formal school, higher and TVET programmes and nonformal programmes that reach out-of-school youth and adults, young and old and rich and poor. From the perspective of lifelong learning, it is the additionality, the learning outside the formal system and the learning over and above initial formal education and training, that counts in a world of constant change and increasing complexity. When it comes to poverty alleviation and education for sustainable development, what evidence there is suggests that both a sound formal education and this additionality are needed. 34 C.N. Power and R. Maclean Issues in Addressing Poverty Alleviation and Sustainable Development Poverty What it means to be poor and the measures that need to be taken to address poverty issues depend very much on the context. The more effective PRSs are sensitive to the facets of poverty that are dominant in a given context; they engage the poor being targeted at all stages of the development and implementation of the programme; they adopt a multi-sectoral approach; and they generate new strategies for leveraging resources (Power 2007,2011). Poor families are concentrated in nations and communities caught in what Sachs (2005) calls the ‘poverty trap’. The key problem is that when poverty is extreme, the poor do not have the ability by themselves to get out of the trap. In particular, girls and women in most poor parts of the world are locked into a cycle of poverty and early marriages, with illiterate mothers bring up illiterate daughters who are married off early into yet another cycle of poverty, illiteracy, high fertility and early mortality. Breaking this cycle requires more than educational interventions: it demands a comprehensive development programme that transforms the basic conditions of rural and slum community life. Learning throughout life, and especially literacy, needs to be part of this transformation (UNESCO-UIE 2010), but providing other basic infrastructure elements (water wells, fuel supply, health clinics, roads, etc.) is also necessary, not to speak of micro-credit, improved employment and income-earning opportunities (Power 2007). Sustainable Development The major issue facing the world today is that of learning how to live and work in ways that are sustainable, so that the reasonable needs of people from all walks of life and in all countries can be satisfied, without so overexploiting the natural resources upon which all life depends that the ability of future generations to meet their needs is threatened (UNESCO-UNEVOC 2004). The threats stemming from global warming and climate change have been brought into sharp focus by the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development, the Kyoto Protocol, Al Gore’s advocacy (An Inconvenient Truth), Stern Review, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005–2014). The effects of global warming are showing up with increasing intensity: destruction of forests and species habitats, acidification of oceans, loss of wetlands, bleaching of coral reefs and rapid and continued loss of biodiversity, to name a few. As climate change accelerates, hundreds of millions of people are likely to be deprived from access to 2 Lifelong Learning: Meaning, Challenges, and Opportunities 35 water, and millions more will be displaced as sea levels rise, floods and droughts become more prevalent and crops fail. In some parts of the world, it is predicted that there will be sharp rises in death toll from climate-induced diseases (Commonwealth Foundation 2007). Learning how to live and work in ways that are sustainable includes, but necessarily goes beyond, formal programmes for education for sustainable development (ESD): the principles of sustainable development need to be installed in all levels and to cover all types of education. The challenge to nations, industry and communities is to take decisive and urgent action of key issues relating to sustainable development. Acting on SD is not a mere question of ESD; it is, rather, an issue of political will. As Sen (2007) and Power (2010) have noted, the major issues to be faced in meeting the MDGs are ‘unaffordability’ and the lack of ‘political will’. To these, Adams (2010) adds the need for reforms in governance, finance, market and school. Governments are likely to act only if there are strong pressures within and from the international community to do so. One of the key tasks of the re-engineering of education systems being called for is that of empowering all, but especially marginalised, groups, with the knowledge, skills and confidence to join the struggle to create a better world; a global community committed to ensuring development is sustainable, and the rights of all to health, education, justice and security are respected (Campbell et al. 2006). It will be ‘people power’ that forces governments to introduce the tough measures needed to reduce greenhouse emissions, to eradicate poverty and to provide quality education for all. But to generate that power, all young people and adults (including politicians, the media and corporate leaders) need to understand what it means to be poor, why poverty persists and how global warming will affect them and their families. Moreover, throughout their lives, they will need to learn and how to learn, updating and extending their knowledge and skills so as to better cope with change, generating the capacity and confidence to participate in the struggle to build a better world. Re-engineering Education and Training A few tentative steps have been taken by providers of formal education in a few countries to: 1. Ensure that learning as one moves from one level to the next is seamless. 2. Improve the articulation between levels and types of education and training. 3. Revise their qualification frameworks, accreditation, quality assurance, indicator and assessment systems, and establish equivalency frameworks to better recognise TVET, adult and continuing education, within-industry training, apprenticeships and nonformal programmes. 4. Make more effective use of IT and open learning systems to reach the unreached and to support on-the-job training. 36 C.N. Power and R. Maclean 5. Increase the funding and provide other incentives in support of nonformal education and training (i.e. adult and continuing education, NGO and industrybased training) while maintaining (and if necessary also increasing) support for formal education to achieve national and international goals (e.g. EFA, MDGs, ESD). 6. Develop an integrated policy framework to drive the reform of the entire formal and nonformal education and training system, its component parts and the pathways between them. Such steps are important elements in confronting the challenge posed by lifelong learning so that they are consistent with the principles of lifelong learning. In the end, what is needed is to use the principles of lifelong learning as the framework for re-engineering the entire education-training-adult learning system. Adopting a life span perspective takes us back to the issue of the learning needs to be met at each stage of human development and the changing priorities of the individual and the communities (local, national and global) in which they live and in particular those that assume importance in addressing issues of poverty and sustainable development. Lifelong Learning: A Developmental Perspective From a lifelong learning perspective, providing a good beginning for development during the early years of life is of crucial importance. The emerging research field known as ‘foetal origins’ suggests that the 9 months of gestation may constitute one of the most consequential stages in human development. The expansion of early childhood care and development activities, including family and community interventions, especially for poor, disadvantaged and disabled children, has been an integral part of the EFA agenda for the past 20 years. The evidence confirms the important contribution that quality ECCD makes to cognitive and social development for children from all backgrounds, but particularly for the poor and the least advantaged (UNESCO 2010). The developmental tasks for children of primary school age seem at first glance to be fairly straightforward, at least so far as formal education and nonformal learning programmes for out-of-school children are concerned. Obviously, one needs to get the foundations for subsequent learning and development right. In practice, this boils down in primary schools to a focus on basic learning needs, bearing in mind that the learning needs and life circumstances of children do vary and that some children will need much more support and help than others. A key challenge facing primary schools is to determine what is important now, what can be left to other stages in the learning cycle and how best to involve parents and the local community and to make effective use of their resources to supporting learning. With the onset of puberty, the scope and nature of the developmental tasks facing the young people assume a somewhat different character. Secondary 2 Lifelong Learning: Meaning, Challenges, and Opportunities 37 education, the ‘crossroads of life’ should be ‘the time when the most varied talents are revealed and flourish’ (UNESCO 1996). Meeting the basic learning needs of adolescents is of particular importance in facilitating the transition from childhood to adult life. As secondary education for all becomes a reality, it becomes increasingly difficult to meet the learning needs of all young people attending high school. Preparing young people for higher education can no longer be the primary purpose of secondary schooling, and thus the emphasis shifts to preparation for adult life and particularly for the world of work: hence, the increasing ‘vocationalisation’ of secondary education (Lauglo and Maclean 2005). Reorienting TVET for sustainable development and poverty alleviation has been a significant part of the agenda of the UNESCO. The central theme of the Second International Conference on Technical and Vocational Education was Lifelong Learning and Training: A Bridge to the Future. Developing this theme, it has been working hard at the task of moving TVET from the narrow task of providing training for industry and occupation-specific skills to the broader task of workforce development and lifelong learning for sustainable development. The Bonn Declaration (UNESCO-UNEVOC 2004) affirmed that skills development leading to ageappropriate TVET should be integral to education at all levels. In seeking to reach the unreached, more support needs to be given to the work being done by TVET colleges to develop open systems of learning using the new technologies as well as more traditional modes of distance education (Maclean 2005; Ordonez and Maclean 2006; Fien et al. 2009; Maclean and Fien 2010). Similarly, UNESCO World Conferences on Higher Education in 1998 and 2009 called for the reorientation of higher education in the light of the challenges facing us in the twenty-first century and at the same time a reaffirmation of its commitment to the core values and functions of higher education, in particular insisting that its mission must be to ‘contribute to sustainable development and improvement of society as a whole should be preserved, reinforced and further expanded’ (UNESCO 1998). Through their research and teaching, they can help policy makers and those working at the coal face to better understand what needs to be done to alleviate poverty and to promote sustainable development. It is in our higher education institutions that the educators of the future are trained and those already in the workforce need to have their knowledge and skills base constantly upgraded (Karmel and Maclean 2007). Moreover, they play (or should play) a significant role in the dialogue and action needed to move from the existing fragmented and at times dysfunctional formal system of education to one that takes the principles of lifelong learning seriously and re-engineers education and training in ways that contribute to the alleviation of poverty and sustainable development. The contribution of nonformal learning and the re-engineering of adult and continuing education is unquestionably one of the greatest challenges in the quest to ensure all have the opportunity to learn throughout life and to ensure that development is sustainable (Maclean and Singh 2005). In the knowledge society, the increasing involvement of employers and community groups in recurrent and adult learning programmes is opening up new pathways and opportunities, but recognition of that learning by formal education institutions is rarely given (Karmel 38 C.N. Power and R. Maclean and Maclean 2007). Sadly, the dedication and enormous contribution being made by voluntary organisations and nongovernment organisations tend to be ignored by education authorities and, at best, given token support by governments – the investment in adult learning in most countries is less than 1% of GNP (UNESCO-UIE 2010). From a lifelong learning perspective, nonformal, adult and continuing education must feature as a significant part of an integrated system and be given the recognition and support they need in the struggle to alleviate poverty and to ensure that development is sustainable. In many countries, informal learning via the media and the net has assumed an ever more significant role in shaping the knowledge base and values of the masses, at times playing a constructive and enriching role but too often falling short of its potential to facilitate learning throughout life and even at times contributing to the destruction of small cultures and the creation of a culture of consumerism, violence and prejudice. How to enlist the media and how to help all, young and old, to use the net wisely and as part of lifelong education have become a major challenge. Desirable Future Directions To achieve the goals of lifelong learning for poverty alleviation and sustainable development, it is suggested that the governments of the Member States of the UN: 1. Establish a lifelong learning Task Force or Commission responsible for making recommendations to government on policies, strategies and changes that need to be made in order to promote a culture of lifelong learning, to set national targets and to develop and implement integrated action plans and strategies for poverty reduction and sustainable development. 2. On the basis of the recommendations made by the Task Force, develop a coherent policy and set of strategies for awareness raising and to support the re-engineering of existing systems of formal and nonformal education and involve stakeholders and the media in promoting of lifelong learning for poverty alleviation and education for sustainable development. 3. Request all authorities within the public and private sectors of the education and training to undertake a review of the extent to which existing policies and practices are consistent with the principles of lifelong learning, to submit their findings to the Task Force and to work with it to identify priories for action. 4. Provide much greater support for nongovernment and voluntary organisations active in providing nonformal education and training to enable them to better assess and report on view the contribution that their organisation is making to the creation of opportunities to continue to learn throughout life for all and particularly those whose needs have not or not being adequately met by the formal system. 5. Request employer and community groups and other stakeholder groups to identify skills gaps in the labour market and unmet learning needs of 2 Lifelong Learning: Meaning, Challenges, and Opportunities 39 disadvantaged groups in the communities in which they work, giving special attention to the poor and to education for sustainable development for all. 6. Provide the Task Force with the funds and authority to commission reviews of the research and to undertake additional studies to assess the effectiveness of education and training programmes for children, youth and adults for poverty alleviation and sustainable development and to examine issues of articulation within and between sectors, recognition of nonformal education and training and reorientation of accreditation, qualifications frameworks and quality assurance mechanisms in accordance with the principles of lifelong learning. 7. Support professional development and training programmes for key educational and training personnel to facilitate their efforts to develop strategies within the framework of lifelong learning for poverty reduction and sustainable development. Request international organisations (intergovernmental, nongovernment, development banks and agencies) to: 1. Collaborate in the development of a coherent, integrated UN policy and action plan to provide all with opportunities for learning throughout life for poverty reduction and education for sustainable development, reinforcing and extending their collective and individual efforts to support programmes and activities aimed at achieving the MDGs by 2015. 2. Generate a shared international agenda, agreed targets and strategic plan of action and joint agreements on roles, responsibilities and funding. 3. Expand international statistics and develop more robust and policy-relevant indicator systems to assess progress in promoting lifelong learning, the effectiveness of international and national policies and strategies aimed at poverty reduction and sustainable development policies and strategies and the social, economic and environmental benefits from investments made. 4. Build partnerships with and seek the support of international corporations, media, foundations and nongovernment organisations involving them actively at all stages in the development and implementation of lifelong learning policy and strategies. 5. Support international, comparative and developmental research on the effectiveness of LL policy and programmes for poverty alleviation and sustainable development. Acknowledgements The authors wish to acknowledge the assistance of Kenneth King, Mark Mason, Bob Adamson, Lee Moo Sung, Eric Tsang, Peter Kell and Maureen Tam who reviewed and made helpful comments on earlier drafts of this chapter. However, the authors take full responsibility for the final version of the chapter. Open Access This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial License which permits any non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited. 40 C.N. Power and R. Maclean References Adams, A. (2010). The role of skills development in overcoming social disadvantage (contribution to 2012 EFA Global Monitoring Report, UNESCO, in preparation). Arini, McNaughton, S., Langley, J., & Sauni, P. (2007). What education reform means: Lessons from teachers, research and policy working together for students success. Educational Research for Policy and Practice, 6(1), 31–54. 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Adult learning and the changing world of work. Report on a workshop held at the CONFINTEA mid-term review conference, Bangkok, Thailand, September (2003). Maclean, R., & Wilson, D. (Eds.). (2009). International handbook of education for the changing world of work: Bridging academic and vocational training. Dordrecht: Springer. Mahbub ul Huq. (1997). Human development in South East Asia. Oxford: Oxford University Press. OECD. (2005). Measuring the social outcomes of learning. Paris: OECD. Ordonez, V., & Maclean, R. (2006). Seeking a new education paradigm for teaching and learning to meet the changing needs of education for all and skills development for work and life: Achieving education for sustainable development. In R. Maclean (Ed.), Learning and teaching for the twenty-first century. Dordrecht: Springer. Ouane, A. (2009). UNESCO’s drive for lifelong learning. In P. Jarvis (Ed.), The Routledge international handbook of lifelong learning (pp. 302–311). London/New York: Routledge. Power, C. N. (2007). Achieving universal primary education and EIU. Journal of Education for International Understanding, 3, 106–128. Power, C. N. (2009). Asia and the Pacific in 2020: Scenarios for educational research. Educational Research for Policy and Practice, 8(2), 81–93. 2 Lifelong Learning: Meaning, Challenges, and Opportunities 41 In 2006, the Singapore Workforce Development Agency identified ten foundational skills that are applicable across all industries. 4 Since then, courses are offered in these areas, particularly for those who do not have any formal qualifications, in order to provide an alternative entrance requirement for National Innovation and Technology Certificate (NITEC) courses. Since 2001, qualifications in the Philippines have been based on three types of competencies: basic (generic work skills), common (industry specific) and core (occupation specific). Some examples of basic competencies are leading workplace communication, leading small teams, developing and practising negotiation skills and solving problems related to work activities. In the Philippines, life skills were integrated into SIYB competency standards. A recent study by Bowskill (2012) suggests that after several years following graduation, school graduates in New Zealand valued more the development of employability skills through their TVET courses rather than subjectspecific and specialised skills. Merging TVET and General Education The call for the development of employability skills underpins another trend, that of an increasing convergence between academic and vocational education at the upper-secondary level (Pavlova 2005). More emphasis on the general component of education, particularly in developed countries, has contributed to more effective performance within the high-productivity sectors. In the Republic of Korea, about 40% of secondary students are currently enrolled in TVET, and in some schools, academic and vocational students share almost 75% of the curriculum. By doing this, the government is opening up new pathways for TVET students onto higher education (UNESCO 2005) as well as responding to the industry needs. A recent Australian Industry Skills Council’s (ISC) report (2011) identifies language, literacy and numeracy (LLN) as the essential skills that underpin people’s ability to be effective in employment, continue life learning and participate fully in the life of their society. This report describes LLN as being contextual and often closely linked with specific vocational skills, so that for effective learning to occur, general competencies need to be taught within the context of specific competencies. This trend is observed in countries located at the innovation-driven stage of economic development and could be applicable for all countries on a proportional basis that aims at the development of some sectors with a high-skill demand. 4 Workplace literacy and numeracy, information and communication technologies, problem solving and decision-making, initiative and enterprise, communications and relationship management, lifelong learning, global mindset, self-management, work-related life skills, health and workplace safety. 48 M. Pavlova and R. Maclean Quality and Delivery of Vocationalisation Another issue that relates to the question of what type of training should be provided at the upper-secondary level within the vocationalisation agenda is the quality of teaching and its delivery. In Australia, for example, the learning of students is guided by training packages built around competencies specified by industries. However, Polesel (2008) concludes that the bulk of vocational programmes offered in Australia at the upper-secondary level are of poor quality and do not provide students with either specific or generic competencies. Most students do not go straight into the labour market, but if they do, they work mainly in casual, part-time and low-paid jobs in the retail sector. Many studies highlight the need to find a balance between on-the-job training and off-the-job training, where students develop knowledge that underpins their practice and where they acquire transferable skills (Snell and Hart 2007). The similar concern of excessive on-thejob training is observed in the UK (Winch and Clarke 2003). It is important to broaden the learning experiences of students through their engagement into a coherent programme that helps to develop knowledge, skills and their application (ibid). So there is a need to include a component of general education and which focuses on the development of general/employability skills in TVET training, as well as linking theory and practice to develop a holistic understanding of practices by the students. The Move from Specific Job-Skills Training (‘A Career for Life’ Reality) to Flexible Training (‘No Lifetime Job Security’ Reality) The slow change of available technologies in the 1960s and 1970s favoured specialised skills development and more or less guaranteed a career for life. The more rapid pace of technological change, particularly in developed countries, has contributed to the increasing importance of general education that helps workers to perform within the high-productivity sectors. Therefore, a move from specific jobskills training (‘a career for life’ reality, immediate and long-term relevance to occupational requirements) to flexible training (‘no life time job security’ reality, rapidly re-deployable labour force requirement) has been observed. In this context, the vocationalisation of general education has become more and more important for these economies, and the role of general human capital is increasing. The distinction between general and specific training/knowledge closely relates to technologies and could be described in terms of general and specific human capital (GHC; SHC). This distinction is made on the basis of whether the individuals can operate only one specific technology (SHC) or whether their GHC helps them to operate any technology (Kim and Terada-Hagiwara 2010). Depending on the stage of development, countries should properly balance the development of general and specific human capital to ensure the adaptation and diffusion of new technologies. 