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ECVET
PHOTO: KRZYSZTOF KUCZYK
From the launch of Erasmus+, there has been growing interest among vocational schools in the ECVET system and its use to improve the quality of mobility as part of programme projects. Every year, the institutions have been supported in proper understanding ECVET principles and the benefits of the system for students, teachers and schools
Beneficiary first
ECVET stands for European Credit System for Vocational Education and Training. For many years, it was one of the European Union’s policy tools developed to facilitate the acquisition of professional qualifications and to support mobility and lifelong learning. The aim of the initiative was also to promote mechanisms for the recognition of achievements gained in one country by institutions operating in others. The ECVET principles have been implemented in many European countries since 2009. In Poland, the national authorities are supported in this activity by the National Team of ECVET Experts established in 2012. At the start of the Erasmus+, expert activities became an integral part of the programme. ECVET was a tool for careful planning, monitoring and evaluation of the learning process. It supported the organisation of mobility and ensured its quality. It thus contributed to greater student mobility not only between educational institutions, but also between companies offering professional training in many European countries. Between 2014 and 2020, the composition of the team changed, but its goals remained unchanged: » disseminate information about ECVET to stakeholders, » provide advice on the use of the system in mobility projects,
» recommend ways of using ECVET principles in vocational education and training and in higher education, » exchange information and good practices as part of domestic and international co-operation.
The starting point for the development of the ECVET system were recommendations given in 2014 for the use of ECVET principles in Polish system of education. In the following years, an important topic in the experts’ discussion was the use of the system of accumulation and transfer of achievements in programmes with a professional profile. The team conducted two studies on the use of ECVET principles in Poland (2016) and on validation of learning outcomes during admission to studies (2018). In connection with the new regulation of the minister of education on the core curricula in sectoral school occupations, in 2019 a training programme was developed on the ECVET system for beneficiaries of Erasmus+ and Operational Programme Knowledge Education Development.
In the years 2014–2020, ECVET was promoted during more than one hundred local, regional, national and cross-border meetings. The beneficiaries of Erasmus+ could obtain information on the system during annual information days and regional conferences organised by the National Agency of Erasmus+ in Poland. The staff of vocational schools and centres for continuing education and practical training learnt about the system during cyclical conferences of the Polish Craft Association (2014), industry seminars organised by the Centre for Education Development (2017 and 2018), and training sessions for vocational education teachers, consultants and methodology advisers employed in teacher training centres (2019). The principles of the system were also presented to representatives of local government units, higher education institutions, research institutes, industry organisations, employers’ organisations and labour market institutions during the European Congress of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (2017 and 2019), the Congress of the Education System Development (2018 and 2019) and the Congress on Non-Formal Education (2019).
Training activities of the National ECVET Team of Experts concerned first of all the use of the system’s assumptions in learning mobility projects implemented under Erasmus+ and Operational Programme Knowledge Education Development. Since 2014, 19 workshops and one webinar have been staged. They were attended by nearly 800 participants. They had the opportunity to learn good practices, prepare exemplary descriptions of learning outcomes and methods of their verification for a selected industry.
The team members also opened up to co-operation with experts in areas related to ECVET. In the passing Erasmus+ framework, they regularly met with experts from the Educational Research Institute and the Centre for Education Development. They also maintained occasional relations with the Contact Point for Polish and European Qualifications Framework and the Euroguidance Poland network.
the use of ECVET principles was declared in 58% projects approved in the VET sector
2014 from the launch of Erasmus+, beneficiaries participating in events and conferences organised by the Foundation have been informed about the role of ECVET in ensuring the quality of learning mobility and in building trust in qualifications
2015 the Team of Experts is already 16 strong. Among the members are practitioners in the field of VET and higher education as well as former Bologna Experts
2016recognisability and usefulness of the system grows. As many as 45% of beneficiaries of the Vocational Education and Training sector of Erasmus+ Programme plan to organise internships and apprenticeships abroad using the tool
2017 as part of partnership projects, innovative materials based on ECVET principles are developed: an application to compare qualifications in the construction professions and a bank of training modules for the waste management technician occupation
2018 as part of advisory activities, the publication entitled
Learning outcomes and their verification in learning mobility is published. It describes tools that facilitate raising, developing, and accumulating competences using ECVET
2019 this year, a strong emphasis is placed on counselling for
Erasmus+ beneficiaries who implement learning mobility projects and on promoting ECVET among employers, representatives of higher education and vocational education and training
2020 the work of experts ends with case studies on the development of market qualifications as well as on VET and higher education systems
