17. Summary in English

This publication gives an overview of the most important pedagogical and didactical areas in vocational education and training, in which the reform of vocational education and training 2000 has meant innovation of content and form. The vocational education and training (VET) programmes in Denmark are alternance training programmes which represent a modernised form of the traditional apprenticeship training with roots back in the Middle Ages. The publication does not give an overview of the reform as such. For a deeper understanding of this, which requires knowledge about the political, administrative and structural sides of the reform, we refer to the Ministry of Education's publications to this effect [65] .

In chapter 2, an overview is given of the social changes, which have led to the reform. Changes in working life, economic life and culture have created new competency and qualification needs. Now greater emphasis is laid on flexibility and core competencies and ability and motivation to learn. This also means an increased emphasis on learning rather than on teaching. This development will again have consequences on the way in which the curriculum is described. Radical changes are being made to a watered-down tradition of describing aims with roots in the educational approach of the 1960s.

Chapter 3 accounts for an approach whereby education is with a topological metaphor described as a learning landscape. A landscape of learning possibilities, where the learner has options, and where it is therefore possible to establish an individual 'pathway' in the form of a personal education plan.

This makes a change compared with the previous idea that courses of education consist of a few standard programmes, which are the same for all, and where the students, who are divided into classes, follow each other and at the same pace.

The individual education metaphor is inspired by an OECDreport, see list of literature. The chapter introduces the 'didactical room' as a concept which is to open up for alternative possibilities of organisation and design of programmes in a way which is innovative compared with the traditional school from the days of industrialism. Also other concepts are introduced for a more precise description of the function of the programmes: Transition, transmission, differentiated teaching, differentiated education and inclusion.

Chapter 4 accounts for a Finnish inspiration for Reform 2000, namely a non-graded organisation of the Finnish primary and secondary sector. With this inspiration, a radical change of the organisation of the programme is proposed building on individualisation and flexibility through consistent modulisation of the content of the programmes with wide-ranging options for the individual student.

The learning topological approach and flexible organisation, which individualise the courses, have huge consequences on the design of the 'didactical room'. These consequences are taken up in chapter 5, which accounts for the concrete design of the pedagogical and legal regulatory system. This room is defined in three levels: the central, the local and the specific, topical level. Furthermore a didactical room is structured, which is borne by two 'pillars': the general 'pillar' comprises the global supply of education and training, and the individual 'pillar' comprises the courses of education of the individual students. In this individual 'pillar', the reform has introduced two new didactical tools: The student's personal education plan and the educational portfolio or log-book. Chapter 5 also introduces the taxonomic considerations which new formulations of aims require. Here, we present the taxonomy which has been created by NSSB in the USA (see literature list). Emphasis is laid on a distinction between competency and qualification..Chapter 6 introduces the reform's new tutor function (the socalled contact teacher) as the tool which is to support the student in his or her work with defining and completing the individual courses. The tutor function is described as a pedagogical function assumed by teachers. This function is so far-reaching that it is anticipated that all teachers are to extend their subject-teacher role with the tutor role so that the school can take on this function. All teachers have to function as contact teachers for approx. 10-15 students at a time. One of the aims of the tutor function is to develop the metalearning that takes place in the student in a constructive way so that the student becomes more and more able to assume responsibility for his or her own learning.

The development of the learning concept is the theme of chapter 7. Here, emphasis is in particular laid on special practice learning and the inspiration which can be had from recent learning theories where concepts such as 'situated learning' and 'legitimate peripheral participation' and 'the reflective practitioner' now play a major role.

Chapter 8 is about an extension of the didactical considerations. It introduces the concept 'the student as a didactic player'. This concept is a consequence of the individualisation of the desired development of competencies and of the changed learning concept. By 'the student as a didactic player' is meant that it is not meaningful only to see the teacher as a didactic player. If the student is to escape the role of objective of the traditional teaching and assume a more subjective (active and responsible) role, then he or she must be seen as a didactic player in relation to his or her own course and learning process. And it should be part of the curriculum to develop the student's abilities so that he or she becomes able to take on this role.

The chapter also arguments for the necessity of looking at the way in which the programme is being organised as part of the didactics: Organisation as didactics..Chapter 9 gives an overview of the concrete proposals for a taxonomy for the description of aims. The proposed taxonomy takes its point of departure in the NSSB-proposal (chapter 5).

This has been elaborated on to comprise three categories of aims with the emphasis on a distinction in the terminology between competencies and qualifications. The three categories of aims are: 1) technical, vocational competencies/ qualifications, 2) work preparedness and 3) general and personal competencies. Categories 2) and 3) are specified in six and three sub-categories, respectively. Three proficiency levels are proposed: 1) Beginner level, 2) routine level and 3) advanced level. The chapter furthermore gives an overview of the requirements for the total module structure and criteria for the description of the 'situation contexts' which are to fill in the individual modules.

The topic for chapter 10 is the needs to meet the needs which the individualised and flexible programme creates and the needs for new information structures at the schools. The modular curriculum structure with many options creates new needs for presentation, registration and documentation of educational data. New forms of databases and access to the information are necessary in order to be able to find one's way around the didactic room. Teachers and students must be able to meet under new forms. And it must be possible for ITsupported learning forms to gain a greater foothold.

Chapter 11 deals with the possibilities that exist to develop the facilities of the learning in the form of rooms and equipment which support more flexible forms of learning. Open learning facilities and simulation are among the possibilities mentioned.

Chapter 12 is dealing with the needs to see the social relations during the course of education from new points of departure, when the courses become individual and flexible.

Chapter 13 discusses the changes which the reform has meant for the teacher role. The discussion is in particular focused on.the changed subject teacher role and the entirely new tutor function (the contact teacher). It furthermore looks at the interaction between these roles and two other pedagogical roles: the educational and vocational guidance counsellor role and the middle manager role.

The individual pillar is the theme of chapter 14, which summarises and amplifies on what has previously been said about the student as a didactic player and on the conditions which must be met in order to fulfil the intentions of the reform in relation to the individual course of education and the development of the students' competencies and the quality of the students' professional qualifications.

The business part of the programme and the interaction between the school part and the business part of the programme in an alternance training programme is the subject of chapter 15. This chapter arguments for the fact that the student as a didactic player and as responsible for his or her own learning possibilities becomes the basis for the way in which the quality development of the interaction takes place.

The final chapter, chapter 16, uses a development and evaluation model for European educational reforms in the field of upper secondary education. An EU-report (see literature list) looks at reforms on the basis of a principle of promotion of 'parity of esteem'. Four strategies are identified to achieve 'parity of esteem': vocational enhancement, mutual enrichment, linkages and unification. The plans for vocational education and training reform 2000 are assessed in relation to these four strategies.

Denne side indgår i publikationen "Pædagogiske og didaktiske overvejelser bag erhvervsuddannelsesreform 2000" som kapitel 17 af 23
© Undervisningsministeriet 2000