The National Audit Office of Estonia has evaluated the reorganisation of vocational education and its performance. The reform aimed to improve the quality of vocational education and increase the proportion of young persons involved, given the low employment rate among graduates and the need for skilled workers in the labour market. The audit examined the effectiveness of the reorganisation and highlighted the main challenges related to vocational education in Estonia.
About the study
An audit on ‘The effectiveness of the reorganisation of vocational education institutions’ (Riigikutseõppeasutuste ümberkorraldamise tulemuslikkus), conducted by the National Audit Office of Estonia (Riigikontroll), assessed the rearrangements in the vocational education system and analysed whether the system is in accordance with the needs of Estonian society and the labour market. The audit included state and municipal vocational schools as well as private vocational schools.
The analysis is based on interviews carried out with 30 respondents, including school directors and experts from ministries and other institutions involved in the development of vocational education. It also comprised focus group interviews with representatives of different national institutions and desk research on the basis of data from the Estonian Ministry of Education and Research (Haridus- ja Teadusministeerium).
Background
Although a major reorganisation of vocational education has been undertaken in recent years, certain objectives have not yet been reached. In total, people who have completed vocational education form about 27% of the labour force. However, the proportion of students has declined, especially in post-basic vocational education, mostly as a result of the overall decrease in the number of students but also because students prefer college or universities to vocational education. Thus, the state aims to increase the proportion of persons acquiring vocational education. The audit found that most activities that were planned in the Development Plan for the Estonian Vocational Education and Training System 2005–2008 have been put into practice. Nevertheless, the goals that were set have not yet been achieved.
Participation and qualification rates
Analysis indicated that most vocational education graduates enter the labour market without acquiring a professional qualification. One of the main targets was to ensure that 70% of vocational education students would acquire such a qualification. This goal was not achieved as the performance rate only reached 27% in 2008. However, it has increased fourfold since 2005 when the qualification rate was just 7.4%.
The audit also revealed that the target to increase the proportion of students in post-basic vocational education to 38% was not attained, as the actual rate stayed at 30%. Furthermore, the proportion of drop-outs was 19.8%, which exceeded the set target by almost 10 percentage points. Nevertheless, data showed that, overall, the number of students continuing their studies in vocational education has increased, especially those who continue their studies in professional higher education. While in 2005, 17.2% of vocational education graduates continued their studies in some educational institution, in 2008 this proportion was 19.3% taking into account only those who continued their studies within one year. Thus, the total number of students who continue their studies in professional education is even higher.
Employment and unemployment rates
As the employment rate among vocational education graduates has been low, one of the goals set in the vocational education system development plan for 2005–2008 was that at least 80% of vocational school graduates would be employed. However, this target was not reached as only 66% of graduates are working; 15% of the total work in some other field than the acquired vocation.
The unemployment rate among vocational school graduates has increased, but it is still lower than the overall unemployment rate among the total labour force. However, the audit showed that the highest unemployment rate among vocational education graduates is in economic sectors where the largest number of non-Estonians are employed. Hence, the ability to speak Estonian has a major impact on non-Estonian vocational education students’ opportunities in the labour market. A weak command of the Estonian language significantly reduces their competitiveness and lowers the opportunities to find work.
Recommendations
The National Audit Office of Estonia gave its recommendations to enhance the quality and competitiveness of vocational education and its graduates. It proposed finding new methods to analyse why students have dropped out or interrupted their studies so that necessary measures can be developed to limit this practice. The National Audit Office also suggested encouraging all vocational education students to successfully complete their final examinations, in order to ensure that they have acquired a qualification. In addition, it recommended devising a plan in relation to improving Estonian language skills among vocational school graduates, as this ability would make them more competitive in the labour market.
Liina Osila and Kirsti Nurmela, PRAXIS Centre for Policy Studies