Further Education and Training

Further Education and Training

Further Education and Training

 

Problem Statement:

Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) plays a pivotal role in developing a knowledgeable and skilled citizenry able to contribute effectively to the social and economic development of the country.

Key government plans, strategies, accords and the Green Paper for Post-school Education and Training recognise the central role of FET colleges in addressing skills shortages and advancing economic growth in South Africa.

The initiation of the FET Colleges project in March 2011 was a recognition of a pressing need to focus attention on the FET college sector to improve both access and the quality of provision. The HRDC FET project aimed to “strengthen and support FET colleges in expanding access and quality for approval of the Human Resource Development Council”.

The HRDC recognised that there was a myriad of challenges facing the FET colleges sector, but due to limited time and resources it would maintain a watching brief on them and focus attention on lecturers’ continuous professional development. It would also conduct a systemic evaluation of FET colleges.

The FET project recognised that some of the areas of intervention identified were already being addressed by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET).

The priorities identified were as follows:

 

Short-term priorities

  • Professional continuous development of lecturers.
  • A systemic audit of FET colleges.

 

Medium-term priorities

The following are the medium-term priorities as identified by the TTT:

  • Strengthening and accelerating partnerships with industry and FET colleges.
  • Design and implementation of Programmes Qualifications Mix (PQM).
  • Role differentiation and relationship between organised labour, student representative organisations and government.
  • Labour market research on growth areas, including the informal sector.
  • Review of National Certificate Vocational (NCV).

 

Long-term priorities

  • Monitor impact of PQM

The HRDC took the view that due to limited capacity and resources, it would maintain a watching brief on the medium and long-term priorities indicated above. The HRDC undertook to work very closely with DHET on these issues.

 

Download related reports here;

Synthesis Report Of The TVET Colleges Technical Task Team 15 August 2014