ROLE OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN INDIA

“What does the developed nation status mean in terms of the common man? It means the major transformation of our national economy to make it one of the largest economies in the world; where the countrymen live well above the poverty line, their education and health is of high standard; national security reasonably assured, and the core competence in the certain major areas get enhanced significantly so that the production of quality goods, including exports, is rising and thereby bringing all-round prosperity for the countrymen. What is the common link needed to realize these sub-goals? It is the technological strength of the nation, which is the key to reach this developed status.”

- APJ Abdul Kalam (India 2020: A Vision for the New Millennium, p.22)

What could be the core competencies of India, which could play paramount role in making the country one of the most leading economies of the world today? A thorough analysis and assessment carried out by experts at the Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC), Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, while preparing the India Vision Document 2020 under the leadership of APJ Abdul Kalam (then Scientific Advisor to the Ministry of Defence, GOI and Chairman of TIFAC) and YS Rajan (then Senior Technological Advisor, Confederation of Indian Industries and Executive Director, TIFAC) says that excellent base for living resources, very rich biodiversity, abundant sunshine, varied agro-climatic conditions - almost a microcosm of the globe, from arctic cold to tropical green to bare deserts - and plenty of rainfall are the basic competencies of India, tapping which can definitely transform the country into a mega economic power. But the greatest core competency of India underlined in this Vision Document, which was released on 2 August 1996 by the then Prime Minister was, India’s human resource base.

Human resource base is India’s strength. If we can train an unskilled Indian, impart better skills to a skilled Indian, create a more challenging environment and build avenues for the educated, citizens will not only meet the targets but they will excel too. The Technology Vision document advocated that formation of a human resource cadre would finally lead us to the desired economic achievement.

In order to create this required human resource base and to provide a respectable wage/salary to each and every working individual, philosophers, educationists and all the committees constituted in post-independence India to evaluate the effectiveness of the existing educational structure in the country have reiterated the need to establish effective links between the world of school and the world of work.


Gandhi on Vocational Education
In keeping with his philosophy of basic education, Mahatma Gandhi said that our education system should be work centric. He specifically stressed upon the need for vocational education. He said, “Education does not mean mere spiritual knowledge, nor does liberation signify spiritual liberation after death. Knowledge includes all training that is useful for the service of mankind and liberation means freedom from all manner of servitude, which is essentially of two kinds: slavery to domination from outside and to one's own artificial needs.” Explaining the ethos behind Nai Talim, he further said, “Craft, Art, Health and Education should all be integrated into one scheme. Nai Talim is a beautiful blend of all the four and covers the whole education of the individual from the time of conception to the moment of death. Instead of regarding craft & industry as different from education, I will regard the former as the medium for the latter.’ (The Selected Works of Gandhi, Vol. 6)
This was reiterated by the University Education Commission (1949), chaired by Dr.S.Radhakrishnan, the All India Secondary Education Commission, under the chairmanship of Dr.A.L.Mudaliar (1953) and the D.S.Kothari Education Commission (1964-66). All of them advocated the need of work experience. Even in pre-independence period, Hunter Commission, officially known as the Indian Education Commission (1882) - which was the first Education Commission in the history of modern India specifically - recommended vocational programmes. The commission categorically said that there should be two divisions of education in India - one, literacy education leading to the Entrance Examination for universities and the other should be a practical kind of vocational training. The Vocational training would enable the students to build a career in the commercial field.
University Education Commission
The University Education Commission (1949) chaired by Dr.S.Radhakrishnan underlined three vital aims of courses of study to be incorporated in the education system. The Commission categorically said, “The third aim of courses of study is Occupational Education, that is, preparation of the student for his life, work or for other specialized interests. Such courses are called vocational or technical or professional. While these phases of education are inter-related and seldom if ever should be pursued in isolation from each other, yet we can better understand the suitability of courses of study if we consider general and professional education separately.” (University Education Commission Report, 1949, Page 118)

Secondary Education Commission
The Secondary Education Commission (1953) also emphasized the need for vocational education. The second most important point discussed under the topic ‘aims of secondary education’ by this Commission was ‘Vocational Progress’ which says, “By the end of secondary education, children should possess sound professional knowledge.” Mudaliar Commission strongly favoured the inculcation of professional skills through technical education even at the secondary level. Based on its recommendations, many multipurpose schools/institutions were set-up throughout the country during the later years. Following were the specific suggestions of the Mudaliar Commission in this regard:
· Technical schools should be run, in large numbers, as multi purpose schools, or as a part of such institutions.
· In large towns, central technical institutes should be established so that the need of local schools can be met.
· Rules should be prepared for training through apprenticeship.
· Technical and Technological schools should be set-up in consultation with educationists.
· A cess for industrial education should be imposed.

