This chapter provides the global perspective on the field of TVET. The chapter begins by defining the term TVET and traces its development to present time. The chapter articulates the aims and roles of TVET in the preparation of youth for work. Present global issues such as global financial crisis, increasing illegal immigrates, abrupt technological changes, among other factors pushed education for all (EFA) movement to step up for TVET enrichment. The chapter has also offered avenues for moving the TVET forward with new terms like inbreeding TVET sector and vocationalism as a new way of expanding higher education globally.
TopDefinition And Role Of Tvet
The term Technical and Vocational Education and Training, which is abbreviated as TVET was officiated at the World Congress on TVET in 1999 in Seoul, Republic of Korea. The congress recognised the term TVET to be broad enough to incorporate other terms that had been used to describe similar educational and training activities including Workforce Education (WE), and Technical-Vocational Education (TVE) (Sanni, 2018). The decision in 1999 to officiate the term TVET led to the development of the UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training in Bonn, Germany (Sanni, 2018). Technical and Vocational Education and Training serves multiple purposes. A key purpose is preparation of youth for work. This takes the form of learning and developing work related skills and mastery of underlying knowledge and scientific principles. To support self-employment, TVET curricula often include entrepreneurship training (Billett, 2011; Maclean & Wilson, 2009).
A related role for TVET is continuing professional development. The rapid technological changes demand that workers continuously update their knowledge and skills. Unlike the past where a job could be held for life, it is common place to change vocations several times. TVET enables that flexibility in two ways. One is providing broad based technical knowledge and transversal skills on which different occupations can be based on. The second is providing continuing vocational training to workers (Billett, 2011; Maclean & Wilson, 2009). In contrast with the industrial paradigm of the old economy, today’s global economy lays the onus on the worker to continually reinvent himself or herself. In the past, workers were assured of a job for life, with full time employment, clear occupational roles and well established career paths. This is no longer the case. The knowledge dependent global economy is characterized by rapid changes in technology and related modes of work. Often, workers find themselves declared redundant and out of work. TVET today has the responsibility of re-skilling such workers to enable them find and get back to work
Apart from providing work related education, TVET is also a site for personal development and emancipation. These concerns the development of those personal capacities that relate to realizing one’s full potential with regard to paid or self employment, occupational interests, and life goals outside of work. At the same time TVET seeks to enable individual overcome disadvantages due to circumstances of birth or prior educational experiences (TurPorres, Wildemeersch & Simons, 2014; Billett, 2011; McGrath, 2011; Maclean & Wilson, 2009). From a development point of view, TVET facilitates economic growth by increasing the productivity of workers. The returns from increased output far exceed the costs of training, direct and indirect, leading to economic growth (Hoeckel, 2008). VET like any other form of education also facilitates socio-economic development by enhancing the capacity of individuals to adopt practices that are socially worthwhile (McGrath, 2011). As a form of education similar to all others, TVET aims to developing the broad range of personal capabilities that characterize an educated person. Thus, the provision of broad based knowledge seeks to ensure critic-creative thinking. TVET also aims at developing capacities for effective communication and effective interpersonal relations (Billett, 2011; Maclean & Wilson, 2009).