european policy for vocational education and training … · european policy for vocational...

V E T P O L I C Y R E P O R T F I N L A N D 2 0 1 0

F I N N I S H N A T I O N A L B O A R D O F E D U C A T I O N 1

A bridge to the future:European policy for vocational education and training 2002−2010 National policy report − Finland

The authors

Dr Kristiina Volmari, Senior Adviser, Finnish National B oard of Education

Mr Matti Kyrö, Counsellor of Education, Finnish National B oard of Education

Mr Jaakko Turpeinen, A ssistant, Finnish National B oard of Education

This report is one of a set of European country reports on VET research. A lthough it has been produced under the guidance of Cedefop, the opinions are those of the contractor only and do not necessarily represent Cedefop’s official position.

The preparation of this report has been co-financed by the European Community.

-

This report is one of a set of European country reports on VET policy development prepared within Cedefop’s ReferNet network. ReferNet is a European network of national networks providing information and analysis on national VET to Cedefop and disseminating information on European VET and Cedefop work to stakeholders in the EU Member States, Norway and Iceland. The report has been produced by ReferNet Finland as a contribution to Cedefop’s fourth policy report which reviews progress in VET towards the policy goals of the Copenhagen process. The opinions expressed in this national report are not necessarily those of Cedefop. The preparation of this report has been co-financed by the European Community. Acknowledgements: The authors: Dr Kristiina Volmari, Senior Adviser, Finnish National Board of Education Mr Matti Kyrö, Counsellor of Education, Finnish National Board of Education Mr Jaakko Turpeinen, Assistant, Finnish National Board of Education. Cedefop, initiator and template provider

Preface The Copenhagen process was launched as the contribution of Vocational Education and Training (VET) to the challenges identified in the Lisbon-Agenda. In the Copenhagen Declaration, approved on 30 November 2002, the ministers responsible for VET in 31 European countries (EU Member States, candidate countries, EFTA-EEA countries), the European social partners and the European Commission agreed on enhanced European cooperation in VET. This National policy report forms part of the Cedefop ReferNet 2010 work programme. It provides information on Finland's progress in VET towards EU policy goals within the framework of the Copenhagen process and according to the policy priorities defined in the Maastricht Communiqué (2004) and the Helsinki Communiqué (2006). It considers measures taken in the context of the Education and Training 2010 programme since the Copenhagen Declaration. The report is divided into the following nine policy areas identified by education ministers as priorities for national policy design in the VET sector:

• Socioeconomic challenges for future VET policy development; • Economic crisis - VET policies as recovery measures; • Impact and implications of the joint work on European principles and tools; • Strengthening the links between VET and the labour market; • Addressing equity, social inclusion and active citizenship; • Quality, excellence and attractiveness of VET; • Enhancing creativity and innovation; • Financing VET and • Progress in modernising European VET systems in the Copenhagen process and priorities

for future cooperation. The national ReferNet policy reports were one of the main sources Cedefop used to produce the 2010 review of the Copenhagen Process. Cedefop prepared the analysis of policy progress: A bridge to the future: European VET policy 2002-10 for the Bruges ministerial meeting in December 2010. Helsinki 15 November 2010

V E T P o l i c y R E P o R T F i n l a n d 2 0 1 0 ■

F i n n i s h n aT i o n a l b o a R d o F E d u c aT i o n ■ 3

Contents

THEME 1: SOCIOECONOMIC CHALLENGES FOR FUTURE VET POLICY DEVELOPMENT ........................................................................................ 61.1 impact of globalisation on VET .........................................................................6

1.1.1 Example of policy measure: Vocational college strategy .................... 71.1.2 Example of policy measure: Revision of national core curricula ...... 8

1.2 impact of technological progress on VET .........................................................91.3 impact of demographic change and international migration on VET ...............91.4 impact of greening of economy on VET .........................................................11

1.4.1 Example of policy measure: Revision of national core curricula .... 121.4.2 Example of policy measure: national recommendation for quality in

VET 2008 ............................................................................................ 131.4.3 Example of policy measure: Qualifications of primary industries ...... 13

1.5 other challenges for VET ................................................................................14

THEME 2: ECONOMIC CRISIS – VET POLICIES AS RECOVERY MEASURES ........................................................................ 152.1 initiatives for recovery .....................................................................................15

THEME 3: IMPACT AND IMPLICATIONS OF THE JOINT WORK ON EUROPEAN PRINCIPLES AND TOOLS .............................................. 173.1 impact of joint work on European principles and tools on national lll

policies, practices and VET developments ......................................................173.2 Promoting geographical mobility of learners/apprentices and teachers/trainers

in VET .............................................................................................................19

THEME 4: STRENGTHENING THE LINKS BETWEEN VET AND THE LABOUR MARKET ................................................................................. 244.1 identifying and anticipating skill needs ..........................................................244.2 integrating skill needs of the labour market into VET provision ....................284.3 involving labour market actors in VET ...........................................................31



4.4 Promoting workplace learning .........................................................................344.4.1 apprenticeship training ....................................................................... 364.4.2 Example of policy measure: skills demonstrations in vocational

education and training (2006–)............................................................ 38

THEME 5: ADDRESSING EQUITY, SOCIAL INCLUSION AND ACTIVE CITIZENSHIP............................................................................................ 405.1 addressing equity in VET ...............................................................................405.2 improving equity and support services for groups at risk ...............................42

5.2.1 low-skilled adults ............................................................................... 425.2.2 Early school-leavers ............................................................................ 455.2.3 immigrants........................................................................................... 47

5.3 active citizenship ............................................................................................49

THEME 6: QUALITY, EXCELLENCE AND ATTRACTIVENESS OF VET ....... 516.1 improving the quality of VET ........................................................................51

6.1.1 Quality in vocational education and training ...................................... 516.1.2 Policy progress ................................................................................... 52

6.2 Promoting excellence in VET ..........................................................................566.3 higher level qualifications in VET ..................................................................586.4 improving horizontal and vertical permeability of education and training

systems .............................................................................................................596.4.1 Example of policy measure: increasing cooperation within upper

secondary education and training ........................................................ 596.4.2 Example of policy measure: accessing the formal education system

through competence-based qualifications .......................................... 616.5 Teachers and trainers .......................................................................................61

6.5.1 Example of policy measure: setting up of advisory council for developing cPd for teaching staff ...................................................... 62

6.5.2 Example of policy measure: osaaVa programme ............................ 63



THEME 7: ENHANCING CREATIVITY AND INNOVATION ............................. 657.1 creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship in VET .......................................68

7.1.1 Example of policy measure: VET organisations as actors in innovation system (KiT project) ........................................................................... 69

7.2 improving quality of teaching .......................................................................697.3 innovation-friendly institutions .......................................................................707.4 Encouraging partnership ..................................................................................71

THEME 8: FINANCING VET ..................................................................................... 738.1 improving efficiency, equity, levels of VET funding .....................................738.2 use of lifelong learning Programme funds ...................................................73

8.2.1 Example of policy measure: Gearing adult Education Towards occupational Mobility ......................................................................... 74

8.3 use of other Eu funds .....................................................................................768.3.1 Example of policy measure: skills demonstrations (see also 4.4.2) ... 778.3.2 Example of policy measure: oivallus project (cf. 4.2.1)..................... 77

8.4 improving VET governance ............................................................................78

THEME 9: PROGRESS IN MODERNISING EUROPEAN VET SYSTEMS IN THE COPENHAGEN PROCESS AND PRIORITIES FOR FUTURE COOPERATION ........................................................................................ 799.1. impact of European cooperation in VET on development of national VET

policies .............................................................................................................799.1.1 Example of policy measure: developing the national qualification

framework (nQF) ................................................................................ 809.1.2 Example of policy measure: introduction of EcVET ......................... 81

9.2 Governance, cooperation and ownership of the different actors in the copenhagen process at European level ...........................................................82

9.3 External dimension of European cooperation in VET .....................................83

10 AUTHORS, BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES AND SOURCES ...................... 8610.1 authors ............................................................................................................8610.2 sources, references and websites .....................................................................86



THEME 1: SOCIOECONOMIC CHALLENGES FOR FUTURE VET POLICY DEVELOPMENT

1.1 Impact of globalisation on VET

Globalisation has meant an essential change in the Finnish economic struc-ture. Production in important branches, such as the forest and technology industries, has been moved to countries where labour costs are lower than in Finland. The traditionally strong sector in Finnish economy, the forest indus-try, has been affected by globalisation in several ways. The labour and en-ergy costs are lower in asia and south america and the supply of raw mate-rial for the industry has become more difficult in Finland. The technological development has been an essential change factor as well. Electronic commu-nication has partly replaced printed communication. over 15 000 jobs have disappeared in the forest industry during the 2000s, which corresponds to one fourth of the jobs in this sector. The technology industry has also cut the number of jobs in Finland because production costs are too high in respect to the tightening competition in the sector.

some industries, such as the textile industry, have totally disappeared from Finland because of globalisation. in the textile industry the development started earlier, but the reasons for closing down factories in Finland have been the same as in the case of the forest industry, namely the lower wages in developing countries.

When the direct consequences of globalisation have been the closures of pro-duction units, the Government has had to direct special support actions to the areas affected by the closures. The production units, which have been closed down, have often been the most important employers in the area. Therefore the Government has supported the retraining of the employees made redun-dant and the launching of new enterprises in the facilities of the closed fac-tories.

■



Globalisation is not explicitly stated as a reason for development measures in education and training. however, as the links between VET and the labour market and economy are close, globalisation needs to be taken into account in development initiatives. according to the Government’s programme the education system will be developed as a whole so that it can respond to the global challenge as well as the occupational and demographic changes. For example the requirements of vocational qualifications are currently being re-vised (see 1.1.2). in the process the globalisation and its effects are taken into account.

another concrete action for the VET sector has been to continue with the Vocational college strategy (see also 1.1.1). The central aims in the strategy are

to secure the supply of qualified labour force for the world of work•to improve VET services to better respond to the needs of the world •of work and the clientsto promote lifelong learning and to strengthen individualised study •paths to secure the accessibility to VET provision in all parts of the •country, taking into account the needs of both language groups

1.1.1 Example of policy measure: Vocational College Strategy

According to the Development plan for education and research 2007−2012, the Government aims to intensify the network of VET providers. To enhance the service capacity of the network of training providers in accordance with the vocational college strategy, providers will be merged into regional or oth-erwise strong training providers, whose operations cover all vocational edu-cation and training services and development activities. The operations of highly specialised training providers will be safeguarded. as training provid-ers, vocational colleges can organise their operations freely, according to the



requirements of their fields or their regions, and decide on their institution networks and other services. Providers must ensure that the organisation of the training provision helps maintain and continually develop high-quality services geared both to those about to start their working career and to those already active in the labour market. Measures will be taken to ensure that the provider network guarantees a high-quality and diverse supply of both youth and adult education and training that meets the needs of both the world of work and individuals.

The arrangements and the division of work in special needs vocational train-ing provided by the government have been reviewed as part of this structural development. The decision was taken at the end of 2008 to develop the state special vocational institutions as resource centres and centres of expertise.

1.1.2 Example of policy measure: Revision of National Core Curricula

The Finnish national board of Education is responsible for the revision of all national requirements of vocational qualifications, both the upper secondary qualifications and competence-based qualifications. The aim is to revise the structure of the requirements, the organisation of studies, the requirements of skills as well as the targets and criteria of assessment. all new core curricula should be in use in autumn 2010 (see also 1.4.1).

The revision of core curricula is based on the goals presented in the develop-ment plan for education and research 2007–2012. according to the develop-ment plan VET shall offer broad skills basis to the students enabling them to work in varying tasks. These skills should also be such that they are useful from one workplace to another and from a basis for lifelong learning. upper secondary qualifications will be developed so that they flexibly support the transition to the labour market and improve the updating of the skills of the adult population. The flexibility of the vocational qualifications will further be increased by increasing the opportunities to choose elements from other programmes.



1.2 Impact of technological progress on VET The rapid technological change has influenced particularly on the on-the-job training. in the last reform of the core curricula a minimum of half a year of on-the-job training was included into all vocational programmes. one of the aims was to increase the flexibility to react to rapid technological change. The ideology was that a close contact to the realities of working environ-ments would better equip the students to meet the challenges of technologi-cal developments.

in long-term development also decentralisation has given the education pro-viders more flexibility to adapt their training programmes to the changing technologies. similarly to globalisation, the technological progress is not explicitly mentioned as a reason for reforms and developments (see 1.1). Finnish VET policy is developed as a whole over a long period of time. consequently reforms are not justified by individual developments such as technological developments and globalisation. These are considered part of the changing context of education and training.

1.3 Impact of demographic change and international migration on VET

demographic change will be a challenge to the development of the the edu-cation system (Table 1). The decrease of the young generations was drastic in the 1980s and 1990s. The number of primary school students has also start-ed to decrease radically. in addition, the age groups transferring to secondary education will diminish at the end of 2012. soon afterwards the size of the age group transferring to higher education will start to shrink.


F i n n i s h n aT i o n a l b o a R d o F E d u c aT i o n ■ 1 0

Table 1. Population trends 1950–2060 by age group as a percentage.

Age group 1950 2000 2009 2015* 2030* 2040* 2050* 2060*

0–14 30 18 17 17 16 16 16 15

15–64 63 67 67 63 58 58 57 56

65– 7 15 17 21 26 27 28 29* forecast source: statistics Finland

The total population of Finland will increase according to the population forecast but the number of older people will be increasing most rapidly. in absolute terms the number of children will go up during next five decades but their share of total population will decrease slowly. The generations born after World War ii will retire in next few years.

in national policy there are several initiatives which aim to lengthen work-ing careers. according to forecasts Finland is facing a lack of skilled labour in many sectors. Therefore changes have been made to pension regulations aiming to encourage people to continue working after their retirement age. at the same time it has been stressed that the working conditions should be developed so that older people can continue longer in their work. The retrain-ing and continuing training of adults will also become more important as a precondition for the continuation of working careers.

Example of policy measure: self-motivated education supported by unemployment benefitsa person has the right to unemployment benefit while studying if he or she has registered as a job-seeker at the employment office, is at least 25 years of age and the training has been agreed on in his or her personal employment plan.