3 Vocationalisation of Secondary and Tertiary Education... 49 Observable Relationship Between TVET Enrolment and GDP The emphasis on employability skills aligns education to the ‘real world’ (the world of economy). Vocationalisation has been viewed as an instrument in increasing economic competitiveness through improving productivity and employability as has been argued above, with countries at all levels of economic development benefitting from the development of human capital. Figure 3.2 presents data on relationships between upper-secondary TVET enrolments and GDP. Countries at any economic stage will benefit from an improvement of human capital. As modelled by Sabadie and Johansen (2010), the country positioned last in the Global Competitiveness Index, by improving its human capital score, would improve its competitiveness ranking close to 25% and move from its last in the world position to 109, similar to the current rank of Albania. However, the benefit of education and training becomes greater with the higher rate of technological change, since the higher level of human capital relates to the higher level of technology it can adopt. This correlation between the GDP and secondary TVET encourages governments in the region to consider the process of vocationalisation seriously, although the costs involved in establishing TVET at the secondary school level are high. Fig. 3.2 Percentage of upper-secondary students enrolled in TVET programmes in selected countries, 2002 (Note: this is the most recent year for which this comprehensive information is available) (Source: ADB 2009b (calculated from enrolment data in International Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training, UIS-UNEVOC 2006)) 50 M. Pavlova and R. Maclean Costs Involved in Establishing TVET A large body of empirical literature has developed over the past 25 years which argues strongly, on cost-benefit grounds, against vocational schooling at the secondary level. TVET is generally more expensive than general education due to factors such as smaller classes, the cost of equipment and supplies. In the PRC, for example, specialised secondary schools and vocational schools cost $660 and $350 per student, respectively, compared with $240 per student in regular secondary schools (Copenhagen Development Consult A/S 2005: 41). In Indonesia, vocational secondary schools cost 25% more per student than general secondary schools (ADB 2009b). The unit cost of vocational education in India is about 60% higher than that of general secondary education (Government of India 2010) Despite these higher costs, in some countries, TVET graduates do not receive higher wages than general education graduates. The results of a World Bank tracer study in Bangladesh indicated that overall, only 10% of TVET graduates were employed, whilst in the case of female graduates, this was just 5%. About 45% of graduates were unemployed and 45% were pursuing further education (World Bank 2007: 29). In addition, those with vocational qualifications who were employed received lower wages than did graduates of the general education system (World Bank 2007: 33), suggesting low returns on investment in TVET that is supplydriven. Bangladesh is at the factor-driven stage of economic development. However, evidence from Tajikistan, which is at the same stage of economic development as Bangladesh, demonstrates that in 2009, more secondary TVET graduates were employed at the level of ‘mid-level specialists’ than were graduates from general secondary education (45.8 and 17.3%, respectively). A majority of general education graduates were employed as unskilled workers. Therefore, wage difference, relative to vocational or general secondary education, can be observed. It is important to note that traditionally a sizable proportion of the TVET curriculum in Tajikistan includes general studies so the TVET graduates have an additional advantage compared to academic graduates. Some evidence indicates that returns to investment in vocational education may differ according to the stage of development of a country. An ADB report (ADB 2009b) argues that in low-income countries, primary education is the best investment, whilst the expansion of secondary education yields the highest social returns for middle-income countries, and in high-income countries, the returns may be greatest in tertiary education. Another ADB report (2009a) suggests that considering costs, and the difficulty of implementation, vocationalisation may be considered advantageous only in several cases in the Asia-Pacific region: • Training in the use of computers (which is applicable across a variety of occupations and across subjects within general education) • Low-cost programmes that are not gender specific, such as agriculture, accounting and business studies (which are useful for broad occupational segments) 3 Vocationalisation of Secondary and Tertiary Education... 51 • Entrepreneurship training to enable school graduates to plan, start and run a business in order to boost self-employment It is important to note that the nature of secondary TVET (a proportion of general studies) is equally important to consider with regard to increasing returns on the vocationalisation of secondary education. As was suggested above, the development of human capital/HRD contributes significantly to economic growth at each stage of economic development. TVET is an important factor in this process, particularly considering its changing nature at the level of secondary education within ‘new’ vocationalisation. A well-regarded study by Psacharopolos and Loxley (1985) evaluated the economic soundness of curricular diversification. They concluded that: Based on comparisons of costs and achievement gains in academic and vocational knowledge between INEM [schools with some pre-vocational courses] and control schools [in Colombia], INEM industrial, social service, and agricultural streams are substantially less expensive than their control counterparts. Combined with the fact that these programs substantially boost achievement scores, they are unquestionably successful. And although the INEM academic and commercial programmes cost more that their control counterparts, they also substantially boost achievement [italic added]. (pp.93) Similar results were found for Tanzania. Although diversified schools cost more, there was a substantial increase in both academic and vocational knowledge, over that of the academic control group (ibid, pp.179). Therefore, the investment in diversified schooling did boost learning both in the vocational subjects, explicitly targeted, and also in general academic subjects. Implementation Initiatives The vocationalisation of secondary education is currently taking a new form and aims at increasing students’ employability through developing their personal employability characteristics, general competencies and specific vocational skills. The emphasis on particular components depends mainly on the level of economic development that predetermines the required skills. Vocationalisation occurs at both the lowerand upper-secondary levels, through both embedded and distinct deliveries. At the upper-secondary level, most countries have both technical/vocational schools and diversified secondary schools with general academic and vocational courses. This section illustrates current practices and policy plans of two countries in the region. Malaysia In Malaysia, the government is considering whether to introduce vocational subjects at the lower-secondary level. The programme is targeting 13–15-year-old students and is proposing a preparatory programme in helping learners to enter 52 M. Pavlova and R. Maclean upper-secondary technical schools that train students towards the Malaysian skills certificate. This preparatory programme consists of three blocks (master electives, general/instructional subjects and a character-building program) (Kasih 2010). This approach is consistent with the principle of employability skills development, within a context of specific occupations, and with the argument developed by Pavlova and Huang (2012) on the importance of character building. In terms of vocationalisation at the upper-secondary level, the Ministry of Education (MOE) has approved twenty-two elective vocational subjects to be included in the curriculum offerings of academic schools. 5 This has been stated as an important measure in the Education Development Master Plan (EDMP) 2006–2010. These twenty-two courses relate to five broad occupations: engineering services, construction, home economics, agriculture and computer applications. The Ministry of Education (MOE) has also set up the National Key Performance Indicators (NKPI) that include an increase in the number of TVET students in both academic and technical schools at the upper-secondary level over the next 5 years (2010–2015) with the aim of reaching 100% participation. Data collected through a tracer study by the Johor State Education Department (JSED) in 2004 presents the destinations of the students who graduated after the completion of vocational subjects. 14.29% (15 people out of 105) of students who took part in that study pursued education in the same area in both public and private institutes of higher education; 8.57% of graduates (9 people) pursued careers in the field of their training. Although 45.7% of students were not engaged in careers relevant to their vocational studies at school, only 16.19% of students were unemployed. 6 These results raised a number of important questions. Some possible reasons for low continuation of careers in the areas of training could include inadequate career counselling arrangements, provision of only work-related knowledge without wellestablished links to the general principles that underpin practices, a lack of motivation, poor quality and low relevance of courses and the need for an update of content and the poor quality of teaching. Another tracer study of secondary technical and vocational graduates in Malaysia by ADB indicated 90% of technical graduates moved on to polytechnics, whilst the remaining 10% (mostly secondary vocational school graduates) proceeded to specialised vocational institutes. A telephone survey in 2006 by the Malaysian Employers Federation indicated satisfaction with graduates’ technical knowledge, but employers wished to see a greater emphasis being placed on soft skills, such as problem solving, communication and work ethics (ADB 2007b: 16–17). 5 Based on paper by Minghat et al. (2010). 6 Source: The Technical and Vocational Education Unit, Johor State Education Department (2007) cited in Minghat et al. (2010). Note: The sample above was based on three schools that offer the VS; the SMK Pekan Baru, Muar, SMK Perling, Johor Bahru and SMK Bandar Tenggara, Kulai. 3 Vocationalisation of Secondary and Tertiary Education... 53 The example of Malaysia illustrates a political will to vocationalise secondary education at both lower-secondary and upper-secondary levels to enhance economic growth. To achieve success in this initiative, the quality and relevance of the courses should be improved as well as more emphasis being placed on soft/ employability skills development. These vocationalisation policies are underpinned by different rationales which include: • Social: to keep potential dropout students within school, to provide greater accessibility to skills development and character building, to achieve an increase in attainment • Economy-related: to develop occupation-specific skills to improve the quality of human resources However, to move the country’s economy to the next level of development, employability skills should be explicitly addressed as well as that of developing higher order thinking skills, and problem solving, to help students adapt to the fast changing technological environment. India (Government of India 2010) The government makes a distinction between work-centred education, called ‘vocationalised education’, and ‘vocational education’, at the upper-secondary level. Currently, there is no relationship between these two components. Work education is included in the primary standards (grades 1–8) to help make students aware of the concept of work. At the lower-secondary level (grades 9–10), prevocational education exists which aims to increase students’ familiarity with the world of work. Vocational education is a distinct stream in upper-secondary education (grades 11–12). It was introduced in 1976–1977 and revisited in 1992–1993 as a way to diversify educational opportunities, enhance individual employability and reduce the mismatch between the supply of and demand for a skilled labour force. It was also aimed at diverting a substantial portion of students away from the ‘academic’ stream. The need to bring together vocation and academic education at the level of policy plans has been recognised by the Indian government. On the one hand, a need to reconstruct the entire school curriculum (from preprimary to senior secondary) around a common core curriculum, that will incorporate work-based pedagogy initially until grade 10 and then up to grade 12, for all children, is stated. A set of work-related generic competencies (basic, interpersonal and systemic) are planned to be addressed at all stages of education and will be included in assessment. Amongst others, such generic competencies as ‘critical thinking, transfer of learning, creativity, communication skills, aesthetics, work motivation, work ethics of collaboration, entrepreneurship and social accountability’ are to be included. 54 M. Pavlova and R. Maclean On the other hand, strengthening the general education component of vocational education has been recognised as an important development. Vocational programmes are to provide sound basic knowledge in humanities and sciences, preparing students to work in various occupations, teaching them to be problem solvers and encouraging students to engage in lifelong learning. Currently, vocational education in schools at the upper-secondary level is mainly offered by government schools, although in some states, private schools are also offering these courses. There are now about 9,583 schools (as of 2007) offering approximately 150 educational courses of 2 years duration in the broad areas of agriculture, business and commerce, engineering and technology, health and paramedical, home science and science and technology (Planning Commission, 2008, cited in Government of India 2010). Despite the fact that the 11th Five Year Plan aimed to double the number of schools offering VE (from 9,583 to 20,000, so that the intake capacity will increase from 1 million to 2.5 million), change has been very slow. The report (Government of India 2010) questioned the quality and relevance of VE provided at the upper-secondary level for equipping school children for the requirements of the world of work. Most courses are schoolbased. However, some of these have been perceived as a collaborative model with industry. The theory part of courses and some basic skills are developed in schools with there being a further refinement of skills in the actual industry. India is amongst the countries with the lowest proportion of trained youth, 80% of new entrants to the workforce having no opportunity for skills training. The existing training capacity is 3.1 million per annum compared to 12.8 million new entrants to the workforce, annually. The government has taken due recognition of the skill gaps and plans to take new initiatives for bridging them. In this regard, the National Policy on Skill Development (Government of India 2009) provides a direction for skill development in the country. Diversifying Postsecondary TVET Many countries have taken steps to improve the articulation of secondary vocational education with higher education in order to open more options for students and to meet the increasing demand for skills and qualifications at ISCED Levels 4 7 (non-tertiary postsecondary) and 5 (first stage of tertiary studies) which are designed for employment in technical, managerial and professional occupations. As the demand for enrolment at the postsecondary and tertiary levels has increased 7 Lower secondary (ISCED 2), upper-secondary level (ISCED 3), postsecondary non-tertiary education (ISCED 4) and tertiary-type B programmes (ISCED 5B) are typically shorter than those of tertiary-type A and focus on practical, technical or occupational skills for direct entry into the labour market, although some theoretical foundations may be covered in the respective programmes. They have a minimum duration of two years full-time equivalent at the tertiary level (OECD 2002). 3 Vocationalisation of Secondary and Tertiary Education... 55 in most countries, pressure has grown for diversification of the types and modes of provision at these levels. The definition of programmes at Level 4 is extremely broad, and there is a wide range of programme types which may be classified here, ranging from short preemployment courses to longer courses oriented towards higher-level education and training. One area where there has been a marked rate of growth in participation across regions is in the provision of skills training programmes for lowerand middle-ranking administrative and technical occupations, particularly those involving business, administrative and ICT skills. Polytechnics in many countries, industrial training institutes in India and technical colleges in Sri Lanka belong to the postsecondary, non-tertiary level. In many countries, this has led to the proliferation of new vocational programmes at Levels 4 and 5 such as 4-year institutions in Japan, 2-year community colleges with high vocational content in the United States and 2or 3-year junior colleges in the Republic of Korea. In the Republic of Korea, ‘junior colleges’ (jeonmun daehack) were established in 1979 due to rapid industrialisation in the Republic of Korea and an increasing demand for middle-level technicians with both a theoretical understanding and practical skills (Goodman et al. 2009). Due to a thorough curriculum, strong school-industry cooperation, including internships, industry-based training for faculty members, education for mid-career industry employees, joint college/industry research programmes, information exchange, active work of industry/college cooperation committees and curriculum development at the industries’ request, college graduates are highly valued in the Republic of Korea. Out of 80% high school graduates perusing further studies, 45% enrolled in colleges (Korean Council for College Education 2005: 41). A comparable diversification has occurred in vocational tertiary programmes. As demand for tertiary education has increased, so many countries have substantially extended the range of the shortand medium-length vocational programmes available at ISCED 5B. 8 These have included developing skills for a large number of occupations which previously did not exist or for which there was previously no higher-level qualification. In some cases, these new programmes have been offered in the form of traditional university environments. However, for the most part, they have been developed in polytechnic-type tertiary vocational institutions. Community and technical colleges in the United States have developed post-diploma programmes to deliver such ‘newer’ skills to both degree and nondegree graduates, as well as for those wishing to upgrade their skills. At the same time, as the range of types of programme has increased, in terms of content and intended labour market utility, so has the range of types in terms of provider institutions and modes of delivery. Many countries, most notably Malaysia and the Republic of Korea, have developed very extensive systems of open 8 Tertiary-type B programmes (ISCED 5B) are typically shorter than those of tertiary-type A and focus on practical, technical or occupational skills for direct entry into the labour market, although some theoretical foundations may be covered in the respective programmes. They have a minimum duration of two years full-time equivalent at the tertiary level (OECD 2002). 56 M. Pavlova and R. Maclean university distance education provision, both in general areas and TVET, although the latter is largely limited to what can be learnt without highly specialised and expensive equipment. The United States has also developed ‘open college’ TVET programmes. It is interesting to note that much of the new programmes are delivered by private providers, especially in Asia. They are often licensed and subsidised by the state but increasingly also include entirely independent providers, particularly at Level 4. Vocationalisation of Higher Education 9 Historically, vocational education and higher education emerged from opposing traditions, with the university producing systematic scientific knowledge and vocational education, training for specific occupations. As a result, university outputs were evaluated on the basis of their contributions to the respective scientific discipline (Klu ¨ver 1995) whilst vocational education outputs were concerned with the ability to undertake useful work. Those relationships have been established over time with socio-economic development influencing the process. Mass higher education, elite higher education, polytechnics and different levels of vocational institutions including higher vocational education established to train doctors, teachers and lawyers have been developing complex relationships within countries around the globe. Even countries within the European Union, such as Germany and the UK, which have market economies, have different approaches towards higher and vocational education. As stated by Hoelscher (2005), in Germany, higher education is more vocationally oriented than it is in the UK, and vocationalisation is more related to the development of specific skills that are tied closely to a particular occupation. In the UK, particular higher degrees do not lead into specific occupational fields because it is considered reasonable for individuals to invest in the development of general and transferable skills. 