Status and Perspective of Sri-Lanka in Accreditation and Certification

1. VISION AND MISSION OF DEPARTMENT OF TECHNICAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING VISION Department of Technical Education and Training to be a demand driven, cost efficient center of excellence in creating world class quality technically competent personal through the programmes and activities of the Technical College network meeting with the changing MISSION To strive to emerge as a forefront sustainable organization in managing training programs of quality and relevance promoting and facilitating continuous learning, work ethics and values and working in partnership with industry, business and other organizations through various strategies to cater to changing socio economic 2. PRESENT STATUS OF TECHNICAL AND VOCATIONAL EDUCATION Technical and Vocational Education in Sri Lanka dates back to 1893 with the establishment of Technical College, Maradana and since then several other state sector and private sector training providers have been added at different times. The main training providers in the public sector at present are Department of Technical Education and Training (36 Colleges), National Apprentice and Industrial Training Authority (87) Centers), Vocational Training Authority of Sri Lanka (198 Centers), National Youth Services Council (26 centers) and Sri Lanka Institute of Advanced Technical Education (11 Institutes). These institutes conduct Courses at Certificate, Diploma and Higher Diploma levels in sectors such as Agriculture, Mechanical Technologies, Building and Construction, Computer Technology, Electrical and Electronics, Food and Beverages, Gem and Jewellery etc. Total number of students enrolled in these institutes at present is around 54000. There are a large number of small vocational and technical education institutes operated by the private sector and non-governmental organizations. According to records, approximately 750 such training institutes had been registered with the Tertiary and Vocational Education Commission in 2003. However, it is estimated that over 4000 private and NGO institutions are operating in Sri Lanka at present. The courses that are offered in public sector and private sector training institutes have been developed mostly in a non-systematic manner and however they continue to provide useful knowledge and technical skills for employment in the industrial sector. The large majority of these courses have not been developed after carefully identifying the skills standards and competencies needed for a particular employment and therefore, the courses are not properly focused for systematic knowledge and skills development. The present training system does not have effective mechanisms for quality assurance and as a result, the qualities of trainees vary widely across institutes. 3. STATUS OF NATIONAL ACCREDITATION SYSTEM IN SRI LANKA AND ITS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTION 3.1 Need for a Unified System Less-systematic development of Vocational and Technical Education has given rise to very large number of courses offered by different institutes overlapping their content in knowledge and skills. The industry has little knowledge of the skills levels of trainees who complete training in different institutes and also the trainees are uncertain of the courses that they want to choose. The cost of operating non-systematic training sector has increased by large margins in the recent past without comparable improvements in relevance and quality. This scenario called for the establishment of a unified system of vocational and technical education based on clearly identified skills standards for different levels of employment in industry sectors; such courses will standardize the training, especially in the public sector and will lead to awarding of qualifications according to unified system. 3.2 Legal Mandate of the Commission for Accreditation The Tertiary and Vocational Education Commission (TVEC) is vested with the statutory powers, under the Tertiary and Vocational Education Act No of 1990 as amended by the Tertiary and Vocational Education (Amendment) Act No 50 of 1999, to establish and maintain systems for quality assurance in tertiary education and vocational training. This responsibility is performed through registration of training institutes and accreditation of training courses conducted by the registered training institutes. 3.3 Registration of Training Institutes Registration is required as the first step towards quality assurance through accreditation. Training institutes are provided with provisional/regular registration in terms of the procedure laid down in the Government Gazette Extraordinary No 887/8 of Seventh September 1995. Training institutes must be registered before they seek accreditation of courses. The Commission has established a system for registration of training institutes and the accreditation system will be a separate process, which requires all training institutions who wish to run training courses/programs to apply to the TVEC for accreditation of their training courses/ programs. Categories of Courses Accreditation NO Accreditation Categories Based on the TVEC Accreditation Policy Relevant TVEC Accreditation Standard A Courses that are designed to meet the competencies of an Endorsed National skill Standard leading to a National Certificate or Diploma. NSCA B Courses that are designed to meet the competencies of one or more unites from an Endorsed Skill Standard in a single learning area or range of learning areas to a Record of achievement. NSCA C Courses that are designed to meet the competencies of industry requirements or stipulated as per training providers curriculum, leading to a Training Provider¡¯s own Certificate. SCA (Non national) D Courses that satisfy requirements of the National Skill Standards in full, an process and accreditation from a National or International accreditation body acceptable to the TVEC. NSCA NSCA ? National Standard for Course Accreditation based on National Skill Standards SCA ? Standard for Course Accreditation - for Courses not based on National Skill Standards. 4. Accreditation of Courses The most important step towards quality assurance is the accreditation of individual training courses. Registration with the TVEC will not automatically give a training institution the right to conduct specific training programs/courses. The Commission accredits only those courses that meet the minimum requirements identified in the relevant Standard for Course Accreditation approved by the Commission. All other training courses should be upgraded so as to meet the requirements specified in the relevant Standard for Course Accreditation within a specified time in order to obtain recognition by the TVEC. Accreditation of a particular training course requires a registered training institute to maintain appropriate inputs/resources relevant to the course. Training institutes are accordingly required to maintain minimum standards relating to such key inputs/resources in order to qualify for accreditation. These standards relate to requirements in: Course curriculum Course duration Minimum Training Facilities Classroom & Workshop Tools, equipment & material Minimum Trainer qualifications Trainer-Trainee Ratio Trainee Assessments Minimum Entry Qualifications of Trainees. The standards for Course Accreditation, determined and publishes by the Commission, set the minimum standards relating to above requirements. They vary across the courses. The assessors and the Directorate of the Commission shall evaluate the courses applying for accreditation against the relevant Standard for Course Accreditation (NSCA/SCA) as applicable. The assessment of the contents and standards of courses against the above key aspects is aimed ensuring: Relevance of the curriculum to the occupational skill standards and the needs of the industry. Quality of training. That the level of the certificate awarded is appropriate to the skill levels acquired by course participants on completion of each course. 5. Benefits of Accreditation Accreditation of a course by the TEVC Provides national recognition Provides clarity and confidence in the skill levels achieved Ensures uniformity in the qualifications awarded by different training providers Helps better marketing of training courses/programs 6. National Vocational Qualification The objective in establishing a single National Framework for technical and vocational qualification on Sri Lanka is to develop an internationally competitive workforce by improving the quality and relevance of present skills training programs; thereby, also addressing issues of present skills mismatch and youth unemployment. N.V.Q. Framework The objective in establishing a single National Framework for technical and vocational qualification on Sri Lanka is to develop an internationally competitive workforce by improving the quality and relevance of present skills training programs; thereby, also addressing issues of present skills mismatch and youth unemployment. Hon. Minister of Skills Development Vocational and Technical Education in Sri Lanka has issued a Executive Order for the Institutionalization of a Unified National System of Skills Development, Vocational and Technical Education for Sri Lanka and it shall become effective as of 1st September 2004 . The NVQ framework identifies seven (7) levels commencing at skills to carry out process that are limited in range at level 1 to knowledge and skills to carry out process that require scholastic and basic research skills across a major discipline, i.e.; degree equivalent qualification, at level 7. Levels 1 to 4 are assigned to National Certificates, 5 and 6 for Diploma and 7 for degree equivalent qualification.