There is no subjective right to training while receiving unemployment bene-fit. The job-seeker has to apply to the studies according to same requirements as the other applicants. The decision regarding the student selection is always the responsibility of the VET institution.



1.4 Impact of greening of economy on VET

The strategy document of the Ministry of Education sustainable develop-ment in Education (2006) sets out the following development measures to promote sustainable development in VET by 2014:

Follow-up of how well sustainable development permeates into the •world of work through vocational skills demonstrationscontinue to diversify the production of teaching material and •provide further training in sustainable development for teachers and workplace instructors operating in different occupational fields

The environmental certificate system of educational establishments shall be developed further. by 2014, the environmental certificates should encompass the social and cultural aspects of sustainable development. ideally 15 per cent of educational establishments will have acquired some certificate or di-ploma as recognition of their efforts for sustainable development by 2014. This means that teachers working in vocational education have to be pro-vided with sufficient further education.

investments made into institutions and units providing training in the natural resources and the environmental sector should also benefit the wider public as these units should become resource centres for environmental and sustain-able development know-how by 2014.

sustainable development is one of the key skills for lifelong learning in the national core curricula for upper secondary vocational qualifications. stu-dents or candidates should commit to acting for the ecological, economic, social and cultural principles of sustainable development in their occupation. They should comply with key statutes, regulations and agreements govern-ing sustainable development when carrying out work assignments within their field.



sustainable development is also included into vocational qualification mod-ules according to field-specific emphases. sustainable development is as-sessed as part of vocational skills demonstrations and/or other competence. The vocational qualification in natural and environmental protection within the field of natural resources and the environment offers a 30-credit module for sustainable development named acting in a sustainable manner.

sustainable development is included in core subjects as well as in optional studies. The objective for students is to observe working and operating meth-ods in line with the principles of sustainable development, learn to conserve energy, prevent generation of waste and command the life cycles of products relevant to their vocational skills and work to minimise environmental risks.

1.4.1 Example of policy measure: Revision of National Core Curricula

The national core curricula for upper secondary vocational qualifications are being revised during 2007–2010 (see also 1.1.2). The common section included in all national core curricula determines the principles and pro-cedures common to all upper secondary vocational qualifications complete with the key values of education providers. The common section also impos-es obligations on education providers to take the following actions, among other things, which involve various aspects of sustainable development.

The instruction in VET institutions shall include activities which reinforce collaborative culture, which provide the opportunity to consider values and become acquainted with the cultural heritage (Vocational Education and Training decree 811/1998, section 9).

Education providers have to draw up a development plan for their own staff. Education providers have to prepare plans of action to promote equality and equity in education and training as part of their curricula. Education provid-ers have to carry out measures to promote sustainable development.



1.4.2 Example of policy measure: National recommendation for quality in VET 2008

The national recommendation for quality management in VET aims at sup-porting and encouraging VET providers to develop the quality of their opera-tions towards excellence (see 6.1.2). The recommendation links sustainabil-ity to quality improvement.

sustainable development is visible in different stages of quality manage-ment. in their planning the VET providers should include a programme for sustainable development as part of their operational system, in order to steer achievement of objectives and measures relating to environmental issues, so-cial responsibility and occupational health and safety and the well-being of staff and students. VET providers should implement the recommendation by making sure that the principle of sustainable development is applied as part of all operations. Thus they should make efforts to promote social, ecologi-cal, economical and cultural sustainability.

1.4.3 Exampleofpolicymeasure:Qualificationsofprimaryindustries

There are 34 agricultural institutes providing VET for over 3 000 new stu-dents every year. The promotion of sustainable development is based on the openness of the school farms. These provide information of production on milk, meat or other farm products. This information is available in the Web Village (www.virtuaali.info). The data is used to prepare learning materials (photos, video clips, etc) and information about the consumption of water, energy and nutrients and fertilizers at school farms. in that way school farms can compare their activities with each other.

The project is based on a unique model of cooperation of all VET institutions of the natural resources sector and local farmers. Web tools and web as a tool are used to promote sustainable agriculture and developing learning environ-



ments in the web and real life. The school farms also serve as models for local farmers of how to promote sustainable development, how to minimise consumption of nutrients and fertilizers, energy and water.

The further qualification in waste and recycling management is often or-ganised in cooperation with companies and organisations of the region. This multi-form education consists of contact lessons, distance- and work-based learning periods. The competences required for the qualification are demon-strated in skills demonstrations. The training gives the knowledge and skills to work with tasks within waste management, recycling, improvement and management of water systems or water supplies and sewerage in companies, in the local services or in other organisations.

1.5 Other challenges for VET

Geographically Finland is a relatively big country but the internal migration during last decades has meant increasing inequality between the different ar-eas. For instance in Eastern Finland and lapland the unemployment rate was 13 and 11 per cent respectively, while the unemployment rate in the metro-politan area and surrounding region was only 6.2 per cent in the last quarter of 2009. a balanced regional development is one of the focuses of the pres-ent government. an effort is made to ensure a comprehensive VET provision throughout the country.



THEME 2: ECONOMIC CRISIS – VET POLICIES AS RECOVERY MEASURES

2.1 Initiatives for recovery

in midterm, in the summer 2009, the government assessed the results of its programme and set up new aims for tackling the challenges of the economic crisis. The government proposed that adult education will be developed in such a way that the flexibility of the labour market is improved and the risk of structural unemployment diminished. The government aims at better an-ticipating labour market changes, increasing the productivity and meeting la-bour market needs. The government also plans to improve the opportunities of those unemployed who apply for self-motivated education and training so that they would have similar benefits as those in labour market training. The amount and continuity of guidance should also be taken into account so that the chain from basic education to working life remains unbroken.

a particular challenge in Finland is the transition from upper secondary level to higher education. The aim is to speed up this transition among new general upper secondary graduates by improving for example the admission proce-dure. The government also proposes that in-service training should be im-proved among adults with higher education qualifications in order to direct more intakes that lead to qualifications to younger age-groups. in addition, work practice of higher education students will be developed in order to im-prove their employment.

The Preparatory instruction and guidance for VET (ammattistartti) along with other preparatory VET studies will be further developed (see 5.2.2.1). also on-the-job training will be developed in VET. The aim is to secure up-per secondary education for every basic education graduate. national recom-mendations for the principles and procedures of recognising prior learning will be prepared together with education providers, higher education institu-tions, working life actors and other stakeholders.

■



if the worsening employment situation is followed by a rapid decrease in the demand for apprenticeship training in particular sectors and in small com-panies, the unit price for organising additional vocational education in ap-prenticeship training will be temporarily increased in order to improve the employers’ possibilities to train apprentices.

a temporary language training programme for immigrants is put into effect in 2009–2011. several studies and programmes point to the fact that the lack of language training as well as long waiting lists for language courses are the main hindrances for immigrants to get employment or continue their studies.

in order to secure the jobs of those most vulnerable in the unsteady labour market, the study prospects among part-time employees will be improved. This will be encouraged by granting ‘adjusted’ student financial aid to adults.

There will be an enquiry whether employers can be encouraged, for example by means of taxation, to offer in-service training instead of temporary layoffs or redundancies. by means of labour market training and the training offered by educational authorities, an effort will be made to increase know-how and avoid redundancies.

Example of policy measure: increasing intake into VETThe Ministry of Education has decided to increase the number of initial VET study places. according to existing data of the national joint application sys-tem, one fifth of the applicants for upper secondary VET remained without a study place in spring 2009. Therefore it has been essential to increase initial VET intakes. The number of students in upper secondary VET has been in-creased with 8 500 students in 2008−2009 which is about 5 per cent of the total number of upper secondary VET students.



THEME 3: IMPACT AND IMPLICATIONS OF THE JOINT WORK ON EUROPEAN PRINCIPLES AND TOOLS

3.1 Impact of joint work on European principles and tools on national LLL policies, practices and VET developments

internationalisation of the education system and international research co-operation are in Finland considered central factors for success in the global competition. international cooperation has been an important part of most Finnish VET institutions striving for quality improvement and excellence over the past ten years. international activity in most of the educational in-stitutions has become one of the cornerstones of their operations. Education and training should take into account the changes caused by internationalisa-tion and multiculturalism in the structures, skills needs and operation models in the world of work. The international cooperation in education should also support regional development and business.

The leonardo programme has played an important role in this development promoting networking and international cooperation. Participation rates in the programme are high and the interest among teachers, experts and stu-dents has been at a steady increase over the years.

in addition to Eu programmes the internationalisation of VET is being supported for example by making the recognition of studies taken aboard more efficient. Further, the Ministry of Education grants funds for the in-ternationalisation of VET annually. These funds are meant for international development projects and other activities aimed at promoting international cooperation. This funding is administered by the Finnish national board of Education (FnbE).

■



European principles and priorities have supported the implementation and integration of an international perspective into education and training. ac-cording to the national report on the impact of the leonardo and socrates programmes, these have been essential in meeting the nationally defined goals for the internationalisation of educational development in Finland. The programmes have encouraged and enabled Finnish actors to establish sus-tainable long-term international and national contacts and procedures. also the professional development obtained from participation in the programmes has increased multicultural competence.

a challenge today and in future will be the embedding of the tools into the practices of educational institutions. The above-mentioned report on the im-plementation of the socrates and leonardo programmes concluded that al-though the quantitative goals have been generally met, some aspects require more attention in the future. For example dissemination and valorisation of the projects’ results was seen as one of the biggest challenges. a further chal-lenge is that all potential actors are not equally reached in Finland. conse-quently, geographically disadvantaged areas would need more support for active participation in the Eu programmes. according to the Government’s current development plan for education and research the mobility of students, graduates and teachers within VET will be increased. in addition, the possibility for international peer learning for edu-cation organisers will be advanced.

The functionality and clarity of the Finnish degree system has been and will be improved by implementing the national qualifications framework (see 9.1.1). also measures to implement the European credit Transfer system for VET (EcVET) is underway (see 9.1.2).

Example of initiative: FinEcVETThe Government’s development Plan for Education and Research for 2007–2012 stresses that the introduction of the European credit Transfer system for Vocational Education and Training (EcVET) is to be prepared for. The



EcVET and its functionality have been tested in two already finished proj-ects, FinEcVET 1 (2004–2005) and FinEcVET 2 (2006–2007). The aim was to support the implementation of the system in Finland. in these proj-ects EcVET was tested within nine upper secondary vocational qualifica-tions. The objective was to define the concepts of EcVET and application to the Finnish system, test the effectiveness of EcVET in upper secondary vocational qualifications and prepare a national information and guidance plan for education providers and representatives of working life for imple-menting EcVET. FinEcVET 1 focused on defining the concepts and tested the applicability of the system in five upper secondary vocational qualifica-tions. FinEcVET 2 concentrated on producing concrete tools and models for EcVET1.

FinEcVET 3 started in the autumn of 2009 and will continue until the end of 2011. it will focus on transnational mobility, the EcVET process and doc-umentation. The expected main outcomes will be an EcVET handbook for Finnish VET providers and a national information and guidance plan. The coordination and financing is provided by the Finnish national board of Edu-cation (FnbE). similarly to the previous projects education providers and institutions together with their international partners play an important role as partners.

3.2 Promoting geographical mobility of learners/apprentices and teachers/trainers in VET

The European dimension is seen more and more as part of the everyday op-erations of vocational institutions. For example, internationalisation and mo-

1 For more information on the results of FinEcVET 1 and 2, please see the VET Policy report Finland 2008 at http://www.oph.fi/instancedata/prime_product_julkaisu/oph/embeds/47774_na-tional_Policy_Report_Fi_2008.pdf



bility have been included in the new national core curricula for upper second-ary VET in Finland. This can be found both in the general skills for lifelong learning and in the professional competences.

The strengthening of the European dimension is also supported by statistics on student and staff mobility. The number of students in VET who did part of their studies abroad increased from 4 284 students in 2007 to 5 343 in 20082. also the number of foreign VET students increased from 2 038 in 2007 to 2 510 in 2008. Most active in terms of mobility were the tourism, home economics and catering sector and the humanist and education sector. a national objective is to increase annual mobility by 30 per cent during the period 2007–2012 (Table 2). The teacher exchange was in balance, so that 1 600 teachers were mobile from and to Finland. i future pecial attention will be paid to teachers’ international work placements.

Table 2. Student mobility in VET 2002–2008.

Year From Finland To Finland

2002 3682 1500

2003 4569 2200

2004 4076 1847

2005 4492 1838

2006 4492 2059

2007 4284 2038source: ciMo – centre for international mobility

Tools that promote, facilitate and make mobility and its results more trans-parent have been welcomed in Finland. For example the Europass documents are widely used in education institutions. The focus in future will be on pro-

2 There were a total of ca. 60,000 new students in VET in 2008.



moting the use of Europass in the world of work. of particular concern are those employees who are in the labour market and who have not been within education for some years.

a concern is that the mobility from Finland is orientated towards already familiar, most often West European countries, and the language most often used during the period abroad is English. The most common target countries in 2008 in VET were Estonia, sweden spain and Germany.

The funding for mobility in VET is predominantly from the leonardo pro-gramme and from the state support for internationalisation (Table 3).

Table 3. Number of students involved in exchange (> 2 weeks) per programme/funding in 2007 and 2008.