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India, like many other Asian countries, is going through five labour market transitions: farm to nonfarm, rural to urban, unorganised to organised, subsistence self-employment to decent wage employment and school to work. India’s population, long considered a curse, has turned into a desirable demographic dividend. But a demographic dividend does not mean just people; it means skilled, educated or employed people. This chapter derives on the experiences of TeamLease, a people supply chain company in India that has hired a person every five minutes for the last 5 years, but that is only 5% of the people who were seeking a job with us. TeamLease estimates that 57% of India’s youth suffer some degree of unemployability, with the 82.5 million unemployable youth requiring different levels of ‘skill repair’ for employment: (1) last mile repair candidates requiring training for less than 6 months (5.3 million), (2) interventional repair candidates requiring training of 6 months to a year (21.9 million) and (3) structural repair candidates needing training of 1–2 years (55.4 million). TeamLease studies show that 58% of India’s youth suffer some degree of skill deprivation and unemployability is bigger issue than unemployment (TeamLease Services and Indian Institute of Job Training 2012). India must undertake reform of the Es to address sustainable poverty reduction. M. Sabharwal (*) TeamLease Services Pvt Ltd, Bangalore, Karnataka, India R. Maclean et al. (eds.), Skills Development for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Asia-Pacific, Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Issues, Concerns and Prospects 19, DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-5937-4_4, #Asian Development Bank 2013 67 Reforming the Four Es First E: Employment Reform Problems with Matching and Connecting Supply to Demand Peter Diamond’s Nobel prize winning work on search costs in labour markets is very important in the context of emerging economies like India where matching labour demand and supply become difficult because most employment is in the informal sector, largely in agriculture, and the labour force has low levels of education and skills. Diamond points out that just as measured unemployment does not fully reflect the availability of workers to be hired, so too the measured level of vacancies does not fully reflect the availability of jobs (Diamond 2011). The challenges for matching are broad and deep in India. Employment and productivity patterns reveal important mismatches. Ninety-three percent of the workforce in India is in informal employment, which suffers from subscale enterprises and overall low productivity. Fifty-eight percent of the workforce is in agricultural employment that contributes to only 15% of GDP. India produces 120 million tonnes of milk with 75 million people, compared to the United States that produces 60 million tonnes with 100,000 people. Only 12% of the workforce is in manufacturing employment, compared to 50% in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Low-skilled organised manufacturing would create a mezzanine layer that would enable the difficult farm to nonfarm transition. More than half of India’s labour force is self-employed, which unfortunately does not signal entrepreneurial energy as most self-employed are working poor. India has outdated and dysfunctional institutional mechanisms. In 2011, India’s 1,200 employment exchanges run by the government provided only 300,000 jobs against the 40 million people who are registered in these employment exchanges. India’s labour law regime favours informal employment and encourages the substitution of labour with capital. Many labour-intensive sectors like textiles and toys are more capital intensive in India than in the PRC. There are grossly inadequate social protection and benefit systems that are not employer oriented to the detriment of those in informal employment. India has much lower rate of urbanisation compared to the PRC – only 34 cities with more than a million people in India versus the PRC’s 250. India has 600,000 villages, a third of which have less than 200 people, which creates challenges for sustainable job creation, making it difficult to adopt cluster approaches to employment and economic activity. In this dispersed scenario, people needing employment are not in geographies that have high employment potential, and people have to be taken to places where there is work. Possible Solutions for Employment Reform Employment exchanges need a major revamping. Present employment exchanges do nothing but only register job seekers. They need to establish employer connections, 68 M. Sabharwal provide employee service and turn themselves into career centres. As most of the exchanges are situated in easily accessible locations and have decent infrastructure and have high youth awareness, they can be better leveraged. Public–private partnerships (PPPs) that marry public sector infrastructure with private sector software of people, processes and technology can vastly improve their effectiveness. Employment exchanges need to offer the five services of assessment, counselling, apprenticeships, training and jobs to become integrated career centres. These PPPs will not only increase employer interfaces but also help to diversify the role of employment exchanges beyond simple outcomes of only jobs. The state of Karnataka has decided to ‘upgrade’ its employment exchanges to Human Resource Development Centres (HRDCs) through the PPP modality. An employment exchange that earlier provided jobs to 50–60 candidates annually moved to providing jobs to over 2,000 job seekers in the first year of operations and HRDCs and has continued the trend every year since. A case study on the Karnataka model is included in Appendix 1. A modern vibrant apprenticeship regime is another domain that will help to improve employment outcomes. Apprenticeships are a globally recognised vehicle for effective skill development because of the effectiveness of ‘learning by doing’ and ‘learning while earning’. They improve the prospects of candidates’ job prospects by providing them an opening balance of on-the-job experience. Direct employer involvement in apprenticeship programmes ensures relevance of the skills obtained. But India’s apprenticeship regime requires an overhaul. There are only 300,000 formal apprentices in India, compared to even smaller countries like Germany and Japan that have 6 and 10 million apprentices, respectively. The success of apprenticeship programmes lies in combining the formal educational phase (training targeted at being effective in the workplace) with the workplace phase (training actually put to work and learning to be productive). Apprentices become ‘employment ready’ because of the synthesis of employability and employment. A number of recommendations to remodel the apprenticeship regime in India have been made, including encouragement and incentives to employers to support an expanded and flexible apprenticeship regime to not only create a human capital pipeline for themselves but also fulfil their corporate social responsibilities (Planning Commission Sub-Committee on Re-Modeling India’s Apprenticeship Regime 2009). Extensive labour law reform is required in India. The laws favour organised labour, trade unions and those currently in a job and discriminate against those who are outside the labour market (particularly the less skilled, less educated, people from small towns, women, etc.). Considering that labour law reform is controversial globally, it could be undertaken in a phased approach. A first phase could involve elimination of redundant laws and harmonisation and re-engineering of laws as required. In a second phase, more difficult issues of employment contracts, fixed term employment and issues related to trade unions need to be tackled. Bringing labour law within the ambit of state jurisdiction rather than legislated concurrently by the governments at the centre and the state may help to unblock the path for some crucial reforms. 4 Education, Employability, Employment, and Entrepreneurship... 69 There is a need to create a shared job framework that brings a much-needed alignment between supply and demand. A national framework and infrastructure for skill development that aligns occupation codes, entry gate assessment and exit gate certification is needed. This framework should allow real-time interfacing between the demand and supply side of the labour markets to not only enable better matching but allow changes to curriculum, job descriptions, job posting and assessments early enough to matter. TeamLease is in the process of creating a framework called TeamLease National Employment Framework that is detailed in Appendix 2. Second E: Employability Reform Problems with Improving Supply for Employability The mismatch problem arises from the divergence in what employers are seeking in the candidates in addition to qualifications and the actual skills candidates have. This issue of employability skills is particularly important for those who are already in low-productivity jobs in the workforce or students who have completed their education but are unable to get a job. Improving the supply of educated people for employability is more than just qualifications. The issue of financing training requires to be addressed. Employers face three holes in the training bucket: first, they pay for training, but the candidates do not pass or complete the training successfully (learning risk); second, they pay for training, and the candidate completes it successfully but does not perform in the workplace (productivity risk); and third, employers pay for training, and the candidate completes successfully and is productive in the workplace; however, he leaves (attrition risk). So employers are not willing to pay for training upfront but they are willing to give apprenticeship stipends or reimburse candidates for fees they have paid if they stay with them for some time. Employers are willing to hire trained workers. Candidates, on the other hand, are unwilling to pay for training but ready to pay for a job. Third-party financiers like micro-finance or banks are unwilling to lend for vocational training unless a job is guaranteed. The government financing is mostly towards inputs rather than towards outcomes. The comparative advantages of public and private sectors are not appropriately leveraged as considerable distrust exists with regard to the role of the private sector. This impedes effective structuring of PPPs and policy-based contracting arrangements. This mismatch between what employers want and what they get is exacerbated due to a hard partition between education and training. The qualification corridor to enable vertical mobility between certificates, diplomas and degrees does not exist. This lowers the social signalling value of vocational training. Students who have undergone vocational training find it difficult to revert back to general streams of education to acquire higher qualifications. A pathway for a gradual upgrading 70 M. Sabharwal of skills and competencies even within the vocational stream is not very well organised. Competency assessment and performance management in employability skills are not an area that has been given adequate attention. In addition to qualifications, there are no concrete metrics that help employers and institutions assess the employability skills. In India, there is wrong balance between exit and entry gates in educational institutions. An educational institution can be like the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) or Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) with tight entry gates and wide open exit gates or like the Chartered Accountant exam with wide open entry gates and tight exit gates. Currently, vocational training has wide open entry and exit gates. There is a lack of alignment between various parts of the skills, training and employment ecosystem that includes assessment, curriculum, certification and jobs. Unless training institutions are able to effectively take on board market demands and trends for skills, including employability skills in their curriculum and courses, and able to provide certification for well-defined skill sets, the employability mismatch will continue. Possible Solutions for Employability Reform Separating financing from delivery of skills development could ensure that delivery is undertaken by agencies that have requisite capacity. Usually, government money for skill delivery is only available for government delivery of training. Making government funds available for both public and private delivery would not only support agencies that meet the demand for employability skills but also facilitate more innovative delivery modes. A possible switch from financing institutions to financing students through instruments such as vouchers and scholarships will create competition and give choices to students. Linking financing to desired outcomes would ensure that the right skills are ensured for people seeking jobs. Most government financing currently supports skill development linked to inputs, such as number of hours of training. If a mechanism to link this funding to expected learning outcomes or placements in jobs, using a neutral platform, can be designed for both private and public delivery, the quality of training and the competencies of trainees are likely to increase. This requires development of appropriate contracting mechanisms and accountability systems. A credible information about learning outcomes, placement record and teacher quality of training institutions can facilitate informed choice. An important gap could be filled by creating a rating or ranking system for institutions that would enable comparison and spur competition. Linking poverty programmes to training may further support employability objectives of the poor. There are many social sector or poverty reduction schemes of the central and state governments which provide funds but do not create any capacities or change trajectories. It will not be easy given the state of delivery systems, but it is important to begin the journey to creating a skill, apprenticeship 4 Education, Employability, Employment, and Entrepreneurship... 71 or employment component in schemes like the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS). A credible skill voucher or scholarship programme would enable a transparent, cashless transaction that would enable the trainee to get trained from any accredited institute and on completion of training the institute can redeem the voucher for cash. These schemes may also lay the foundations for collateral-free skill loans, and the proposed Credit Guarantee Fund is a useful infrastructure. Integrating apprenticeships with training and placements will play a valuable role to increase employability of trained graduates. The limitation of a small number of apprentices in India goes beyond the matching of supply with demand problem it creates since most students end up with only theoretical knowledge. Formally integrating apprenticeships into skill and education programmes, with accumulation of credit for apprenticeships undertaken, would be important, and this requires a regulatory review that is overdue and urgent. Creating a qualification corridor will go a long way in establishing and recognising qualifications and skills for employability. The current regulatory system does not allow the creation of a corridor or link between a 3-month certificate, a 1-year diploma, a 2-year associate degree and a 3-year degree. Vocational training is often ‘tracked’ and does not facilitate moving back and forth from the formal academic stream. The proposed National Vocational Education Qualification Framework currently under consideration, but struggling for regulatory legitimacy, would help in reducing the perpetual problem of ‘social signalling value’ of vocational training versus a degree. Third E: Education Reform Problems with Creating a Pipeline of Educated and Skilled Workers The broad principles for a better educational regime have to do with better regulation of quality, incentives that are aligned and the creation of an ecosystem where preparation of educated and skilled workers is in line with the requirements of the future. The key challenges that the education system faces are high dropouts at various stages of education. About 35% of students who start school do not reach grade 10. Of the 26 million who take the grade 10 exit examinations, 10 million do not pass. Eight million of the 16 million who take the grade 12 examinations fail to clear them. Only 5 million of the 8 million who successfully go past grade 12 examinations go on to college. Preparing a robust pipeline of educated and skilled workers and professionals requires improved completion and transition rates at lower levels of education. A robust basic and secondary education system, with adequate quality benchmarks, is crucial to ensure that higher levels of education and training have a good supply of well-prepared students. The education system has low capacity. India’s gross enrolment ratio (GER) at tertiary level at 11% is less half of the world average and much lower than the 72 M. Sabharwal developed country average of 45%. Only 15 million people are enrolled in higher education in India. The system also has low inclusiveness. The gross enrolment ratio is lower than average for women and disadvantaged populations. More than half the districts in the country have GERs that are lower than the national average. The proportion of poor and disadvantaged is also higher among those who drop out early from the education system which makes tertiary education enrolments and attainments inherently inequitable. The system is mired in ineffectiveness as many graduates are unemployable because of a huge gap between what they are in person and what they are on paper. There have been instances of people who have a bachelor’s degree in English who could not speak English. There is a strong partition in the mind of academics between learning for earning and learning for living. This is not a uniquely Indian phenomena; Yale said they did not want to run a ‘trade school’ and shut down their engineering school in the same year that Stanford started their industrial under Frank Terman – and catalysed Silicon Valley. Policy makers are preoccupied with vocationalisation of secondary education and related issues. There is need for a decentralised environment that encourages the entry of a range of educational and vocational training options across different levels and disciplines and allowing for free movement between them. Possible Solutions for Education Reform The Right to Education Act (RTE) in India, although has a right reason, is a wrong thing. Universal access to elementary education needs to be assured to all students in the country; however, the Act includes provisions that are not conducive to the expansion of unregulated private provision. Although the Act includes a 25% reservation for children from disadvantaged backgrounds in private schools, it promotes ineffective regulation on private education institutions. It has decreed the dismantling of low-cost unrecognised private schools that have contributed to increasing enrolment ratios. The RTE Act needs a full-fledged review in terms of ensuring a broad base of quality elementary education that reaches all over the country in partnership between private and public sectors. The regulatory focus is also on inputs, such as minimum conditions that must go into a school rather than outputs in terms of successful education completion or quality. There is an urgent need to ameliorate the quality of school education rather than focus on the issue of vocationalisation. The issue of vocationalisation of school needs to be reviewed in the context of fast-changing technology and the market place that is calling for much higher-order foundational skills. It would be better to strengthen the quality of such foundational skills in school education that would provide an adequate base to students on which they can build specialised skills. This means focusing on the basics and fixing schools to make sure they impart adequate quality education to address the three Rs (reading, writing and arithmetic) along with communication skills and soft skills of curiosity, confidence, risk taking and team playing. The urgent need is thus one of creating a robust base of school education system that is aligned to the higher levels. 4 Education, Employability, Employment, and Entrepreneurship... 73 A depiction of how TNEF helps identify the best fit for a particular sector and industry is shown below for Services & Manufacturing: Jr. Designer - Cad Support Sr. Designer - Cad Support Designer - Cad Support Product Designing Automobiles Manufacturing Design & Development 80 M. Sabharwal Jr. Customer Support Sr. Customer Support Customer Support Client Service IT-Telecom Service Customer Service There are over 50 industries that have been mapped under TNEF. List of these industries is given below for reference: TNEF Industrial Classification Automobile / automotive / auto ancillaries / auto components Agriculture / poultry / fisheries / forestry / dairy / fertilizer Aerospace / aviation Electrical and electronics Airlines and aviation Fashion / garments / merchandising / modelling / apparel Biotechnology / pharmaceutical / medicine Packaging industry Capital goods / machine manufacturing / heavy industry machinery / safety equipment / control equipments Textiles Cement / marble / ceramics / stones / Sugar Banking Engineering, procurement and construction Beauty / fitness Financial Services Entertainment / media ( tv / films / production ) / journalism Business / management consulting / consulting services Insurance Fertilizers, chemicals, paints, dyes and industrial chemicals Construction / building / real estate Consumer goods – durables / home appliances Food processing / beverages /catering / food services Engineering / technical consulting science and technology Consumer products / FMCG Marketing / advertising / market research / public relations / event management Environment / health / safety Courier / logistics / packaging / freight forwarding / distribution Metal / steel / iron / metallurgy Export / import / merchandising ITES – BPO / call center / KPO / RPO / med.trans Mining General and wholesale trading Power / energy – generation and transmission Oil and gas-exploration, extraction, refining Guards / security services Retailing Paper / publishing / printing / stationery Library / museum Telecom and ISP Rubber / plastic / glass / wood / polymer / fibre Recruitment / placement agencies Hospitality, hotels, resorts and restaurants Teaching / education / training Social services / NGO Healthcare / paramedical transportation (surface / air / marine transport) Sports / recreation IT Travel & tourism (reservations / ticketing travel ) Gems and jewellery 4 Education, Employability, Employment, and Entrepreneurship... 81 Ideal Candidate Profile (ICP) An ICP is a detailed job description, with emphasis on prerequisites to perform the described job for the desired output. It is the foundation of TNEF. It specifies appropriate sets of score to data, skill, knowledge and behaviour. Sample ICPs are listed below for reference. Sample ICP for a Financial Analyst MAS-OS-FAN-A2030K Profile Financial analyst Brief about the profile The job would involve conducting quantitative analysis of information affecting investment programmes of public or private institutions; analysing financial information to produce forecasts of business, industry and economic conditions for use in making investment decisions; assembling spreadsheets and draw charts and graphs used to illustrate technical reports, using computer; evaluating and comparing the relative quality of various securities in a given industry; interpreting data affecting investment programmes, such as price, yield, stability, future trends in investment risks and economic influences; maintaining knowledge and stays abreast of developments in the fields of industrial technology, business, finance and economic theory; monitoring fundamental economic, industrial and corporate developments through the analysis of information obtained from financial publications and services, investment banking firms, government agencies, trade publications, company sources and personal interviews. Preparing plans of action for investment based on financial analyses. Present oral and written reports on general economic trends, individual corporations and entire industries; recommending investments and investment timing to companies, investment firm staff or the investing public; and collaborating with investment bankers to attract new corporate clients to securities firms Age 25–35 Gender M, F Education Bcom, Mcom, CA, ICWA, MBA Experience 3–5 years Salary expectation 20,000–30,000 Behaviour Attributes Acceptable score Description Assertive 6–8 The quality of relating well with people, expressing needs freely, taking responsibility for one’s feelings and standing up for oneself when necessary Assertive AE 6–8 The quality of relating well with people, expressing needs freely, taking responsibility for one’s feelings and standing up for oneself when necessary (continued) 82 M. Sabharwal (continued) Attributes Acceptable score Description Confidence 6–8 The general sense of adequacy, which is likely to contribute to a person’s effectiveness in working for a task-related goal Confidence AE 6–8 The general sense of adequacy, which is likely to contribute to a person’s effectiveness in working for a task-related goal Consistency 6–8 To repeatedly be able to perform effectively, also firmness of character Consistency AE 6–8 To repeatedly be able to perform effectively and also firmness of character Persistence 7–8 The quality of continuing steadily despite problems or difficulties Exploratory 6–8 This is the scientific, task-oriented type who likes to learn, know, analyse and observe and prefers work that requires abstract thinking and creative problem-solving Appearance 6–8 Outward or visible aspect of a person especially with regard to personal cleanliness and neatness of clothing Motivation 6–8 Motivation is what drives one to behave in a certain way or take a particular action Motivation AE 6–8 Motivation is what drives one to behave in a certain way or take a particular action Maturity 5–7 The capacity to face unpleasantness and frustration, discomfort and defeat without complaint or collapse Maturity AE 5–7 The capacity to face unpleasantness and frustration, discomfort and defeat without complaint or collapse Responsibility 6–8 The state of being accountable or answerable Knowledge Attributes Acceptable score Description English 6–8 The fluency of spoken language, written and its comprehension English AE 6–8 The fluency of spoken language, written and its comprehension MS Office tools 7–9 Knowledge of various MS packages like MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook Economics and accounting 7–9 Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking and the analysis and reporting of financial data Mathematics 7–9 Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics and their applications Skill Attributes Acceptable score Description Communication skills 6–8 The ability to listen, to articulate and to ensure that understanding happens at both ends Communication skills AE 6–8 The ability to listen, to articulate and to ensure that understanding happens at both ends Interpersonal skills 5–7 The goal-directed behaviours used in interactions which aim at bringing about a desired state of affairs. Also how one builds rapport (continued) 4 Education, Employability, Employment, and Entrepreneurship... 