Prof. Henryk Bednarczyk, PhD, Eng.,
Beata Kowalczyk, M.Sc.,
Marzena Bochniak, M.Sc.
Institute for Terotechnology
Radom, Poland
ABOUT EUROPEAN INTEGRATION OF STUDIES INTO CONTINUING VOCATIONAL EDUCATION
Paper presented at the European Conference on Educational Research, Lahti, Finland 22-25 September 1999
Integration of science, technology and educational processes extorts creation of multilevel open modular systems of continuing vocational education joining the school and extra-school system, formal and informal education and professional carrier. Because of the evolution of the European labour market these problems are important for all the countries. They are also crucial for countries, which want to become the European Union members and at present undergo a difficult social and economic transformation.
Creation of the multilevel modular system of vocational education
The efforts undertaken in Poland to modernise and reform education are necessary in the perspective of integration with the European Union. This necessity is also forced by changes concerning the labour market and the professional carrier. According to the OECD report 13% of the population in Poland at the age of 25–64 years has higher education, whereas respectively: in the OECD countries 22%, USA 32%, Canada 47%, and in Turkey 8%, Portugal and Czech Republic 11%. In 1994 only 15% of the same population of Poles took part in different kinds of courses, whereas in theUSA 44%, Canada 37%, and the Netherlands 36%.
In the present situation of Poland it is necessary to create an open and flexible system of continuing vocational education, which will cover the school and out-of-school educational system and also formal and informal education. Co-operation with the economy will enable to utilise new functions of employment in the process of continuing education. Graduates of all educational levels should have wide-profile base preparation and at the same time the skill of competent performance of important occupational tasks, mobile adjustment to working conditions and self-development.
The reform of the school system has already started in Poland. Among others it makes the Polish educational system more similar to those existing in the European Union countries. It also assumes inclusion of new teaching and assessment methods, use of new educational technologies.
There is a need to modernise also the continuing education system and introduce modular education on a wider scale.
On the basis of theoretical studies, analysis of experiences, development of modular curricula and their evaluation in pedagogical practice we present basic assumptions of the modular model of vocational education and development:
modular education is closely connected with obtaining vocational competencies, what means that at the final test the student must be able to demonstrate work executed according to standards,
education is organised on the principle that the graduate gathers knowledge, develops skills and attitudes and move to the next level (next stage) after getting credits for the previous modulus (modular unit); it is done individually by each student,
modular curricula thanks to flexible choice of the path and pace of education and thanks to approval of previously obtained skills integrate the whole multi-level system of continuing vocational education,
multi-level system of continuing education can be executed in many variants at school and out-of-school forms, from basic vocational education through secondary to higher level of education or only at a particular level.
Modular division of general vocational contents enables to considerably improve effectiveness of education, what is possible thanks to elimination of needless repetitions.
In the Institute for Terotechnology we have carried out research concerning among others the educational system of mechanics. According to these investigations, about 60% to 95% students of mechanical departments at higher schools is recruited from technical secondary vocational schools. It means that in the course of higher education a graduate of a technical school should be credited with not 676 modules, as a graduate of Polish comprehensive secondary schools, but only with 210 modules. It means more effective education. Also activities concerning such a multi-level system of continuing vocational education undertaken in the Institute for Terotechnology in co-operation with English and German institutions proved big effectiveness of modular organisation and technology of mechanics’ education. These activities concerned implementation and practical verification of the concept, methodology and research results. The executed work made us aware of big research needs and problems concerning the student, teacher and school not only in the period of political transformation, as it takes place in Poland, but also caused by the pace of changes of technology, computer science and communication. It causes changes in the contents of work and the working environment and organisation of the educational process.
Without a scientific support for research concerning vocational education it will be difficult to realise ideas of the common labour market, comparativeness and recognition of vocational qualifications. Scientific support is also needed in the course of creation of open multi-level systems of continuing vocational education oriented at evolution of international labour markets. Creation of such a system requires co-operation with EU partners and participation of Poland in execution of the following tasks:
participation in creation of the global world system of education,
enlargement of the resources of knowledge and pedagogical skills: “teaching-learning”,
generalisation of higher education,
general continuing education of the adults (to meet requirements of civilisation, vocational and social development),
establishment of new forms of education integrating the school and out-of-school system, formal and informal system as well as utilising educational functions of work, experience and others,
creation of quality assurance systems, improvement of effectiveness of systems and educational networks (global, national and local),
development of scientific research supporting improvement of continuing education.
Towards European integration – experience from pedagogical research and experiments
Institute for Terotechnology in Radom is a state-owned scientific-research institute, involved in complex scientific, research, development and implementation projects. Staff Education and Development Centre is a separate unit of the Institute. The Centre carries out vocation related research, studies into educational systems, evaluation of educational effectiveness, activities in the field of education quality assurance, designing curricula for basic, secondary, higher and postgraduate schools and for courses, designing educational contents. It acts in the area of vocational, continuing as well as adult education. Moreover, it has broad experience in organisation of regional, national and international conferences, seminars and exhibitions. Its own Publishing House publishes about one hundred of monographs and guidebooks every year, eight the all-Polish scientific magazines and 2 monographic series in its own Typography.
The Centre has in-depth experience in execution of national research programmes and big pedagogical experiments concerning among others:
technical comprehensive school – lyceum,
modular model of education,
unified examination in vocational subjects,
development of educational management staff and others.
