A different approach: Technical-Vocational Education and Training

School leavers need better information about what TVET education entails 

Artisans are in short supply across the world, but in South Africa, enrolling in a Technical-Vocational Education and Training (TVET) college has historically been seen as a last resort. Young people need to better understand the value of a technical education.

Kagiso Trust hosted a critically important Twitter Space Conversation to show that TVET training is a vehicle for employment and the socioeconomic upliftment of our communities. TVET colleges offer a wide range of vocational skills, which could decrease the unemployment numbers in the country, while equipping learners with skills for immediate employment or entrepreneurship. 

The Twitter conversation was moderated by Khaya Sithole, who said there are many options available for school leavers, but the information surrounding TVET colleges is quite opaque, which means that many school leavers miss out on vital opportunities — a situation that may result in career mismatches for them.

Zamokuhle Sam Zungu, Deputy Director-General responsible for the TVET sector at the Department of Higher Education and Training, was asked for a brief summary of what the department supervises. He said that there are 26 universities and about 50 TVET colleges with over 300 campuses spread throughout the country; there are also several Community Education and Training colleges (CET colleges) with a wide range of programmes, and 21 Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs). 

In the TVET education sector, there are programmes that are pitched from NQF (National Qualifications Framework) Level 2 up to Level 4, called National Certificate Vocational, which gives grade 9 learners a vocational alternative to the academic grades 10-12 by offering industry-focused training. Then there is a wide range of specialised courses, from engineering to business studies, and the N1 to N6 qualification of Report 191 (18 months of theoretical studies at colleges, and 18 months of relevant practical application in workplaces). There are also occupational training programmes and skills, which are in high demand. 

Inverted pyramid

Zungu said that there is an “inverted pyramid” of school leavers wishing to get into universities instead of TVET colleges; the tip of the pyramid is those school leavers who wish to enrol at TVET colleges. The National Development Programme goal is to have 2.5 million students in TVET colleges by 2030 — at the moment there are just above half a million students — without compromising the quality of the programmes offered there.

“The majority of South Africans have a strong belief that you have to go to university to have a decent career, but if you look around you, the clothes you wear, and everything you sit on, your table, the food you eat; they all have got the touch of an artisan somewhere. Most of the people serving food in restaurants and building our houses are foreign nationals, yet we have this unemployment problem among our youth,” said Zungu. 

TVET college training creates opportunities for self-employment as well as working for other people; for instance, one can walk out of a TVET college and become a self-employed plumber. In countries like Germany, doctors often began their careers with an artisanal trade. To have more TVET trained students will help to revive the South African economy.

Lethiwe Nkosi, Network Mobiliser at Youth Capital, was asked if the youth have a clear conception of the TVET sector. She said that Youth Capital — a campaign that advocates for youth-centred and evidence-based solutions to youth unemployment —  tries to help students finish their studies and work-integrated learning. A lot of young people do recognise the value of the skills learned at TVET colleges, but many said that they were not well prepared for the world of work, and needed more work-readiness training. 

Students also struggled with applying what they learned to the world outside. The cost of transport during their in-service training was often problematic, so finding training nearer where they live would be useful. They also had to carry lunch to work because food has become so expensive. “These are seemingly small issues, but it is what I encountered,” said Nkosi.

She said for most young people, going to a TVET college is still usually the last resort. Many think that they should just do something rather than sit at home, and may end up at a TVET college for this reason. Most youth don’t know how much plumbers earn, for instance, so they don’t place much value on learning artisanal skills. 

Zungu said that 151 technical colleges were merged into about 50 TVET colleges back in 2004. Most TVET courses require maths and science as subjects at school. School leavers can either go to university or TVET colleges, but now in Gauteng there are schools of specialisation, which links up with the DHET centres of specialisation, as industry experts can pass on practical knowledge. To become an artisan one has to do training in the workplace. Universities are now accepting students who come from TVET colleges and recognising their training.

Clearing up the confusion

Nkosi said there is still some confusion in school leavers about what TVET colleges have to offer; many are not sure about what careers they can follow by going the TVET route, according to the small business owners that Youth Capital interviewed. She said there is a great need for more career days at schools, so that young people can understand what the role of artisans, among others, is, and the value of choosing this career route. 

Have we invested enough into clearing up confusion about enrolling at these colleges, asked Sithole? Zungu said there is an increased demand for TVET education, but there have been budget restraints. There has been a lot of investment in ICT, as some TVET courses can be taught online. Several new TVET campuses have been built recently. 

There has been marked growth in the number of Trade Test Centres — previously, there was only one, called Indlela, in Olifantsfontein — and we now have 34 in the country, which is essential, as all artisans must go through trade tests before they can become qualified artisans. We are looking to increase enrolments to one million TVET students by 2025, and have increased capacity in TVET staff training. This provides more options for students; there are now about 600 occupations that they can choose from. Programmes are also being updated to ensure they are responsive and relevant; for instance, a robotics course was recently introduced, which is an exciting development. 

Audience member Dingane kaSenzang said there needs to be more research done among employers, asking them what training they think young people should undergo. The funding models must be clear, to produce the right amount of artisans to match the market and address the unemployment problem. 

“Iceberg Slim” concurred, and said unemployment is fuelled by a mismatch between training and what the industries require. He added that much agility is required, so that the TVET curriculum matches what the market actually demands. 

Zungu said there are steps being taken to ensure that training remains relevant, but it is rare for students to walk out of training into the “correct” employment. The centres of specialisation are attempting to create alignment between what is taught and what is needed. We are moving towards demand-led education, so that the people we train can deal with the changing world. At a recent summit there was input from people in the industries. In countries like Germany, a lot of training is done in small businesses, and there is a “master artisan” qualification that enables you to open your own business.  

Matching skills to industry demand 

Sizakele Mphatsoe: Head of Education at Kagiso Trust, said that the focus over the years has been on producing engineers, through the Beyers Naude School Development Programme, which emphasises maths and science skills. However, it became clear that not all learners can progress to university. When the Department of Higher Education and Training introduced the Three-Stream Model (academic, technical vocational and technical occupational), Kagiso saw an opportunity to align with the technical vocational stream. Now we are creating a pipeline together with the Sasol Foundation to prepare Grade 9 students for TVET college education. We also conduct career expos which demonstrate that technical learning creates useful skills.  

Studies have revealed that every engineer needs about 15 artisans around them. The current load-shedding is damaging appliances, creating more demand for artisan training. We are assisting the government in terms of the NDP. In line with the Three-Stream Model, we are helping to produce 60% technical and 40% academic training, which will impact unemployment, and allow more youth to become self-employed. In addition, if the focus of the later grades is more technical and not just on academia, more youth will remain in schools, which will reduce the dropout rate, said Mphatsoe.

Should we be creating more partnerships with big organisations like Sasol and Eskom, so that students who enter the TVET system will have a better idea of where they will end up, asked Sithole? Mphatsoe said yes, definitely, our strategy at Kagiso is to work in partnerships; we are walking the path together with big industries. It is essential to pool resources, as it is very expensive to create workshops for practical learning. It really helps if learners already know at school which direction they want to go in later, and the skills we help to foster should be able to be absorbed by big industry.

To listen to the talk, click below:

https://twitter.com/i/spaces/1zqJVPNdAvWKB?s=20