2007 2008

Leonardo programme 645 984

Comenius/Grundtvig 140 43

NordPlus programme 40 41

Other*/FNBE 762 1068

Students own arrangements 270 280

Unknown 70 -

Total 1927 2416*mostly by the institutions themselves source: centre for international Mobility (ciMo)



The most important challenges for international mobility recognised in Fin-land include

Making mobility an integral part of day-to-day work •integrating mobility with other activities such as transnational •projects and networks to support the development of common tools and working methods and create new contacts More attention to quality of mobility periods and follow-up of the •mobility period

These challenges are taken into account both in administering the lll pro-grammes and when allocating national funding to support the internationali-sation of institutions. Example of policy measure: state funding for the internationalisation of vocational education and trainingThe state funding reserved for the internationalisation of education and train-ing aims at supporting the internationalisation according to the objectives set in the core curricula and the creation of international cooperation networks. The funding for VET in 2010 is 800 000 euro which is 100 000 more than in the previous year. When the funds are granted, priority is given to projects that are carried out with Eu partners and that support for example the follow-ing development areas:

Preparing for the implementation of EQF and EcVET•on-the-job learning and assessment abroad, particularly when •related to EcVETTeachers on-the-job learning periods abroad•developing international cooperation in quality assurance•

Funding may further be granted for development projects that aim at famil-iarisation with good practices in education and training outside the Eu, offer on-the-job placements in international enterprises outside the Eu as well as other projects that support internationalisation and knowledge of other cul-tures.



in general the feedback to the FnbE has been that a lot has been done re-garding the internationalisation of VET with the state funding. The experi-ence is that the schools would like to have state funding for mobility as such. however, the decision is and will be that development projects are funded, which can comprise mobility, but not mobility as such.

issues to be tackled are dissemination and the sustainability of the results. These should be carried out so that the development project results would, more than at present, be used for the benefit of education and training in the whole country. another challenge is to activate all education providers. at the moment some institutions are very active while there are a large number of institutions that remain passive.



THEME 4: STRENGTHENING THE LINKS BETWEEN VET AND THE LABOUR MARKET

one of the central aims of the national educational policy is to ensure that the labour market has a measured supply of skilled workforce. in conjunction with education administration and other ministries, the Government draws up plans to anticipate educational and labour needs, both quantitative and qualitative. The qualitative anticipation of skill needs produces information of future skill needs, changes in skill needs, new competence areas and new competence combinations needed by the world of work.

it is vital that working life is actively involved in the development of VET, and that the cooperation between companies and VET institutions is close. Workplace learning and especially apprenticeship training should be focused on, as they foster this cooperation.

4.1 Identifying and anticipating skill needs

anticipation of educational needs aims to consolidate the knowledge base relevant to decisions on educational provision, thus promoting the balance between supply and demand at the labour market. anticipation provides in-formation on quantitative needs for vocationally/professionally oriented ed-ucation and training, which are based on long-term employment forecasts. The focus is on anticipating demand for labour over a 15-year period and using the results to derive educational needs. This anticipation concerns vo-cationally/professionally oriented education and training intended for young people as well as polytechnic education and university education.

The Development plan for education and research (the newest for 2007−2012), adopted by the Government every four years, presents the national policies for identifying and anticipating skill needs. The new development plan is based on the aims drawn up in the Government Programme (2007). The

■



implementation of these policies is carried out in conjunction with educa-tion administration, the Ministry of Employment and the Economy and re-gional actors. in addition, information on anticipation is provided by labour market organisations, research institutes, universities and polytechnics. The Finnish national board of Education (FnbE) is responsible for coordinating and producing national information on anticipation as well as developing and maintaining the tools for anticipation, for example the Mitenna model for quantitative anticipation.

anticipation of labour and educational needs in Finland has its roots already in the 1960s when the methodology for anticipating educational needs was developed. until the early 1990s a specific Planning secretariat that operated under the Ministry of Education was responsible for forecasts. at the begin-ning of the 1990s forecasting was decentralised to regional and local level. since 2002 anticipation of labour and educational needs at regional level has been carried out regularly nationwide (excluding Åland islands).

at the moment the supply of labour is diminishing as the large post-war age groups are starting to retire. as a result, the importance of the anticipation of quantitative and qualitative training needs is growing. The Ministry of Edu-cation regulates the number of students in the permissions to provide educa-tion and training. The responsibility of the training providers, regarding the foresight and anticipation of changes at the labour market as well as react-ing to these, has been emphasised as steering has been decentralised to local level. The performance-based funding model also steers the operations.

in addition to purposes of steering, the anticipation information is utilised to detect bottlenecks in the labour force and early identification of oversupply. Regional anticipation and dialogue with regional decision-makers is stressed. at personal level, the results benefit the students through career guidance.

anticipation is seen as a way to better match labour market demands and to ensure that all people have the skills to maximise their labour market poten-tial. it is also seen as a means to ensure the supply of skilled workforce lo-



cally. The methods of anticipating skills are being further developed with the participation of all labour market players, including the regional actors and educational organisations.

in adopting the development plan for education and research the Government decided that an intermediate evaluation will be conducted halfway into the government period and the objectives set in the plan will be adjusted if nec-essary. This was necessary because of the constantly updated data on labour needs and the possible impact of the General reform concerning vocational adult education (aKKu) on intake needs. Thus, a committee for anticipating educational needs and measuring its supply (KT 2016) was commissioned by the Ministry in 2008. The group’s task was to evaluate the objectives set in the development plan and propose possible amendments.

in its december 2009 report the committee proposes no changes to the intake targets set in the development plan. instead the committee draws attention to the fact that in some fields the development in the intake does not match the targets. For example, the intake is not sufficient compared to the need in social services and health, medicine, as well as metal and energy technology. in contrast, the fields of information technology, communication and infor-mation and tourism have oversupply. it is noted that the declining size of the workforce in the 2010s will soon pose problems on the labour market and thus skills mismatch and the resulting unemployment cannot be afforded.

Example of policy measure: VosE – national project for anticipating vocational skill needs (2007–2011)The importance of anticipation of skills needs is emphasised in the Govern-ment programmes. anticipation is seen as a remarkable tool in developing education and training to correspond to the future needs of the labour market. Particularly qualitative anticipation, the anticipation of learning and skills needs, is one of the main issues today. systematic quantitative anticipation has a long tradition in Finland, but now the focus is also on anticipation of changes in the competences required in future in the different fields. The aim



is to create a system for anticipation that would enable the integration of the anticipated needs into the qualification requirements and training content.

The VosE project was set up in 2007 to support these aims. The project will support the development programme for the anticipation of skills and train-ing needs, one of the aims of which is to develop anticipation models for understanding the qualitative changes at the labour market and in the jobs themselves. The VosE project, funded by the Finnish national board of Ed-ucation (FnbE) and the EsF, will end in 2011.

The overall responsibility for the VosE project is with the FnbE. other par-ties involved are the Ministries of Education, Employment and the Economy, social affairs and health and the Environment. in addition, several stake-holder associations and groups are involved, such as the Finnish association for Vocational adult Education and Training, research institutions, the cen-tral chamber of commerce, students, employer and employee organisations.

To date the project has collected models for anticipation used in Finland and some other European countries, set up networks, drawn up a first version of a national model for anticipation and started piloting this model. The pilot-ing is conducted in two fields of education: healthcare and social services as well as construction. The biggest obstacles and challenges encountered are related to the scope of the project and the commitment of the participants.

The commitment of such a large ”population” involved in the project has been a challenge, starting from practical issues such as timetabling etc. a further challenge has been the regulatory basis for the funding and admin-istration. This has not always allowed for quick and flexible manoeuvring. a basic challenge is also in the objective: to develop an anticipation model is a huge undertaking and consequently very challenging.

The development and piloting of the anticipation model continues. Tools to support the anticipation work are being developed utilising social media. Fi-



nally a plan to embed and make qualitative anticipation of skills and learning needs part of the Finnish anticipation system.

The project will utilise comparative knowledge of other similar models used elsewhere in Europe, including Germany, the uK, France, sweden, and the netherlands. With respect to these anticipation models and anticipation of skill needs in general, an extensive study was carried out in 2009 (Foredata oy 2009).

4.2 Integrating skill needs of the labour market into VET provision

The anticipation of educational needs serves to match labour supply and de-mand in different fields across regions. The anticipation data helps in the de-cision-making concerning the supply of skilled labour. Recently, the results have been utilised for example in designing the development plan for edu-cation and research; setting the performance aims in tertiary education; and deciding upon the permissions to provide iVET. in general, the anticipation results provide important information for education providers, helping them to target their supply and inform people about future career prospects.

The education administration, especially the FnbE, has a central role in the implementation of anticipation results. in order to enhance its links to the world of work the following national expert bodies have been introduced:

national Education and Training committees (see section 4.3.1)•national coordination Group for Education and Training•

national Education and Training committees are spread around the country and they consist of experts from a number of fields. There are altogether 34 committees, the purpose of which is to evaluate the skills and anticipate skill needs needed in working life. The role of the FnbE in the committees’ or-ganisation was strengthened by the Government in december 2008.



national coordination Group for Education and Training aims to facilitate the cooperation and anticipation processes between the above-mentioned committees and different stakeholders. it is set every three years and it re-ports back annually to the Ministry of Education, the FnbE and a tripartite council for labour and Training affairs on the development of skills and training needs as well as the state of anticipation, results and development needs.

Recent years have seen an increase in the utilisation of anticipation data as part of decision-making processes. The aim is to utilise the results more sys-tematically at national, regional, provider and institutional levels, to further raise the level of anticipation know-how and to develop cooperation and methodologies. anticipation information on educational needs is required when seeking solutions to challenges due to Finland’s demographic develop-ment and the increasing impact of the global economy. at a regional level, these effects are often stronger when compared with the perspective of the whole country. Regional demographic changes or a major company’s deci-sion to relocate production away from Finland may permanently change a region’s conditions for development. Vocationally/professionally oriented education and training aims to meet such future challenges by enhancing the match between educational provision and labour market demand and by pay-ing more attention to development needs in different regions.

at the FnbE, anticipation efforts have been carried out as broad cooperation between different administrative branches and regional parties. Within the educational administration, anticipation has been coordinated by the Minis-try of Education, while practical anticipation work has been carried out by the FnbE, which has also provided support for regional anticipation work managed by the Regional councils. anticipation of industry changes has provided the point of reference for anticipation of educational needs. The Ministry of labour has been responsible for industry forecasts. continuing cooperation in anticipation work and its consolidation between different ad-ministrative branches are prerequisites for successful anticipation efforts, complete with cooperation with regional anticipation bodies. The FnbE is



also partially responsible for the administration of projects funded by the Eu-ropean social Fund (EsF). The intention is to further increase the impact of anticipation on education and training.

an investigation is being conducted during 2009 into development and net-working in anticipation of labour and educational needs between different ministries, division of responsibilities, coordination and increasing the effec-tiveness of anticipation on decision-making processes. at a national level, a cross-ministerial Government Foresight network has already been set up to promote the use and production of anticipation information.

The FnbE also develops and maintains anticipation tools, such as the Miten-na model. The model is used for anticipating the vocational training and skill needs nationally and regionally. The education administration has a large network in anticipation with the central administrative areas, such as the la-bour administration. There are also numerous independent projects focusing on the future needs of labour and education in certain occupations and fields of education. Work focuses on both quantitative and qualitative forecasting methods.

Example of policy measure: oivallus Project 2008–2011The Oivallus project aims to anticipate the skill needs of learning networks in future Finland. The project follows the idea that, in future, the business sector will increasingly operate as part of global networks, comprised of di-verse actors. Thus the target of anticipation should not merely be individual sectors but networked sectors. Oivallus is coordinated by the confederation of Finnish industries EK and funded by the FnbE, the EsF and the Confed-eration of Finnish Industries.

The three-year project emphasises networks and learning. While focusing on networks and skill needs of networked sectors, the purpose is to identify potentially successful fields and obtain information from a multitude of per-spectives. Oivallus attempts to characterise working life in the 2020s and consider what kind of experts and skills will then be needed.



The project involves three working groups. The first group’s task is to con-sider what would be the optimal operational environment and infrastructure for people and businesses, and how such infrastructure would link up with services. The second group investigates how services provided online can be utilised in traditional fields. one aim is to think what kind of services will be provided in 2020 or 2030 and what kind of networks will then be involved in business life. The third group’s task is to evaluate Finland’s strengths and weaknesses in a global context in terms of expertise and new challenges.

4.3 Involving labour market actors in VET

some 50 per cent of the recruitment needs of Finnish enterprises concern persons with vocational qualifications. consequently the representatives of employers have a strong interest in the development of vocational education and training. Moreover, as the competition of high-skilled labour intensifies in future, companies may wish to strengthen their links to educational in-stitutions, improve their reputation among students and encourage students to acquaint themselves with companies. For example the confederation of Finnish industries (EK) actively participates in developing the quality and attractiveness of VET. in 2008 two thirds of EK member enterprises cooper-ated with educational institutions, most commonly with VET institutions and polytechnics.

also the planning of education involves labour market actors. national qual-ification-specific curricula and the requirements for competence-based quali-fications are drawn up in cooperation with employers and employees, other representatives and experts of economic life as well as teachers and students. The starting point is the genuine skill needs and situations in working life, and therefore companies’ involvement in the development and assessment of skills demonstrations is very close. For the cooperation to function, the VET teacher must have a sound knowledge of the local enterprises. Thus teachers’ on-the-job-periods are seen as important means to enhance the dialogue and intensify the cooperation with the enterprises.



The importance of teachers is also stressed by EK. Teachers’ active involve-ment influences how well on-the-job learning, skills demonstrations and the training of workplace instructors functions, especially in sMEs. Teach-ers should participate in the assessment process of skills demonstrations in workplaces and support the workplace instructors.

There are also cooperation organs for implementing and developing on-the-job learning and skills demonstrations. For planning and implementing skills demonstrations the training providers must set up one or several local boards for vocational skills demonstrations. These boards should comprise repre-sentatives of training providers, teachers, students as well as the sectoral la-bour market representatives. The boards can also be joint boards of several training providers. The plans for the implementation and assessment of skills demonstrations are approved by the boards. They supervise the skills demon-stration activities and decide on the assessors. The boards also deal with the demands for rectification of the assessment made by the students.

Example of policy measure: national Education and Training committees (2007–)national Education and Training committees were set up in 2007, following the legislation issued in 2005 and 2006 defining the composition and tasks of the committees. There are altogether 34 national Education and Training committees. They are required in vocational upper secondary and adult edu-cation as well as higher education. Their task is to follow, evaluate, anticipate and analyse the development of skills needed at the labour market; to make suggestions for the qualitative and quantitative development of training; to survey the core curricula and qualifications requirements and give statements regarding issues in their sector.