Kothari Commission

Kothari Commission accorded top priority to vocational education. Even the introductory letter of the Education Commission’s Report written by Dr. D.S. Kothari to the then Education Minister had a clear mention of the need for ‘Vocationalisation of Secondary Education’. The report dedicated an entire chapter to this aspect. Kothari Commission collected the details of the enrolments in vocational education courses in post-independence India. After a categorical analysis, it not only underlined the inadequate state of infrastructure available for vocational education in the country, it also recommended Central Government’s special grants to various State Governments for enhancing the basic infrastructure needed for that. Following were the main recommendations of Kothari Commission regarding vocational education:
By 1986, some 20 percent of all enrolments at the lower secondary level and some 50 percent beyond Class X should be in part-time or full-time vocational and professional courses.
A strong effort, primarily by the Central Government is needed to encourage boys and girls particularly in the age-group of 14-18 to follow vocational and technical courses.
A concerted and sustained programme by all Ministries and Departments is needed to interest parents and children in technical work, in vocational courses, in making technical careers attractive and in informing public opinion. Sponsored scheme of assistance to vocational courses, along the lines of the Smith-Hughes Act of the USA, under which direct subsidies are made from federal funds, could give an effective impetus to this programme.
Schools themselves should be outward looking to the world of work and organize effective guidance programmes which can be assisted by vocational guidance committees at the district and state levels. These should be made up of representatives of interested Departments, employers – particularly industry – and teachers. They should develop guidance and career information material for headmasters, teachers and parents, organize courses on vocational guidance and provide career counsellors to act as a link between the schools and employers.
The commission said that such courses at secondary stage will be predominantly terminal in character. There should always be opportunities for the exceptionally gifted child, through further study, to rejoin the main stream and move higher. But vocational courses should not be designed with the exceptional child in mind. Bridges can be built for him, but for the great majority these courses should be terminal, qualifying for direct entry into employment, and it should be clear to the parent, child, educator and employer what type of employment the trainee will qualify for.
Children following the stream of general education should increasingly be introduced to the world of work through programmes of work-experience and applied science.

National Policy on Education (1969)
The need to establish operational links between the world of school and the world of work was mentioned in the National Policy on Education (1969) also. Subsequently, vocationalisation of education was propagated by the Central Advisory Board of Education Committee on Education Structure in 1972. It also found a significant place in the review of the education system done by the Janata Party in 1977 and the one done by Dr. Easwar Bhai Patel Committee, which suggested socially useful productive work (SUPW) at the State Education Ministers' conference in 1981. Repeated announcements of the protagonists of the scheme seem to have strengthened the idea of vocational education.

New National Policy on Education (1986)
Working on the same lines, the new National Policy on Education (1986) said, “It is important to view the programme of vocationalisation at the higher secondary stage, as an important component of the overall school education both as a self-contained stage as well as feeder to the general and professional education at the tertiary stage.” It further envisaged, diverting 10 percent of students at the plus two level to the vocational stream of education by the end of the Seventh Five Year Plan and 25 percent to the vocational stream at the end of Eighth Five Year Plan, with substantial assistance from the Central Government. It is noticeable here that Kothari Commission on Educational Reforms, 1966 felt that it should be possible to divert at least 50% of the students completing secondary education to vocational stream which will reduce the pressure on the universities and help the students in preparing themselves for gainful employment.

Kulandaiswamy Committee Report
The Kulandaiswamy Committee Report (The National Working Group on Vocationalization Education, 1985) had pitched this number at 15% to be achieved by the year 2000. However, at present only about 5% of the children of the age 16 to 18 are in the vocational stream. According to a recent NSSO data, only 5% of the population of the 19 to 24 age group have learnt skills through the vocational education stream. The corresponding figure for Korea is as high as 96% and there are several countries that have figures above 60%. Therefore it is imperative to impart sound vocational and skill education to those who require it to enable them to be part of the productive force in the interest of the growth of the Indian economy.