Research tasks concerning the above-mentioned areas are carried out in co-operation with foreign partners within Polish research programmes and international programmes, e.g. Leonardo da Vinci, Socrates and the assistance programme PHARE. The Institute co-operates with over forty national and foreign institutions in the area of common research, methodological and publishing activity. The basic tasks of international collaboration are: supporting the Centre’s own projects, utilisation of international experience for the purposes of Polish vocational education modernisation and our Centre's transformation to European standards. Activities undertaken within these programmes are focussed on development of practitioners, exchange of people and experience, creation of co-operation networks.
Since 1994 the Centre has executed international programmes from the field of education. Particular educational areas are presented below accompanied by names of realised international programmes.
development of new modular curricula – Phare TESSA Programme (Training and Education in Strategically Significant Areas), Phare IMPROVE Programme (Implementation of Modernised Programmes in Vocational Education),
development of educational management staff – Phare TERM Programme (Training for Education Reform Management), ”The Networks” ”The Networks of the Associations of Educational Management”, Phare SMART Programme (Strategic Measures for Achieving Reform Targets), Phare TERM IAE ”Improvement of Administration of Education”,
continuos training system – Phare SPREAD Programme (Social Policy Reform and Development),
vocational qualifications - Phare TERM ”Comparative studies into certificates and diplomas obtained at primary, basic and secondary level in the EU countries and Poland”, SIERRA Apple Programme, Leonardo da Vinci Programme, Jean Monnet Programme,
labour assessment system for Labour Offices - Phare SPREAD Programme.
The Centre co-operates with experts and partners representing scientific-research institutions, enterprises, secondary and higher schools from European Union countries and Central-Eastern Europe. It also co-operates with international organisations, associations of educational management and educational networks, e.g. The International Labour Office, EUCEN – European Universities Continuing Education Network, ESVA - European Symposiums on Voluntary Associations and European Network for Improving Research and Development in Educational Management. The results of projects execution are: creation of an international co-operation network, modernisation of vocational education and adult education, mutual recognition of diplomas and certificates, starting work on creation of the system of vocational qualification standards and systems of educational quality assurance.
Execution of activities in the above-mentioned areas of vocational education requires support from European and national research programmes. Such support is needed not only for Poland but also other countries, which want to integrate with the European Union. But it must be taken into consideration that educational reforms started in these countries often duplicate solutions, which have already been given up in Western European countries. On the other hand, European Union programmes aimed at direct co-operation of educational institutions from different countries and creation of the co-operation network promote research objectives of executed projects only to a small extent. Scientific research carried out for the needs of vocational pedagogy of continuing education are then dispersed, executed on the basis of different methodological bases so they are weakly comparable in spite of huge progress concerning communication and a large number of organised scientific conferences. It seems to be purposeful to create a field of scientific co-operation and institutions executing challenges of the reports: Report for UNESCO, International Commission for Education for 21st century directed by J. Delors: “Education – there is a hidden treasure in it” and the White Paper: Education and Training. Towards the Learning Society”
Continuing education becomes the central field for executing social policy, not only local but also regional and world policy. Changes in the working environment, processes of integration, globalisation, international labour market and international market of educational services bring new challenges, which require scientific support. These new challenges are connected with:
- participating in creation of a new global system of continuing education,
- making higher studies universal,
- intensification of adult continuing education,
- suppressing local and regional disproportions.
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The best solutions concerning continuing vocational education would be obtained thanks to co-operation of experts from the EU countries and from Central-East European countries. The joint multilateral research co-operation and pedagogical experiments should be executed in the areas as follows:
- multilevel system of continuing vocational education,
- problems of education, development, qualifying for the international labour market,
- system of education and development quality assurance,
- new educational technologies,
- modular system of education,
- creating an international co-operation network of scientific institutes, higher and secondary schools, in-service training institutions and associations,
- organisation of international pedagogical experiments.
Moreover, co-operation may concern publishing activity and organisation of scientific conferences, aimed at dissemination of project results and exchange of knowledge and experience:
- joint publishing projects (monographs in Polish and in the partner’s language version), publishing co-operation among pedagogical scientific magazines, joint publication of international magazines,
- joint international scientific seminars and conferences, bilateral and multilateral ones,
- exchange of trainees, missions, consultations, study visits.
Co-operation can be executed within international research projects (e.g. UNESCO, ILO, the World Bank, European Union – the Fifth Framework Programme, PHARE, Leonardo da Vinci, Socrates, etc.) and international bilateral and multilateral agreements.
We hope that scientific magazines published by the Institute, such as e.g. Pedagogika Pracy (Labour Pedagogy), Edukacja Ustawiczna Doros³ych (Adult Continuing Education) and a newly created Polish Journal of Continuing Education will contribute to development of international co-operation. Also the organised in Poland International Pedagogical Congress: “Continuing education in the learning society” planned for May 2000 has a similar objective.
Bibliography:
1.Bednarczyk H.: Zadania zawodowe i kszta³cenie mechaników. ITeE, Radom 1996.
2.Borkowska St.: G³ówne wyzwania wobec problemów pracy na prze³omie wieków. In: Praca i polityka spo³eczna w perspektywie XXI wieku. KUP, Warsaw 1998.
3.Education at a Glance. OECD 1997.
4.L’Éducation: Un trésor est caché dedams. Report for UNESCO prepared by team managed by JacqueDelors. Warszaw UNESCO, SOP 1998.
5.R. Szubañski (ed.) Ministerstwo Edukacji Narodowej o szkolnictwie zawodowym, MEN, Warsaw 1999.
6.The White Paper on education and training. Teaching and learning – Towards the learning society. European Commission 1998.