The committees comprise representatives of the national education and train-ing administration, teachers, employers and employees. The training provider can also invite members from labour or political organisations. The education provider decides whether the committee represents one or several sectors or whether it is organised according to a qualification or study programme. The



members are expected to have expertise in certain sectors as well as an inter-est in developing training and willingness to familiarise themselves with the regulations and guidelines of VET.

in 2008 the committees were asked to report how they had managed their tasks and evaluate the results of anticipation. They also made proposals for further development. over half of the committees stated that they had been able to follow the quantitative targets of the development plan for education and research 2007−2012. The majority was also content with intake targets, although many would have wanted to further increase these especially in up-per secondary VET.

The committees reported that studies on the anticipation of skill needs had proliferated. There were, however, problems and shortages in statistics, clas-sification, methods and the availability of anticipation results. Regarding cer-tain fields or professions, information was not easily accessible, compilation of statistics was slow and information tended to be out-of-date.

The committees presented altogether seven development proposals:

development of a systematic tool for anticipation and follow-up•consultation of the committees at an early stage and feedback •from the Ministry of EducationMore in-depth anticipation covering different fields and professions •(“clusters”)development of statistics, classification and research•improvement of the committees’ expertise in anticipation•better cooperation between committees in the anticipation •processesMore comparative international studies on anticipation•

Finally, the committees are unanimous that “anticipation of clusters” is a good way to anticipate skill needs. anticipation of cluster was defined here as a novel combination of skills and professions caused by changes in pro-



duction, technology, markets and operation environment. it was concluded that future anticipation should be conducted from a multitude of perspectives, combining various fields and professions. This is relevant, for example, if an upswing or decline in one field has repercussions on other fields.

4.4 Promoting workplace learning

The main purpose of the reform of VET in the late 1990s was to bring edu-cation and the world of work closer to each other and to increase the corre-spondence of VET to the needs of the labour market. Further aims have been to increase the attractiveness of VET and to ensure qualitatively and quan-titatively sufficient labour for the labour market. one of the central means to achieve this was to increase workplace learning. The introduction and in-crease of work-based learning has meant that labour market partners partici-pate in developing VET and can better anticipate training needs. The cooperation with the world of work is a specific demand in the VET legislation from 1998. one of the central aims has been that the contents and quality of work-based learning are developed and improved together with the enterprises.

Throughout the 2000s workplace learning has been emphasised in educa-tional policies. it has been promoted by continuously developing the curri-cula and qualification requirements. a few recent developments to improve the cooperation between education institutions and the world of work have been:

The introduction of skills demonstrations in all vocational •qualifications in 2006 (see 4.4.2)The revision of the national core curricula in upper secondary VET •in 2006−2010 (see 1.1.2)General reform concerning vocational adult education in 2009 •(aKKu)



The purpose of skills demonstration is to improve the quality of vocational education and training and strengthen its links to the world of work. The aim is to ensure that the training produces the kind of know-how and skills need-ed in working life. Evaluation based on skills demonstrations also diversifies student assessment better than earlier and involves the representatives of working life in the assessment of vocational competence. The purpose of the adoption of skills tests is to further unify student assessment and to pro-duce data on learning results and the functionality of the core curriculum, the specific curricula of the education provider, teaching arrangements and the guidance and support rendered. The data produced by the test system is intended for use in developing education not only at national level but at lo-cal level.

The current curricula for upper secondary VET date back to 1999−2000. The FnbE is presently revising the curricula which will be taken into use in august 2010. The revised curricula stress, for example, that students should acquire skills which can be utilised in different fields and transferred from profession to profession; skills should serve labour market needs but also promote lifelong learning; and study modules should be flexible and there should be a possibility for various combinations. The revision takes immi-grants and students with disabilities into account, and is relevant for adults as it revises also competence-based qualifications.

The general reform concerning vocational adult education (aKKu) supports the aims of the Government Programme to prolong careers, vocational mo-bility and employment. in particular, the reform aims at improving the skills and competences of adult population in working life. a special stress is on the changes in the world of work. Wider prospects in workplace learning and better cooperation between education institutions and the world of work will be achieved by improving apprenticeship training and preparatory training for competence-based qualifications. The latter trains for competence tests, in which students can demonstrate their skills acquired either in studies or informally in working life.



in addition, the reform emphasises better management of available resources. information services and guidance and counselling should be improved. The funding of VET institutions should include performance-based funding in order to encourage education providers to perform more efficiently and pro-vide flexible study arrangements. The reform also addresses immigrants who increasingly need language training as well as guidance and counselling.

Recent extensive studies on workplace learning, carried out by the Ministry of Education, have highlighted the following development issues in promot-ing cooperation between educational institutions and working life:

Polytechnics should further increase work-based learning methods•Teachers should have better opportunities to operate in companies •so that the quality and relevance of work-based learning can be enhancedTeachers’ and especially polytechnic students’ entrepreneurship •skills should be improvedstudents’ roles should be stressed•

companies should be encouraged and motivated to closer participate in de-veloping education, designing and validating curricula and other standards.

4.4.1 Apprenticeship training

The popularity of apprenticeship training has rapidly increased in the 2000s. From 2001 to 2008 the number of students in apprenticeship training has risen from 39 000 to 70 000. First and foremost this has resulted from edu-cational policies aiming to increase the number of entrants. The current eco-nomic downturn has, however, posed challenges to apprenticeship training as its demand has decreased in enterprises.



The general reform concerning adult education and training (aKKu) lays a strong emphasis on apprenticeship training, on its funding and steering. it also states that apprenticeship training should be increased in continuing VET. More and more adults should be encouraged to enhance their skills and competences through apprenticeship training. This should also include people with academic qualifications.

Research on apprenticeship training has generated proposals to reform ap-prenticeship training for example by a new general strategy or by nominating a national representative to deal with apprenticeship training matters.

a need for a new general strategy has been pointed out since the growth of apprenticeship training has not been as anticipated, and thus there have been problems in controlling it. The new strategy should be developed jointly with both the aKKu reform and the strategy for vocational colleges (see 1.1.1) because of their relevance to adult education. The strategy should pay at-tention to the need to increase apprenticeship training, the development of working life and sufficient resources.

it has been argued that apprenticeship training includes so many guidelines and details, the implementation and development of which cannot be handled merely with the legislative framework. Therefore, an independent national representative should be appointed. he or she would follow the development of apprenticeship training in Finland and abroad and make suggestions or initiatives concerning apprenticeship training. in close cooperation with rel-evant ministries and the world of work, the representative would monitor labour market needs, the quality of apprenticeship training and encourage enterprises to train apprentices.



4.4.2 Example of policy measure: Skills demonstrations in vocational education and training (2006–)

From 1st august 2006, all vocational qualifications have included skills demonstrations. With a view to implementing skills demonstrations, train-ing providers set up organisations made up of members representing training providers, teachers, students, and business and industry. in skills demonstra-tions, students show through practical tasks how well they have attained the vocational skills required in working life. labour market organisations have been actively involved in promoting the adoption of skills demonstrations.

in the core curriculum for vocational upper secondary qualifications skills demonstrations are seen as a part of student assessment. The planning, im-plementation and assessment are regulated by legislation. skills demonstra-tions are realised in cooperation between education and the world of work. in skills demonstrations the student demonstrates in a practical and authen-tic work situation how well he or she has reached the objectives and aims regarding the vocational competence set in the core curriculum. The skills demonstrations are part of the training and are given during the whole stud-ies. skills demonstrations are given of all vocational study modules.

skills demonstrations have been developed to assure the quality of vocational education and training as well as improve the quality of student assessment. The tests are part of the development of student assessment, study arrange-ments and the guidance and support of the students. The tests promote the working life orientation of the training, as the tests are planned, implemented and evaluated in conjunction with representatives of working life. They also create new possibilities for local cooperation between institutions and work-places and for joint evaluation, where the views of working life are a key part of the assessment of students’ competence. The tests also promote contact between the students and the workplace and provide the teachers and on-the-job trainers feedback for the improvement of their personal work.



skills demonstrations were piloted and developed in 1999–2006. a study was made in 2004, commissioned by the FnbE, on the impact of skills dem-onstrations and on the quality of vocational education and training. The study aimed at finding out how the quality is improved and maintained as well as what the added value is of skills demonstrations to VET.

The study concluded that skills demonstrations have several positive effects on quality. Firstly, the system helps ensuring that the students’ learning and competence level. secondly, it increases the attainments regarding the needs of the labour market. Thirdly, it improves the quality, as the feedback re-ceived from the enterprises in conjunction with the skills demonstrations can be utilised in developing the training and teaching. skills demonstrations mainly have positive effects on the students’ motivation and aptitude to learn. Further, an increase in the valuation of VET was noted.

The suspicions and threats foreseen have been connected to the quality and uniformity of student assessment, and consequently the equality between stu-dents. some fears of narrowing the vocational competences have also been voiced. so far, there are no signs of these threats having been justified.

The skills demonstrations have provided information on the effectiveness, the skills level of the students and reaching the set goals. The assessment is not only targeted at the performance of the students, but also the VET system as a whole, including the institutions, teachers and teaching methods. Thus skills demonstrations should not be interpreted narrowly as only a way of as-sessing the students (see further 6.1.2).

skills demonstrations transmit directly the needs of the labour market into the development and planning of VET. however, this development needs to be coordinated by active quality assurance systems. These should take into account the needs of individual students, ensure the uniformity of education at the same time reflecting on the aims of the VET system from a societal perspective.



THEME 5: ADDRESSING EQUITY, SOCIAL INCLUSION AND ACTIVE CITIZENSHIP

Equity and equality of opportunity are one of the guiding principles of the Finnish society, also emphasised in the national education policy. This in-volves the prevention of social exclusion by providing support for groups at risk, such as low-skilled adults, early school-leavers and immigrants. The number of low-skilled adults among the older population (aged over 54) is still quite high in Finland, although younger generations perform well in in-ternational comparisons. The increasing flow of immigrants poses challenges to educational policy which have to promote their social integration. The problem needs to be tackled as the shortage of labour is an impending prob-lem of the 2010s.

active citizenship has been recently voiced in educational policy and includ-ed in the newly revised curricula for upper secondary VET, although in quite general terms. The purpose is to generate innovative approaches and new ideas by actively involving citizens in decision-making and other political, cultural and social activities of the community.

5.1 Addressing equity in VET

According to the Development plan for education and research 2007−2012, the Government will secure equal opportunities for quality education from early childhood to university education throughout the country.

one of the central aims of national education policy is to secure a study place after basic education for everyone. The national joint application systems are tools to ensure that no one drops out after completing basic education. The joint application system of upper secondary education and training dates back to 1979. in the joint application to general upper secondary and voca-tional upper secondary institutions, students can apply for admission to five

■



different institutions by filling out just one application form. This application system was renewed and was brought into use in 2008. The new application system is an electronic system that includes the application itself for the stu-dents, a tool for the education providers for updating education and training supply and an on-line follow-up system of the applications.

another tool for securing the opportunities for all 16 year-olds to continue their studies at upper secondary level is the targeting of enough study places for the whole age group. The target numbers of students at each educational level are agreed on in the Government's development plan for education and research.

The provision of education and training is planned nationally in the develop-ment plan. The aims are defined by field of VET. The Ministry of Education grants a permission to provide education and training to the education pro-viders. This includes the fields of VET they are allowed to organise educa-tion and training in and the maximum number of students the provider is allowed to enrol. Within these limits the provider can operate and develop its training freely.

in addition to facilitating the transition from basic to secondary education, the education administration has to take other groups at risk into account. such groups include adults with low skills, immigrants and students with special needs or disabilities. The aim is to ensure that no-one is excluded from working life or educational institutions and from social life.

Gender equality in the Finnish society has been widely discussed in recent years. it is addressed in the development plan for education and research 2007−2012 as well as in the Government’s Action Plan for Gender Equal-ity 2008−2011. There seems to be a consensus among political parties of how equality can been improved, although several problems, such as gender pay gaps and violence and discrimination against women, persist. Moreover, gender equality is often considered already attained and thus not so strongly promoted.



Gender equality in educational institutions has re-emerged in the 2000s. The law on gender equality, renewed in 2005, obliges educational institutions to draw up a plan on gender equality involving both teaching staff and stu-dents/pupils. it is compulsory for all levels of education, except basic educa-tion. although not compulsory in the latter, it is still highly recommended. school-specific plans should address how gender equality can be achieved in application processes, in provision of education and in assessment. special attention should be paid also to the prevention of sexual discrimination and exclusion based on discrimination. Plans should be updated regularly – year-ly or at least every three years – and their implementation monitored.

Example of policy measure: Working group to decrease sex segregation in schools and working life (2009–2010)The Ministry of Education set up a working group in september 2009 to evaluate how gender equality is achieved in schools and working life, and how sexual discrimination and segregation can be decreased. The group’s task follows the aims of the Government programme to bridge the pay gap between men and women by 15 percent by 2015. it is believed that sex seg-regation starts as early as in basic education and it is therefore important to see how choices made at that point influence later life, employment, wages and gender roles – and how segregation can be mitigated. The group’s report is due in october 2010.

5.2 Improving equity and support services for groups at risk

5.2.1 Low-skilled adults

a study on adult education conducted in 2006 reveals that 52 per cent of the working age population participate annually in some form of adult education. In the Development plan for education and research 2007−2012 the target is 60 per cent. Further, the working-age population should take part in continu-ing education and training: at first, every 10−15 years for a period of roughly



six months, and after that every year for a few weeks in order to keep their skills up-to-date.

however, the participants in adult education are usually urban, high-skilled, or have advanced careers. This leaves a large number of adults with low skills and less opportunities or motivation to participate in continuing educa-tion and training. Frequently they have completed only basic education. For example, on the age group 25−54 17 per cent had no secondary qualification in 2007. When the over 54-year-olds are included the figure reaches 32 per cent.

an oEcd comparison, which measures the level of education by its length among 25−64-year-olds, leaves Finland at 32 place. Among younger adults the situation is improving although retention rates and the slow pace of stud-ies are still relevant problems.

Example of policy measure: nosTE programme for raising level of education among adults (2003–2009)in 2003 the Ministry of Education launched a programme for raising the level of education and training among the adult population in Finland in coopera-tion with the Ministry of labour and social partners. The Finnish acronym for the programme is nosTE.

