Director-General of the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science OCW Alida Oppers (left) was one of the speakers at the opening of the second Caribbean Vocational and Trade Schools Network (C-VET) Conference in Saba on Monday.
SABA–Some sixty participants from the six Dutch Caribbean islands, the Netherlands, Barbados and Jamaica took part in the second Caribbean Vocational and Trade Schools Network (C-VET) conference in Saba on Monday. Main focus was the Caribbean Vocational Qualification (CVQ) and its implementation in Saba and St. Eustatius.
Saba’s Commissioner of Education Bruce Zagers, Director General of the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science OCW Alida Oppers and Saba Comprehensive School (SCS) Director and conference chairman Anton Hermans welcomed the participants at Eugenius Johnson Centre in Windwardside.
Technical and vocational education specialist Adrian Holder from Barbados was the keynote speaker at the conference which was financed by the OCW Ministry.
“We are here to help erase the stigma of vocational education,” said Master of Ceremonies Michelle Martie, a message that was underscored by other speakers.
“Vocational education is as important as any other education,” said Commissioner Zagers, who noted that former vocational students were now successful local entrepreneurs and “pillars of the community.”
“Unfortunately, there is a stigma associated with CVQ’s whereas vocationally-trained professionals are crucial to society, we cannot live and function without their skills,” said Holder.
Oppers said CVQ better served labour-market needs while also providing more opportunities for students, making the best of their potential and having a better chance at finding a job.
She said St. Maarten was an important partner in advanced education due to the limited scale of Saba and Statia. “It is important to pull together. I am happy to see so many representatives from St. Maarten here,” she said.
Hermans said it was important for secondary schools on all islands to work collectively to further improve vocational education and to face the challenges together.
Holder agreed that it was vital to invest in education and the future of youngsters. He mentioned the many advantages of the CVQ programme. Students overall attain a more positive attitude, are less often late for classes, their confidence gets a boost and they see the value of education. Moreover, students learn about teamwork, they become more safety conscious and gain employment more easily. The combination of solid work skills, high safety skills and good work ethics creates opportunities for entrepreneurship, but also makes these students very valuable to employers.
This week, SCS’s high school will start a CVQ pilot for technical-vocational education, while hospitality will commence in March 2019. Four students are taking part in the pilot.
The formal implementation of CVQ will take place in the school year 2019-2020. Director General Oppers congratulated SCS on the implementation.
Until now, Saba has the Dutch-based middle-vocational education MBO system. One important advantage of using the CVQ is that it makes it easier for students to continue their studies in the Caribbean.
Zagers explained that Saba invested quite a lot in vocational education in the past few years. “We had to start building from the ground level. But we now have a successful programme,” he said.
Prior to Monday’s conference, a Meet-and-Greet was held at Queen’s Gardens resort and spa in The Bottom on Sunday evening. Part of the conference kick-off was the launch of the Saba Vocational Promotion Video, which shows a day in the life of a tourist on Saba and the important role that vocational professionals play in the process to accommodate visitors to the island.
Aside from Monday morning’s official opening, the conference programme included break-out sessions, a lunch at SCS and field trips.
The second C-VET conference resulted from the initial conference held in St. Maarten in October 2016, where the desire was expressed to continue to meet each other to discuss and improve vocational and trade-school education in the Caribbean, and especially in the Dutch Caribbean.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/83051-saba-c-vet-conference-wants-to-erase-vocational-education-stigma
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