Vocational Education First – UNESCO State of the Education Report for India 2020

UNESCO has recently conducted a comprehensive study of the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) sector in India. The results are available in the form a detailed and comprehensive report.

UNESCO has recently conducted a comprehensive study of the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) sector in India. The results are available in the form a detailed and comprehensive report.

The most impressive aspect of this report is its comprehensive nature, covering a wide variety of aspects of Vocational Education. Apart from the mainstream school education, this report also looks at continuing education and professional training including upskilling and reskilling. The report also factors in the current context very well, including the Covid-19 pandemic scenario and the New Education Policy India has unveiled earlier in 2020.

The specific areas covered include the government and employer initiatives and their effectiveness, how women and other under-privileged groups are being served in TVET, how the programs align with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, digitalization of vocational education, how different states compare in their performance in various dimensions of TVET, how vocational training could help India to preserve and promote its tangible and intangible cultural heritage etc.

The report makes some concrete policy recommendations, which are based on the gist of the findings of the study. The recommendations can be summarized as:

1. Place learners and their aspirations at the centre of vocational education and training programs.
2. Create an appropriate ecosystem for teachers, trainers and assessors
3. Focus on upskilling, reskilling and lifelong learning.
4. Ensure inclusive access to TVET for women, persons with disabilities, and other disadvantaged learners
5. Massively expand the digitalization of vocational education and training
6. Support local communities in generating livelihoods by capitalizing on India’s cultural heritage
7. Align better with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
8. Deploy innovative models of financing TVET
9. Expand evidence-based research for better planning and monitoring
10. Establish a robust coordinating mechanism for inter-ministerial cooperation

This is a report that will go a long way for all the stakeholders to understand as well as help to transform Vocational Education in India. It also comes at the most opportune time when the country is looking to overhaul its Education system under the New Education Policy. The preliminary indications that the government has bought into these recommendations is quite assuring.