The programme was implemented from 2003 to 2009 and its aims were to improve poorly trained adults’ career prospects and satisfaction at work, to relieve the labour shortages due to the exit of the large post-war age groups from the labour market and to raise the employment rate. The education and training offered within the scope of the nosTE programme was mainly in-tended for working adults aged between 30 and 59 who had no post-compul-sory qualifications.



There is still a relatively large amount of adult people in the labour force who are poorly educated or have outdated training. in Finland more than 30 per cent of the age group of 50–64 year-olds have completed only basic educa-tion. The courses within the nosTE scheme were mainly targeted at 30–59 year-olds. both employed and unemployed persons could apply for support and training possibilities via the programme.

nosTE was a part of the lifelong learning strategy to raise the level of ed-ucation among the Finnish population. The programme was steered by the Ministry of Education and the project-by-project funding decisions were made at the regional level in the Provincial offices. all adult education in-stitutions and also employers, who could receive targeted training for their employees via nosTE funding without any own funding, were involved in the programme.

The nosTE programme ended in 2009 and the first evaluations of its achievements have now emerged. The programme aimed to include 10 per cent of the original target group (n=350 626) in nosTE training. This was an ambitious target: ca. 7 per cent had participated in nosTE training by april 2009, although the figure was predicted to rise to 7.5 by the end of the year.

Regional differences were wide. Participation rates varied from 4 to 12 per cent, but to some extent this was explained for example by the target group’s participation in labour market training across regions. other explanatory fac-tors were the skills, personal characteristics and networks of the persons re-sponsible for guidance and counselling. Further factors were the active in-volvement and interest of education institutions as well as their cooperation networks with enterprises.

altogether 8 691 vocational qualifications were acquired via nosTE in 2003−2008, the number of entrants being 15 056. The initially high reten-tion rate decreased steadily and was only 6 per cent in 2008. The evaluation concluded that the nosTE programme managed to raise the education level



of the target group. as their training continues, for example in labour market training, important lessons from nosTE were learnt:

The motivation of adult groups not interested in education and •training can be increased by actively including them, for example by enhanced personalisationEducation and training for adults should be increasingly work-•basedEducation providers and employment administration should •cooperate more closely while providing guidance and counsellingGuidance and counselling should be easily accessed and students •should not feel ashamed to take part in themTripartite cooperation is effective since the representatives of •employers and employees are actively involved and real skill needs are addressed.

5.2.2 Early school-leavers

The transition from basic education to upper secondary education is a crucial stage in a young person’s life. Various studies indicate that the securing of a study place for all after basic education is an efficient way to prevent social exclusion. it is estimated that a young person’s permanent exclusion from working life can cost up to 0.7 million euro for the society. according to the Government’s mid-term policy review, announced in February 2009, “mea-sures will be taken to assure that there are places in upper secondary educa-tion for all school-leavers.”

in early 2010 the Government announced that the new youth act, enacted in 2006, will be reformed to better support young people after basic educa-tion. according to the new amendment, there should be in each municipality a network involving representatives from municipal education and employ-ment administration, social, youth and health care services. These networks



should ensure that services and communication for young people in the tran-sition phase function properly. also local youth work, especially information and advisory services, will be supported by increased financing.

The current economic crisis has raised a serious concern over youth unem-ployment, which has increased with 56 per cent from 2008 to 2009. Various programmes have been initiated and millions of euros have been earmarked in the Government’s supplementary budget to help young adults to gain a foothold in the labour market. unemployed persons are, for example, en-couraged to improve their skills and competences while receiving unemploy-ment benefits at the same time (see 1.3.1).

Example of policy measure: Preparatory instruction and guidance for VET (Ammattistartti) (2006–)starting as a pilot scheme in 2006, Ammattistartti aimed at lowering the threshold in the transition to further training and reduce the number of drop-outs at the beginning of the studies. The scheme was directed especially at those young people who did not have a clear choice of occupation or suf-ficient preparedness to apply to VET courses and pass examinations. after promising results, it was decided to make the scheme permanent from Janu-ary 2010 onwards.

The VET courses within this scheme have a scope of 20−40 study credits depending on the needs of the student. The student can move flexibly from preparatory instruction to courses leading to certifications. in the training leading to certification the prior learning acquired during the preparatory in-struction has to be accredited and approved.

in addition to Ammattistartti, there are two other forms of preparatory in-struction. according to the Vocational Education act, it is possible to offer preparatory instruction and guidance for disabled persons. The objective is to prepare those with special needs for vocational training, employment and provide them with skills to manage their own lives. The target students are those who need training in very basic skills or for whom completing voca-



tional education is too challenging. similarly, it is possible to organise pre-paratory instruction for immigrants. The aim of the training is to prepare the immigrants for Finnish society and to improve their employment opportuni-ties.

by 2009 Ammattistartti has been implemented in over 50 institutions and ca. 3 000 young persons have been involved. The results have proved very promising since over 70 per cent of those taking part in ammattistartti have been able to secure a study place in vocational education and training.

5.2.3 Immigrants

as the number of immigrants rises steadily, the Government has emphasised the integration of immigrants into Finnish society by providing education preparing for education, increased guidance and counselling and language training in Finnish and swedish. Teachers with immigrant backgrounds have been given language training and the intake to teacher training has been in-creased.

The new curricula in vocational upper secondary education and training (1.1.2) also addresses immigrants. The following points concerning immi-grants have been stressed:

Multiculturalism in education institutions and immigrants’ •inclusion/integrationFinnish and swedish as a second language as well as teaching of •immigrants’ mother tonguePromotion of equity •lifelong learning and key competences•immigrants’ learning results should be evaluated similarly with •other students, taking (insufficient) language skills into account.



adult education for immigrants is also a recent development issue, addressed in the general reform of adult education (aKKu). Employment-related mo-bility is favoured and the benefits of immigrants’ skills and competences should be taken into use with the help of competence tests and preparatory training, skills demonstrations and complementary studies. sufficient guid-ance and counselling for immigrants is also of utmost importance.

With respect to mobility, Finland aims to increase student mobility in VET and the mobility of those with vocational qualifications; enhance the trans-parency, comparability and recognition of VET and promote lifelong learn-ing (see 3.2).

Example of policy measure: Preparatory training for VET for immigrants (2008–)The number of immigrants increases steadily in Finland and the integration of immigrants is one of the national policy issues. Employment is an essen-tial precondition for integration into the new home country and therefore immigrants, who have insufficient vocational training, language skills and knowledge of the Finnish society and culture, should improve their skills be-fore VET studies.

in 2008 the core curriculum for preparatory education for immigrants was approved. The training is organised within upper secondary VET but it does not lead to a formal qualification. it is meant to give the student language skills and other skills needed for transition to vocational studies. it is a gen-eral training for all vocational sectors but can also be targeted to a certain sector.

The main objective is to prepare the student for studying in upper secondary VET. The students will become familiar with the Finnish studying and work-ing culture and they will learn skills that enable them to follow teaching and complete the vocational education after the preparatory training. The training lasts at least one term and at most two terms. The studies consist of language studies, mathematics, computer and science studies, social and cultural stud-



ies, study skills and career counselling and optional studies. Every student in preparatory training should also have a personal training plan.The success of the preparatory education of immigrants can be seen in the employment rate of immigrants and the number of immigrant students in VET. There are always considerable challenges in organising individual training for every student. The issue of placement and employment of immi-grants will still need to be addressed. in 2009 there were altogether 1 360 im-migrants in preparatory training for VET. For comparison, the total number of migrants moving to Finland was 29 000 in 2008 and 26 000 in 2007.

5.3 Active citizenship

The Development plan for education and research 2007−2012 addresses so-cial coherence and active citizenship. it is stressed that the responsibility of making citizens active, responsible and balanced human beings should be the task the entire education system that must support an individual’s ability to act as an active citizen in a democratic society.

in the new curricula for upper secondary VET (see 1.1.2), the concept of ac-tive citizenship will be added. in the few already revised curricula active citi-zenship is acknowledged as the student’s ability to constructively participate in community life and decision-making, to act according to his or her rights and duties at work and leisure, to follow laws on equity and equality and co-operate with people with various cultural backgrounds in working life.

The prevention of social exclusion and promotion of active citizenship go hand in hand. For example if all young persons receive an upper secondary qualification after basic education, the risk of social exclusion diminishes greatly and the chances of enhanced participation in social and political life are likely to improve.



Example of policy measure: “Participating pupil – co-active school” programme (2005–2007)The project aimed to enhance participation in decision-making and repre-sentational democracy in schools and municipalities by promoting the inclu-sion and influence of children and young people in basic and secondary education and municipalities. Teachers were trained to be agents for change who develop structures and operating environments conducive to inclusion in their schools and at local level.

a key contributing factor for the success of the project was the chance for the schools and local authorities to influence structures and operating mod-els. These included the establishment of pupil bodies, revision of curricula, development of meeting procedures and creation of structures conducive to inclusion in the municipality. other contributing factors were the curriculum reform, the new youth act and the citizen Participation Policy Programme.

The participants’ self-confidence and skills as educators improved and they gained a more positive attitude towards pupil activity and inclusion. The training also gave them concrete tools and models for developing activities. schools developed structures conducive to pupil participation. students’ in-fluence grew especially in matters related to school rules and action plans.

at local level, the project contributed to the emergence of new structures supporting youth participation, such as youth councils and other forums. The inclusion of children and young people has also been addressed in the local strategies. cooperation between pupil bodies and with different local struc-tures has increased. The key factors for success were cooperation between different stakeholders and the recognition of common aims. Teachers coop-erate more actively with local education and youth authorities in all the par-ticipating municipalities.



THEME 6: QUALITY, EXCELLENCE AND ATTRACTIVENESS OF VET

6.1 Improving the quality of VET The quality of vocational education and training is one of the priorities de-fined in the current Government development plan for education and re-search. Education services should respond to the changing and growing com-petence needs of the world of work and individuals. consequently, quality assurance is seen as increasingly important.

6.1.1 Quality in vocational education and training

in Finland quality in VET is seen as a key factor related to the attractiveness of VET, the continuous supply of skilled professionals, the efficiency of edu-cation and training as well as the equality of individuals.

Quality in VET is assured and developed in many ways. The national qual-ity management system in Finland comprises of the quality management of education providers, the national steering of VET and external evaluation. Quality assurance in vocational education and training is being developed on the basis of common European guidelines in the light of the special features of the national education system. Thus the European Quality assurance Ref-erence framework for Vocational Education and Training (EQaRF) has been the basis for the development of quality management both at national and at provider level.

The legislation on VET gives the education providers a great deal of free-dom in deciding on the measures concerning their education provision, use of public funding and quality management. The legislation obliges the pro-

■



viders to evaluate their education and its effectiveness as well as participate in external evaluations. This means that the education providers need to have their own operating system that contains relevant and functional quality man-agement measures.

at national level the responsibility regarding quality management is to set the objectives and ensure that they are reached. The most important steering measures are the statutes governing operations and funding. These include, for example, the performance-based funding model introduced in the 2000s (for more details see 8.1). in addition to these, quality in VET is steered by the development plan for education and research, the state budget, authori-sation to provide education granted by the Ministry of Education, the national core curricula and the requirements of qualifications as well as the principles governing of funding and performance-based funding. Further, the quality of VET is influenced by the qualification requirements of teaching staff as well as the development and information steering by the national education administration.

6.1.2 Policy progress

The importance of quality in VET increases as the education and training services respond to the changing and growing needs of the labour market and the individual learners. Quality assurance in VET is developed in line with the European priorities and in accordance with the national specific features. Examples of measures already taken are the quality recommendation drawn up for VET (see below 6.1.3) as well as the performance-based funding and quality prizes. The latter are seen as tools to promote quality development and dissemination of good practice.

one of the biggest reforms carried out in VET in Finland in recent years has been the introduction of skills demonstrations into all vocational quali-fications in 2006. The skills demonstrations tie up with the VET reform in



1998, in which the biggest change was the introduction of systematic work-based learning and enhancing the collaboration and dialogue with the world of work.

The primary objective has been to ensure and develop the quality of voca-tional training and to improve the quality of student assessment. The reform aimed at bringing the world of work and the education institutions closer to each other and to ensure that the education fulfils the objectives set and that the education and training is relevant concerning the needs of the labour mar-ket.

The world of work is closely involved in skills demonstrations, in the plan-ning of the tests, their implementation and assessment. The joint assessment of the skills demonstrations by the teachers, representatives from enterprises and the student ensure the validity and reliability of the tests in relation to the set objectives and the level of proficiency required by the labour market. The joint assessment also supports the interpretation of the assessment criteria and strengthens the commitment of the different parties already from the on-set, when the skills demonstrations are planned.

a national assessment and follow-up system has been developed in conjunc-tion with the skills demonstrations. in the system data is collected on the learning outcomes demonstrated in these assessments. data is collected dur-ing the whole training of the students. Thus, collecting the data for each qual-ification takes three years. The collected data can be used both at national and provider level to develop education and training. The national follow-up is part of the quality assurance of vocational education and training. it also supports the self-evaluation carried out by the education providers.

data on the skills demonstrations has been collected since 2007 of nine dif-ferent vocational upper secondary qualifications. The Finnish national board of Education (FnbE) has analysed the results of this data collection. Reports are sent annually to the education providers. in the reports the results of the education provider in question are compared with the national results of the same qualification.



The results for different VET institutions show fairly big variances in the ways of organising and assessing the same qualifications. Further, there are statistically significant differences in the distribution of assessment grades between different qualifications. on the average the assessment grades giv-en by representatives for the enterprises are higher than those given by the teachers.

a national evaluation of the system of skills demonstrations has been carried out by the Finnish Educational Evaluation council. The results of this evalu-ation will be published in March 2010. according to the preliminary results education providers feel that skills demonstrations have made student assess-ment more uniform and strengthened the links to the world of work.

an on-line student feedback system (aiPal) for competence-based qualifi-cations was taken into use in 2009. The system enables the students to give feedback on enrolling and seeking admission to the qualification and taking the qualification as well as acquiring the needed vocational skills in prepa-ratory training. The feedback is used to develop the system of competence-based qualifications. The aiPal system is utilised by the providers of the qualifications, the qualification committees as well as the national education administration.

