UNEVOC - C A N A D A: Networking
UNEVOC

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UNEVOC - C A N A D A
Networking

Call to Participate

Dear Colleagues:
Dramatic technological, sociotechnical and economic changes have altered job content and skill requirements in the workplace. Colin Power, the Assistant Director General for Education of UNESCO recently noted that the world of work has changed dramatically over the past decade. For some people it has become technologically complex, demanding highly sophisticated work skills. For others, as a result of unemployment, it has denied them the satisfaction that comes from the challenge of work, and the sense of achievement gained therefrom. These changes require constant adjustments to technical and vocational education to ensure world class standards, accessibility, mobility and accountability. To achieve these changes new knowledge on best practices must be made widely accessible to all stakeholders through information exchange, networking and international co-operation.

UNESCO has recognised this reality in a number of different ways. One of these has been to expand and develop its role in the area of technical and vocational education. In 1992 UNESCO established an International Project on Technical and Vocational Education (UNEVOC) dedicated to developing and improving technical and vocational education in UNESCO's Member States. Its main focus is on information exchange, networking and international co-operation. Each UNESCO Member States was invited to nominate an institution to become a UNEVOC Centre to act as a focal point for the UNEVOC international network. The responsibilities of the UNEVOC Centres include: developing and leading a national network; ensuring information flow to and from UNESCO and other UNEVOC Centres; ensuring that expertise is shared among UNEVOC Network members; providing research as requested by the UNESCO Secretariat; contributing to UNESCO publications and data bases. Currently, there are 111 UNEVOC Centres and 49 UNEVOC Associate Centres in the UNEVOC network.

Canada joined UNEVOC network in April 1998. This Canadian initiative was led by a consortium formed under the leadership of Chris Chinien from the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba. The Canadian UNEVOC consortium includes a mix of representatives from business and industry, public school systems, community colleges, universities, government agencies, non-profit sector, as well as some international collaborators. The Canada UNEVOC Centre will play an advocacy role for technical and vocational education and provide opportunities for Canadians to participate in the development and improvement of technical and vocational education nationally and internationally. The centre will also enable Canada to assume leadership in the field. The Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba is the home for UNEVOC - Canada.

If you are interested in participating in this networking initiative, kindly complete and return the attached form.

Chris Chinien, Ph.D.
Director, UNEVOC-Canada
Faculty of Education
University of Manitoba
Canada
Chinien@cc.umanitoba.ca

Our Mission

To provide leadership to improve technical and vocational education through research and development, scholarship, information exchange, networking and international collaboration.

The Benefits of Participation

By becoming a contributing partner of the UNEVOC - Canada you will have the opportunity to:

  • participate in the research and networking activities;
  • have quick access to information on best practices technical and vocational education (TVE);
  • have access to databases of research findings and researchers in TVE;
  • provide input in the formulation of policies for TVE;
  • play an advocacy role for TVE.
Strategic Goals

Linking key actors in technical and vocational education in a world wide network to encourage international exchange of ideas, experiences and studies on policy issues:

  • Raising the status of TVE world wide;
  • Promoting lifelong and recurrent TVE;
  • Orientation of education toward the world of work;
  • Promote TVE for rural development;
  • Build partnerships between TVE and business and industry.
  • Identify and promote innovation and successful practices leading to improved quality of TVE.
Strengthening of research and development capabilities in technical and vocational education.
  • Participate in and support international development initiatives for restructuring TVE.
  • Assist in developing a critical mass of researchers in TVE;
  • promote research and development initiatives in TVE;
  • Promote research and development initiatives focussed on equal access to girls and women to TVE;
  • Promote research and development initiatives focussed on equal access of the aboriginal population to TVE;
  • Develop and assess technical and vocational teacher preparation models;
  • Contribute to the development of national and international TVE policies and systems;
  • Develop and assess innovative methods of curriculum development.
  • Develop training initiatives to address youth unemployment.
Facilitating access to data bases and documentation
  • Enhance UNESCO's clearing house in TVE;
  • Strengthen co-operation in the UNEVOC network;
  • Improve the flow of information;
  • Share experiences, problem solving ideas and research results;
  • Improve availability and reduce access time for important research findings;
  • Enhance international co-operation.
  • Generate a compendium of success stories in TVE;
Areas of Interest of UNEVOC-Canada Members in Technical and Vocational Education.

The development of quality, effective and responsive technical and vocational education hinges on properly addressed policy and delivery issues. Following are the areas of primary interest of UNEVOC-Canada members in TVE, namely: (1) perception of vocational education; (2) access; (3 ) equity; (4) curriculum; (5) teacher qualification and preparation; (6) institutional excellence and elements of program quality; (7) school-to-work transition; (8) articulation; (9); leadership; (10) partnership in skill development; (11) co-operatively structured on the job training; (12) outcome and self-based instruction; (13) entrepreneurship; (14) youth unemployment, and (15) exemplary programs. (16) the concept of human capital where training is viewed as an investment in support of efforts to sustain a competitive advantage; (17) learning without distance--using technology to remove distance and create interactivity to improve performance; (18) the relationship between learning and performance; (19) the relationship between learning and occupational health and safety; (20) improving human performance by means of non-training solutions; (21) work organisation requirements for lasting training results; (22) the assessment of training effectiveness; (23) instructional design for increasing interactivity and response time in learning systems; (24) models of training design to ensure equity and learning; (25) the design and development of effective job aids; (26) integrating and maintaining learning at the workplace; (27) just-in-time learning; (28) workplace literacy; (29) career counselling and development, and (30) the training of job threatened and dislocated workers.

PARTNERSHIP DESCRIPTION

The of UNEVOC-Canada membership includes a mix of individual from secondary schools, community colleges, universities, business and industry, labour organisations, professional associations as well as many national and international collaborators.

Please fill out our online registration form to become a memeber of the UNEVOC Canada netwrok.



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