To train people capable of facing the challenges of the changing labor market, the Educational System must improve Academic and Professional orientation, the offer and quality of training programs, and renew the teaching staff. These are some of the conclusions that emerge from the data of the latest study by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Education at a Glance 2019, which has recently come to light.
In this new report that analyzes how education is in the 36 countries that make up the OECD and 10 others, it shows the weaknesses of education, while hinting at some recommendations for the country to train students and prepare you for the challenges of the world of work, among which the following stand out:
Invest In Academic And Career Guidance
“As educational leaders, it is our responsibility to help students analyze the variety of opportunities and make informed decisions about their future,” says Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the OECD, in the report’s editorial. With this statement, the study values academic and professional guidance both to reduce early school leaving and to help increase student interest in studies.
The report additionally focuses on the need to offer youngsters a “wide scope of vocation ‘ways’ that appeal to them and furnish them with the aptitudes to explore through an unusual and evolving world.” To accomplish this, open doors should be expanded, program choices extended, and productive detailing.
Offer Students Quality Training Programs And Reinforce VT
The OECD also points out that “it is important to have quality training programs”, especially to avoid school dropouts and reduce the percentage of young people between 15 and 29 years old who neither study nor work, which in Spain is 19.1%, compared to 14.3% of the OECD average and 13.4% of the European Union. In fact, only Greece and Italy surpass Spain in the percentage of NEETs.
Likewise, the report highlights the “significant differences” that exist between the autonomous communities with respect to the NEET rate: in Melilla, for example, 30% of the youth population does not study or work, while in other autonomous communities such as the Basque Country this percentage reaches only 9.9%.
The formula that the OECD recommends reducing the rate of NEET is to offer them academic and professional guidance, as well as training alternatives that go hand in hand with providing students with work experience, such as the Vocational Training and Dual FP programs.
In a recent interview conducted by Educaweb with the Secretary-General of the OECD, he pointed out the importance of Vocational Training to reduce the NEET rate: “Vocational Training programs are intended to provide the necessary knowledge for better job placement, but you have to make sure that these programs are of a quality to fulfill their function “.
Renew The Teaching Team To Avoid A Shortage Of Teachers
The teaching staff is aging in all OECD countries and at all educational stages, so it is urgent to attract and train more teachers to renew the workforce and prevent the lack of teachers from affecting education systems, warns the report.
The figures speak for themselves: the proportion of Primary and Secondary teachers aged 50-59 in the OECD average is higher than that of teachers aged 25-34, raising concerns about the future shortage of these professionals of teaching. In fact, only 10% of Primary and Secondary teachers are under the age of 30 in the OECD average.
The percentages are below the OECD average: 8% of Primary school teachers are under 30 years old, while in Secondary and Baccalaureate they are between 4% and 3%, respectively.
Strengthen The Relationship Between The Education System And The Labor Market
The report also highlights the need for education systems and companies to work together to train the professionals that the labor market requires.
In this regard, Gurría points out in the report’s editorial that there are careers that are highly requested by the labor market and associated with the fields of engineering and new information and communication technologies, which, however, have insufficient demand.
Specifically, the study indicates that in OECD countries only 14% of young people opt for degrees in Engineering, Industry, and Construction, and 4% opt for information and communication technologies. Likewise, women make up less than 25% of the students who opt for studies related to these fields.
Increase Investment In Education
While spending per student is lower than the average for OECD countries, starting salaries for teachers are “relatively high,” the report highlights. The problem is that, over the years, the working conditions and salaries of teachers do not improve and this decreases their motivation. In other countries, on the other hand, teachers start out earning less and prosper over the years much more than teachers.
There are two reasons that explain the imbalance between public spending per student and teacher starting salaries: the estimated class size is smaller than in the rest of the OECD members, which means that there are more teachers per year. each student; while the starting salary for teachers is “considerably higher than the OECD average”, which triggers total spending.
Likewise, the report highlights that most countries dedicate a significant percentage of their public budget to education: for OECD countries it represents 10.8% of total public spending, the average in the countries of the Union European (EU) is 9.6%, while in Spain it is 8.6%. Specifically, the country spends 3.1% of its gross domestic product (GDP) on Primary and Secondary Education, compared to 3.5% in the OECD average.