83 (continued) Attributes Acceptable score Description Problem sensitivity 6–8 The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognising there is a problem Analytical skills 7–9 The ability to solve problems and make decisions that make sense based on available information Analytical skills AE 7–9 The ability to solve problems and make decisions that make sense based on available information Observation skills 7–9 The ability of taking notice, the act of seeing or fixing the mind upon anything Problem-solving skills_M 6–8 The ability to understand and deal with difficult questions or things applying logic or reasoning to review information. Identify problems and their causes, evaluate options and select the best solution Problem-solving skills_AE 6–8 The ability to understand and deal with difficult questions or things applying logic or reasoning to review information. Identify problems and their causes, evaluate options and select the best solution Critical thinking_M 6–8 The ability to analyse, evaluate, synthesise and reconstruct thinking Critical thinking_AE 6–8 The ability to analyse, evaluate, synthesise and reconstruct thinking Decision-making skills 6–8 The outcome of mental processes leading to the selection of a course of action among several alternatives Decision-making skills AE 6–8 The outcome of mental processes leading to the selection of a course of action among several alternatives Sample ICP for a Jr. Software Engineer MAS-OS-SWE-A0812K Profile Jr. software engineer Brief about the profile The job would be to research, design and develop computer software systems, in conjunction with hardware product development, for medical, industrial, communications, aerospace and scientific applications, applying principles and techniques of computer science, engineering and mathematical analysis: analyse software requirements to determine feasibility of design within time and cost constraints. Consult with hardware engineers and other engineering staff to evaluate interface between hardware and software, and operational and performance requirements of overall system. Formulate and design software system, using scientific analysis and mathematical models to predict and measure outcome and consequences of design. Develop and direct software system testing procedures, programming and documentation. Consult with customer concerning maintenance of software system. May coordinate installation of software system (continued) 84 M. Sabharwal (continued) MAS-OS-SWE-A0812K Profile Jr. software engineer Age 22–26 Gender M, F Education BE, BTech, ME Experience 0–1 year Salary Expectation 8,000–12,000 Behaviour Attributes Acceptable score Description Confidence 4–6 The general sense of adequacy, which is likely to contribute to a person’s effectiveness in working for a task-related goal Confidence AE 4–6 The general sense of adequacy, which is likely to contribute to a person’s effectiveness in working for a task-related goal Patience 4–6 The ability to endure waiting, delay or provocation without being annoyed or upset or to persevere calmly when faced with difficulties Patience AE 4–6 The ability to endure waiting, delay or provocation without being annoyed or upset or to persevere calmly when faced with difficulties Adaptability 4–6 The ability to change(or be changed) to fit changed circumstances Consistency AE 4–6 To repeatedly be able to perform effectively, also firmness of character Reliable 4–6 To be trusted to do what one has been asked to do Rational 5–7 Governed by, or showing evidence of, clear and sensible thinking and judgement, based on reason rather than emotion or prejudice Methodical 5–7 Characterised by method and orderliness Knowledge Attributes Acceptable score Description English 4–6 The fluency of spoken language, written and its comprehension English AE 4–6 The fluency of spoken language, written and its comprehension Knowledge of engineering 5–7 Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services Skill Attributes Acceptable score Description Communication skills 4–6 The ability to listen, to articulate and to ensure that understanding happens at both ends Communication skills AE 4–6 The ability to listen, to articulate and to ensure that understanding happens at both ends (continued) 4 Education, Employability, Employment, and Entrepreneurship... 85 (continued) Attributes Acceptable score Description Interpersonal skills 5–7 The goal-directed behaviours used in interactions which aim at bringing about a desired state of affairs. Also how one builds rapport Observation skill 4–6 The ability of taking notice, the act of seeing or fixing the mind upon anything Analytical skill 4–6 The ability to solve problems and make decisions that make sense based on available information Analytical skill AE 4–6 The ability to solve problems and make decisions that make sense based on available information Decision-making skills 4–6 The outcome of mental processes leading to the selection of a course of action among several alternatives Decision-making skills AE 4–6 The outcome of mental processes leading to the selection of a course of action among several alternatives Critical thinking 4–6 The ability to analyse, evaluate, synthesise and reconstruct thinking Critical thinking AE 4–6 The ability to analyse, evaluate, synthesise and reconstruct thinking Observation skills 4–6 The ability of taking notice, the act of seeing or fixing the mind upon anything Proactive_M 4–6 The ability of an individual to take initiative Proactive_AE 4–6 The ability of an individual to take initiative Problem-solving skills_M 4–6 The ability to understand and deal with difficult questions or things applying logic or reasoning to review information. Identify problems and their causes, evaluate options and select the best solution Problem-solving skills_AE 4–6 The ability to understand and deal with difficult questions or things applying logic or reasoning to review information. Identify problems and their causes, evaluate options and select the best solution Benefits of TNEF Government • Create employment opportunities for unclassified and classified segment • Address skill gaps • Better fitment and placement Industries • Access to assessed candidates with the right skills and behaviour • Better fitment, thus better performance Candidate • Employment opportunity • Personality mapping • Skill gap analysis 86 M. Sabharwal General • Ready Reckoner for understanding of industries, functions, sub-functions and profiles Open Access This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial License which permits any non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited. References Diamond, P. (2011, June). Unemployment, vacancies, wages. American Economic Review, American Economic Association, 101(4), 1045–1072. Planning Commission Sub-Committee on Re-Modeling India’s Apprenticeship Regime (2009, February). Report and recommendations, New Delhi. TeamLease Services and Indian Institute of Job Training (2012). Massifying Indian higher education: The access and employability case for community colleges. India Labor Report. 4 Education, Employability, Employment, and Entrepreneurship... 87 Chapter 5 Coping with Rural Transformation and the Movement of Workers from Rural Areas to Cities: The People’s Republic of China Sunshine Project Li Wang and Greg Shaw Background Since the reform and opening up that began in 1978, extensive and profound changes have taken place in every aspect of Chinese society. The market economy has rapidly developed, and the scale of economic activity continues to grow such that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) now is recognised as the world’s second largest economy. The PRC continues to develop its industry activity, particularly secondary industries which have taken on increased prominence in the PRC economy, as the PRC strengthens its position as the world’s manufacturer. Industrialisation has brought with it a significant urbanisation of Chinese society such that by 2012 for the first time, a majority of Chinese people lived in urban environments. The PRC entry in the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001 is one of the hallmark features of its national development strategy. Policy initiatives that have driven these achievements have resulted in a transformation of the PRC economy, though they have also impacted on the PRC political, environmental and social system. Additionally, there has been significant increase in agricultural production, despite declining arable land. More efficient farming techniques requiring less labour and the consolidation of smallholder plots into larger farms, in concert with increasing populations, have created an excess of labour in rural areas. However, as vocational opportunities in rural areas have changed or decreased, demand for labour in urban and industrialised areas has increased, as the PRC expanded its industrialised activity and output. This has driven labour demand and L. Wang (*) UNESCO International Research and Training Centre for Rural Education (INRULED), Beijing, People’s Republic of China G. Shaw School of Education, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Australia e-mail: [email protected] R. Maclean et al. (eds.), Skills Development for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Asia-Pacific, Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Issues, Concerns and Prospects 19, DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-5937-4_5, #Asian Development Bank 2013 89 provided opportunity to tap into excess labour resources in rural areas. To facilitate the mass movement of labour from rural areas into industrialised and urban areas has required removal of systematic and structural impediments that have hindered the socio-economic development. Such impediments particularly affected rural workers. However, by creating diverse opportunities for employment for rural migrant workers in towns and cities and factories and through facilitating retraining and support for these workers, the PRC has achieved what in many ways is a miracle of social and vocational readjustment. Rural Labour Migration: Challenges Based on current vocational opportunities, there are 280 million surplus labourers in rural PRC, who in the past would have worked in vocational activity in rural areas or would have been peasant farmers. It is estimated that an additional six million unemployed rural workers become available each year. Such a significant number of people with vocational aspirations, and who need income in order to survive and to provide for their families, generate a significant potential social disruption for the Chinese society if not addressed. Of these surplus labourers, 87.8% have an educational level of junior high and below, only 0.52% of rural labourers have a college or higher education, and only 9.1% have received professional training. While such educational background may have been satisfactory for work and vocational activity in rural industries, it does not adequately reflect the particular skill and education needs that labourers and workers require in order to participate as skilled workers in industrial and other occupations in urban areas. Therefore, it is critically important for the PRC’s ongoing development, and for the provision of the needs of individuals, that education and training of rural workers suitable for employment in urban and industrialised settings be provided. Strengthening the education and training of rural people to help improve the quality of their lives and enhance their employability are vital. Increased education, and focused and specific training, improves the income generation potential of the PRC’s surplus rural labour and facilitates a smooth and socially stable transfer of work from agrarian activity in rural contexts to non-agrarian activity in urban contexts. However, this has presented challenging policy implications for the PRC. Retraining of surplus rural labour in order to meet labour demand in the PRC’s rapidly industrialising sectors is only part of the story. The surplus rural labour is located in rural areas, whereas the majority of development and industrialisation is taking place in the major urban areas, although there is significant urbanisation and industrialisation of many regions and areas in the PRC that were in the past considered rural. Consequently, two major population adjustments have been occurring in the PRC. First, workers are displaced as work opportunities dry up in rural areas or where smallholding blocks farmed by individual farmers are consolidated into larger farms requiring fewer workers. Such displaced workers will either naturally migrate to urban and industrialised areas in search of work or quite often as a result 90 L. Wang and G. Shaw In order to achieve a highly productive and efficient rural sector, strategies need to be focused and applied at the local or industry level. Following this approach, the municipal government of Wuhan with the help of the Sunshine Program’s platform for entrepreneurial training undertook steps in the form of preferential policies and training practices focused on agricultural industry. One example of this addressed policies and practices in the pork industry of the province through farmer entrepreneurial training in the Wuhan Sunshine Program (Li 2012a). The pig industry has been one of the remarkable miracles of modern agriculture. Traditional pig farming involved smallholders raising a few sows in open fields, with limited shelter and depending upon available food often with low protein content. The consequences were low efficiencies in the conversion of food into meat and high labour demands. Contrasting with this is modern pig farming where decades of genetic breeding have resulted in pigs that mature rapidly and that are extremely efficient in food conversion ratios and with sows that have large uniform litters. Coupled with this are intensive pig-farming practices with environmentally controlled restricted exercise habitats, formulated high-protein food that is constantly available, the use of antibiotics and other approaches to reduce mortality and increase metabolic efficiency. Pigs, along with poultry, have become high-tech agricultural activity, which can be managed using technology to minimise labour input. In the PRC the pig husbandry approaches have changed in many locations from the traditional methods and practices based on single farmer households to industrialise large-scale operations. In order to be able to engage in such large-scale high-tech operations entrepreneurs need capital for development of local capacity and high-level managerial and technical expertise. In addition, labour to operate such high-tech contemporary piggeries requires matching skills and training that goes beyond that required in traditional pig-farming practices, where typically skills were passed down from father to son and mother to daughter. Increasingly as well, pig-farming enterprise needs to not only use the latest technology, but to do so within a low-carbon ecological deeply rooted in the local context. The Wuhan’s Sunshine farm enterprise training programme was extended in the form of an entrepreneurial training programme at the Agricultural School of Wuhan focused on pig husbandry. The programme was run over 15 days by teachers and experts from the university and was provided free of charge. This concentrated training course involved entrepreneurial design, market research, application of modern pig-raising methods through practical learning tasks and business development. In addition to the agricultural training that farmers and labourers received, there was assistance provided to farmers through various agencies in accessing credit for capital development and also to establish networks for ongoing field extension support by agricultural offices. One of the outcomes of this programme was the regeneration of old farms, which were renovated, and facilities improved. In some cases, value adding occurred through construction of piggeries with recycling of waste into biogas powergeneration facilities at the piggery creating an integrated system for the use of biogas slurry and residues and providing some power back to the piggery operation. 5 Coping with Rural Transformation and the Movement of Workers... 97 The pig-raising programme was initially provided to 97 people from the districts of Huangpi, Jiangxia and Caidian, including farmer households specialising in raising pigs and farmers willing to raise pigs. The implementation of the programme involved ten experts and professors from the university who successfully delivered lectures concerning practices for farmers to start their own business and the application of new technologies for standardised ecological pig-raising enterprise. The training contained a mix of theory and practice and also included field trips to pig farms and practical experience in a range of operations. The programme cultivated among the participants entrepreneurial consciousness, inspired them to start their own businesses and taught them methods to start new business ventures. In addition, close liaison between the farmers, local agricultural extension officers and university teachers ensured a common focus and built a supportive network, which has helped to sustain ongoing enterprise activity. One of the impacts of this project has resulted in noteworthy increases in farmers’ income, and this is in line with impacts of other Sunshine subprojects and is one of the key goals of the policy driving the Sunshine Project. Also, the entrepreneurial training encouraged farmers to create their own business ventures. This specific training has the long-term potential of generating additional positive benefits such as job creation and increased employment. These effects can contribute to a generalised improvement of prosperity in rural areas and to the generation of a virtuous cycle to pull rural workers out of poverty. Training Rural Labour for Urban Industrial Activity The PRC’s economic development has been fuelled by the growth of its market economy and has led to rapid industrialisation and increased urbanisation. While the rural population of the PRC is still very large, it has shifted from being the majority of people to where more people now live in urban communities than in rural communities. The significant shift in population coupled with major shifts in industrialisation and work practices has resulted in misalignments of labour markets. The rapid urbanisation processes associated with these population changes present potential problems of social disharmony and economic disparity if adjustments that allow for a smooth absorption of the excess rural labour force into the urban market structures are not made. However, it is not desirable to simply transfer excess rural labourers, with skills in rural industries and lifestyle, into urban settings and vocations where different skills are required. The successful transfer of excess rural labour to take up new roles requires different sets of skills, and the transferring rural labourers need information to best access and harness job opportunities. Only when rural labourers are provided with the skills and information that they need can they fully and effectively participate and prosper within the developing urban economic and social structures. 98 L. Wang and G. Shaw Given these challenges, systematic ‘bridges’ are required to facilitate rural workers in obtaining jobs in urban areas and to facilitate their and their family’s migration. A sub-programme of the Sunshine Program in Yunxi County (northwestern Hubei Province) represents a success story in assisting excess rural workers effectively take up employment opportunities in urban settings. The programme aimed at establishing a smooth connection between rural workers, who were previously farmers, and companies operating various manufacturing enterprise in urban settings who are in need of workers. The sub-programme focused on identifying employment opportunities and then identifying the skill set needed in order to meet the required job skills. In identifying the skill sets required for employment the sub-programme focused on strengthening linkages between five major vocational training schools and factories in order to best facilitate the development of appropriate and focused vocational skills that the migrant workers needed in order to be skilled factory workers. In this process, the Sunshine Program provided tangible support to assist vocational schools to meet industry training needs by matching vocational schools and their specialty training programmes with the companies’ needs. The process was focused on ensuring that these potential employees could be successfully matched with companies with employment needs and that these migrant workers could find a job as soon as they finished their training. In addition to funding provided by the Sunshine Project, Yunxi County spent over two million Yuan (US$320,000) towards the training of these prospective migrant workers. The county took on an important role in caring for and facilitating training and employment opportunities for its own citizens. A county-based training system linking these five major training centres for increased efficiency was also established in order to provide the appropriate training and best guarantee employment in urban areas of surplus rural labour in the county. The Sunshine Project subproject in Yunxi County has had significant impact and success. It provides a useful model in connecting schools and industrial employers to ensure most effective matching of vocational skill needs and the training required to achieve these. Additionally, it demonstrates the effectiveness of bringing representatives of industry, located in urban settings, into a rural community in order to liaise directly with training facilities and to establish mechanisms for recruitment. As a result of this activity, the five main county vocational and technical schools set up partnerships and agreements with the Shenzhen Foxconn Electronics Group, the Hubei Zhuoyue Construction Group and the Dongfeng Motor Corporation for migrant worker employment and the skills required for this. These partnership agreements not only facilitated linkages for employment but also indicated the training required. These industries were able to negotiate with the training schools to ensure that the particular skills they required for the industries were addressed. Additionally, skilled technicians from these companies assisted the vocational schools to develop appropriate curriculum and training resources. The training therefore became quite focused on ensuring that these rural workers were job ready for these industries and, therefore, readily employable. For example, between 5 Coping with Rural Transformation and the Movement of Workers... 