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City & Guilds is sponsoring a new, independent research and development body, the City & Guilds Institute to improve international policy and practice in vocational education and training (VET).
The first phase of the project will undertake an international survey in nine countries to build an understanding of current issues faced by those with a stake in skills training around the world.
The City & Guilds Institute will use research and ongoing consultation to improve the design, delivery and assessment of skills.
The Institute will encourage dialogue across the wider skills community, from learners to vocational education practitioners and those in the wider research community, ultimately acting as a hub for an international network of key skills players.
Keith Brooker, Director of the City & Guilds Institute, said: “We and other members of the skills community have long recognised the need for an independent research and development body that helps turn policy into practice.
"That need has become pressing as countries around the world wake up to skills imbalances that have huge social and economic consequences.
“The City & Guilds Institute will work across the professional arena as well as with industry, commerce and governments to advance knowledge and shape future skills policy and practice. Together, we will work to bring about improvements in skills to raise economic and social prosperity for people, organisations and nations.”
The international audit, which will be conducted over the next few months, will cover Australia, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, India, Malaysia, South Africa and the UK.
It will build one of the most complete pictures of differing vocational education systems around the world ever compiled.
Key areas to be explored include tackling issues caused by ageing populations and migration, particularly in the more developed countries.
Matching vocational education and training to employer requirements will be one of the major focus points, while the Institute will also investigate methods for improving perceptions of skills so that it is considered on a par with academic routes.
The findings of these surveys will determine the different projects the Institute will undertake internationally. The research, reports and recommendations of the Institute will be widely shared with the aim of sparking engagement amongst the skills community and driving positive and meaningful change.
The findings of the international consultation process will be shared in late 2007, and the Institute is set to launch in early 2008.
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