Quality Of Vocational Education In UAE

Running Head: QUALITY OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN UAE 1

Quality of Vocational Education in UAE

(Name)

(Institution)

QUALITY OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN UAE 2

Literature Review

Essence of Vocational Education

There have been several studies that have examined the essence of adult

education through vocational educational programs. Hodskin asserts that

secondary education is innovating programs that focus on the increasing need

to solve real world problems for the contemporary worker. In addition

secondary schools are facing competition from other educational profitable or

non-profitable organization that focus on employed adults. It has thus

become a need for the development of creative educational programs to

attract adult learners who are in pursuit of flexibility and value in programs

(Arthur-Mensah & Alagaraja , 2013).

Vocational education is based on the application and development of

particular knowledge that is necessary for certain societies in occupation that

are middle level. In addition vocational education is all about general

education, technological relevant sciences and acquisition of relevant

practical skills and knowledge relevant to jobs in different sectors. Wilkins

(2001) is of the opinion that vocational education is a fallacy. Farouki (2016) is

against the idea that vocational education is a fallacy and insists that

vocational education is a type of training that develops the basis for future

foundations instead of being a means for job entry. That vocational education

leads to development of specific skills that last a lifetime. It is a method of

allowing members of the community to deal with certain challenges in order to

become productive members of society.

QUALITY OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN UAE 3

The ILO recommends that vocational education ought to developed

well to offer opportunities that lead to the development of skills relevant in the

labor market

Vocational Education in the UAE

A unique feature of vocational education in the UAE is that it is free to

access to all citizens. The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs is in charge of

the oversight role over vocational training in the UAE. The vocational

education initiatives in the UAE have been in existent since the 1980’s to

cover for the increased demand of technical skills in industry that were lacking

Historically Emirati nationals have low rates of participation in the

private sector. It shows the great extent of vocational training in the UAE. The

improved quality of vocational education is evident in UAE Universities as

regards to the employment frequency with 68% of firms in Dubai recruiting

vocational training students regularly. The Dubai Polytechnic is a case of

interest since it was created to market and industry data that showed the need

for better vocational education to help the Dubai youth’s gains skills for

technical jobs.

Despite the numerous successes of vocational education in the UAE,

there have also been several challenges equally. Initially the UAE economy

was highly dependent on pastoralism, agriculture and trade. The oil boom of

the 1970’s led to tremendous economic growth in the UAE. This thus led to

the increased urgency to change the workforce to produce skilled workers that

meet the demand of modern industries. Education is key to achieve this.

There have also been increased concerns on pedagogy with the education

systems implementing modern methods of teaching.

QUALITY OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN UAE 4

Effective Vocational Education factors in the UAE.

The UAE has traditionally relied on instructors from UAE and other

Middle Eastern Countries for cultural reasons but this has begun to change as

policy makers have commenced the hiring of Western instructors to help in

the modernization of the sector. Another change is student-centered approach

as regarding pedagogy that is introduced to get rid of the traditional models.

This is to create student autonomy and their development of independent

thought in the process. There are several initiatives to improve vocational

education in the UAE. With the increase decline of enrolment, UAE

secondary schools have since improved on programs that focus on real world

practical experiences for students. They have also collaborated with different

technological parks and the military to offer engineering internships (Ouyang,

Shuh-Ren , & Shelley, 2016).

The educational councils both in Abu Dhabi and Dubai have played a

pivotal role in the improvement of vocational education in the UAE. They have

both have the mandate in the Emirates unifying their approaches through

public participation. They are charged with the responsibility of increasing the

ability of secondary schools to offer vocational education that meets the

demand in human resources in specialized fields.

There is the existence of the policy of Emiratization that is touted as

huge reform platform for UAE vocational education. It main objective is to

bring more Emiratis into the labor force thus leading to a higher rate for the

workforce with participating Emirates nationals. This is meant to create

independence from foreign labor force. The main goal in particular is the

increase of share of jobs by Emirati nations in industries of gas and oil

QUALITY OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN UAE 5

production, trade, insurance and tourism. The main objective of Emiratization

is to lure laborers from the public to the private sector. There is a low rate of

participation of Emirates national in the private sector creating a lack of trust

between the employees and employers hence the creation of certain quotas

for employment to meet a certain threshold of Emirati nationals.

