Vital strategies for vocational education to respond promptly to global trends

Dr. Pham Do Nhat Tien said that in order to promote the role and mission of vocational education (VET) in the context of the labor market being rapidly reshaped under the impact of technological advances, especially artificial intelligence, granting autonomy is a vital strategy to ensure that this system can be flexible and respond promptly to global trends.

Essentially, autonomy is a management method whereby vocational education institutions, within the scope of legal provisions, are given certain rights to decide on their own matters in organization and operation.

However, autonomy is not an end in itself. The purpose of autonomy is to improve the quality and effectiveness of training within the scope of roles, missions and tasks assigned to vocational training institutions.

Therefore, the difference in autonomy between countries is mainly in the scope and level of autonomy that vocational education institutions are implemented depending on each country's perception and assessment of the impact of autonomy on the implementation of the mission and tasks of vocational education institutions.

According to Dr. Pham Do Nhat Tien, in our country, autonomy is always a controversial issue in terms of understanding, regulation and implementation.

Previously, with a heavy management approach, autonomy was understood and regulated with many constraints and thus created many barriers in implementation.

Now, with an approach towards development creation, Resolution No. 71-NQ/TW has paved the way for vocational training institutions to be guaranteed full and comprehensive autonomy.

Dr. Pham Do Nhat Tien clarified: comprehensive autonomy means that the scope of autonomy is extended to all areas of organization and operation of vocational training institutions; including autonomy in training, scientific research, organization, human resources, finance, business cooperation and international cooperation.

Full autonomy means that, in each of the above areas, the level of autonomy of vocational education institutions is not limited by the level of financial autonomy or administrative regulations, but is given the right to directly and proactively decide on the management and development of their professional activities.

This is a breakthrough approach to create optimal conditions for vocational education institutions to be flexible, effective and creative in responding quickly to fluctuations in the labor market and technology.

With such understanding, Dr. Pham Do Nhat Tien believes that the full and comprehensive autonomy of vocational training institutions is shown in the table below:

TT	Autonomous field	Full and comprehensive autonomy
1	Train	- Autonomy in building and organizing training programs, opening new professions, recruiting students, teaching methods, evaluating learning outcomes, and granting diplomas and certificates.
2	Scientific research	- Autonomy in determining research orientation, presiding over scientific and technical topics and projects; technology transfer; innovation and application of technology in training and production.
3	Organization	- Autonomy to decide on organizational model, structure, number and positions of jobs; establishment, merger, separation, and dissolution of affiliated units.
4	Human resources	- Autonomy in recruiting, appointing, using, and managing staff, lecturers, and employees; building appropriate salary, allowance, reward, and discipline policies.
5	Finance	- Autonomy in managing and using budget, revenue sources, and asset investment; deciding on financial mechanisms appropriate to the tasks and scale of operations of the facility.
6	Business cooperation	- Autonomous signing and implementing cooperation with businesses in training, vocational practice, applied research, and technology transfer.
7	International cooperation	- Autonomous establishment of international cooperation in training, scientific research, exchange of experts, students and development of international joint programs.

However, the above autonomy rights must all aim to promote the role and mission of vocational education, ensuring that vocational education not only provides qualities and capacities for learners in finding jobs and creating jobs, but also contributes to promoting economic growth, social equity and environmental sustainability.

From the perspective of Resolution No. 71-NQ/TW, these autonomous rights must be within a common legal framework to reform and modernize vocational education, creating a breakthrough in developing highly skilled human resources.

Specifically, according to Dr. Pham Do Nhat Tien, the comprehensive and complete autonomy of vocational training institutions can be placed in a close relationship with the following goals to be achieved:

TT	Autonomous field	Target to aim for	Legal framework
1	Training and scientific research	Upgrade vocational training institutions to become modern and standardized facilities for training highly skilled human resources and applying technology in research, production, business and service ecosystems, ready for the future.	- Transforming vocational education from a school-oriented training model to a business-connected training model, promoting innovation, linked to the needs of socio-economic development, digital transformation, and green transformation; - Develop an open, flexible, interconnected, and diverse vocational education system towards standardization, modernization, democratization, socialization, and international integration.
2	Organization and personnel	Create a streamlined governance mechanism that allows vocational training institutions to be proactive in building their teams and organizational structures, thereby improving the quality and efficiency of operations.	- Complete regulations on staffing, standards, recruitment processes, and appointment of teaching positions according to international practices; - Develop policies to mobilize talented people outside of the teaching force to participate in teaching; - Implement the principle of not organizing school councils and having the Party Secretary concurrently be the head of educational institutions.
3	Finance	Diversify financial resources, reduce dependence on the state budget, create healthy competition and attract social investment for sustainable development and social justice.	- Develop mechanisms and policies to encourage individuals, organizations and businesses to invest in vocational education; - Building a legal framework to form funding funds and mobilize capital from the community; - Prioritize credit capital for vocational education development projects.
4	Business cooperation	Building sustainable, mutually beneficial relationships between vocational training institutions and businesses.	- Perfecting mechanisms and policies to promote school-enterprise cooperation; - Strengthen training in enterprises, especially vocational skills training in high-tech fields; - Encourage businesses to establish vocational training facilities.
5	International cooperation	Establish strategic partnerships to help vocational education institutions access advanced technology, training programs and management standards in the world, while closely connecting with the labor market.	- Raise vocational education standards to regional and international standards; - Promote foreign investment attraction in vocational education; promote cooperation and training links with Vietnamese vocational education institutions; - Promote the exchange of teachers and learners between domestic vocational training institutions and advanced vocational training institutions in the region and internationally.