ETF bridging support to Ukraine’s vocational education and training system and qualifications system in 2016-2019

Ukraine

ETF has been supporting the reforms of vocational education and training system and qualifications systems in Ukraine since 1996.

In 2014 Ukraine signed the Association Agreement with the European Union. Article 432 of the agreement states “The Parties shall endeavour to increase the exchange of information and expertise, in order to encourage closer cooperation in the field of vocational education and training with a view, in particular, to: (a) developing systems of vocational education and training, and further professional training throughout the working life, in response to the needs of the changing labour market; (b) establishing a national framework to improve the transparency and recognition of qualifications and skills drawing, where possible, on the EU experience”.

In 2016 Ukraine entered into an intensive period of reforms towards a competency-based decentralised education and training system, that was a real break with the previous traditions. A new law on education was adopted that underlines a competency-based approach to education and emphasises lifelong learning, a new concept for pre-university education the New Ukrainian School, revised the whole approach to pre-university education including initial VET, giving more importance to competences and key competences. A concept for the modernisation of VET in a decentralised system was elaborated.

These developments happened largely without donor support. Ukraine was the only country without a substantial VET reform project in the Eastern Neighbourhood.

ETF therefore decided early on to provide bridging support until an EU programme would be in place. These activities came in addition to the Torino Process, the SBA Assessment, and our work on Work-based Learning and Skills Anticipation in the Make it Match project.

During the last three years 2016-2019 the ETF support has been concentrated around the following main areas:

NQF implementation plan and development and establishment of the National Qualifications Agency. Development of National Qualifications Register.
Development of occupational standards, professional qualifications and independent assessment including qualification centres;
Development of education standards, education programmes and modular competence-based training programmes;
Support to decentralisation of VET: optimisation of the VET schools network and the role of regional VET Councils;
Public Private Partnerships and VET schools autonomy and accountability.

We have been working with national experts and institutions building as much as possible on existing capacities while sharing experience from EU member states and our work with other partner countries. The approach has been process oriented working with national stakeholders, rather than result oriented, taking the time to clarify and agree common concepts. This has resulted in strategic, policy and methodological documents and tools that have been elaborated by Ukrainian stakeholders and experts. In all the years that we cooperated with Ukraine, we have tried to be inclusive working with stakeholders from employers, ministries, the Verkhovna Rada, education providers, experts, trade unions and non-governmental organisations and international partners.

In cooperation with the EU Delegation and the European Commission, ETF contributed to the preparation, identification and formulation of the EU4Skills Project, which since July 2019 has been implemented in Ukraine. ETF made sure that all the results of its support to Ukraine are shared with the project, so that the project can build on these achievements.

At this page you can find materials developed by the Ukrainian experts in close cooperation and with the support of the ETF experts. These materials are: policy and strategic documents, methodologies, working documents, presentations of the events. All the policy and methodological documents have been discussed and validated by the Ukrainian stakeholders and some of them were used for elaboration of strategic, regulatory and legislative documents subsequently adopted by the Ukrainian government. We would like to share them with Ukrainian stakeholders and wider audience from other partner countries.

ETF bridging support to Ukraine’s vocational education and training system and qualifications system in 2016-2019

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