Developing world skills
Developing world skills
There is no doubt that the importance of 'skills' has been growing all over the world and particularly in educational settings.
Knowledge and skills have become the foundation of the curriculum in many higher education institutions with students being trained to suit the needs of the world of work.
Throughout the history of educational research on the relationship between education and employment, there have been several attempts to define and categorise the term 'skills'.
For example, Booth suggests a four-category checklist of skills. These are:
Nowadays, many countries not only realise the importance of equipping their youth with the proper skills and knowledge, but they also have provided the opportunity for a worldwide skills competition in order to exchange cultures and ideas between various nations. The UAE is among those countries.
Recently, Abu Dhabi was the setting for a strategic educational and training event, held for the first time in the Middle East.
The symposium is expected to effectively contribute to the development of education in general and vocational education in particular.
Organised by the Institute of Applied Technology (IAT), in collaboration with EmiratesSkills and in cooperation with WorldSkills International, it was held under the patronage of General Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.
Representatives from the Ministry of Education, the Gulf Cooperation Council, educational institutions, private industries and businesses atttened.
The symposium examined the importance of promoting career skills in the UAE by establishing an organisation which will be called 'EmiratesSkills' (WorldSkills-Emirates). It is expected to be influential in the industrial march of the country, and will play a role in transferring the experience, know-how and technology from skilled professionals of industrialised nations to the UAE.
Another objective of the event was introducing and promoting the WorldSkills competitions and the measures taken by the UAE to bid for hosting the 42nd WorldSkills Competition in 2013.
The symposium included many presentations that focused on various issues such as the role of the Abu Dhabi Businesswomen Council in supporting craftsmanship projects by women, demonstration of the Irish experience in skills competitions, the Japanese preparation for the 2007 competition, industrial development in the UAE and other in-depth vocational presentations.
1. Self-reliance skills (eg. self-management, self-promotion, and planning action);
2. People skills (eg. team working, oral communication, leadership, and foreign language);
3. Generic skills (eg. problem-solving, flexibility, IT/computer literacy and numeracy, and commitment);
4. Special skills (eg. occupational skills, technical skills, understanding commercial goals and strategic planning skills).
WorldSkills International
WorldSkills International started in 1947 in Spain in order to deepen the importance of vocational education and training among students, parents, practitioners and employers.
The mission: To 'promote, through the cooperative actions of members, a worldwide awareness of the essential contribution that skills and high standards of competence make to the achievement of economic success and individual fulfilment'.
- It aims to position the 'WorldSkills Competition as the premier world event for skills recognition and advancement;
- 'Developing a new modern identity and a flexible structure to support the global activities of WorldSkills;
- 'Developing strategic partnerships with selected corporate, government, and non-government organisations to further the aims of WorldSkills;
- 'Facilitate networking among WorldSkills experts to develop new opportunities for skills development and innovation;
- Encourage the transfer of skills, knowledge and cultural exchanges between participants in WorldSkills and other young people across the world'.
To achieve these goals, WorldSkills will:
- 'Challenge young people, their teachers, trainers and employers to achieve world-class standards of competence in commerce, services and industry, and to promote the status of vocational training;
- 'Conduct WorldSkills Competitions in alternate years;
- 'Promote the exchange of ideas and experience in vocational training through seminars, meetings and competitions;
- 'Disseminate information on world-class standards of competitions;
- 'Seek to motivate young people to pursue further education and training relevant to their careers; and
- 'Facilitate communication and contacts between vocational training organisations around the world'.
UAE's role
- In 1996, the UAE joined WorldSkills International, which includes 48 member nations today.
- Since then, the UAE has participated in four world competitions — in Canada, South Korea, Switzerland and Finland, and it will participate in the upcoming gathering in Japan in November where the number of both participants and visitors is expected to be more than 1,600 and 500,000 respectively.
- EmiratesSkills, as a local part of WorldSkills International, is expected to effectively contribute to the promotion of vocational education and training in general and to the importance of skills in particular. Mr Al Bakery, a key organiser of the forum, also stressed that EmiratesSkills 'will be a pro-active tool in motivating the youth of this nation and in accelerating the progress of the Emiratisation programme. It can shape the outcomes of UAE's industrial revolution, which is today in its embryonic stage, as it depends on a highly skilled, motivated and well-prepared national workforce'.
- In my view, EmiratesSkills should be adopted as a nationwide strategy which would utilise the vision of our decision makers; the requirements of employers and the programmes and outcomes of our education system particularly higher education institutions.
- The ultimate objective which needs to be clearly set up is to create a highly skilled and knowledgeable generation of youth who could effectively play a role in the labour market, in addition to successfully participating in international skills competitions.
