Romanian VET following ECVET recommendation

National Centre for TVET Development Romania

Our responsibilities

To assure both the relevance of the TVET developments in the perspective of the strategic, economic and social needs of the Romanian economy and society and the correlation between national approaches and European and international measures

To contribute to the methodological developments referring to: the educational supply planning, the development of schools’ institutional capacity, the organization and development of the teaching-learning process, the students’ training examination and certification and the TVET quality assurance

To promote social partnership for TVET development

Our responsibilities

Through formal education and training, technical and vocational education (VET), medium - and long-term oriented, part of ongoing training pathways

Through apprenticeship at the workplace, short-term oriented, depending on the needs of employers

Strategic Approach of the Initial Training through TVET

to serve the interests of young people and adults from the perspective of lifelong learning by increasing the attractivenessto respond and, especially, to anticipate the needs and changes on the labor marketto provide relevant qualifications for the labor marketto integrate academic and vocational trainingto allow flexible entry and exit in and from the systemto enable a quality trainingto integrate school learning with workplace learningto provide professional skills that enable mobility and labor market flexibilityto provide equal opportunities for all learners, including those with SEN

The current architectural context of TVET

European and National Tools:National Law of EducationNational Qualifications Framework correlated with the European Qualifications FrameworkThe European Credit system for Vocational Education and Training (ECVET)European Reference Framework for Quality Assurance in Vocational Education and TrainingEUROPASS documents2020 EU Strategy2010 Bruges Communicate

What were the steps we take for ECVET

In Romania, a consistent and comprehensive strategy for initial VET has been implemented through PHARE and then European Social Fund projects. It covers the following aspects: curriculum reform starting from learning outcomes-based qualifications; professional development of teachers, trainers, institutional leaders and social partners in order to increase VET responsiveness to labour market needs and also to develop student-centred learning;competency-based assessment and the semi-externalisation of final examinations;participation of social partners in the examination commissions;mechanisms, procedures and instruments for quality assurance;accreditation of VET providers, external validation and monitoring of VET providers self-evaluation reports;correlation of VET provision with labour market needs through strategic forecasts and planning instruments implemented through partnerships.

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What were the steps we take for ECVET

2For the IVET our system already experienced elaborating and piloting widespread application of the ECVET as being partner in other European projects aiming to generate a common vocational culture based on ECVET process and quality assurance instruments.

The most relevant experiences are two projects:

RECOMFOR – establishing a network for facilitating mobility in terms of ECVET recommendation and quality assurance tools, acting with partners from different EU countries.

OPIR – promoting mobility for two qualification: stylist hairdresser and automation technician and testing ECVET instruments

What were the steps we take for ECVET

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According to the Law of Education

EQF Recommendation – a reference document for Romanian NQFNational Qualifications AutorityNQF based on stakeholders implicationPartnership structuresOccupational analisys (to present data on the skills, knowledge and attitudes required by people working in an occupation) Occupational standards (include general units, key units and specific units)Qualifications development - training standards (a document that describes learning outcomes for a qualification)

What were the steps we take for ECVET

4Designing methodologies and regulations that are supporting ECVET implementation:

Example:

CRIPT (European Social Fund project) – one of the results is a methodology for revision the qualifications in terms of ECVET recommendations.

VET Qualifications

VET training programs lead to obtaining academic and professional qualifications

Professional qualifications Learning-basedThey are described by Units of Competences (Learning units); a unit of competences consists from a coherent set o competences/ learning outcomesThey lay the accent on key competences trainingA professional qualification can be associated with one or more occupationsA professional qualification satisfies the possibility of a long termEnsure the premises of the progress in careerThey can provide Continuous Professional Training

Qualifications design - IVET

TRAINING STANDARD - document describing the units of LO composing a qualification

Content of TS:The units – a coherent set of learning outcomesThe level of qualificationNo of credit pointsThe learning outcomesThe performance criteriaThe requirements for assessment

TRAINING PROGRAM – modular approachModules are created on the basis on units of LO

1 module may consists in 1 or 2 units

The qualifications’ structure in IVET

Training Domain

« commerce »

Training Domain

“tourism”

Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 Q 1 Q 2 Q 3

Key Units of LO

General Units of vocational LO

General Units of vocational LO

Specialized

Units of

vocational LO

Specialized

Units of

vocational LO

Specialized

Units of

vocational LO

Specialized

Units of

vocational LO

Specialized

Units of

vocational LO

Specialized

Units of

vocational LO

Certification in TVET

Certificate of professional qualification (national) levels 1, 2, 3 and 3+ (equivalently 2, 3, 4 and 5 in EQF)

all competence units have to been demonstratedentitles practicing one or more occupationsCertification Authority: Ministry of Education, Research, Youth and Sports

Accumulation and Transfer Credits

Provides career development and occupational mobility in the training routes in the lifelong learning perspectiveIVET, CVT and HE should be based on systems compatible or at least transparent of credits allocation and transferRecognition / transferability of credits between different learning systems are subject of:

Ensuring consensus among all stakeholders

Common principles of quality assurance in the different learning systems

Quality assurance in VET

Professional training standards and curriculum Accreditation of training providersSelf-assessment of training providersSchool inspections of training providers as external monitoring and external evaluationSemi-outsourced national examinations: the participation of employers in the certification exam committeesMonitor quality assurance during the certification exams

Basics of TVET curriculum

Curriculum developed on the basis of training standardsModular CurriculumCurriculum in local development for adaptation to local and regional qualifications relevant to the labor marketKey skills units to develop employability and interpersonal skillsTeaching methods based on student-centered learningTeaching methods Adapted to SEN studentsCompetency-based assessment and certification

Instead of conclusions……

Qualifications are described using a learning outcomes approach.Qualifications are structured in units of learning outcomes. Qualification system uses national credit points.Recognition of non-formal and informal learning is possible, but still not yet for IVET.Recognition of periods of VET spent abroad is possible.Flexible individual learning pathways are available.Portability of learning outcomes within the country is possible.Recognition of parts of VET qualifications from other systems, qualifications or institutions is possible.Possibility for credit transfer across qualification systems and between qualifications exists.