To this effect the promotional of education through vocational

educational programs in the UAE is the way forward in addressing the

imbalance brought by the number of Emiratis employed in engineering fields.

Through the provision of the necessary skills then the students are better

placed to pursue such opportunities. The schools are thus regarded as

necessary platforms for the advancement of vocational education in the UAE.

Different institutions in the UAE like Abu Dhabi National Oil Company have

put in place career development centers to assist hundred of Emirati

secondary students in tertiary skills acquisition.

Importance of Vocational Education in the UAE

The National Qualification Authority is charged with the responsibility of

the regulation of vocational education in secondary schools. It was

established in 2014 to offer excellence in vocational and technical skills for the

betterment of economic and social development in the UAE. It ensures that

the students meet the requisite skills that are relevant to their respective

industries.

Vocational education allows Dubai to have a comparative advantage

with other Middle Eastern countries, as they are then able to have flexible and

skilled workforce, which is a vital driver for economic growth in the region.

UAE has increased the numbers of approved secondary vocational education

QUALITY OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN UAE 6

centers to around 800 institutions. The focuses of the trainings are in foreign

languages, computer education and finance. As such in recent years, the

UAE has turned to be a destination for professional development for most

career professionals.

There is an increased demand for vocational skills in the UAE with 10

skilled personnel required to have gained vocational skills from secondary

before they transition to other institutions of learning. It gives the trainee

students an opportunity to explore alternative paths for careers.

Importance of cultural perceptions and the quality of Vocational

Education

The cultural perceptions regarding vocational education for secondary

students has changed in recent times. This is a result of the positive effects

emerging from the training and the resulting job placements and skills

acquired. The parents have changed their attitudes instead of focusing on

higher education programs as the only ultimate destination for the students.

The investment on career enhancement programs by the UAE has seen the

wide acceptance of the vocational education as alternative career paths for

students who just cleared secondary education.

Research Questions

 How effective are the current evaluation methods used in the measurement

of the outcomes of vocational education programs in the UAE?

 How to alter the current evaluation methods that are applied in the

evaluation of vocational programs to increase their effectiveness?

QUALITY OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN UAE 7

References

Farouki , D. T. (2016, May). UAE student, staff and educator attitudes towards

character education. University of Exeter .

Svensson , M., & Lindell, M. (2010). Among Demons and Angels: Attitudes

towards system evaluation for quality improvement in advanced vocational

education. Quality in Higher Education .

Wilkins, S. (2011). Human resource development through vocational

education in the United Arab Emirates. Journal of Vocational Education and

Training, 54 (1) , 5-26 .

Altin, S. V., Tebest, R., & Kautz-Freim, S. (2014). Barriers in the

implementation of interprofessional continuing education programs – a

qualitative study from Germany. BMC Medical Education .

Arthur-Mensah, N., & Alagaraja , M. (2013). Exploring technical vocational

education and training systems in emerging markets: A case study on Ghana

. European Journal of Training and Development .

Funnell , P., & Muller, D. (2007, Jun 28). An Exploration of the Concept of

Quality in Vocational Education and Training. Innovations in Education &

Training International .

Hodkinson , P. (2011, Feb 16). Journal of Vocational Education & Training

Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription

information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rjve20 Technicism, teachers and

teaching quality in vocational education and training. Journal of Vocational

Education & Training .

QUALITY OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN UAE 8

Hodkinson, P., & Hodkinston, H. (1995). Markets, Outcomes and the Quality

of Vocational Education andTraining: some lessons from a Youth Credits pilot

scheme. The Vocational Aspect of Education .

Ouyang, B., Shuh-Ren , J., & Shelley, H.-L. (2016, September). Vocational

Identity Formation of College Students in Macau. THE CAREER

DEVELOPMENT QUARTERLY .

Pech, R. (2009). Emiratization: aligning education with future needs in the

United Arab Emirates. Education, Business and Society: Contemporary

Middle Eastern Issues .

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