Annual Conferences
EfVET Annual Conferences gather every year more than 300 delegates from different countries, not only from the European Union but from Asia or America as well.
This event is an excellent opportunity for members and non-members to discuss hot VET topics with key policymakers, stakeholders, and VET professionals. As we always say, the EfVET network is all about our members. That is why the Annual Conferences are designed to be a network platform where they could meet other country fellows, present their Erasmus Plus projects, find Erasmus Plus project partners and, the most important learn more about the latest VET policy issues.
All in all, EfVET Annual Conferences are a milestone for VET professionals.
Virtual Annual Conference 2020
“COVID-19 beyond 2020: A new generation of VET?”
The COVID-19 is a health hazard of global proportion and also a wake-up call to unprepared policy makers who have been faced by unprecedented circumstances.
Notwithstanding the enormous investment in research and in international organisations, humanity has been caught on the wrong foot when faced by such a deadly enemy. While health care systems have had to increase their capacity overnight, other systems including education and training had to switch to remote work with all its challenges and opportunities.
This conference will bring together practitioners’ members of EfVET and other stakeholders to share their experiences in the face of COVID-19 and the impact on educational institutions focused on Vocational Education and Training.
Online teaching and learning has had its problems and its advantages. Many have experienced difficulty in making sure that the class meets at a particular time, on a given platform and with the same state-of-mind that normally takes place when people meet face-to-face. Accessing a platform, downloading material, sharing texts and interacting is not the same as when a normal classroom or lecture room is being used. What will be the impact of such a change in the mode of operation? Will technology prove to be more effective than human being parting knowledge, skills and competences or the reverse? How can teachers partner with technology and remain in command of the learning process? Will social distancing in education and training trigger a new generation of work-based learning? Which digital solutions should be adopted by VET Providers to face the challenges of new learning scenario? How online education can smoothly complement and integrate with classroom and work-based learning?
Online learning also carries a financial burden which many countries were not prepared to cover to the extents that it required. Delays in the provision of learning slots and material has been experienced in many countries. Postponement of European projects, meetings and conferences, the halt in mobility programmes will certainly have an impact on the way we view European cooperation in the future.
What will happen now that European projects, particularly those supported by the ERASMUS+ programme, will face when Europe gets back to its “new normal” mode of living? How will this change in programmes impact students, teachers and the academic year which will start in a few months’ time? How will the restrictions on the entry and exit of citizens of any origin affect internationalisation of education and training? And also, how can we have a totally new organisation with the same old financial budget and rules? Are these worlds connected or parallel?
Coupled with these challenging impacts of COVID-19 on education and training is the issue of economic recession which inevitably will bring a new wave of unemployment and the need for re-skilling and up-skilling of workers of all ages. Is this an opportunity to invest seriously in promoting Vocational Education and Training among the wider spectrum of a country’s workforce? Will businesses invest in E&T during times of recession or will they distance themselves from providing opportunities for work-based learning including apprenticeships until they recoup their momentum prior to COVID-19? Will international organisations and governments increase or decrease budgets for education and training when it is most needed in times of recession?
Data protection issues are also in agenda, with some experiences being quite intrusive in the lives of citizens and with schools and business having to deal with a whole new world of organisation and digital rules that, until now, were enough. If the data is the new fuel, many questions and restrictions will pose severely from now on.
Likewise, the protection and health of workers will also have to be ensured in a different way from what we have had so far. These and other questions will be asked during the online EfVET Annual Conference. Participants will be invited prior to the conference to share their experiences and to alert the organisers whether they wish to intervene in the exchange of views that will take place online. The online chat will be open throughout the conference so that participants can intervene with their statements and questions.
It is planned that the outcome of this conference will be an EfVET Declaration on VET in the post-COVID-19 era.
Other topics will be discussed during the Conference. Please read the full programme and theme.
Conference video – Watch it!
Presentations:
- Video Message by Mr. Nicolas Schmit – Watch it!