Vocational Education in View of New National Policy on Education (1986) as updated in 1992

The Programme of Action Document framed on the basis of the National Policy on Education, 1986 was further updated in 1992. This upgrade was the result of countrywide deliberations, consultations and consensus. The POA, reviewed in 1992, came out with a clear policy statement for vocationalisation of education and thoroughly charted out the actions to be taken in the years to come.

One should notice that all the policy statements made in the NPE, 1986 regarding the system for vocationalisation have been clustered with reference to inter related objectives, priorities and programmes into four key areas so as to ensure logical development of programmes of action. These areas include “development of the system”, “vocational education programmes”, “programmes for special groups” and “out of school population” and “targets and preparations for development”.

Following were the guiding principles put forth by the Programme of Action Document of the National Policy on Education 1986 in order to implement the Plan of Action for Vocationalisation:


Pre-requisites, Priorities and Guiding Principles

· The policy clearly stipulates that a minimum of 10% of students at the +2 stage should be diverted to the vocational stream by the end of the 7th Plan. This would be achieved largely by making use of the existing set up for administration, provision of research and developmental support, and certification of the vocational programmes. The existing system for this purpose will have to be suitably strengthened in order that it is functionally adequate to cope with the dimensions of the task during the 7th plan and could provide the nucleus for a more elaborate set-up needed for meeting greater challenges during the subsequent plans.
· A beginning, however, would have to be made during the 7th Plan towards establishing the desired new structure because it will take some time for the structures to come into being and to develop professional competence and expertise for the task ahead. While the report of the National Working Group under the Chairmanship of Dr. Kulandaiswamy provides a suitable model, the principle of flexibility to suit the requirements of the respective States will be followed. It would allow the organizational structures to be modulated by the States according to the planned coverage, local contexts. It would be desirable to involve institutions of higher education in the vicinity of the target schools in the promotion and implementation of the vocational programme.
· While the target in relation to the +2 stage will be fulfilled and efforts will be made to exceed the target, modest beginning will be made during the Plan in the area of non-formal vocational education for drop-outs and other target groups. This will help to gain sufficient experience and expertise before undertaking the expansion of the programme on larger scale in the 8th and subsequent plans. Greater account on the +2 programme in the current Plan will also create a pool of human resources needed for future expansion of vocational education both in the formal and non-formal sectors.
· In relation to the targets laid down in the Policy for the 7th Plan it is necessary to recognize that there is a minimum level of funding below which a meaningful programme of vocationalisation cannot be implemented. A level of funding below this critical level will not make such impact and could indeed be counterproductive by discrediting the concept of vocationalisation.
· It is important to generate acceptability and respectability for vocationalisation of education. For this purpose (i) Efforts will have to be made by employment sectors of the economy to create a demand for vocationally trained manpower. Agencies and sectors will be expected to identify jobs which require vocational skills and in recruitment to these jobs preference will have to be given to the graduates of the vocational programmes. It may be recognized that access to such jobs by those holding higher but vocationally irrelevant qualifications has been a strong deterrent to the vocational education effort in the past. (ii) Linkages through bridge courses, modification of existing educational programmes, and other measures, should create a situation for greater professional advancement of the vocational graduates. Opportunities for higher education, continuing education and training will have to be created.
· The role of the +2 stage in schools vis-à-vis those of the polytechnics, ITIs and other certificate level institutions in providing vocational opportunities have to be outlined. While ITIs and polytechnics would cater generally to the organized industrial sector, the thrust in the school programme would be on the sectors not covered by them and on the potentially very much larger service sector. The school system would give greater attention to the areas of Agriculture, Agro-Agriculture, Agro-industries, Business and Commerce, Home Science and Health and Para-medical vocations. However, this demarcation is not meant to exclude institutions from taking up vocational programmes in other areas if a need is identified and other institutional mechanisms are not available.
· On an average 10 additional schools will be taken up in each district by the end of 7th Plan for vocational effort at the +2 stage with a minimum intake of 40 students.

