Introducing occupational qualifications in the South African Technical Vocational Education and Training Colleges: The challenges

Abstract

The introduction of Occupational Qualifications to replace the pre-2009 qualifications in the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) sector is a site of intense conversation. In these debates are ensconced serious challenges related to the adoption and implementation of these qualifications. A plethora of recurrent themes such as the logic behind this curriculum change, the TVET colleges’ preparedness to implement the new qualifications, availability of resources, inter alia, are recurrent themes embodied in these debates. The debates have also illuminated how the socio-economic challenges have directly and indirectly affected the TVET sector curricula. The TVET curricula has not been insulated from the impact of these negative developments in the country. The attempt to respond to these negative developments by introducing Occupational Qualifications has turned out to be Kafkaesque for many TVET colleges in South Africa. Of particular interest are the challenges that confront the TVET colleges as they implement this new curriculum. According to the study from which this paper draws, many TVET colleges are struggling to implement the Occupational Qualifications. Guided by the dilemmatic spaces theory; applying a qualitative research design; and using interviews and documentation analysis to gather data from the sampled subjects, the study found that many TVET colleges encountered a lot of challenges in implementing the Occupational Qualifications. The study identified a lack of relevant Occupational Qualifications, a lack of places for work integrated learning, a lack of resources and a lack of qualified lecturers as the major challenges that militated against the introduction of Occupational Qualifications. These findings underline the importance of engaging in careful curriculum planning, designing and development when introducing a new curriculum