99 2005 and 2006, approximately 7,430 technicians undertook training through these county vocational schools in collaboration with companies mentioned above and were successfully employed in positions that paid significantly more than they are able to achieve in the past (PRC Government 2012). Ten specialised courses were developed, and these included cooking, electronic assembly, electrical engineering and construction. These training programmes not only reflected the needs of companies that had established partnership agreements but also linked to national qualifications frameworks and national and international standards. The standard of training delivered was of a high quality, and these excess rural labourers were highly motivated to be successful because successful completion of training nearly always guaranteed employment. Consequently, some of the areas of skills development achieved in this programme have received national recognition, and this sub-programme that was set up to meet a local need has resulted in graduates being transformed from displaced rural labourers into wellknown and respected expert workers. For instance, ‘Yunxi construction workers’ that emerged from this programme have a reputation across the PRC as being the leaders in the field. Graduates of this sub-programme experienced a substantial increase in income levels upon employment and a widening of employment perspectives and opportunities. This success has been mainly due to the adoption of a multiparty approach that tailored both training and placement opportunities to the participants’ characteristics and expectations. Rural Transformation and the Sunshine Project The concept of rural transformation can have multiple meanings. It has been used to describe a vision and process of change for the development of rural communities through education focused on national and global developmental goals (INRULED 2001). Such vision often emphasises poverty alleviation and national and community development goals. This view was strengthened somewhat in a recent publication where the authors elaborate that rural transformation ‘... is all about seeking to bring about improvement in the living conditions of the farmer, the artisan, the tenant and the landless in the countryside’ [our emphasis] (Ahmed et al. 2012). The concept of rural development is closely linked to the ways in which the term rural transformation is used in a range of literature. However, some have argued that any aspect of rural transformation needs to go beyond the physical transformation of rural environments and incorporate transformations of people. Shaw (2011) makes this point and links processes of education and training, which are focused on the person, directly to transformational outcomes which impact the person as well as the community. The Sunshine Project has as a primary goal the redistribution of labour from an agrarian economy into an industrialised economy and to facilitate the skills development required for migrant workers to be able to take up jobs in the PRC’s new 100 L. Wang and G. Shaw economy. The Sunshine Project is also about facilitating a smooth migration processes with minimal social disruption. Such migration in the long term is tending towards increased congregation of people in urban communities. That is, rural people are migrating to urban centres in order to work and in the long term to live. However, as indicated previously in this chapter, a significant number of rural migrant workers also constitute a floating population of several hundred millions of people, commuting annually to and from workplaces in distant urban centres. The outcome of the Sunshine Project as a mechanism to facilitate social adjustment to changing social and economic circumstances and to industry requirements has significant other ‘transformational’ outcomes. As noted, these migrant rural workers have the capacity to earn incomes that are substantially more than what they would receive if they had remained in (or had the opportunity to remain in) their traditional employment vocations. Thus, increased incomes, much of which is sent back ‘home’ has a direct impact on improving the lives and lifestyles of people living in rural communities. The PRC is experiencing a significant home-grown consumer-led economic boom. Salaries have been rising steadily over the last decade, and standards of living have increased significantly. The PRC is the world’s largest consumer society, and substantial improvements to lifestyle through improved housing, communications, entertainment, recreation, health services and other ‘consumables’ have been achieved in recent years. Additionally, and very significantly, the Sunshine Project has a direct impact on improving the education of Chinese people. Much of these educational activities are focused on skills development (Ahmed et al. 2012), but the development of skills also requires and involves other educational outcomes. Migrant workers for vocational occupations in industrial settings often need high-level contemporary skills such as skills required in the modern construction industries, electronics industries, manufacturing, management and skills for service industries such as tourism and hospitality. When people undertake education and training, they often have a transformational experience (Mezirow 1991; Newman 1994; Reading et al. 2006; Shaw 2011,2012). In the case of migrant workers undertaking training under the Sunshine Project, these transformational experiences can be various, but include having a new perspective on work and a deeper understanding of theoretical underpinnings of practice. That is, they better understand how things work. Other transformations may be more related to paradigm shifts where people start to view the world and their values in completely different ways. However, when training is coupled with new work experiences in new contexts (i.e. urban or increasingly urbanised rural contexts), this can lead to additional transformative experiences. Finally, education, particularly vocationally orientated, can have an empowering outcome as was demonstrated and used by Freire (1972). People are transformed when they gain skills and knowledge and are able to apply these in their daily lives. When people have skills and knowledge, they are in a better position to actually do something about changing their own lives, to make vocational choices, including entrepreneurial activity. Such a view of transformation is important. The significant vicissitudes taking place in the PRC, from an agrarian economy to an economy dominated by 5 Coping with Rural Transformation and the Movement of Workers... 101 manufacturing and construction, and from a rural society to an urban society, are changing the very fabric of Chinese society. Some of these changes have come about through other policy decisions as well or through processes of opening up and modernisation. No matter what the driving forces, the PRC is undertaking change. Indeed, the whole society is transforming. However, in this process, through education, work and through political reforms, individual people are changing and being transformed at the personal, family and community levels. As people transform in response to societal changes, they also are in a better position to transform their society. As rural people become more empowered through knowledge and skills, and through income earning opportunities, they will be and are ina stronger position to take an active role in the directions that the transformations of their lives and communities take. Conclusion The Sunshine Project is described as the world’s largest project for rural labour transfer training (Li 2012b). It was set up through various policy initiatives to facilitate a process of structural adjustment of labour markets and habitation in the PRC. This structural adjustment is required in order to ensure unemployed or underemployed rural labourers have an opportunity to secure paid livelihood in the rapidly developing industrial, construction and service industries of the PRC. The project is focused on facilitating matches within the job market and providing pathways for training and migration for millions of rural PRC workers. The Project is essential for PRC ongoing development strategies as it enables efficiencies essential for successful further development of the PRC’s economy. However, as the PRC continues to develop and undertakes massive adjustments to industries, there are substantial pressures on people, communities and the environment. These changes are sometimes referred to as ‘transformational’, in the sense that people, communities and environments are being radically changed. Some of these changes are unavoidable and indeed desirable, whereas others generate tensions within the fabric of society and also have significant environmental impacts. This chapter has only addressed some of these changes and issues focused on rural labour training for undertaking employment within various industries in urban contexts, the retraining of rural labourers to take advantage of the latest agricultural technologies for re-employment in rural contexts, and has to some extent addressed some of the issues to do with population adjustments and internal migrations in the PRC. In highlighting some of the outcomes of the Sunshine Project, we have indicated that the education and training activities conducted under the Project not only have important impacts on matching workers with skills with employment but that also education and training can have a positive transformational outcome for the individuals undertaking these. We further highlight that individuals transformed by education and training and employment opportunities can have a transformational impact on their families, communities and ultimately on the nation. 102 L. Wang and G. Shaw The Sunshine Project continues to receive support from the highest level of the PRC government and has become a key policy activity area impacting broadly across the PRC and most industries and has made a substantial contribution to the continuing ongoing development and stability in the PRC, and that benefits the whole world. Fundamental to the Sunshine Project is a focus on the person, on their livelihoods and well-being and on raising income levels and alleviating poverty and helping people live fulfilled lives. In this respect, the project is clearly successful. Open Access This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial License which permits any non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited. References Ahmed, M., Wang, L., et al. (2012). Education and training for rule transformation: Skills, jobs, food and green future to combat poverty. 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Shaw Chapter 6 TVET and ICT Acquisition Process Tapio Varis The terms ‘information society’ and ‘knowledge society’ do not reflect any more the essence of the modern society which, through the increasing use of the social media and networking, is becoming more and more social and communitarian. This trend is global in nature. The development from the knowledge society to social society is accelerating. We find daily new ways to find and create new or updated information. These new mind-expanding methods, tools and ways of collaboration are demanding us to change and develop the educational traditions. The computing is getting more and more part of the daily life outside the school. Social networks, cloud computing and connectivity are the keywords of today. The young generation is very familiar to create, collaborate and communicate in the Internet. These are the skills needed also in the industrial and business life. The major change in approaching the ICT skills acquisition process today is that learning – especially by the utilisation of enabling technology – instead of separating ICT training to institutions and curriculum, it can be seen as permanent part of work and lifelong learning. Since the learning and work environment is constantly changing, the need of ICT support personnel is vital. Today, vocational education plays a crucial role in the social and economic development of a nation. The emphasis on specific objectives and tasks, however, varies from country to country. Accordingly, the organisation and administration of vocational education is based on different models. It can be incorporated at the secondary or post-secondary level, and it can be combined with an apprenticeship or be followed up with further training. Increasingly, vocational education can be recognised in terms of prior learning and assigned with partial academic credit towards tertiary education. The skills and competences necessary can be acquired either in workplaces or in vocational schools, and most often, a combination of both T. Varis (*) Research Centre for Vocational Education, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland e-mail: [email protected] R. Maclean et al. (eds.), Skills Development for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Asia-Pacific, Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Issues, Concerns and Prospects 19, DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-5937-4_6, #Asian Development Bank 2013 105 are used. Vocational education is usually overseen and/or regulated by the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Labour, or by relevant sectoral ministries. Managing work in which responsibilities have been distributed to a high degree is a major challenge. The communication between employees and their managers may be based only on virtual contacts. In short-term assignments and in mobile work, it is difficult to update and upgrade one’s competences. This would, however, be crucial to the future employability of knowledge workers. On the other hand, it is difficult for managers to support continuous learning of individual employees and to emphasise shared learning of all employees in the network of a team or an organisation. There is a growing need for flexible structures and practices that facilitate lifelong learning (Varis 2011). Learning at work and Web-based social software have an increasingly important role in competence development. The requirements of speed and possibilities of virtual work have emphasised the emergence of new business models, such as open source. Instead of strictly protecting the development work up to the launch of a product or service, the idea or project is openly discussed and collectively developed from an early stage on the Internet. Based on open source, anyone can contribute an idea or provide improvements to the project in order to benefit the total development. The development resources can thus be multiplied. Transforming Boundaries The current transformation also penetrates boundaries that emerged and were shaped by the forces of the previous techno-economic paradigm. One of the most important of these boundaries is the one that separated industrialised countries from developing countries. The global knowledge-based economy slices geographical regions in new ways, where national borders have decreasing relevance. Instead of geographical proximity or local availability of resources, the underlying organising principle is based on global networks. The distinction between developing countries and developed countries is therefore becoming increasingly misleading. This change can now readily be seen, for example, in countries such as the Republic of Korea, India and the People’s Republic of China (PRC), where regional hubs connect with global production networks. A similar reorganisation can also be seen in the leading industrialised countries, where geographic specialisation is now essentially based on diversification in the context of global systems of production. ICT literacy and numeracy are vital for TVET. The health and safety of workers often depend upon their ability to read instructions (e.g. on fertiliser bags) and to make accurate calculations (e.g. of mixing ratios and application levels). The wider skills of scientific and social literacy are also important, for example, for equipment maintenance and repair, understanding technological change (scientific literacy), group work, dialogue and negotiation with colleagues and supervisors, gender and ethnic tolerance and other skills needed to build harmonious relations in the 106 T. Varis • The Australian TAFE sector evolved to fulfil two main roles – technical and off-the-job training for apprentices and older workers and offering second chance education to adults. • Reforms to TAFE over the last two decades have focused on making VET more industry led, competency based along with opening the market to a more diverse range of providers. This has brought challenges in terms of quality and regulation. • 20% of the Australian Labour Force aged 15–64 were engaged in formal study leading to a recognised qualification in 2011. • People with a post-school qualification at Certificate 3 or above are less likely to be unemployed and people with higher qualifications earn more. • Moving away from funding providers to funding the users requires good public information about the labour market and the performance of individual providers. It also requires effective regulation and quality assurance of the training delivery. • Planning for workforce development is about giving users the tools to respond to changes in the labour market rather than predicting in detail what those changes might be. • Skills Australia’s next National Workforce Strategy will be based on scenarios that describe plausible futures for Australia to 2025 and economic modelling of industry structure, labour market demand and skills supply. • Skills utilisation is as important to workforce development as skills acquisition and the key critical success factors to achieving better use of skills include good leadership, supportive culture, communication, consultation, participative processes and commitment to harnessing and nurturing the talents and skills of the workforce. Concentrating on the Supply Side Is Not Enough Like most OECD countries, Australian Governments have for many years encouraged public and private investment in both higher education (HE) and skills as a means of achieving greater national prosperity (Australian Government 2012; Finn 1991; Leitch Review of Skills 2005,2006). There is a well-established link between increases in post-school qualifications and improvements in workforce participation and labour productivity both of which have significant returns to national accounts (Productivity Commission 2012, p. 43). Until recently, efforts have largely concentrated on increasing the supply of skills whilst, at the same time, reforming the way the supply side is organised. Though the demand side has not been totally neglected, it has received less attention from policy makers. In Australia, this is changing. Concentrating on the supply of skills is seen as a (continued) 114 R. Shreeve et al. necessary but not sufficient condition to maximise the returns from the large investment in skills and tertiary qualifications made by governments, enterprises and individuals. Encouraging employer demand for skills and an emphasis on achieving better utilisation of skills in the workplace are now priorities for Skills Australia, the statutory body established in 2008 to provide independent advice to the Australian Government on Australia’s future workforce development and skills needs. In July 2012, Skills Australia will become the Australian Workforce and Productivity Agency to reflect some of these changes. A Workforce Development Approach Is Needed These new policy directions are part of a shift to what has been termed as a ‘workforce development’ approach. Workforce development is defined by Skills Australia as Those policies and practices which support people to participate effectively in the workforce and to develop and apply skills in a workplace context, where learning translates into positive outcomes for enterprises, the wider community and for individuals throughout their working lives (Skills Australia 2010, p. 7). The workforce development agenda encompasses all of the factors that encourage the development of skills and their use in Australian workplaces and drives participation and productivity improvements. Such a broader approach presents challenges for policy makers. Whilst it is relatively straightforward for governments to increase skills supply by such direct interventions as funding training programmes and establishing training institutions, it is more difficult for governments and peak bodies to influence behaviours and practices within organisations. For example, better utilisation of skills often involves changing job roles and organisational design as well as approaches to leadership and management within the firm. In a democratic, marketbased economy, it would be quite wrong and practically impossible to mandate or legislate how companies should run their businesses. Rather changes as to how skills can be better utilised in the workforce can be achieved more indirectly by incentivising good practice and through information and awareness campaigns that emphasise benefits such as improved profitability, productivity and staff morale. Growth and Reform of the Supply Side in Australia A well-educated and skilled population is seen as a core competitive advantage in an increasing globalised world economy. Higher overall skill levels across the population give a country the ability to produce more efficiently higher value products and services and thus compete with other counties on factors other than the price of labour. The rewards from this competitive economic advantage trickle down into the population through higher wages and higher tax income that can be spent on infrastructure as well as community building and welfare services. 7 From TVET to Workforce Development 115 People with post-school qualifications have lower rates of unemployment than people who do not (National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) 2009, p. 22). The benefits of higher levels of skills and qualifications are thus social as well as economic. The Last 50 Years Have Seen Major Change in the Technical and Further Education System in Australia In terms of Technical and Vocational Education and Training or TVET (which, in Australia, is generally referred to as Vocational Education and Training (VET)), this process began in Australia in a formal way in the 1890s with the establishment of institutions such as Sydney Technical College. It is hardly surprising that in the pre-Federation colonial states of Victoria and New South Wales, these early technical colleges and institutes would be modelled on those found in Victorian Britain (Cobb 2000). In these colleges predominantly younger students studied trade subjects such as boot making, wool classing and carpentry as well as every variety of engineering. Female students were severely under-represented and those that did participate tended to be enrolled in disciplines such as domestic science and what we now term fashion but, in those days, was often thought of as dressmaking or women’s handicrafts. Whatever their gender, the vast majority of students were part-time with many attending in the evening after a day at work. Interestingly, courses that prepared young ladies for office careers were taught in private institutions such as Williams Business College. Much has changed over the past 120 years. But the speed of change has increased significantly in the last 50. A major national review led by Myer Kangan was published in 1974. This expanded the technical colleges’ role from just Technical to Technical and Further Education (TAFE). Large amounts of Commonwealth government money were injected into the TAFE colleges that now became part of a national system. Previously, technical colleges were solely funded by their owners, state governments. Whilst this ownership relationship continues, the public funding of VET today is a shared responsibility between state and commonwealth governments. The Commonwealth now provides around 25% of funding, the states around 50% with a further 25% per cent coming from student fees and industry contributions. This adds some complexity to managing the system and is in marked contrast to the Higher Education (University) Sector where generally states provide little funding. Universities are funded largely by the Commonwealth government as well as student fees which are collected through an income contingent loan scheme called the Higher Education Contribution Scheme (HECS). University students pay their tuition fee loans back through the tax system when they reach a certain earnings threshold. 