Thematic sessions were held as a part of "Building Future Ready Vocational Education and Training System: Learning Türkiye's Experience in Vocational Education and Training Reform" summit which was organized in cooperation between OECD and the Europe Education Fund (ETF) at the OECD İstanbul OECD Center.

 

İstanbul Provincial Education Director Levent Yazıcı made a speech at the "Innovation in Vocational Education and Training" session moderated by ETF's Lida Kita and he stated that the place of private sector increased in vocational education after state institutions and public sector limited their actions in production and education institutions only deal with the education of students.

 

Stating that all instruments and environment required for bringing production and education cycle together must be established, Yazıcı said that the Ministry of National Education reinforced its existing tie with the private sector within this framework and it developed school programs after making analysis about the needs of the sector. The Ministry also updated its school mentality and training programs.

 

Yazıcı also mentioned inspiring developments in vocational education and went on to say that, "Actually, education is a relatively conservative institution and it reflects its own culture to the future generations although it has to initiate the change and transformation. It is not easy to design such a structure that includes principles that contradict each other. I think it is the key to change in vocational education. Public and private sector should work together and this is why we transform vocational high schools. It is important to build the future together."

 

Coşkunöz Education Foundation Director General Bige Tınmazsoy Susuzlu stated that stakeholders failed to form a platform and conducted their own studies about innovation which are mostly wasted.

 

Susuzlu said, "Clearly we will make multi-layered production in the future. It is a very expensive technology. Students like it very much and they are closer to innovation than us. We cooperated with universities in order to prepare the education program about multi-layered production. We have to finish it within 20 months but multi-layered production and education programs change so rapidly. In this light, different institutions and offices should form a platform for innovation rather than conducting their own studies."

 

Azerbaijani Ministry of National Education Vocational Education State Agency Advisor Algul Zülfügarova Musayeva stated that they have organized short term vocational training programs for every age and gender upon the demand of the private sector.

 

Musayeva stressed that these programs cannot replace long and well organized training programs but they were useful for responding to the needs of the private sector in the short run. He added that more than 800 people have attended 32 different vocational training programs.

  

Georgia Skills Agency International Reinforcement Team Leader Nino Revishvili said that applied training is the skill of 21st century.

 

Stressing the importance of learning by working, Revishvili said that new learning skills are developed in the natural environment and the private sector must increase its role in vocational education.

 

Revishvili noted that the Georgian Ministry of National Education has founded a new agency in order to reform vocational and technical education and establish ties between the industry and students.

 

Meanwhile, Theresa Niederle from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Ankara Office mentioned the activities of the bank about education and professional development of students.

 

"Flexibility and inclusivity in vocational education and training" and "Transformation in vocational education and training" were also among the other topics discussed during the sessions.