March 29, 2024

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Preparing for the Digital Revolution: TVET Education in the 21st Century

By Ange de la Victoire DUSABEMUNGU

Recently, the UNESCO-GIZ Webinar discussed Digital transformation in TVET Schools and the webinar was an opportunity to share the experience from various corners of the world including case study from Kenya.

The webinar was thoughtful and important to our TVET since UNESCO is projecting the changing landscape in terms of TVET learning.

What participants looked at included the question on whether our TVETs Curriculum Today is adapting to Digital Transformation?

Some of the advice given throughout the webinar is that TVET should invest more effort in digitizing the education system since none of us on the planet know what the future holds for education and the labour market.

The advices given include:

Ø  TVET Institutions will need to create online and hybrid resources to facilitate e-learning by following standardized process

Ø  TVETs should start to think beyond the horizons and build strong partnerships with Employers and Industry so that they are able to share the labour market needs and solutions.

Ø  TVET should make ICT a core resources in their Education System

Ø  There is a need for improved Digital infrastructure in TVET

Ø  There is a need to digitize TVET information

Ø  TVETs are also advised to start thinking about the Automation process.

Participants said that hybrid formation in TVET is cost effective, improves access to quality learning materials, and projections as mentioned during the webinar are that in future 80% of TVET Courses will be delivered remotely with only 20% in person coaching during practical demonstration.

NEW THINGS THAT ARE expected to rise in TVET Education include but not limited to:

Ø  Online Teaching and learning

Ø  Blended learning

Ø  Mobile learning

Ø  New learning platforms.

Participants highlighted that Digital Transformation is receiving international interest after realizing flexible learning and how the system promotes TVET institutions as places for social cohesion, integration and Green citizenship.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Ø  Build TVET Trainer capacity in Digital Transformation

Ø  Develop new Pedagogies

Ø  Leverage and Integrate Digital Resources

To achieve that as an enabling factor, TVET institutions should develop and strengthen Public-Private partnerships and make sure that there is improved labor market information.

During the panel discussions on cases of what others have already done, participants requests that to promote Digital Transformation in TVET, there should be

Ø  Respect to teachers autonomy and regions ‘characteristics

Ø  Continue monitoring content quality

Ø  Investment in infrastructures

Ø  Awareness among students, teachers and parents

Ø  To allow free access to internet especially among students from low income families

Ø  Building teachers capacity

Ø  Having common server for TVET Training

Ø  Having database management for all partners

Ø  Online samart classrooms

Ø  Digital Registration among the students, etc.

In conclusion, participants noted that there is a need for TVET institutions to digitize their systems since none is aware of what the future holds for the workforce and labour market.

Telephonica Foundation was cited as one of the institutions that have already started to digitize the education system across the world.

For those countries which have not yet moved to digital information, for example, must focus on this and improve affordable digital access at TVET institutions and for students first. This is absolutely imperative in today’s economy – for example, a huge part of development in China is predicated on eCommerce and just enabling basic digital literacy and the ability to connect rural areas to more robust markets.

For countries that have already achieved a decent level of digital transformation and access, then the focus can shift to efficiency and effectiveness interventions – the national introduction of learning management systems, blended/remote learning modalities etc, and the accompanying training initiatives for lecturers.

Those who have achieved some levels of efficiency efforts can then start looking at true transformation – the first efforts in this area are digitally-enhanced labour market information systems, and the introduction of digital wallets for citizen credentials (like digilocker in India). Credit banks are also a pretty accessible way to help the recognition of prior learning and those processes.

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