Technical and Vocational Education and Training

Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) means the kind of education, training and skills development that is related to technology, practical subjects and livelihoods. Practical knowledge, skills and understanding about different occupations can be acquired through TVET. To ensure employment short-medium-long term education- hands-on training is provided to the TVET students. Directorate of Technical Education (DTE) was established in 1980 with the aim of creating skilled human resources through the expansion and improvement of technical education. It is a part of Technical and Madrasa Education Division (TMED) under the Ministry of Education, Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. The main functions of DTE are - human resource management, conducting development activities, supervising academic activities and liaising with local and international organizations concerned with technical education. The total number of government technical education institutions is 119. There are 64 Technical Schools and Colleges (TSC), 49 Polytechnic Institutes, 4 Engineering colleges, 1 Technical Teachers Training College and 1 Vocational Teachers Training Institute(VTTI) for teacher training and higher education. The Bangladesh Technical Education Board (BTEB) was established in 1967 to manage, supervise, regulate and develop the TVET institutes, conduct examinations, regulate and award certificates. BTEB is formulating a 4th Industrial-Revolution-based curriculum to prove its worth in line with the demands of the changing labor market. According to the curriculum prepared by BTEB there are 4 levels of TVET which are - 1. Short course, 2. Certificate course 3. Diploma stage and 4. Degree stage.

Short Course Short courses (360 hours) in 101 occupations are conducted for a period of 3/6 months. Short courses are better known as basic trade courses. Basic trade courses are being imparted in a total of 3223 institutions including government and private polytechnics, TSC, TTC and various training institutes. Work is underway to convert the short course into National Technical and Vocational Qualification Framework (NTVQF).

Certificate Course According to the syllabus prepared by BTEB, SSC (Vocational)/Dakhil (Vocational), HSC (Vocational) and HSC (BM) courses are going on at certificate level.

SSC/Dakhil (Vocational SSC (Vocational)/Dakhil (Vocational) starts from class IX. It is a combination of general education and practical education and duration is two years. Students must pass class eight (JSC) for inclusion in this curriculum. Ongoing trades include General Electrical Works, General Electronics, Dressmaking, Computer & Information Technology, Ceramics, Civil Drafting with CAD, Shrimp Culture And Breeding, Building Maintenance, Automotive, Fish Culture And Breeding etc. The syllabus is being refined to ensure aligning 13 (thirteen) trades of SSC/Dakhil (Vocational) course with NTVQF. 429 new TSCs are being set up across the country through two ongoing development projects. From 2021 academic year, JSC (Vocational) education has been introduced in 35 TSCs up to 6th-8th class. JSC (Vocational), SSC (Vocational) and HSC (Vocational) courses will be introduced in the remaining government TSCs established under the project in phases. Upon passing, students can pursue higher education in technical and vocational or general education or be employed.

HSC (Vocational) Two-year HSC (Vocational) course combining general education and practical education is running in 64 government TSCs. Students in this course have to complete 12 weeks of practical training in a factory with theoretical and practical classes. Students who have passed HSC (Vocational) can pursue higher education in technical, engineering and general education streams or be directly involved in work. At this stage, education activities are running in 14 trades.

HSC (BM) The 02-year HSC (BM) course is running in 1032 private MPO institutions at the higher secondary level. In this course, the students have to complete 06 weeks of practical training in the industrial factory with theoretical and practical classes. Students can pursue higher education in general and take up employment according to other qualifications. Five specializations are running this educational course. Namely- computer operations, secretarial science, accounting, banking and business ventures. The HSC (BM) course is run on an allied basis with more than 7 (seven) occupations.

Diploma Course Courses in Diploma in Textiles, Diploma in Fisheries and Diploma in Agriculture Technology including 04-year Diploma in Engineering are running in various government and non-government institutions under BTEB. The number of first admission seats in these institutions is 57420.

Diploma in Engineering Diploma in engineering courses are offered by 49 Government polytechnic institutes and 511 private polytechnic institutes. Total number of seats in the1st semester admission is 1, 69,160 and a total of 34 technologies are taught. Namely- Automobile, Aircraft Maintenance, Architecture and Interior Design, Computer, Telecommunication, Ceramics, Chemical, Civil, Electrical, Electronics, Electromedical, Food, Environmental, Graphic, Surveying etc. The technology based syllabus of Diploma in Engineering curriculum is being aligned with NTVQF by including occupational content.

NTVQF Certification The National Technical and Vocational Qualification Framework (NTVQF) was formulated in the National Skills Development Policy-2011. It includes TVET in 6 levels. Six levels of NTVQF have been evaluated and certified under BTEB since 2012. Industry experts carry out the evaluation activities. BTEB evaluates technical institutes using its own instruments and recognizes them as Registered Training Organization (RTO) and Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) Assessment Centers. So far, 401 competency standards and 401 course accreditation documents have been prepared in 183 occupations in 12 sectors. 12 industry skills sectors namely- Construction, Furniture, Tourism and Hospitality, Light Engineering, Ceramics, Pharmaceuticals, Leather and Leather Goods are being certified with NTVQF's training. Skilled workers with no institutional recognition/certification are being certified as pre-recognition of competency through RPL assessment. More than 45,000 trainees have been certified as competent by June 2021, including previous experience recognition (RPL) certification. There is a demand in the job market for certified NTVQF graduates.

The Bangladesh National Qualification Framework (BNQF) framework has been formulated by incorporating six levels of NTVQF in coordination with all education disciplines of the country (general education, technical and vocational education and training, madrasa education). The 1-10 level BNQF has been finally approved at the National Steering Committee meeting. Following the BNQF structure, technical and vocational students will be able to pursue higher education later.

Teacher-Teaching Courses for TVET Teachers In order to increase the skills of TVET teachers, the teacher-teaching curriculum introduced at the Technical Teachers Training College (TTTC) in Dhaka is a. One-year Diploma in Technical Education, b. Two year B. Sc. in Technical Education. Diploma in Technical Education conducted under the supervision BTEB and B. Sc. in Technical Education supervised by Dhaka University. One month long Basic Foundation course and subjective training for all TVET teachers are carried out in TTTC. In order to enhance the skills of vocational education teachers VTTI conducts training at various levels of occupational short course (1-4 weeks) under NTVQF.

Government Initiatives to Improve TVET In recent years, the government has increased investment in technical education. Till 2019, the number of approved posts created for teachers and staff under the DTE was 619. Recently, a total of 26,128 posts of teachers and technical staff have been created at the initiative of the Department of Technical and Madrasa Education through regular activities and development projects at the government level across the country. The ongoing projects will create 29,075 more posts of teachers and staff in the newly established government technical institutes. Initiatives have been taken to set up 6 technical teacher training colleges in the 6 divisions with the financial assistance of Asian Development Bank.

Technical and vocational education is essential to ensure human resource development and its proper use in Bangladesh. Promoting and disseminating technical and vocational education is essential for achieving economic prosperity through building skilled manpower. Various timely activities have been undertaken as per specific and realistic action plan. Only through vocational and practical training through technical education will the huge potential population of the country be able to get employment in their own skills in the workplace at home and abroad. Technical education opens up job opportunities, as well as paves the way for higher education. There is no substitute for private involvement in improving the quality of technical and vocational education. [Abdur Rafique]