The plan of action regarding the four areas mentioned earlier is given below.

Development of the System

Developing Organizational Structure:
· A Joint Council for Vocational Education (JCVE) will be set up by the MHRD, to be the apex body for policy planning and coordination of vocational education at the national level. In addition, a Bureau for Vocational Education will be established in the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD).
· A Central Institute of Vocational Education (CIVE) under the NCERT will be set up to perform research and development, monitoring and evaluation functions.
· State Governments will set up appropriate bodies/organizations like State Councils of Vocational Education (SCVE), State Institutes of Vocational Education (SIVE), Departments of Vocational Education and district-level coordination committees as per their needs and requirements.
· Organizations like NCERT, CIVE, Regional Colleges of Education (RCEs), SCERTs, Technical Teachers’ Training Institutes (TTIs) etc., will be strengthened by providing additional infrastructure and faculty positions to perform their functions effectively for the development of vocationalisation.
· State Councils of Vocational Education will organize district-wise needs assessment of vocational manpower, through area vocational surveys. NCERT will work out a scheme for need assessment, in collaboration with organizations like SCERTs, SIVEs, RCES, TTIs, Industry and other technical institutions.
· Curriculum Development Cells/Centres will be set up to SIVEs/SCERTs and other selected professional institutions in specialized fields to design vocational programmes to meet identified needs and develop curricula. NCERT will develop model curricula and guidelines.
· Training and personnel for Instructional Resource Development will be organized by NCERT, SCERTs, TTIs, RCEs, CDCs, etc. The activity will be coordinated by CIVE at national level and SIVEs at state level.
· District Vocational Training Centres will be set up by MHRD with adequate facilities to impart skill training to vocational students in diverse vocations. Such institutions will have highly trained and skilled instructors. The facilities and faculty resources at these centres will be shared by vocational students from a number of schools in the area according to a coordinated plan.

Developing Links:

· National Council of Educational Research and Training/Central Institute of Vocational Education will prepare a guideline document, listing the various organizations/agencies at National/Regional/State/District levels and indicating broadly the nature of their functions and responsibilities, to develop the right kind of linkage at state and at district levels.
· NCERT/CIVE, in collaboration with State Institutes of Vocational Education/ Councils of Educational Research and Training will evolve an information system for vocational education to ensure constant communication between the central and state governments, nodal agencies, directorates, district level authorities and the institutions along with participating employer organizations.
· MHRD will take steps to prepare a guideline document indicating the nature and functions of linkages between policy making bodies including Joint Council of Vocational Education, NCERT/CIVE, RCEs, TTIs, SCERTs/SIVEs, District Coordination Committees, Research and Development Organizations in education and training, District Vocational Training Centres, etc., The Ministry of Human Resource Development, the Board of Apprenticeship Training, Examination and various Certification Bodies including Boards of Examination.
· State Departments of Vocational Education will give directives and guidelines to vocational institutions to develop linkages between schools, employers and voluntary organizations in the community, to facilitate successful implementation of vocational programmes ensuring optimum resource utilisation of as well as effectiveness. State departments of Vocational Education will prepare the scheme for the same.