- COVID-19 and the Foreseeable Impact on Education and Training
- Andreas Schleicher, Director for Education and Skills, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) – Download
- Panel Discussion: “The Future of the Erasmus Plus Programme: Key Elements in a European Education Area”
- João Santos, Senior Expert – Vocational Education and Training, Apprenticeships, Adult Learning, European Commission – DG-EMPL – Download
- Michèle Grombeer, Head of the Skills Sector Unit A2 – Erasmus+: Platforms, Skills and Innovation, European Commission – Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) – Download
- Mika Saarinen, Counsellor of Education and Head of Unit, Finnish National Agency for Education (EDUFI) – Download
- Good Practice from EfVET Members and EfVET Declaration on VET in the post-COVID-19 era – Download all
- WS1 VET 4.0 – Presentation & Report
- WS2 Blended Mobility: A Challenge for the future – Presentation & Report
Other documents: Blended Mobility Presentation Results, Blended Mobility Roadmap, Blended Mobility Good Practice from Italy & Blended Mobility Good Practice from Finland - WS3 New Reality in VET: Practice in companies/college training, online learning – Presentation & Report
- WS4 Sustainable development goals in VET – Presentation & Report
- WS5 Post-COVID-19: The Education & Training roadmap to normality – Presentation & Report
- WS6 Online Learning and Teaching: The role of practitioners and capacity building – Presentation & Report
Roundtables Brochure – Download it!
Annual Conference 2019, Azores
“Robots, Human Capital and Digital Learning. Managing Transition and Inclusion”
The EfVET International Annual Conference 2019 ‘Robots, Human Capital and Digital Learning. Managing Transition and Inclusion” took place from 23 to 26 October in Ponta Delgada (Azores, Portugal).
Presentations
- Thematic Teams:
- The opening presentation by Stefano Tirati – Download
- Joint European Qualifications – Download
- VET.4 – Download
- Entrepreneurship – Download
- Internationalisation and Learning Mobility – Download (1), Download (2),
- Speakers:
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Second Panel discussion: work-based learning and technology – partners for the next generation of VET:
Keynote speech from European Institutions on European Commission VET apprenticeship and adult learning/Digital competences in initial VET
- Dana Carmen-Bachmann, European Commission, Head of Unit (VET, Apprenticeship & Adult Learning) DG-EMPL – Download
- Tina Bertzeletou, CEDEFOP, Expert, Department for VET Systems & Institutions – Download
Third Panel discussion: from stakeholders to shareholders – who should manage European VET beyond 2020? Final reflections on the workshop discussions and the theme of the conference.
- Hans Lehmann, EUC Syd – Download
Keynote speech on AI robotics
- Lars Mathiesen, Syddansk Erhvervsskole Odense-Vejle, Knowledge Centre for Automation & Robot Technology – Download
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Workshops:
Reports:
EFVET Conference materials 2019
Annual Conference 2018, Como
“Rethinking VET for Inclusive Excellence”
In the daily global challenges of educational and training activities, the importance to help students, mainly young Persons, to develop a personal resilience is paramount. Entrepreneurial, digital skills, and creative thinking are only some of the key competencies required in today’s, and the future, labour market as highlighted in recent EU policy documents, including the EU Skills Agenda in 2016.
As mentioned in the Skills Agenda, an ageing population will impact on European economic growth, increasing the need for higher productivity and higher skills (CEDEFOP, 2016). Global competition is dramatically affecting local markets and the sustainability of many enterprises. Technology is changing habits, consumption, production and ways of working (industry 4.0, internet of things): the future jobs of 65% of children starting their primary school today do not yet exist and will provide goods or services which are not yet requested (WEF, 2016). Innovation has become one of the key drivers for the future sustainability of both societies as a whole and people’s daily life (Chatzichristou, 2017).
Skills are the keystone for the future. The need to rethink VET has come:
- Overcoming current dichotomies between theory and applied training, HVET and academic systems, formal vs. informal or non-formal training. Professional competences, literacy and numeracy and soft skills are all crucial.
- Incentivising a lifelong learning attitude in students and adults, promoting more flexible pathways. “One-size-fits-all” training can be neither effective nor sufficient for a whole lifetime career.
- Strengthening stakeholder engagement, in terms of business-education relationships for internships, apprenticeships, training needs assessment and for promoting “educational pacts”, is crucial to creating quality training for Learners. Stakeholders should include parents, voluntary organisations and institutions, to drive a cultural shift in the perception of VET.