116 R. Shreeve et al. Expanding the Role of TAFE to Include ‘Second Chance’ Education The Kangan inspired reforms of the 1970s were deemed to be significant enough for TAFE to be classified as an educational sector in its own right alongside the other sectors of primary, secondary and higher education. The new TAFE sector not only did the ‘off-the-job’ training for apprentices but now also delivered ‘second chance’ programmes for men and women and expanded its reach into areas such as numeracy and literacy. Notions of ‘access and equity’ for learners who had previously missed out on a successful educational experience were central to the mission of the new TAFE. The outputs of these programmes undoubtedly contributed to greater workforce participation by equipping unemployed adults with the basic skills needed to gain employment. If the 1970s emphasised the individual learner as client, the 1990s were about reshaping the TAFE sector to be more industry led (Australian National Training Authority (ANTA) 2003). The major reforms to achieve this in this period included the establishment of the Australian National Training Authority (ANTA), an industry based statutory authority, along with a move to a competency-based system of training supported by a national qualifications system (the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF)) and a national quality training framework (the Australian Quality Training Framework (AQTF)) which set the standards for training providers to become registered training providers. These standards, however, were implemented by different state-based bodies across the Commonwealth. The sector was opened up to competition from private training providers so TAFE became redefined as the ‘brand’ of the public provider within a broader sector called Vocational Education and Training (VET). The Training System Offers an Expanded Range of Qualifications ‘Industry led’ meant that training was delivered to achieve occupational competencies defined by bodies known today as Industry Skills Councils (ISCs). ISCs are managed by boards of directors representing employers and trade unions. Different levels of competences were aggregated into a new qualification structure which ranged over four levels of certificate through Diplomas and Advanced Diplomas to Vocational Graduate Certificates and Diplomas. The competencies and associated qualifications are contained in documents known as Training Packages. Even though the Diplomas and Graduate Certificates overlapped with university level qualifications, VET sector credentials did not include degrees indicating a demarcation between VET and Higher Education (HE). A few 7 From TVET to Workforce Development 117 institutions like Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) were always ‘cross sectoral’ teaching both VET and HE programmes. This trend is growing with more public and private institutions becoming ‘mixed sector’ (Wheelahan and Moodie 2008) as they have become registered and accredited to deliver both VET and HE programmes. This development along with an emphasis on credit and articulation agreements between different qualifications has encouraged talk of a more integrated ‘Tertiary Sector’ covering both institutionally delivered VET and HE programmes (Wheelahan et al. 2012, p. 16). This move was further encouraged by the latest national report into Higher Education led by Professor Denise Bradley (Australian Government 2008). A Large Number of Providers Bring Challenges in Terms of Quality and Regulation The availability of government funds on a competitive basis has attracted many new providers into the training market. As of 2011, there were over 5,000 Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) in Australia, though the 61 public TAFE institutes still account for the largest amount of publicly funded VET. Initially competition was in essence a ‘funding market’ with public and private providers tendering for government funds. Gradually the sector has moved to system of ‘user choice’ where students and enterprises are given ‘vouchers’ to cash in at an institution of their choice. The large number of providers entering the market has presented challenges for regulation and quality. Measures to address this include the formation of a national regulator, the Australian Skills and Quality Agency (ASQA), which has replaced locally based arrangements in all states except Victoria and Western Australia. Bodies like Skills Australia have called for further measures to improve quality and consistency such as establishing a system where all providers have a sample of their student assessments externally verified (Skills Australia 2011, p. 86). Consumer information about the performance of individual RTOs is also being improved with the introduction of a MySkills website. The Australian VET System Today Today the Australian VET system is well regarded internationally with the OECD stating Australia has a very well developed VET system, which enjoys a high degree of confidence (Hoeckel et al. 2008, p. 5). The system can be characterised as industry led, competency based with public funding increasingly allocated though a demand-based, user-choice mechanism. 118 R. Shreeve et al. Less than 15% of publicly funded students are full-time, the largest group are those studying at the Certificate 3 (apprenticeship level), and the biggest industry areas are business, construction, engineering, hospitality and the caring occupations. The VET system trains the majority of Australian trade workers. Universities and HE providers train most professionals. Managers, technicians and paraprofessionals are trained by both HE and VET. However, there is a long-term tendency for the training of managers and paraprofessionals to shift from VET to HE Karmel (2011). This is partly due to growing complexity in this work and partly as a result of ‘credential creep’. University graduates tend to be paid more than VET graduates in Australia, so employee and professional associations have an obvious interest in shifting the credentials needed to practise from one sector to another. Results of the Supply Side Push The development of the supply side has led to over 1.8 enrolments in publicly funded VET programmes and 1.2 million enrolments in HE in 2010 (National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) 2012, Embargoed until 9:30 am AEST on 18 June 2012). In full-time equivalent, student terms the numbers are 655,000 in VET and 862,000 in HE which reinforces the notion that HE is more of a full-time study occupation than VET. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Source: Table adapted from Richardson and Teese (2008, p. 12) 7 From TVET to Workforce Development 119 Survey of Education and Work for 2011 reveals 20% of the Australian Labour Force aged 15–64 were engaged in formal study leading to a recognised qualification. As a result, over the past decade, the proportion of people aged 15–64 years with a nonschool qualification increased from 47% (2001) to 57% (2011). Over this same period, the proportion of people with a bachelor’s degree or above increased from 17% (2001) to 24% (2011) (ABS 2011). Yet Australian Governments have decided that these levels of participation and qualification completion rates are still not enough. The Council of Australian Governments (COAG), consisting of federal, state and territory governments has set aspirational long-term skills targets to (COAG 2009, p. 37): • Halve the proportion of Australians aged 20–64 years without qualifications at Certificate III level and above between 2009 and 2020. In 2009, there were 47.1% of Australians without a qualification at these levels. • Double the number of higher VET qualification completions (diploma and advanced diploma) between 2009 and 2020. This would mean completions at this level would need to rise from 48,000 to 96,000. In addition, the Bradley Review put forward targets for increases in Higher Education qualifications: • By 2025, 40% of 25–34 year olds will achieve at least a bachelor level qualification. • By 2020, 20% of undergraduate enrolments will be comprised of students from lower socio-economic groups. Impact on Participation, Earnings and Productivity The rationale for this investment in VET and HE are clear. Surveys by the ABS reveal that people with post-school qualifications are less likely to be unemployed than people without such qualifications. People with a post-school qualification at Certificate 3 or higher have an unemployment rate 5% lower than those who left school at Year 11 or below (see table below) (Australian Government 2012). People with higher qualifications earn more. Whilst people who possess a Certificate 3 qualification earn on average AUD $200 per week more than people who left school at Year 12 whilst the possession of a bachelor’s degree increases average earnings by over AUD$500 per week (see table below). A postgraduate qualification can more than double average earnings compared to a Year 12 leaver (Australian Government 2012). 120 R. Shreeve et al. Mean weekly earnings in main job by educational attainment 2009 Gender Differences in the Labour Market Persist These figures are averages and hide considerable variation between occupations. Students who complete an apprenticeship at Certificate 3 level in traditional male occupations such as electrician can look forward to a significant wage premium on Unemployment rate by qualification level 7 From TVET to Workforce Development 121 completion (Karmel and Mlotkowski 2010). However, whilst the completion of a Certificate 3 in child care or aged care has a benefit in obtaining and retaining employment the wage premiums are far less (Pocock et al. 2011). These are traditionally female occupations. This gender difference in the Australian labour market has led some commentators to conclude that ......for males two paths stand out: Year 12 followed by university study; and Year 12 followed by an apprenticeship. Apprenticeships and traineeships score well for ‘satisfaction with life’. For females, the best path is Year 12 followed by university study, and this is true for those with a relatively low academic orientation as well as those with a high academic orientation (Karmel and Liu 2011, p. 13). Those Who Benefit from Training and Learning Should Contribute to the Cost Before exploring how to better match supply and demand and how the utilisation of skills might be improved, there is the prior question as to why Australian Government should spend over $6 billion per annum of public money on vocational training when many of the benefits and returns flow to individual students and individual enterprises. Should not those who benefit from the increased earnings and the increased productivity that come from training pay the majority of the costs themselves? Australia is currently enjoying a resources boom that is making mining a highly profitable activity – though the resultant high Australian dollar is having an impact on other industries such as manufacturing and tourism. Why is the Government subsidising training in these boom industries and also subsiding individuals who will also see a considerable increase in their wages and salaries? For individuals, the rationale for public subsidies is that the high cost of unsubsidised courses would be a barrier to entry for many potential vocational learners and could result in both skill shortages and skill gaps. With enterprises, the government will only fund accredited training leading to a nationally recognised credential. The credential is probably more important to the individual employee than their existing employer in that it increases their mobility between firms. In the same vein, it is also potentially significant to the workers’ next employer as the credential certifies what the potential employee can do. In this sense, the government is paying for a benefit that is partially external to the benefits that the existing employer receives directly from the training. A Greater Emphasis on the Demand Side Until the late 1980s, public funding for vocational training in Australia had largely been allocated to providers. Providers then recruited individual learners into a mix of programmes which the provider specified. Funding training institutions in this 122 R. Shreeve et al. way risks ‘provider capture’ – that is, providers push what they want to offer because of their existing staff expertise and equipment rather than deliver what customers’ actually want and need. How Australia Is Implementing a Demand-Based Approach to Funding Training An alternative to funding providers is to fund users who then ‘buy’ the training they want off providers. This process goes by a variety of names including ‘user choice’, ‘entitlement funding’ and ‘demand-based’ funding. In other counties, but not in Australia, this process can be described as a ‘voucher system’. Demand-based funding does have some risks. It is important that users have the information available about both the labour market and individual provider performance so that they can make an informed choice. Quality and regulation need to be effective to avoid users wasting their government subsidy on poor or inadequate providers. Demand-based funding is often implemented at the same time as a switch to funding completions rather than enrolments. Skills Australia recommended this in Skills for prosperity: a road map for vocational education and training (Skills Australia 2011, p. 106). Whilst some in the sector argued against this on the basis that students are more interested in acquiring skills than credentials, research by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) has concluded that course completions are important in terms of access to jobs and further study. Noncompletors do less well in these areas. There are lesser, but still clear, benefits from completion of the whole course to those looking to upskill in their existing employment (Karmel 2012). Funding users can also be used to change enterprise behaviours and incentivise best practice. Traditionally public funding of VET has been what the English term ‘individual responsive’. That is individuals are funded to take an accredited programme at a recognised provider. Theses individual learners’ motivations to gain a new credential can be many and varied but can include getting a job, getting a better job and access to a more advanced course or to gain qualifications to maintain their existing employment. More recently, there has been seen a growth in what is termed ‘employer responsive’ funding where the employer rather than the individual learner is funded for training. Typically employers use this funding, which normally requires an employer contribution, to upskill existing employees as part of the introduction of new products or processes thus addressing potential skill gaps. As was discussed earlier, most governments only fund accredited training leading to a recognised qualification to guarantee some ‘additionality’ over what staff development 7 From TVET to Workforce Development 123 skills audits can also help to identify the skills that are unused within an organisation, as well as those that are missing altogether which are needed within the workforce. Knowing where the gaps exist enables firms to decide how to organise work and make the best use of skills within their existing staff. Skills audits can also be used to identify development and training needs, help with succession planning and recruitment and ascertain whether there are skills within the organisation that remain unused or underutilised (Skills Australia 2010, p. 5). In this respect, skills audits can be useful in supporting workforce development planning. Closely linked with job rotation is multi-skilling, whereby employees are trained in multiple skill sets enabling them to undertake tasks that may fall outside their traditional job description. Knowledge transfer is another aspect of skills use and development which has shown to help employees gain the confidence to apply their talents and skills in the workplace. Knowledge transfer occurs when the skills and experience of employees are shared within the organisation, thereby contributing to workforce development. Mentoring involves creating a learning relationship between an experienced person with professional expertise and a less experienced staff member. These associations enable the mentor to share their knowledge with the objective of developing the mentee’s skills and understanding of both the subject area and the workplace. In this way, mentoring can promote better skills use by enhancing the learning, enabling knowledge transfer and embedding the skills of employees. Mentors can also provide support, advice and career guidance. The Critical Success Factors Lie with Management and Their Commitment to Nurturing the Skills and Talents of Their Workforce Skills Australia identified a number critical success factors from its study of these 11 Australian organisations that had improved their skills utilisation. The commitment of senior and supervisory staff is essential. Good leaders and managers encourage creativity and innovation in employees by enabling measured risk-taking and providing opportunities for staff to have a say in business processes. Leadership structures are important, but effective leaders also encourage individuals to take responsibility. Delivering on promises or ‘doing what you say you are going to’ is important. Skills Australia found that following commitments with action is important in establishing integrity as well as developing and maintaining trust. Leaders need to be accountable and transparent. Accountability is important in ensuring that suggestions and ideas provided by employees are handled in a positive way. The development of middle and front-line managers, through training and mentoring, ensures firms have the necessary leadership and people management skills in place for workplace change to occur. 130 R. Shreeve et al. Leaders need to be good at change management. This is essential to effective skills utilisation as it helps leaders to, firstly, identify the organisation’s need for change, and, secondly, determine its capability and capacity for change. The right organisational culture, largely meaning a supportive, inclusive workplace environment, can encourage employees to contribute their ideas. Managers need to ensure that culture and values are consistent across the organisation and that different cultures are not operating in different parts of the organisation. This can be a challenge for larger firms. It is hardly surprising that the study found communication, consultation and collaboration were important. Actively listening to the ideas of employees is a crucial way of involving them, as is recognising staff contributions within the workplace. Transparency of information gives staff a sense of how their work contributes to the business. This can inspire commitment and contribute to the success of the organisation. Engaging staff in decision-making and continuous improvement processes brings rewards to enterprises, in terms of both financial and relationship benefits. There is no ‘cookie-cutter solution’ to improve skills utilisation. Organisations benefit from treating everyone as an individual and by recognising that everyone’s needs are different. The more employees feel that they are valued and being listened to, the more likely they are to be motivated to participate in workplace initiatives and, therefore, contribute to a company’s success. As a result of the implementation of these strategies, the companies achieved higher staff retention rates in a very competitive economy where unemployment is around 5%. Staff motivation and satisfaction often rose, and through multi-skilling and job rotation, the worst impacts of skills shortages and skills gaps were avoided. New processes were implemented as the result of staff suggestions – one of a number of ways that these strategies contributed to the bottom lines. Conclusion Australia has a long tradition of public and private investment in skills development. This investment has paid off as there are clear linkages between the possession of qualifications and higher levels of workforce participation and higher earnings. Higher earnings are often taken as a proxy measure for increased levels of productivity. However, until recently most of these initiatives have been on the supply side – government has ‘bought’ more courses and places. It has also instigated major reforms of the VET system to make it competency based and industry led. The next stage is to put an emphasis on the demand side and improve how skills are utilised in the workforce. Without this, some of the investment by government, individuals and enterprise might be wasted. This is a far more difficult task as it involves altering behaviours and practices within the workplace. An emphasis on workforce development rather than just the supply of skills will help further these objectives. This is now the priority for agencies such as Skills Australia and its successor body, the Australian Workforce and Productivity Agency. 7 From TVET to Workforce Development 131 Open Access This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial License which permits any non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited. References ABS 6278.0. (2005). 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Adelaide: NCVER. 7 From TVET to Workforce Development 133 Chapter 8 Qualifications, Skills, and Workforce Effectiveness: The Relevance of the OECD’s Survey of Adult Skills to Asia William Thorn and Andreas Schleicher Introduction Improving the process of the development, maintenance and use of skills is increasingly recognised as a core element of the policy package necessary to support sustainable long-term growth and employment creation and contribute to a fairer distribution of income and opportunities. The recently released OECD Skills Strategy (OECD 2012b) identifies three key areas for action by governments. •Developing relevant skills: Ensuring that the supply of skills is sufficient in both quantity and quality to meet current and emerging needs is a central goal of skills policies. Supply can be ensured by developing the right mix of skills through education and training and influencing the flow of skills by attracting and retaining talent. Importantly, supply is not only responsive to demand; it can also have an important influence on demand. •Activating skills: People may have skills, but for a variety of reasons may decide not to offer them to the labour market. Individuals withdraw from the labour force for a range of reasons, including personal preferences, life circumstances or the lack of financial incentives to work. Encouraging inactive individuals to enter or re-enter the labour force can increase the skills base of an economy. This requires identifying inactive individuals, possibly retraining them, ensuring that the benefit system offers them financial incentives to enter or return to the labour market and removing demand-side barriers to hiring. •Putting skills to effective use: Investment in skills development by individuals and governments needs to be accompanied by policies that ensure that these skills are used effectively. Moreover, the match between the skills demanded in W. Thorn (*) • A. Schleicher Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Paris, France e-mail: [email protected] R. Maclean et al. (eds.), Skills Development for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Asia-Pacific, Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Issues, Concerns and Prospects 19, DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-5937-4_8, #Asian Development Bank 2013 135 a job and the skills of the person doing the job has an impact on further skills development: unused skills tend to atrophy, while new skills are, to a large extent, developed informally, often through work experience. A focus of the work of the OECD in supporting governments in dealing with issues of skill formation is that of the enhancement of the evidence base. Areas in which there are major information gaps include measures of skills endowment of the population which go beyond information about educational qualifications, the processes by which skills are gained, maintained and lost over the lifecycle and the effectiveness of the utilisation of skills. The OECD Survey of Adult Skills 1 represents an initiative of the OECD that will provide governments, policy makers and researchers with some of the essential information needed to review and develop policies and interventions relating to the development, maintenance and use of skills. The survey has as its objectives to: • Identify and measure differences between individuals and across countries in key competencies believed to both underlie personal success and respond to labour market requirements. • Assess the impact of competencies on a range of economic and social outcomes. • Assess the performance of education and training systems, workplace practices as well as labour market policies, in generating competencies at the levels required by social and economic demands. • Help identify policy levers to reduce ‘deficiencies’ in key competencies. To this end, the OECD Survey of Adult Skills combines a direct assessment of cognitive skills that provide a foundation for effective participation in the societies and economies of the twenty-first century, the collection of information on the use of cognitive skills and other generic skills in the workplace (and other contexts) and information concerning the factors associated with the development, maintenance and loss of skills as well as the information on the outcomes of skills. Currently, the OECD Survey of Adult Skills is being implemented by over 30 countries in Europe, the Americas and the Asia/Pacific region (see Annex Afor the full list). Results from the first round of the assessment involving 24 countries which started in 2008 will be released in October 2013. A second round of the assessment began in late 2011 with results being available in mid-2016. This chapter provides an overview of the main features of the OECD Survey of Adult Skills and describes how the data provided by the assessment is relevant to many of the issues concerning the development and operation of education and training systems and the relationship of these systems to the labour market which preoccupy policy makers and governments in the countries of the Asia-Pacific region. 2 Some additional information about participation in the survey and its operational aspects is presented in Annex A. 1 An output of the OECD’s Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC). 2 Currently, six countries from the Asian-Pacific region are participating in the OECD Survey of Adult Skills – Australia, Japan and Republic of Korea (Round 1) and Indonesia, New Zealand and Singapore (Round 2). 