Vocational Education- Programmes

· Vocational programmes for 8+ students will be introduced on experimental basis on a limited scale in different states by State Departments of Vocational Education. SCERTs/SIVEs shall develop models in the light of the guidelines laid down by JCVE and NCERT. The models already in operation shall be studied by CIVE/NCERT for deciding about the need/justification for further expansion. In engineering trade, however, the Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) whatever considered necessary shall continue to offer vocational programmes for 8+ students.
· Programmes at 10+ level will be formulated by SCERTs/SIVEs in the light of guidelines laid down by NCERT. The SCVEs shall facilitate the introduction of these programmes on the basis of result of area vocational surveys in selected schools in a phased manner keeping in view the national targets.
· To provide more opportunities to students for 10+ vocational courses in engineering and technology, 100 more vocational institutions shall be established.
· JCVE will provide in a phased manner 70% of the higher secondary vocational stream graduates stipend to undergo paid apprenticeship in appropriate industries. The implementation will be carried out by Regional Boards of Apprenticeship Training in collaboration with state departments of vocational education and other concerned agencies.
· Tertiary level programmes like Diploma in Vocational subjects, Advanced Diploma Programmes, and Degree Programmes will be introduced in selected polytechnics, affiliated colleges and universities, as well as in special Institutes setup for this purpose. JCVE and SCVEs shall develop schemes for creating such tertiary level vocational education facilities at non-university institutions. For the university level courses, the universities will develop model curricula in collaboration with NCERT/CIVE for starting programmes in vocational education at university departments and affiliated colleges.
· Entrepreneurial/self-employment skills will be developed in vocational stream students, through curriculum, special training programmes as well as paid apprenticeship facilities.
· State Departments of Vocational Education and SCVEs will formulate necessary schemes for the purpose.
· State Directorates of vocational education will set up career guidance cells at district level. NCERT/CIVE shall formulate suitable norms for the purpose.
· NCERT/CIVE, SCERT/SIVEs, RCEs, CDC, TTTIs and other institutes will develop bridge/transfer courses in accordance with the guidelines laid down by JCVE. Suitable schemes for course offering shall be developed by SCVEs.

Programme for Special groups and out of school population

Involving Industry/Community:

· JCVE will evolve schemes to involve the public/private sector industry in vocational education through appropriate incentives/rewards. Also, JCVE would arrange to bring about appropriate legislation to ensure their contribution.
· JCVE/SCVEs/State departments of vocational education will identify and support voluntary organizations engaged in the vocational education of special groups like women, tribals, handicapped and disabled etc. Suitable scheme for this will be formulated by JCVE.

Non-Formal Programmes

· All polytechnic institutions, ITIs, other vocational and technical training institutions, selected higher secondary schools, colleges and special institutes will engage themselves in imparting vocational education through non-formal programmes, to the rural and unorganized sector in a phased manner. Suitable schemes for the purpose, like the Community Polytechnic Scheme, will be formulated by JCVE for respective categories of institutions.
· Selected engineering colleges, Polytechnics, Industrial Training Institutes and other Vocational and Technical Training Schools/Institutes will engage themselves in conducting part time vocational courses for the benefit of special groups and those already employed. State departments of Vocational Education will formulate necessary schemes for the purpose and promote their implementation. A suitable scheme for undertaking such activities in selected institutions will also be formulated by JCVE.

Setting up Special Institutes

· Special Vocational Training Institutes for women, tribals, and other weaker sections of the society to meet identified needs will be established by the State Departments of Vocational Education.
· Centres for vocational training of the handicapped will be set up in institutions like special institutes of relevant/useful Technology, District Vocational Training Centres, ITIs and Polytechnics to equip this section of the society with appropriate employable skills. State Departments of Vocational Education will formulate necessary schemes for the purpose and promote their implementation through them and/or other concerned departments, JCVE will formulate a central scheme for establishing such units.

Targets

· For 10% diversion by 1990, provision will have to be made for 2.5 lakhs. In view of the action already taken, additional requirements for 2.5 lakh stude3nts can be met by marginal expansion of the infrastructure and resources but for 25% diversion by 1995 advance action will have to be taken by the States and Central Governments in terms of building a requisite level of infrastructure and facilities.

Teacher Training

· A phased and coordinated programme for the training of teachers, principals and key officials in the vocational education system using the available infrastructures in organizations like NCERT, RCE, SIVEs, TTTIs, CDCs, State Institutes of Education, will be undertaken. Scheme will be drawn up by concerned institutions in accordance with guidelines given by JCVE. Crash programmes will also be organized by concerned institutions to meet the immediate requirements for which a scheme shall be formulated by JCVE.
· NCERT/CIVE and SCERT/SIVEs will evolve and implement phased programme for the development of text-books and other instructional materials on a large scale to meet the diverse needs of a variety of vocational programmes and to avoid duplication of efforts to the extent possible. JCVE/SCVE will formulate suitable guidelines for the same.
· State Department of Vocational Education will evolve schemes to utilize community resources, both in terms of part-time teachers and by way of training facilities to industries, KVIC, KRKs, farms, etc. to enhance the quality of instruction.

