When Turkey joined most of the rest of the world in mid-March to shut down non-essential activities in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, leading vocational educational and training institutions adopted a wide variety of strategies. But they shared one advantage: thanks to past experience with the use of information technology, digital content and televised lessons, they moved more quickly to adjust to the new reality than many peers in other places.
“We were lucky because our technological base was ready,” said Hakan Kahramaner, manager of the Altınova Vocational School at the University of Yalova. “That’s why we were quick to organize things.”
Kahramaner described what happened next at Altinova, which specializes in skills for the shipping industry, and the Yalova Vocational School, where he also teachers, as a “digital revelation.” Overcoming resistance from parents suspicious of the effectiveness of distance learning, the two schools used social media and other mobile tools to create an unprecedented “one-to-one” learning experience.
Trainers were encouraged to assume roles as coaches and trainers, working as partners with students rather than as top-down taskmasters. “There has to be good communication,” he said. Trainers “should understand the students.” The process “should be synchronized by the students, not by the trainers.”
In parallel, trainers were encouraged to exchange information and best practices, leading to a de facto peer-to-peer learning program.
Bige Tinmazsoy Susuzlu, general manager of the private Coşkunöz Education Foundation, reached a similar conclusion: “If an individual feels that she or he needs change” to improve the learning experience, the environment and behaviours should be adapted, she noted.
She highlighted two early initiatives that her foundation took during the lockdown. First, a previously scheduled mid-career CPD programme for 100 instructors was moved quickly and entirely online. Next a programme in Bursa province, Turkey`s automotive production capital, brought together 110 principals to focus on the concept of Industry 4.0, the umbrella term for the transformation of manufacturing through the use of cutting-edge smart technologies. Training for a 4.0 world covers not only digital technology and artificial intelligence, but also forging new ways of thinking “that increase effectiveness,” she said. When students “graduate they have to be more agile and open-minded.”
She recalled that “We were surprised to discover that online learning is maybe better” than the classical classroom-based methodology.
Staff and learners at the Yenimahalle Şehit Mehmet Şengül Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School Ankara, where Orhan Yilmaz serves as principal, developed their own curriculum and pedagogy to meet the challenge of COVID-19. Following the week-long post-lockdown in March, teachers and their students developed projects such as: a "Robot-Sterilizer" for sterilization of enclosed areas; mask production; and a device that uses UV-C rays to sterilize heavily trafficked indoor environments such as schools, hospitals, banks, offices and factories. They also deployed 3D printers to produce protective shields for healthcare workers.
Email and telephones led the way as communications tools for trainers and their students. Remote parent-teacher conferences were conducted. Instructional videos were produced. Administrators held frequent meetings with teachers to help them “adapt to the new reality,” Yilmaz said. “During these meetings, all kinds of problems were discussed and searches for solutions were initiated. In addition, the process was carried out dynamically by instantly sharing on school WhatsApp groups.”
All three educators believe that online and distance learning will remain important after the pandemic is over. Yilmaz’s school plans additional training for staff in the fall to fill remaining gaps and ensure “a healthier transition to the next year's lessons.” Additional video lessons will be prepared. “When we return to normal, we will continue to provide distance education,” he said.
Bige Tinmazsoy Susuzlu hopes that her institution`s progress can be enhanced by lessons imparted by peers around the world. “Methodologies have changed with this pandemic in Europe and other places,” she noted. “It will be very, very helpful for all of us to develop benchmarking from this period.”
To read recent blogs on the topic and engage in the discussion:
- https://openspace.etf.europa.eu/blog-posts/supporting-vocational-teachers-under-lock-down
- https://openspace.etf.europa.eu/blog-posts/etf-launches-webinar-series-best-practice-distance-learning
- https://openspace.etf.europa.eu/blog-posts/jordan-equipping-teachers-distance-learning
- https://openspace.etf.europa.eu/blog-posts/five-lockdown-lessons-israel
For more information on ETF Covid19 actions https://openspace.etf.europa.eu/pages/education-during-covid-19-crisis
For more information on ETF work https://www.etf.europa.eu/en and https://www.facebook.com/etfeuropa/
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