Presentations
Thursday 25th October 2018
Rethinking VET for Inclusive Excellence: keynotes
- Melania De Nichilo Rizzoli, Regional Secretary for Education, Training and Labour – Download
- The future of EU VET policy post -2020 João Santos, Deputy of Head Unit VET, Apprenticeships & adult learning European Commission, DG- EMPL – Download
- The bridge between VET & Industry Cristina Cofacci, International Industrial Relations, Multinational Company ENEL
“Outside the EU: cooperation and development for excellence”
- Jens Liebe, Senior Programme Expert & Regional Focal Point for Europe at UNESCO-UNEVOC – Download
- Cesare Onestini, Director of the European Training Foundation – Download
- Alice Wong, Qualifications Framework Secreta Authority, Hong Kong – Download
VET & Industry – a model of engagement
- Cristina Cofacci, International Industrial Relations, Multinational Company ENEL – Download
- Yvonne van Hest, Programme Director of the Brainport Development – Download
CEDEFOP building communities of Learning Providers
- Introduction and Coordination by Tina Bertzeletou, Expert, Department for VET Systems & Institutions, CEDEFOP – Download
- Learning providers & the challenge of technology-enhanced learning – René van Schalkwijk, EUproVET – Download
- Learning providers and EU mobility: reinforcing learning attractiveness and employability – Jon Harding, EfVET – Download
- Learning providers and migration: empowerment and integration through learning – Sylvia Liuti, FORMA. Azione srl – Download
Workshops
- 1. School-Enterprise Model – Download
- 2. Strategies for Internationalization of VET colleges – Download
- 3. HVET and Higher Apprenticeships – Download
- 4. Industry and Innovation 4.0 – Download
- 5. Management and Leadership Skills – Download
- 6. VET for Social Inclusion & Labour Market Integration – Download 1; Download 2; Download 3
Friday 26th October 2018
Digital Education Action Plan: Research and Innovation for Digital Learning
- Jeffrey Earp, National Research Council of Italy, Institute for Educational Technology (ITD-CNR) – Download
Erasmus + and beyond: exploring new opportunities
- Mika Saarinen, Counsellor of Education, Head of Section Finnish National Agency for Education EDUFI – Download
Erasmus + & Future Programme
- Future Erasmus Programme -Novelties for VET, Chrystalla Petridou, Download
Saturday 27th October
Workshops Reports
- 1. School-Enterprise Model – Download
- 2. Strategies for Internationalization of VET colleges – Presentation
- 3. HVET and Higher Apprenticeships – Download
- 4. Industry and Innovation 4.0 – Download
- 5. Management and Leadership Skills – Download
- 6. VET for Social Inclusion & Labour Market Integration – Download
Conference materials
Annual Conference 2017, Thessaloniki
“Work and Education aligned to the Future”
The World Economic Forum, in its 2016 publication “The Future of jobs”, states we are at the beginning of a Fourth Industrial Revolution. This is not only a technological revolution, as there are also socio-economic, geopolitical and demographic changes influencing the new scenario.
Today’s job markets and in-demand skills are vastly different from the ones of ten or even five years ago, and the pace of change is only set to accelerate. Governments, businesses and individuals alike are increasingly concerned with identifying and forecasting skills that are relevant not just today but that will remain or become so in the future to meet business demands for talent. Skills mismatches are then not only about today but between today’s skills and future skills requirements. Some studies forecast 65% of children in today’s primary schools will work in jobs not existing yet. So we must look at those skills people will need in order to face a rapidly changing labour market.
To tackle future challenges, all stakeholders – governments, companies, education providers and others – have to work closely to develop the 21st-century curriculum. It requires new and collaborative approaches – to support individual talent, innovation, and entrepreneurship and to facilitate new incentives and opportunities. The New Skills Agenda, launched in June 2016 by the European Commission, encompasses also a number of actions to ensure that the right training, the right skills and the right support are available to people in the European Union; reskilling and upskilling of our workers is critical too.
According to CEDEFOP’s Director, Mr James Calleja, one of the priorities for the next years is “to look at the world of work and the world of education and to see how we can align them to build the right workforce for the future”. So what is better other, than to explore in our 26th Conference in Thessaloniki how to bring closer those two worlds to face together this uncertain future?