Facilitating Employment

· Steps will be taken to change recruitment rules for selection to Government Departments at Central and State levels and Public Sector in order to give due weightage to vocational stream graduates to posts appropriate to their vocations.
· A Monitoring and Evaluation Cell in the Bureau of Vocational Education will be set up with appropriate linkages to CIVE/NCERT, SIVE/SCERT and other agencies involved to facilitate implementation.
· NCERT/CIVE and SCERT/SIVE will formulate schemes for periodic review of vocational programmes in accordance with the general guidelines laid down by JCVE.


Last but not the least, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in his Independence Day address in 2006, also marked the need for vocational education. He talked of setting up a Vocational Education Mission. He said that vocational and skill education has to be considered earnestly during the Eleventh Five Year Plan if we have to maintain high economic growth through increased productivity, which in turn will be possible through acquisition of necessary skills. Consequently, a Task Force was constituted by the Planning Commission.

Today with an annual growth rate of 2.01 (see table) for the total factor productivity (the efficiency with which capital, skills, labour and other inputs are transformed into final output) the overall economy of India has shown a rapid growth (see table) over the past decade. Sustaining this economic growth too needs a continuous rise in the country’s labour productivity. Technological innovations have also fuelled the demand for skilled labour/educated workers especially those having vocational/technical skills.

Creating adequate skilled human resource base, which can meet the ever-growing demand of skilled manpower in international as well as national markets, therefore, is an essential task before the nation. This mammoth task becomes more challenging when one has to compete with countries like China and Japan. The Eleventh Five Year Plan Document also reflects the urgency of creating skilled manpower. It says, “Millions of young women and men in the age group 15 to 24 join the labour force every year. Of these, many are unemployed, or underemployed, and not earning sufficient income to meet their family expenses. A vast majority of them are in the informal sector (formal sectors provide employment to hardly only 7% of the labour force). They lack requisite skill, knowledge, attitudes, social protection, security etc.”

The National Knowledge Commission has also recommended the immediate need to expand the scope of vocational education and training in the country. It says, “An important aspect of India’s rapidly growing economy is a skilled and educated workforce, and a demographic advantage over ageing Western societies. Technicians and other skilled workers and craftsmen form the backbone of manufacturing and infrastructure development. There is a growing demand for skilled workers but data suggests that this demand is not met by the existing system, since the skills imparted do not match employer needs. In order for the system to become more relevant in the changing context and to exploit this demographic advantage in the future, there is a need to create a model of imparting vocational education that is flexible, sustainable, inclusive and creative.”

Some of the issues under consideration of National Knowledge Commission are:
· strengthening the current institutional structure,
· alternative delivery structures in order to expand capacity, including public private partnerships, computer based training, distance learning and a decentralized model that takes into account local needs and aptitudes
· meeting the increasing demand for skilled workers and provide training to workers in the informal and unorganized sectors
· regulatory and accreditation framework
· national re-branding exercise to address the negative association of vocational education with manual labour.

It’s a matter of relief that over the years the scope of vocational education and skill based training has acquired a considerable base in the country. Today the number of functioning poly-techniques has gone up to 4,274(1,654 in government sector and the remaining 2,620 in the private sector). In 1953 the number was merely 54. As on 31 March 2001, over 17,800 public / private sector establishments were covered under the Apprenticeship Act and the number of seats allocated were 2.20 lakh, out of which about 1.58 lakh seats were utilized. Today the Craftsmen Training Programme is being imparted in 43 engineering and 24 non-engineering trades to reduce unemployment. The Government has established the National Vocational Training Institute (NVTI) and 10 Regional Vocational Training Institutes (RVTI) exclusively for women. The present total capacity of these institutes is 2,068.

Still, in spite of available infrastructure and facilities, skill development and training in the country is highly inadequate. Every year, 5.5 million students pass out of Class X, of which 3.3 million go to Class XI, leaving 2.2 million out of the education stream. There are, besides, those who drop out after Class VIII, who number 19 million. These are the people who look for Vocational Training and Self Employment avenues. Therefore, immediate attention has to be paid to this 21 million-target group. As against this, available formal training capacity of the country is only 2.3 million students, which leaves a gap of 18.7 million. Therefore, the entire system of vocational education (ITI institutes, polytechnics, apprenticeship training programmes etc.) needs to be revamped to fill up this gap.



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