4.4. EJECUCIÓN DEL PROGRAMA:
4.4.4. Entidades Participantes
The vocational discipline (modules 5-7) is meant to have a total of 36 credits. According to the defi nition of credits, this would then account for a student’s workload of roughly 1,000 hours, or about a third of the whole study programme. Another third is dedicated to the Master’s thesis and to practical studies on planning and organisation of learning, teaching and training, which should also be closely linked to the vocational discipline. In the following, I will offer some suggestions, of what the specifi c content of the modules could be.
Module 5
Module 5 deals with the fi rst area of competence for TVET teachers and trainers, covering the knowledge of occupational profi les, and the content of the occupational fi eld.
The Introduction to the Vocational Discipline course gives the students a fi rst overview of their fi eld of work. This includes information on the institutional settings of their future workplaces, on work areas and duties, and on the specifi c organisational and legal settings which apply to their vocational discipline. Here it might be also necessary for the student to have a change of perspective, depending
a Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering should realise that their future subject will concern working with electrical devices, and will not concern the development of such devices. Knowledge of electro-physical laws is superseded by knowledge and skills on how to install, put in operation, and maintain and repair of electric and electronic appliances.
Knowledge about the history of the vocational fi eld, standards and qualifi cations shall enable the students to develop a critical view on how the characteristics of work in the occupational domain are interlinked with changes in the economy, in technology, and in qualifi cations (e.g. occupational profi les, institutional settings, assessment procedures etc.). At the same time it should provide awareness of the latest developments, problems, and perspectives of TVET in the relevant occupational domain.
In occupational analysis and curriculum development the students learn to apply analytical methods which are suitable in identifying society’s and industry’s needs for skilled labour. Analysis is not restricted to mere fi gures, but also addresses questions of e.g. adequateness of skill profi les, legal standards, and any possibilities for improvements.
Module 6
The fi rst part of Module 6 offers - hands on planning, realisation and assessment of a teaching unit in the occupational discipline, application of discipline specifi c methods, media, and practical sessions. While planning, executing, and evaluating a teaching/training project, special emphasis is put on the application and refl ection of TVET methods in environments, which are specifi c to the discipline. Discipline-specifi c methods and media are introduced, selected, implemented, and evaluated. At the same time, students acquire deep insight into a selected subject area, namely that for which the teaching unit is prepared.
The second part of Module 6 deals with learning in work-processes, occupational and work process studies and curriculum development, and tends to be more theoretical. Methods of work process analysis are introduced which allow the analysis of two related aspects of work: fi rst, the knowledge, competences and skills used by skilled workers in order to perform in a specifi c work process, and second, how suitable a specifi c work process setting is in regard to the acquisition of the necessary knowledge, competencies, and skills. The analysis deals with the object of skilled work, the methods and tools used to accomplish the task, and the requirements, which are posed on the worker and on the product of work. The goal of
the application of such methods is the complete description of work processes. The descriptions are used for curriculum development purposes and for tailoring learning processes in TVET provision.
Module 6 covers mainly the 4th area of competence of TVET teachers and trainers, namely the analysis and organisation of occupation-related learning processes. It also provides methods for the analysis of work processes, which is part of the 2nd area of competence.
Module 7
Module 7, entitled Area of Specialisation in the Vocational Discipline covers half of the entire vocational discipline (18 credits), and is dedicated to working with specifi c research and development methodologies related to vocational disciplines. This is quite a general defi nition, which has to be more clearly defi ned in order to form a basis for student and teacher exchanges, and for mutual recognition of credits.
Module 7 covers the two remaining areas of competence of TVET teachers and trainers, namely (1) the object of occupational work and (2) analysis, shaping and organisation of work processes. Here students acquire an in-depth knowledge of occupational work, using methods introduced in other modules and by studying specialised knowledge needed in the respective occupational domain.
That means, that professional work has to be studied in terms of: • the object of work
• tools, methods and organisation which are used in work
• the requirements, which are posed on the worker and the product of work as well as in terms of the fl ow of work and business processes which usually can be coarsely structured in phases of
• planning, • execution, and • assessment.