136 W. Thorn and A. Schleicher What Is the OECD Survey of Adult Skills? The OECD Survey of Adult Skills involves the administration of a questionnaire and self-completed assessment of key foundation skills to nationally representative samples of adults (16–65 year olds). As implemented in the first cycle of the programme, the survey contains the following components: • A direct assessment of the proficiency of adults (16–65 year olds) in the domains of literacy, numeracy and problem solving in technology-rich environments (TRE); • A module of questions regarding the use of a range of generic skills at work; • A background questionnaire which contains questions regarding demographic characteristics, social and linguistic background, educational attainment and participation, training participation, employment status and income, use of ICTs and literacy and numeracy practices. The Direct Assessment The direct assessment component of the OECD Survey of Adult Skills evaluates the skills of adults in three domains, those of literacy, numeracy and problem solving in TRE. Before outlining the way in which each of these domains is conceptualised in the OECD Survey of Adult Skills, the question of why these particular skills are assessed is addressed and some important general features of the way in which these skills are conceptualised in the assessment are discussed. Literacy, numeracy and problem solving in TRE are assessed in the OECD Survey of Adult Skills as they are considered to constitute ‘key’ competencies important for achieving a successful life and a well-functioning society (Rychen and Salganik 2003). They are ‘key’, firstly, in the sense that they provide a foundation for the development of other higher-order cognitive skills as well as constituting a precondition for gaining access to and understanding of specific domains of knowledge. Being able to read, manage mathematical and numerical information and solve problems are essential for the development of higher-order analytic and communication skills, for example. Secondly, they are relevant in an extremely broad range of life contexts, from education through work to everyday life. In information-rich societies in which information in text format (whether print-based or digital) is ubiquitous, a capacity to effectively read and react appropriately to text-based information is essential, whether in terms of understanding the user information on a packet of medicine or responding appropriately to a memo from a colleague or superior at work. Similarly, numerical and problem-solving skills are essential in most areas of life (e.g. to undertake monetary transactions, to plan a holiday). 8 Qualifications, Skills, and Workforce Effectiveness... 137 Two features of the approach to the assessment of literacy, numeracy and problem solving in the OECD Survey of Adult Skills are important to mention before looking at the definition of the individual skills domains. The skills measured in the OECD Survey of Adult Skills are viewed as functional skills. Reading, numerate behaviour and solving problems are conceived as purposive activities in which people engage, not as ends in themselves but to achieve various goals in a variety of real world contexts (e.g. in the workplace, in educational settings or at home). From this it follows that the focus of the OECD Survey of Adult Skills is not on the measurement of skills associated with the ability to read or understand mathematical concepts, for example, but on the application of these skills for specific purposes in specific contexts. In addition, the OECD Survey of Adult Skills defines the skills assessed in terms of a continuum of proficiency. The skills measured are seen as something a person has more or less of rather than as something one either has or does not have. In other words, there is no threshold on the skill continuum which separates those who have a particular skill from those who do not (e.g. distinguishes illiterates from literates). Individuals with higher levels of proficiency have greater chances of undertaking more complex information processing tasks than those with lesser proficiency. At the highest levels of proficiency, individuals are able to successfully complete tasks that demand the use of complex cognitive operations. It should also be noted that the objective of the OECD Survey of Adult Skills is to gain an accurate picture of the entire spectrum of proficiency of the adult population. In other words, it seeks to provide information regarding adults with high levels of skills as well as those with low skills. While skills such as literacy and numeracy are sometimes presented as ‘basic’ skills (in the sense of providing a ‘foundation’ for the development of other competencies), the OECD Survey of Adult Skills is not an evaluation which focuses on assessing the achievement of a basic level of skill. The way in which literacy and numeracy and problem solving in TRE are defined in the OECD Survey of Adult Skills is briefly described below. More detailed information on the definition of these constructs is contained in Annex B. Literacy Literacy is defined in the OECD Survey of Adult Skills as understanding, evaluating, using and engaging with written texts to participate in society, to achieve one’s goals, and to develop one’s knowledge and potential (OECD 2012a: 19). ‘Literacy’ in the OECD Survey of Adult Skills does not include the ability to write or to produce text, skills commonly falling within the definition of literacy. 3 However, at the same time, ‘literacy’ is a broader construct than ‘reading’, 3 The practical difficulties of assessing writing skills in the context of an international assessment made it impossible. 138 W. Thorn and A. Schleicher narrowly understood as a set of strategies for decoding written text. It is intended to encompass the range of cognitive strategies (including decoding) that adults must bring into play to respond appropriately to a variety of texts of different formats and types in the range of situations or contexts in which they read. A unique feature of the assessment of literacy in the OECD Survey of Adult Skills is that it assesses adults’ ability to read digital texts (e.g. texts containing hypertext and navigation features such as scrolling or clicking on links) as well as traditional print-based texts. To provide more detailed information about adults with poor literacy, the assessment of literacy in the OECD Survey of Adult Skills is complemented by a test of ‘reading component’ skills. Reading components represent the basic set of decoding skills which provide necessary preconditions for gaining meaning from written text – knowledge of vocabulary, ability to process meaning at the level of the sentence processing and fluency in the reading of passages of text. Numeracy Numeracy is defined in the OECD Survey of Adult Skills as the ability to access, use, interpret and communicate mathematical information and ideas, in order to engage in and manage the mathematical demands of a range of situations in adult life (OECD 2012a: 34). Numeracy is further specified through the definition of ‘numerate behaviour’ which involves managing a situation or solving a problem in a real context by responding to mathematical information and content represented in multiple ways. It is recognised that literacy skills such as reading and writing constitute an enabling factor for numerate behaviour and that when mathematical representations involve text, performance on numeracy tasks is, in part, dependent on the ability to read and understand text. However, numeracy in the OECD Survey of Adult Skills involves more than applying arithmetical skills to information embedded in text. In particular, numeracy relates to a wide range of skills and knowledge (not just arithmetic knowledge and computation), a range of responses (which may involve more than numbers) and responses to a range of representations (not just numbers in texts). Problem Solving In the OECD Survey of Adult Skills, problem solving in technology-rich environments is defined as using digital technology, communication tools and networks to acquire and evaluate information, communicate with others and perform practical tasks. The first wave of the OECD Survey of Adult Skills focuses on the abilities to solve problems for personal, work and civic purposes by setting up appropriate goals and plans, and accessing and making use of information through computers and computer networks (OECD 2012a: 47). 8 Qualifications, Skills, and Workforce Effectiveness... 139 The PS-TRE (problem solving in technology-rich environments) domain of the OECD Survey of Adult Skills covers the specific class of problems people deal with when using ICT. These problems share the following characteristics: • The existence of the problem is primarily a consequence of the availability of new technologies. • The solution to the problem requires the use of computer-based artefacts (applications, representational formats, computational procedures). • The problems are related to the handling and maintenance of technology-rich environments themselves (e.g. how to operate a computer, how to fix a settings problem, how to use the Internet browser in a technical sense). Problem solving in TRE represents a domain of competence which involves the intersection of the set of skills that are sometimes described as ‘computer literacy’ (i.e. the capacity to use ICT tools and applications) and the cognitive skills required to solve problems. Some knowledge of how to use basic ICT input devices (e.g. use of a keyboard and mouse and screen displays), file management tools, applications (word processing, email) and graphic interfaces is essential in order to be able to undertake assessment tasks. However, the objective is not to test the use of ICT tools and applications in isolation, but rather to assess the capacity of adults to use these tools to access, process, evaluate and analyse information effectively. Other Information on Skills Literacy, numeracy and problem solving in TRE constitute a subset of the skills and competences that are demanded in the labour market and/or mediate access to resources and services more generally in society. Along with specific technical and professional skills, other generic skills such as communication, interaction skills (such as the capacity to relate to others and work cooperatively), skills related to learning and the transmission of knowledge as well as physical skills are valued to a greater or lesser extent in the labour market. Most of these skills are difficult, if not impossible, to assess directly, either in an international comparative context or using surveys methods. 4 The OECD Survey of Adult Skills collects a considerable amount of information on the skills possessed and used by adults in addition to the measures of proficiency in literacy, numeracy and problem solving in TRE. 4 A framework for the measurement of teamwork was developed for the ALL study, but was not considered robust enough for inclusion in an international comparative assessment (Murray et al. 2005). See Baethge and Arends (2009) for the results of a feasibility study of measures of vocational skill in an international comparative context. 140 W. Thorn and A. Schleicher it is also worth noting that the normative expectations of these older adults among the Singapore society are however unclear and totally undefined (Teo et al. 2006: 48). There is still very little known about the preferred age of retirement in Singapore and the attitudes of older Singaporean toward work (Teo et al. 2006: 47). On the government’s part, in responding to Singapore’s demographic challenges, one of the strategic thrusts is to help Singaporeans work longer and enhanced their employability for obvious economic, social, and political reasons. Retirement is after all a social institution. It is an institution that primarily provides an orderly means of easing older workers out of the labor force with minimum financial hardship in view of their past contribution to their economy (Atchley 1982: 264). Retirement has evolved into an important institution that is linked significantly to the economy, politics, and government (Atchley 1982: 265). How retirement as an institution will continue to evolve will depend on which groups are involved in the negotiation process, how powerful they are, what ideologies they pursue, and what constraints they face in the future (Atchley 1982:286). Effective from 1 January 2012, employers in Singapore are now required by law to “rehire” employees who have reached the statutory retirement age of 62 till they reached 65. However, in order for this reemployment legislation to apply, these older employees must have worked at least for 3 years with the company and must be medically fit to meet the performance standard of the position. To further enhance employability for older adults in Singapore, the government introduced a Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) Scheme for older low-wage workers. In order to enhance the employability of older adults in “re-hire-ment,” the mandatory social contribution (Central Provident Fund – CPF) rates for older, low-wage workers have been reduced which results in a higher discretionary income for them. But, because the Central Provident Fund contribution consists of both employers and employees’ contribution, when the contribution rate in the Central Provident Fund is reduced, these older adults will also indirectly suffer a lower contribution from employers. As such, the government also introduced an additional income supplement to make up for the reduction in their Central Provident Fund so that they can also help build up the retirement savings of older adults, helping to improve the financial position of these older adults and encouraging them further to seek reemployment. On the national level, there is also a push for a string of work redesign programs to facilitate the redesign of jobs to make available employment opportunities more suitable for older individuals in the marketplace. Consequently, in Singapore, there are also many older adults who have gone on to take up other jobs which are less stressful and demanding in their transition into retirement when they leave their full-time jobs or careers. Current literature also indicates the transition from a full-time position to a retired status sometimes involves something other than leaving the labor force; it involves part-time employment (bridge jobs) at a lower pay in a new line of work or a new job (Quinn and Burkhauser 1994: 72). Interestingly, if we examine other developing countries, on the opposite end of the spectrum, observers have in fact even called into question the relevance of the concept of retirement, as a high proportion of the population in developing 244 J.Y. Lim countries (excluding Singapore) work in the agricultural sector or family-owned enterprises until late in life, where they adjust their work according to their diminishing health (Hermalin et al. 2002: 231). Retirement does not necessarily imply having to stop working completely and exit from the workforce. What is important to understand is that retirement relates to jobs and not work; people never stop working; they just retire from positions of employment (Atchley 2000: 240). There is no hiding from work in one form or another, as people create meaning in what they do and how they do it (Whyte 2001:3). In the broadest sense, when one retires from a position of employment professionally, he or she may still be actively involved in other work socially. Also, how one would define activities that constitute work could also be very subjective. If over time, retirees in Singapore do continue in wanting to obtain some form of reemployment and increasingly do get “rehired,” then it might well be accepted as a norm (or even be expected) for retirees to return to some form of productive work at one point of their retirement life. Learning in Retirement People who are easing their way out of a fully engaged career do (and will continue to) grow and experience self-renewal (learning) during those later years, updating assumptions and self-conceptions. This is because individuals will continue to define who they are throughout their life, and their life experiences will continue to influence their self-development. In short, these retirees will inevitably continue to learn even in retirement and experience self-renewal during the later years. However, all experiences are subjective (Bateson 2002: 28) and selfdevelopment in retirement is no exception. This is because both retirement and learning are experienced on an individual level. It is not a universal event that one goes through but more of a process and a life stage that one experiences (Whitbourne 2005: 335). Simply, the typical Singapore older person could experience retirement differently. After all, aging is a complex process with substantial interaction among many variables (Andrews 1992: 23). As a result, each aged individual will inherently experience retirement differently and attach a different value on self-development as well. Currently, a huge amount of government resources in Singapore that is aimed at promoting learning for older adults is centered round the strategic thrust of active aging which is part of a larger vision of achieving “Successful Ageing for Singapore.” The belief is that leading an active and purposeful life (i.e., active aging) can improve an individual’s well-being and reduce the risk of the onset of chronic diseases which, in turn, might enable older Singaporeans to continue to contribute to society – economically or socially. In May 2007, the Council for Third Age (C3A) was established to champion active aging in Singapore and was tasked to administer a $20 million Golden Opportunities (GO!) Fund to promote 13 Retire or Rehire: Learning from the Singapore Story 245 community-based projects related to active aging on behalf of the Ministry of Community, Youth and Sports (MCYS). As a result, with the aim of promoting active aging, many wide-ranging learning programs (i.e., learning enrichment programs) have been rolled out by government, quasi-government, and nongovernment organizations – from Peoples’ Association (community centers across the city-state) to the Organization of Senior Volunteers (RSVP). In a separate study conducted by the SIM University (UniSIM) in collaboration with MCYS in Singapore, on a sample population size of 1,500 human subjects, it indicates that when older adults in Singapore think of learning, they tend to think of self-development and personal effectiveness than jobor career-related learning programs (Tan 2008: 6). Simply put, non-careeror non-job-related learning programs enjoy a higher participation rates than career-related programs. This should not be surprising; after all, individuals do have choices, options, and alternatives in choosing learning activities that appeal to their personal motivation and orientation. However, with the government’s mandate of “rehiring” these retirees with the introduction of the new reemployment law in Singapore, there is increasingly more pressure to continue to learn in a work-related and job-related program. Increasingly, it may be necessary to encourage these older adults to participate in jobrelated learning programs given their need to stay employable for a longer period (Tan 2008: 23). Learning in “Re-hire-ment” Interestingly, some of the main reasons why employers in Singapore are shunning older workers are their inadaptability to changes and their low receptiveness toward training at the workplace (Koh 2012: 5). So there is certainly a need to effect changes to improve that particular area if the country is to succeed in getting older adults successfully “rehired.” In fact, there remains very little knowledge within gerontology, psychology, and human resource development to help us understand how retirees learn, their motivations for learning, the satisfaction of their learning and their wider impact, etc. – especially on older adults in Singapore. Most of the literature on retirement is on postretirement health, income, and psychological adjustments. Few studies are on the topic of retirees learning for and in “re-hirement” itself. In retirement, an important element to note is the fact that these retirees can now engage in activities that they never had time for. As the tempo of a full working life comes to a slow down, they now have not only more time but also a better appreciation of life around them and thus can engage in learning activities that they never had time for. This is especially so because many of them are fully conscious of possible termination in their retirement. Interestingly, complementary to this element is Atchley’s (1976) assertion that when an individual enters into the 246 J.Y. Lim honeymoon stage of the retirement process, he or she usually will try to do all of those things he or she never had time for earlier (pp. 68). As retirees enjoy the privilege of having more time on their hands and a slower tempo in their retirement life, they do end up having more time to think and reflect. When retirees reflect, it typically involves deep reflection, and it will likely involve more reflection than imagination. In other words, retirees will reflect back on their life experiences more than they imagine what the future would hold for them. In reflecting on their past life experiences, they tend not only to become more realistic about future experiences but also to become more contented with their current blessings in life. In their reflection, these retirees not only exercise reflexivity but also ponder deeply when it comes to issues of interest to them. For many of them, in their moments of personal reflection, it often centered round the spirituality of life or the meaning of life – not the spirituality of work or meaning of work. In other words, for most retirees, they will reflect and think about their “life,” not about their “work.” When an individual is in retirement, he or she is more likely to practice reflection compared to his preretirement period, where more imagination is involved. In our accelerated and action-oriented culture, these moments of self-reflection can often invite a negative or contemptuous attitude from the society at large: what is often called ageism. For this group of elderly retirees, thinking through the spirituality of life often also involves asking themselves what to expect next. Many of them are realistic and have come to accept the natural next stage of progression in life – the inevitability of termination. This is very real for them. This awareness and consciousness of termination serves as a powerful impetus toward experiencing a paradigm shift – either in valuing health above wealth or in putting the family before everything else. How meaningful their retirement becomes will not only depend on what meaning they are able to make from their past experiences but more importantly what they want to make of their remaining future. It is understandable therefore that they value the well-being of their family members as important in retirement and that they are also more selective in choosing their social circle despite more social activities than before. Interestingly, people spend a tremendous amount of time in their productive years pursuing perfection in their “work,” but yet, in later years, they are likely to find meaning not in their “work” but in their “life.” The essence of these retirement phenomena illuminated not only each complex strand and the interconnectedness of some of these strands but also their paradoxical elements. For instance, after having lived a full life, people do recognize their possibility of termination in retirement and thus attach great value to the family above many other things. However, while they attach great value to the family, it is paradoxical that this possibility of termination also at the same time makes them value the importance of living a life for themselves rather than for others. Human development is after all a complex phenomenon, and the reflexivity of these retirees is similarly complex and deep in nature. 