Quality improvement is also sought in the process initiated by the Ministry of Education which aims at encouraging education providers to form region-al vocational colleges. The aim is that these colleges’ operational area would have a population of a minimum of 50 000 inhabitants. The objective is to improve the effectiveness of training and the efficiency in the use of resourc-es. Thus the vocational colleges can better respond the needs of working life and improve quality and quality management. From the students point of view the vocational colleges will ensure their equal opportunities, support their individual needs and enhance their opportunities for learning at work. Further, the aim is to better support local development work and ensure sup-ply of skilled professionals. The vocational colleges will become remark-able local actors alongside polytechnics and universities. This is achieved



by establishing multi-field networks of vocational colleges whose education and training provision will be comprehensive and flexible. The colleges will cover all levels and forms of VET, that is, initial and continuing vocational education, apprenticeship training and vocational adult education. For more details, please see section 1.1.1.

Example of policy measure: national recommendation for quality in VET 2008 and development of supporting tools The continuous improvement of quality in VET is one of the key areas of de-velopment both in Finland and in the Eu. The national recommendation for quality management in VET, confirmed in 2008, aims at supporting and en-couraging VET providers to develop the quality of their operations towards excellence. The recommendation is based on the common European quality assurance framework (cQaF). it is seen as an important step in implement-ing the recommendations of the copenhagen declaration in Finland and the new recommendation on quality in VET (EQaRF). The recommendation provides a framework for long-term development of quality management in all vocational education and training. it approaches quality management from a practical perspective. it does not either require the use of certain qual-ity management models and solutions. The recommendation can be imple-mented at different levels or forms of VET and at different stages of develop-ment of quality management3.

The use and outcomes of the new recommendation was assessed by the FnbE in 2009, one year after its introduction. The preliminary results of the survey show that most VET providers, who responded to the survey, have systematically done quality work for quite a long time in Finland. More than half of these VET providers had done systematic quality work for more than 6 years, half of these for over 10 years. The majority had made use of the

3 For more details in the development of the recommendation, please see the VET Policy report Finland 2008 at http://www.oph.fi/instancedata/prime_product_julkaisu/oph/embeds/47774_na-tional_Policy_Report_Fi_2008.pdf



quality recommendation, 38 per cent responded that they had used it to a great extent. The survey also explored how widely known and exploited the European peer review model is. The results point to the fact that it is fairly well known, but not yet exploited widely. less than 30 per cent of the re-spondents had made us of the model in their quality work. however, the ma-jority of the respondents indicated that they are planning to use the model in future. Thus the use of national peer reviews both in the development of teaching and learning and other operations of VET providers can be expected to increase rapidly.

The Ministry of Education has started to develop a Quality Management strategy for VET together with key stakeholders. it will be finalized by the end of this year.

6.2 Promoting excellence in VET

although excellence in education is generally associated with higher educa-tion and research, a focus on fostering excellence also in vocational educa-tion and training has emerged in the last few years. The understanding is that in addition to a solid basis of skills and competences the labour market also needs professional excellence. The Government Plan for education and research underlines that strong vocational skills are essential in the efficient utilisation of the latest innovations in production, services and society in general. in addition, training providers have an increasing role in develop-ing business and working life and in the service sector. consequently mea-sures will be taken to increase the role of training providers in developing the innovation system through the vocational college strategy (see 1.1.1), by expanding on-the-job learning and by more closely combining training and workplace development. The training and development services of training providers will support the development of production and service innova-tions in enterprises and workplaces and the creation of businesses based on innovation.



The national and international skills competitions are seen as valuable tools to support the development of vocational excellence. such competitions are promoted nationally to support quality enhancement in professional compe-tence. The association skills Finland was established in 1993 to promote the esteem for vocational education and training. it was founded by the Ministry of Education, Finnish national board of Education and the central labour market organisations. it is a non-profit association which promotes quality and attractiveness of skills and vocational education and training and entre-preneurship. This is achieved through skills competitions and by training and coaching young professionals, competition experts and trainers.

The association is in charge of organising the annual Taitaja competitions. The competitions are designed to inspire young people to aim for excellence and to give them a head start in the world of work. in addition to enhancing the attractiveness of vocational training, the competitions are thought to sup-port recruitment through increased cooperation between schools, vocational training institutions and working life. The competitions also encourage stu-dents to continue the development of skills, entrepreneurship and culture.

The Taitaja competitions open the way to coaching for the European and World skills competitions. skills Finland coordinates and develops the coaching for the competitions. This coaching is seen as a way to promote excellence in vocational skills. Excellence in vocational skills is also pro-moted by training coaches and organisers for the competitions, surveys and publications and developing the whole system of skills competitions. The coaching aims at developing new training models and increase the coopera-tion between education providers and enterprises. during their coaching, the students can also complete further vocational qualifications or parts of these.

in addition to the Taitaja competitions, two other competitions are organised. The Taitaja9 is for ninth-graders. in these competitions teams of three pupils (15–16-year-olds) from comprehensive schools compete in tasks requiring dexterity. The aim is to aid young people in selecting their careers and train-



ing paths, assist schools in guidance and counselling as well as to increase school-leavers’ awareness of trades and skill requirements. in connection with the Taitaja competitions there are special skills categories for students with special needs. These TaitajaPlus competitions test the es-sential skills and competences of occupations to the standards set by national qualification requirements.

6.3 HigherlevelqualificationsinVET

The qualifications within VET in Finland range from vocational upper sec-ondary qualifications to further and specialist vocational qualifications. The first two are classified as iscEd 3 programmes while the special vocational qualification is classified as an iscEd 4 programme. Professionally oriented education is available at higher education level. The higher education sector has a dual structure so that the mission of universities is to conduct scien-tific research and provide instruction and postgraduate education based on it, while polytechnics train professionals in response to labour market needs and conduct R&d which supports instruction and promotes regional devel-opment in particular. The bachelor’s and Master’s degrees granted by both universities and polytechnics correspond to iscEd level 5a.

The extent of polytechnic degree studies is generally 210−240 study points (ECTS), which means 3.5−4 years of full-time study. This education is ar-ranged as degree programmes. The entry requirement is a certificate from an upper secondary school or the matriculation certificate, a vocational qualifi-cation or corresponding foreign studies.

The requirement for Master's studies in polytechnics is a bachelors' level polytechnic degree and at least three years of work experience. The polytech-nic Master's, which is 60−90 study points and takes 1.5−2 years, are deter-mined on the basis of working life needs and implemented in line with the objectives of adult education.



The Ministry of Education confirms each degree programme, but the institu-tions themselves draw up the curricula. Each student has a personal study plan, which facilitates student guidance and the monitoring of progress in studies.

6.4 Improving horizontal and vertical permeability of education and training systems

Equal opportunities and the permeability of the education system are the cor-nerstones of Finnish education and training policy. in the 1970s and 1980s basic education was reformed so that pupils’ choices could not deter or re-strict their studies at upper secondary level. Permeability and equal oppor-tunities for further studies was also one of the underlying principles adopted when the vocational education and training system was reformed in the 1990s and 2000s. Today there are no dead-ends in the education system. in the late 1990s vocational upper secondary vocational education and training became equal to general upper secondary education so that the vocational path also gave eligibility to higher education.

6.4.1 Example of policy measure: increasing cooperation within upper secondary education and training

Efforts are made to improve the horizontal cooperation between institutions as well as different levels of education. cooperation within upper second-ary education and training, between vocational and general education insti-tutions, has been encouraged for several years. The legislation obligates the providers of general and vocational upper secondary education to cooperate regionally. also the current Government programme urges upper secondary education providers to increase cooperation and networking among them-selves. in some areas, however, the barriers between the two forms of educa-tion have been higher than expected.



The benefits of the cooperation are the increased opportunities of individu-alisation for students. students can, for example, complete several qualifica-tions concurrently. The students also have better opportunities to have stud-ies taken at other institutions recognised. cooperation between institutions further ensure an efficient use of resources and is seen to improve the quality of education and training.

according to an evaluation made in 2007, the cooperation is increasing. however, the results point to a passivity of the general education sector: few students in general upper secondary education take vocational courses and the initiator of the cooperation is in most cases a vocational institution. another shortcoming is the one-sidedness of the choices: most commonly studies in general education are taken by students of business and commerce. Further, small providers and providers in the countryside seem to have fewer opportunities for cooperation than big urban providers.

The biggest obstacles in the way of cooperation are the practical prob-lems of organisation as well as negative attitudes. also the fact that the cooperation has no set targets locally or regionally hamper the coop-eration. Finally, the financing structures do not encourage cooperation. The recommendations for developing the cooperation target the above-men-tioned obstacles. Thus increased financial, operational and intellectual re-sourcing has been suggested to encourage the cooperation. Further, the steer-ing systems of general and vocational upper secondary education and training should be harmonised nationally. other measures recommended are the development of the funding to support cooperation and harmonising iT-sys-tems and making pedagogical development a focus in the cooperation.



6.4.2 Example of policy measure: accessing the formal education systemthroughcompetence-basedqualifications

competence-based qualifications could also be characterised as a reform that has increased horizontal and vertical permeability. Thus a learner, usually an adult learner, can access formal qualifications by demonstrating that he or she possesses the required skills. These skills may have been acquired within the formal education system or non-formally and informally. The competence-based qualifications also give eligibility to higher education in most cases. an aspect to be developed in future is that all types of competence-based qualifications would give the same general eligibility to higher education.

6.5 Teachers and trainers

There have been no remarkable changes in VET teacher education since the latest reform in teacher education in the late 1990s. in the 2000s vocational teacher education has had to respond to the changed job description for teach-ers due to VET reforms in 2000 when focused and supervised on-the-job learning periods and skills demonstrations were introduced. The decentra-lised system in Finland, however, means that most of the measures take place at local level. For example the teacher training institutions decide themselves on the contents of their teacher training programmes, the regulations set in the legislation are on an extremely general level. continuing professional de-velopment (cPd) is seen as a right and a duty of every teacher. Work has re-cently been done to develop and ensure equal rights to cPd for all education staff. The main responsibility for cPd will in future be with the employer. state funding will also be strengthened as well as the evaluation of the qual-ity and effectiveness (see below 6.5.2).

The Government’s Plan for education and research 2007–2012 underlines the importance of resolving how the commitment and motivation to the teaching profession could be taken into account in the application to vocational teach-



er education. Further, in the education itself, interaction and communication with the world of work should be stressed. leadership is an issue that has emerged in the last few years. The Ministry of Education commissioned a survey of leaders in general education which was published in 2009. other foreseen measures to strengthen leadership in education and training include a revision of the certificate in educational ad-ministration issued by the Finnish national board of Education. The certifi-cate is one of the certificates or studies that give the formal qualification for a leadership post in education and training.

6.5.1 Example of policy measure: setting up of advisory council for developing CPD for teaching staff

The Ministry of Education appointed an advisory board for the development of continuing training for education personnel in January 2008. The council’s task is to anticipate the changes in the learning needs of education person-nel, to follow up on the status of continuing training and its development needs. its task is further to follow how cPd for education personnel is being developed in other countries, participate in the discussion on the competence needs and cPd of education personnel and R&d. other tasks include the initiation of studies and initiatives to improve working conditions, access to cPd and other tasks assigned to it by the Ministry.

The advisory board is broad-based: it comprises representatives from educa-tion administration, universities and polytechnics, labour market organisa-tions, teacher and student organisations, municipal organisations, research-ers in continuing training as well as regional and local administration. The advisory board has defined priorities for state-funded cPd for the years 2009–2011, quality assurance recommendations for state-funded cPd, the national objectives for the below-described osaaVa programme and worked on the lifelong learning paths for education personnel.



6.5.2 Example of policy measure: OSAAVA programme

in 2008 in accordance with the Government Programme and development plan for education and research for 2007−2012, the Ministry of Education appointed a working group to prepare the requirement to be set for educa-tion providers to ensure that their personnel receive regular continuing edu-cation to improve their professional competence. The working group came up with proposal and recommendations to ensure the availability of cPd to all education personnel through changes in legislation, increased funding and follow-up.

The working group proposed changes in legislation to obligate education providers to systematically ensure that the teaching personnel and personnel employed in the management and support functions of teaching participate sufficiently in continuing education organised for them. The intention is not to legislate on the quantitative obligation but that the education requirements would be dictated by professional competence and the demands of the job description. The proposed legislation is due to enter into force in January 2011.

The working group also proposed that a new fixed-term national osaaVa programme be set up. The programme would support the obligation of educa-tion providers to see to the continuing education of their education personnel and to ensure staff opportunities to improve their professional competence. The Ministry of Education has allocated an extra 8 million euro for cPd for education staff for the year 2010. The plan is to increase this funding in the following years. The programme is foreseen to continue until 2016. The national objectives for the programme have been drawn up by the advisory board for the development of continuing training for education personnel.

The objective of the osaaVa programme is to activate educational institu-tions at all education levels, except higher education, to develop the compe-tences of their staff. central are the development of educational staff, par-ticularly the competences of leadership in general education, teaching staff



55+ as well as the participation of persons who have not participated at all or infrequently in cPd, for example due to insufficient regional supply of edu-cation or long distances.

The programme focuses on developing individuals, working communities and exchanging good practices. in the development of individuals, the train-ing of leaders and mentoring for new teachers are prioritised. in the develop-ment of working communities the priority is on supporting networking of educational institutions to create models and action plans to support com-petence development. Working communities will also be supported when they organise cPd to promote quality assurance and the use of national qual-ity criteria, well-being at work and icT. in addition to regional networking among education providers, the programme encourages to include also other stakeholders, such as enterprises. national seminars will be organised to en-courage the exchange of good practice. The employers can also get support for assessing the competence needs of their staff as well as for drawing up cPd and development plans for their institutions. For monitoring the continuing education cPd will be included in the teacher data collection commissioned on a regular basis. also an evaluation of the continuing education of personnel in the education sector may be commis-sioned in 2014.



THEME 7: ENHANCING CREATIVITY AND INNOVATION

The national innovation system in Finland is an extensive entity comprising the producers and users of new information and knowledge and know-how and the various ways in which they interact. at the core of the innovation system are education, research and product development, and knowledge-intensive business and industry. Varied international cooperation is a feature running through the system.

