50 Years Of Technical Education In Singapore: How To Build A World Class Tvet System

by Natarajan Varaprasad

Overview

This book describes in vivid detail how a newly independent nation with neither a history of technical education nor industry, developed in a short period of time a world-class system of technical and vocational education that helped it make rapid progress in its manufacturing and industrial sector. The economy and the education sector both developed in parallel, with each complementing the other, utilizing strategies and making the decisions that were to bring the country quickly to advanced status.Studies show that premature investment in higher education at the expense of technical and vocational education has created many leaders but few doers, leading to high unemployment. The Singapore Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) story demonstrates how governmental support helped changed the image of technical and vocational education to one equal with higher education, yet including bridges and ladders to allow everyone to maximize their potential.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9789814699594
Publisher:	World Scientific Publishing Company, Incorporated
Publication date:	05/20/2016
Series:	World Scientific Series On Singapore's 50 Years Of Nation-building
Pages:	200
Product dimensions:	6.50(w) x 9.80(h) x 0.80(d)

Table of Contents

Foreword ix

Preface xi

Chapter 1 The Colonial Legacy 1

Chapter 2 The Adrenalin of Independence 15

Chapter 3 Vocational Training Takes Off 27

Chapter 4 The Role of the Economic Development Board in Technical Education 43

Chapter 5 Polytechnics Come of Age 53

Chapter 6 The Transformation of TVET 83

Chapter 7 The Labour Movement and Worker Upgrading 123

Chapter 8 Connecting TVET with Higher Education 133

Chapter 9 Preparing for a Skills-Based Future 143

Chapter 10 Key Lessons for Policy-Makers 165

Bibliography 175

Index 177