Presentations
- Thursday 26 October
- Video Message by Ms Marianne Thyssen, European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs & Inclusion
- EU initiatives on VET: Empowering people with “skills for life” – Joao Santos, Deputy Head of Unit – DG Employment, Social Affairs & Inclusion, European Commission – Download here
- Promoting quality in VET Delivery – The way ahead presentation of Subgroup 2 “Learning Providers & EU Mobility”, Tina Bertzeletou Cedefop’s Senior VET Expert and Rasa Zymantaite, EfVET Secretary – Download Sub-Group 1 here and sub-group 2 here
- Friday 27 October
- How training links to employee engagement and operational efficiency, Anna Mamalaki, Member of BoD of IVEPE- SEV – Download here
- VET and work-based learning: international lessons from OECD, Pauline Musset, Policy Analyst, OECD DG for Education & Skills – Download here
- CEDEFOP introduction session by James Calleja, Cedefop’s Director and Irene Psifidou, Cedefop Expert – Download here
Workshops presentations
- Workshop 1: Quality apprenticeship in work-based learning, Hans Lehmann & Hans Severinsen – Download here
- Workshop 2: How to Establish bridges between VET and HE, Stavroula Bibila & Stylianos Mavromoustakos – Download here
- Workshop 3: Digital learning and how far we embraced? 1) Download here & 2) Here
- Workshop 4: How to beat early leaving from education and training?, Irene Psifidou – Download here
- Workshop 6: Industry 4.0, are we ready?, Luca Boetti – Download here
Workshops feedback
- Workshop 1: Quality apprenticeship in work-based learning – Download here
- Workshop 2: How to establish bridges between VET and Higher Education? – Download here
- Workshop 3: Digital learning and how far we embraced? – Download here
- Workshop 4: How to beat early leaving from education and training? – Download here
- Workshop 5: The upskilling and reskilling of today’s labour force – Download here
- Workshop 6: Industry 4.0, are we ready? – Download here and here
Workshops reports
- Workshop 1: Quality apprenticeship in work-based learning, Download here
- Workshop 2: How to establish bridges between VET and Higher Education? Download here
- Workshop 3: Digital learning and how far we embraced? Download here
- Workshop 4: How to beat early leaving from education and training? Download here
Conference materials
Conference pictures – see here
Annual Conference 2016, Valencia
“Quality in Action: Putting the learner at the forefront of everything we do”
On 25th Anniversary Conference we celebrated the Quality of VET in action and explore how Quality can be further embedded in all aspects of our activities – both at a strategic level and operational/delivery levels. Quality takes many forms and should form the driver for improvements in VET. Quality starts by putting the Learner first; at the heart of everything we do;
How do we raise the Learners experience?
There are so many aspects to this debate but all have an influence on quality; on perceptions; on learners motivation. The conference will encourage participants to share good practice in a range of areas.
Presentations
- Thursday 27th October
- The importance of VET in Spain, Soledad Iglesias Jiménez, Deputy-Director General for
Guidance and VET, Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport, Spain – Download here - How private companies can help deliver quality VET in practice. How can businesses and the different stakeholders assist each other in defining the skill needs in the short and in the long run? Locally, regionally and European level. Examples to co-operate with the VET schools and trainers as a model – Download here
- The importance of VET in Spain, Soledad Iglesias Jiménez, Deputy-Director General for
- Friday 28th October
- Vocational Education and Training: The OECD Perspective. Providing the right mix of up-to-date technical skills and generic skills, including literacy and numeracy, to support broader employability. The challenges of ensuring high quality teaching. Making the most of work-based learning, Mari Kiviniemi, Deputy Secretary-General of OECD Download here
- Learning in a Digital Age – the impact and opportunities of digital technology for quality in VET. How does VET address the challenges; the implications for both learners and teachers and trainers; a new pedagogy or just a tool?, Essi Ryymin, R&D Manager, Global Education, Principal Lecturer, Ph.D., HAMK University of Applied Sciences School of Professional Teacher Education, Download here
Conference materials
- Roundtables descriptions – Download here
Conference pictures here
Annual Conference 2015, Paphos
“Excellence in VET. What makes VET an attractive pathway to success?”
Labour markets are in constant change; demands for a higher skilled and flexible workforce are paramount; employability, entrepreneurship and digital skills are pre-requisites to those seeking to enter the labour market.
In several European member states, participation rates in Vocational Education and Training are significant but have the potential to grow more. According to EU research (CEDEFOP 2015), the EU average participation of young people who follow an IVET pathway compared to the more traditional ‘academic’ pathway into employment or Higher Education is 50.4%, with some member states being over 70%. In others, rates are relatively low. What makes the difference – how has the academic/VET divide been addressed? There is increasing recognition across Businesses and employers that there is increasing value afforded to them through VET, especially with the increasing shift toward Apprenticeships and work-based learning.
Vocational Education and Training, based as it is on practical skills development, offers a very attractive route to success for many. The emphasis of Apprenticeship opportunities in partnership between training providers and business is a good example of this, whereby young people gain relevant skills and transferable skills in a work environment.