Finnish science and technology system:

source: www.research.fi.

PARLIAMENT

Universities, Polytechnics and Public Research Institutes

Business Enterprises and Private Research Institutes

Academy of Finland Tekes Sitra

Advisory Board forSectoral Research

Ministry of Education

Ministry of Employment and the Economy

Other Ministeries

Research and Innovation Council Government

■



The producers of new knowledge include universities and polytechnics, re-search institutes and business enterprises. The users are mostly enterprises, private citizens, and decision-makers and authorities responsible for societal and economic development. The role of scientific information in societal and economic development has been constantly growing, which increases the significance of cooperation and networking both between the public and pri-vate sectors and within the sectors.

a key task for science, technology and innovation policies is to ensure a bal-anced development of the innovation system and strengthening cooperation within it. alongside this, increasingly important are also cooperation rela-tionships with other sectors, such as economic, industrial, labour, environ-mental and regional policies or social welfare and health care services. The prerequisites for knowledge-based development are created within different policy sectors.

The strategic aim for Finland is to secure sustainable and balanced social and economic development. achieving this aim entails a high employment rate, high productivity and good international competitiveness. The role of the science and Technology Policy council is to contribute to the realisation of the strategy by means of science, technology and innovation polices and partly through education policy.

The innovation system approach has also been gaining importance within regional development. The network of Finnish universities and polytechnics, technology centres, the centre of Expertise Programme, and other operations has developed innovation prerequisites in the regions to the extent that it is now possible to speak of the innovation systems of the regions and their de-velopment.

The globalisation of the economy and technology and the rapid international change arising from it currently exert strong influence on industrial struc-tures, business models, and competence demands on the work force and soci-



ety as a whole. Knowledge in its various forms has become a competed key factor for the development of societies. an efficient and efficacious national innovation system and regional systems are emerging as ever more crucial factors for economic growth and for social welfare.

The challenges in developing the Finnish innovation system relate to the pri-oritisation of activities, international and national profiling of research or-ganisations, and the development of selective, foresight-based decision-mak-ing. Finland has set an aim to raise the GdP share of R&d to four per cent by 2010. The justification for the increase in funding is that funds are focused to targets of primary relevance to the economy, other societal development and citizens’ welfare. it is for the same purpose that the existing resources are pooled into entities exceeding critical mass, as exemplified by the stra-tegic centres of excellence in science, technology and innovation to be soon launched. These represent a new kind of organised cooperation between busi-nesses, universities, research institutes and financing organisations, in which the parties commit themselves to anticipating the needs of society and busi-ness in time spans of five to ten years.

in its policy report Science, Technology, Innovation published in 2006, the science and Technology Policy council put forward a programme which combines the content-related, financial and structural development objectives of research and innovation. apart from those mentioned above, the develop-ment challenges are seen to include the quality of research; scientific and practical relevance; alleviation of fragmentation in research; internationalisa-tion of science, technology and innovation; and obstacles to and incentives for entrepreneurship. The development of action models and procedures highlights the importance of horizontal cooperation at all levels of the innovation system. in Finland, the foremost trends are integration of technological and social innovation; increase in interdisciplinary and cross-technological activities; and the emer-gence of the services sector, notably knowledge-intensive services, alongside manufacturing industry as a key factor for the welfare of society, the econo-my and citizens.



7.1 Creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship in VET

in Finland education is seen as an important part of the innovation system, which poses new challenges to educational institutions. The role of universi-ties in the innovation system has been clearer than the role of VET institu-tions. The innovation policy communication of the government to the parlia-ment defined the role of VET in the Finnish innovation system. it points out that the role of VET in the innovation system will be strengthened. in ac-cordance with the vocational college strategy (1.1.1), measures will be taken to enhance the service capability and structures of training providers. Work-based learning will be broadened and linked more closely to training and workplace development initiatives. The objective of the above strategies is to help training providers establish training and development services, which encourage innovative production and service ideas in businesses and work-places and create new business based on innovation.

cooperation between training providers and stakeholders in regional devel-opment and innovation activities will be reinforced. an overall reform will be carried out in vocational adult education (see 4.4), making the currently fragmented administration, financing, legislation and benefits more system-atic. This reform will cover every type of adult education at all levels.

later in the above-mentioned report the strategic tasks of VET as a part of innovation system are emphasised in providing relevant and high quality skills and in securing supply of skilled labour force for the needs of working life. The VET system shall strengthen the skills of developing own skills, work and working environment as well as support the innovation and de-velopment work on workplaces. Therefore the education providers should be large enough. They should have a capacity to give all VET services and development activities.



7.1.1 Example of policy measure: VET organisations as actors in innovation system (KIT project)

The project aims to build regionally and nationally strong mechanisms which help VET providers to join the development of innovation system at all edu-cational levels. The focus in this project is on the development of the skills of personnel in VET organisations. The role of VET in the innovation system will be strengthened inside the organisations, through their personnel and their skills.

The goals of the KiT project areTo create new mechanisms to develop innovations and to connect •vocational education providers into the national and regional innovation systemTo create new patterns for vocational education providers to •improve their own functions in the development of their personnel and competence To increase operational connections between upper secondary •vocational education, polytechnic education and general upper secondary educationTo build networks to facilitate the transfer and dissemination of •knowledge of new innovations and mechanisms between vocational education providers

KiT project is a nation-wide project, which has VET institutions and poly-technics as its target group. The project will last until the end of 2011.

7.2 Improving quality of teaching

compared with general education VET teachers participate slightly more in-service training. according to a teacher survey in 2008 ca. three quarters of VET teachers had received continuing training during 2007 and seven



percent of teachers had had a workplace practice period. The latter is a tool for teachers to keep up their knowledge on developments in workplaces of the relevant sector. The national goal is that every VET teacher could have a work practice period outside the school once every five years. The work practice periods for teachers are meant to be a tool for keeping up their skills and knowledge of the developments in working places. The aim to give this opportunity to a large number of VET teachers is especially suffering of the economic situation

one of the focuses of in-service training within VET is to develop the col-laborative culture of the educational institution. Emphasis is placed on the development of teacher cooperation and teacher community. The common knowledge is a key issue in teaching in the future. a new programme and additional funding has been set up to improve access and availability of con-tinuing professional training for education personnel. For more details see 6.5.2.

updating the skills of teachers is not the first priority for all education pro-viders, particularly in the present difficult economic situation. Further, the decentralisation of decision-making is both an advantage and a factor causing inequalities. The education providers themselves have right to decide how much they invest in their personnel. nationally there is one tool to encourage the education providers to invest in the staff. The performance-based financ-ing includes personnel development as one criterion for the financing.

7.3 Innovation-friendly institutions

The decentralisation of decision-making gives the education providers wide opportunities to be innovative in their activities. There are several educa-tion providers who have developed new tools for learning. learning elec-tronic platforms are quite commonly used by education providers who are big enough to invest resources in new developments. The Finnish experience



is that the decentralisation very often increases willingness to creative and innovative development work.

innovations in VET institutions mean new learning contents, new learning environments and new ways to manage and organise the activities. The main factors which contribute to innovations in VET are time resources, well-be-ing of the staff, skills, networks and partnerships.

7.4 Encouraging partnership

Partnerships between educational institutions and the world of work as well as other educational institutions regionally have been encouraged by the na-tional authorities in the last decade. in the development plan for education and research for 2007−2012 the aims for encouraging partnership are ex-pressed as follows:

Work-based learning will be further strengthened by developing on-the-job learning, vocational skills demonstrations and apprentice-ship training in vocational education and training. The incentives and financing arrangements for expanding work-based learning and strengthening the role of employers will be studied and piloted. Spe-cial attention will be paid to steering on-the-job learning and to qual-ity assurance. Vocational teachers’ vocational skills and competence and their knowledge of modern practices in the workplace will be secured, and the continuous updating of competence will be ensured through work periods, continuing training and development projects. Measures will be taken to develop the training of workplace instruc-tors and to secure a sufficient supply. Entrepreneurship studies will be expanded in connection with the reform of curricula for initial voca-tional education and training.



Efforts have been made, with varying degrees of success (for more details see 6.4.1) to improve the horizontal cooperation between different levels of education. The legislation obligates the providers of upper secondary educa-tion to cooperate regionally. cooperation would provide students with in-creased opportunities of individualisation and improve their opportunities to have studies recognised. it would further ensure an efficient use of resources and improve the quality of education and training.



THEME 8: FINANCING VET

8.1 Improvingefficiency,equity,levelsofVETfunding

in 2006 performance-based financing was introduced for vocational upper secondary education and training as an integrated part of the financing sys-tem for VET alongside the funding system based on unit prices. Part of the funding (2 per cent of the total amount) is allocated on the basis of perfor-mance. The idea behind performance-based funding is to encourage voca-tional education providers to promote students’ employment prospects and further education opportunities, as well as to increase the completion rate of degrees and thus decrease the number of dropouts. The indicators are em-ployment, transition to further studies at a higher level, reduction in the num-ber of drop-outs, rate of completion of education and training, competencies and personnel development. The factors to be measured have remained the same since 2006 but the indicators have been developed to better react to dif-ferent conditions and different areas and branches.

There has also been a performance-based financing system in adult further education VET. Performance-based financing covers at the most 3 per cent of the calculative state financing criteria. This financing is calculated separately for school-based and apprenticeship training and is directed to the education providers. The performance-based financing in continuing VET is based on the numbers of graduates. in the next stage performance-based financing in further vocational training will also include qualitative indicators.

8.2 Use of Lifelong Learning Programme funds

The leonardo da Vinci programme is in Finland an important tool for in-creasing the mobility of students, teachers and experts in VET. in 2009 alto-

■



gether 53 applications of 88 applications for leonardo da Vinci funding were approved. The number of applications was 10 per cent higher than in 2008. Grants were awarded to 1 635 persons amounting a total of 1.91 million euro. Within the action studies and comparative research six projects were granted out of 45 applications in 2009. see also section 3.2.

8.2.1 Example of policy measure: Gearing Adult Education Towards Occupational Mobility

aim of the European study Gearing Adult Education Towards Occupational Mobility was an assessment whether the available VET adult education sys-tem is organised in a way to support the (re-)qualification often linked to occupational job mobility, particularly for those obliged to a current em-ployment and having, therefore, limited time resources for engaging in (re-)qualification. if applicable, recommendations to better adapt the VET system to the specific needs of the mobile workforce will be derived. Thus, a focus will be laid on three economic sectors (construction, health, tourism) in eight European countries (austria, Finland, Germany, ireland, Romania, Poland, spain, switzerland).

in the study the conclusions on Finnish situation were as follows:

Finnish labour markets as well as the education sector values official certificates and diplomas. This has also an effect on the suitability of the available education measures for occupational mobility. Despite the fact that the employers value the practical knowhow, they also ex-pect the persons applying for a job to have an appropriate degree tak-en. Therefore, the transition to a new occupation tends to take a long time. Short-term training is mostly available only for unemployed. Short-term courses for the employed which could be attended in the evening time or on weekends are scarce.



in Finland employees have an opportunity to study leave if they have worked in the service of the same employer at least for one year. The study must ei-ther take the form of government sponsored training in Finland or abroad, or be a course of training organised by a trade union. The maximum length of the study leave depends on the length of the employment. study leave may be taken for a maximum period of two years over a period of five years. study leave is normally unpaid, but the employee will be entitled to annual holidays based on a maximum of 30 study leave days.

Even if the mature students have a study grant system, the level of public subsidies is quite modest and sometimes even too modest for a prospective student with a family or other financial obligations (e.g. a loan for the house). in many occasions, they simply can not afford to study.

another issue is the match between the skills needs and the training supply. The skills that one learns in vocational education are not always adequate for the needs of the companies. if the company is specified in some fairly small field of activity, there may not be education available for the company’s spe-cific needs. in those cases the know-how must be transferred inside the firm from more experienced workers to the newcomers. This causes some extra costs to the companies. The other solution is to design tailored employment training together with the employment authorities for potential new employ-ees. For one small company with a need of only few new employees this is not possible. but if there are many small firms with similar needs, this could be arranged.

although the arrangements of adult employment training were criticised in the study, for example that the classes were too big, the outcomes were gen-erally positive. The employment rate of the students was very good. both the employees and employers interviewed were satisfied with the information and guidance available. Most of the relevant information is easily accessed in the internet and there are special portals designed for career planning and vocational education information. The only criticism was that there were too few persons providing personal career counselling.



Today when second careers are becoming more common, one challenge for vocational adult education institutions is the heterogeneity of the students. There can be students with no previous post-compulsory education and stu-dents with a university or polytechnic degree in the same group. consequent-ly the learning skills and the different needs depending on the personal learn-ing history of the students could not be taken into account sufficiently.

despite some critical comments gained from the interviews, both employ-ers and – especially – the employees were mostly satisfied with the Finnish adult educations system with regard to offering new qualifications to the mo-bile workforce. The employers had also very positive opinions of the newly educated adult workers. They were regarded as very motivated, having life experience and general working life skills and usually a very good attitude towards work.

8.3 Use of other EU funds

The EsF funding has had an important role in the financing of VET in Fin-land. There are several innovative projects which have resulted in renewal of practices in ordinary VET system. They have assisted the long-term national development work in an essential way.

one of the obstacles for an effective use of the EsF funds is the laborious-ness of the project management including the application procedure. some of the EsF funds have not been used for this reason.



8.3.1 Example of policy measure: Skills demonstrations (see also 4.4.2)

skills demonstrations aim to improve and ensure the quality of vocational education. Representatives of the working community are involved in mak-ing sure that the vocational skills achieved by students match the require-ments of working life. alongside the skills demonstrations, teaching arrange-ments that support learning are developed, along with guidance and support services for students.

skills demonstrations were integrated into all vocational qualifications with-in the school-based education system in 2006. The student demonstrates how well he or she has achieved the objectives of the vocational studies and the vocational skills required in working life. skills demonstrations are given during the entire span of the degree programme and they are arranged in co-operation with workplaces and workplace advisers.

in upper secondary vocational education and training, however, skills dem-onstrations are only one of the means used to assess students. The students do not complete the entire qualification by means of skills demonstrations.