13 Retire or Rehire: Learning from the Singapore Story 247 Since individuals’ retirement experiences involve moments of self-reflection on the spirituality of life, it is therefore likely that any effort to close the mismatch between what retirees want to learn and what might support or be necessary for a successful “re-hire-ment” experience should include identifying ways for individuals to respond to this quest for self-reflection on the spirituality of life (not the spirituality of work per se) when developing appropriate learning programs – seeking a deeper conversation with the self. Since life itself is multidirectional and multicontextual, it is also understandable that people will want to select learning activities that appeal to their personal motivation and orientation, whatever that gives them meaning. Consequently, generally speaking, it is understandable that their interest in learning may not be limited to a job-related skills training program alone. Retirees do have the time, interest, and motivations to learn. If there are appropriate learning programs in Singapore that appeal to them, it is highly likely that they will participate in these programs. Organizations not only need to understand their learning orientation and interest but also must have the ability to weave those elements into the learning interventions if they are to be successful in getting them to participate in various job-related learning experiences. More adults might see themselves as active learners if adult educators can help them to recognize the many places and ways they can and have gone about learning in adulthood (Merriam and Caffarella 1999: 25). The Singapore government does recognize the need to continuously improve the quality of these adult learning experiences. Therefore, to that end, as an effort to improve the quality of adult educators in Singapore, the government has invested resources in setting up the Institute of Adult Learning. As a result, a string of certification, assessment, and job-related skills programs have been introduced to corporations and industries. For example, the Advanced Certification in Training and Assessment (ACTA Certification) and the Diploma in Adult and Continuing Education (DACE) have been introduced to industries – on the national level – where adult educators are trained, assessed, and certified based on their ability to meet an industry certification standard in training competence-based programs. Using a systemic approach, for government-funded training programs, the relevant government agency in Singapore would require adult educators delivering the learning interventions to be certified with this credential if training programs are to be eligible for government subsidy payment. Beyond that, the Singapore government has also invested resources in setting up the Workforce Development Agency (WDA) in strengthening workforce development. However, most learning programs that are developed and delivered by the Workforce Development Agency and its partners are mostly in competency-based job-related skills training (i.e., the Employment and Employability Institute). However, these institutional investments can also end up as “double-edge swords” as well. This is because, while they do develop and provide learning opportunities to retirees, at the same time, they do also contribute to the institutionalism that governs this institution of retirement. Simply put, these government (or related) institutions are part of that larger institutional template that is being created. 248 J.Y. Lim In Singapore, there is a common tendency to think of learning, as narrowly defined, in terms of training for a higher education qualifications or learning in a job-related skills training program (Tan 2008: 2). That in itself is a problem. Learning is much broader than that; it is beyond just attaining a paper qualification or mastering a skill set. While most key learning institutions in Singapore offer jobrelated skills training, it does not make sense to just train for a specific skill set in today’s rapid changing environment. The reality is because these skill sets will very quickly become redundant and irrelevant in the marketplace overtime. Even from an economic-driven point of view, it does the older worker very little good when he or she is trained for a specific job-related skill; knowing the possibility of having that skill set could be redundant over time is real. This is because skills learned in preparations for a job cannot keep pace with the demands of the world of work, and therefore, the ability to learn is a valuable skill in and of itself (Merriam and Caffarella 1999: 11). If these adults are able to view themselves as competent and active learners, then, they might be better able to address the many life challenges that come in adulthood through formal and informal learning modes (Merriam and Caffarella 1999: 25). It is therefore important for Singapore to have a bigger push in developing learning interventions that addresses the challenge of “learning to learn” than learning a specific job-related skills training. On that note, it is thus imperative for adult educators in organizations to think about “What is meaningful in life?” (spirituality of life) for retirees than “What is important for our work?” when it comes to developing learning interventions in “re-hire-ment.” People come with different lineages, and this may be a development opportunity for many, enhancing their own ability to transform their past experiences. On that note, perhaps faith-based organizations can also collaborate with social agencies to participate in helping to respond to these individual development opportunities for learning in “re-hire-ment.” Conclusion Singapore as an Asian society indeed can be very different compared to western nations. No two societies share the same problems in all aspects (Yong 1987: 60). While Singapore can learn and emulate from other advanced societies, nevertheless, it should also analyze its own problems and its inherent features (Yong 1987: 60). Adjustment to retirement is one of the major adaptive tasks of later life for aged individuals, and the degree of success in that adjustment has important interpersonal and intrapersonal implications for a person’s total existence (Andrew 1996: 89); this might potentially affect individual development in later years. Global economics has created rapidly changing work practices at the workplace which requires different kinds of workplace training, and this has shifted the control of adult learning and education to businesses, where there will be increasing 13 Retire or Rehire: Learning from the Singapore Story 249 pressure to deliver broad-based workplace learning programs to address economicdriven needs (Merriam and Caffarella 1999: 11). Today, very few organizations provide preretirement education and learning programs for “re-hire-ment.” Such education should ideally be provided to adult individuals not only when they still have the resources to prepare for adjustments to retirement life (before retirement) but also upon retirement when they have the time and motivations to learn in retirement. Retirement is a major transition in life, and therefore, it should be planned. Individuals can and should indeed not only “learn to retire” but also “retire and learn.” There is still much to be done in this learning journey especially with an increasing graying population in Singapore. Hopefully, this chapter has ignited some interest in this topic and had made a small contribution to our body of knowledge in this subject. Open Access This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial License which permits any non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited. References Andrew, L. (1996). Development and personal growth: A personal reflection. In J. Walker (Ed.), Changing concepts of retirement. Brookfield: Ashgate. Andrews, G. (1992). Research directions in the region: Past, present and future. In D. Phillips (Ed.), Aging in East and South East Asia. London: Edward Arnold. Atchley, R. C. (1976). The sociology of retirement. Cambridge, MA: Schenkman Publishing Company. Atchley, R. C. (1982). Retirement as a social institution. Annual Review of Sociology, 8, 263–287. Atchley, R. C. (2000). Social forces and aging (9th ed.). Belmont: Wadsworth. Bateson, G. (2002). Mind and nature: A necessary unity. Creskill: Hampton Press. Bengtson, V., & Putney, N. (2000). 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Singapore: The Gerontological Society of Singapore. 13 Retire or Rehire: Learning from the Singapore Story 251 Part III TVET and the Greening of Economies Chapter 14 Skills for a Green Economy: Practice, Possibilities, and Prospects John Fien and Jose Roberto Guevara Introduction The drive (though some might say ‘drift’) towards a greener economy comes from the growing international realisation that past and current ‘brown’ businessas-usual approaches to development are no longer providing the excess of economic benefits and social progress that they have in the past and so are no longer outweighing their ‘negative externalities’ and costs in the form of pollution, the run-down of resources and growing social and economic inequalities and vulnerabilities. As the Asian Development Bank (ADB) argues: While industrial and agricultural production growth has lifted 521 million people from extreme poverty, progress has been accompanied by increasing pressure on the environmental carrying capacity of the region. (ADB 2011:1) Mitigating climate change is often presented as a trade-off between the economy and jobs on the one hand and the environment on the other. However, this is not necessarily the wisest, or most profitable way of looking at the problem. Especially, in the context of the global financial crisis of recent years, major world figures and bodies are now talking about the complementarity of economic and environmental interests. They argue that it is not only possible to have prosperity, jobs and inclusive growth in a low-carbon economy but also that a low-carbon economy is the only way that we will have prosperity, jobs and inclusive growth in the future. J. Fien (*) Sustainability, Design & Social Context Office, RMIT University, Hamilton, VIC, Australia e-mail: [email protected] J.R. Guevara School of Global, Urban and Social Studies, RMIT University, Hamilton, VIC, Australia e-mail: [email protected] R. Maclean et al. (eds.), Skills Development for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Asia-Pacific, Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Issues, Concerns and Prospects 19, DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-5937-4_14, #Asian Development Bank 2013 255 E-Net Philippines, a civil society network that advocates for education reform in the Philippines, ‘believes that TVET should be approached within the framework of Education for All Goals, specifically under Goal 3 where the commitment is to provide appropriate learning interventions for youth and adult especially for the poor and marginalised’. Finally, the study concluded that if TVET is to truly contribute to poverty alleviation in the Philippines, it cannot be seen as a short-term solution to unemployment but should be grounded in the country’s sustainable development framework. TVET must adapt to the rapidly changing demands of the labour market without focusing solely on the global need for service sector labourers. Finally, it must be viewed from a lifelong learning perspective, not just to develop skills to improving income but skills to improve lives. Summary and Conclusion Transitioning to a ‘green economy’ is more than a short-term response to current global crises. It can be a long-term strategy for sustainable development and poverty alleviation. A ‘green economy’ has four interconnected and mutually dependent goals: increasing economic growth, alleviating poverty by reducing unemployment, increasing social inclusion and equity, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Achieving these goals will require existing education and vocational training systems to be capable of equipping all individuals with the requisite breadth of competencies needed to take full advantage of the opportunities being generated by the ‘green economy’. Open Access This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial License which permits any non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited. References Asian Development Bank (ADB). (2011). Environment program: Greening growth in Asia and the Pacific. Manila: ADB. Barton, D. (2010). Green growth in Asia: An opportunity for business. Global Asia,4(4). Retrieved November 11, 2011, from http://www.globalasia.org/V4N4_Winter_2010/Dominic_Barton.html Bird, J., & Lawton, K. (2009). The future’s green: Jobs and the UK low-carbon transition, Institute of Public Policy Research. Retrieved July 4, 2010, from www.ippr.org Fien, J., & Wilson, D. (2004). Reorienting technical and vocational education for sustainable development. Bonn: UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre. Fien, J., Maclean, R., & Park, M. (Eds.). (2008). Work, learning and sustainability. Dordrecht: Springer. ILO. (2011). Promoting decent work in a green economy. Geneva: ILO. 262 J. Fien and J.R. Guevara ILO, & International Institute for Labor Studies. (2011). Towards a greener economy: The social dimension. Geneva: ILO/IILS. Jaeger, C., & Kupers, R. (2011). A green return to European growth. [The People’s Republic of] China Daily, 21 February 2011. Retrieved October 2, 2011, from http://www.chinadaily.com. cn/thinktank/201102/21/content_12052404.htm Jaeger, C., et al. (2011). A new growth path for Europe: Generating prosperity and jobs in the lowcarbon economy. Potsdam: European Climate Forum. Magpusao, Chris-Jerome J. (2011). Country case study: The TVET system in the Philippines. In Breaking ground: Towards an advocacy framework for TVET and life skills for the youth in developing countries in Asia and the Pacific. ASPBAE (Unpublished paper). Sustainlabour. (2009). Green jobs and women workers employment, equity, equality. Madrid: International Labor Foundation for Sustainable Development (Sustainlabour). Sustainlabour. (2011). Green economy. Retrieved November 22, 2011, from http://www. sustainlabour.org/temas.php?lang¼EN&idtema¼1 UNEP. (2011). Green economy pathways to sustainable development and poverty eradication: A synthesis for policy makers. Nairobi: UNEP. UNESCO. (1999). Final report, second international conference on technical and vocational education. Paris: UNESCO. UNESCO-UNEVOC. (2004). The Bonn Declaration on learning for work, citizenship and sustainability. Retrieved November 18, 2011, from http://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev. phpURL_ID¼38169&URL_DO¼DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION¼201.html UNESCO-UNEVOC. (2011). TVETipedia. Retrieved November 30, 2011, from http://www. unevoc.unesco.org/tvetipedia.html?tx_drwiki_pi1[keyword]¼TVEtipedia Wilson, B. (2009). Melbourne pure case studies – theme: ‘Green’ jobs, PASCAL international observatory. Retrieved November 22, 2011, from http://www.pascalobservatory.org 14 Skills for a Green Economy: Practice, Possibilities, and Prospects 263 Chapter 15 Education and Skills in Asia: Responding to Greening Economies Shanti Jagannathan Introduction Countries in Asia and the Pacific have recorded spectacular growth rates that have been much celebrated, as they not only contributed to reducing poverty rates in the region but also to a shift in balance of economic power to Asia. A number of countries in Asia are reaching and surpassing middle income levels. The high growth rates are accompanied by concerns regarding environmental sustainability as the region also recorded marked adverse trends of reduced water and air quality, depleted natural resources, and threats to biodiversity. In 2005, the Asia and Pacific region required three times more resources than the rest of the world to create one unit of GDP. Asia’s use of raw materials reached a world-leading 35 billion tons and can reach a figure of 80 billion tons by 2050. Asia Pacific’s share of global energy demand was about 35% in 2005 and expected to reach 50% by 2028. Several studies point to Asia being the single largest source of black carbon emissions from combustion. There is an urgent need for the Asia and the Pacific region to consider resource efficiency of using fewer resources per unit of GDP to ensure the region’s continued growth and sustainable development. Asia has joined other parts of the world to put in place measures for climate change mitigation and adaptation. International commitments to climate change have contributed to “greening” of economies and corporations. The lead up to the recent Rio+20 Conference on Sustainable Development spurred a spate of initiatives and actions to reinforce a growth paradigm that integrates environment-friendly and sustainability features. There is now a considerable body of analytical work that provides compelling arguments for a transition to greener growth without S. Jagannathan (*) Regional and Sustainable Development Department, Asian Development Bank, ADB Avenue, 1550 Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines e-mail: [email protected] R. Maclean et al. (eds.), Skills Development for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Developing Asia-Pacific, Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Issues, Concerns and Prospects 19, DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-5937-4_15, #Asian Development Bank 2013 265 compromising on rates of growth. A recent ADB report (2012b) notes that with the right policies and incentives, “greening” the economy can be made viable and profitable in the long term. An ILO report (2012) states that the transformation to a greener economy could generate 15–60 million additional jobs over the next 2 decades and lift tens of millions of workers out of poverty. In fact, it is argued that greening growth is necessary, efficient, and affordable. Green growth is seen as a way to pursue economic growth and development while preventing environmental degradation, biodiversity loss, and unsustainable natural resource use (OECD 2010). The World Bank argues that what is needed is green growth that is efficient in terms of use of natural resources, clean in minimizing pollution and environmental impacts, and resilient in taking into account environmental management and natural capital and in preventing physical disasters (World Bank 2012b). Sustained growth is necessary to achieve the urgent development needs of the world’s poor, and it is believed that substantial scope exists for growing cleaner without growing slower. There are ongoing discussions on the development of internationally agreed goals that incorporate sustainability principles, and it is expected that the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that have established targets till 2015 will be replaced or complemented with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The transition to green economy will require new indicators that go beyond income poverty and GDP to a broader way of tracking economic, social, and environment progress and well-being. Education and training have a crucial role to play in the successful transition of economies to green and clean development that is conducive to inclusive growth. Yet, there is no systematic and comprehensive approach to linking education and training policies with climate change adaptation, mitigation, and greening policies. Article 6 of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) attributed only a minor role for education and training in terms of awareness to win public support for climate change policies. Education institutions can contribute to R&D, to advances in technology, and to measuring and monitoring impact of climate change on occupations. They can help with setting standards, training of trainers, and certification in technical protocols concerned with climate change adapting/mitigating processes. Adequately trained and skilled workers would facilitate faster technology absorption and can help corporations to adopt “greening” strategies. The building up of a cadre of “green professionals” will provide the knowledge base necessary to blend technology, product, and process development with finance and marketing to open up cost-effective options and to speed up implementation. Investing in education constitutes a critical long-term strategy to facilitate changes in consumption and behavior patterns that contribute to sustainable and climate-resilient progress. The far-reaching influence of education and training in advancing policy commitments and policy options for climate change has so far been underestimated. Addressing issues related to skills for greening economies is the theme of this chapter. 266 S. Jagannathan Drivers of Change Toward Greener Economies Prominent Trends and Developments It is believed that, if done right, moving to a low-carbon world can realize three significant benefits: reduced emissions, higher productivity of the economy, and inclusive growth. The most prominent aspects of a “green” transition include the following: • Transition to greater use of energy from renewable sources – these could include solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, ocean, hydropower, landfill gas, and municipal solid waste. • Transition to greater use of products and services that increase energy efficiency – these include energy-efficient equipment, appliances, vehicles, as well as products and services that improve the energy efficiency of buildings and the efficiency of energy storage and distribution, such as smart grid technologies. • Transition to greater use of processes that reduce/remove pollution and greenhouse gas emission and transition to recycling and reuse. • Transition to greater use of products and services that conserve natural resources – these include organic agriculture, sustainable forestry, land and soil management, soil and wildlife conservation, and water management. • Transition to greater use of products and services that comply with environmental regulations and standards. The slow but inexorable move toward greening economies is being propelled by climate change mitigation and adaptation commitments, the recognition of a business case in green economies, consumer preferences, and prospects of increasing quality employment. Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation Commitments The Asia and the Pacific region is highly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change with more people at risk than any other region. Accelerated implementation of adaptation and mitigation measures for climate change will have far-reaching changes in manufacturing and goods and services and labor markets. There would be a shift in demand, output, and employment away from energy generation from fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and gas. Sustaining economic growth without compromising the environment is a policy challenge that Asia has begun to address. Awareness is increasing that green growth approaches are economically and politically feasible and profitable. Several governments are building solid policy foundations toward green growth. The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is a market-based mechanism under the Kyoto Protocol used by countries to meet commitments to limit or reduce their greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) in order to meet their emission targets. 15 Education and Skills in Asia: Responding to Greening Economies 267 It has been operational since the beginning of 2006. As of mid-2012, there were 10,426 projects in the CDM pipeline. Although CDM projects are hosted globally, Asia and the Pacific host most of the CDM’s projects, and in particular, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and India dominate the CDM market. Sustainable energy has been a major aspect of the move toward green economies and the proposed UN goal of doubling the share of the world’s energy supplied by renewable sources from 15% to 30% by 2030, and doubling the rate of improvement in energy efficiency is spurring nations to innovate and find new solutions. This is particularly crucial for Asia and the Pacific region. Energy demand in the region is rising and is estimated at grow at 2.4% annually till 2030, compared with the projected global rate of 1.5% for the same period. It is thus important for Asia to address actions to ensure energy efficiency, development of renewable energy, and energy security in Asia and the Pacific. Accordingly, countries are formulating regulations, standards, and targets for renewable energy. The PRC has set a target of reaching 15% of energy supply from renewables by 2020 and the European Union has a target of 20% for the same period. The United States plans to generate 35 billion gallons of alternative fuels in 2017. Governments are offering subsidies and other domestic support mechanisms to promote renewable energy and subsidies to solar energy and biofuels are common in many developed and developing countries. Governments are also adopting green procurement policies in several countries. All these developments provide an added boost to the shift to greening economies by economic actors. Business Case for Greening Investment in the green economy is not only considered good for the environment but also for business (World Bank 2010). Companies are moving to non-fossil fuel energy sources as a long-term measure which would also help to improve the image of the company and corporate branding. The notion of a triple bottom line, financial, social, and environmental, has gained much ground in business. The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) Report for Business highlights the business case for biodiversity and ecosystem services (BES) and offers business models in this segment as they are clearly emerging alongside carbon markets. It identifies sustainable management of forests and enhancement of carbon stock initiatives as market opportunities. A cleantech revolution is believed to be underway much like the digital and Internet revolution. Over 2000 corporations have links with cleantech innovation – as investors in cleantech funds and as partners, licensees, or acquirers of upcoming clean technology companies. With increasing capital flowing into green technology, clean energy could become an accepted part of business thinking. Vision 2050 of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development offers alternatives to “business as usual” that reduce the ecological footprint of development. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics has identified 333 industries (http://www.nationalskillscoalition.org/ pdf.html?file¼http://www.bls.gov/green/final_green_def_8242010_pub.pdf), covering 268 S. Jagannathan [Document text truncated for crawler view.]