FOCUS ON TECHNICAL AND VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING: CURRENT TRENDS, FUTURE PERSPECTIVES

Today, with most countries struggling to achieve higher competitiveness in the economy, the power of knowledge transfer, the role of education is becoming more and more indispensable. A well-functioning education system could not only contribute to the achievement of a sustained economic growth but it can also represent a useful weapon in the hands of decision-makers for fighting poverty and social exclusion. In this sense vocational education represents one of the most important tools for integrating the young people into the labor market. Romania has made significant steps towards the modernization of the education system, including the implementation of the reform strategy, elaboration of the new legislative framework as well as the adoption of measures like the implementation of the Phare-VET Programmes in pilot schools, all having a significant impact on vocational education. The aim of the above measures was to support the development of new curricula and teaching methods, elaboration of new teaching and learning materials, specification of appropriate school equipment for the new curricula. In spite of this, the vocational education and training system in Romania still has some weaknesses like the inadequate school infrastructure, lack of well trained teachers and administrative staff, limited financial resources and above all the high degree of centralization. The aim of the paper is to discuss the transformation of the Romanian education system, the TVET reforms and their related effects on the level of education and the integration of the population into the labor market.