Vocational Education – Its Systemic and Structural Barriers in India
Vocational education is designed to equip students with job-ready skills, but there are factors affecting Vocational training and its effectiveness.
Vocational education and its modules are mainly designed to equip students with job-ready skills. There are many Government bodies, such as NCVT, SCVT, and the National Skill Development Corporation, created with high ambitions, but their policies are limited to paper. While vocational education holds immense potential for employability and economic growth, it faces several systemic and structural barriers in India that hinder its effectiveness.
Factors Affecting Vocational Education in India
Social Stigma & Low Perception:
Vocational courses are often seen as inferior to traditional academic degrees. In India, families usually prefer conventional education (engineering, medicine, etc.) over skill-based training. Further, many students are also unaware of lucrative vocational career paths.
Out-dated Curriculum & Poor Industry Alignment:
Currently, vocational courses often lack hands-on training and modern tools. No matter what the current industrial needs are like renewal energy or artificial intelligence, current vocational programs are lagging behind these industry needs. Also, in India, there are few alma-maters with organization tie-ups that can enhance the opportunity for apprenticeships or even placements.
Infrastructure & Trainer Shortages:
Most of the vocational institutes in India are lacking proper equipment like CNC machines, IoT labs, etc. which gives access to the latest technologies to support digital transformation.
Untrained faculty:
The staffing process in the Indian vocational institutes is far behind from contemporary advancements. Several issues contribute to this such as no proper on-demand skill training, non-implementation of proper curriculum based on present industry needs, etc. for which teachers often lack industry experience and up-to-date technical skills.
Weak Certification:
The certificate that ITI, Polytechnic and other vocational institutes are providing to students are undervalued in job markets. Indian companies are favoring degree holders over skill-certified candidates which gradually decreasing the value of vocational education. Moreover, there are no direct processes through which a candidate can transit from vocational to higher education.
Government Policy & Placement Issue:
In India, there are two different regulatory bodies for vocational courses namely NCVT (National Council for Vocational Training) and SCVT (State Council for Vocational Training). NCVT operates at the national level, while SCVT operates at the state level. Both NCVT and SCVT ITI courses are recognized and have the same equivalency for Government jobs, but NCVT courses are generally considered to have a higher standard. Further, the central budget allocation mainly prioritizes traditional education over skill development resulting in less opportunity for students. On one hand, the Government is creating multiple bodies to regulate vocational education which itself creates confusion and on the other hand, limits its funds thus declining its growth. Further, there are fewer or no employment opportunities offered to students within the boundaries of their educational institution and many skilled workers like electricians, welders, etc. after finishing their vocational training earn less than degree holders.
