Achievements (Reporting Period: 01 April 2006 – 30 June 2006)

Training of school and training centre managers  

The training on module 5, titled ‘Coaching as a Management Approach', was implemented during the reporting period as follows:

The objectives of the training was to familiarize the participants with current EU member country practices, applied methods and trends in management of VET schools and training centres, specifically within the topic of Coaching. An additional objective of the training was to provide the required background and tools for the participants to complete the Action Learning Assignment before the implementation of module 6.
The training contained three main topics covering (i) communication as the basis for provision of coaching including understanding typical communication problems and sources of misunderstanding, (ii) coaching as a management skill for improvement of staff involvement and motivation, and (iii) three EU examples of tools for practical application of coaching in an organization.  The coaching after module 5 was implemented as set out in the table below.

The Action Learning Assignment after module 5 incorporated planning and preparation of three new initiatives to strengthen (i) the communication between staff and/or staff and management in the school, (ii) motivation of staff to engage in personal or professional development, and (iii) the opportunities for staff to engage in such activities. The general quality level of responses to the Action Learning Assignments was adequate to good with the majority of schools making genuine efforts to use Module 5 tools. Some schools showed a strong and systematic approach to setting up staff dialogue system and/or performance monitoring methods to inspire motivation and development. Others were hesitant to launch similar activities before a positive communication climate had been established.

Trainer Training

The national dissemination of the trainer training previously provided to the Development Coordinators in the pilot institutions was partly implemented during the reporting period. All teachers of formal and non-formal VET institutions as well as general high schools in the project's 30 pilot provinces including their sub-provinces participated in the dissemination. The process was completed on July 7, 2006 . Currently, the DGs are planning the dissemination to the remaining 51 provinces.

Feedback was obtained at the completion of each training event and the results are being centrally collected for analysis purposes.

Concurrently, the managers were trained especially on the modular approach applied in the reformed VET. The DGs are responsible for this training.

In previous reports, the issue of enhancing the capacities of Guide Teachers has been touched upon. The issue was discussed with the Project Coordination Unit as well as with the Deputy Undersecretary for VET and the Deputy Undersecretary for Projects. The outcome of the discussion was that the project should identify the training needs of the guide teachers in view of their taking on additional work tasks related to career guidance.

In accordance with this outcome, and in coordination with the Directorate General for Special Education, Guidance and Counseling, a short-term mission was arranged for Dr. A. Loven.

During his mission, Dr. Loven met with representatives of the different Directorates General of the Ministry of National Education and of the guidance centers of MoNE and ISKUR, as well as with professors of the departments of educational sciences of the Ankara University and the Middle East Technical University . During these meeting, the current career guidance policies and practices and the educational background of the guide teachers working in general and VET high schools were discussed, which was then the basis for assessing the gap between current and desired career guidance services offered in Turkey. To complement this information, a meeting was held with 12 guide teachers from different VET schools in Ankara , who commented about the current instruments and methods being used in career guidance and gave their reactions to the training proposal presented to them.

Based on the above meeting outcomes as well as different Turkish and international reports, a training package for the guide teachers was outlined and submitted to MoNE.

The first module will provide training on the factors that influence and direct people's behavior at transition points in life. This will be specially geared to selecting a career, and how these factors change with time, the economy, the labour market and other factors. Additionally, new methods where the proactive student is central will be introduced. Concretely, training will be given in using motivation, meaning, constructivism, and techniques like mapping, solution-focusation, narratives and role-play.

The second module of the career guidance training will provide orientation about the labour market. Special emphasis will be placed on how to strengthen knowledge about VET-alternatives, including information about the SVET project, how to go about seeking a job, drafting a CV and taking part in a job interview. Also during this training module, process-oriented guidance will be introduced. Working within a career guidance plan and the tools that can be used to fulfil this plan, i.e. the career wheel and other self-instructing tools, are elements of this training module. The participants will, moreover, receive training in interview techniques with special emphasis on working with groups of students and parents.  

In the third module of the training, the focus will lie on conducting research and staying up-to-date with new developments in career guidance. Also different models for information-evaluation are introduced and analyzed. The concept of using mini-libraries in (self-help) career guidance will be introduced during this module. Questions such as, “How feasible is an introduction of mini-libraries in Turkey ?”, “What should be the basic components in a mini-library?” “How can we organize these in a user-friendly way?” will be discussed. Furthermore, during this training module, the implications of living in a more digitalized world are discussed. Different applications of IT (Information Technology) and ICT (Interactive Communication Technology) that can be used in enhancing career guidance will be reviewed.

