Competency based education and training: a world perspective

Competency based approaches to vocational education and training (VET) have emerged in a number of countries over the past two decades. The editors of this book felt that there was a need to examine what had emerged and changed in VET since then. This book examines the implementation of competency based education in some of those countries, including Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Cost Rica, South Africa and France. It is suggested that all the countries which have introduced competency based education have done so in the recognition that international competitiveness has sharpened the...  [+] Show more

Competency based approaches to vocational education and training (VET) have emerged in a number of countries over the past two decades. The editors of this book felt that there was a need to examine what had emerged and changed in VET since then. This book examines the implementation of competency based education in some of those countries, including Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Cost Rica, South Africa and France. It is suggested that all the countries which have introduced competency based education have done so in the recognition that international competitiveness has sharpened the need to have a well educated innovative workforce at all occupational levels, but what is still unclear is how well the new VET approach has succeeded. A number of chapters in this book concentrate on assessment, the most controversial of the issues in the implementation of competency based education. The editors suggest that there are still unresolved issues in competency based education and training both at the level of national implementation (including the link between formal VET courses in institutions and the needs of industry) and at the level of the purely educational (implications for teaching practice and assessment approaches). They suggest that while there have been many improvements to VET provision as a result of the competency approach, there is still much research to be done.

The papers contained in this book are: Review of international trends and developments in competency based education and training / Andrew Gonczi; Competency based education and training in Mexico 1995-2000: the experience of the National College of Technical Professional Education (CONALEO) / Antonio Arguelles; Competency-based training in Australia / Josie Misko and Chris Robinson; Competency-based technical education in Costa Rica / Orlando M. Morales; Les Diplomes de l'enseignment technique en France: construction et usage d'un compromis / Edith Kirsch (this paper is in French); Making the difference: competency based education and training in Australian manufacturing industry / Jeremy Gilling and David Graham; Understanding competence in complex work contexts / Phillip Capper; Judgement and the Law Society of NSW specialist accreditation scheme / Paul Hager; Standards-based assessment for the historically dispossessed - moving mountains as well as coal: work in progress / Annemarie Rademeyer; Assessing against competency standards in the workplace - a New Zealand perspective / Liz Bowen-Clewley.

Selected papers from this book may be found from TD/TNC 65.36 to TD/TNC 65.44.