These studies are conducted in model fi elds of application in each vocational discipline, as it is not possible to cover all possibe work scenarios in any given occupational domain.
Module 7: An Example
It does not seem adequate to specify Module 7 in a more detailed manner because of the diverse character of vocational disciplines. It will be the task of the vocational disciplines themselves to specify the contents of this module. In order to illustrate how this could be done, an example used at the University of Bremen is presented below.
TVET teacher students in ‘Electrical and Electronic Engineering and Information and Communication Technology’ can choose between the following areas of specialisation:
Production and Manufacturing Building Equipment
information and Communication Technology Media Technology.
If students choose specialisation in Building Equipment, they will do in-depth studies in some of the following subjects:
Electrical Energy Supply
- planning of electrical energy supply
- installation of electrical energy supply systems - operation and maintenance
Illumination
- Planning of illumination
- Installation, operation, and maintenance of lighting systems Heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC)
- Installation and operation of ventilation and AC systems
- Installation, parameterization, and operation of heating control devices - Planning, installation, and Operation of electrical heating systems Household appliances
Information and communication technology (ICT) equipment - Installation and Operation of ICT equipment
Building automation
- planning of building control systems
- Installation and parameterization of building control systems - Operation of building control systems
These in-depth studies not only provide expertise in the specifi c subject and in shaping related learning environments, but also enable the students to acquire expertise in other subjects when needed. The approach is closely linked to the paradigm of ‘life- long and self-reliant learning’, which is a must in an ever-changing job market.
Summary
This paper tried to describe, how modules 5, 6, & 7 of the Master Framework can form a programme. Certainly, it does not provide a detailed syllabus for the ‘vocational discipline’ part of the study course, but it does suggest certain key elements, which can be elaborated on and used for the comparison of programmes at different universities. It should be mentioned that further experience and expertise in TVET teaching related to vocational disciplines will be acquired in the practical studies in planning and organisation of learning, teaching and training, as well as through work on the Master thesis.
The specifi c competences and knowledge, which have to be acquired in the course of study in the vocational discipline, will have to be identifi ed and defi ned separately for each discipline. Here much work still needs doing, considering the number of vocational disciplines and the variety of possible areas of specialisation. I would like to invite everyone to contribute to the discussion on the design of the study course by contributing examples of ‘best practice’ and experiences in developing such courses. In this context I want to point out the forum of the UNIP website, which can be used for such discussions and exchange of experiences.
References
Arbeitsgemeinschaft Gewerblich-technische Wissenschaften und ihre Didaktiken in der Gesellschaft für Arbeitswissenschaft e.V. (ed), 2004: Rahmenstudienordnungen Gewerblich-Technische Wissenschaften für die Berufl ichen Fachrichtungen Elektrotechnik-Informatik, Metalltechnik und Bautechnik, Holztechnik sowie Farbtechnik und Raumgestaltung.
www.itb.uni-bremen.de/gtw/modules.php?op=modload&name=UpDownload&fi le =index&re=viewdownload&cid=3.
Gerds, P., Gronwald, D., Hoppe, M., Rauner, F., 1993: Begründungszusammenhang und Entwurf einer Studienordnung für ein grundständiges Studium des Sek. II-Lehrers für Berufl iche Fachrichtungen und das Studium Diplom-Berufspädagogik an der Universität Bremen. In: Bannwitz, A., Rauner, F.: Wissenschaft und Beruf. Bremen: Donat Verlag.
See: Rauner, F., Dittrich, J., in this volume (page 35-42): Increasing the profi le and professionalisation of the education of TVET teachers and trainers. Keynote Address to the International Conference on “Development and Implementation of a Master Degree Standard for Teacher and Trainer Education in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in East and South East Asia” in Tianjin, China, December, 9-10, 2005.
Veal, K.; Dittrich, J.; Kämäräinen, P. (2005): UNESCO International Meeting on Innovation and Excellence in TVET Teacher/Trainer Education. Report. Bonn: UNESCO- UNEVOC.
Peter Gerds, University of Bremen, Germany
Zhi-Qun Zhao, CIVTE/Beijing Normal University, China