In addition to the training package, the expert produced a report with suggestions for an enhanced career guidance system in Turkey . These suggestions can be taken up by the World Bank project, which has a prominent career guidance component. This report was also presented to the Directorate General for Special Education, Guidance & Counseling Services, whose staff is currently working on reforming the psychological and career guidance services provided.

The implementation of the last module in the training program for school and training centre managers will partly take place in the coming period. During the event, each pilot institution will make a comprehensive presentation on the activities carried out in the institutions as a result of the training. Successes and failures will be analyzed by both the reporting institution, the other participants and the EU and local experts. Due to the limited time available, three parallel sessions will be conducted to allow sufficient time for each report as follows:  

Module 6 implementation

Sample Manager training modules

• Manager training modules (all below in one zipped file)
• Manager training module 1
• Coaching after modul 1 and 2
• Manager training module 2
• Manager training module 3
• Coaching after module 3
• Manager training module 4
• Coaching after module 4
  
• Manager training module 5
  
• Coaching after module 5
  
• Manager training module 6

Trainer training

The national dissemination of the trainer training will continue in the coming period. In the first step, it will be completed in the 30 project pilot provinces and their sub-provinces. In the second step, the remaining 51 provinces will be covered starting from August 20, 2006 .  

Since the first training on career guidance will start in October, preparations of material and invitation of participants will take place in the coming period.  

Upon specific request from the Ministry, the project will organize two technical training events for teachers in the Istanbul region on mechatronics and CAD/CAM at the Marmara University despite the fact that the project in principle considers its support to technical training as completed.  

Through the SVET project, Development Coordinators (former Change Agent Teachers and Curriculum Coordinators) in pilot institutions have received training on student centred methodology with the aim of focusing the classroom activities on the learning process of the students rather than the teaching process of the teachers. This shift of focus is a radical change in VET institutions, where teachers prior to the SVET project used to spend more than 90% of their time lecturing only.  

The trained Development Coordinators have disseminated their knowledge about student centred learning within their own pilot institutions and to all MoNE institutions in the 30 pilot provinces of the project. Since the practical classroom application of student centred methodology requires a change of attitude among the teachers, the relatively short training provided so far is not sufficient. More exposure to various types of practical applications in terms of ‘best practices' developed and documented by creative and innovative teachers could become a set of useful tools in the change process among teachers.  

The first step in the change process is to identify ‘best practices' applied by inventive and resourceful teachers. For this purpose, it is proposed to announce a ‘best practices' competition among VET teachers in pilot institutions. Teachers should be encouraged to document and make home videos of successful applications of student centred learning, and to submit their documentation and videos to the SVET project.  

To facilitate this process, each pilot institution should be supplied with a template for the documentation of ‘best practice' and the evaluation grid that will be used in selecting the best contributions. The SVET project will assist the ministry in assessing the contributions received and in selecting those that best comply with the purpose of the competition.  

The 20 best contributions will be selected and each of the contributing teachers should receive an award from the hands of the Minister during the teachers' day celebration. All these contributions will be collected into a publication that will be made available to all VET institutions in Turkey .  

It is a well-known fact that seeing is believing. Therefore, it is proposed that the 10 best contributions will be subject to semi-professional video recording. Students from communication VET high schools could be engaged to make such recordings, thus providing them with a practical task under the supervision of communication teachers.  

The completed videos should then be placed on the home page of the SVET project. The Ministry should in turn request all VET institutions to in-house organize a series of ‘half-day staff development events' during which these videos could be watched by the teachers and then discussed. The aim of the discussion should be to find ways of applying the shown ‘best practices' in their own institution.  

An organizing committee will be established during the coming period.

The draft job description for development coordinators (previously CATs and CCs) will be submitted to the DG boys technical education as the first step in having it approved by the ministry. Upon approval, it will be used to identify the remaining training needs of the Development Coordinators.

Sample Trainer Training modules

• Trainer Training modules (all below in one zipped file) )
• Trainer training module 1
• Trainer training module 2
• Trainer training module 3
• Trainer training module 4
• Trainer training module 5

Trainings done so far 

• Actual Tech Training Details Ankara Region
• Participants In Tecnical Training
• Technical Teachers List
• Technical Training Dates Izmir Region
• Technical Training Trabzon Region
• Technical Training List
• Note in Turkish