8.3.2 Example of policy measure: Oivallus project (cf. 4.2.1)

The Oivallus “inspiration, needs of skills of the learning networks in Finland in the future” is an anticipation project coordinated by the confederation of Finnish industries EK. The project is based on the vision that business is done in future increasingly in (global) networks consisting of different kind of actors. The success of learning networks is based on the synergy of differ-ent kinds of skills.

The main question is what kind of skill needs the networking economy deliv-ers. The aim is to increase the influence of the future views of enterprises and business life in educational policy and decision-making.



8.4 Improving VET governance

The decentralisation of educational decision-making has been the main aim in the national VET policy for the past two decades. by giving more deci-sion-making power to the local level more flexibility, effective activities and tighter contacts to the enterprises are sought. The education providers them-selves have the right to decide on their own organisation and cooperation models. The policy idea is effectiveness can be improved by gathering VET provision together as far as possible. The vocational college strategy (see 1.1.1) is the main tool in improving VET governance. bigger units with a broad programme supply can always use their staff and premises more flex-ibly than small education providers.



THEME 9: PROGRESS IN MODERNISING EUROPEAN VET SYSTEMS IN THE COPENHAGEN PROCESS AND PRIORITIES FOR FUTURE COOPERATION

9.1. Impact of European cooperation in VET on development of national VET policies

in Finland the internationalisation of the educational system and international research cooperation are seen as prerequisites for succeeding in global com-petition. international cooperation has been an important part of most Finn-ish VET institutions’ strive for excellence over the past more than ten years.

European cooperation is seen as a means to improve the performance and quality of vocational education and increase the appeal of vocational edu-cation and the comparability of vocational competence in Europe. accord-ing to the Government’s development plan for education and research for 2007–2012 the mobility of students, graduates and teachers within vocational education will be increased. in addition, the possibility for international peer learning for education organisers will be advanced. The objective is to in-crease annual mobility by 30 per cent during the period 2007–2012. special attention will be paid to teachers’ international work placements.

The most important initiatives and efforts made regarding the objectives of the copenhagen Process have been the introduction of the European credit Transfer system for Vocational Education and Training (EcVET) and the development of a national qualification framework. also quality assurance in vocational education and training has been strengthened by developing a national quality management recommendation for VET (for more details see 6.1.3) which is based on the common European Quality assurance Frame-work (cQaF).

■



9.1.1 Exampleofpolicymeasure:developingthenationalqualificationframework (NQF)

The starting point for the development of a nQF in Finland was the recom-mendation of the European Parliament and council of the European union on a European Qualifications Framework to promote lifelong learning. The work was further based on objectives to improve the functionality and clarity of the Finnish qualification system as defined in the development plan for education and research 2007–2012.

Ministry of Education appointed a committee in august 2008 to prepare a national qualifications framework describing qualifications and other learn-ing. in addition to the national education administration and relevant minis-tries, employer and employee organisations, other stakeholder groups, such as student organisations, were represented.

The task of the committee was to prepare a proposal on the national qualifi-cations framework and to define its levels in terms of knowledge, skills and competences; to determine the criteria according to which the qualifications are placed on the different levels of the national and European qualifications frameworks; and to propose which levels Finnish qualifications should be placed on in the frameworks. The committee’s task was also to propose how the national qualifications framework ought to be maintained, updated and developed, and to describe how the quality assurance will be arranged. other tasks of the committee included proposing whether the national framework could be extended to cover all learning in addition to formal qualifications as well as making a proposal on the necessary legislative reforms.

in august 2009 the committee’s proposal was published and the consultation phase was initiated. in the proposal vocational upper secondary qualifica-tions and further vocational qualifications are placed on level 4 and specialist vocational qualifications on level 5. a vocational qualification may be placed on a higher level if the qualification clearly has higher requirements than other qualifications of the same type.



The Ministry of Education will present the statutes relating to the national framework in the summer of 2010. The Ministry is further responsible for the drafting and presentation of the legislative amendments and for hearing the opinions of the other ministries and stakeholders in the drafting stage of the legislation. The legislative changes will be confirmed in the autumn of 2010.

The mapping of the development and updating needs of the framework that is done in cooperation with the stakeholders will be integrated with the ex-isting forms of stakeholder cooperation and the preparation of the qualifica-tions structure proposals. The expertise of education and qualifications com-mittees (see also 4.3) will be utilised in the mapping of the development and updating needs.

9.1.2 Example of policy measure: introduction of ECVET

Work on the introduction of EcVET in Finland has been going on for several years. The importance of EcVET is being emphasised in the current devel-opment plan for education and research. EcVET is considered significant in supporting the national aim of increasing the annual mobility by 30 per cent during the period 2007−2012.

adopting the EcVET system in Finland is facilitated by the structure of the national qualification requirements. The learning outcomes in the require-ments are described as knowledge, skills and competences. The EcVET sys-tem has further been tested in Finland in several FinEcVET projects (for more information see 3.1).

The importance of the introduction of EcVET is also reflected in the funding that has been allocated to in-service training of teaching staff. For example in 2010 some 25 per cent of the total funding for state-funded in-service train-ing will be targeted at training related to EcVET. Training related to quality assurance and EQaRF are also prioritised.



9.2 Governance, cooperation and ownership of the different actors in the Copenhagen process at European level

in Finland an active and positive approach has been taken regarding interna-tional cooperation (see also 3.1). international cooperation is seen as a key to improving the quality of VET and its correspondence with the needs of the labour market.

in quality assurance the EnQa-VET network in Finland is coordinated by the Finnish national board of Education (FnbE). The FnbE is also the quality assurance national reference point (QanRP). The task of the national reference point is to convey information to the EnQa-VET network on na-tional progress regarding quality assurance and management. another task is to inform, together with the Ministry of Education, the various stakeholders in VET about the activities of the European network as well as the common priorities. Finally, the reference point supports the implementation of these common priorities in Finland, for example by proposing initiatives to further develop the common quality assurance framework nationally. To develop and to learn from good practices in other countries, the FnbE cooperates with the other national reference points.

study visits are well-known and popular in Finland, so that the number of applicants exceeds the number of places remarkably. The number of study visits organised in Finland varies between six to seven visits per year. The number of Finnish participants has ranged between 43 and 55 in the last few years.

several peer learning activities have been organised in Finland, for example on teachers and cooperation with the world of work as well as on student as-sessment. however, the sustainability and dissemination of the results of the Plas leave plenty of room for development. To date, it seems that the results remain the benefit of the participants only.



9.3 External dimension of European cooperation in VET

one of the national priorities in internationalising education and training is to increase cooperation in vocational education and training also with coun-tries outside the European union. cooperation in education and training with countries outside Europe has traditionally had two dimensions in Finland. nordic collaboration started as early as 1971. Today the nordplus programme of the nordic council of Ministers also encompasses Russia and the baltic countries. Finland’s neighbouring area cooperation with Russia dates back to 1992.

The FnbE administers the bilateral cooperation with the neighbouring areas mainly focusing on the north-western areas of the Russian Federation, espe-cially the Murmansk Region, the Republic of Karelia and the region and city of st Petersburg. This cooperation is based on an agreement between Fin-land and Russia and governed by Finland’s strategy for cooperation with the neighbouring areas from 2004. The FnbE also manages the Finland-Russia cooperation Programme that aims at increasing collaboration between the educational institutions and authorities in Finland and the Federation of Rus-sia.

The cooperation with Russia includes a large-scale network project that start-ed in 2001. The activities focus on the st Petersburg area. The main activity is to organise work-based learning periods in which also teaching staff is involved.

in the last decade new areas of cooperation have emerged, the most notable of these is cooperation with asian countries. state funding is used to support particularly cooperation with countries where the Finnish enterprises have interests. cooperation with partners in china has to an extent established itself as a part of the activities of VET institutions. The chinese partners are universities, VET institutions and enterprises. in 2009 cooperation networks with india has been prepared (see below).



in addition to these, networks related to voluntary work and work with devel-oping countries are being established. The focus is particularly on countries in africa, including Tanzania, Zambia, Kenya, Mozambique and namibia.

in future, the aim is to set up networks and projects also with the us and canada. some explorative actions have already been carried out.

Example of initiative: india network in vocational education and trainingThe network’s objective is to respond to the competence needs of the labour market, to promote the cooperation between training and the enterprises to increase the visibility of Finnish products and services. This network also answers to the need to move away from limited partnerships towards large-scale networking. This scale of networking also makes it possible to utilise regional and national cooperation and support.

The more specific objectives for the institutions involved include the pro-fessional development of teaching staff, embedding internationalisation and multiculturalism into the operations of the participants, education for the students and staff, developing the contents of training programmes as well as increasing student and expert mobility.

The network comprises 13 vocational education and training institutions to-gether with national level actors and networks. The network participants rep-resent more than 60 per cent of all the students involved in upper secondary vocational education in Finland.

The india network was established as an affiliate network of the asia coop-eration network in 2008. by now the network has set up a network strategy and an action plan for 2010–2012, simultaneously building up contacts with prestigious indian education providers and Finnish and multinational compa-nies in india, such as Microsoft, Wipro, ashley alteams, Vacon, stera, nokia and Qvantel. The action plan of the india cooperation contains the following activities:



1–4-month on-the-job learning periods in india for students•1–2-month periods for teachers in enterprises•Training of indian partners (on-the-job-learning, assessment and •guidance)cooperation to develop education and training, e.g. teacher •exchange with indian institutions, developing teaching methods,inviting indian experts to Finland•

Foreseen challenges facing the cooperation are related to organisational as-pects, such as resourcing, widening the range of activity to “unknown areas”, responsibilities, follow-up and evaluation. other challenges comprise atti-tudes and prejudices; interactivity and commitment of the partners; financing for expansion and continuation of activities and dissemination and sustain-ability of results.



10 AUTHORS, BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES AND SOURCES

10.1 Authors

dr Kristiina Volmari, senior adviser, Finnish national board of EducationMr Matti Kyrö, counsellor of Education, Finnish national board of EducationMr Jaakko Turpeinen, assistant, Finnish national board of Education

10.2 Sources, references and websites

FNBE 2006. national evaluation data based on vocational skills demonstra-tions. Koppi Project 2002−2007.

FNBE 2008. yhteiseen ymmärrykseen tasa-arvosta. [achieving consensus on gender equality].

FNBE 2009. Education, training and demand for labour in Finland by 2020. available athttps://www.oph.fi/instancedata/prime_product_julkaisu/oph/embeds/110071_Education_training_and_demand_for_labour_in_Finland_by_2020.pdf

Foredata Oy 2009. selvitys ammatillisten osaamistarpeiden ennakointimal-leista. [Report on anticipation models of vocational skills needs].

Green Paper on Learning Mobility. Contribution by CIMO, Centre for International Mobility, Finland, 12/2009. available at http://www.cimo.fi/dman/document.phx/~public/organisaatio/green-paper-on-learning-mobili-ty-ciMo.pdf?folderid=~public%2Forganisaatio&cmd=download

■



Ministry of Education 2006. ammattiopistostrategia – koulutuksen järjestäjäverkon kokoamisen vauhdittaminen. [Vocational college strategy].

Ministry of Education 2008. ammatillisesti suuntautuneen aikuiskoulutuk-sen kokonaisuudistus aKKu. [General reform of adult education].

Ministry of Education 2008. Matkalla osallisuuteen. osallistuva oppilas – yhteisöllinen koulu -kehittämishankkeen vaikuttavuuden arviointi. Ministry of Education publications 2008:8. [Evaluation of the “Participating pupil – co-active school” development programme].

Ministry of Education 2008. Education and Research 2007−2012. Develop-ment Plan. Ministry of Education publications 2008:10. available at http://www.minedu.fi/export/sites/default/oPM/Julkaisut/2008/liitteet/opm11.pdf?lang=fi

Ministry of Education 2009. oppisopimuskoulutuksen yleinen tila sekä sen laadun ja vaikuttavuuden kehittäminen. Reports of the Ministry of Education 2009:1. [apprenticeship training and development of its quality and effec-tiveness].

Ministry of Education 2009. selvitys koulutus- ja osaamistarpeiden kehit-tymisestä sekä ennakoinnin tilasta ja kehittämistarpeista 2008. Reports of the Ministry of Education 2009:4. [Report on the development of educational needs and state of anticipation and development needs].

Ministry of Education 2009. Työssäoppimisen lumo. Tiivistelmä tois-en asteen ammatillisen sekä ammatillisen korkea-asteen koulutuksen ja työelämän yhteistyön metatutkimuksesta. Ministry of Education publications 2009:10. [summary of research regarding cooperation of VET and polytech-nic education with the world of work].



Ministry of Education 2009. opetusministeriön maahanmuuttopoliittiset linjaukset 2009. Ministry of Education publications 2009:48. [immigration policy principles of the Ministry of Education 2009]

Ministry of Education 2009. oppisopimuskoulutus Euroopassa – hyviä käytäntöjä etsimässä. Ministry of Education publications 2009:11. [appren-ticeship training in Europe – in search of good practices].

Ministry of Education 2009. noste-ohjelma – aikuiskoulutuksen harppaus? Ministry of Education publications 2009:35. [noste programme – a leap for-ward in adult education?]

Ministry of Education 2009. noste-ohjelman vuosiraportti 2008. Ministry of Education publications 2009:36. [noste programme. annual report 2008].

Ministry of Employment and the Economy 2009: Government’s commu-nication on Finland’s national innovation strategy to the parliament, helsinki 2009. available athttp://www.tem.fi/files/21010/national_innovation_strategy_March_2009.pdf

Ministry of Finance 2009. Government mid-term policy review. available at http://www.vn.fi/tiedostot/julkinen/pdf/2009/Politiikkariihi_0209/halli-tuksen_politiikkariihen_kannanotto_09en.pdf

Ministry of Social Affairs and Health 2008. hallituksen tasa-arvo-ohjel-ma 2008–2011. Ministry of social affairs and health publications 2008:21. [Government’s action Plan for Gender Equality 2008-2011]. available at http://www.oph.fi/instancedata/prime_product_julkaisu/oph/embeds/118748_hallituksen_tasa_arvo_ohjelma_2008_2011_fi.pdf

european policy for vocational education and training … · european policy for vocational...

Documents